"My time will come" — Lauren Walsh confident wins await as she eyes bright future on LPGA Tour
Aiming high. Lauren Walsh during the Andalucia Costa Del Sol Open de España Pro-Am at Real Guadalhorce in Malaga. Credit: Tristan Jones/ LET
Lauren Walsh made her girlhood dream come true when she won her LPGA card with a brilliant finish in Alabama this week.
It wasn’t a win, but it felt that way as she delivered under the cosh in the pressure-packed final round of Q-Series.
When it comes to wins, she knows her time will come, and while she also dreams of following in the footsteps of Leona Maguire and making the Solheim Cup team, she believes the steady, one-step-at-a-time approach that’s got her this far will pay off eventually.
Winning a tournament is the next big goal and having played brilliantly in the US to help Wake Forest University win its first NCAA Division I Women's title in 2023, Walsh knows she has the game to make that leap.
“Like playing on the LPGA, playing a Solheim has been a goal and a dream of mine as well,” said the 25-year-old Kildare native, who will begin 2026 on the LET in the Middle East before likely making her LPGA debut in China in March.
“So, you know, when the time is right, all will come along, I guess. For me, it's all about controlling what I can control, enjoying what I'm doing. And if that all works out, the wins will come.”
The Solheim Cup will be staged in the Netherlands next September, but before then, Walsh will be trying to get a foothold on the US circuit as she becomes a rookie again in just her third season as a professional.
She’s had more than her share of close calls when it comes to the winner’s enclosure, most notably in 2024, when she finished third behind Maguire in the Aramco Team Series in London, and this year, when she was second to Alice Hewson in the Swiss Ladies Open.
“I've had a lot of close calls and played well at times to get myself into contention,” she said. “So my time will come. I'm not concerned about that.
“You know, everything happens for a reason and the golf I played down the stretch just this past week in Alabama, shooting four under on my last eight holes, someday that will help me win a tournament, hopefully.”
Walsh has always been a great competitor, playing camogie and football for Kill before taking on and eventually beating her older sister Clodagh when she took up golf at Castlewarden.
She’s slowly ticked all the boxes, made the Curtis Cup team and excelled on the US college scene before finishing a career-best 10th in the Ladies European Tour Order of Merit this year.
Winning her card by closing with a bogey-free, five-under 67 in Alabama on Tuesday was almost as good as a tournament win, and it’s clear she’s on an upward trajectory thanks to work with coach Shane O’Grady, who also coaches Leona.
“Yeah, I am absolutely over the moon,” she said of her season. “It's an absolute dream come true. I’ve been working towards this since I was a little girl.
“So for it all to come together this week is so, so special. I've had an amazing two years on the LET, and to be able to progress now to the LPGA is, yeah, just phenomenal.
“I don't think my phone's ever blown up this much in my life. I felt like every time I put the phone down, another 50 notifications were popping up. Not just for me. I know my parents’ phones have been blowing up, too. Family, friends, neighbours, everybody's reaching out from all over the country and all over the world, too.
“It’s so special to kind of feel all that support from everyone. I think I was probably the least stressed of everyone, like I was in control. I was hitting the golf shots. But for everybody else watching from afar, I know it was a stressful couple of hours.”
She’ll take a break now for Christmas before preparing to continue with the work that got her to the LPGA Tour this year —an improved short game combined with great ball striking.
“I hit a lot of fairways and a lot of greens, so I always ranked quite highly in those stats, and with my coach Shane, we really worked hard on my putter and my putter grip at the start of this season.
“Ultimately, my short game has gotten a lot better, and my scrambling rates really improved, which I think has given me confidence in itself.
“It's helped my par-five scoring because I'm converting more birdies, but it's also reduced the amount of bogeys I make.
“Now, when I miss a green, it's no problem. I walk up, and I know I'm going to get up and down. So it's been a big confidence builder in my game this year.”
Combining a busy schedule with enough practice time is a challenge, but Walsh is looking forward to re-exploring the US, where she spent four years in college.
“I'm just excited to get out there and compete,” she said. “Part of why I've had success as a pro is I love to compete, and I love being out there, playing week in, week out.
“So we'll see what the new year brings and what challenges arise. But for right now, a lot of it stays the same. My team is going to be the same, my preparation is going to be the same, and I'll just be applying it to new courses over there.”
As for the majors, she’s at least wrapped up her place in the AIG Women's Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes and dreams of one day making some history.
"Yes, I would love that, of course, so we'll see,’ she said. “Obviously, I'm confirmed in the AIG Women's Open, but hopefully I'll be able to play my way into a few others as well.”
She knows that if she gets a chance, she has the game to compete.
“The last two years have shown that my game is absolutely good enough,” she insisted.
“The biggest lesson for me is not necessarily doing anything new, but it's continuing to do what I'm doing.”
