English juniors triumph in Holland
English pair Joe Dean and Lauren Taylor have earned places in top-tier professional events after their respective victories at the Poncat Dutch Junior Open
Whilst the English contingent at The Open were struggling to make their mark, the opposite was happening at Holland's annual Poncat Junior Dutch Open.
England Golf enjoyed a double celebration as Joe Dean and Lauren Taylor won the boys' and girls' title at the Toxandria Golf Club near Breda.
Dean - on his maiden trip with England Golf - returned a closing 71 for a two-under-par total before beating home favourite Lars van Meijel at the second play-off hole.
Dean opened up with a one-under-par 71 but found himself four back at the halfway stage after a second round 73, a situation that remained the same with one round remaining.
Despite a quadruple bogey nine at the 8th hole, the Englishman - from Lindrick, Yorkshire - made four birdies on the back nine, with two crucially coming at 17 and 18, to tie van Meijel (75).
Another English youngster, Suffolk's Jack Cardy, finished in a tie for third on one-under-par, with Lincolnshire's Nathan Kimsey ending in sixth place on level par.
In the girls' tournament, Taylor - the defending champion - stormed to victory with a level par total, finishing an astonishing 11 shots in front of her nearest competitor.
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The BBC's Young Sports Personality of the Year for 2011 led from start to finish, stamping her authority on the event with a third round 67.
She finished streets ahead of runner-up, Spain's Andrea Jonama, despite a closing 75.
As a result of their respective victories, Dean has earned a place at the European Tour's KLM Dutch Open, with Taylor in the field for the Ladies European Tour's Deliotte Ladies Open.
Nick Bonfield joined Golf Monthly in 2012 after graduating from Exeter University and earning an NCTJ-accredited journalism diploma from News Associates in Wimbledon. He is responsible for managing production of the magazine, sub-editing, writing, commissioning and coordinating all features across print and online. Most of his online work is opinion-based and typically centres around the Majors and significant events in the global golfing calendar. Nick has been an avid golf fan since the age of ten and became obsessed with the professional game after watching Mike Weir and Shaun Micheel win The Masters and PGA Championship respectively in 2003. In his time with Golf Monthly, he's interviewed the likes of Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Jose Maria Olazabal, Henrik Stenson, Padraig Harrington, Lee Westwood and Billy Horschel and has ghost-written columns for Westwood, Wayne Riley, Matthew Southgate, Chris Wood and Eddie Pepperell. Nick is a 12-handicap golfer and his favourite courses include Old Head, Sunningdale New, Penha Longha, Valderrama and Bearwood Lakes. If you have a feature pitch for Nick, please email nick.bonfield@futurenet.com with 'Pitch' in the subject line. Nick is currently playing: Driver: TaylorMade M1 Fairway wood: TaylorMade RBZ Stage 2 Hybrid: Ping Crossover Irons (4-9): Nike Vapor Speed Wedges: Cleveland CBX Full Face, 56˚, Titleist Vokey SM4, 60˚ Putter: testing in progress! Ball: TaylorMade TP5x
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