Kavanagh returns to form to lead qualifiers

FOR someone who was touted as a possible Curtis Cup player a couple of years ago, collecting the Josephine Connolly Memorial Salver as leading qualifier in the Leinster Women's Championship, sponsored by MacGregor, may not seem quite a big deal.

But, for Hazel Kavanagh, it was. The Grange player who won the Irish Open stroke play in 1994 has endured a rather miserable time for the past two seasons, yet confirmed her return to form by recently winning the Royal Co Down Scratch Cup and, yesterday, embellished that performance by heading the 36-hole qualifying at the lovely Seapoint Golf Club, near Termonteckin.

Kavanagh shot rounds of 72 and 74 for 146, one stroke better than Wexford's Elaine Dowdall, one of the promising crop of young players emerging in Irish women's golf, with Donabate's Pat Doran a shot further back on the 148 mark.

Indeed, most of the so called big guns qualified quite comfortably, the one exception being farmer Irish international Catherine MacCann who had a "shocking first round" of 85.

Kavanagh, though, had no such worries. Although like most players she found the rock-hard greens difficult to hold, her long game was in good shape and, as usual, her ability to get up and down from around the green (which she did at the eighth and 14th in her second round for birdies) paid its dividends.

The shot of the day belonged to Sheena O'Brien-Kenney, last year's beaten finalist. Her seven iron tee-shot to the 15th was "going nowhere except the hole", according to playing partner Carol Wickham. "It was certainly a nice feeling," admitted O'Brien Kenney, who could celebrate her eighth hole-in-one.