Maguire again aiming to challenge the best at the Women’s Open

Leona Maguire is predicting a wide open race to claim the 2023 AIG Women’s Open crown this week but the Irishwoman is also confident she can put her PGA Championship near-miss earlier this summer to positive use at Walton Heath.

The world number 13, an LPGA Tour winner in 2023 for the second season in succession, secured her best finish in a major when she finished in a tie for fourth at last year’s AIG Women’s Open at Muirfield and she gave herself an excellent chance of improving on that record when she lead the KPMG PGA Championship going into the final round at Baltusrol, New Jersey two months ago.

Yet Maguire closed with a disappointing 74 and finished 11th, four strokes behind champion Ruoning Yin of China.

This week in Surrey the 28-year-old will also face a challenge from in-form Frenchwoman Celine Boutier, who followed up her US Open win at Pebble Beach with victory in her next start at last weekend’s Scottish Open.

But the Cavan golfer is expecting plenty of competition for top spot in this week’s major.

“Celine is probably playing the best golf of anybody in the world right now, which is great to see. It’s obviously a big boost ahead of the Solheim Cup but yeah, I think that’s the great thing with the LPGA right now, there’s so many girls,” Maguire said yesterday.

“There’s 10, 20 girls that have a chance to win this week that on any given day, anybody can beat anybody and I suppose it’s one of those things.

“The favourites are always going to be the favourites. Jin Young, Lydia (Ko), I mean, Georgia (Hall), Charley (Hull) at home obviously, and Ash, (Ashleigh Buhai) I’m sure, will be looking to defend as well. There’s any number of girls that you can pick out this week.”