Helen Butterfield clinched her eighth Bradford Ladies Championship after a mammoth play-off victory in the final against Katie Barraclough.

The Bingley St Ives member beat her East Bierley opponent at the sixth extra hole of a sudden-death play-off at Northcliffe.

“That was the closest match I’ve ever had in my life,” admitted Butterfield, who was competing in the event for the first time since 2003 after moving to Sleaford.

Formerly from Wilsden, she finally got her hands back on the trophy when a bogey was enough to beat 2007 winner Barraclough at the 382-yard par-four sixth.

Having also played their semi-finals in the morning, the players were understandably weary by then after what had been an otherwise high-quality final.

The pair reached the 13th hole all-square and although Butterfield edged clear with a birdie at 14, Barraclough hit back with one of her own at the next.

Another birdie for Butterfield edged her clear again after 16 but, having halved the next, she put her tee shot in the water at the par-three last.

The 43-year-old said: “I should have just hit it anywhere on the green but I was a couple of feet to the right and it hit the wall.”

Undeterred, Butterfield regained her composure to seal victory in a titanic play-off.

The one-handicapper, who has county experience with Yorkshire, insisted she enjoyed playing under pressure, saying: “I don’t mind it. In fact, I quite like it.”

Butterfield was also full of praise for Barraclough: “She played great golf under pressure. She just kept clawing her way back.”

Butterfield was keen to play in the event again as good friend Carol Firth – defending champion and also a St Ives member – was returning to play, having moved to Spain.

Firth was beaten by Barraclough 4&2 in the quarter-finals, with the East Bierley finalist then knocking out Cleckheaton’s Megan Lockett – who had qualified for the matchplay stages with a best gross score of 73 – in the semi-finals.

Butterfield, who was second in the gross qualifying with 74, beat Shipley’s Natalie Ireland 3&2 in the quarter-finals and Bingley’s Jayne Helliwell 6&5 in the last four.

Northcliffe’s Elaine Tordoff won the nett trophy, beating Shipley’s Gail Fry 5&4 in the final.