Leona Maguire looking to kickstart season in Minnesota
Leona Maguire at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship at Hazeltine National Golf Club. Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America
Leona Maguire is keen to kickstart a memorable summer run and stop Nelly Korda’s quest for a hat-trick of Major wins in this week’s $13 million KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in Minnesota.
The Co Cavan star (31) tees it up at Hazeltine National Golf Club looking to gain momentum after an up-and-down start to the year since deciding to re-tool her swing with coach Sean Foley.
With the Amundi Evian Championship, the Scottish Open and the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes to come over the next few weeks, it’s a crucial time for the Ballyconnell star as she looks to lock down her place on the Solheim Cup team.
But she’s also conscious that her hot run of form doesn’t have to come during Major weeks.
“Everybody gets on runs, and they play well at parts of the season,” said Maguire, who missed the cut the last time the Women’s PGA was played at Hazeltine in 2019.
“You'd love to peak exactly for those Majors, but ultimately, there are no small events any more.”
Maguire is joined in Minnesota by Stephanie Meadow and Lauren Walsh, who will get the Irish challenge underway from the first at 7 am (1 pm Irish time) alongside Americans Kate Smith-Stroh and Amanda Doherty.
Maguire goes off the 10th with club professional Natalie Vivaldi and American Megan Khang at 1:20 pm (7:20 pm), while Meadow is off the first at 1:42 pm (7:42 pm) with Germany’s Esther Henseleit and the impressive Canadian Anna Huang.
After capturing the Chevron Championship and the US Women’s Open, world number one Korda is the favourite to become just the fifth player and the first since Inbee Park in 2013 to win three Majors in a row.
The first was Babe Zaharias in 1950, and Korda is trying to become the third player after Zaharias and Park to win the first three Majors of the season.
“Conditions are great,” said Korda, who was tied for third at Hazeltine in 2019. “I know that we got a lot of rain yesterday, which probably helped the golf course a little bit.
“It was definitely firm and fast. The greens are pretty bare, so I think that's a really big defence of this golf course, which is actually going to be like distance control and speed, just because there is a lot of undulation and it is fast.
“This afternoon, the winds were pretty high, so that does affect the putts a little bit more. But overall, I mean, the golf course is in great condition.”
The American is just one Major win away from earning her place in th LPGA Hall of Fame.
