Scotland's Catriona Matthew celebrates winning the Ladies Irish Open

Great Scot plunders top prize at Killeen Castle

The grandstands were gone, the noisy rival supporters were absent, but once again Killeen Castle was the focal point of European ladies golf as the venue hosted the Ladies Irish open for the third successive year won in dramatic style by Scotland's Catriona Matthew, one shot clear of defending champion Suzanne Pettersen from Norway. It was a dramatic final day at the magnificent Meath course as Matthew and Pettersen battled it out. At one stage a succession of birdies from Pettersen brought her level with the great Scot, but a bogey on 17 coupled by Matthew's birdie on 16 gave the 42-year-old Scottish woman a two-shot lead coming up the last where she found the sand, but still made a five to claim the title by a shot with England's Laura Davies three shots further back. Much of the cast that played vital roles in Europe's Solheim Cup victory last September returned for an encore. Karen Stupples, Matthew, Laura Davies, Sophie Gustafson and Pettersen couldn't resist the lure of the Meath countryside as they returned to the scene of their greatest triumph to bask in the glory of their adoring fans. In stark contrast to the international rivalry of the Solheim Cup, last week's Ladies Irish Open was a much more sedate affair, although the standard of golf was excellent. While the attendance wasn't as large as for the Solheim Cup the work put in by the staff at Killeen Castle, and the presentation of the course, was of the highest quality. The tented village, farmers market and busy Kid's Zone provided entertaining sideline activities and according to tournament organiser Roddy Carr it is all that hard work and the attraction of Killeen Castle that makes the stars of the ladies game want to return to the venue for the Irish Open. "The Irish Open always attracts the top players and that is all down to the venue here at Killeen Castle and the whole county of Meath, the players love coming here," Carr told the Meath Chronicle. "Some of the girls were out in Dunshaughlin on Saturday night where they enjoyed the steak on the stone in An Sibin and the love just walking around the villages of Dunsany and Kilmessan. "However, it's all about the course for the ladies. They love this place because it is one of the leading venues in Europe for both men and women. "This is the best venue they play on the European Tour, it has a US Open feel because it has that class about it." The dreadful weather which Ireland has endured this summer has dampened many sporting events, but the excellent drainage at the venue and the kinder weather over the weekend made Killeen Castle a popular destination for sports fans too. "On Tuesday and Wednesday the forecast was for Armageddon, but we have had two really sunny days on Friday and Saturday and Sunday hasn't been too bad either," said Carr. "We had big crowds all week with 5,000 here on Friday, over 7,000 here on Saturday and a massive crowd of close to 10,000 here again on Sunday so we are absolutely delighted with the turn out. "To add to that we also saw the cream of the crop rise to the top in the golf with Caitriona Matthew, Suzann Petersen and the young player I really like, Carly Booth who is the image of the new tour we are looking to promote." So what next for Killeen Castle? The venue is deserving of more special occasions like the Solheim Cup and Ladies Irish Open and that is something that Carr and his team are working towards. "At the moment we are looking to get a major event here in the next couple of years. We haven't finished negotiations just yet so I can't really say a whole lot more at this stage, but we are trying to get something big here to follow these Irish Opens," said Carr. "Killeen Castle has really served a tremendous purpose by hosting the Solheim Cup and three Ladies Irish Opens, so people now know that Killeen Castle and Meath as a golfing destination is thriving. "This is the one venue that people are coming to off the tour operators circuit. The Americans come to Ireland and love to play Links golf, but Killeen Castle is hugely popular because that have seen the course during the Solheim Cup and they have heard so much about it. "The satisfaction rating amongst the public is also huge. We have a lot of the local people working in the tented village and at the farmers Market and Kids zone, so we find there is an old Irish welcome and that has paid off. "All the people that are working hard in the tented village have created a home feel to the whole place and we are back to creating that old Irish welcome and that is only good for Irish and Meath golf," concluded Carr before the huge crowd following the last group headed down the first fairway and out into the magnificent parkland of Killeen Castle. TOP FINISHERS 209 - Catriona Matthew (SCO) 67, 71, 71; 210 - Suzann Pettersen (NOR) 72, 69, 69; 213 - Laura Davies (ENG) 74, 71, 68; 215 - Joanna Klatten (FRA) 72, 73, 70; Pernilla Lindberg (SWE) 68, 72, 75; Nikki Garrett (AUS) 73, 72, 70; 216 - Carly Booth (SCO) 71, 69, 76; Felicity Johnson (ENG) 69, 75, 72; 217 - Jodi Ewart (ENG) 73, 72, 72; Dewi Claire Schreefel (NLD) 73, 73, 71; Carlota Ciganda (ESP) 74, 75, 68; Elizabeth Bennett (ENG) 70, 73, 74; Alison Walshe (USA) 73, 71, 73.