Leona Maguire
Golf
BIOGRAPHY
Leona Maguire represented Ireland in the women’s golf individual stroke play tournament at three Olympic Games – finishing 21st at Rio 2016 as the leading amateur, 23rd at Tokyo 2020 and 59th at Paris 2024.
She grew up in Ballyconnell, Co. Cavan, the daughter of two teachers, and attended Loreto College, Cavan. She has a twin sister, Lisa, who was also a professional golfer before retiring in 2019 to manage Leona’s career. As children, the twins brought the Ryder Cup trophy onto the stage at the K Club during the 2006 European victory celebrations. Leona focused exclusively on golf from the age of nine and became the youngest player ever to compete in a Ladies European Tour event at 12.
She studied psychology at Duke University in North Carolina on a golf scholarship, winning 10 individual collegiate titles, and held the world amateur No. 1 ranking for a record 135 consecutive weeks. She won the 2017 Women’s British Amateur Championship. She turned professional in 2018 and became the first Irish woman to win on the LPGA Tour with victory at the Drive On Championship in 2022, adding a second title at the Meijer LPGA Classic in 2023. She made her Solheim Cup debut in 2021, setting a rookie record of 4.5 points from 5 matches as Europe won, and also produced the joint-lowest round in major championship history when she shot a 61 in the final round of The Evian Championship in 2021.
OTHER GOLF ATHLETES
GOLF NEWS
LA28 Qualification Dates in 2026
ROAD TO LA ALREADY UNDERWAY! 2026 marks the beginning of the qualification journey for many sports as they look ahead to the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028. Qualifying for the Games, which take place from 14–30 July 2028, is challenging across all disciplines. Most sports require either direct qualification through specific events, qualification via [...]
In The News – April 13th
A strong week for Team Ireland across multiple sports, with standout performances and important developments across the high-performance system. Golf Rory McIlroy delivered a historic back-to-back victory at The Masters Tournament, finishing on -12 to secure his sixth major title. The win further underlines his place among the greats of the game and marks a [...]
Team Ireland Weekend Highlights, April 12–13, 2025
From Augusta to Dublin, Belgium to the Basque Country, Irish athletes produced standout performances across a range of Olympic sports this weekend. Rory McIlroy Completes Career Grand Slam Rory McIlroy delivered a defining moment for Irish sport this weekend, winning the 2025 Masters Tournament and becoming just the sixth golfer in history — and [...]
DIFFICULT DAY AT LE GOLF NATIONAL FOR MAGUIRE AND MEADOW
Leona Maguire and Stephanie Meadow were back in action at Le Golf National in round two of the women’s singles today. Meadow carded a round of 74; four better than yesterday, but Maguire will be frustrated after signing for a round of 79 today. GOLF It was another unforgiving day for Stephanie Meadow and Leona [...]
KATE O CONNOR MAKES HISTORY AS FIRST IRISH OLYMPIC HEPTATHLETE
Team Ireland’s Kate O’Connor made history today becoming Ireland’s first ever heptathlete to compete at an Olympic Games. The Newry native competed in two of the seven events this morning; 100m hurdles and High Jump to sit on 1908 points (19th overall) ahead of the next two events this evening. Leona Maguire and Stephanie Meadow are back [...]
DAY 12 EVENING REPORT FROM TEAM IRELAND
Irish track star Rhasidat Adeleke finished second in her semi-final of the women’s 400m to advance to her first ever Olympic final on Friday night. In doing so Adeleke becomes the first Irish woman ever to make a sprint final at an Olympic Games. In Taekwondo in the repechage round Jack Woolley put in an improved performance, but ultimately [...]