Castlewarden’s Lauren Walsh gave herself an early 19th birthday present when she made a brilliant debut for the Wake Forest women's golf at the Cougar Classic in South Carolina.

The Irish international finished tied for seventh on five-under par as the Demon Deacons shot 26-under at Yeamans Hall Club to finish second, one stroke behind Vanderbilt.

Scores

Walsh, who turns 19 today (Wednesday) followed rounds of 72 and 70 with a three-under 69 to record her first top-10 in collegiate golf in the US as Wake Forest shot the second lowest aggregate — 26-under— in the school’s history. 

It was a major achievement for Walsh to make the starting line up for the first event of the season and she will he hoping to shine again when Wake Forest appears in the ANNIKA Intercollegiate in Minnesota.

She showed her talent last month when she outshone many tour players and finished tied for eighth on four-under in the ISPS Handa World Invitational at Massereene and Galgorm Castle, just six strokes behind winner Stephanie Meadow.