Scotland’s Krystle Caithness enjoyed a super debut on the Ladies’ European Tour as she shot weekend rounds of 69 ad 71 to tie for 18th place at the £450,000 Deutsche Bank Swiss Open at Golf Gerre Losonne.

The 20-year-old St Andrews rookie, who played in last year’s Curtis Cup and was competing for the first time as a professional, had seven birdies in her two under par final round and she finished with a six under par total. 

Norway’s Marianne Skarpnord, with a final round 70, won the title on 16 under par,  one stroke better than England’s Melissa Reid, a former two-time winner of the Helen Holm Scottish Open Strokeplay Championship. The Derbyshire 21-year-old also closed with a 70 for 15 under.

Michele Thomson, last year’s Scottish Amateur Champion from Ellon McDonald, also had an impressive launch to her professional career. She shot 72 in the final round for one under par and shared 35th place.

Ayrshire’s Pamela Feggans, who has moved to Europe following a season on the US Futures Tour, was the third Scot and a third rookie to make the cut. She finished with a 75 for one over par.

For Caithness, a cheque for close to £5,000 was the perfect launch to her season. The first female professional from St Andrews, she highlighted her final day with a birdie at the third and then four in a row in an outward half of 33.

She did run up a disappointing double-bogey at the tenth, but hit back with more birdies at the 11th and 18th.

To add to her achievement, after finishing in the top 20 on her professional debut, Caithness was given further cause for celebration as she was  named as one of three Ladies’ European Tour Henderson Rookies.   

She will receive £12,000 and joins Swede Anna Nordqvist and Dutch golfer Cristel Boeljon as a Henderson Rookie.

“I was delighted to shoot three sub par rounds and I’ve already learned a lot about life on Tour,” said Caithness, a member of last year’s Curtis Cup team. “I’m very excited about the rest of the season and it’s great to be chosen as a Henderson Rookie.

“My aim is to play at a high level consistently. I thoroughly enjoyed last week and just want to keep playing the same way.”