CLAIRE STARKIE battled back with a stunning final round at the Gary Player Country Club in Sun City, South Africa.

The teenage golfer from Steeton had fought her way through the qualifying rounds to reach the final of the Daily Telegraph Junior Golf Championship for the second time and was determined to make the most of her last year in the junior ranks.

But after a series of practise rounds everything went wrong on the opening day of the competition itself.

Claire, who is a two-handicap golfer, had a nightmare round on the Gary Player course.

At 7,000m it is one of the longest courses in the world and plays host each December to the Million Dollar Golf Challenge, now the Nedbank Golf Challenge.

Claire recorded a round of 92 which left her 19 shots behind the leader, and destroyed her hopes of taking the title.

But Claire fought back, improving on each successive round, to finish in fifth place.

The second day of the competition saw the young golfers take on the unique challenge of the Lost City Course, a spectacular design. The clubhouse is built from huge boulders where Fred Flintstone would feel at home.

Zebra grazed the fairways, and there was a huge owl and a family of baboons, but the course is famous for the 13th hole. The tee is high above a huge crocodile pit with dozens of ancient reptiles lurking below.

Claire improved on her first round by 13 shots to shoot a very respectable 79, but she was still looking for further improvement.

A total of 40,000 young golfers set out on the competition trail with just 21 making it on the trip to South Africa. They included nine in the girls competition which was eventually won by Mel Reid, the English Girls Champion, who had been invited to the finals on a sponsors' 'wild card'.

On the last day Claire stage a spectacular charge and was determined to be poised if any of the leaders faltered.

She shot a final round 72 to finish just four shots behind the third placed golfer with a final score of 92-79-72-244.

She was ended the competition 14 shots behind the winner, but was left wondering what might have been if she had not had that opening day horror round.

Winner of the boys event was 16-year-old Scottish golfer Jordan Findlay who is tipped to make into the ranks of the professionals in a few year's time.

Many of the previous winners have gone on to enjoy professional careers, including Justin Rose who says the Daily Telegraph event kick-started his career.

Seventeen-year-old Claire, has just competed her A-level studies at Skipton Girls High School and is now taking a year out to concentrate on playing golf.

She then hopes to get a golf scholarship to study at an American University and aims to become a physiotherapist.

Unless her second brush with the golfing high life has changed her mind Claire does not plan to turn to the game as a career.

"It's not the sort of life I would like," she said.