Leona Maguire became the first Irishwoman to win on the Ladies European Tour after making a stunning eagle on the final hole of the Aramco Team Series held at Centurion Club.
The Solheim Cup star led from the first day in the individual competition at the Hertfordshire venue after rounds of 66 and 72 moved her to the top of the leaderboard on -8.
It was an up-and-down final day for Maguire who made the turn in two-over par, and she was level on the back nine heading into 18 knowing she needed to make an eagle to secure victory.
After driving just short of a fairway bunker on the par-five final hole, she hit a stunning second shot with a hybrid to five feet to leave herself with a very makeable eagle putt, which she duly rolled to make history on the LET and win with a total of eight-under-par.
“I feel like I did it the hard way today,” said Maguire. “It was tough out there; I didn’t play my best golf, but Dermot, my caddie, just kept telling me to stay patient. Right before that shot into 18, he said to me ‘let’s hit the shot of the year here’. It was a perfect number, and my trusty hybrids came in useful once again.
“I knew Alison [Lee] was making a run, I thought I would have to get to 10-under-par – that was the number I had in my head. I just hung in there even when things weren’t going right and waited for a turn, and it was nice to finish in style on 18. I’m looking forward to the summer ahead and couldn’t ask for a better start to this part of the season.”
Speaking about her eagle putt on 18, she added: “I was just trying to hit a good putt! It was a little bit like a Solheim Cup, I knew no Irishwoman had ever won on the LET before. That putt was for me, that putt was for my family and that putt was for Ireland. It was a proud moment.”
Spain’s Maria Hernandez finished in second place on seven-under-par after a bogey-free final round of 68. The Spaniard rolled in birdies on holes one, five, 10, 16 and 18 to seal another top-10 finish on the LET in 2024.
Three players finished in a share of third place with Ireland’s Lauren Walsh, America’s Alison Lee and England’s Georgia Hall all on six-under-par.
TEAM EVENT GOES TO PLAY-OFF
In the team competition, Team Nadaud secured victory over Team Hall after a three-hole playoff at the end of the day. The captains headed back to the 18th tee as France’s Nastasia Nadaud and England’s Georgia Hall went head-to-head to win the team title.
Both players made an eagle on the first playoff hole and a birdie on the second playoff hole before Nadaud rolled in her birdie putt on the third to secure victory for her team.
“I don’t even know how I handled this! I was so nervous on the first tee,” said Nadaud, who is still a teenager. “I was really afraid I wouldn’t hit the ball. I was so nervous, I was trembling.”
Czechia’s Kristyna Napoleaova, who was a winning captain in Hong Kong last year, explained: “We were super nervous on the sidelines, it was amazing to watch both Nas [Nadaud] and Georgia [Hall]. Both of them played incredible golf, I think everyone here enjoyed the playoff. It was so fun to watch. For it to be eagle-birdie-birdie from those positions. It was incredible, well done to both teams.”
Amateur George Brooksbank added: “It has been incredible to play with them and to watch and I had every faith, every time Nastasia had the putter in her hand I thought the ball was going into the hole. It was great to be here.”
