Aine Donegan leads Irish challenge after first day of KPMG Irish Open in Kildare
Aine Donegan of Ireland watches her shot from the 18th fairway at The K Club in Straffan. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
Aine Donegan of Ennis will lead the home challenge into day two of the KPMG Women’s Irish Open after an impressive three-under round of 69 at a soggy K Club on Thursday.
The Co. Clare native produced what she agreed was a steady 18 holes to sit six shots off the leader, Casandra Alexander of South Africa, who carded a flawless 63 that left her four to the good of the nearest challenger.
Leona Maguire, the top-ranked Irish player in a record group of 16 pros and amateurs playing the event this year, hit a one-under 71 that probably should have been a shot or two lower.
“Yeah, it was really steady,” said Donegan. “Me and Harry [Ewing, her caddie] got the yardages right at the very start from the get-go, which was good. The ball was not going as far, especially this afternoon - I don't know about this morning - with the rain and stuff.
“But I think we basically took one club extra for most of the front nine and a bit of the back nine as well. So for each yardage, my distance control was really good and I gave myself a lot of opportunities.
“We spoke about it briefly coming off 18. He just said it was a really professional round. It was quite stress-free, other than one shot on 14. It was from 50 yards that I just hit into the bunker, but I made it going up and down.
“So, yeah, pretty solid start, and obviously there's plenty of golf left to play. So I'm pretty pleased so far.” Alexander, who sits on top of the LET Order of Merit, has recorded nine tops tens so far in 2026 and finished second no less than five times, but she has put herself into a fantastic position to claim a first win of the year.
The 27-year old from Johannesburg came off 18 not actually knowing what she had shot, thinking at first that it had been a seven-under 65. It was all she could do in the tough conditions to focus on the next shot in front of her.
“I knew I was four-under through the turn and then I know we picked up a couple. I actually thought we were seven-under. I wanted to look but I thought ‘let me just play’ and I don't want to have too much pressure on a three-footer if I don't need it.
“So let me just play and do the best I can and then afterwards walked off and saw the scores and I was like,“that's pretty cool’.” She sits four strokes to the good of Italy’s Alessandra Fanali, the early leader, as well as England’s Lily Humphries, Jana Melichova of Czechia and Ana Dawson of the Isle of Man.
Donegan sits in a tie for 9th overnight, Maguire is in a share of 20th after she shot three birdies and two bogeys having teed off early doors and in the driest part of the day but only to see some birdie chances go abegging on her first nine.
There may be a record number of Irish players on show here but the first day has seen a fair number fall out of contention, some fading after bright starts. Maguire got up to two-under. So did Canice Screene through five holes and amateur Kate Dillon after three Anna Foster and Screene ended the day on level par, and Olivia Maheffey somehow signed for seven birdies and still only managed a one-over 73 thanks to a pair of double bogeys. Cork’s Sara Byrne ended with the same score.
Lauren Walsh, in her first year on the LPGA Tour, was five-over after careering to a triple bogey on the par-four 13th, but fshe ought brilliantly to find three birdies on the run in to limit the damage to a two-over 74. Dillon finished +4.
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