Olivia Mehaffey shot a three-over-par round of 75 to finish in ninth spot after an exciting finale at the Augusta National Women's Amateur. 

The 23-year-old from Banbridge, currently completing a Masters at Arizona State University, finished on three-over-oar overall, just two strokes off the playoff. 

Mehaffey, who shot a 69 in Round 2, made a terrific start to her final round, carding birdies at the 2, 7 and 8 to keep pace with then leader Rose Zhang. 

However, a costly stretch around the turn cost the Royal County Down golfer dearly, bogeys at 9 and 10 being followed by a double-bogey at 12, which arrived after a visit to Rae's Creek. 

On a thrilling final day, which saw numerous players clustered around the lead - there was a six-way tie at the top at one point - Mehaffey could still have broken into a playoff with a birdie at 18.

However, she found the fairway bunker and was unable to save par, eventually finishing at +3, two strokes behind the leading pair Emilia Migliaccio and Tsubasa Kajitani. 

Kajitani won the playoff, rolling in a four footer to win the second Augusta Women's Amateur.