Ireland’s Leona Maguire (picture above, courtesy of LET) and Spain’s María Parra will have the opportunity to play in a Ladies European Tour event in 2016 thanks to an agreement between the LET and the European Golf Association.
Part of the LET’s strategy is to connect with organisations who share its values to help promote, foster and develop young talent, helping to create a smooth pathway from grassroots to professional golf.
World No.1 amateur Maguire, who finished second in the ISPS HANDA Ladies European Masters in July, capped a tremendous season by winning the 2015 EGA Women’s Amateur Ranking, while Parra also experienced success, with the highlight her win at the International European Ladies’ Amateur Championship.
Both players have also competed in the PING Junior Solheim Cup, Leona in 2009 and 2011 and María in 2015. The team match play event between Europe and the United States is another key project in the Ladies European Tour’s development program.
Great experiences
Maguire commented: “This year has been amazing and it was great to see the hard work I put in, especially in my short game, pay off. It is a huge honor for me to be ranked no.1 in the European Ranking and also the World Ranking, but I know there are so many great players right now and in order to stay up there I will need to continue developing. It was a great experience to play in the ISPS HANDA Ladies European Masters and the Evian Championship this year and I am delighted to receive another chance to play a LET event in 2016 to get even more experience playing with the professionals and develop as a golfer.”
Parra commented: “2015 has been a really great golfing year for me. I have worked really hard with my game and it feels good to get rewarded for it so quickly by winning the European Ladies’ Amateur Championship. Also winning the European Girls’ Team Championship for Spain and representing Europe in the PING Junior Solheim Cup were highlights for me. I am really happy to receive an invite to play an LET event next year and it will help me even further in my career to learn from the best and get more experiences.”
Maguire and Parra will be invited to play in one of the LET’s premier tournaments next year, which will be named after the publication of the 2016 international schedule.
Maria Parra. Photo: LET
