Major opportunity beckons for Leona Maguire at Chevron Championship
Leona Maguire
is the sole Irish player in the field at this week's Chevron Championship at The Woodlands in Texas, the first of five Major championships on the
LPGA Tour
where world number one Nelly Korda is the defending champion.
Maguire hasn't missed a cut in eight starts so far in what has been a season of consistency without ever contending. Her best finish came in the season-opening HGV Tournament of Champions where the Co Cavan-born player finished ninth.
Her latest outing saw Maguire finish tied-37th in the JM Eagle LA Championship where her $18,695 pay-day brought her season's winnings to over $168,000.
The Chevron returns to the Jack Nicklaus signature design at The Woodlands for a stellar field with a purse of $7.9 million, with $1.2m going to the winner.
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On the PGA Tour,
Rory McIlroy
returns to action for the first time since completing the career Grand Slam at the Masters when he again partners
Shane Lowry
in the defence of their two-man Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
Shane Lowry celebrates with the Claret Jug after winning The Open Championship 2019 at Royal Portrush Golf Club. The Open returns to the Antrim venue this year. Photograph: David Davies/PA
Claret Jug's Irish tour proves popular
Golf Ireland has hailed the reaction to the recent Claret Jug tour of Ireland as 'phenomenal,' after some 23 clubs – north, south, east and west – got to host the most famous trophy in golf.
The tour, arranged in conjunction with the R&A who run The Open, golf's oldest championship, covered 2,479 kilometres over a two-week period in raising awareness in advance of the 153rd Open at Royal Portrush in July.
The tour took in 23 golf clubs in total: Skerries, Edenderry, Athlone, Grange, Greystones, St Helen's Bay, West Waterford, Kanturk, Killarney, Cork, Clonmel, Ballyneety, Portumna, Athenry, Westport, Tandragee, Lurgan, Greenisland, Portadown, Bushfoot, Rosapenna, Letterkenny and Cushendall.
'Seeing so many communities engage with the trophy demonstrates how much golf means to people across Ireland. It also highlights the important role our clubs play, not just in sport, but in bringing people together,' said Golf Ireland chief executive Mark Kennelly.
By the Numbers: 1
Conor Purcell is – again – the lone Irish player in the field for a DP World Tour event this week. The 27-year-old Dubliner had a season's best 15th place finish in the Volvo China Open – ending a run of three missed cuts – to move to 149th on the updated Race to Dubai order of merit and remains in China for the Hainan Classic at Mission Hills.
Word of Mouth
'You should never not expect it, right? But obviously got it done in a couple of starts. Just kind of crazy' – Swedish golfer
Ingrid Lindblad
, a former world number one amateur, on winning the JM Eagle LA Championship in just her third start on the LPGA Tour.
Steve Elkington: came from seven shots behind to earn a breakthrough win in 1990 at the Greater Greensboro Open (now the Wyndham). Photograph: Jamie Squire/All Sport
On this day: April 22nd, 1990
Steve Elkington had walked in the shadows of fellow Aussie Greg Norman for his early years on the PGA Tour before finally finding the spotlight with a breakthrough win in the Greater Greensboro Open (now the Wyndham) where a final round 66 for six-under-par 282 enabled him to overcome a seven shots deficit.
Mike 'Radar' Reid was the fall-guy, as he suffered a string of bogeys on the homeward run in posting a 75 that left him tied for second with Jeff Sluman.
Elkington hadn't missed a cut in 11 starts on the US circuit before finding a route to victory: 'I think everybody all over the world holds a player up a little different until he's won. I think winning is very big out here, extremely big.'
The Elk became the second player of the 1990 season to go into the final round seven shots adrift and win. The other? Why, Greg Norman of course, a couple of weeks earlier at Doral!
Social Swing
What a championship performance! Take a bow Roisin Scanlon – winner of the 2025 Helen Holm Scottish Women's Open Championship. On her rookie appearance and with mum Taneisha following every shot and dad Anthony on the bag, @GolfIreland ace Roisin showed nerve AND skill. A five shot win over England's Jess Hall was richly deserved. The teenager even had time to plane spot coming down 18th. What a week at @RoyalTroonGC – great venue producing a worthy champion –
Scottish Golf
's social media post of the Irish teenager's win at Troon. Scanlon became the first Irish winner since Olivia Mehaffey in 2015.
So close to my 1st hole in one of my career on the PGA Tour. Decent week of golf. Game is not far away. Keep grinding until my run comes. Thank you @RBC_Heritage for a great week. One of the best weeks all year. Crowds were amazing this week. Maybe the biggest I've ever seen at this event –
Billy Horschel
on his near ace.
In the Bag: Justin Thomas at RBC Heritage Classic
Driver:
Titleist GT2 (10 degrees)
3-wood:
Titleist TS3 (15 degrees)
5-wood:
Titleist 915 Fd (18 degrees)
Irons:
Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 621.JT (6-9)
Wedges:
Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (46, 52, 56 and 60 degrees)
Putter:
Scotty Cameron Phantom 5 Tour Prototype
Ball:
Titleist Pro V1x
Know the Rules
Q:
In a singles match, a player concedes their opponent's next stroke, picks up the opponent's ball and rolls it to them along the putting surface. The player did so out of courtesy, for the purpose of returning the ball to their opponent. What is the ruling?
A:
As the player's action was not for the purpose of testing the putting green, there is no penalty for testing under Rule 13.1e.
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