THE North East flag flew proudly in the fierce winds of La Manga as Jodi Ewart blew away the rest of the field with a six-under round of 67.

The 24-year-old, who took home the England Strokeplay Championship to the Catterick club two years in a row during her amateur days, scored six birdies to lead the Ladies European Tour’s Final Qualifying School by seven strokes after three rounds.

It is the top 30 who make it and, with a 13-under total of 204, Ewart goes into the closing two rounds 18 shots clear of a bunch of eight players tied for 28th place on five over. Blackwell Grange amateur Ellie Givens shot a 79 to lie in a tie for 24th place on four over.

Consett’s Anna Scott shot 78 to lie three shots further back tied 40th.

Ewart, who earned her full card for the LPGA Tour in December, has chosen not to look at any leader boards during the qualifiers.

She said: “I am taking each shot and each hole at a time. I am really enjoying playing golf out there.”

She was one of only nine players in the field to break par on a cold and blustery third day in Cartagena, Murcia and added: “I felt like I had a little bubble around me. I am pretty experienced in the wind. We seemed to play a lot in the wind on the Futures Tour and in college. New Mexico is really windy in the spring.

“Being from the North East too, I have a lot of experience in the wind and it only really started raining on the last hole.

“They say not to fight it because when you fight it things go wrong and take your medicine when you hit a bad shot or have a bad hole.

“If you try and fight the wind, the wind is always going to win.

“My putting saved me quite a few times. I did not have any bogeys, so I made really good par putts and drained a lot of putts from more than 15 feet.”