30 Jul 202311.08 EDTSo in Celine Boutier, France can finally celebrate a winner of the Evian Championship! Boutier never looked like shipping the lead she immediately extended at the start of her final round, serenely progressing around the Evian Resort and ending the week with four sub-70 rounds, the only player to do so. A thorough and systematic dismantling of the rest of the field. Brooke Henderson will be proud of her title defence, while Gaby Lopez, Celine Borge and Gemma Dryburgh posted career-high major finishes. But this is all about Boutier, who has become France’s fourth major-winning golfer of all time. Congratulations to Boutier … and thanks for reading this live blog. See you again for the final day of the British Open!
-14: Celine Boutier
-8: Brooke Henderson
-7: Gaby Lopez, Celine Borge, Kim A-lim, Yuka Saso, Nasa Hataoka
-6: Gemma Dryburgh
-5: Atthaya Thitikul, Megan Khang, Kim Su-ji, Rose Zhang, Nelly Korda
-4: Jennifer Kupcho, Esther Henseleit
-3: Morgane Matraux, Stephanie Kyriacou, Linn Grant, Minjee Lee
A delighted Boutier then gives a shout out to her family. “They helped me stay grounded … it’s really sweet to be able to share it with them … I wouldn’t be here without them … in golf you can always play better but I was steady in all four rounds … I was satisfied with my game this week … nothing else matters now I have this trophy, so I am really good for the rest of the year!” She is absolutely beaming, certain to enjoy this moment, the fulfilment of a long-held dream. A class act both on and off the golf course, and a most deserving champion.
30 Jul 202310.56 EDTCeline Boutier is handed the Evian Championship trophy and immediately collared for interview. “It definitely was not easy … the conditions were so tough … it could go either way really fast so I tried to just focus on each hole at a time … it was pretty challenging with the wind … I handled the first few holes really well … the putt on 2 was a big bonus … honestly this has been my biggest dream since I started watching golf … this tournament has always been very special to me, even watching as a teenager … to be able to hold this trophy is pretty unbelievable!”
30 Jul 202310.53 EDTThat’s a sensational final round of 68 by Celine Boutier. She was in complete control all the way around. Some tears of joy. Yuka Saso was one of the folk who drowned her in champagne. Simply delightful scenes. She goes off to the scorer’s hut to make sure her card is in good order. France has its first Evian champion, and only its third major winner in history, behind Catherine Lacoste (1967 US Open) and Patricia Meunier-Lebouc (2003 Dinah Shore). Factor in 1907 Open winner Arnaud Massy, the only French man to win a major, and you realise how rare and precious Boutier’s achievement is for fans of French golf!
30 Jul 202310.49 EDTCeline Boutier wins the 2023 Evian Championship!
In goes the par putt! A huge smile! The crowd erupts! On come some champagne wielding pals, who absolutely douse her in the stuff. What a celebration! The Evian finally has a home champion!
-14: Boutier
-8: Henderson
-7: Lopez, Borge, A Kim, Saso, Hataoka
First up, Nasa Hataoka wedges to a couple of feet. That’s a sensational finish to an otherwise underwhelming day for the 24-year-old Japanese star. She’ll tidy up for birdie and a share of third place at -7. Celine Boutier then finds the heart of the green … and nearly spins her wedge back into the water guarding the front right! Some pantomime oohs from the crowd before the ball stops safely on the green and she walks up to another wild ovation. Boutier sends her first putt five feet past, Hataoka taps in, and leaves the stage to France’s new major champion …
30 Jul 202310.42 EDTCeline Boutier doesn’t have a great lie. But it really doesn’t matter. She lays up carefully and finally allows herself an excited smile as she walks up the fairway to a great ovation from the French gallery. One solid wedge in, and any lingering doubts circling her head will be gone.
30 Jul 202310.40 EDTBrooke Henderson chips to 12 feet. She can’t make the birdie putt, but par will suffice. A final round of 70, and once the dust settles, the Canadian will be very proud of her title defence. She’s -8 and will finish the week as runner-up.
-14: Boutier (17)
-8: Henderson (F)
Brooke Henderson’s sole ownership of second spot, then. It’s in a little bit of jeopardy right now, because from the centre of the 18th fairway, she’s just sent a big hook into the gallery down the left. Meanwhile back on the tee, the champion-elect misses yet another fairway to the left, but only just. Won’t be long now.
30 Jul 202310.34 EDTIt’s not been Nasa Hataoka’s day either. Her approach into 17 bounces down a swale to the left of the green, and a weak chip up means she’s not scrambling par. A third bogey in four holes and she slips to -6. No such problem for Celine Boutier, who nearly drains a monster left-to-right birdie putt up and over a ridge running through the middle of the green. No matter! Par will do, and she’s got a six-shot lead going up the last. Mentions of compatriot Jean van de Velde are strictly forbidden.
-14: Boutier (17)
-8: Henderson (17)
It’s not been Nelly Korda’s day, but she finishes with a par after pouring in a 15-foot saver. A 72 to follow up yesterday’s sensational 64. She exudes disappointment after ending the week at -5.
30 Jul 202310.26 EDTBoutier sends her second at 17 into the heart of the green. She’s left with a long two putts for par, but once again that’s the safe play. Meanwhile up on 18, it’s a par for Yuka Saso who ends the week at -7.
30 Jul 202310.21 EDTCeline Boutier sends her tee shot at 17 into the longer stuff down the left. That’s been her miss for most of the day. It hasn’t cost her so far, though. It probably won’t cost her here, either; better to miss on the left than on the right, where Brooke Henderson found herself blocked out. And up on the green, Henderson misses her par putt on the low side, and she’s now battling to retain sole ownership of second place.
-14: Boutier (16)
-8: Henderson (17)
-7: Lopez (F), Borge (F), A Kim (F), Saso (17), Hataoka (16)
Boutier doesn’t quite give her birdie putt enough oomph. One more heave and it was in. But she’s more than happy to tap in for par. She remains five clear with two to play … and while Henderson wedges a fine third at 17 to six feet, the Canadian will need to make the putt if all the Is and Ts aren’t to be dotted right here, right now.
30 Jul 202310.15 EDTKim A-lim makes her third birdie of the week on 18 – she eagled it yesterday – and ends with a 69. She joins the current clubhouse leaders at -7.
30 Jul 202310.13 EDTCeline Boutier is three competent holes from glory. But she’s more than competent. She’s been brilliant. Oh, and the golfing gods have been with her today. Everyone needs a little luck to win a major, and she gets hers at the par-three 16th, her tee shot only just getting over the creek at the front, but then bouncing off the hill to the right of the green, the camber gathering her ball to 12 feet. This is so close to being over … especially as Brooke Henderson finds herself blocked out by some overhanging branches down the right of 17 and can only chip sideways. France prepares to get a major party started.
30 Jul 202310.08 EDTHenderson nearly teases the downhill 30-footer that remains into the hole. A big left-to-right swinger shaves the cup and refuses to drop .. and then back on 15, Boutier gets up and down for her first birdie in ten holes! Hataoka misses a short par putt and for the second major championship in a row, it’s a Sunday nightmare for the Japanese star. Boutier is so close now.
-14: Boutier (15)
-9: Henderson (16)
-7: Lopez (F), Borge (F), Saso (16), Hataoka (15)
Brooke Henderson really needs everything to go her way now if she’s going to have any chance of nicking the tournament from under Celine Boutier’s nose. But her tee shot at the par-three 16th, creamed deliciously straight at the flag, takes a hard bounce and, with the wind also conspiring against her, the ball rolls onto the fringe at the back. That deserved better.
30 Jul 202310.00 EDT… but Boutier doesn’t appear to be in the mood to give up any ground. She creams a fairway wood towards the green, the ball stopping just short of the dancefloor. This is the position from where Henderson just got up and down for her birdie. Boutier will fancy her chances of doing the same.
30 Jul 202309.58 EDTCeline Boutier finds the fairway from the par-five 15th tee. Nasa Hataoka meanwhile sends her ball behind a tree out to the right and is forced to punch out. Her ball flies into the rough on the other side of the fairway. Meanwhile up the hole, Brooke Henderson sends a distinctly average chip into the green … but then steers in the right-to-left curler from ten feet for a birdie she really had to make. Not over quite yet.
-13: Boutier (14)
-9: Henderson (15)
-8: Hataoka (14)
-7: Lopez (F), Borge (F), Saso (15)
Birdie at 18 for Gemma Dryburgh. The 30-year-old Aberdonian signs for a second 69 of the weekend, and she’ll be finishing in the top ten at a major for the first time in her career. This is by some distance her best showing at one of the big ones … and what a time to do it, with the Solheim Cup on the horizon!
30 Jul 202309.50 EDTBirdie at the last for Celine Borge. A 68 and the 24-year-old Norwegian will finish in the top ten on her Evian debut. She’s got a share of the clubhouse lead with Gaby Lopez at -7. Meanwhile a costly bogey for Nasa Hataoka, the punishment for sending her tee shot at the par-three 14th miles to the right of the green. I said this was a three-woman tournament now, and while that’s technically still the case, it’s really beginning to feel like a one-woman show now. It kind of always has.
-13: Boutier (14)
-8: Henderson (14), Hataoka (14)
-7: Lopez (F), Borge (F), N Korda (15)
Eagle at 15 for Nelly Korda. She’s too far off the pace for that to be any good to her – she’s -7 – but she could sell that for cash money to the members of the leading pack.
30 Jul 202309.43 EDTGaby Lopez is the new clubhouse leader. She rolls in a 20-foot birdie putt on 18 to sign for a wonderful final round of 68. It promised more, too, but this is going to be her highest finish in a major. Meanwhile Yuka Saso responds to dropping a shot at 14 with a bounce-back birdie at 15.
-13: Boutier (13)
-9: Hataoka (13)
-8: Henderson (14)
-7: Lopez (F), Saso (15)
-6: Borge (17), A Kim (15)
Brooke Henderson isn’t releasing her grip on the trophy just yet. Having made a disappointing bogey on 13, she looks like making another after coming up short at the par-three 14th then hitting a hot chip 12 feet past the hole. But she rolls the par saver into the heart of the cup. Realistically, this is a three-woman tournament now.
30 Jul 202309.35 EDTBoutier gives her par putt a good rattle, but it drifts off to the right on its last couple of turns. It’s her first bogey of the day, and her first in 19 holes. The lead is down to four, because Hataoka makes her par. I did the 24-year-old from Japan a disservice back there; her chip ended up a good deal closer and she tidies up easily enough.
-13: Boutier (13)
-9: Hataoka (12)
-8: Henderson (13)
Boutier wedges pin high, but a good 20 feet to the left of the flag. She’ll have work to do if she’s not to make her first bogey of the day. Hataoka could do with getting up and down here … but she underhits her chip and leaves a very missable five-footer for her par. Couple of big putts coming up.
30 Jul 202309.29 EDTBoutier’s tee shot at 13 finds a bunker down the right. She’s not up against the lip, though, and is able to take a shy for the green … but she takes too much sand and leaves herself 100 yards short of the dancefloor. Hataoka gets greenside but in thick rough, so doesn’t apply much in the way of matchplay-style pressure. Meanwhile Saso misses a short par putt on 14 to drop back into the pack at -6.
30 Jul 202309.23 EDTBrooke Henderson’s approach to 13 is a club short. She makes the fringe … then nearly drains the long birdie putt. But it’s always just missing to the left. She remains at -8. With holes running out, it looks as though her defence is going to come up slightly short as well.
30 Jul 202309.16 EDTCeline Boutier continues to do very little wrong. She doesn’t need to take any unnecessary risks, it’s time for percentage golf. No point aiming for tight flags, just send the ball into the heart of the green. Her dependable putter does the rest. Two putts at 12 and there’s another hole ticked off.
30 Jul 202309.12 EDTBrooke Henderson can’t make her par on 12. This hole has really cost the Canadian this week: she made bogey on Thursday as well, and a double yesterday. Bogey for Minjee Lee, too, her fourth in six holes. But up on 13, a fourth birdie of the day for Yuka Saso, and suddenly the top of the leaderboard looks a little different. Not the very top, obviously, but you get the point.
-14: Boutier (11)
-9: Hataoka (11)
-8: Henderson (12)
-7: Saso (13)
-6: Lopez (16), Kim A-lim (13)
The 2020 US Open champion Kim A-lim is this close to pouring in a birdie putt on 13. It would have been her third in four holes. She’s -6. Meanwhile Gaby Lopez seriously pulls her birdie putt on 16. Almost straight left the second it left the face of the bat. She leaves a tricky six-footer with a testing left-to-right break … and her flat stick continues to misbehave. Another miss to the left, and a birdie chance turns into bogey. She slips back to -6.
Brooke Henderson finds herself up against the face of a fairway bunker on 12 and is forced to take a large gulp of medicine. She splashes out then sends her third into the heart of the green. She’ll have to make a 25-footer to save her par. Meanwhile up on the par-three 16th, Gaby Lopez fires an arrow straight at the flag and will have a look at birdie from eight feet to consolidate her fourth-place position.
30 Jul 202309.01 EDTCeline Boutier has what appears to be an easier birdie putt than the one just drained by Hataoka … but golf doesn’t work like that, does it. It slips by from ten feet and the leader remains five clear at -14. Meanwhile the new sensation Rose Zhang birdies the last for a 68, and she joins the group of clubhouse leaders at -5 alongside Atthaya Thitikul, Megan Khang and Kim Su-ji.
30 Jul 202308.58 EDTNelly Korda shot a wonderful 64 yesterday to get herself into contention. But a slow start today – bogeys at 1 and 4 - scuppered her bid almost immediately. She makes birdie at 12, her first of the day, to return to -5 but doesn’t really bother celebrating it. Also not celebrating birdie much: Nasa Hataoka, who curls in a 25-footer on 11 to join Brooke Henderson in second place at -9.
30 Jul 202308.54 EDTNobody is taking a serious tilt at Celine Boutier. Brooke Henderson has a decent birdie chance at 11 but the left-to-right curler from 12 feet is always missing on the high side. She remains -9, five behind the leader.
30 Jul 202308.47 EDTBoutier continues to display wizardry around the greens. Another crisp chip, up and over the bank, landing precisely on the green and rolling out to kick-in distance. She remains five clear. This is a procession right now.
-14: Boutier (10)
-9: Henderson (10)
-8: Hataoka (10)
-7: Lopez (14)
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