Here’s how a see-saw Sunday played out with the lone Spaniard competing this week at Finac Cortesin — Carlota Ciganda — pulling out a singles win that meant she and her European teammates were holding the trophy at day’s end.

All times local

• • •

2.43pm — Leona Maguire’s comprehensive 4&3 victory over Rose Zhang in the second match moved Europe ahead in the contest for the first time this week.
United States 8, Europe 9

• • •

3.05pm — Not that it lasted long. Playing in six-under par with concessions and up all the way from first hole to last, the unbeaten Megan Khang was still only just good enough to see off a tenacious Linn Grant on the 18th green in the opening match.
United States 9, Europe 9

• • •

3.06pm — Moments later, Danielle Kang’s comfortable 4&2 win over a clearly out-of-sorts Charley Hull restored the US advantage.
United States 10, Europe 9
• • •

Anna Nordqvist. David Cannon

3.23pm — The European response was immediate, Anna Nordqvist recording her first point of the week to level the scores again.
United States 10, Europe 10

• • •

4.22-4.25pm — There followed a lull in the proceedings, one initially broken by a couple of turnarounds that could have gone a long way towards breaking European resistance. One-by-one, three of America’s middle order delivered for their captain. Andrea Lee came from 2-down with four to play to halve with Georgia Hall. Lilia Vu easily beat Madelene Sagstrom 4&3. And Angel Yin, 1-down with six to play, rallied to be Celine Boutier on the 17th green.
United States 12.5, Europe 10.5

• • •

4.32pm — Still the American surge wasn’t over, Cheyenne Knight coming from 2-down with four to play to deny Gemma Dryburgh victory.
United States 13, Europe 11

• • •

Caroline Hedwall. Stuart Franklin

4.48pm — Three down with six to play against Ally Ewing, things didn’t look too good for Caroline Hedwall, perhaps Pettersen’s most controversial captain’s pick and someone who had played only one match — a loss — before the singles. No matter. A spectacular run of five birdies in the next six holes put things right, the Swede claiming a crucial, and unlikely, point for her side.
United States 13, Europe 12

• • •

5.05pm — Playing the US Women’s Open champion brings with it a challenge, but that didn’t seem to much matter to Maja Stark. Up all the way from the seventh hole, the Swede defeated Allisen Corpuz on the penultimate green.
United States 13, Europe 13

• • •

5.15pm — Fittingly, the point that clinched retention of the trophy for Europe came from the only Spaniard in the team and the only player on either side to come away with an unblemished record. Step forward Carlota Ciganda, a 2&1 winner over Jessica Korda to cap a 4-0 week.
United States 13, Europe 14

• • •

5.23pm — And finally. Emily Pedersen started well against Lexi Thompson and was 2-up after four holes. Thereafter, the Dane, one of only three Europeans to play all five matches, seemed to run out of puff. Thompson won six of nine holes to take a 4-up lead with five to play. A late flurry briefly offered hope of a team Europe victory overall, but winning the last two holes proved to be beyond Pedersen’s flagging capabilities. The game ended on the 17th green.
United States 14, Europe 14

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Maguire’s putting was one of the aspects of her game that set her apart at Inverness. If her putting is off, she says it’s usually because she’s doing one small thing wrong: “My mistake is usually picking my head up too soon — this is a common mistake I see in amateurs, too. That can close or open the face,” Maguire said.

Maguire said the root of the problem is commitment: If you haven’t fully committed to the putt, you’ll be tempted to pick your head up to sneak a peek at where the ball is headed. This is trouble, because it’s practically impossible to hit the ball with a square face when you’re pulling your head up.

Maguire says you can fix this issue by committing to the putt before you start your stroke. Decide your line and speed, and then execute the putt. Even if you’re wrong, putting a good stroke on the ball is the only way to give it a chance of finding the hole.

Main image by Eóin Noonan

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Suzann Pettersen has announced her four captain’s picks to round out the home team that’s trying to win an unprecedented third straight Solheim Cup for Europe next month in Spain. Much like the eight automatic qualifiers who locked up their spots two days earlier, Pettersen chose experience along with a fresh face, taking one rookie (Gemma Dryburgh) and three veterans (Madelene Sagstrom, Caroline Hedwal and Emily Kristine Pedersen). With the matches set for Finca Cortesin Resort in just four weeks (September 22-24), here’s what you need to know about the newest members of Europe’s Solheim Cup squad.

Madelene Sagstrom

Madelene Sagstrom. Jack Thomas

This is the 30-year-old’s third Solheim Cup, though it’ll be the first time she’ll play the event in Europe. The Swede was a stand-out on the Epson Tour, winning three times in 2016 and earning her LPGA Tour card for the 2017 season. She has won once on the LPGA Tour and is currently ranked No. 42 in the Rolex World Rankings. Her overall Solheim Cup record is 2-4-0.

Emily Kristine Pedersen

Emily Kristine Pedersen. Charlie Crowhurst/R&A

This is Pedersen’s third Solheim Cup as well and her first start in Europe, too. You may remember her as the player who holed the winning put for the Europeans when they closed out their upset victory at Inverness Club in 2021. The 27-year-old Dane has won five LET events in her career, including four in 2020 alone. Notably, she is one of the longest hitters on the LPGA Tour, averaging 273 yards off the tee. Her career Solheim Cup record is 3-4-0.

Caroline Hedwall

Caroline Hedwall. Getty Images

Hedwall is the most experienced of Pettersen’s picks, set to make her fifth appearance. The 34-year-old Swede who was a stand-out at Oklahoma State who played 10 years on the LPGA Tour but never claimed a title. She does have seven wins on the Ladies European Tour, the most recent coming late last year at the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España —  which was played about an hour from the 2023 Solheim Cup site.
“Having great memories from the end of last year in Andalucía, I hadn’t thought much about Solheim until I won and after that, it was a goal for the season,” Hedwall said. “I’m just really happy it became a reality and super pumped to play in Spain again.”
Her career Solheim Cup record is 8-6-1.

Gemma Dryburgh

Gemma Dryburgh. David Cannon

This is Dryburgh’s first Solheim Cup, though she has experience in team play, having competed in the 2014 Curtis Cup. The 30-year-old Scot played college golf at Tulane before turning professional in 2015. In 2022, she won the Toto Japan Classic, her first LPGA victory. She will make a good foursomes partner as she is one of the most accurate drivers of the golf ball on the LPGA Tour, hitting more than 82 pe rcent of fairways in the 2023 season.

Team Europe’s complete roster for the 2023 Solheim Cup

Celine Boutier
Maja Stark
Charley Hull
Leona Maguire
Georgia Hall
Linn Grant
Carlota Ciganda
Anna Nordqvist
Gemma Dryburgh
Caroline Hedwall
Emily Kristine Pedersen
Madelene Sagstrom

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The end of the ISPS Handa World Invitational also marked the end of the qualifying period for Europe’s Solheim Cup roster. All eight players in line for automatic spots heading into the week held their places, as the Ladies European Tour announced on Sunday that Celine Boutier and Maja Stark earned their way on to the team through LET Solheim points. Charley Hull, Leona Maguire, Georgia Hall, Linn Grant, Carlota Ciganda and Anna Nordqvist claimed the remaining six qualifying spots from their placement in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings.

Six of the eight qualifiers have previous experience in the Solheim Cup, with Boutier, Hull, Maguire, Hall and Nordqvist playing for the victorious European team at Inverness Club in 2021. Stark and Grant are the two rookies to qualify, each winning their first-ever LPGA events during the qualifying period. Stark won the 2022 ISPS Handa World Invitational last season, and Grant won the Dana Open in July.

“I’m very happy with my team right now,” said European captain Suzann Pettersen via a release, the biennial competition set for Sept. 22-24 at Finca Cortesin in Andalucia, Spain with the Europeans looking to win for a third straight clash, something they haven’t done since the start of the competition in 1990. “Congratulations to the eight players who have automatically qualified, we have so much experience in the team, and it’s great to have our rookies Maja and Linn representing Europe for the first time. We have never had such a strong group of players in terms of world ranking. The European players have been playing well this year and putting in strong performances across the board.”

Congratulations to the eight players who have qualified for the ???????? ??????? ??? ???? ???

Boutier ??
Stark ??
Hull ???????
Maguire ??
Hall ???????
Grant ??
Ciganda ??
Nordqvist ??#TeamEurope | #SolheimCup

— Ladies European Tour (@LETgolf) August 20, 2023

Boutier led the points list with a commanding European swing, winning the Amundi Evian Championship and the Women’s Scottish Open in back-to-back weeks starting at the end of July. The 29-year-old from France will be playing in her third Solheim Cup, having impressively earned 5.5 of a possible seven points combined in 2019 and 2021.

Outside of Grant, the Rolex Rankings group has played in a combined 21 Solheim Cups, with Nordqvist (who is also serving as a vice captain) leading the way with seven consecutive cups dating back to 2009.

“I’m very proud to be taking on vice-captaincy and playing this year,” Nordqvist said. “I don’t think it’s a secret how much I love the Solheim Cup and it brings out the best in me. It’s always my biggest goal every two years to make the team and try to help Europe win.”

Pettersen will fill out the remaining spots on her 12-player roster on Tuesday when she announces her four captain’s picks. The United States end their automatic qualifying period after next week’s CPKC Canadian Open, with only four of the nine spots already locked up (Lilia Vu, Nelly Korda, Allisen Corpuz and Megan Khang). US captain Stacy Lewis then will name her three captain’s picks afterward.

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Leona Maguire is anticipating a tricky challenge over the first two days of the ISPS Handa World Invitational  in Northern Ireland this week.

The event — co-sanctioned with the DP World Tour — sees two separate 72-hole stroke play tournaments for the men and women with two separate prize funds of $1.5 million.

Over the first two rounds, the players will face two different courses as they tee it up on the parklands course at Galgorm Castle and on the links at Castlerock Golf Club.

And having to play both set-ups back to back, Maguire knows she will have to adapt to each course and the conditions.

“It’s two very different tests this week,” said the two-time LPGA Tour winner. “Obviously, one being links, one being parkland. Castlerock is a pure links golf course.

“The conditions will very much be dependent on weather. There are semi-blind tee shots and like on any golf course, you need to stay out of those pot bunkers that can be pretty penal.

“Galgorm is playing lush and soft, a little bit more target golf I think, and you have to stay out of the rough. It will definitely be a premium on hitting fairways around Galgorm.

“In links in particular, with the winds, there are some shots that you can hit four different clubs and there’s not really a right or a wrong club. It’s whatever you think at that moment in time.

“Whereas over here on this side at Galgorm it’s more target golf and you’re just going to hit it straight at the pin. It’s an adjustment in mindset, but I think that’s the fun of it. It’s nice when you have to be a little bit more creative and use your imagination a little bit, and it’s not just stand up and hit it wherever you want.

“That’s the beauty of links golf. We played Castlerock pretty calm yesterday in one wind, and then it can be you hit driver, wedge one day and it could be driver, 3-wood the next day, so it depends, and you have to judge it when you get there and take each one as it comes.”

It’s go time at Galgorm ?#RaiseOurGame | #WorldInvitational pic.twitter.com/HIa3PFzL4u

— Ladies European Tour (@LETgolf) August 17, 2023

Maguire, who is No. 14 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, will begin her competition at Castlerock alongside American Mina Hariage and Anne van Dam of the Netherlands.

While the Irishwoman also hopes the crowd will be able to appreciate the golf game of the men and women teeing it up this week.

“We’ll probably have quite different strategies in terms of how we play the holes,” she explained. “We’ll probably be going driver a lot out here, whereas they’re probably taking 2-irons and things off tees.

“It’s fun to see a few of the guys I played junior golf with. I was up here on Monday afternoon and two of the first guys I saw were Matteo Manassero and Adrian Otaegui, who I played the Junior Ryder Cup with in 2008.

“I haven’t really seen them since, so nice to catch up with them and see how far we’ve all come. We’ve all won on Tour now, and nice to see the journey.

“It’ll be fun for the fans as well to see those alternating groups and see the difference, and hopefully people don’t try to compare too much. I think that you can enjoy the skill of both the ladies and the men without having to sort of compare and contrast them. There are great things to see and learn from both sides.”

The 28-year-old who hails from Cavan, Ireland will have plenty of support on the ground this week with family and friends in attendance.

And after solid weeks in the final two majors of the year with T42 at The Amundi Evian Championship and T30 at the AIG Women’s Open, Maguire is not putting too much pressure on herself and is focusing on enjoying the game.

She added: “My mum and dad are here, my sister Lisa is on the bag, and I have lots of friends coming. A lot of friends from junior golf that we haven’t seen in quite a while. It’s nice to see some of those familiar faces, and anytime they are rooting you on, it’s extra special.

“All the pieces are there. It’s just getting them to click at the right time. Hopefully, that can sort of happen in the next few weeks again. The way the year has gone, getting the win and everything, everything that happens for the second half of the season is kind of a bonus.

“I’m not really putting too much pressure on myself. I just want to enjoy these few weeks of golf and the last of the European stretch and then we’ll finish the season off.”

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The scores atop the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship leaderboard mostly stayed the same from Thursday to Friday. Leona Maguire’s five under remains the lead at Baltusrol, and 15 players are under par heading into the weekend, instead of 16 players following the opening round. The on-and-off rain of Springfield, NJ., remain another constant.

The names near the lead, however, have changed. Maguire, seeking back-to-back LPGA Tour victories, and Celine Borge, in a three-way tie at four under par, are the only two players to post consecutive rounds in the 60s. Two of the three 67s Friday, the best rounds of the day, were scored by Mel Reid, who’s T-2, and Minjee Lee, two behind at T-5.

As the second major of the LPGA seasons heads to the weekend, here are six takeaways ahead of the third round.

Maguire is a GIR Machine

Baltusrol’s layout has proven quite challenging, with the over 6,500-yard setup’s difficulty compounded by rain. Overall, the field is hitting 66.5 percent of greens in regulation.

Maguire, however, has only missed two greens through two rounds. It’s fitting that the leader noted her approaches were the best part of her game Friday as part of a three-under-par 68.

“I think this golf course demands that,” Maguire said. “I think you can’t think more than one shot ahead, let alone a hole or a round ahead. Just really taking it shot by shot and trying to hit as good of shots as I can.”

Consistently reaching greens in regulation isn’t a new development for the Irishwoman. Maguire hit 81 percent of greens last week in her victory at the Meijer LPGA Classic. Her stellar ball striking is fueling a run of seven straight rounds in the 60s, dating back to a 67 on the final day of the Mizuho Americas Open.

Lee-Anne Pace maintains her out-of-nowhere run

Seemingly, everything would work against the profile of Lee-Anne Pace, 42, maintaining her cadence near the top of the leaderboard with a two-over-par 73 to sit at three under for the championship. The South African primarily plays on the Ladies European Tour, with her only start on the LPGA this season a T-30 at the Shoprite LPGA Classic two weeks ago. In Pace’s six previous starts in Women’s PGA, Pace’s best career finish is a T-62 in 2015. Her last LPGA top 10 was in 2018 at the ASI Scottish Open.

Yet, Pace explained Thursday evening she felt confident because over the COVID-19 pandemic, she rediscovered her passion for competition.

“Now I’m to the point where I love it,” Pace said. “I love being out here. I find it a challenge. It’s much better.”

That confidence got tested multiple times Friday. Off a quick turnaround following walking off the course at 8 p.m. ET to complete the one-time LPGA winner’s first round, Friday’s cool temperatures impacted her to back. Then, on the 15th, her ball found a lone divot in the heart of the fairway. The punch shot stung her wrists and she had to shake it off as her ball ran up toward the green. She made par there but ended up three over on her closing side to finish with a 73 and in a tie for second.

Rose Zhang walks off the first tee. Icon Sportswire

Rose Zhang closes with colorful scorecard

Zhang, starting on the 10th hole in Round 2 after opening with a 70, continued holding steady at the Baltusrol test through her opening side, posting a birdie and a bogey.

However, Zhang’s round turned chaotic following her final par of the day on No. 4. The rookie who won in her pro debut at Liberty National closed bogey-birdie-bogey-double bogey-birdie, ending up with a scrambling three-over-par 74. While Zhang discussed viewing each day as a learning opportunity, she plans to change her strategy going into the weekend, tied for 29th and trailing the lead by eight.

“I do want to make a couple of adjustments, just because I feel like the game plans that I’ve been having the past two days have been a little iffy,” Zhang said.

Mel Reid tees off at No. 1. Icon Sportswire

Reid turns from pondering retirement to major contention

Reid turned to her wife, Carly Reid, last September while fighting through a wrist injury and trying to save her LPGA card, and said she was considering quitting. Now, 10 months after choosing to give professional golf one more go, Reid tied for the low round of the day with a 67 to sit T-2.

Reid credited not fighting her tendencies anymore, playing a cut that led the 35-year-old to hit all 18 greens Friday. Last year, she returned to work with longtime coach Jorge Parada, who is based at Liberty National.

After struggling to start 2023, Reid’s work with Parada paid off by stringing together four top-30 finishes leading into this week. The British woman, however, isn’t trying to get ahead of what a win could mean for staving off retirement.

“It’s only halfway, isn’t it, so just try to stick to the game plan the next couple days and see what happens,” Reid said.

Lexi Thompson’s charge gets her into weekend

The 2022 Women’s PGA runner-up’s challenging season seemed likely to continue with eight holes to play. Having made one cut in four starts this season, Thompson sat at eight over par with the cutline at five over.

But as the streaky Thompson has done throughout her career, she strung together a four-straight birdie surge from the fifth to the eighth to make her second cut of the year.

“I’ve been working probably harder than ever in my whole life on the golf course and when I’m home practicing,” Thompson said. “Just to be able to come through towards the end and make those birdies, it’s nice to see hard work pay off, even though I’m still at four over. I’m taking it. I’m taking the small win right now and building it.”

Marquee names miss the cut

The 12th major hosted by Baltusrol figured to be a clash of the game’s top golfers. It still may be. But multiple past champions and top players aren’t making the weekend, and some weren’t particularly close.

Headlining the surprises was Nelly Korda’s 76-77, 11-over-par performance. Korda returned this week after a month away from the LPGA due to a back injury, and how she has her first missed cut ever in the Women’s PGA. It marks back-to-back missed cuts for the top American in the world.

Joining Korda were this year’s Chevron Championship winner, Lilia Vu (+6), past Women’s PGA winners Anna Nordqvist (+6) and Sei Young Kim (+8), major champions A Lim Kim (+6), Jennifer Kupcho (+6), Patty Tavatanakit (+8) and Georgia Hall (+9), and former World No. 1 Atthaya Thitikul (+10).

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Leona Maguire has lost to two people over the last three Meijer LPGA Classics. Nelly Korda in 2021 and Jennifer Kupcho in 2022 in a playoff. Fitting, then, that Maguire, 28, broke through to win her second LPGA Tour title at the tournament on Sunday at Blythefield Country Club with a bogey-free 64 punctuating her two-stroke victory at 21-under par.

“This one is I think that little bit sweeter after coming so close two years in a row,” Maguire said. “I know a lot of people this week were saying you’re due one, this course owes you something, all the rest. But I suppose that’s not golf. Golf usually doesn’t work like that. But nice that it all worked out well for me this week.”

The Irishwoman took over on the back nine in Belmont, Michigan, asserting herself with a dominant six-under over the final six holes. She believed it would take 20-under to win, and only looked at a leaderboard for the first time on the 18th green, where she was surprised to see she led by two.

The commanding run recalled for Maguire the most important nine she had this season, at the Chevron Championship. Her back-nine four-under in the second round enabled her to make the cut by a stroke. She went on to tie for 23rd place.

“It was [a] very different situation but same mentality and same execution,” Maguire said. “When we walked off that day on Friday, Dermot [Byrne, her caddie] said, ‘you don’t realise how important this round has just been,’ and I think today was a really good example of that.”

Maguire returned to Ireland for a two-week break in early May to recharge and fine-tune her game with her coach back at home. Maguire has finished in the top 10 in all three starts since returning to the tour, including this win at the Meijer Classic.

Maguire’s groupmate Ariya Jutanugarn, 27, ended up her closest challenger. The Thai star shot an opening-round 73, then climbed into contention with her final three rounds of 66-64-66 to finish at 19-under. Jutanugarn is still trying to put together a consistent 72-hole performance, with her recent results mirroring her up-and-down week at Meijer. Over Jutanugarn’s last six starts, excluding Team Thailand’s win at the Hanwha LifePlus International Crown, Jutanugarn has missed three cuts and posted three top-15 finishes, highlighted by her runner-up this week.

“I’m really happy about my game these last three days because honestly after my first round I’m thinking about I’m going to miss the cut and thinking about oh, I should leave here earlier to KPMG,” Jutanugarn said. “So now I finish top five. I mean, can’t ask for better.”

Amy Yang and Xiyu Lin in the final group had their chances to catch Maguire despite both finishing three back at 18-under par. The 33-year-old South Korean’s aspirations were dashed once she hit the same tree on back-to-back shots on the par-4 16th, resulting in the only double-bogey the hole gave up on Sunday. Yang ended up posting a three-under 69. The four-time winner remains searching for her first state-side LPGA victory.

Lin, 27, nearly became the third player from China to win on the LPGA after her friend Ruoning Yin broke through at the DIO Implant LA Open in early April. She recovered from a COVID-19 infection last week, which forced her to skip the Shoprite LPGA Classic. Instead of feeling down at her sixth top-three finish over two seasons without winning, Lin tipped her cap to Maguire’s strong performance following a Sunday 68.

“My body is not 100 per cent healthy yet,” Lin said. “I definitely feel super tired at the end of the day, but I still hung in there really well. Leona just played too good.”

Maguire now heads into the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship with momentum. She slyly grinned at her winner’s press conference when a media member pointed out that all previous Meijer winners had won a major championship. Now, Maguire’s looking at back-to-back chances to win her first major, with the next two tournaments on the tour’s schedule being the KPMG and the US Women’s Open.

“The goal was to be coming into good form heading into Baltusrol and Pebble, so we’ve peaked a week early, which is nice, so we can continue that run of form.”

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The highly anticipated Aramco Team Series — London has announced the participation of two of the world’s top players, Nelly Korda and Leona Maguire. Returning to Centurion Club, this event marks the third instalment of the global golf series this year and is scheduled to take place from July 16-18.

Korda, ranked second in the world, has carried her scintillating form from 2022 into the new year, securing an impressive six top-10 finishes out of just eight starts this year. Most notably, the Olympic champion claimed a third-place finish in the first major of the year at the prestigious Chevron Championship. Since 2019, the 24-year-old has constantly held a coveted spot in the top five of the Rolex World Rankings, which solidifies her status as one of golf’s elite players and is a testament to her unwavering consistency and exceptional skills.

Nelly Korda. ATS

Having tasted victory at ATS Sotogrande last year, Korda has set her sights on adding a second trophy to her collection and said: “The Aramco Team Series is a special event that showcases a unique blend of individual talent and team dynamics in golf, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to once again compete alongside top professionals and amateurs. I’ve had great performances in the past three Aramco Team Series events I’ve played in, so I hope to deliver a top performance for the fans in London and capture my second Aramco Team Series title.”

Leona Maguire. ATS

Ireland’s Maguire will grace the field alongside an already stellar line-up that features some of Britain’s best, such as world No. 9 Georgia Hall, world No. 23 Charley Hull and defending champion Bronte Law, who left fans in awe with a spectacular 55-foot eagle putt to secure victory last year.

Maguire enjoyed a remarkable 2022 season where she etched her name in history as the first Irish player to capture an LPGA title following her triumph at the Drive On Championship. The 28-year-old achieved her best-ever finish at a major championship, tying for fourth place at the AIG Women’s Open, before ending the season on a high with a second-place finish at the 2022 CME Group Tour Championship.

Maguire said: “I had a great time competing in the Aramco Team Series – New York last year, and I’m looking forward to being part of the Aramco Team Series on European soil and compete alongside an exceptional field that’s lining up. Hopefully, we can put on a great show for the fans in the UK.”

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Leona Maguire was something of an unknown when she hit the headlines in 2011 and became the toast of European golf with a stunning Solheim Cup show on her debut in the biennial matchplay clash with the best American female golf has to offer.

The rookie thrived as the reigning champions denied Team USA at the Inverness Club, Ohio, and retained the coveted trophy.

The Americans were tipped to wrest the Cup back from a European team that triumphed at Gleneagles in 2019, boasting the likes of then world No. 1 and Olympic champion Nelly Korda as the poster girl leading a deep, deep pool of American talent.

But they failed to factor in Maguire, who helped Europe to a famous 15-13 victory, with the County Cavan native picking up a rookie record 4.5 points from her five matches over three gruelling days at the Inverness Club, including an astounding and dominant 5&4 victory over Jennifer Kupcho in the singles.

Two years on, Maguire cuts a relaxed figure as Team Europe aim for an unprecedented hat-trick of Solheim Cup successes on the spin at Finca Cortesin in Spain this September — an event she very much plans to feature in. 

Getty Images

“It’s going to be a very different one this year on home soil in Spain,” Maguire tells Golf Digest Middle East on the sidelines of the Aramco Saudi Ladies International outside Jeddah. “I was a rookie last time, so I didn’t really know what to expect. I was just happy to be there and make the team and all the rest.

“This time around, Plan A is to make sure I am there in September, and I make the team. To do that I need to play as well as I can as there are so many good players in Europe these days.”

While nothing is certain about making the final 12 on the teamsheet, Maguire is already doing her homework for September, and relishing a return to team action.

“We took a trip to Finca Cortesin after the Spanish Open last year and it is a great golf course — obviously very different to Inverness in Ohio,” she says. “It will be great to have that home support, and also to get the crowds back after last time, when the fans were not allowed to travel. I am sure there will be a lot of Irish people in that area in the south of Spain, plus a lot more going over, so it will be a very different Solheim Cup this time around.” 

While Europe will have a new captain in Suzann Pettersen, having taken over from Catriona ‘Beanie’ Matthew, there will be a sense of continuity when they get to Spain, as the Norwegian is taking the step up from vice-captain and has retained the services of the legendary four-time Solheim Cup winner Laura Davis as one of her lieutenants. 

“Suzann is putting in all the work behind the scenes to make sure we have the best team out there and we are as ready as possible,” says Maguire. “Both Suzann and Laura have a wealth of experience under their belts in major championships and Solheim Cups — they are two of the best to have ever done it, so you couldn’t ask for much better. Suzann is as competitive as it gets, so she won’t leave any stone unturned to make sure that we come out as the best side we can be. 

“I grew up watching Suzann in Solheim Cups. I remember watching her at Killeen Castle in 2011 and we played the Junior the same week in County Meath. It would have been nice to have been on a team playing alongside her but hopefully I can make the team with her as captain — the next best thing.” 

Maguire delights in the cultural mix and team bonding that the Solheim Cup brings out in the Europeans. 

“We are very lucky as a team with our unique backgrounds,” she says. “In Inverness we all got along so well, right from when we landed. It wasn’t forced in any way, we all just hung out and played table tennis and pool in the team room. We played cards and just chatted amongst ourselves — a lot of it was based on humour and camaraderie and that really brought us all together, from all the different nationalities. 

Paul Severn

“There was a huge mix of youth and experience on that team and I think the older players, vice-captains and Beanie herself were such a calming presence, along with Suzann and Laura. There was so much respect there between the players and captains that you did what they said. Whenever they spoke, you stopped what you were doing and you listened. And the older players like Annika [Sorenstam] and Carlota [Ciganda] really showed us rookies the ropes, and it brought us all together, so we all knew our job and it all clicked perfectly. That is the key to success in these events, I think.” 

Looking ahead to 2023, Maguire feels that, once again, there will be plenty of fresh talent in the squad to get the right balance of youth and experience.

“I think this time around we will have quite a few Scandinavian players — a real Swedish theme — so I might need to brush up on my Swedish,” she laughs, referring to the Pettersen influence and the emergence of a number of Scandinavian stars such as Linn Grant and Maja Stark in recent times. “They are all amazing and it can make us English speakers feel bad that we don’t speak more languages, but we are all one family in the end, regardless of which country you come from. 

“Everybody is already getting along, we all root for each other and cheer each other along.” 

Maguire is happy to see the growth of events such as the Aramco Team Series in the women’s game, and took part in last year’s competition in New York.

“We don’t get to play a lot of team golf out on tour so it is nice to now get the option to play in that team format,” she says. “There is the draft, picking your teammates … they put on a really good show and I really enjoyed being in the team atmosphere once again. I have heard nothing but good things from the girls who have played in the other Aramco Team Series events all around the world, so there will be lots of interesting places to go to.” 

The Irish star is also glad to see women get recognition in such events as the Aramco Saudi Ladies International, where the record $5 million purse was equal to that of the men’s event held at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club two weeks earlier in February. 

“I think we are beginning to get more and more of these events,” Maguire says. “Obviously $5 million this week, plus the World Invitational and Vic Open are now offering better prize money. This week, it is almost like a major for us, you can see that by the quality of the field that is here on this great golf course. 

“I think it is an exciting time to be a woman in golf. Obviously there have been huge strides made in terms of prize money, the likes of PIF, KPMG and AIG have put huge amounts into the game. Plus we get better visibility on the big golf courses as well now — we went to Muirfield last year and we have Pebble Beach this year — and getting primetime TV slots is a really big thing, too.

“The LET has made huge strides in the past few years with the involvement of Aramco. If you told me even a couple of years ago we would be playing for $5 million in Saudi Arabia, no one would have believed it. 

“Plus there are more avenues to allow youngsters to get into the game. They have the Epson Tour on the LPGA, then there is the LET Access Series and the college ranks — there are so many options now and that is the great thing. 

“A few years ago, you either got your LPGA card or you didn’t, or you got your LET card or you didn’t, but now there are so many more opportunities, and that is the big thing to unearth the best talent and give them the best chance of making it. 

“Hopefully we can get a few more Irish players out there in the near future, too.”

Tristan Jones

A real resume of records
Along with her headline-grabbing show in Inverness, Maguire is no stranger to success and holds a number of other records to go with her points score in the Solheim Cup. She held the No. 1 spot in the World Amateur Golf Ranking for the longest time (135 weeks) and shot the lowest-ever score in the final round of a major by any golfer, male or female (61). She also became the first Irish golfer to win an LPGA event at the Drive On Championship last February.

The post Irish star Leona Maguire raring to go once again after her Solheim Cup heroics as a rookie in Ohio appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Scott Vincent discusses how he is taking full advantage of the opportunities that came his way in 2022, while Saudi star Othman Almulla delights in welcoming his little ‘brothers’ Saul Al Sharif and Faisal Salhab to the professional ranks.

The Golf Digest Hot List also gets to grips with the best irons on offer this year.

All this and much, much more in the March 2023 edition of Golf Digest Middle East.

The issue is again free to our loyal audience. You can scroll through the ISSUU link provided here or download to your favourite device for later. Alternatively, pick up a copy at your favourite club. Whatever option you take, we hope you enjoy the read.

The post Get the March 2023 edition of Golf Digest Middle East FREE here today! appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.