Irish golf is on a remarkable ascent, marked by a record 16 players stepping onto the greens at Carton House for last year’s KPMG Women’s Irish Open. This milestone is part of a broader wave of achievements that have been building momentum for some time.
Take Lauren Walsh, for example. Her standout performance in Alabama last December earned her an LPGA card, while Morocco has become a fertile ground for Irish talent. Annabel Wilson, Anna Foster, and Sara Byrne all secured their LET cards there in December 2024, and Áine Donegan followed suit at the Lalla Aicha Q-School.
Donegan, a Lahinch golfer and the first graduate of the Golf Ireland Professional Pathway, is among eight Irish professionals set to compete on Tour this year. She’s making her professional debut at the Ford Women’s NSW Open in Wollongong Golf Club, Australia.
Her journey, like many before her, is a testament to perseverance. Donegan, along with Anna Foster and Beth Coulter, finished last at the World Junior Girls Championship in Ontario in September 2019. Reflecting on that experience, Donegan shared, “We came dead last, and we talk about it a lot because it’s funny how much we’ve progressed since.”
She recalls the excitement of heading to Canada, only to face disappointment. “Golf is so fickle that you have just got to stick with the bad times to get to the good times,” she said.
Learning from setbacks is crucial, as demonstrated when she missed the first stage in Q-School in America last year. “It felt awful, but I had a good reflection with my coach.
We knew the driver wasn’t there, and mentally I wasn’t good enough.”
Donegan worked diligently to address those issues before heading to Morocco, turning a tough experience into a stepping stone for success. Now, she joins Foster on the LET this year, with Coulter likely wrapping up her amateur career. This trio, part of the team at the 2021 European Amateur Team Championships in Royal County Down, embodies the resilient spirit driving Irish golf forward.