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A record 16 Irish players are set to compete in the 20th KPMG Women's Irish Open, a Ladies European Tour event at the K Club in Straffan, Ireland.
Emma Duffy ONWARDS TO THE K Club, for the 20th edition of the KPMG Women’s Irish Open. There’s a record 16 Irish players among the 132-player field set for action over the next four days in Straffan, county Kildare.
Leona Maguire is unquestionably the star attraction, spearheading the nine professionals harbouring home hopes. Never before has there been an Irish winner at this Ladies European Tour event, which returned to the tour schedule in 2022 after a 10-year hiatus. England’s Lottie Woad reigned supreme at Carton House last year but Woad, like many other big names including compatriot Charley Hull, has opted to play the LPGA Tour’s lucrative FM Championship this weekend.
The purse in Boston is $4.40 million , dwarfing the Kildare prize money of €450,000. Denmark’s Smilla Tarning Sønderby is the only former champion in action, having won at Dromoland Castle in 2023. She’s one of seven LET winners from this season competing, with Australia’s Kelsey Bennett and Agathe Laisné of France among others. Laisné’s fellow LET Order of Merit winner Trichat Cheenglab is another international star to keep track of.
But the predominantly Irish crowd at the K Club’s Palmer South Course will be most interested in the strongest home representation in the tournament’s history. A general view of the K Club. Nick Elliott / INPHO Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO Maguire leads the professional charge, with Lauren Walsh, Sara Byrne, Canice Screene, Olivia Mehaffey, Anna Foster, Áine Donegan, Beth Coulter and Annabel Wilson the others set to tee off.
Katie Poots, Emma Fleming, Anna Abom, Ella Cantwell, Olivia Costello, Kate Dillon, amd Anna Dawson make up the seven-strong amateur contingent. All eyes will be on poster girl Maguire, who has had a challenging season to date, missing 11 of 19 cuts, including at four of the five Majors and most recently at the CPKC Women’s Open in Canada last weekend.
The Cavan golfer parted ways with her lifelong coach, Shane O’Grady, over the winter and is now working with Tiger Woods’ former instructor Sean Foley, to retool her swing. Doing so while trying to compete has proven difficult. Advertisement Currently ranked 84th in the world, Maguire has been selected as a wildcard pick for next month’s Solheim Cup, so will hope to start a better run of form on home soil.
Playing an Irish Open at the K Club is a “full circle” moment for the 31-year-old, who has fond memories of carrying the Ryder Cup trophy onto the stage 20 years ago with her twin sister Lisa after Europe’s 2006 victory. If memory serves her correctly, it was something to do with a Solheim Cup bid, but recollections of nerves and the trophy’s lid blue-tacked on remain vivid.
“It’s such an iconic venue,” said Maguire. “I have great memories of coming here with my sister and dad for European Opens back in the day, watching the guys, the Ryder Cup in ’06 and bringing up the trophy at the closing ceremony. It’s a little bit full circle to be back here playing in an Irish Open, which is always one of the highlights of the year. ” The Maguire twins with the Ryder Cup in 2006, aged 11.
LET.com. LET.com. This is her ninth in all, and she has generally been Ireland’s best finisher in recent times. Tied for fourth in 2022 was her best return, while last year’s 48th was disappointing, with Foster the best of the home contingent in a share of 12th.
“It’s a new week, a new opportunity,” said Maguire. “I played well in Scotland a few weeks ago and I feel like all the pieces are there, they just haven’t quite clicked on any one week. It’s just been a little bit inconsistent. ” “This is probably my favourite stretch of the year.
We’re running into an Irish Open and a Solheim Cup, so I’m trying to enjoy these weeks as much as I can and keep it as relaxed and laidback as I can. That’s generally where I’ve played my best golf,” she added. Lauren Walsh and Sara Byrne are in the same boat, cutting relaxed figures and bouncing off one another in their joint midweek press conference.
Both are set for their third Irish Open appearances, and they are no strangers to this venue either. Kildare native Walsh grew up 10 minutes down the road, while Cork’s Byrne played at the K Club as a teenager with her father Derek, finishing second in the East of Ireland Mixed Foursomes. Sara Byrne is ready to go.
Nick Elliott / INPHO Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO Byrne has had a whirlwind year, fracturing her elbow in January and questioning her future in professional golf. Four rehabilitation sessions and a 10-kilometre walk were essential daily on the long road back to even picking up a club again, but she gained perspective with a normal routine and learned “professional golf isn’t life or death”. That new-found freedom could now be a key weapon.
While Walsh and Byrne have been close to breakthrough LET wins, Clare’s Áine Donegan is another on the precipice. Lahinch men’s captain John Gleeson spoke glowingly of their only female professional in an interview with The 42 this week.
“Áine, our big star,” Gleeson beamed, recalling how Donegan first joined the club aged 10. “She very quickly became somebody that was noticed. In fact, one of our famed Lady members, Valerie Hassett, a former British Ladies senior champion, said early in the proceedings, ‘That girl will play in the Curtis Cup. ’ That proved to be the case.
“She’s always been one that looked like she had that extra X-Factor. Hopefully, she will have a very successful pro career. We wish her well for the Irish Open. ” New champion awaits with Lottie Woad absent.
Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO The Palmer South Course will provide a real test for all involved, having previously hosted three European Opens. The inland links is considered a ball-striker’s course, rewarding accuracy over distance amid sloping greens. Featuring dune-style mounding, rock features and water hazards, the most demanding tee shots are on the back nine with a variety of holes across the board.
The weather will also play a factor, with heavy rain forecast at times. It’s due to be cloudy and dry on Thursday morning with Anna Foster the first of the Irish due to tee off at 7.56am before Maguire and Costello follow suit at 8.18am, so hopefully those conditions remain and a record Irish contingent can make their impact felt.
“It’s a testament to how strong women’s golf is in Ireland right now,” Maguire said. “We’ve had some Irish flags up the right end of the LET leaderboard in the last couple of years. It would be fantastic to see one of us get over the line this week. ” LIVE – Coverage on RTÉ 2 from 2pm each day, also on Sky Sports and LET YouTube channel
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