WITH the North East having every chance of providing three players for the 2012 Ladies European Tour, John Harrison – the region’s leading coach – yesterday paid tribute to the sudden burst of women golfers from the area making their mark.

This week has seen an unprecedented three from the region in the final stage of qualifying at La Manga – Jodi Ewart, Anna Scott and Ellie Givens. Ewart and Scott start today’s fifth and final round among the top 30, with Givens needing to make up only one shot to join them in earning a full tour card.

Harrison, Matfen Hall’s director of coaching, is a European Senior Tour player who used to be the England Golf North Region coach.

He is a former head coach of both the Northumberland and Durham County junior and senior squads.

Said a man who has seen thousands of young golfers pass through the system: “In recent seasons there have invariably been two or three players on the men’s European Tour so the women are catching up.

“At schools, the teachers say it is the other way round, that girls are more intelligent and produce better results earlier than boys, but until now it has been different in golf circles round here.”

Harrison, a former chairman of the PGA Region North East/North West, who has helped to guide Ashington’s Kenneth Ferrie to three European Tour titles, added: “Some people will say we are lucky in having three quality women players coming through together at this level around the same time.

“But I feel it is more to do with the fact that all three have had a good golfing further education in the US college system.