Double Irish: Power five clear at halfway as Maguire shares lead heading into final round
FORT MYERS, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 04: Leona Maguire of Ireland hits from the 16th tee during the second round of the LPGA Drive On Championship at Crown Colony Golf & Country Club on February 04, 2022 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
Seamus Power and Leona Maguire lit it up on opposite sides of the US to roar into the lead and set up a potentially historic Irish victory double.
Seeking her maiden LPGA win, Co Cavan star Maguire (27) shot a bogey-free, seven-under 65 to share the lead with American Marina Alex (who shot 66) heading into Saturday’s final round of the LPGA Drive On Championship in Florida.
But Power was just as impressive, knocking in 10 birdies at Pebble Beach in a second successive, eight-under 64 to lead the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am by five shots from Andrew Putnam (67-Spyglass), Tom Hoge (69 Monterey Peninsula) and Adam Svensson (63-Monterey) on 16-under par — a tournament record low for the first 36 holes.
It was an incredible display of ball-striking and putting from West Waterford star (34), who followed a two-putt birdie from 25 feet at the second with a three-putt bogey from 60 feet at the fifth before going on a birdie rampage.
He birdied eight of his next 11 holes to briefly move six shots clear on 16-under par, then followed a bogey at the 17th with a birdie at the 18th, where he zipped a 97-yard wedge back to five feet.
“It’s been a cool couple of days on the course where things have gone my way,” said Power, who also leads the pro-am by two shots with businessman Dermot Desmond.
“My wedges and putting have been sharp so I have been able to take advantage of opportunities at short par-fours and par-fives. All in all, it has been a lot of good stuff.”
Leona Maguire and Seamus Power
As for the news that fellow 2016 Olympic teammate Maguire was leading in Florida, he said: “I think it’s fantastic. She had a great year last year, like an incredible performance in Solheim Cup. And she's been fun to follow. I met Leona really for the first time properly in the Olympics 2016 and it's been fantastic following her progress.
“She came out last year and she's up in contention and she almost won, it's not going to surprise me if she wins this week. It's great, it's great for Irish golf, it's great for Irish women's golf and hopefully, she can keep it up.”
Ranked first in the field for proximity to the flag, Power birdied the ninth (6 feet), 10th (22 feet), 11th (5 feet) and the 201-yard 12th (8 feet), lipped out from 15 feet at the 13th before flicking a 97-yard wedge to four feet at the 582-yard 14th for his eighth birdie of the day.
He then made a 12 footer up the hill at the 16th to go eight-under, bogeyed the 17th after blocking his tee shot well right of the green, but made amends by getting up and down from 96 yards for birdie number 10 at the 18th.
Kinsale’s John Murphy rode Power’s coat-tails and birdied the 16th and 18th, carding five birdies and two bogeys in a three-under 69 to get back to level par, just two shots outside the projected 54-hole cut mark.
Set to play mainly on the Challenge Tour this year, Murphy (23) was left to rue three missed putts inside five feet but he proved in spades he has the game and the temperament to compete at the highest level, hitting 16 of Pebble Beach’s tiny greens in regulation.
Marina Alex. . (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Maguire was also in hot form at Crown Colony Golf & Country Club in Fort Myers, firing a bogey-free, seven-under 65 to share the lead with Alex on 13-under as Stephanie Meadow’s 71 saw her miss the level par cut by a shot.
“It was just really solid,” Leona said. “I hit a lot of fairways, hit a lot of greens, gave myself a lot of chances, took advantage of the shorter holes, especially the par-fives. Overall, just really nice.”
Seeking her first win after two runner-up finishes last year, she added: “I was in contention a few times last year and you learn some things from that. Just stick with the same game plan.
“There are a lot of good players here and a lot of good golf to be played between now and this time tomorrow. I will just keep doing what I am doing, keep giving myself chances and hope I can hole a few putts.”
Maguire and world No 68 Alex (31), who is a one-time LPGA winner, are four strokes clear of Americans Brittany Altomare and Stacy Lewis and Sweden’s Linnea Johansson
In the UAE, meanwhile, Padraig Harrington admits he needs "a fabulous weekend" to contend for his first win for over five years in the Ras al Khaimah Championship.
The Dubliner (50) found his putting touch but lost his long game as he fired a two-under 70 to fall nine strokes behind Scotland's David Law, tied for 38th on five-under.
Meanwhile, Shane Lowry’s level-par 70 left him tied for 20th on two-under in the PIF Saudi International in Saudi Arabia, eight shots behind American Harold Varner III and Spain's Adri Arnaus as Graeme McDowell (6-over) and Cormac Sharvin (9-over) missed the four-over cut.