The Golf Ireland Underage High Performance and Performance Development coaching panels for 2023-24 have been selected with two Cork golfers making the Boys Under 18 panel.  R&A Boys’ Amateur leading qualifier Jack Murphy (Douglas) along with Irish Boys Close winner John Doyle (Fota Island) are among the 12 selected, that also includes European Junior Ryder Cup bolter Sean Keeling (Roganstown) will look to have another outstanding year as part of the Under 18 Boys panel.

The Performance Development panels were also announced this week, they are regional squads that work from the Under 15 and Under 17 age groups.  Five Cork golfers made the seven person South under 17 boys panel; Oran Barrett (Cork), Cian McDonnell (Monkstown), Darragh Nolan (Fermoy), Barry O’Connell (Douglas) and Sean Reddy (Douglas).  Julia Falvey Ryan (Fota Island) and Hailey Martinez (Douglas) made the girls Under 17 panel while Justin Dennehy (Douglas) was selected on the Under 15 boys panel.  With four juniors selected, it’s a very positive endorsement of the Douglas junior golf programme.  The High Performance and Performance Development panels will work over the winter with a view to playing the 2024 season.  Many of the golfers selected will be representing their schools in the schools qualifiers which take place in the coming weeks.

The AIG Men’s Pierce Purcell Shield All-Ireland Final was one of the events in Knightsbrook last weekend, and it was Spanish Point who triumphed over Cahir Park in as close a final as possible.  With the overall score tied at 2-2, match one would prove to be the decider as the quartet of players headed down the 19th for a playoff with teammates and supporters watching on.  On the first playoff hole, Spanish Point’s Jonathan Kyle and Fergus O’Brien capitalised on the opportunity to seal the win for the Clare team.

Spanish Point’s team captain Noel Connellan was at a loss for words after watching his team come through the tightest of matches. “It’s absolutely overwhelming. The camaraderie between all the members of Spanish Point Golf Club, the camaraderie between the team members and the manager of the team Mervin Hehir was overwhelming.  Words cannot describe what it’s like to win an All-Ireland Final.”  It was their first time to win it since 2020, and their fourth title having picked up wins in 2013 and 2014.  The competition had a new format this year, it incorporated the All Ireland fourball competition and for the first time shots were included in the matches.

The last weekend of inter-club finals takes place this weekend, marking the end of the season which started back in May.  They comprised of more than 20 national competitions, broken down between the eight Golf Ireland regions, and involved every club in the country.  While several Cork clubs had success at regional level, national honours have eluded them so far in 2023.