History will be made at Woodbrook this weekend as the inaugural East of Ireland Women’s Amateur Open Championship gets underway.
The third of four new women’s championships will see 67 players compete at the 54-hole championship, with 36 holes of Stroke Play on Friday before a cut ahead of Saturday’s final round.
Oughterard’s Kate Dillon will be the first Galway golfer to tee off at 8.10am and she will be followed by Aoife Kelly of Galway Bay at 8.40 and Galway Golf Club’s Jade Harty at 9.10.
The first round gets underway on Friday with Abom, Ellen O’Shaughnessy (Co.Louth) and Helena Burke (Carlow) leading the field out at 7.00am
2026 is a year that holds special significance for Woodbrook, as the Wicklow club celebrates their centenary year, with the East of Ireland Women’s Amateur Open Championship standing as a major highlight in one of the club’s busiest seasons.
“We're very proud,” said Woodbrook General Manager Marcus Doyle at the launch of the 2026 Championships programme.
“A centenary is not just a milestone, it's a celebration of the legacy, the community and the spirit that carries Woodbrook and it’s a fantastic way of honouring our past and inspiring the next generation of Woodbrook members to bring the club forward.”
“We built up our Ladies Scratch Cup here significantly to the point where it was a world amateur golf ranking event, and to be given the opportunity to host the inaugural Women’s East of Ireland is just fantastic for the club and fantastic for the Ladies’ Club.”
The event will see a host of champions take to the east coast venue with South of Ireland Women’s Champion Anna Abom (Edmondstown), West of Ireland Women’s Champion Ella Cantwell (Esker Hills), Irish Women’s Mid-Amateur Champion Shannon Burke and AIG Irish Women’s Amateur Close Champion Anna Dawson (Tramore) among a strong field competing for the title.
There will also be strong local interest, with four Woodbrook members in the field. Nicola Coffey, Isabella Stewart, Clodagh Hopkins and Sue Phillips will represent the home club, while the county will be further represented by Isobel Byrne (Blainroe), Olivia Byrne (Blainroe), Sadhbh Kelly (Bray), Sophie Harrison (Dun Laoghaire) and Emma Haugh (Greystones) all representing Wicklow clubs.
Woodbrook are also set to host the R&A Men’s & Women’s Home Internationals from 4-6 August, and many players will be hoping that a strong performance this weekend will help put them on the radar for international team selection.
“We've had significant investment across all aspects of Woodbrook Golf Club,” said Doyle.
“It is a very special opportunity to showcase everything that Woodbrook has to offer from first class agronomy throughout the entire golf course to the warm welcome, to the fantastic food and beverage. We feel we're tailor-made now to host big events like this.”
“We approach it with great respect for the past, all the past successes of Woodbrook Golf Club and we commence this next 100 years on really strong footing with hosting the Home Internationals and the Women’s East of Ireland.
View first and second round tee times here
