Hunstanton, England: England’s Jess Baker and Louise Rydqvist from Sweden will contest the Final of the 119th Women’s Amateur Championship after both produced memorable performances at Hunstanton.

Newcastle native Baker ousted in-form duo Emilie Alba Paltrinieri from Italy and Curtis Cup player Hannah Darling to reach the 36-hole Final over the Norfolk links.

Rydqvist, who has just finished her freshman year at the University of South Carolina, rallied from two down with three to play to win all three holes and edge out Spain’s Carla Bernat – the fifth knock-out match in-a-row she has won at the 18th or after extra holes this week.

In the morning’s quarter-finals, there was a brave bid from Australian Kelsey Bennett who took Rydqvist into overtime. The Swede made a superb birdie at the 16th to go two-up but her opponent made a 25-foot birdie putt at the 17th and then won the 18th with a par to keep the match alive. The pair both birdied the 19th after Rydqvist almost drove the green, before she prevailed at the 20th.

There is much at stake in the Final with the winner earning places in the AIG Women’s Open, US Women’s Open, The Amundi Evian Championship and, by tradition, an invitation to the Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship.

Baker, ranked 518th on the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) and a student at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, produced one of her best displays to oust reigning R&A Girls’ Amateur Champion Darling, who sits 16th on WAGR.

Darling, 18, drove through the green on the opening par-four but lost the hole to Baker’s birdie. Darling fought back but bogeyed the fifth and was then bunkered at the sixth to go behind before Baker’s birdie at the par-five eighth gave her a two-hole lead.

The 19-year-old from Newcastle then made a brilliant eagle at the par-five 11th to increase her lead to three before Darling, who was seeking back-to-back Scottish successes after Louise Duncan’s win last year, hit back at 12 and 15 with birdies. However, a superb birdie from Baker at the short 16th and an up-and-down for par at the next, helped by a decisive 20-foot putt, saw her triumph 2&1.

In warm and windy conditions, Bernat, 18, and Rydqvist, 20, shared eight birdies between them in a high-quality front nine, with Bernat holding the edge by a hole.

The pair then shared the next four holes, after both bogeying the 11th and making birdies at the 12th, before Bernat went two ahead with a birdie at the short 14th. It looked a good advantage but she bogeyed 16 and 17 to allow Rydqvist to draw level. The Spaniard’s sliced drive at the 18th led to another bogey and the Swede – 143rd on the WAGR and making her Championship debut – made par for a one-hole victory.

England’s Rebecca Earl birdied the opening hole and maintained an early lead against Bernat in their last-four tie, yet birdies from the Spaniard at the eighth and ninth turned the match around. Earl replied with an eagle at 11 but Bernat closed out a one-hole win.

Baker turned on the style to seal her place in the last four, going one better than her run to the quarter-finals last year at Kilmarnock (Barassie). Two birdies early on helped her to a commanding four-hole lead at the turn against Paltrinieri, who was runner-up in stroke play qualifying. Baker matched her birdies at 11 and 12 and stayed strong for a 3&2 win.

Darling posted four birdies and just one dropped shot as she ended Italian title hopes, with the Scot claiming a 2&1 victory over Alessandra Fanali.

The finalists are bidding to join an impressive list of former winners including LPGA winner Leona Maguire and Major winners Georgia Hall, Catriona Matthew and Anna Nordqvist – last year's AIG Women's Open Champion at Carnoustie.

The R&A will provide live broadcast coverage of the quarter-finals and semi-finals of this week’s championship on Friday and the 36-hole Final on Saturday. This can be watched on The R&A’s website randa.org as well as its YouTube channel.