WOMEN'S CLOSE CHAMPIONSHIPTHERE WAS no need to refer to the history books yesterday at Westport. Leona Maguire was crowned the youngest player to win the Lancome Irish Women's Close Championship, as the 13-year-old and her twin sister, Lisa, continued to equally charm and astound the golfing world.
It was the first time that Leona had beaten Lisa in a final, Lisa having won in their previous two meetings.
That Leona beat her twin on the 16th hole added further poignancy to a day which ended up being a truly family affair. Lisa's father and school teacher, Declan, was on her bag, while their uncle Tony caddied for Leona as the two continued a sisterly rivalry that has been going since they were recognised as rare talents several years ago.
Last year Lisa drew wider attention from outside Ireland when she came back from Pinehurst, North Carolina, as the World Under-12 champion.
Leona was third on that occasion. Since then the two have been raiding various top underage tournaments.
Leona sensationally won the this year's Under-18 French Open Championship in Paris in March on the 18th hole.
Lisa, who qualified for the Under-21 matchplay event by virtue of finishing in 10th place after two rounds of qualifying, was beaten on the 18th hole of her semi-final by Curtis Cup reserve Rachel Jennings of England, who went on to lift the Under-21 title.
Now the two are annexing the top senior competitions in Ireland, with the Close another significant hurdle cleared in their remarkable rise.
"I definitely think they will both take great confidence from it," said Declan Maguire yesterday. "It probably is significant. They have to beat the best if they are to progress, although we were probably not expecting to come this far so quickly.
"Winning this tournament at 13-years-old . . . it's actually hard to put words into it. It's a dream come true and I think between them they are both happy going home. Lisa had got to the semi-final last year and had hoped to go further this year, so she certainly did that."
Yesterday the teenagers set out on a cold, wet and windy afternoon in the knowledge that the winner's trophy would sit on the crowded Maguire mantelpiece in Cavan one way or another.
Leona went a hole up with a par on the second, then went two holes ahead with a birdie on the fifth, before dropping back to one ahead on the sixth. She regained the two-hole margin on her sister on the seventh with a par as the two battled against the elements and no small degree of fatigue after five days play.
But to stop Leona from running away with it, Lisa eagled the par five eighth hole to go into the turn just one hole down. She then levelled the match at the 10th, before Leona made a decisive strike and broke the back of the round by winning the next three holes for what proved an unassailable lead.
Although Lisa, who had shot a sensational 69 in the first qualifying round of the competition, cut the margin by one with par on the 14th, the 15th was halved and Leona went on to take the match on the 16th.
In the semi-finals, Lisa came through at the expense of Greencastle's Gemma Hegarty, while Leona knocked out Ashbourne's Dawn Marie Conaty at the 15th. They now each go back to Slieve Russell with a trophy, Lisa with the Leitrim Cup as top qualifier over 36 holes (69, 74) and Leona as the 2008 Close champion.
