Leona off to a flyer in Arkansas; four survive First Stage at Q-School

Leona Maguire at the 2025 U.S. Women's Open. Picture: Kathryn Riley/USGA)

Leona Maguire returned from a two-week break with a bang and made seven birdies in a bogey-free 64 to lie just a shot behind the early leaders, American Sarah Schmelzel and Japan’s Minami Katsu in the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship.

“I feel like my game has been in good shape for the past couple of months,” Maguire said. “It's nice to start off with a low one here.

“It's sort of make a lot of birdies or get left behind. I think the goal the next few weeks was to start hitting more greens. So far so good on that one.”

On the DP World Tour’s FedEx Open de France, Marcus Armitage added a 68 to his opening 64 to lead by two shots from Denmark’s Jeff Winther and Australian Min Woo Lee on 10 under at the halfway mark.

Conor Purcell missed the cut, carding a 72 to finish near the back of the field on nine over.

At the LET’s La Sella Open, Lauren Walsh fired a bogey-free, four-under 68 to go into the weekend tied for tenth on four-under.

She was ten strokes behind Canadian rookie Anna Chaung (16), who shot a bogey-free 66 to lead by three from France’s Natasia Nadaud on 14 under.

Annabel Wilson’s 73 left her 24th on one under, but Sara Byrne (3-over), Olivia Mehaffey (4 over), Canice Screen (5 over) and Anna Foster (11 over) missed the two-under cut.

On the HotelPlanner Tour, Jonny Caldwell (2 under), Dermot McElroy and Max Kennedy (1 over), Liam Nolan (4 over) and Robert Moran (9 over) missed the three-under cut in the Italian Challenge Open, where South Africa’s JC Ritchie led on 12 under.

But there was better news for the Irish at the latest First Stage events at the DP World Tour Qualifying School.

While Kinsale’s John Murphy shot a three-under 67, he agonisingly finished a shot outside the top 17 who progressed at Arlandastad Golf in Sweden.

But David Carey, who was sixth on nine under after a 72, made it through at Donnington Grove in Newbury, where Tom Dowdall and Paul McBride shot 69s and Cormac Sharvin a 71 to squeak into the top 17 with nothing to spare on six under.

Niall Kearney (2-under), Marc Boucher (2 over) and Michael Young (5 over) missed out.

It means six of 17 players have made it through the seven First Stage qualifiers that have already taken place with Royal Dublin’s Hugh Foley and Whitehead’s John Ross Galbraith making it in recent weeks.

The action continues next week with Charleville’s Jordan Boles and Castle’s Robert Moran teeing it up at Frederikshavn Golfklub in Denmark and Stephen Grant, Mark Power and Alex Maguire playing at Golfclub Schloss Ebreichsdorf in Austria.

Limerick’s Tim Rice will play the last of ten First Stage qualifiers at Golf PGA France du Vaudreuil from October 7-10.

There will be four Second Stage qualifiers in Spain from October 30 to November 2, with around 312 golfers bidding to make it to the six-round Final Stage battle for cards at Infinitum Golf in Tarragona from November 7-12.

A field of 156, which could include Irish players from the HotelPlanner and DP World Tours, will tee it up at the Final Stage with the top 20 and ties after six rounds earning DP World Tour cards.

Players who make the cut and finish beyond the top 20 and ties, but within the leading 40 players and ties, will be eligible for membership on the HotelPlanner Tour.