Dottie fires ace, rules Eagle Creek Open

ICTSI golf scholar Dottie Ardina scored a hole-in-one on No. 8 then fired three more birdies in a bogey-free round of five-under 68 to dominate the Eagle Creek Open of the Laura Diaz Junior Golf Tour for the second straight year in Florida, USA Sunday.

The 14-year-old Ardina, three behind Trinidad and Tobago’s Monifa Sealy in the first round of the 36-hole tournament, parred the first five holes, banged in a six-foot birdie putt on the sixth before making an ace on the eighth. That fired her up to ram in back-to-back birdies from No. 10 en route to a six-under 140 total at the par-73 Eagle Creek Golf Club.

She won by four over Mia Piccio, who matched par 73 with four birdies and four bogeys for a two-under 144 for a share of second with Sealy, who struggled with a 74 after an opening 70.

Piccio won last weekend at World Woods and finished second at Tampa in September.

Debbie de Villa, the former RP Ladies Open champion, finished joint 13th with a 158 after a 77.

It was Ardina’s second straight win in the tournament, a leg on the Laura Diaz Tour for girls 13-18 years, with the ace Filipina shotmaker, on her second year as a golf scholar of ICTSI, out to surpass their impressive performance on her rookie season last year.

In five events last season, Ardina, the reigning Junior World champion and five-time US Kids World Championship titlist, posted two victories, one runner-up finish and two third place efforts and was named a First Team FCWT All-American.