MONMOUTH Golf Club graduate Becky Morgan has become the first ever Welsh woman golfer to win a US championship, claiming the Senior Open (over-50) title with a runaway six-shot victory from American seven-time major winner Juli Inkster.

It was a best ever win for Becky, who was introduced to the game as a 12-year-old by her grandfather, the then Monmouth GC secretary Phil Harris, and which guarantees a slot at next year's US Women’s Open.

The 50-year-old former Haberdashers’ Monmouth School for Girls’ pupil played more than two decades on the LPGA and Ladies European tours, and described her US Senior Women’s Open triumph at the San Diego Country Club as "just unbelievable”.

Two-time Great Britain & Ireland Curtis Cup player Becky told the US Golf Association website: “I said to my caddie, I'm not looking at the scoreboard until I need to.

"I was debating my shot into 18, and I said, ‘Beth, what's the score?’ and she said, ‘you have a six-shot lead.’

"I said, okay, we're going for it. But I just stayed really calm all day, holed some really good putts, and can't quite believe it, to be honest.”

Morgan, who began the final day tied with Sweden's Maria McBride and Canada's Corina Kelepouris, three strokes ahead of Swedish US Women's Open winner Lisolette Neumann and America's Ashli Bunch, started the final round birdie-birdie then bogeyed the third.

But she made only one more bogey over the final 15 holes and fired three more birdies in a three under par 70, to finish seven under par for the 72 holes.

"I wouldn’t have dreamt this,” admitted Becky, who can now look forward to the 2026 US Women’s Open at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles.

“Since I started playing on the Senior Tour, I've had some decent success, but nothing like this. It's absolutely unbelievable.”

Perhaps her shot of the day was an 8-foot par-saving putt on the 14th that kept her lead over McBride at three strokes.

Any hope for McBride, who was playing right behind, ended on that same hole when she found the bushes and made a quadruple bogey nine.

And Morgan capped her round with yet another par-saving putt on 18.

Congratulating her, local poster Martin Mumby recalled: “I started playing golf at Monmouth Golf Club in the late 80s.

“Me and my mate used to play every Sunday afternoon. The secretary at the time was Phil Harris and he used to take his two granddaughters out to play at the same time.

“One of those granddaughters ended up turning pro and went on to become the US ladies senior champion! Well done Becky and I’m sure you remember those days with great fondness.”

Her grandfather introduced her to the game alongside twin sister Rachel, before she went on to enjoy a successful amateur career, winning Welsh Junior and U21 caps, and landing the 1991 and 1992 Welsh School Championships.

She also played in the 1998 and 2000 Curtis Cups, and was runner-up at the 1996 British Amateur Championships and 1998 Ladies British Open Amateur Stroke-Play Championships.

Turning pro in 2000, her best results include a maiden victory in the 2018 Hero Women’s Indian Open, runner-up in the 2001 French Open and 2003 ShopRite LPGA Classic in the US, and third in the 2006 Women’s World Cup of Golf.