Canice Screene was two-over-par for her round and the tournament when she walked off the sixth green in round two of the KPMG Women’s Irish Open at The K Club. 12 holes later, she was tapping in a birdie putt on the last to move to five-under-par and take a position inside the top 10 on the leaderboard.
Back-to-back birdies on seven and eight got her back to level-par for the day having bogeyed the first and fourth, then she reeled off three-in-a-row to start the back nine.
Another birdie on the par-4 14th got her to -4 for the championship, before a deft approach having laid-up to the perfect position on the par-5 closing hole left her the simplest of tasks to finish out the round.
“I started out a bit slow, a couple of early bogeys, so I knew I needed to get a few back and then I just started hitting my irons quite close and I holed quite a few putts in a row, all within about 10 feet, so it was nice,” Screene said of her revival. “I think once I saw one go in, I just felt a lot more confident.”
Last year was her rookie season on the LET, but limited status meant there was no guarantee that she’d gain entry to a lot of tournaments, and as a result, she found herself back playing on the LET Access Series this year.
So a strong weekend would go a long way to putting her back in the frame for a full-time return to the LET next season.
“Yeah, absolutely,” she replied when it was put to her that there was a lot on the line this week. “It’s always my favorite event of the year and my family are here, so staying around for the weekend and putting on a good show for them is my priority.
“But obviously it’s a good opportunity for me to move up the LET Order of Merit and also just gain confidence for going back on the (LET) Access next week.”
Screene has form over the weekend at a Women’s Irish Open as well. Last year at Carton House, a final-round 66 catapulted her up the leaderboard on Sunday, and having already carded a 67 this week, she knows it’s in the locker once again.
“I love the Women’s Irish Open,” she enthused. “I love everything about it. The courses we play, that my family can come and watch, the way they treat us – it’s one of the best events on the LET each season too.
“And to know I’ve done it once, you know, to play well at the weekend, I feel like it’s given me confidence I can do it again.
“And also just leaning on how I played today and the confidence that I had in my irons particularly. That makes me feel good going into the next few days.”
Though she was born in England, Screene’s parents both hail from Ireland and this year was a particularly enjoyable one for her Mayo-born mother.
“They’re all still riding high from that,” she laughed. “It was just unreal, so maybe the stars are aligning this year.”
As for whether a victory by Canice at The K Club or Mayo’s long-awaited Sam Maguire triumph at Croke Park would be the greater celebrated?
“Do you know what? I think Mayo’s,” she chuckled. “They’ve certainly waited longer for that one, so I think I’d have to let them off!”
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