Leona not resting on her laurels as she seeks to write LA history
Leona Maguire. Picture: Getty
Leona Maguire believes she’s getting better every week as she closes in on what would be an historic first win for an Irishwoman on the LPGA Tour.
The Slieve Russell star (26) rose 25 places to a career-best 93rd in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings thanks to last weekend’s runner-up finish in the LOTTE Championship in Hawaii.
While she banked a cool $125,834 for that performance, she has no plans to treat herself to a shopping trip down Rodeo Drive in Hollywood this week as she remains focussed on grabbing that maiden win in the Hugel-Air Premia LA Open at exclusive Wilshire Country Club.
“I haven’t bought anything - I am still a Cavan woman at heart,” joked Leona, who is joined in LA by Stephanie Meadow. “Maybe I’ll get something for Mam and Dad because they have spent a lot of money over the years.
“But it’s very strict here with COVID. We can’t leave our bubble and they even want our caddies wearing masks this week so there’s no sightseeing. I think we can see the Hollywood sign from the course, so at least that’s a bonus.”
With two top-10 finishes under her belt from her first five starts, Maguire looks comfortable competing with the biggest stars on the LPGA Tour after adding length off the tee to her already formidable short game talents.
She’s received another encouraging text from European Solheim Cup skipper Catriona Matthew, but she won’t let September’s clash with the USA in Ohio distract her and plans to let her clubs do the talking.
“Every week you're trying to do as well as you possibly can,” she said. “Yes, I’m trying to finish as high as I can and the side effects of world ranking points and CME Globe points and Solheim Cup points should hopefully look after themselves
“The work I did in the off-season has really been paying off. That little bit of extra length has really helped and the new irons mean I am giving myself a lot more chances. The game’s just getting better every week and I keep putting myself I good positions.”
While she finished seven shots behind Lydia Ko in Hawaii and moved up to 10th in the Race to CME Globe standings, just frustratingly missed out on qualification for the US Women’s Open and will head for Sectional Qualifying next week before flying home.
A win in Los Angeles would or a move into the world’s top 75 would make her exempt but she’s just focussed building more experience.
“I’m playing nicely, so I’ll just try to build on the momentum from last week,” she said. “Lydia had a big advantage going into the final round, but it was just about me trying to make as many birdies as I could.
“She was always going to go low, barring something outrageous, but it was my best finish on the LPGA so far. If you’d offered me 21 under par at the start of the week, I’d have grabbed it with both hands, so there were a lot of positives in there.
“I was just very clinical. I gave myself a lot of chances, and the few greens I did miss, I chipped in on one or pretty much got up and down on all the rest
“I didn’t look at the leaderboard all day because I was pretty much just focused on what I could do knowing that everyone was going to be going low anyway and I had to make as many birdies as I could myself.
“It was not surprising when I got to 18 saw Inbee Park was tied with me but anytime you’re up at the top of the leaderboard with those names you know you’re doing something right.”
