The first shot hit in Greystones today was that of Derek Regan as he led off the Jimmy Bruen team against Bray at 2pm but by that stage the away leg of the ladies Minor Cup was well under way in Foxrock where there had been an early (11.30) tee off.
First out in Foxrock for Greystones was Janet Devin in a ding dong match with only two of the first nine holes being halved while the match turned all square. It was a similar pattern to the start of back nine with Janet winning ten, losing eleven but winning twelve to get to one up on the thirteenth tee. Unfortunately the pattern changed from there with Foxrock winning thirteen, fourteen was halved before Foxrock nudged ahead by one hole with another win on the fifteenth. Janet got a great half on the par five sixteenth as the pair headed for the tricky par three seventeenth. The pair halved the hole and headed to the eighteenth with Foxrock dormie up.
Our second player out was Michele Knapp. Michele has been playing great in teams recently but met her match today in a very strong Foxrock opponent. Michele was five down at the halfway point and, despite a rally on the back nine the first point of the day went to Foxrock on the fourteenth by a margin of 4&3.
Out behind Michele, Ann Clarke was playing very well. The first hole went to Foxrock as did the second but an excellent run by Ann, where she reeled off four consecutive wins from four through seven had her three up. Her opposition was not going to capitulate however and had squared the match by the thirteenth, winning eight, ten and twelve. It was the Foxrock players turn to put a run of holes together and Ann was dormie three down standing on the sixteenth after losing thirteen, fourteen and fifteen. Greystones desperately needed either Janet or Anne to record a win or the two matches due to tee off in Greystones would count for nothing.
Janet came up trumps on eighteen to level her match with a win on eighteen and walked over to the first / tenth tee box for thethird time today, but was very unlucky on the nineteenth, losing to a par and the match went to Foxrock.
2-0 to Foxrock with Ann in bother but fighting back strongly. Ann took the sixteenth and seventeenth to take the match up the last. Ann’s nerves held strong and she played the last hole brilliantly to square the match and head to nineteenth.
Meanwhile back in Greystones the home players of Joyce Kirwan and Aine O’Rourke knew that they both had to win their games and hope for some good news from Foxrock. The live scoring app went very quiet for a long time and Greystones supporters thought the worst, but it turned out that Ann had to wait for a Foxrock Barton Cup match to clear the tee before her match could be decided. When they did get to play the hole, Ann was on the front of the green after two fine shots while her opponent was close by but having taken five to get there – job done and something to play for at home.
2-1 Foxrock
Joyce was first out and lost the first but wins on the second and third holes had her one up. She played brilliantly from there, turning three up, and going to four ahead with a great par on the twelfth.
Aine was also well aware of needing to win and started strong – and then got stronger. Excellent golf returned six wins from the first six holes. Aine’s opponent hit back with a win on the seventh but really the game was as good as done at that stage given Aine’s hole advantage and the way she was playing. Wins on ten and thirteen sealed the match by a margin of 7&5.
2-2
Meanwhile Joyce needed to keep the momentum going. On the thirteenth she flew the green back left with her third shot and had a tricky lie in the rough. Thankfully with the pin on the front right of the green, she did have some green to play with. When she duffed her tricky chip she remained unruffled and her next chip found the putting surface but thirty feet from the pin. No bother for Joyce as she rolled the putt in and secured an important half. Fourteen was halved in bogeys and the match was dormie. Both ladies hit great drives up the fifteenth and both were blocked out from the green after their third shots. Joyce managed the situation better however, punching a shot to thirty feet short of the green before pitching in to eight feet. After her opponent missed a twenty footer Joyce had two for the match and rolled her ball to the hole side for an excellent 5&3 win.
Well done to Regina, the players and caddies for a great win that looked unlikely early on, a super result.
Mary Cahill’s Intermediate team also had a staggered start this afternoon with the home leg teeing off at 2.30 pm but the away leg in Killiney hitting off at 2pm. Mary had put Iris Haughton out first in Killiney with Sandra Cotter out second.
Iris lost the first two holes but is well used to the Killiney course and had the match back to all square with wins on the third and fourth holes. Iris was playing well and made two great halves on the fifth and sixth
Behind Iris, Sandra was in great form and was two up through four holes after wins on the second and fourth. Sandra was playing great golf and was four up through six. Had she been playing singles she would have had seventeen points to here ! A loss on seven was the only blip on the card for Sandra and she closed out the match with a win on the thirteenth, 6&5.
Meanwhile back in Greystones, Jacinta Dean was leading the way and lead by example with excellent wins on each of the first three holes. Jacinta’s opponent began to get a handle on the greens at this point however and won the forth and fifth before Jacinta came back again with a win on the sixth. The seventh, eighth and ninth holes went to Killiney and Jacinta walked down the lane one down but happy enough. Jacinta played well on the back also and won both the fourteenth and fifteenth to just get her nose in front, sixteen and seventeen were halved making the match dormie in Jacinta’s favour. She hit a great drive on eighteen but her opponent matched it and when Jacinta didn’t make par the match headed back to the first. On the nineteenth Jacinta hit short right while her opponent got the rub of the green with a good bounce off the left which ran onto the green. Jacinta’s chip went through the green while the Killiney player hit a good putt down to the hole and made par which was enough to win the hole and the match, 1up.
Anne Costello was second out and was unlucky to lose the first. Anne was playing quite well but was up against an excellent left handed player. Losses on the fourth and sixth and seventh had her match four down. Anne got it back to three with a win on the eighth but was in trouble with her third on the ninth and turned four down. To her credit Anne was not giving up and won the twelfth and thirteenth holes to get within two and an excellent chip from the right hand side of the fourteenth to eighteen inches was enough to have the game back to one with Anne definitely in the ascendancy.
Orla Delaney was out third and at home and was in fine form also. Orla started great and was three up through seven and was still three up as she turned to the back nine. Her opponent found a second gear from this point and had a purple patch from ten through fourteen where she recorded four wins to take a one hole lead. Orla dug in and forged wins on the fifteenth and sixteenth to go back to one up but lost the seventeenth and went up the eighteenth all square.
Meanwhile, back on Killiney hill, Iris’s opponent was in full flow after the first six holes and began to eek ahead. Iris was still playing well but was only managing halves while the Killiney player was recording the odd win. Killiney won the seventh, eleventh, fourteenth and a win on the sixteenth closed the match out 4&2.
2-1 to Killiney
Orla was on the eighteenth all square and Anne Costello was playing fifteen, one down, we needed both matches. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be for the team when Orla got a bad break on the eighteenth to lose the hole, and her match, 1down.
The tie went to Killiney, 3 1/2 – 1 1/2 with Anne Costello called in on fifteen.
Hard luck to Mary and all her team. Certainly all the supporters enjoyed the high quality golf that was played during the match.
Our Jimmy Bruen team had teed off just ahead of the Intermediate team in Greystones and thirty minutes ahead of the Bray tee time.
First out at home were Derek O’Regan & Niall Stokes who started great, going three up after just four holes. Loses on the next three squared the match but a good par on the ninth had the pair turn one up. Bray won eleven and twelfth before a Greystones par on the thirteenth had the match back to where it had started once again. Fourteen was halved and both teams hit excellent drives on the par five fifteenth. The hole went to Bray after an uncharacteristically poor second shot from Niall found the trees on the right and the Greystones pair were unable to make par. Sixteen was halved and both pairs hit excellent drives and approach shots to seventeen. Niall’s was to eight feet with the Bray shot just outside him. Neither made their birdie putts and the match headed for the eighteenth with Bray one up.
Second out were Ray Crotty and the in form, Milo Doyle. The lads halved the first hole and lost the second but we needn’t have worried from the sideline. The pair powered to a three hole advantage after nine and won eleven to go four up. An excellent chip from short of the water from Milo to three feet which Ray held for par got them dormie and a par was enough on fourteen to win the hole and the match 6&4.
Up in Bray Michael & Gerry had picked a team of in form players.
Ray Nolan, a past Bray member who knows the course well, was paired with Robert Clarke. They shared the first four holes in halves but from there on it was all Bray with Ray & Robert turning three down and not managing to get back at the home pair on the back nine. The match ended on the thirteenth with a Bray 6&5 win.
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Walter Gilbert was out with Frank Marmion and brought a wealth of experience to the pairing. There were only two halved holes on the front nine with Bray just having their noses ahead by the halfway point. The opening holes on the back nine were shared but a Bray win on the fourteenth was to prove crucial as it gave them a two hole cushion with four to play.
Our final away pair were Brian Murray & Gary O’Connor who had been excellent in previous rounds. As in Walter & Frank’s match, Brian & Gary were in a tight affair and again, like Walter & Gary, they turned one hole down. The tenth was halved and from there alternate holes were won or lost with a Greystones win on fifteen bringing the match back to all square with three to go.
From this point it all went south quickly however with Derek & Niall losing the eighteenth at home to lose their match 2 down, while Walter & Frank lost seventeen after halving the previous two holes to lose their match 3&1.
Brian & Gary were called in all square.
Hard luck to Michael & Gerry and their squad who put a huge effort in this year.
3 1/2 – 1 1/2 to Bray
Our final match out today was our reigning All-Ireland champions, Challenge Cup team, managed, as is the tradition, by the outgoing Lady Captain. Amanda Lawless is the leader of this group this year and as they had last year, there is a great spirit in this squad.
Slade Valley is a tough place to go but Amanda’s girls are made of stern stuff and were well up for the challenge.
First up away was Regina Connaughton who was playing well and turned four up. Despite a strong fight back from her opponent on the back nine ( Regina’s lead was reduced to just one hole by the sixteenth), Regina held firm and won the sixteenth and halved the seventeenth to win an excellent away point for the team, 2&1.
Sile Mullin was out number two in Slade Valley but there was no number two about her performance today. Sile got off to a blistering start, winning the first four holes and managed the match from that point. Whenever her opponent won a hole Sile would respond by winning one back. and she closed out her match 4&3 for a second point for Greystones.
2-0 to Greystones
Meanwhile in Greystones, Von McDonald was first out at home and was playing well with Mercedes Shelly on the bag, but up against an experienced and strong Slade Valley player. Von lost the first two holes but settled down from there to halve the next four holes and won the seventh to bring the match to one down.
Anne Browner was second out on the course with Orla Rush on the bag and Grace Dodd was out third with Inesa O’Gallagher as caddie.
Anne, who had been with Head-Pro, Davie on Friday for a lesson was playing great, turning three up.
Grace Dodd was being Grace. Five up after five, seven up after nine and nine up after eleven to win her match 9&7 and the tie. Grace was very grateful to Inesa for her excellent guidance on the course today.
So another great win for our Challenge team, 4-1 with Von called in and Anne Browner was also called in at four up through twelve.
Congratulations to Amanda and all her team.
