Leona Maguire got off to a fast start at this week’s Ladies European Tour’s Aramco Team Series London event, and she needed a strong finish to close out a victory at the Centurion Club.
Maguire shot a 66 in the opening round and then slid home with rounds of 72 on Thursday and 73 on Friday to capture the individual title at the event, finishing the 54-hole tournament at 8 under. Maria Hernandez was a stroke behind Maguire and the trio of Alison Lee, Lauren Walsh and Georgia Hall tied for third at 6 under.
But this was no ordinary finish.
Walsh, who hails from Ireland but played collegiately at Wake Forest, shot a 65 to take the lead for a stretch, then Hernandez made birdie on the par-5 18th hole to take the lead at 7 under.
Sitting at 6 under at the time, Maguire made the shot of the tournament, knocking her hybrid onto the fringe just left of the hole and watching as the ball rolled up onto the green, giving her an opportunity to drop a putt for the victory.
With the pressure on, Maguire hit the putt to edge Hernandez, the win marking her first on the LET to go with a pair of victories on the LPGA. Her last win came more than a year ago at the 2023 Meijer LPGA Classic.
First, World No. 1 Nelly Korda said she was bitten by a dog, now Hull also WD with an unfortunate injury.
After the first two rounds of the Ladies European Tour’s Aramco Team Series London event, Leona Maguire and Georgia Hall find themselves at the top of the leaderboard at the Centurion Club.
Maguire shot a 72 during Thursday’s second round and sits at 8 under for the tournament with 18 holes to play, while Hall’s second consecutive 70 puts her two shots off the pace heading into Friday’s final round.
“I regret to announce that I must withdraw from next week’s Ladies European Tour tournament in London,” Korda wrote. “I was bitten by a dog and need time to receive treatment and recover fully.”
The previous week, Korda carded a surprising 81 on Friday of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Sahalee Country Club and she was scheduled to appear in the LET event, which she won last year by four strokes.
And then, during the opening round of the event, Charley Hull — the No. 8 player in the current Rolex Rankings — also pulled out, although she did so after six holes of play.
On her Instagram, Hull said she suffered a “nasty fall” prior to the tournament.
“I had to withdraw from @aramcoteamseries London following medical advice, due to ongoing pain in my right shoulder following a nasty fall on Sunday night. I’m so disappointed as I always love playing in this series, particularly in front of a home crowd,” she said.
“Sorry to the fans who came out to watch, my playing partners for leaving you after 6 holes, and to all.”
At the U.S. Women’s Open earlier this month, there was a video that did its trip around social media showing Hull signing autographs for fans while smoking.
Tavatanakit routed the field at Riyadh Golf Club, winning by seven shots.
Her three-year wait is over.
Patty Tavatanakit shot a final-round 65 on Sunday to win the 2024 Aramco Saudi Ladies International for her first individual victory since she won the 2021 Chevron Championship. She routed the field at Riyadh Golf Club, winning by seven shots.
Tavatanakit was part of the winning Team Thailand at the 2023 Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown, where each team had four players but Sunday marks her first individual title since winning at Mission Hills Country Club, which closed the chapter on the long-standing women’s major in the California desert.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve played this good,” Tavatanakit said. “It’s very emotional, I’m very emotional right now with how I have overcome that and looking back it was just one day at a time, keep working hard.”
Those emotions showed on the 18th hole after she putted out.
Esther Henseleit finished shot a 69 to earn solo second. Minami Katsu and Charley Hull tied for third.
Backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the Aramco event has a purse of $5 million, which is the same as the men’s Saudi International.
In addition to this event, the 2024 Ladies European Tour schedule also features the Aramco Team Series, comprised of five events staged across the globe. The LET’s Saudi-backed events remain controversial given the wide-ranging human rights abuses Saudi Arabia has been accused of, especially toward women.
If Tavatanakit holds on to win, it would be her first title in more than three years.
Patty Tavatanakit shot 3-under 69 on Saturday at Riyadh Golf Club in Saudi Arabia, continuing to hold on to her lead at the 2024 Aramco Saudi Ladies International.
She has led after every round of the tournament, and sitting at 11 under following three rounds, she had a three-shot advantage heading to the final round.
“Overall, I was pleased with the mentality out there,” Tavatanakit said. “I feel like I had a really good mindset with how the round started. It was just kind of slow. I feel like I didn’t miss-hit a shot today. But on one hole, I went over the green, I just hit it too good.”
Germany’s Esther Henseleit is in second at 8 under after a stellar 7-under 65 on Saturday. The 25-year-old, who won the 2019 LET Order of Merit and Rookie of the Year titles, has improved each day after a round of 74 and 69 the first two days.
Charley Hull is in third at 7 under, tied with Emily Kristine Pedersen.
If Tavatanakit holds on to win, it would be her first title in more than three years.
The PIF-backed event has a purse of $5 million, which the same as the men’s Saudi International.
With the LPGA off for a third straight week, many of the top golfers in the women’s game are at Riyadh Golf Club in Saudi Arabia for the 2024 Aramco Saudi Ladies International.
Backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the Aramco event has a purse of $5 million, which is the same as the men’s Saudi International.
Patty Tavatanakit, whose last individual win came at the 2021 Chevron Championship, is in good position after two rounds with scores of 68 and 70. She is sitting at 8 under and holds a two-shot lead after 36 holes. She has 10 birdies and just two bogeys so far. Tavatanakit was part of the winning Team Thailand at the 2023 Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown, where each team had four players.
Nicole Broch Estrup and Manon De Roey are tied for second at 6 under. Leona Maguire bounced back from an opening-round 76 with a second-round 64, the best score of the week so far by three shots.
Lexi Thompson is tied for 36th at 1 over. Defending tournament champ Lydia Ko is not in the field.
In addition to this event, the 2024 Ladies European Tour schedule also features the Aramco Team Series, comprised of five events staged across the globe. The LET’s Saudi-backed events remain controversial given the wide-ranging human rights abuses Saudi Arabia has been accused of, especially toward women.
Golf’s future still holds more questions than answers.
Last November, LET players met at the tour’s season-ending event to vote on a potential merge with the LPGA. Soon after gathering in Spain, however, leadership said there would be no vote. The LET Board adjourned the meeting without explanation.
Earlier this month, LPGA commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan sent a letter to players that shined a bit of light on what happened. In the letter, obtained by Golfweek, Marcoux Samaan confirmed that Golf Saudi submitted a last-minute request for further information on the proposed operating model of the tour following any potential transaction.
“As a significant partner of the LET,” Marcoux Samaan wrote, “Golf Saudi wanted to ensure that they fully understood any risks, implications, and opportunities for the Aramco Saudi Ladies International and Aramco Team Series before finalizing their commitment to the events in 2024.”
The loss of Aramco would be devastating to the LET given that its $10 million in prize funds account for nearly one-third of the tour’s combined purse.
Of course, this was no last-minute vote. In fact, a vote on a merger between the two tours was expected to happen in late 2022. The vote kept getting pushed back as the two tours continued to work on terms.
As part of the merger, the top four LET players at the end of the 2024 season would receive LPGA cards for 2025. At a player meeting on Tuesday at the LPGA Drive On Championship, Golfweek has learned that the commissioner confirmed that there would be no cards available for the LET next year.
The commissioner’s letter went on to describe discussions with Golf Saudi as “constructive and collaborative,” noting the presence of the five Aramco Team Series events on the 2024 schedule, each with $1 million purses, as well as the $5 million Aramco Saudi Ladies International next month.
Nelly Korda poses with the trophy after winning the Individual title at the 2023 Aramco Team Series presented by PIF – London. (Photo: LET)
Golf Saudi’s plans in the women’s golf space beyond its current presence on the LET remain uncertain, but its power to stop a merger vote is quite clear.
With the vote now postponed indefinitely, Marcoux Samaan told players the two tours have decided to focus on maximizing their joint venture partnership, which first came together in November 2019 under the leadership of former LPGA commissioner Mike Whan and has two years left on the contract.
What’s still squarely in the middle of all of this, of course, are the question marks that surround doing business with the Saudis. The Aramco events remain controversial given the wide-ranging human rights abuses Saudi Arabia has been accused of, especially toward women.
As it currently stands, the LPGA can somewhat distance itself from Aramco while being part of an alliance. But should the LET fall completely under the umbrella of the LPGA, some observers question if existing and future LPGA sponsors might choose to distance themselves from the LPGA because of Aramco’s large presence. And, if so, how many?
On the other hand, LET players might wonder how much the LPGA could hold them back from bigger purses at Aramco events. Could the PIF pump so much money into the LET that it one day becomes the LPGA’s rival?
The flip side to that, of course, is that the LET becomes so dependent on Saudi money that it couldn’t survive without it. And there’s no telling how long the Saudis will want to remain so heavily invested in women’s golf.
And what if Aramco events eventually find their way onto the LPGA’s official schedule?
Golf’s future still holds more questions than answers.
Two weeks after Nataliya Guseva earned her LPGA card at Q-Series, the Russian-born player headed to Morocco on a quest for Ladies European Tour status. Guseva didn’t just earn a second tour card, she dominated the field, winning the 2024 Lalla Aicha Q-School by four shots.
Guseva, 20, closed with a 69 to finish at 23-under 340 over five rounds. A winner on the Epson Tour in 2023 at the Black Desert Resort Championship, Guseva became the first player from Russia to earn LPGA status on Dec. 5 when she tied for 23rd at LPGA Q-Series.
“It’s amazing,” said Guseva, who played collegiate golf at the Univeristy of Miami. “It’s crazy that I came here already with my LPGA tour card and then just coming here and winning LET Q-School, it’s something I have always dreamed of.”
The Russian flag does not appear by Guseva’s name on the LPGA and LET websites because of International Olympic Committee guidelines. At the 2024 Olympics in Paris, individuals who qualify from Russia will compete as neutral athletes. No flag, anthem or colors from Russia will be displayed at the Games.
Maria Verchenova, the first Russian to earn LET status, competed in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, carding a course-record 62 before ultimately finishing tied for 16th.
A total of 22 players earned Category 12 membership status on the LET for 2024, while 30 players clinched Category 16 membership.
South Africa’s Cara Gorlei finished second at 19 under while Thailand’s Aunchisa Utama placed solo third.
Amateur Annabell Fuller, a fifth-year senior at the University of Florida, took a share of fifth while Texas Techs’ Shannon Tan of Singapore tied for eighth.
Spain’s Teresa Toscano made a tremendous final-round statement with a closing 64 to finish tied for 10th.
“But yeah, like I said I’m really happy with my round.”
Alison Lee has had a record-setting start at the Aramco Team Series Riyadh in Saudi Arabia on the Ladies European Tour.
Lee, the 28-year-old American, finished second last week at the LPGA’s BMW Ladies Championship in Korea. This week, she’s well on her way to hoisting a trophy after posting consecutive 61s at Riyadh Golf Club.
With a 36-hole score of 22 under, Lee smashed the previous two-day tally set by Gwladys Nocera (2008 Goteborg Masters), Kylie Henry (2014 Ladies German Open), Anne van Dam (2018 Estralla Damm Ladies Open) and Emily Kristine Pedersen (2020 Tipsport Czech Ladies Open), which stood at 16-under. Her 61s match the lowest round in LET history, and in the opening round, she set a new record with eight consecutive birdies.
“If you told me at the beginning of the week I was going to shoot 22 under after two days I wouldn’t have believed you,” Lee said. “So I’m really happy with where I am right now. I made a lot of really good putts. Statistically [this season], driver, greens-in-regulation, everything’s been really good. But I just haven’t been able to get that confidence in the putter and that’s been the biggest thing.
“[But] this week I feel really good, the speed has been great. I’ve been able to putt very aggressively, especially out here which you need [to do] if you want to make birdies. I wish I could give you an answer as to why. I’ve been working really hard with my putting coach back home.”
Lee had a putt for 60 on the closing hole, but her birdie attempt came up just short. However, a tap-in for 61 and a six-shot lead over Carlota Ciganda made for the best 36-hole stretch of her career.
“With five holes left, I kind of knew right then and there, ‘OK, let’s try and make a charge here,'” Lee continued. “Unfortunately, I left my putt short on 16, so I was a little disappointed. And it was a tricky putt I had [on 18]. I had to take it out pretty far to the left and let it break.
“But yeah, like I said I’m really happy with my round.”
