In a tough final round at the Australian Open, Ashleigh Buhai proved as gritty as when winning the 2022 Women’s Open Championship, coming home a single shot of Korean legend Jiyai Shin.
That story should be the main take-away from a historic event, at which both the men’s and women’s events ran simultaneously and for equal prize money. However, it was somewhat overshadowed by a spat on the 18th green on Saturday afternoon.
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As the pairing of Marina Alex and Julienne Soo finished their 54th hole of the tournament, the two-time LPGA winner appeared unhappy with her playing partner, pointing to the side of the green.
Foxsports.com reported that the Epson Tour player “attempted to throw it [her ball] into the crowd – as is tradition during Australian summer of golf tournaments, giving away the balls as souvenirs.”
The news organisation then relays an account by Nine Network that, “Alex claimed the ball was left in the bunker while others said it was not in the sand, instead in an adjacent area near the crowd.”
The players refused the traditional end-of-round handshake and embrace, leaving a small, but significantly unpleasant taste.
In an event that contained two cuts for each of the events, Soo failed to make the final-day top-35, whilst Alex finished tied-eighth.
Check out the video of the incident here.
