There will be no Irish representation over the weekend at the AIG Women’s Open after Leona Maguire, Lauren Walsh and Anna Foster all fell short of the +4 cutline at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club, bowing out of the fifth and final major of the season. All three struggled to overcome the links course in the windy conditions, failing to produce an under-par round between them.
As heavy rain ran rampant on Thursday night, Maguire began her second round on a softer course with back-to-back bogeys at the first and second hole as distance control with her irons and putting proved to be an issue early on.
The two-time LPGA winner fought back to even-par with birdies at the sixth and ninth to give herself a realistic chance of getting inside the cutline.
Unfortunately for Maguire, those iron issues arose again on the back nine as she began scrambling for pars until the 31-year-old made a double-bogey at the par-13th. Now on the cutline, Maguire followed that up with a bogey at 14 as she struggled to get anything within birdie range in her closing holes.
Accurate off the tee, hitting 22/28 fairways, it was the shorter game that undone Maguire as she missed 17 greens in the two rounds. Maguire missed the cut by one stroke, finishing on five-over-par.
Posting a 75 in Thursday’s first round, Lauren Walsh could only manage the same again on Friday. The 25-year-old was one-under through the front nine before a calamitous back nine saw the Kildare native make three bogeys and a double as she exits the tournament at eight-over.
Elm Park’s Anna Foster bettered her first round score of 76 with a 75 on Friday. Like the majority of the field, Foster also struggled on the back nine, making two doubles and a bogey after an even-par front nine. Foster finished one stroke behind Walsh at nine-over.
Friday’s second round saw a new leader as Korea’s Haeran Rye posted a two-under-par round to lead by one at seven-under. Ryu stumbled early, making a bogey and a double but quickly regrouped to make five birdies.
“I just trying to have fun on the course because this course is very stressful because a lot of bunkers and green is tough, and then windy, so I’m just trying to find out the fun in the golf course with my caddie,” said Ryu.
“Yeah, I think I don’t want to focus for on other players. I will just keep thinking about my golf and the golf course. There is a lot of great players in here… because this is a major; nobody knows what comes up,” she added.
Ryu is followed by Japan’s Shiho Kuwaki who sits one back at six-under after a one-under-par second round. Both Yealimi Noh and Jeeno Thitikul occupy T3 at five-under.
18 hole leader Thitikul posted a seven-under first round but struggled on day two, posting a two-over-par 73.
“I was definitely going to get frustrated sometimes. I mean, like I get really frustrated when I three-putt on 14 and then I end up on like the bunker on 15. But I think it’s also really depends on the next shot more than the last shot. I feel like it’s definitely going to be frustrating. I’m not going lie to you,” said Thitikul.
Lottie Woad and Charley Hull remain in contention for a home major win as the pair share T6 at two-under.
“I feel like now my nerves have settled down. My back was actually playing up for me a little bit today, a little bit sore, that’s why I think I wasn’t getting through the ball how I wanted to,” said Hull.
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