A stellar field will assemble at The Nairn Golf Club from tomorrow for The 122nd Women’s Amateur Championship (10-15 June), with a number of Curtis Cup players set to renew rivalries.
Beth Coulter, Olivia Costello, Marina Joyce Moreno, Rebekah Gardner and Roisin Scanlon are the Irish acts involved as they chase their maiden Women’s Amateur titles.
After Melanie Green triumphed over Scotland’s Lorna McClymont at Portmarnock last year, a string of leading American players have made the journey to the picturesque venue in the Scottish Highlands in a bid to follow in Green’s footsteps, who turned professional in November.
They include three members of the top ten on the World Amateur Golf Ranking® (WAGR®) – Catherine Park (seventh), Farah O’Keefe (eighth) and Jasmine Koo (tenth).
Park and Koo were part of the USA side that lost out 10½-9½ to Great Britain and Ireland in a nail-biting Curtis Cup at Sunningdale in September and they are joined by team-mate Anna Davis on the Moray Firth. Davis won the Augusta National Women’s Amateur in 2022 aged only 16.
Coulter, Hannah Darling and Patience Rhodes – who delivered a crucial victory in the Sunday singles – will also be at Nairn from the victorious GB&I Curtis Cup team. In total, four of the world’s top ten and six of the top 20 will gather in pursuit of the coveted title. Players from 30 different countries will be represented from as far afield as Australia, Barbados, China, India, Mexico and South Africa.
A two-time semi-finalist at The Women’s Amateur, former R&A Girls’ Amateur winner Darling is the top-ranked GB&I player in the field at 18th on the WAGR®.
Having completed her studies at the University of South Carolina, the Scot is keen to finally cross the winning line in her homeland. “Having been close before there is added determination to go that bit further, especially as this will probably be my last Women’s Amateur Championship,” said the 21-year-old.
“In saying that, I don’t want to put too much pressure and expectation on myself because of that. I want to enjoy it first and foremost. Anything can happen in match play golf and that’s why it’s such a great format. I’ve never actually played at Nairn before but links golf is how I really fell in love with the game.”
The highest-ranked European in the field is Spain’s Paula Martin Sampedro at ninth in the world. Ines Archer of France and Germany’s Paula Schulz-Hanssen are each back in the field after reaching the quarter-finals in 2024. Denmark’s Marine Eline Madsen, a semi-finalist at Portmarnock, will also have designs on another run in the Championship.
Canada’s Vanessa Borovilos makes her debut having rapidly risen up the rankings and has five top-ten collegiate finishes in 2025. Another French player, Louise Landgraf, will hope to shine after winning the R&A Girls’ U16 Amateur Championship in 2024.
The Women’s Amateur Championship is one of the leading championships in amateur golf for women and girls’ golfers. The championship, founded in 1893, annually attracts an international field with an impressive list of former winners including McCormack Medal winner Leona Maguire and major champions Georgia Hall and Anna Nordqvist.
The winner of this year’s Championship again has exciting opportunities, gaining entry to the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Porthcawl from 31 July to 3 August, the US Women’s Open, The Amundi Evian Championship and by tradition, will earn an invitation to compete at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. The Champion will also be invited to play in an event on the Ladies’ European Tour.
The 144-strong field will take part in the stroke play stage on Tuesday 10 June and Wednesday 11 June over 36 holes. From there, 64 players will advance to the match play stage from Thursday 12 to Sunday 15 June.
Nairn, founded in 1887, is one of only nine courses to have hosted the Walker Cup, the Curtis Cup, The Amateur and The Women’s Amateur. It is staging The Women’s Amateur for just a second time, with the previous occasion coming in 1979 when Northern Ireland’s Maureen Madill prevailed.
Similar to last year at Sunningdale, GB&I won the Curtis Cup at Nairn 10½-9½ in 2012. The home team included three past and future Women’s Amateur champions in Kelly Tidy, Stephanie Meadow and Leona Maguire, and current world number 17 Charley Hull.
The Amateur has been staged at Nairn on two occasions with England’s Lee James beating Gordon Sherry of Scotland in 1994 and Laird Shepherd coming back from eight down after 17 holes to defeat Monty Scowsill at the 38th hole in a dramatic all-English final in 2021.
For more information on The Women’s Amateur Championship, please visit here.
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