Olivia Mehaffey is no stranger to the U.S. Women’s Open having twice qualified [2018 and 2020] while an amateur and studying at Arizona State University, but now she’s set to tee it up in her first as a professional after a gruelling 36-hole qualifier at Buckinghamshire Golf Club in England.
“It was such a grind today,” said Mehaffey, who shot rounds of 70 and 71 to finish at three-under-par and at the top of the leaderboard with just two automatic qualification spots on offer. “[It’s] just such a long day. It was really cold and windy, we had a bit of everything in there. I did a really good job mentally and stayed patient all day. It’s nice to come out on top.
“U.S. Opens are really tough! All I remember before was how tough the setup was. I haven’t played a Major as a professional so it’s going to be fun.”
The last time Buckinghamshire hosted the U.S. Women’s Open Qualifier, Mehaffey was desperately unlucky not to make it through, losing in a playoff for the final place. And she almost didn’t enter this year’s qualifier as she got an invitation to tee it up at the Amundi German Masters this week on the LET and was considering withdrawing before being nudged to give it a go and head to Germany a day later than she typically would’ve.
“It was heartbreaking missing out before [in 2022],” she said. “And I almost didn’t play this week as I’m playing in Germany on the LET. A few people convinced me to play so I’m glad I did!”
She will now take her place in the field at Riviera Country Club from June 4-7, and she is very excited to have her chance to write a Hollywood-style script in Tinsel Town.
“I’ve heard so many great things about it, and it’s not too far from Arizona which is nice as well as that’s like my second home,” she smiled. “So I’ll hopefully have a few friends come and make the week even more special.”
Mehaffey turned professional in 2021 after a glittering amateur career that saw her play on two Curtis Cup sides, win the Irish Women’s Amateur Open, help Arizona State University to NCAA Championship glory, and contend at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur in her final few months as an amateur.
But though the professional success hasn’t followed, she’s been slowly working her way back to form and this is a clear indication that her efforts are starting to pay off.
“It’s been a tough few years,” she said. “But I feel like my game has been so much better this year. I’ve put so much work in with everybody on my team and you feel it’s getting better and it’s nice for the results to be showing that now. I think we’re on the right track, which is good.”
And she’s not the only one eager to tee it up alongside the women’s game’s elite players at an iconic venue.
“It was nice to do it with Mikey, and I think he’s more excited about the U.S. Women’s Open than I am,” she joked about her caddie and other half, Mikey Boal. “So it was really nice to do it together, I holed a bunker shot on the last hole which was pretty exciting, so I think we’re both really looking forward to it.”
There is no time to celebrate her achievement as that Amundi German Masters invitation still must be honoured and she’s hoping to carry her wave of momentum into the tournament where critical LET rankings points are again on offer.
“I’m gonna be struggling a little bit with sleep as my flight is at 6:30 am,” she said. “But it’s all worth it and I have to just roll with it and I think we’re going to have some more bad weather in Germany so hopefully this prepared me for it.”
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