Cleary takes 2nd place in Connacht Seniors

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Tom ClearyCork’s Tom Cleary heralded the start to his season when he took second place at the Connacht Seniors today.  The former Munster and Irish Seniors winner shot a par par 73 today in Claremorris to jump up the leaderboard and take the runner-up spot.  Cleary had three birdies on the back nine to get back to level par for the day.  He finished one shot behind winner Nigel Duke (Killiney) who retained the title he won last year.  Cleary was the only golfer to match par over the two days as the golfers struggled in testing weather conditions.

Pat Lyons (Cork) and Donie O’Donovan (Bandon) both finished in a tie for 11th place.  Both golfers put in a challenge on the front nine today but they faded on the back nine as they dropped a number of shots.  Michael Quirke (Doneraile) was in Continue reading →

RNLI Baltimore Fundraising Classic

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Baltimore LifeboatRNLI Baltimore Branch will hold its annual fundraising Golf Classic on Saturday 22nd July 2017 at Skibbereen Golf Club.  The RNLI is the charity  that saves lives at sea, and in the past 12 months Baltimore’s two lifeboats had a total of 33 callouts and its crew of skilled and dedicated local volunteers continues to save lives around our coastline. 

The golf competition will be a 3-Ball Better Ball, and teams can be ladies/men/mixed. A donation of €150 per team, including lunch. will be appreciated, and tees may also be sponsored at €100 each.

To book a tee time phone Skibbereen Golf Club (028)2127 or book online at www.skibbgolf.com 

 

 

 

 

 

Murphy & Sugrue best placed in East of Ireland

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John Murphy of Ireland during the final round

John Murphy,  Credit: Tristan Jones

John Murphy and James Sugrue were the best placed Cork finishers in the East of Ireland which concluded on Monday.  Murphy ended up claiming a spot in the top ten, finishing in a tie for 6th place on +2.  Murphy birdied the last to sign for a 73 and continues a good run of form.  Like many other Cork and Munster golfers he’ll now head for Tralee for the Kerry Scratch Cup which takes place this weekend.  With more Munster Order of Merit points on offer the competition for places on the Munster interprovincial team is heating up.  Janes Sugrue closed with a two over par 74 today but signed for a very impressive 69 yesterday.  The Mallow man tied the low round of the day with five birdies and two bogies which saw him jump up on the field.  The winner was Reece Black from Hilton Templepatrick who blew the Continue reading →

Fota date for Irish Kids Golf Tour

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Irish Kids Golf Tour Poster (002)A new kids golf event is coming to Cork, the Munster event on the Irish Kids golf tour takes place in Fota Island in August.  There are four provincial events planned for this year with Mount Juliet hosting the first event in early July.  There’s also an “All-Ireland”

Organiser Gordon Smyth “It’s to help develop and fill a key niche in junior golf in Ireland, the ‘Irish Kids Golf Tour’ provides an elite setting for junior golfers to compete safely & enjoyably in a professionally run Tour on Ireland’s best courses.  Established in 2017 to serve competitive junior golfers and their families, the ‘Irish Kids Golf Tour’ offers professionally-conducted competitions, helps develop players on and off the golf course and prepares them for competitive golf and life beyond childhood.”

While the Mount Juliet event is fully booked there are space available for the Fota Island date.  Irish Kids Golf Tour events are open to both boys and girls aged 13 and Continue reading →

Hickey & O’Flaherty lead Cork charge at East of Ireland

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John Hickey pictured during the Lee Valley Senior Scratch Cup.

John Hickey

John Hickey shot a two under par 70 in Baltray this morning to finish the first round in 5th place.  A steady round saw Hickey turn on -2 after two birdies.  He added a third bridie on the 14th but bogied the par three 15th immediately after that.  Two more pars followed and he signed for a 70 which is just one shot off the lead set but a group of four golfers.  Gary O’Flaherty returned to competitive golf after a short break and he went round the Co Louth links in a very respectable 71 strokes.  Like his Cork Golf Club partner Hickey, Gary also had a very tidy round.  Two birdies, one bogey and fifteen pars made up the card that saw him tie for ninth place just two shots away from the leading bunch.  The fourway tie Continue reading →

O’Keeffe out of the East, strong Cork challenge remains

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John Murphy of Ireland during a practice round

Murphy pictured during the Alps Tour event in Clement Ader last week. Pic: Tristan Jones

Peter O’Keeffe was a late withdrawal this afternoon from the East of Ireland Championship which gets underway in Co Louth Golf Club tomorrow.  O’Keeffe was one the highest ranked qualifiers but a neck injury has prevented him from taking part.  He struggled with the problem last week during the Douglas Senior Scratch Cup and with no improvement he made the tough call to withdraw late this afternoon.  Although the Irish Open champion is missing, there’s still a strong challenge from Cork.

Munster Students Champion John Murphy (Kinsale) returned from France earlier this week and he’ll be confident from a run of recent good form while fellow Kinsale member Cathal Butler will be looking to return to the form he displayed at the Munster Students in March.  Both Sean Desmond (Monkstown) and Gary Ward Continue reading →

Ward Wins in Cobh, Cobh Senior & Junior Scratch Cups

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Munster Strokeplay Championship 2016Gary Ward shot a very impressive 66 in Cobh today to win the Senior Scratch Cup.  The score is a course record at the championship course.  Ward had a good start and birdied the 3rd & 4th before he went on to add two more birdies on the 7th & 8th holes.  He added another birdie on the par three 10th to get to five under.  His only blemish came on the 12th when he dropped a shot after putting a ball in the water.  Ward regained the shot on the very next hole and moved to six under when he bogied the last hole.

It was a 1-2 for Kinsale as Keith Fitzpatrick took second place with a 71.  Cobh’s Gavin Lynch won the nett prize.  Mark McGroarty won the Junior Scratch Cup in style with a level par 72 enough to win the title by two shots.  Monkstown’s Ken Treacy was second on 74 and Eoin Wilson was third with a 75.  Aaron Ward (Blarney) won the nett prize with a 69, beating Jack Ryan (Monkstown) on the countback.

Desmond claims first Scratch Cup win in Douglas

Cobh’s next big event is the AIG Junior Continue reading →

Desmond claims first Scratch Cup win in Douglas

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Sean Desmond Douglas SSC 2017

Sean Desmond (Monkstown) receives the Douglas Senior Scratch Cup from sponsor Kieran Canty, Kieran Canty Financial Services.

Monkstown’s Sean Desmond made a successful return from injury today when he won the Douglas Senior Scratch Cup.  Desmond suffered ankle ligament damage earlier this month and that kept him off the course for three weeks.  Douglas was his first competitive outing and this morning he shot a solid level par 72.  The first year UCC student was two shots off the lead after the first round when his Senior Cup partner Eoghan Long led the field with a 70.  It was a packed leaderboard with over 20 golfers within four shots of the lead. Desmond started fast the second round and he was three under through 10 holes.  He gave two shots back thought on the 12th and the 16th.  A birdie on the 17th however proved to be the difference and he went on to win by one shot.

“It’s my first scratch cup win and absolutely delighted to get one, especially in a big competition like Douglas” said a happy Desmond who was equally happy with the way he played.  “I played very solidly.  I hit the ball well in general, and hit a lot of greens. I put myself in the right spots most of the time except for a few holes where I made some very sloppy bogeys.  But overall I  Continue reading →

Murphy happy with Clement Ader Experience

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John Murphy of Ireland during the final round

John Murphy during the final round. Alps Tour 2017: Open Golf Clement Ader Paris.  Credit: Tristan Jones

Kinsale’s John Murphy is heading back to Ireland tomorrow after two exciting events in France.  Just over a week ago he was playing in the French Amateur Open and although he dropped a few shot on the final day, that was still good enough to finish in a tie for 20th place.  Murphy had been as high as fifth in the competition before the final round.

After the French Open in Chantilly it was on to Thomas O’Driscoll’s Clement Ader Golf for his first professional competition on the Alps Tour. John was one of several Irish amateurs who were invited to play in the tournament by O’Driscoll.  Murphy was in the top ten after the first round and was the only Irish golfer to make the 36 hole cut.  Murphy added a second 76 in his final round and finished in 33rd place.  Murphy was three under through the first three holes on the final round, but a double on the fourth killed the momentum.  His four over par round saw him drop a few places in the final standings but the US Continue reading →