Three lazy bogeys put Northland golfer Caroline Bon out of contention for a top-three finish in the North Island Strokeplay Championships, at Taupo Golf Club.
Heading into the final, Bon was second with an even par 146, four shots from leader, 12-year-old Lydia Ko, of Pupuke.
But she fell off the pace
yesterday in the third round, shooting three over to finish fifth equal with Nelson's Lisa Wright.
"I had put myself into a good position after the first two days. Had I shot par I would have finished third, but three lazy bogeys put me out of contention for the top three," Bon said.
Ko maintained her lead, shooting a final score of seven-under, while Zoe Brake of Whakatane and Pakuranga's Cecilia Cho, were second and third respectively.
Bon, who missed out on progressing to the professional ranks at the European Ladies Tour qualifying last month, was recently selected along with Lochiel's Emily Perry to represent New Zealand at the annual Lake Macquarie Ladies Amateur Championship in New South Wales.
Perry shot a four-round total of five-over par 297 last week, with Bon two shots behind. The pair finished sixth and seventh respectively.
"Competing in Aussie straight after qualifying school was great. I shot two one-unders on the last day to get back to seventh place. It was an awesome event," Bon said.
Considering the competition she faced overseas, and the fact she was able to claw her way back into the top 10 at Lake Macquarie, Bon said her fifth-equal finish yesterday had been a little disappointing.
Bon returned from Australia on Monday to play at Taupo. Her new focus is February's South Island Strokeplay, which she won two years ago.
Until then she will try to digest all the tips and information she has learnt over the past two weeks - and at qualifying school, which was an invaluable experience, she said.
"I'm so glad I went to Spain. I now know what I need to do - and I learned a lot ... I guess my latest results show that - two top 10 finishes."
Bon plans to return to qualifying school at the end of this year to have another crack at turning professional.
