Ines Laklalech (born 30 October 1997) is a Moroccan

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who plays on the

Ladies European Tour The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. It is based at Buckinghamshire Golf Club near London in England. Like many UK-based sports organisations it is a company limited by guarantee, a legal stru ...

and the LPGA Tour. She won the 2022 Lacoste Ladies Open de France on her rookie year to become the first Moroccan, Arab and North African woman to win a title on the LET.

Early life and amateur career

Laklalech was born in

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

, Morocco and started playing golf at the age of 10. She was introduced to the game by her father at the Royal Golf d'Anfa in

. Laklalech joined the Moroccan National Team at the age of 12, and represented her country several times at the African Championship, Pan Arab Championship and at the World Women's Amateur Team Championships, the

Espirito Santo Trophy The Espirito Santo Trophy (World Women's Amateur Team Championships) is a biennial world amateur team golf championship for women organised by the International Golf Federation. The inaugural event was held in 1964. It was instituted by the Fren ...

, in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

and

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. After obtaining her French

Baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

in 2015 from Lycée Lyautey, Laklalech attended Wake Forest University and played with the Demon Deacons women's golf team 2015–16. In 2019, Laklalech made two starts on the

LET Access Series The LET Access Series (LETAS) is a professional golf tour for women and the official development tour to the Ladies European Tour. Launched in 2010, the LET Access Series provides players with an opportunity to compete and progress on to the LET ...

and finished runner-up at the Belfius Ladies Open. She made the cut at the 2020

Aramco Saudi Ladies International The Aramco Saudi Ladies International is a professional golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour (LET), first played in 2020. The tournament is played in Saudi Arabia at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City by the Red ...

, her first LET event.

Professional career

Laklalech turned professional after she finished 15th at LET Q- School in La Manga in December 2021, securing her card for the 2022 Ladies European Tour. In her rookie season, Laklalech finished top-10 at the

Madrid Ladies Open The Comunidad de Madrid Ladies Open is a professional golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour, first played in 2022. The tournament will be the first of the 2022 LET season to be played on European soil after events in Africa, the Middle ...

The Mithra Belgian Ladies Open The Belgian Ladies Open is a women's professional golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour held in Belgium. The tournament was played annually 1985–1995. It was known as the Godiva Ladies European Masters 1988–1989 and the BMW European Ma ...

Amundi German Masters The Amundi German Masters is a golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour. It was last played at Golf & Country Club Seddiner See near Berlin, Germany. The tournament was first played as the Ladies British Masters at Mottram Hall in the North W ...

and Skaftö Open, before sealing her maiden victory at the

Lacoste Ladies Open de France The Open de France Dames is a women's professional golf tournament in France on the Ladies European Tour. It has been played annually since 1987, with four exceptions: 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1998. Since the 2011 edition, Lacoste has been the tit ...

, defeating Meghan MacLaren on the first playoff hole.

Amateur wins

*2018 The Arab Ladies Championship *2019 Moroccan Championship *2020 Grand Prix Mohammedia Source:

Professional wins (1)

Ladies European Tour wins (1)

Team appearances

(representing Morocco):

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Laklalech, Ines Moroccan female golfers Ladies European Tour golfers LPGA Tour golfers Wake Forest Demon Deacons women's golfers Sportspeople from Casablanca 1997 births Living people