LEONA MAGUIRE BEATS STEPHANIE MEADOW IN IRISH FINAL

   Stephanie Meadow (centre left) and Leona Maguire receiving trophy.

                          Image by courtesy of the Irish Ladies Golf Union.

NEWS RELEASE FROM THE IRISH LADIES GOLF UNION 

Slieve Russell’s Leona Maguire defeated Royal Portrush’s Stephanie Meadow by two holes to win her second Irish Women’s Close Amateur Championship at Co. Louth today.

In an eagerly anticipated final, the two Curtis Cup stars locked horns this afternoon, having notched semi-final victories over Lucy Simpson (Massereene) and Carla Reynolds (Seapoint) respectively earlier in the day.Having won the Irish Championship in 2008, Leona’s experience served her well racing to a three hole advantage after starting par, birdie, birdie, birdie. A shell shocked Stephanie reacted strongly with a birdie of her own at the short fifth and impressively squared the match with further birdies on six and nine.
Turning for home and with the match finely balanced, Leona restored her advantage at the long eleventh holing from 25 feet for yet another birdie. The next two holes were halved in regulation pars and then came that match-turning-moment, this year at the fourteenth.

In heavy rough off the tee and again with her approach, Leona looked to lose her advantage as Stephanie arrowed her approach to fifteen feet above the hole. Leona miraculously pitched to three feet and after Stephanie missed,

Leona held soldily for a highly unlikely par saving half. Buoyed by the events, she won the short 15th in regulation and although Stephanie won the next in par, Maguire closed out the tie at the last after Stephanie uncharacteristically lost her ball in heavy rough off the tee.
Leona now joins an exclusive group of players with two Irish Close titles to her name, while the sizeable crowd were left in no doubt that Stephanie’s name will soon adorn this prestigious Irish trophy. She has already been Irish girls champion (2006) before she and her parents moved to America.
 Earlier in the day, Lucy Simpson (Massereene) felt the brunt of Stephanie’s devastating iron play in the opening semi-final at 9am. Stephanie birdied the fourth, seventh and ninth holes to turn three under the card holding a four hole advantage.

The luckless Simpson rallied as best she could but couldn’t match Meadow’s impressive ball striking and another birdie on the eleventh saw the match end prematurely on the thirteenth green.
Local girl Carla Reynolds (Seapoint) punched well above her weight in her morning semi-final with Leona. After finding the left side rough off the tee at the first, Carla recovered well and a pitch and putt par saw her edge ahead early in the match. Leona levelled the affair at the next before Carla birdied three and four to go one up again. 
As Leona settled into the tie, birdies at the fifth and sixth saw her turn one up, an advantage she doubled before Carla birdied the fourteenth. However, it was not to be for the Co. Louth native as three regulation pars at the next three holes saw Leona through to the afternoon final.

 
CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

SEMI-FINALS

Stephanie Meadow (Royal Portrush) bt Lucy Simpson (Massereene) 6 and 5.
Leona Maguire (Slieve Russell) bt Carla Reynolds (Seapoint) 3 and 1.
 
FINAL

Maguire bt Meadow 2 holes.