West Kilbride golfing sensation Louise Duncan has received an invite to play a tournament at one of golf’s most world renowned courses.

Off the back of a win in the Women’s Amateur Championship and top 10 finish in the AIG Women’s British Open, subsequently winning the silver salver as top amateur at the tournament, Louise has been invited to play in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur event in Georgia.

The event will take place from March 31 to April 3 of this year, and the course is one which is instantly recognisable to golf fans across the globe - with the ‘Amen Corner’ stretch of holes one of the sports most infamous challenges.

Louise said: “(It’s) extremely exciting! The opportunity to play in the event is over whelming.

“I’d be stupid if I never said getting to play Augusta is what I’m looking forward to.

“It’s just about every golfers dream to play and to actually be able to play it is going to be incredible.

"I can’t wait to tell everyone how it is.”

The last year has been phenomenal for the Stirling University golfer, who mastered the sport at the local West Kilbride Golf Club, only minutes from her home.

She said: “The 2021 season took quite a while to sink in and for me to actually believe that it happened.

“I think it went so quickly and I never expected any of it to happen so it was obviously a bit of a surprise for me but I’m extremely proud of myself and I’m 100 percent ready for the upcoming season.

"The Women’s Amateur Championship gave my career a complete 360, it gave me the opportunity to play in the AIG open and Curtis Cup which are massive events.

“It gave me a huge amount of confidence in my ability and opened my eyes to potentially being able to make a career out of it.

“The nerves I felt on the first tee (at the British Open) every day are something I’ll probably experience a few times in my life, it was extremely emotional for some reason.

“To have played well in one of the best women’s tournaments in the world was completely unexpected but I loved the experience and the atmosphere that it brought.

“I loved every minute of it which I never expected as I had never played in front of a crowd that big before.”

Louise said her coaches, West Kilbride’s Iain Darroch and Stirling University’s Dean Robertson have made “a big difference”, adding: “Also my mum and two brothers are a massive part of my game, they have always been really interested in my golf.”

On turning professional, she added: “I think I’ll be waiting until the time is right, and if the opportunity presents itself then I’ll have a think about it.”