Meet the Girls: Ladies European Tour star Carlota Ciganda
Fact File
Date of birth: 01/06/1990
Place of birth: Pamplona
Nationality: Spanish
Height: 5’8”
Turned pro: 2011
About
Spanish superstar golfer Carlota Ciganda boasts a unique record.
The 25-year-old is one of the few players on the Ladies European
Tour to claim both the Rookie of the Year and Order of Merit titles. She was the first player since Laura Davies in 1985 to achieve the feat.
Ciganda first took up golf at the tender age of five, influenced, like many pro golfers, by her father. She could also draw inspiration from her uncle Jose Angel Ziganda, a former Spanish striker and now coach, although her biggest sporting hero is ultra-fit tennis star Rafael Nadal.
Ciganda enjoyed a successful amateur career, winning the 2007 British Amateur Championship and 2004 and 2008 European Championship.
She was a member of the 2006 and 2008 Spain World Amateur team, the 2005 and 2007 European Junior Solheim Cup team and 2004 and 2006 European Junior Ryder Cup team.
She made history while a student at Arizona State University by becoming the first player to win back-to-back Pac-10 Championships in 2009 and 2010.
She turned professional in May 2011 and her season-best finish in her rookie year was T17 at the RICOH Women’s British Open.
The year 2013 saw make the cut 16 times out of 19 events, which included two top-10 finishes.
Her impressive rise in the game continued in 2014 as she ranked second on Tour in the number of eagles (12) and fifth in average driving distance (267.713 yards).
The high percentage of cuts made continued in 2015 for Ciganda as she crossed the $1 million mark in career earnings.
The current World No 48 has represented Europe twice in the Solheim Cup ” in 2013 and 2015.
She contributed five points in total over the two competitions as Europe were victorious in 2013, but then narrowly lost out in 2015.
Social
Twitter: @Carlotagolf
Facebook: Carlota Ciganda