Tag: Aine Donegan

Players to watch at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Amateur at Bel-Air Country Club

It’s bound to be an exciting week at Bel-Air.

It’s time for one of the premier women’s amateur championships.

The 2023 U.S. Women’s Amateur begins Monday at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles, as the field of 156 players will vie for their chance to capture the oldest trophy in women’s amateur golf, the Robert Cox Trophy.

This will be the 123rd U.S. Women’s Amateur, which began in 1895. There were a record 1,679 entries accepted for the championship.

Although the top three players in the World Amateur Golf Ranking aren’t in the field, including defending champion Saki Baba, there’s no shortage of star power who will be teeing it up near Beverly Hills.

Here’s a look at 10 players to watch at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Amateur at Bel-Air Country Club.

3 LSU golfers to begin qualifying at US Women’s Amateur on Monday

Aine Donegan, Latanna Stone and Taylor Riley will represent the Tigers in Los Angeles this week.

Three LSU golfers will open qualifying at the 123rd U.S. Women’s Amateur at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles on Monday.

[autotag]Aine Donegan[/autotag], [autotag]Latanna Stone[/autotag] and [autotag]Taylor Riley[/autotag] are all among the 156-golfer field and look to be among the 64 golfers who advance beyond the two 18-hole rounds of qualifying and on to match play, which begins on Wednesday.

Stone, who will be a graduate student this fall, advanced to match play at the British Women’s Amateur earlier this summer. Donegan, a junior, was one of four amateurs to make the cut at the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach earlier this summer.

Riley, a sophomore and California native, reached the semifinal in the California State Women’s Amateur earlier this year.

Match play in Los Angeles begins on Wednesday and will be televised beginning at 5 p.m. CT on the Golf Channel.

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LSU’s Ingrid Lindblad finishes 3rd in European Amateur Championships

Ingrid Lindblad entered the final round with a one-stroke lead but ultimately finished third.

LSU graduate student golfer [autotag]Ingrid Lindblad[/autotag] ended an impressive run at the European Women’s Amateur Championships with a third-place finish out of an original field of 144.

Lindblad entered the final round with a one-stroke lead, but after shooting an even-par final round of 71, she ultimately finished third with a 5-under total for the tournament.

The world’s top-ranked amateur wasn’t the only LSU golfer at the event. [autotag]Carla Tejedo[/autotag] also posted a top-10 finish in a tie for eighth, while [autotag]Aine Donegan[/autotag] and [autotag]Edit Hertzman[/autotag] finished T42 and T52, respectively.

Julia Lopez Ramirez of Spain ultimately won the tournament after very impressive rounds of 63 and 67 to close out the tournament, with the former score allowing her to move up 25 spots during the third round.

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LSU’s Aine Donegan remains low amateur entering final round of US Women’s Open

Aine Donegan sits at 4-over through 54 holes.

Editor’s Note: The following is an official press release courtesy of LSU’s athletics department.

BATON ROUGE – LSU rising junior Aine Donegan battled through a sunny, but windy day at Pebble Beach in the third round of the U.S. Women’s Open and came home with a 3-over 75 to remain in low amateur position heading to Sunday’s final round.

Donegan through 54 holes is at 4-over par 220 and is T19 in the overall standings. She is three-shots clear in the race for the silver medal for low amateur. If she is able to hold the spot after Sunday’s round it would mark two straight years that an LSU golfer would have captured the silver medal as Ingrid Lindblad was the low amateur in the 2022 event.

Donegan had a strong start to the round with three birdies in the first seven holes before issues on the eighth hole dropped her back in t standings. But she didn’t let the problems on the eighth derail her round as she fought back on the final 10 holes to shoot one over on the more difficult back nine.

“Out of all the rounds here at the US Open, that’s probably the best I’ve hit it,” Donegan said in an NBC Sports interview. “I hit two bad shots out of the whole round and they were the two that came on eight.”

Caddy Gary Madden gave Donegan some good advice heading to the final nine holes of the round.

“He said just act like you had seven pars and two bogeys which wouldn’t be the worst score.”

Donegan improved in greens in regulation on Saturday, hitting 12-of-18 and after three rounds has made 11 birdies which ties her for fourth in the field in birdies made. She is sixth in the field in putting at 1.66 putts per hole.

Donegan closed her round with a 21-foot par putt on the par 5 18th which drew a loud response from the crowd around the final hole.

“I heard the crowd today,” she said. “They were particularly loud the first seven holes and then got a bit quiet but they came back for the final few holes. There are so many Irish out here and I’m very proud of myself. I’m very pleased to be where I am right now.”

The other amateurs are Benedetta Moresco and Monet Chun at +7 and Amari Avery at +9.

The final round is Sunday and will be televised on NBC Sports, beginning at 2 p.m. CT.

Irish amateur remains in top 20 at U.S. Women’s Open despite quintuple bogey

“I had to keep moving on.”

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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Aine Donegan’s rip-roaring start along famed Pebble Beach came to a crashing halt after she recorded a nine on the famed par-4 eighth.

The Irish amateur, known for her sunny personality, didn’t let it ruin the day. Her swing coach and caddie, Gary Madden, simply told her to start again heading to the ninth tee on a sun-splashed Saturday at the 78th U.S. Women’s Open.

Donegan rebounded admirably, ending the day in a share of 19th at 4 over after a third-round 75. She currently holds a three-shot lead in the low amateur race with Benedetta Moresco and Monet Chun at 7 over.

After posting birdies on three of the first six holes, Donegan ultimately hit two shots into the hazard on No. 8 en route to a quintuple bogey. Madden reminded her that she was still only 2 over on the day despite the nine, and to pretend she’d simply made two bogeys over the first eight holes.

“I hit a good tee shot and I had about 190 to the flag,” said Donegan of her first approach into the eighth. “The wind was really, really left to right there, and that wind often doesn’t suit a right-handed golfer who plays a draw. Not that it makes a huge difference, or it’s an excuse, but I hit two very bad shots in a row, which obviously concluded in me having a nine on the hole.

“I had to keep moving on.”

2023 U.S. Women's Open
Amateur Áine Donegan of the Republic of Ireland waves after making par on the second green during the third round of the 78th U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links on July 08, 2023 in Pebble Beach, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

Donegan, who transferred to LSU from Indiana last season, capped off the round by sinking a 21-foot putt for par on the 18th. She soaked up the roar of the hearty crowd, which included a number of Irish family and friends.

Madden has worked with Donegan since she was 8 years old and said his sporty pupil played camogie (hurling for women) and Gaelic football before settling on golf.

After her clubs showed up late to Pebble Beach and her driver arrived smashed, she was forced to put a new one in play for her first major.

“Honestly, you could give her a hurl and she’d be fine,” said Madden with a smile.

Meet the amateurs to make the cut at 2023 U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach

When the week started, nearly 20 percent of the field was amateurs.

When the week started, nearly 20 percent of the U.S. Women’s Open field at Pebble Beach was comprised of amateurs.

There were 28 amateurs who started the week on the Monterey Peninsula in the field of 156, including world No. 2 Saki Baba, but most of them are heading home after two days at the third women’s major championship of the year.

Only four amateurs earned weekend tee times and will vie for the low-amateur medal, which will be awarded during Sunday’s trophy presentation. The cut was 6-over par.

Here’s a look at the amateurs who made the cut at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open.

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LSU’s Aine Donegan shoots 3-under 69 in Round 1 of US Women’s Open

As of publication, Aine Donegan is the low amateur and in a four-way tie for second place.

LSU golfer [autotag]Aine Donegan[/autotag] made quite an impression in her first round at the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links in California.

The Ireland native shot a 3-under 69 on Thursday. As of publication, that puts her in a four-way tie for second place. She’s also currently the low amateur at the event.

This marks back-to-back years that an LSU golfer has impressed as an amateur in the opening round of the Open. Last year, [autotag]Ingrid Lindblad[/autotag] shot a 6-under 65 in her opening round.

“It’s a bit surreal,” Donegan told NBC Sports after the round, according to a release. “Up and down. Didn’t start off great but brought it back … I had a bit of a rough start, but I just kept with it and then luckily things started to go in my favor on the back nine. I got more comfortable and yea, I finished pretty strong. So, I’m happy with it.”

It’s been a good summer so far for Donegan, who also made match play at The Women’s Amateur in England. She was the leader in points for the Great Britain and Ireland team against Europe at the Vagliano Cup last week.

She should finish near the leaders after Round 1, and she’ll try to stick around in the mix through the weekend.

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Amateur Aine Donegan turns missing clubs into positive at U.S. Women’s Open

When Donegan’s clubs finally arrived, her driver head was completely smashed.

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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Aine Donegan’s missing club fiasco turned into a storybook silver lining early on at the 78th U.S. Women’s Open. The Irishwoman’s travels from the Vagliano Trophy in Scotland took her to Dublin and then San Francisco via Newark, the epicenter of travel nightmares over the past two weeks.

When Donegan, a rising junior at LSU, arrived in San Francisco after 30 hours of travel, her clubs did not. The airport assured her they would arrive the next day. When they didn’t, the 21-year-old played her first practice round at Pebble Beach Golf Links with a courtesy set of Ping clubs.

Donegan typically plays Ping irons, but found herself hitting a new Ping driver so well during practice that she told her coach/caddie, Gary Madden, that she might put it in play.

Turns out that when Donegan’s clubs finally did arrive, her driver head was completely smashed.

“At least it stopped us thinking ‘Oh, which driver we’ll use. We had only one choice then,’ ” said Donegan.

“Honestly, I am delighted I did. It’s like everything happens for a reason, that the clubs were late and then the driver came and it was broken, and all of a sudden I have no choice, but to put this Ping driver in.”

That driver set up the 96-yard shot Donegan holed on the 15th for eagle that erased the two bogeys she made at the start of the round on Nos. 10 and 11. The reset propelled her to a career day in her U.S. Women’s Open debut. In fact, she topped the board early in the morning at 4 under before a late bogey dropped her to 3-under 69, one shot behind leader Xiyu “Janet” Lin.

“I hit the shot and I knew it was going to be good,” said Donegan. “Then it bounced, bounced, and kind of spins back and it just drops in. I have my family here and a few other Irish over here who live in the United States, and big scream from all the Irish people.”

On a day when many of the best players in the world struggled mightily, Donegan is one of three amateurs in the top five midway through the day.  World No. 1 Jin Young Ko shot 79 while No. 2 Nelly Korda shot 74.

Italy’s Bernadetta Moresco, an Alabama standout who survived a 2-for-1 playoff in sectional qualifying to advance to Pebble, carded a bogey-free 70 to open play and holds a share of fifth with USC’s Amari Avery. Moresco said her putter “was on fire” Thursday.

“I was definitely nervous my first holes,” she said. “But it’s my third major, so I’ve experienced it already, and for the first time, I feel like in the right place. I’m happy about it, as I’m also trying to turn professional soon.”

Avery made headlines earlier this year at the Chevron Championship when she made the cut without ever playing a practice round in Texas. The Pac 12 Conference Championship was held earlier in the same week, and after Avery helped the Trojans win the title, she finished 45th in the LPGA’s first major of the year.

This is Avery’s second USWO start.

“It’s so surreal,” said Avery, who played Pebble Beach for the first time on Monday. “I catch myself on every hole just kind of looking out to the ocean and just appreciating the fact that I’m even here, and playing a U.S. Open here as well is even more special.”

While Rose Zhang, the newly-minted pro who came in this week as the betting favorite, garnered much of the attention this week, her former Stanford teammates Kelly Xu and Sadie Englemann enjoyed a special honor on Thursday. At 7 a.m., Xu hit the first tee shot off No. 1 while Englemann went first off the 10th.

“I almost started crying on the first tee,” said Xu. “It was just amazing. I don’t even have words to describe it.”

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Meet the amateurs playing in the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach

Of the 28 amateurs, four colleges have two players each: Alabama, Stanford, Texas and UCLA.

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Nearly 20 percent of the field at the U.S. Women’s Open is amateurs.

It’s no surprise to see the top amateurs in the game teeing it up at major championships, but a large chunk of the field at Pebble Beach hasn’t turned professional.

There are 28 amateurs who will try to conquer Pebble Beach. Of those, four colleges have two players each: Alabama, Stanford, Texas and UCLA. Eleven countries are represented among the amateur competitors.

Ingrid Lindblad, No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, is not in the field, but second-ranked Saki Baba, who won the 2022 U.S. Women’s Amateur at Chambers Bay, is.

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Here’s a look at the amateurs in the field at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open.