Maguire one shy but declares revived KPMG Women's Irish Open "a roaring success"
Leona Maguire. Picture: Brian Arthur
Leona Maguire declared the first KPMG Women's Irish Open for ten years a "roaring success" despite finishing a shot outside a playoff in front of 10,000 fans at Dromoland Castle.
The world number 18 admitted she paid for a "killer" three-over 75 on Friday that left her 10 shots off the lead.
But she showed all her fighting qualities over the weekend and rounds of 65 and 68 left her on 13-under par in a three-way tie for fourth, just one shot outside a sudden-death playoff that saw the Czech Republic's Klara Spilkova (27) birdie the 18th from four feet to deny Finnish veteran Ursula Wikstrom and Denmark's Nicole Broch Estrup and end her five-and-a-half year wait for a second LET win.
"I gave it my very best shot today, especially on the back nine," said Maguire, who was left to rue bogeys at the first two holes yesterday. "I was just a little too far back after Friday. But I came out fighting on Saturday and gave myself a chance today, which was all I could ask for.
"It would have been easy to give up Friday night. But I came out fighting on Saturday and gave myself a chance today, which was all I could ask for.
"I think everybody can be incredibly proud of the show that was put on this week. The girls have enjoyed it, the fans have enjoyed it. Dromoland has put on a great show, KPMG has backed it. Hopefully, this is the start of a bigger and better Irish Open."
The crowds were some of the biggest seen in the LET outside the Majors and a possible July or August date next year will be key.
"Someone just said there was 10,000 through the gates, which is phenomenal support for the first Irish Open back in 10 years,” Maguire said. “Hopefully, it will only continue to build and to get bigger and better in years to come."
Maguire three-putted the first from 50 feet before driving into trees at the second and dropping another shot.
But she made two from around eight feet at the par-three seventh, rolled in a 16-footer from the fringe at the 10th and made back-to-back birdies at the 13th and 14th to get to within two of the lead.
Her failure to birdie the 268-yard 15th was costly and while she birdied the par-five 16th and 18th, Spilkova shot 67 in the group ahead to post a 14-under total matched by Wikstrom and Broch Estrup with 68s.
In the playoff, Spilkova made birdie from four feet to take the title after Wikstrom and Broch Estrup had failed from 18 feet.
The world number 292 was thrilled by the win and the 24,000 fans that packed Dromoland Castle during the week and she's looking forward to next year when the event is likely to return to the Co Clare venue with a summer date and a bigger prize fund.
"That was definitely the best up and down of my whole life, to be honest," Spilkova said of her par save at the 17th, where she took off her shoes and socks to play out of the water hazard. "I am just really happy that it came out that way and it ended up a metre from the hole and I make a par."
In Paris, Italy's Guido Migliozzi birdied the last to card a nine-under 62 and win the Cazoo Open de France and his third DP World Tour title by a shot from Denmark's Rasmus Højgaard, who shot 68, on 16-under par.
Jonathan Caldwell was tied 39th on one-under after a 75 with Niall Kearney 72nd on six-over following a 72 at Le Golf National.
At the Swiss Challenge, New Zealander Daniel Hiller shot an eight-under 64 to win by two strokes from France's Jeong weon Ko on 14-under at Golf Saint Apollinaire, where Gary Hurley's 71 saw him tie for 24th on four-under and a 72 left John Murphy two shots further back in 28th.
In the LPGA Tour’s $2.3 million Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, Stephanie Meadow’s level par 71 left her tied 36th in the clubhouse on seven-under.
KPMG Women’s Irish Open, Dromoland Castle, Co Clare (Par 72)
274 K Spilkova (Cze) 66 68 73 67, U Wikstrom (Fin) 69 66 71 68, N Broch Estrup (Den) 70 66 70 68
(Spilkova won with a birdie at the 1st extra hole, 18th) €60,000; Wikstrom and Broch Estrup €30,000 each
275 S Tarning Soenderby (Den) 69 65 73 68, C Wolf (Aut) 67 69 71 68, Leona Maguire (Irl) 67 75 65 68, A Dimmock (Eng) 66 72 68 69 €14,000 each
276 L Beveridge (Sco) 69 71 71 65, G Cowley (Eng) 67 73 68 68, C Alonso (Esp) 69 65 72 70
278 H Kreuzer (Ger) 72 70 71 65, N Dlamini (Swz) 73 67 70 68, S Schober (Aut) 70 67 70 71
279 C Alexander (Rsa) 70 69 73 67, L Harm (Ger) 70 69 71 69, F Johnson (Eng) 71 66 70 72, M Folke (Swe) 70 62 74 73, J Karlsson (Swe) 71 68 67 73
280 B Brewerton (Wal) 71 69 71 69, L Grant (Swe) 71 67 72 70, J Gustavsson (Swe) 68 71 71 70, M Maclaren (Eng) 70 72 68 70, P Babnik (Slo) 70 72 68 70, C Williams (Wal) 67 71 70 72, A Van Dam (Ned) 67 68 70 75
281 L Young (Eng) 71 70 71 69, E Arvidsson (Swe) 67 70 74 70, L Pettersson (Swe) 71 67 72 71
282 L Boqvist (Swe) 65 72 76 69, M Sangkapong (Tha) 68 72 73 69, M Simmermacher (Arg) 71 72 70 69, S Witt (Ger) 72 71 70 69, N Garcia (Rsa) 68 72 72 70, V Kapoor (Ind) 72 70 70 70
283 C Chevalier (Fra) 70 72 72 69, M De Roey (Bel) 74 68 72 69, A Pelaez Trivino (Esp) 70 71 72 70, C Gainer (Eng) 68 72 72 71, O Cowan (Ger) 68 70 73 72, M Hernandez (Esp) 73 67 71 72
284 H Burke (Eng) 70 71 74 69, C Hedwall (Swe) 71 71 71 71, M Stavnar (Nor) 74 69 70 71, R Davies (Eng) 70 69 71 74
285 A Sauzon (Fra) 71 70 75 69
286 K Lund (Nor) 70 69 77 70, A-L Caudal (Fra) 66 72 77 71, A Swayne (Isv) 65 75 72 74
287 N Komulainen (Fin) 72 70 75 70, VE Carta (Ita) 72 71 73 71, T Malik (Ind) 73 69 73 72, B Morgan (Wal) 71 72 72 72, M Prat (Esp) 71 72 72 72, L Osala (Fin) 70 69 75 73
288 T Koivisto (Fin) 70 73 71 74
289 S Bringner (Swe) 69 70 79 71, M Martin (Esp) 69 73 75 72, L Sobron Galmes (Esp) 71 71 68 79
290 M Skarpnord (Nor) 68 74 77 71, M Thomson (Sco) 67 76 74 73
291 L Malchirand (Fra) 73 68 77 73, T Melecka (Cze) 71 71 76 73.
