Olivia Mehaffey (born 9 October 1998) is a professional golfer from

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

who plays on the

Ladies European Tour The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. Most of the players on the tour are European, with members from more than 40 countries internationally. Despite its name, the tour also has tournaments in A ...

Amateur career

Mehaffey enjoyed a very successful amateur career and reached a rank of No. 5 in the

World Amateur Golf Rankings The World Amateur Golf Ranking for men was introduced by The R&A, the governing body of the sport of golf outside the United States and Mexico, on 23 January 2007. It is based on the results of over 2,600 amateur tournaments per year (and amateurs ...

and No. 2 in the European Amateur Golf Rankings. In 2014, she won the Irish Girls U18 Open Stroke Play Championship and played in the

Lalla Meryem Cup The Lalla Meryem Cup is a women's professional golf tournament in Morocco under the high patronage of His Majesty Mohammed VI of Morocco, King Mohammed VI. It was held in Rabat until it moved to Agadir in 2011. It moved back to Rabat in 2016. The ...

, an LET event, where she made the cut. She won the 2015 the

Helen Holm Scottish Women's Open Championship The Helen Holm Scottish Women's Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship is the national women's amateur stroke play golf championship in Scotland (although entry is open to overseas golfers). It has been played annually at Royal Troon since 1973 an ...

, and won the

Welsh Ladies Open Stroke Play Championship The Welsh Women's Open Stroke Play Championship is the women's national amateur stroke play golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, c ...

in both 2015 and 2016. In 2016, she also won the

Irish Women's Open Stroke Play Championship The Irish Women's Amateur Open Championship is the women's national amateur stroke play golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, cours ...

and the Irish Women's Amateur Close Championship. She was a semi-finalist at the

British Ladies Amateur The Women's Amateur Championship, previously known as the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship, was founded in 1893 by the Ladies' Golf Union. It is organised by The R&A, which merged with the Ladies' Golf Union in 2017. Until the dawn of t ...

in 2015 and finished 3rd at the 2016

European Ladies Amateur Championship The European Ladies Amateur Championship is an annual amateur golf tournament. It is organized by the European Golf Association and is one of the "elite" tournaments recognized by the World Amateur Golf Ranking The World Amateur Golf Ranking for ...

. Mehaffey played in the

Curtis Cup The Curtis Cup is the best known team trophy for women amateur golfers, awarded in the biennial Curtis Cup Match. It is co-organised by the United States Golf Association and The R&A and is contested by teams representing the United States and " ...

twice, and in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

at Dun Laoghaire Golf Club outside of Dublin helped lead the Great Britain & Ireland team to victory after going 3-1-1. In 2016, Mehaffey along with

Leona Maguire Leona Maguire (born 30 November 1994) is an Irish professional golfer. She held the record for the most weeks at the top of the World Amateur Golf Ranking, and in 2022 became the first – and, to date, only – Irish woman to win on the LPGA ...

and Annabel Wilson won the third place bronze medal for Ireland in the

2016 Espirito Santo Trophy The 2016 Espirito Santo Trophy took place 14–17 September at Mayakoba El Camaleon Golf Club and Iberostar Playa Paraiso Golf Club in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico. It was the 27th women's golf World Amateur Team Championship for the ...

held at Mayakoba El Camaleon Golf Club in Mexico. Mehaffey joined

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...

in 2016 and played with the Arizona State Sun Devils women's golf team. As a freshman in 2017, she helped ASU win the

NCAA Championship The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

by notching match-play victories in all three wins over Florida, Stanford and Northwestern (title match). She won the 2019 Pac-12 Championship and NCAA Norman Regional back-to-back. She overcame a four-stroke deficit in the final round to win the Pac-12 Championship in a playoff with

Albane Valenzuela Albane Ines Marie Valenzuela (born 17 December 1997) is a Swiss professional golfer and a three-time Olympian. She was born in New York City to a Mexican father and French mother. She became a Swiss citizen at age 14. Amateur career Valenzuela ...

. She took advantage of the NCAA granting an additional year of eligibility for spring-sport athletes due to COVID-19 cutting short the 2019-20 season. Mehaffey's amateur pedigree earned her spots in two

U.S. Women's Open The U.S. Women's Open is one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, ...

s and three

Women's British Open The Women's Open (originally known as the Women's British Open, and still widely referred to by that name outside the UK) is a major championship in women's professional golf. It is recognised by both the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tou ...

s, the first the

2016 Women's British Open The 2016 Ricoh Women's British Open was played 28–31 July in England at the Woburn Golf and Country Club near Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, northwest of London. It was the 40th Women's British Open, and the 16th as a major championship o ...

Woburn Golf and Country Club Woburn Golf Club is a golf club in England located in Little Brickhill, near Milton Keynes within the county of Buckinghamshire, about northwest of central London. There are three courses at the Woburn property: the "Duke's Course", ...

when she was 18. She also competed in the

2020 ANA Inspiration The 2020 ANA Inspiration was the 49th ANA Inspiration LPGA golf tournament, held on the Dinah Shore Tournament Course at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California. Originally scheduled for April 2–5, the tournament was postponed to ...

, where she made her first

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

cut. In 2021, she finished in a share of ninth place in her second appearance at the

Augusta National Women's Amateur The Augusta National Women's Amateur (ANWA) is a golf tournament in Georgia, held at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta and Champions Retreat Golf Club in nearby Evans. stroke play event debuted The tournament is split between the two v ...

. She started in the Arizona Women's Classic on the

Symetra Tour The Epson Tour, previously known as the LPGA Futures Tour, and known for sponsorship reasons between 2006 and 2010 as the Duramed Futures Tour and between 2012 and 2021 as the Symetra Tour, is the official developmental golf tour of the LPGA Tour ...

in March, where she finished in a share of sixth place after leading the event at the half way stage.

Professional career

Mehaffey turned professional after the spring semester in 2021 and made her

LPGA Tour The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekly ...

debut as a professional on home soil in

Ballymena Ballymena ( ; from , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 31,205 people at the 2021 United Kingdom census, making it the List of localities in Northern Ireland by population, seven ...

, 30 miles from

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

, at the inaugural

ISPS Handa World Invitational The ISPS Handa World Invitational was a professional golf tournament that featured on the European Tour, the Challenge Tour, the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour. History The event was created in 2019 and involved separate events for both ...

. She finished tied for 17th place. She joined the 2022

after finishing 24th at LET Q-School. The best finish in her rookie season was 9th place at the Madrid Ladies Open. She withdrew during the

Skaftö Open The Skaftö Open is a professional golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour (LET). The tournament is played in Sweden at Skaftö Golf Club in Fiskebäckskil, north of Gothenburg. It was first played on the Swedish Golf Tour in 2018, before be ...

and took the second half of the season off to process the grief after her father died of cancer. In

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

, she shot an 8-under 64 to take the lead after the first day of the

Amundi German Masters The Amundi German Masters is a golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour. It was last played at Golf & Country Club Seddiner See near Berlin, Germany. The tournament was first played as the Ladies British Masters at Mottram Hall in the North ...

, ultimately finishing in a tie for 12th. Two weeks later she shot a 9-under 207 at the

Ladies Finnish Open The Ladies Finnish Open was a professional women's golf tournament held in Finland. It was played as part of the Swedish Golf Tour 1998–2011, the LET Access Series 2012–2019, and after a one-year hiatus, part of the Ladies European Tour between ...

to finish in a tie for 3rd, her best professional result so far.

Amateur wins

*2014 Irish Girls U18 Open Stroke Play Championship *2015

*2016

, Irish Women's Amateur Close Championship,

*2018 Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge *2019 Bruin Wave Invitational, Pac-12 Championship, NCAA Norman Regional Source:

Results in LPGA majors

''Results not in chronological order before 2019.'' CUT = missed the half-way cut
NT = no tournament
T = tied

Team appearances

Amateur *

European Young Masters The European Young Masters is a European amateur mixed team golf championship for boys and girls under 16 organised by the European Golf Association The European Golf Association (EGA) is a non-profit organisation based in Epalinges, Switzerland ...

(representing Ireland): 2011, 2012, 2013 *

Junior Vagliano Trophy The Junior Vagliano Trophy is an annual girls amateur golf tournament. It is co-organised by The R&A and the European Golf Association and is contested by teams representing "Great Britain and Ireland" and the "Continent of Europe". The first event ...

(representing Great Britain & Ireland): 2013 *

Youth Olympic Games Youth Olympic Games is an international multi-sport event for athletes aged 15 to 18 years old. Organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consistent with ...

(representing Ireland):

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

Junior Solheim Cup The Junior Solheim Cup is a version of the Solheim Cup for girls aged 12 to 18. It was inaugurated in 2002. It is currently officially called the Ping (golf), PING Junior Solheim Cup. The Junior Solheim Cup follows a similar format to The Solheim ...

(representing Europe): 2015 *

Vagliano Trophy The Vagliano Trophy is a biennial women's amateur golf tournament. It is co-organised by The R&A and the European Golf Association and is contested by teams representing "Great Britain and Ireland" and the "Continent of Europe". It is played in o ...

(representing Great Britain & Ireland): 2015, 2017 *

Girls Home Internationals The Girls Home Internationals was an amateur team golf championship for girls between the four Home Nations. Ireland was represented by the whole island of Ireland.The event was organised by The R&A. The inaugural event was held in 1969 and the ...

(representing Ireland): 2012, 2015 *

Women's Home Internationals The Women's Home Internationals were an amateur team golf championship for women contested between the four Home Nations of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, where Ireland was represented by the whole island of Ireland on an All-Ireland basi ...

(representing Ireland): 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 *

European Girls' Team Championship The European Girls' Team Championship is a European amateur team golf championship for women up to 18 organised by the European Golf Association. The inaugural event was held in 1991. It was played in odd-numbered years from 1991 to 1999 and has bee ...

(representing Ireland): 2011, 2012, 2013 *

European Ladies' Team Championship The European Ladies' Team Championship is a European amateur team golf championship for women organised by the European Golf Association. The inaugural event was held in 1959. It was played in odd-numbered years from 1959 to 2007 and has been pl ...

(representing Ireland):

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

(representing Great Britain & Ireland):

(winners),

Espirito Santo Trophy The Espirito Santo Trophy (World Women's Amateur Team Championships) is a biennial world amateur team golf championship for women organised by the International Golf Federation. The inaugural event was held in 1964. It was instituted by the Fren ...

(representing Ireland):

Arnold Palmer Cup The Arnold Palmer Cup is an annual team golf competition for college/university golfers. It is named for Arnold Palmer. From 2018 it has been contested between a United States team and an International team representing the rest of the world. The ...

(representing the International team):

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

(winners) * Astor Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 2019

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mehaffey, Olivia Female golfers from Northern Ireland Ladies European Tour golfers Arizona State Sun Devils women's golfers Sportspeople from Banbridge Golfers from County Down 1998 births Living people Expatriate golfers in the United States Commonwealth Games competitors for Northern Ireland 21st-century sportswomen from Northern Ireland