The overused concept of a star is born falls short. It’s in the past. It has long been known that Lottie Woad was something else. Something special. Another level. What she is doing at the O’Meara course at Carton House in Ireland is simply and plainly outrageous. No more. Otherworldly.
The English amateur, World Number One, delivered another card of 67 strokes this Saturday at the KPMG Women’s Irish Open and has placed herself at -17. Not only does she remain in the lead, but she has also put even more distance between herself and the rest. She started as the leader and has signed the best result of the day, tied with local Anna Foster and Meghan MacLaren. The consequence is that she has a seven-stroke advantage over Madelene Sagstrom (-10), in second place, eight over Kirsten Rudgeley (-9), and nine over a group of golfers including Blanca Fernández (-8) and Charley Hull (-8).
Looking at Woad’s card, with six birdies and no bogeys, any naive person might think it was an easy day in Ireland. Not at all. Quite the opposite. The wind has blown again with great force, and fewer than ten players have managed to score under 70 strokes. The thing is, Lottie, at 21 years old, is playing a different game. She is a woman on a mission. She wants to win or win. She has set her mind to it, and let’s see who can stop her.
It won’t be an easy day this Sunday for the young Brit. She has won a lot as an amateur, a great deal, including the ANWA, but winning a professional tournament, the first one, is something else. We’ll see how she handles it, although all she exudes is conviction and confidence. She has no doubt that she is going to win. It’s intimidating.
Woad’s imperial display should not overshadow the extraordinary tournament that Blanca Fernández (-8) is having. The Madrilenian scored 70 strokes today, three under par, with five birdies and two bogeys. She stumbled on two par 3s, but her round was excellent, one of the best among those playing in the last matches when the wind was strongest. She has made it into the penultimate match of the day and will have the opportunity this Sunday to close a great week. There are 18 holes left, and she is surrounded by great players, but so far, she is handling it with extraordinary composure. Tied with Blanca is Charley Hull (-8), as well as Chiara Tamburlini (-8), who stumbled in today’s round. Blanca has made it into the penultimate match of the day. She is with the best. No one can take that away from her now. A demonstration of where her immense potential truly lies.
As for the rest of the Spanish players, Fátima Fernández Cano (-3) beat the course with a round of 71 strokes and has entered the top 25. The Galician has a good opportunity to seal another great week of golf in the LET this Sunday. On the other hand, those who have lost ground on this moving day are Teresa Toscano (PAR), Amaia Latorre (+2), and María Hernández (+5), with rounds of 74, 74, and 76 strokes, respectively.
