After 15 seasons and 210 starts, England\u2019s\u00a0Eleanor Givens\u00a0can finally call herself a Ladies European Tour (LET) champion after coming from four shots back on the final day to win the 2026 VP Bank Swiss Ladies.<\/p>\n
In a tense showdown at Golfpark Holzh\u00e4usern, Givens fired a final round 66 (-5) to pip Whitney Hillier, Alexandra Forsterling and Anna Foster to the title with a winning score of 13-under par.<\/p>\n
The one-shot victory is Givens\u2019 first on the LET having joined the circuit back in 2012. Since then the Englishwoman has had several close calls and injury setbacks \u2013 even having to return to Q-School in December to fight for her playing rights.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t believe it!\u201d<\/em>\u00a0the 37-year-old said.\u00a0\u201cI\u2019m so excited and really proud of myself. I\u2019m a little bit in shock as well.<\/em>\u00a0I did feel pretty calm today, a lot calmer than I thought I would be. I just thought come on, let\u2019s go for this. My weekend had a nightmare start [because my clubs arrived late] so it\u2019s kind of fate that I managed to win this week. I took my chance.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThis is life changing. I was looking last year at whether I still wanted to play or not. I decided, \u2018no, come on, you\u2019ve got this!\u2019 You\u2019ve got the ability to play and still compete. I\u2019ve worked really, really hard behind the scenes. To have this trophy means so much.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n weden\u2019s Kajsa Arwefjall, a runner-up last year, held a three-shot lead before the start of play thanks to some exceptional golf on Thursday and Friday at Golfpark Holzh\u00e4usern. However the 26-year-old would drop three shots in her first 10 holes to relinquish the lead and open the door to the chasing pack.<\/p>\n Givens and Hillier, two veterans on tour, would capitalise going out in 32 (-3) and 33 (-2) respectively to share the lead as they made the turn. The former would make a clutch birdie at the 10th thanks to a fine approach and putt before Hillier bounced back with a birdie of her own at the 14th following a pinpoint approach.<\/p>\n The short par-5 17th would soon prove decisive in Switzerland. Givens, playing in the penultimate group alongside Forsterling and Wales\u2019 Chloe Williams, found the green in two giving her a comfortable two-putt birdie. Hillier meanwhile found trouble off the tee forcing her to awkwardly punch out from under the trees before missing a putt for birdie.<\/p>\n After Givens made par on the closing hole, a nervous wait transpired as the Englishwoman watched on alongside compatriot and close friend Liz Young \u2013 winner of the VP Bank Swiss Ladies in 2022. Her Aussie counterpart would miss both the fairway and green on the 18th eventually salvaging a par \u2013 a score which handed Givens her long-awaited LET victory.<\/p>\n \u201c210th time lucky right! No, I always knew I had the capability to win,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Givens said.\u00a0\u201cThis is actually really my first proper time being in contention.<\/em>\u00a0Some of just take longer than others.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m so lucky I\u2019ve got such an amazing group of friends on tour. Liz [Young] has won this event too, Christine [Wolf] won in India and it was her final event here this week before she retired. It makes me quite emotional seeing how happy they are for me. It\u2019s cool I get to put my name on this amazing trophy. I can\u2019t believe it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Despite finishing second, Hillier had a week to remember as she returned to her very best following several years of health troubles and challenges off the course.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels so good,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Hillier said, who now gets into the KPMG Women\u2019s Irish Open with the top-10 finish,\u00a0\u201cThe feeling is addictive. You just want to compete, play, and get close to winning. I was bogey-free today. Technically I couldn\u2019t do much else. I mean, I left so many putts out there, but it was tough to read the putts under that sun. It\u2019s my first time contending since 2022 and it felt so good. I slept well and was in a good mental space. It\u2019s just so nice to have my golf back to where it was.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The Australian ended the week on 12-under par alongside Forsterling \u2013 winner of the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open in 2023 \u2013 and Irishwoman Foster who secured her best finish on the LET.<\/p>\n Arwefjall\u2019s wait for a first win on the LET continues after she fired a final round 72 (+1) to finish the week in fifth.<\/p>\n Spain\u2019s Amaia Latorre ended the week in sixth on 10-under par thanks to rounds of 65-71-66. Her compatriot Harang Lee ended the week one back in a tie for seventh alongside Wales\u2019 Lydia Hall after chipping in for birdie at the 18th.<\/p>\n Rounding out the top-10 in a tie for ninth on eight-under par were Sweden\u2019s Moa Svedenskiold \u2013 current leader of the LET Access Series Order of Merit \u2013 and Mexico\u2019s Alejandra Llaneza.<\/p>\n