Sara Byrne set to make her LET professional bow in Spain

But as the Cavan star bids to outshine US rivals Nelly Korda, Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang in the LPGA’s Kroger Queen City Championship in Ohio this week, Byrne (23) makes her professional LET debut in the €1m La Sella Open in Spain looking to take her first steps towards making the team herself one day.

The Douglas star (23) returns to action with her batteries fully recharged after following her recent success at the LPGA Q-School pre-qualifier with a brilliant Curtis Cup winning performance and a tied 13th finish on her pro debut in the Rose Ladies Open on the LET Access Series.

She was surprised to see Maguire left out of three of the five sessions by European skipper Suzann Pettersen in last week’s Solheim Cup defeat. But after seeing Maguire grab an emphatic singles win over Ally Ewing, she’s more inspired than ever to make that European team.

“The reason I started playing golf is because I went to the Solheim Cup at Killeen Castle in 2011 when I was 10 and said that’s what I want to do,” said Byrne, who will get another chance to shine on the LET in next week’s Lacoste Ladies Open de France.

“It was a big surprise [to see Leona benched]. But look, we never know what’s going on behind team doors and what team captains have to do.

“But it was good to see Leona come out on the last day and get that win, and it definitely whets my appetite to try and perform as well as I can for the next two to four years, whatever it would be, and hopefully, I’ll make that team eventually.”

Byrne will return to Florida next month for the penultimate stage of the LPGA Q-School. But she’s hoping to use back-to-back LET starts to see where she stands against experienced professionals.

“I’m just trying to see where I’m at compared to the other girls,” she said, admitting she’s surprised how similar tour life is to elite college golf in the US.

“It’s a little bit more hectic than college, but I’m learning how many weeks in a row works for me, and stuff like that; just taking it all in my stride and seeing how it goes. I’m trying not to put too much pressure on myself.”

Conor Purcell, Dermot McElroy, Gary Hurley, Jonathan Caldwell, Ronan Mullarney, Conor O’Rourke, Cormac Sharvin and JR Galbraith play the Italian Challenge Open.

Meanwhile, Castleknock’s Paul Coughlan opened with a five-under 67 to take a two-shot lead over Douglas’ Peter O’Keeffe and Scotland’s Matthew Wilson in the North of Ireland Amateur Open at Royal Portrush.

LET La Sella Open,

Live, Sky Sports Mix, 1pm

LPGA Queen City Championship,

Live, Sky Sports Golf, 6pm