Cork Golf

Join TopDog Golfer’s first event this weekend

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A brand new type of golf competition has entered the Irish market and the first event takes place this weekend.  Unlike other competitions, this event will take place at courses across the country as it allows you to play on your home course.

TopDog Golfer is Cork’s newest golf brand, and the company recently launched their app which allows golfers to run fun competitions with friends.  The app provides a live leaderboard and as well as running competitions over a single course, it also provides multi-course games.

TopDog Golfer in association with McGuirks Golf are running an exciting launch event this weekend. This weekend’s competition is a multi-course competition open to club golfers playing in their own club competition or in an open event.  You simply enter the event through the TopDog Golfer app and record your scores in addition to your club scorecard.  The competition is being held over Saturday and Sunday and a large number of prizes are on offer.

Entry to the event is just €5 and a live leaderboard is available on the TopDog Golfer app.  Prizes are based on categories 1,2 & 3+ meaning everyone has a chance of winning.  The event is being run in association with McGuirks Golf.  To enter, you can download the app here.

The TopDog Golfer app has been in testing for the past few months with several Cork golfers already using the app to record scores and have a friendly wager on outings.  The app provides a live leaderboard function, keeping everyone in the know as the event progresses.  As well as being used by groups of friends, it’s also an ideal resource for societies, corporates and classic organisers add an extra element of fun to their day.

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The work in Lee Valley Continues

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Lee Valley Golf Club.
Picture: Niall O’Shea

Off the course, 2021 has been a nightmare for golf courses with no play in the first three months of the year.  On the course, the closure given owners and managers a chance to get lots of work done, and that’s certainly been the case in Lee Valley where there have been plenty of changes.  With the staff covering the normal tasks of cutting a lot quicker when there’s no golfers on the course, the team have been able to get at some of the jobs that a lower down the priority list, as well as those tricky jobs that mean closing holes for days or weeks.  New bunkers, new tee boxes, drainage Continue reading →

Golf is getting back to normal

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Golf is getting back to normal, there are plenty of golfers back on the courses in Cork although it’s a bit slower than many golfers would like.  Since Monday 8th June the sport entered the second phase of the return to play protocol which has been developed by the ILGU and GUI.  Both bodies have been proactive in getting golfers back on the course, golf was one of the first sports to be allowed to reopen.  Last week should have seen two major developments, the extension of the travel limit to 20km and the return of competitions.  While the travel limit was extended to the full county, competitions unfortunat Continue reading →

Ryan wins in Youghal – Munster PGA

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Simon Keelan (Monkstown), Ger Brooderick (Kinsale) and Davey Barry (Douglas) pictured at the Munster PGA Captain's Prize at Youghal Golf Club. Picture: Niall O'Shea

Simon Keelan (Monkstown), Ger Brooderick (Kinsale) and Davey Barry (Douglas) pictured at the Munster PGA Captain’s Prize at Youghal Golf Club.
Picture: Niall O’Shea

Cahir Park’s David Ryan won his second event in the PGB Munster Winter Series as he won the Captain’s Prize in Youghal.  Ryan shot a winning one under par 70.  He held off a trio from Kerry as Danny Sugrue (Killarney), David Higgins (Waterville) and Liam Higgins (Waterville) all finished with 71.  Christian Porter (Halpenny Golf) was fifth with a 72 and Cian McNamara (Monkstown) was next best with a 73.  Although it was an impressive performance from Ryan, the story of the day was the second placed finish by Liam Higgins.  The veteran from Waterville shot a 71, bettering his age by one at the Taylormade sponsored event.  In a nice touch Liam told his assembled peers that Youghal was the first club he joined in 1963. Continue reading →

Skibbereen Offer for New Golfers

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Skibbereen & West Carbery Golf Club have launched a new membership scheme which should prove very attractive to many of Cork’s golfers.  They are set to take advantage of a new handicapping rule, they have just launched an innovative club membership scheme with an annual cost of just €175.  New rules which come in from the 1st March mean that golfers can only play in qualifying competitions outside of their home club only if they have three qualifying rounds in their home club in the previous 12 months.  This has the potential to disrupt many of those golfers who hold distance memberships in clubs outside Cork, especially those who play most of their golf in local open competitions while not playing in their home course.  The €175 membership option includes three rounds of golf to comply with the handicapping rules.  Continue reading →

Busy Year for Castlemartyr

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Busy Year for Castlemartyr

By Niall O’Shea

Castlemartyr golf course didn’t take long to register itself as one of the most popular courses for green fees and societies and the past few years has seen the club also go from strength to strength.  The club and course are now open almost seven years and the club has seen a large increase in membership over the past two years.  A large number of members attended the recent AGM where John Paul Twomey was elected Captain.  The Kerryman who hails from Duagh in the north of the county has been a popular and hardworking member of the club and takes over the reins from 2013 Captain Gary Quail.  Speaking after the AGM, Twomey is looking forward to the golfing season; “I am looking forward to a busy and exiting year ahead representing the club in 2014.  We have been very active in securing new sponsors and we have a number of key open competitions planned.  We have two Open weekends this year on the May Bank Holiday weekend sponsored by Mahers Golf from 2nd – 4th.  The L’Oreal Open weekend is on the 27th June to the 29th.  Our Junior, Inter and Minor Scratch Cups sponsored by McCarthy Insurance Group are taking place on the August Bank Holiday Weekend.  The Oakley Senior Scratch Cup is scheduled for the 21st September.”

Like most progressive clubs, Castlemartyr has a keen focus on junior golf and this was one of the key areas covered by the Captain at the AGM, “We now have over 30 junior members and we passed a motion at the AGM which will allow junior golfer with a handicap of 16 or lower to compete in men’s competitions.  Our Director of Golf Brady Sherwood and his assistant Alan Gleeson have plans in place for coaching of juveniles for 2014.  We also have a team in the Fred Daly for the first time along with team competing in the Purcell, Bruen, Junior Cup, Senior Cup and Barton Shield.”

The course too is sure to be a busy place and Director of Golf Brady Sherwood celebrated his own heritage by holding an Australian Day open competition on Sunday.  While the weather on Sunday was far from the regular Australian elements, a large number of teams took part.  The winners were Ger Donnelly, Pat Crotty, Brian Murphy and Like Swayne.  They finished with 104 points, six shots clear of second place.  The runners up spot went to Con Murphy, Joey O’Brien, Bill Summers and Shane O’Dwyer.  The weekly open competitions continue to take place with the Tuesday Blues and Wednesday Whites proving popular every week.  Details and timesheets are available from the club.