UNDER A WHITE, translucent sky as her 8.18am tee time approached at The K Club, Leona Maguire ambled towards the 10th hole without fuss or fanfare.
New caddie Simon Keelan and twin sister Lisa were by the home hero’s side, as a very small crowd gathered for her low-key early start. They applauded as Maguire was introduced – like for Irish amateur Olivia Costello and Singapore’s Shannon Tan before her – but stayed silent after her first drive off the tee box.
Bar a single, solitary, ‘Good shot!’
Five hours later, the scene on the Palmer South Course was very different as Maguire signed for a solid one-under par round of 71.
The group following her from foggy, dry morning had multiplied, while the weather had changed drastically. A few hundred greeted the face of Irish women’s golf on the ninth despite the incessant rain. There was now a chorus of, ‘Good shots,’ with everyone willing the ball into the hole.
A fourth birdie proved elusive and there was no major reaction from Maguire as she putted her last. She spoke to Keelan immediately, hugged Costello and Tan, and then marked her card.
Job done, onto the next. The crowd gravitated in her direction as she left the course, but Maguire strode on, with media duties and post-round formalities to be fulfilled.
“Overall, under par is a solid start,” she told reporters, as fans peered over a nearby fence to catch a glimpse, word, or photograph.
Maguire is congratulated by a young fan. Nick Elliott / INPHO
Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO
While a record 16 players are in action at the 2026 Women’s Irish Open, Maguire remains the star attraction. The Cavan golfer has had a disappointing 2026 to date, missing 11 cuts – including at four of the five Majors, having averaged as many per year in her first seven full seasons as a professional – yet the Solheim Cup looms large.
Form is temporary, class is permanent, as she famously tweeted at the last one.
There were glimpses of both across opening day at her ninth Irish Open — and first time playing a professional tournament at the familiar K Club, where she carried out the Ryder Cup trophy with Lisa as 11-year-olds in 2006.
How she would love to get her hands on some more silverware in Straffan 20 years on, and become the first-ever Irish winner of this tournament.
Just how well that would set her up for her fourth Solheim in the Netherlands in two weeks’ time.
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Opening with a birdie signalled her intent, but Maguire’s putting let her down at times. As others in the early wave took advantage of the favourable conditions before the forecasted rain, the 31-year-old couldn’t build up a head of steam.
Her approach play arguably deserved more, the swing she has worked on with new coach Sean Foley – that of Tiger Woods back in the day – appearing much improved, but the end product will have frustrated her.
Leona Maguire in action. Nick Elliott / INPHO
Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO
Not that she would let you know. Maguire gives little away during rounds. While Rory McIlroy is easily read, bouncing up the fairway or shoulders hunched in annoyance, Maguire keeps her cards close to her chest with little revealed in body language.
Between action, she spent most of her time chatting to Keelan, Seamus Power’s former caddie who will see out the season with her. (Her old routine of calling for ‘liathróid’ from Dermot Byrne is now back.) She also scribbled diligently in her notebook – complete with shamrock and tricolour – and shot sporadic looks into the gallery on greens.
Interestingly, the one time she really strutted with swagger was to a bunker, after the tee shot which followed her first bogey of the day on hole 16, her seventh. The first of two up-and-downs was the perfect response on a challenging course, with elevated and sloping greens and no shortage of water.
At times, it felt like the group played their opening nine at a glacial pace, but Maguire will have been happy to bookend it with another brilliant birdie.
An increased number of supporters saluted her on the 18th, the buzz starting to build. But around that same time, the first raindrops of the day began to fall, the sky having turned from milky to grey. One spectator said what everyone was feeling: “Here it is for the rest of the day.” The umbrellas went up and Maguire refuelled with a banana on the move, one-under at the turn.
She picked up another shot on the three-par second, driving onto the green and sinking the putt, making it all look easy.
But the rain got heavier, and she ultimately couldn’t pick up any more ground.
Maguire speaks to the media. Nick Elliott / INPHO
Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO
Three pars. A black rain jacket was thrown over Maguire’s white and green stripy top, and the waterproof bottoms came out for some time. The sunglasses remained firmly at the back of her cap.
A bogey on the sixth. A 10-foot putt for par agonisingly whisked over the pin. Aaaaagh. The crowd groaned in unison. The subsequent tap-in went without much acknowledgement.
Maguire closed out with three more pars, not finishing with a flourish, but will be content with her steady day’s work.
“I feel like there’s a low one out there this week, hopefully,” she reflected. It’s as good a week as I need to have a good week.
“You’re better off near the top of the leaderboard for a few weeks and then lower down, rather than 40th, 40th, 40th every week. I’d like to be on that top end come the weekend.”
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Home hero, rain and liathróid: Following Leona Maguire at The K Club
UNDER A WHITE, translucent sky as her 8.18am tee time approached at The K Club, Leona Maguire ambled towards the 10th hole without fuss or fanfare.
New caddie Simon Keelan and twin sister Lisa were by the home hero’s side, as a very small crowd gathered for her low-key early start. They applauded as Maguire was introduced – like for Irish amateur Olivia Costello and Singapore’s Shannon Tan before her – but stayed silent after her first drive off the tee box.
Bar a single, solitary, ‘Good shot!’
Five hours later, the scene on the Palmer South Course was very different as Maguire signed for a solid one-under par round of 71.
The group following her from foggy, dry morning had multiplied, while the weather had changed drastically. A few hundred greeted the face of Irish women’s golf on the ninth despite the incessant rain. There was now a chorus of, ‘Good shots,’ with everyone willing the ball into the hole.
A fourth birdie proved elusive and there was no major reaction from Maguire as she putted her last. She spoke to Keelan immediately, hugged Costello and Tan, and then marked her card.
Job done, onto the next. The crowd gravitated in her direction as she left the course, but Maguire strode on, with media duties and post-round formalities to be fulfilled.
“Overall, under par is a solid start,” she told reporters, as fans peered over a nearby fence to catch a glimpse, word, or photograph.
While a record 16 players are in action at the 2026 Women’s Irish Open, Maguire remains the star attraction. The Cavan golfer has had a disappointing 2026 to date, missing 11 cuts – including at four of the five Majors, having averaged as many per year in her first seven full seasons as a professional – yet the Solheim Cup looms large.
Form is temporary, class is permanent, as she famously tweeted at the last one.
There were glimpses of both across opening day at her ninth Irish Open — and first time playing a professional tournament at the familiar K Club, where she carried out the Ryder Cup trophy with Lisa as 11-year-olds in 2006.
How she would love to get her hands on some more silverware in Straffan 20 years on, and become the first-ever Irish winner of this tournament.
Just how well that would set her up for her fourth Solheim in the Netherlands in two weeks’ time.
Opening with a birdie signalled her intent, but Maguire’s putting let her down at times. As others in the early wave took advantage of the favourable conditions before the forecasted rain, the 31-year-old couldn’t build up a head of steam.
Her approach play arguably deserved more, the swing she has worked on with new coach Sean Foley – that of Tiger Woods back in the day – appearing much improved, but the end product will have frustrated her.
Not that she would let you know. Maguire gives little away during rounds. While Rory McIlroy is easily read, bouncing up the fairway or shoulders hunched in annoyance, Maguire keeps her cards close to her chest with little revealed in body language.
Between action, she spent most of her time chatting to Keelan, Seamus Power’s former caddie who will see out the season with her. (Her old routine of calling for ‘liathróid’ from Dermot Byrne is now back.) She also scribbled diligently in her notebook – complete with shamrock and tricolour – and shot sporadic looks into the gallery on greens.
Interestingly, the one time she really strutted with swagger was to a bunker, after the tee shot which followed her first bogey of the day on hole 16, her seventh. The first of two up-and-downs was the perfect response on a challenging course, with elevated and sloping greens and no shortage of water.
At times, it felt like the group played their opening nine at a glacial pace, but Maguire will have been happy to bookend it with another brilliant birdie.
An increased number of supporters saluted her on the 18th, the buzz starting to build. But around that same time, the first raindrops of the day began to fall, the sky having turned from milky to grey. One spectator said what everyone was feeling: “Here it is for the rest of the day.” The umbrellas went up and Maguire refuelled with a banana on the move, one-under at the turn.
She picked up another shot on the three-par second, driving onto the green and sinking the putt, making it all look easy.
But the rain got heavier, and she ultimately couldn’t pick up any more ground.
Three pars. A black rain jacket was thrown over Maguire’s white and green stripy top, and the waterproof bottoms came out for some time. The sunglasses remained firmly at the back of her cap.
A bogey on the sixth. A 10-foot putt for par agonisingly whisked over the pin. Aaaaagh. The crowd groaned in unison. The subsequent tap-in went without much acknowledgement.
Maguire closed out with three more pars, not finishing with a flourish, but will be content with her steady day’s work.
“I feel like there’s a low one out there this week, hopefully,” she reflected. It’s as good a week as I need to have a good week.
“You’re better off near the top of the leaderboard for a few weeks and then lower down, rather than 40th, 40th, 40th every week. I’d like to be on that top end come the weekend.”
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Golf leona maguire women's irish open