Gary O’Flaherty

Joe leads in Cork, Lyons has 3 stroke lead in Munster Strokeplay (R2 Report & R3 Teetimes)

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Boylesports Lee Valley Senior Scratch Cup 2019Lee Valley Golf Club 27/28th April 2019

Joe Lyons in action in Lee Valley last week

It looks like Joe Lyons is enjoying his second trip to Cork in a fortnight.  After finishing well in Lee Valley last week, he went and shot 70 and 71 in Cork today.  The Galway man is now in a strong position going into the second day of the Munster Strokeplay.

While many golfers struggled with the wind this morning, Joe’s key was keeping the mistakes to a minimum.  He had just one bogey in the first round and two more in the afternoon.  When you add in six birdies it meant he finished on -3 for the day.  Holder Alan Fahy (Dun Laoghaire) and Keith Egan (Carton House) are next on level par while Cork’s Gary O’Flaherty shot a great 66 in the second round to jump into fourth place alongside Continue reading →

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Gary eyes fourth Lee Valley title

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Lee Valley Senior Scratch Cup 2018, Lee Valley Golf Club. Final Round, Saturday 22nd April 2018Gary O’Flaherty is a fan of Lee Valley, and it’s easy to see why.  The Cork Golf Club stalwart has racked up four wins at the Ovens venue, including three scratch cup titles.  The Boylesports Lee Valley Senior Scratch Cup returns in two weeks time and excitement is building for the challenging 54 hole event.  With two consecutive wins, O’Flaherty is on for a historic hat-trick, and will be the man to beat.  Outside of his natural skill, Gary maintains that the secret to his success in Lee Valley is quite simple:  “It just seems to fit my eye, horses for courses as they say.”  But Gary adds that it’s not just the course that make the scratch cup a special event.  “It’s from the minute you arrive at Lee Valley, you’re made to feel welcome, nothing is an issue” explained Gary.  You’re looked after like your one of their own members. The Keohane family especially, as well as the members Continue reading →

Busy start to the season for Lee Valley

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Dell EMC Lee Valley Senior Scratch Cup, Lee Valley Golf Club, Saturday 22nd April 2017

Gary O’Flaherty who will be aiming for three in a row at Lee Valley next month

A major new open competition, big plans for the senior scratch cup, and a new indoor practice room all add up to a busy few months for the Lee Valley committee.  With the golf season now ready to get into top gear, the next few months will be busy in the Ovens club.  “April will be a busy month with Boyle Sports kindly sponsoring two large competitions for us” explained Club Captain Chris O’Sullivan.  “First on April the 13th we have the Boyle Sports Open Four ball with prizes including a VIP trip to the Irish Grand National, this is followed two weeks later by our Boyle Sports Senior Scratch Cup.  This has become a firm fixture for the top amateurs all over the country with world ranking amateur points on offer to competitors.  We are delighted to have Boyle Sports sponsorship and support.  They took over sponsorship last year and have supported our club further this year with their sponsorship again.  Without which, we would struggle to host the competition to the standard that we now have it under the stewardship of Vincent Drinan who continues to look after this event.  It is a tournament that has had winners including Shane Lowry. However, the Continue reading →

Another Lee Valley win for Gary

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Gary O'Flaherty Munster Mid Am 2018_3It was win number four for Gary O’Flaherty in Lee Valley when he won the Munster Mid-Amateur title on Sunday.  His season started with a win in the Lee Valley Senior Scratch Cup in April, and he closed out on Sunday with another win on the championship course in Ovens.  Back in April O’Flaherty maintained his overnight lead to win his third Lee Valley title, this time he overturned a three-shot deficit to win on the final green in a tense finish.  Although the weather was much better than the wet conditions on Saturday, there was a stiff breeze blowing through Lee Valley which tested many of the golfers.  O’Flaherty played some very tidy golf, his only bogey of the day came at the 7th and his birdie on the 9th got him back to level for the round.  He birdied the par five 15th to get into the red, and he narrowly missed good birdie opportunities on the 16th and 17th.  Standing on the 18th, Gary was one Continue reading →

Kieran O’Donoghue leads Munster Mid-Am in Lee Valley, Round 3 Draw

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Kieran O'DonoghueKieran O’Donoghue (Douglas) carded two level par rounds of 72 to hold the 36 hole lead in the Munster Mid-Am in Lee Valley.  In a tough day for golf the wind and rain took it’s toll, and O’Donoghue was the only golfer to match par.  Padraic Connolly (Killeen Castle) is in second place, two strokes off the lead, and Cork duo Gary O’Flaherty and Mark Ford are next on +3.  Although O’Flaherty is three off the lead he has a strong record in Lee Valley, and all eyes will be on him.  Mark Ford and John OBrien are in the hunt with Dave O’Donoghue and Karl Bornemann having an outside change of victory tomorrow.

The cut fell at +19, a measure of the testing conditions.  Thirty golfers made it though to tomorrow’s final round with play getting underway at 8.30am. 

DRAW FOR ROUND 3:

8.30AM: R Kennedy (Monkstown), N Duggan (Dromoland (Castle), K Collins (Fermoy)

8.40AM: A Considine (Lahinch), C O’Donnell (Fota Island), D Coughlan (Castleknock)

8.50AM: J O’Sullivan (Fota Island), P Power (Lee Valley), C Ryan (Killeen Castle)

9.00AM: J Kehoe (Limerick), B Timlin (Galway),  S Miskelly (Knock)

9.10AM: R Connelly (Grange), P Murray (Clontarf), J Waldron (Muskerry)

9.20AM: D O’Donoghue (Bandon), P Flynn (Tramore), E Long (Monkstown)

9.30AM: K Bornemann (Douglas), G Dunne (Co Louth),  G Lenehan (Portmarnock)

9.40AM: D O’Donovan (Muskerry), J O’Neill (Lee Valley), A Thomas (Dungarvan)

9.50AM: J O’Brien (Castlemartyr), A Condren (Greystones), G O’Flaherty (Cork) 

10.00AM: M Ford (Cork), P Connelly (Killeen Castle), K O’Donoghue (Douglas)

Continue reading →

Munster win Interprovincial Chamionship in Athenry

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Interprovincial Championship 2018

The winning Munster team pictured with Team Captain Michael Coote receiving the trophy from John Moloughney, President GUI, picture Fran Caffrey, Golffile.

There was a dramatic finish to the Interprovincial Championship this afternoon, with Geoff Lenehan again sealing a win for Munster.  The Waterville member won the crucial point in 2012 and 2014, and he was at the centre of the action again in Athenry, winning his singles match to give Munster the win against Leinster and the title.

Munster went into day three with a narrow lead, all four teams had one win each, with Munster ranked first on the basis of matches won.  The meant that a win for Munster should have been enough to seal the title.  The foursomes didn’t quite go to plan, with Munster trailing 3-1 at lunchtime.  The only win came from O’Keeffe and Lenehan.  Munster came out firing in the singles though, with Peter O’Keeffe and James Sugrue claiming the first points.  Munster needed five of the seven points to claim the title and with two in the bag the odds favoured the men in blue.  Eanna Griffin brought in a third point and while Andrew McCormack lost, John Hickey won to make it 4-1 with two matches on the course.  Both playing the final Continue reading →

O’Flaherty set for 20th Munster Interpro battle

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Gary O'Flaherty

Gary O’Flaherty who makes his 20th appearance for Munster at the Interprovincial Championships. Picture: Niall O’Shea

It’s 22 years since Gary O’Flaherty made his Munster debut, as a 17 year old he was thrown into a cauldron dominated by career long elite amateurs.  And O’Flaherty survived.  Now making his 20th appearance on the Munster team, Gary is looking for his sixth win in Blue.  Back in 1996 he pitched up at Mount Juliet for his first outing as Munster tried to retain their title.  Munster did just that, and went to Ballybunion a year later to help Munster win the three in a row.  It was a big event for O’Flaherty, there was no under 16 or under 18 interpro’s back then and he was teeing it up with the elite amateurs from across the country.  “I was in awe of the guys there that week” said Gary when recalling that week.  “I played two singles matches and won both against Colin McElderry and Kevin Flanagan.  I remember watching Eddie Power and Dennis O’Sullivan play, and I tried to copy their games.  Not the longest hitters, but very straight and did very little wrong.  I played foursomes the following year in Ballybunion with Tom Cleary and we won 5.5 out of 6 points.”  O’Flaherty had two caps to his name, along with two wins.  As the years went on, there was not matching the two from two success rate and it would be Continue reading →

5 Cork golfers named on Munster team for Interprovincial Championship

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James Sugrue_22

James Sugrue (Mallow) teeing of in the third round of the South of Ireland.
Picture: Niall O’Shea

James Sugrue and Peter O’Keeffe lead a five strong Cork contingent on the Munster team for the interprovincial championship later this month.   Cork GC duo John Hickey and Gary O’Flaherty along with Kinsale’s Cathal Butler make up the majority of the eight man team to play in Athenry.

Sugrue and O’Keeffe were assured of their places thanks to finishing in the top three on the Munster Order of Merit.  Both have recorded wins this year and they have also been playing well, reaching the latter stages of the South of Ireland and the AIG Irish Close.  Gary O’Flaherty retains his place and he’s be hoping to add to the six wins that he’s racked up since his first appearance in 1996.  John Hickey and Cathal Butler return to the side after missing out last year, they both played in Fota Island in 2016.

Geoff Lenehan, Andrew McCormack and Eanna Griffin also retain their places from last year in what is a very experienced side.  There are two notable absentees though Continue reading →