IRISH TIMES/IRISH SPORTS COUNCIL Sportwoman of the Month Leona Maguire

There have already been many outstanding months in the golfing careers of the 14-year-old Maguire twins from County Cavan, Leona and Lisa, but April proved to be quite exceptional.

Both girls' achievements to date have, considering their youth, been extraordinary, but it was Leona's victory at the Helen Holm Scottish Open Amateur stroke-play championship that stood out this time around.

She was, by some distance, the youngest player ever to win the prestgious tournament, leading from start to finish at Troon, in a top class adult international field. She finished two shots clear of Scottish under-21 champion Kelsey MacDonald, with Lisa taking a share of third place.

Leona has now won every event she has entered so far in 2009, starting with the inaugural Woodenbridge Scratch Cup, followed by the French Under-21 International Championship at the start of April, and then the Scottish Open.

Her victories have taken her to the top of the European Junior Solheim Cup rankings, making her inclusion in the team for the event, which will be played in Illinois in August, a near certainty.