Gary Hurley and Lauren Walsh are looking to continue their positive run of form this week with one eye on achieving big things in 2025.
Kildare rookie Walsh will bid to complete a memorable year on the Ladies European Tour in the season-ending €700,000 Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España at Real Club Guadalhorce Golf in Malaga.
The Carton House touring professional (24) enters the final event ranked 19th in the Order of Merit after racking up four top-10 finishes from 20 starts and leaping from 652nd to 225th in the world over the past 11 months.
The top 10 in the Order of Merit will be awarded starts at LPGA Q-Series Final Qualifying in Alabama next week.
But that’s not a concern for Castlewarden talent Walsh, who has already clinched her place alongside Douglas’ Sara Byrne in next week’s card quest after coming through Final Qualifying in Florida last month.
Only the top 70 in the Order of Merit will be fully exempt on the LET next season, which means that the absent Olivia Mehaffey, ranked 155th, must attend Pre-Qualifying at the LET Q-School in Marrakesh next month after finishing outside the top 135.
As for Hurley, the West Waterford man teed it up overnight in the first round of the DP World Tour co-sanctioned ISPS HANDA Australian Open at Kingston Heath and Victoria Golf Clubs.
The former Walker Cup star is looking to build on some encouraging form this year, having taken four months off last season to get treatment for General Anxiety Disorder leading to depressive mood.
“It’s happened a few times in my career, and last year was the first time I went and got it properly seen to,” Hurley said at this month’s Challenge Tour Grand Final.
“Golf is a thing where you’ve got to roll with the punches. You’ve got to allow it to go away and allow it to come back again and not be too hard on yourself, which is something I’ve struggled with.”
Chile’s Joaquin Niemann defends his title, aiming to get his 2025 Race to Dubai campaign off to a fast start after recently celebrating his honeymoon.
“It’s been a busy season, and yeah it was nice to go and do something else, travelling around the world and not playing golf for a couple of days,” the Chilean said.
“So now that I’m here, I feel more fresh and have more energy to have a good week here.“
Getting back to the DP World Tour is also a goal for Paul Dunne, John Murphy, Niall Kearney and Kevin Phelan, who will join Michael Young and John-Ross Galbraith at the penultimate stage of the Asian Tour Qualifying School in Thailand next month.