Top stars set for Irish Ladies Open in Meath

LADIES Irish Open boss Roddy Carr avoided some Chinese torture to deliver a world class field at Killeen Castle next month.

The €400,000 curtain-raiser for September’s Solheim Cup could have been turned into a damp squib as it clashed with a $2 million (€1.3 million) US women’s tour event in China.

But Chinese red tape has tied the Imperial Springs LPGA event up in knots and allowed Carr to sign up US stars Christina Kim, Angela Stanford and teenage sensation Lexi Thompson to accompany major winner Stacey Lewis at the Meath venue from August 5-7.