Moments After Besting Nelly Korda and Other Crowd Favorites, Amateur Golfer’s Staggering Revelation Leaves Golf World in Awe: ‘Are You Kidding Me’

The 78th US Women’s Open got off to an exciting start at the Pebble Beach Golf Links on Thursday. While big-name golfers like Nelly Korda, Jin Young Ko, and Lexi Thompson faltered, some surprising names came out on top!

In fact, a 21-year-old amateur hailing from Ireland proved to be one of the highlights of the first round at the trouble-filled seaside course! However, her first-round heroics didn’t come without trials and tribulations, as evidenced by the golfer’s staggering revelation!

Amateur golfer at the US Women’s Open has a successful outing at Pebble Beach following early troubles

This week marks amateur golfer Aine Donegan’s debut at both a major championship event and on the LPGA Tour, and she is playing on the historic Pebble Beach, a course that has been the turf for many of golf’s most goosebumps-raising moments! Moreover, she is playing alongside LPGA icons like Annika Sorenstam, Michelle Wie West, Nelly Korda, and more! Can a professional debut get any better than this? Well, for Donegan, it did.

On Thursday, the Irishwoman ended up shooting an impressive 3-under 69. Her score consisted of five birdies and an eagle hole-out from the fairway on the par-4 15th. She is currently tied for the third position behind co-leaders Xiyu Lin and Hyo-joo Kim. The fact that she had earlier undergone travel-related ordeals, which included a broken driver, makes this performance even more inspiring.

Ahead of the tournament, Donegan had to take on a 30-hour journey from Scotland to San Francisco. While the LSU junior reached her destination, her clubs did not. The airport assured her that they would come the next day. When they didn’t, she had to play her first practice round with a courtesy set of Ping clubs. Thankfully for Donegan, the practice session went really well.

“He [coach/caddie Gary Madden] said, you know, we’re going to have a bit of a dilemma when your clubs do arrive,” revealed the golfer in her post-round conference. When the clubs did arrive on Tuesday, the driver’s head was fully smashed. “At least it stopped us thinking, Oh, which driver we’ll use. We had only one choice then.”

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After Donegan’s revelation came to light, golf fans were quick to express their shock and heap praise on the golfer!

Fans react to Aine Donegan’s first-round heroics as Nelly Korda and Jin Young Ko falter

Golf fans on the internet couldn’t believe how fast Aine Donegan turned things around despite a case of missing clubs and then a smashed driver. “Meant to be…,” wrote one Instagram user. “Good for her! At the same time, looks like folks still ship clubs, particularly driver/woods without taking the head off the shaft… come on. Given how fragile the shaft is, you gotta take it off,” said one golf fanatic.

“Are you kidding me, some round of golf Aine after starting bogey bogey congratulations,” wrote another. The Irish amateur had begun her first day with two bogeys on nos. 10 and 11. However, her eagle on the 15th erased her early setbacks. “Excellent round Excellent shots. Good luck for the weekend,” wished a fan.

One well-wisher wrote, “Way to go!!!!!!” Donegan’s first-round performance will greatly inspire her, considering World No. 1 Jin Young Ko and No. 2 Nelly Korda shot rounds of 79 and 74, respectively, on the challenging course. “Phenomenal! Well done,” wrote one golf enthusiast.

In its long and illustrious history, only one amateur has ever won the US Women’s Open. The incredible feat happened in 1967, when French player Catherine Lacoste became not just the first amateur but also the first-ever European to win the title. Lacoste was 22 years old when she won the competition.

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What did you think of Aine Donegan’s performance at the US Women’s Open? What was your favorite moment from the first round of the tournament? Tell us in the comments!