Meadow hoping to continue success

Girls international Stephanie Meadow (Royal Portrush) will be hoping to add to her Western and Midland District Senior titles when she lines out in a formidable field for the 2006 Lancôme Irish Girls Close Championship at Malone Golf Club on July 19-21.

Keeping Meadow company will be fellow Internationals Victoria Bradshaw (Bangor), Sarah Faller (Galway), Holli Snelling (Lillarney) and Linda Toomey (Limerick).

The four will have just returned from international duty at the European Girls Team Championships in Denmark where they’ll be looking to qualify for the top flight and put themselves in the running for a medal.

Along with Connacht Girls’ Champion Faller, the field boasts Warrenpoint’s Louise Coffey (Northern) and Ennis’s Sarah Cunningham (Leinster). Another title contender is current International Anne McCormack along with School’s Champions Ciara Walsh (Headfort) and Alice Davis (Royal Tara).

The tournament sees the second appearance of twin sisters Lisa and Leona Maguire from Castle Hume Golf Club. The two eleven-year-olds now play off 5 and 8 and have already notched creditable victories over Interprovincial players in the past couple of weeks at the Girls’ Championships.

The format of the championship is two strokeplay qualifying rounds over the par 73 parkland course with the leading qualifier collecting the Muwick Cup while the best net score is awarded the Dorothy Glendinning Trophy.

The leading 16 players go through to the matchplay championship for the Blake Cup on Thursday and Friday, followed by the next 16 players who play knockout matches for the Pat Fletcher Trophy.

The Violet Heslett Cup will be awarded to the player under 16 who records the lowest aggregate gross score in the qualifying rounds.