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Scotland showdown: Major rewards await Women’s Amateur Champion
Sunday’s winner will tee up in golf’s biggest majors including the US Women’s Open, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Ladies European Tour
- PUBLISHED: Mon 9 Jun 2025, 6:46 PM
- By:
- Leslie Wilson Jr
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The stage is set for a thrilling week of elite amateur golf as the 122nd edition of The Women’s Amateur Championship gets underway tomorrow at The Nairn Golf Club with several familiar faces from last year’s Curtis Cup preparing to renew rivalries on the Scottish links.
This year’s championship, which is scheduled for a Sunday, June 15 finish, boasts a powerful field, headlined by four of the world’s top ten players in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), including American stars Catherine Park (No. 7), Farah O’Keefe (No. 8), and Jasmine Koo (No. 10). Park and Koo return to competition after narrowly losing the 2024 Curtis Cup to Great Britain & Ireland (GB&I) in a dramatic 10½-9½ showdown at Sunningdale in Berkshire, England.
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They’ll be joined by teammate Anna Davis, winner of the 2022 Augusta National Women’s Amateur at just 16, while GB&I’s victorious trio of Beth Coulter, Hannah Darling, and Patience Rhodes - whose Sunday singles win helped seal the Cup - will be looking to build on that momentum at Nairn Golf Club, which has hosted several top-tier amateur championships since it was founded in 1887.
In total, six of the world’s top 20 amateurs are confirmed, with competitors traveling from 30 countries including Australia, Barbados, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa, underlining the global appeal of the event.
This year’s champion will earn coveted exemptions into the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Porthcawl, the US Women’s Open, The Amundi Evian Championship, and the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, as well as a start on the Ladies European Tour.
Scotland’s own Hannah Darling, ranked 18th in the world, returns as the top GB&I player and a two-time semi-finalist. Now graduated from the University of South Carolina, the 21-year-old is eager to claim the title on home soil.
“I’ve come close before, so there’s definitely some added motivation,” she said. “But more than anything, I just want to enjoy it. Match play is unpredictable, and that’s what makes it so exciting.”
Spain’s Paula Martin Sampedro (WAGR No. 9) leads the European charge, with former quarter-finalists Ines Archer (France) and Paula Schulz-Hanssen (Germany) also returning. Denmark’s Marine Eline Madsen, a semi-finalist in 2024, is another name to watch. Canadian rising star Vanessa Borovilos will make her debut following a standout collegiate season, while French talent Louise Landgraf, the 2024 R&A Girls’ U16 Amateur Champion, adds further depth.
Founded in 1893, The Women’s Amateur Championship remains one of the crown jewels of the amateur game. Past winners include major champions Georgia Hall and Anna Nordqvist, along with Leona Maguire, now ranked No. 17 in the world.
The tournament begins with 36 holes of stroke play on 10–11 June. The top 64 will then advance to the match play rounds, culminating in the final on Sunday, 15 June.
This marks only the second time Nairn has hosted The Women’s Amateur Championship, the last was in 1979, when Maureen Madill claimed victory. The course has previously welcomed prestigious events including the Curtis Cup, Walker Cup, and The Amateur Championship, confirming its place among Scotland’s most storied golfing venues.