Weather set to wreak havoc at AIG Women’s Open

Scottish weather, eh?

If links golf wasn’t enough to test the best in the world at this week’s AIG Women’s Open, the weather conditions might do just that.

Players have had sunshine, heavy rain and winds for company throughout the practice rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, but things could get a whole lot worse.

The R&A has issued its latest weather forecast – provided by the MET Office – and it has warned of “strong and gusty winds” for day one of the championships.

After a dry and bright start with a little rain, winds are expected to gradually strengthen during the day on Thursday.

Gusts of 23-28 miles per hour are expected for most of the opening round but could reach as high as 45 miles per hour.

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That would certainly put the opening day of play at risk, causing yet more delays to major championships at the Old Course in St Andrews.

The 2015 Open was forced into a Monday finish after a delay during the third round, while the 2013 Women’s Open was halted during Saturday’s third round.

One bonus is the lack of rain in sight for the first round this week. Around 1-2 mm is expected, while temperatures are set to reach a high of 19°C.

Play is due to get underway at 7am on Thursday, with I K Kim, Alexandra Forsterling and Moriya Jutanugarn teeing off the championship from the first tee.

Meanwhile, Scotland’s Gemma Dryburgh addressed battling the elements in her pre-tournament press conference yesterday.

“You get the good of the draw sometimes and not-so-good the other half,” she said. “Hopefully I’ll be lucky this week and if not just try and do your best with what you’ve got.

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“The wind looks like it’s going to be even stronger this week. Hopefully it will stay dry.

“It’s definitely an advantage having played in that wind before, and my ball flight is still a bit lower anyway, as well. So that’s very helpful.

“But everyone is so good out here, as well. If you strike it well, usually you’ll play pretty decent in the wind, but we’ll try and take advantage of it.”

For the rest of the week, the forecast has warned of light showers on Friday, with gusts of wind reaching as high as 35 miles per hour in the afternoon.

A mixture of bright or sunny spells and showers is expected at the weekend, with a chance of gusts over 30 miles per hour on Saturday.

John Turnbull A graduate of the University of Stirling, John joined the bunkered team in 2023 as a Content Producer, with a responsibility for covering all breaking news, tour news, grassroots content and much more besides. A keen golfer, he plays the majority of his golf at Falkirk Golf Club. Top of his 'bucket list' is a round of Pebble Beach... ideally in the company of Gareth Bale.