Sub-plots can often add some spice to life, and so it is likely to be at the Waterford Crystal Ladies Irish Open, which starts at Faithlegg today.

Can Sophie Gustafson, the defending champion, add to her impressive haul of prizes on Irish soil? Who'll edge ahead in the race for European Tour rookie of the year, Karine Icher or Paula Marti? Will Laura Davies, the former world number one, overpower the opposition? Might Raquel Carriedo boost her lead at the top of the 2001 Order of Merit?

Or can Suzanne O'Brien, a linchpin in Britain and Ireland's Curtis Cup campaign a year ago, and one of eight Irish players in the field, mark her professional debut with a genuine challenge?

The answers will be supplied over the next three days - the event is confined to 54 holes - as some of the top players on the Evian Ladies European Tour compete over the picturesque course that overlooks the mouth of the River Suir. Although measuring just a yard over 6,000 with a par of 72, it is a course that demands good course management, with a premium on the short game.

Despite the fact that the country's top amateurs have been denied the opportunity to compete because it overlaps with the women's Home Internationals, there is a healthy home challenge: Aideen Rogers, Ireland's only full-time tour professional, is joined by Suzanne O'Brien, Debbie Hanna, Lynn McCool and amateurs Suzanne Corcoran, Marian Riordan, Maura Morrin and Bronagh Lunney.

A year ago, O'Brien comfortably made the cut and won the medal as leading amateur. Now, she is embarking on a career as a professional but, ironically, her game lacks the competitive sharpness she had last year when she played in the Curtis Cup and the British Open in the run-up.

"If I can make the cut for Sunday, I'll be happy," admitted O'Brien.

In truth, the home players face an enormous task if they are to quell the foreign invaders. Gustafson, for instance, has won three times here in the past - two Irish Opens and a Women's World Cup - while Marti, a 21-year-old Spaniard who has won twice on the European Tour this season, is involved in a battle for rookie of the year with French player Icher, winner of last week's German Open.

But the player they will all have to watch this week is Spain's Carriedo. With the Taiwan Open and the Compaq Open in Sweden already claimed, Carriedo starts outs as the undisputed favourite.