Rookie Aine Donegan hits the front with a blistering 63 in Australia
Aine Donegan. Picture: Tristan Jones / LET
Lahinch’s Aine Donegan made a dream start to her professional career when she followed a bogey-free 68 with a blistering eight under 63 to grab the clubhouse lead in the weather-delayed Ford Women's NSW Open in Australia.
The Co Clare star (23) earned her card at the Qualifying School in Morocco in December and like pal Sam Murphy, who won on the Alps Tour on his professional debut, she didn’t hang around in her first start in the paid ranks.
The former Louisiana State University standout was unable to hit a shot on Thursday as organisers were forced to suspend play following flooding at Wollongong Golf Club.
When she eventually hit the course, the Ennis native carded a bogey-free 68 that left her tied for fifth, just three strokes behind Australians Kelsey Bennett and Hannah Reeves.
Returning after lunch for another 18 holes of action, Donegan, a Q-School graduate competing in her first LET event of the season, produced a masterclass kickstarted by an eagle hole-out at the par-5 9th.
This was followed by birdies at the 12th, 14th, 16th and 17th to send Donegan into the outright lead, before three more at the 1st, 2nd, and 4th moved the 23-year-old to nine-under par for her round through an astonishing 14 holes.
Unfortunately, Donegan would find the fairway bunker at the par-4 7th leading to her first dropped shot of the day, before her birdie attempt came up shy on the par-3 8th to leave her falling one short of Mimi Rhodes’ course record 62 (-9) from 2025.
“It was obviously a dream day,” Donegan said. “I’m a little bit disappointed to finish my second last hole with a bogey, but I’m looking forward to the weekend and yeah, delighted with the start.
“Obviously the weather felt a bit more like home, which I knew would come to my advantage a little bit. I knew some people would struggle in the wind and the rain. So I knew that if I just kind of kept the ball in front of me, especially off the tee on this course, you can kind of attack pins and stuff like that.”
Half the field had yet to begin their second rounds as the LET played catch-up following Thursday’s weather delay.
But Donegan, who shot to fame in 2023 when she qualified for the US Women’s Open at Pebble Beach and briefly held the lead before finishing joint 45th, could not have asked for a better start to her professional career.
She also qualified for the US Women’s Open in 2024 and played a major role in Great Britain and Ireland’s successes in the 2024 Curtis Cup and last year’s Vagliano Trophy.
Donegan’s 2024 Curtis Cup teammate Rhodes has since gone on to win three times on the LET and she admitted the English woman’s 62 at this tournament last year was on her mind “a little bit” as she shot up the leaderboard.
She continued: “My boyfriend said to me if I get to 10-under, he’d get me a new phone! So it was more that on my mind. But no, I was just taking a shot by shot.”
She shares Glenlo Abbey coach Gary Madden with Alps Tour rookie Murphy, who caddied for her at the Qualifying School last year.
Murphy went on to win the Alps Tour’s Ein Bay Open in his first start in Egypt last week, and while it remains to be seen where Donegan will stand when round two is completed, the former Louisiana State University standout has put herself in the mix.
“Sam was very very inspiring!!” Donegan said by text. “(Our coach) Gary (Madden)!has done an amazing job with both of us.
“I played very solid overall and even when I did miss a green my short game got me out of trouble.
“Plan is to stay the same and keep doing the same thing. Only golf at the end of the day and just keep the ball in play and play one shot at a time.”
Elm Park’s Anna Foster also started well, carding rounds of 72 and 67 to share 11th on three-under.
It was also a decent day for Leona Maguire in the LPGA’s HSBC Women's World Championship at Sentosa Golf Club’s Tanjong Course in Singapore.
The Co Cavan star shot a four-under 68 to move up to joint 19th on four-under, five shots behind American Auston Kim, who added a 69 to her opening 66 to lead by a shot from Australia’s Minjee Lee, Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn and Korea’s Haeran Ryu on nine-under.
