The Irish Ladies’ Golf Union and the Golfing Union of Ireland will once again run a nine-hole Championship which will culminate in a Grand Final conducted by The R&A at the 2020 Open Championship at Royal St George’s in July. Both union will run four nine-hole regional finals in the second and third weeks of June 2020 with the winning pair from each regional final qualifying for the Championship final in Royal St George’s. The four winning pairs from Ireland will play in the final, with travel and accommodation provided by the R&A. There’s also a gala dinner in the Royal St George’s clubhouse on the Friday night in addition to a lunch after Continue reading
Month: February 2020
Monkstown’s Golfing History
Monkstown is another Cork golf club that can trace it’s history back over 110 years, and remains one of the most popular golfing destinations in the county. Cork GC Professional David Brown was involved in the original layout of the course and that opened for play in April 1908. Famed course architect Alister MacKenzie also had a hand in the development of Monkstown, in 1925 his plans for the course were approved. MacKenzie removed much of the rough on the course and retained the challenge by designing a “well bunkered course”.
MacKenzie was instrumental in Continue reading
Top 5 for Murphy in Alabama
John Murphy
Kinsale’s John Murphy got his final US College semester off to a good start with a top five finish in his first tournament. Murphy was competing in Alabama in the Mobile Sports Authority Intercollegiate and shot impressive rounds of 69, 70, 69 in his way to an eight under par finish for the event. Murphy’s Cardinals finished in third place in the team competition, again continuing their good form from the fall series. Murphy now has five more events in the next two months before his Cardinals team head for the play-offs. Murphy was ranked inside top 100 in the US college rankings and this was his fourth top ten Continue reading
Douglas Golfing History
For over 110 years, Douglas Golf Club has looked over the city, ideally positioned on its elevates site on Maryborough Hill. The original course was designed by golf legend Harry Vardon, a six time winner of the British Open. Vardon designed the original eighteen hole layout after walking the land which was leased from Patrick McAuliffe. The groundsmen worked with Tramore’s John McNamara who oversaw the build, and the first nine holes opened in December 1909. The second nine opened a few months later and the first competition on the new course was held in April. The course was an overnight success, drawing in a large membership from the Continue reading
Cork’s Golfing History
Cork Golf Club.
Picture: Niall O’Shea
Golf has been played in Cork for close to 140 years with Cork Golf Club being a central part of that for nearly as long. While not strictly part of the city, the club’s proximity to the city meant that it was always in easy reach of the growing population of the city and suburbs. Cork Golf Club can trace it’s foundation back to 1884 and it’s first location in Lotamore. That course in Glanmire lasted for around ten years and the club then moved to a new site closer to Carrigtwohill. Their time in Carrigtwohill was limited, and in 1899 the club made its third and final move to Little Island. The original four-hole layout was in and around the quarry and when David Brown, Cork’s first professional laid out a nine hole route, that layout lasted for nearly three decades. The 6th and 7th holes Continue reading
Sugrue 6th in South Africa
James Sugrue
James Sugrue got 2020 off to a flying start last week with a top six finish in the South African Amateur Championship. While he’ll be happy with the result, the Mallow man was in with a chance of winning going into the final two rounds. Playing in the famous Leopard Creek course, Sugrue opened with rounds of 69 and 68, and at one point he was ten under during his second round. Tougher weather conditions in the final two days of the event meant that scores were far higher. Sugrue was ten shots worse off in the third round with a 78, and he closed with 76 in the last round. That meant he was seven shots off the lead and his tied sixth result alongside Caolan Rafferty meant he was best of the Irish. Sugrue along with the Irish team remain in South Africa for another Continue reading
East Cork’s Golfing History
While Fota Island can be regarded as Cork’s top championship golf location, not many people will know that the Fota was the site of the first record organised golf in Cork. Back in 1883, over 135 years ago the first course in Cork was laid out on the Smith Barry Estate. The course in Fota was the second recorded course in Ireland, and it lasted around 30 years until the game spread by way of the large increase in the number of courses and clubs. It’s not known where exactly on the island that the course was located but it’s unlikely that it was on the site of the current course.
Owned by Lady Barrymore who lived in Fota House, the course was a short nine hole layout and was mainly used in the early days by the Officers of the British Army stationed in Cork. Although it boasts the earliest records of the sport in Cork, it seems that there was no golf in Fota until 1993 when a new course was established by an international property investment fund. A fore runner to the current championship layout, the course was popular among local golfers and hosted the Irish Amateur Open and the Irish Club Professional tournaments in the early years. All changed at the turn of the century when Dr Tim O’Mahony’s Killen Investments commenced a multi-million pound investment and redeveloped the course into a European Tour level course. That course hosted the Murphy’s Irish Open in 2001 and 2002. In 2004 there was another change of ownership when the course was bought by John Fleming who set about a substantial development that saw a hotel and housing development. The property play was combined with a new nine hole course in addition to the development Continue reading
Get into Golf in 2020
Get into Golf for Women is back for 2020, and this year the programme will provide another great opportunity for clubs and for those looking to get into the sport. The programme provides a structured programme of lessons for newcomers to the game and is specifically designed for adults. The programme is designed to support golf clubs in recruiting new members and in turn increase their membership figures and revenue. Over the past seven years the programme has proven to make golf more accessible to the wider audience. Since the ILGU first piloted the programme in 2013, the Confederation Continue reading
East Cork’s Golfing History
While Fota Island can be regarded as Cork’s top championship golf location, not many people will know that the Fota was the site of the first record organised golf in Cork. Back in 1883, over 135 years ago the first course in Cork was laid out on the Smith Barry Estate. The course in Fota was the second recorded course in Ireland, and it lasted around 30 years until the game spread by way of the large increase in the number of courses and clubs. It’s not known where exactly on the island that the course was located but it’s unlikely that it was on the site of the current course. Owned by Lady Barrymore who lived in Fota House, the course was a short nine hole layout and was mainly used in the early days by the Officers of the British Army stationed in Cork. Although it boasts the earliest records of the sport in Cork, it seems that there was no golf in Fota until 1993 when a ne Continue reading
Cork Golf News 