Foster heads Irish challenge as Portmarnock shows its teeth in Women’s Amateur
Anna Foster (Elm Park) on the 9th tee during Round 2 of the Flogas Irish Women’s Amateur Open Championship, Woodbrook Golf Club, Bray, Co. Wicklow. 16/06/2024. Picture Thos Caffrey / Golffile.ie
Elm Park’s Anna Foster defied a southerly breeze gusting over 20 mph to head the home challenge after the opening round of the Women’s Amateur Championship at Portmarnock.
The Auburn University star (pictured above by Golffile.ie), who won the Flogas Irish Women’s Amateur at Woodbrook last week, made a birdie and two bogeys in a tidy, one-over 73 to share tenth place in the race to make the top 64 who qualify for the matchplay after today’s second round.
The stout north Dublin links was the big winner on day one as just four players in the 144-strong field broke par.
Texan Farah O’Keefe and England’s Lottie Woad, the world amateur number one, fired three-under 69s to lead by two strokes from Belgium’s Savannah De Bock and Sweden’s Meja Ortengren.
Douglas’ Sara Byrne was joint 14th after a 74; Aine Donegan, Kate Lanigan and Beth Coulter tied 31st after 76s; Annabel Wilson tied 45th after a 77; and Emma Fleming and Anna Abom joint 58th after 78s.
Portmarnock was a wonderful links test on day one with the closing stretch proving particularly demanding in the wind.
Royal Porthcawl’s Darcey Harry went out in five-under 31 before coming home in 44 as she dropped eight shots over the final six holes, racking up bogeys at the 13th and 14th and double bogeys at the 15th, 16th and 18th.
Her 75 still left her tied for 20th as the wind started to get up from lunchtime onwards.
Douglas’ Byrne, who plans to turn professional at the end of the summer, took six at the first when she found her drive just short of a fairway bunker and failed to clear the lip from an awkward stance.
She birdied the second and while she mixed four bogeys with three bogeys from there to shoot 74, she felt she struck the ball well.
“I just had a few silly putts that caught me with the wind, but other than that, I am taking confidence into tomorrow,” the former University of Miami standout said.
She added: “The wind was really gusting and 16, 17 and 18, even 15, it was definitely a tough final few holes. So I was happy to keep it at plus two.”
Donegan was disappointed to follow a bogey at the 17th with a three-putt bogey at the 18th for her 76 but she loved the challenge Portmarnock presented.
“The course is great,” she said,” after being asked to hit a four iron to the 17th and a five iron to the last. “It's the kind of course where if you lose your concentration at all, it'll penalise you.
“Off the tee, it's so important to stay out of those fairway bunkers; you just have to chip it sideways if you go in there.
“But I really enjoyed today and I'm I'm happy the wind came up and the course playing as it normally plays.”
As for the rest of the Irish, Marina Joyce Moreno and Olivia Costello were 105th after 82s, Jessica Ross 120th after an 84 Katie Poots 130th following an 85 and Ellen O’Gorman 142nd after a 92.
