ECCO Staff Player Gwladys Nocera Defends ABN AMRO Ladies Open Title

Gwladys Nocera

ECCO staff player Gwladys Nocera defended her ABN AMRO Ladies Open title on the Ladies European Tour this past weekend with a one-stroke victory at Eindhovensche Golf in the Netherlands.

The win - Nocera's seventh career LET title and second of the 2008 season - was achieved thanks to a stirring, 18-foot birdie putt at the final hole. A 13-under-par total of 203 put Nocera one stroke clear of runner-up Melissa Reid from England.

"I certainly did not play as well as I would have liked and at times I was struggling to make pars, but I knew as long as I could keep fighting I could win," said Nocera. "Ultimately it doesn't matter how well you play as long as you are the one holding the trophy."

In winning, Nocera successfully defended a title for the first time in her LET career. She earned €37,500 and now leads the 2008 New Star Money List.

"Gwladys is a fierce competitor and understands how to win even when she doesn't have her best game," says Jesper Thuen, Sponsor and Event Manager, ECCO Golf. "Like many of the world's best players, she relies on ECCO comfort and stability in all conditions."

A late bloomer, Nocera turned professional at age 27 and has quickly made a name for herself on the global stage. A member of two European Solheim Cup teams, her best season came in 2006 when she won three times on the LET and finished runner-up on the money list to fellow ECCO staff player Laura Davies. She remained among the world's elite players with victories in 2007 at the KLM Ladies Open (now known as the ABN AMRO Ladies Open) and the EMAAR-MGF Ladies Masters.