Gents Competition Results

Our Junior Cup team played their Leinster South semi final this afternoon (Sat 9th July), their third in three years, this time against Blainroe. The management team of Brian Frawley, Collie Dunne and Ray Crotty have an excellent squad to pick from, all who have been putting in the work for the past six months or so.

With Ray out of the country and Collie caddying in Blainroe, Brian Frawley looked after the away team while Paul Keane stepped in at home.  We had three matches in Greystones today and there was an expectation that all three matches could be won.  Like football however, golf can be a funny old game…

First out at home was Harry Kirk, who despite a loss on the first, was two up after four today. Losses on the next two holes had the match all square and so it remained for the balance of the front nine.

Will O’Riordan was out next and he won the first but was out of his normal rhythm and was three down at the turn.

Out last at home today was Chris Boylan, who was teeing it up against a promising young Blainroe player. Chris wasn’t going to give any quarter to the young man in this match and stormed into a four hole lead through six and had extended this lead to five up by the tenth tee.

Meanwhile, in Blainroe, Cian Gilmore was out number one and started birdie, bogey, birdie, eagle to go two up.  He lost five but won eight and was two ahead after nine.

Our anchor player away from home today was Toby Murphy, who had made his Senior Cup debut in Blainroe only yesterday. Toby got to two up after three but was pegged back to all square by the seventh and the match was still level as the pair headed to the tenth tee box.

At home, Chris lost the tenth and the thirteenth but never really looked like he wasn’t in control. He made a great par on the fourteenth from the left edge of the green for a half and closed his match out on the next hole 4&3.  One up for Greystones.

In Blainroe, Toby was taking his match by the scruff of the neck, winning ten, twelve and thirteen to go three ahead with five to play before making par on the tricky, par three, fifteenth to secure Greystones’ second of the day, also by a margin of 4&3.

The back nine in Greystones was not kind to Harry today. He lost ten but bounced back straightaway winning the eleventh. Twelve and thirteen were halved and an mis-clubbing on the fourteenth, where he cleared the green completely gave his opponent a one hole lead.  On fifteen, with the Blainroe player partially blocked out left after his second shot, Harry could only find the bunker on the right hand side of the green with his third from the middle of the fairway. This made his opponents shot a little easier and his approach, through the trees ended up on the back left of the green. Harry played a good bunker shot to fifteen feet while Blainroe’s chip was very average running out to more like twenty feet. There was nothing average about his putt however which hit the middle for the hole for par and a win. Sixteen was halved and an excellent Blainroe birdie on the seventeenth closed the match out 3&1.

With two matches left on the course we needed just one point to get a spot in the LS final, after having come so close for the last two years.

Away from home, Cian wasn’t having it all his own way on the back nine. Having started on the tenth, two ahead, he lost the tenth and twelfth to go all square.  He was one up again after thirteen but that tricky par three again, the fifteenth, claimed another Greystones loss and all was back to friendly once again with just three to play.  A par on the short par three, seventeenth was sufficient for Cian to get his nose in front again as he headed for the par five eighteenth, one ahead.

Will was turning his match around on the back nine. Two unanswered wins on ten and twelve were followed by a brilliant birdie on the thirteenth, where he had to hit over the trees from the right hand side of the fairway, having looked like he had no shot, to level the match.  This good work was partially undone by an uncharacteristic three putt from twelve feet on the fourteenth to hand a hole back to his opponent. The status quo was returned when he won the fifteenth.  Will restored a one hole lead when his Blainroe opposite number, mis-clubbed on the sixteenth, found himself under the tree behind the green and failed to get up and down.  On seventeen, both players hit good tee shots but Will’s bounced right and nestled up against a tree just short fight of the green.  He had to take an unplayable and, to be fair to the Blainroe man, he held his nerve on his approach, finding the fringe behind the green and won the hole with a conceded par.

It could hardly be closer.  One match at home all square playing eighteen with a second, away from home, dormie one up, also playing the last.

At home Blainroe hit an iron off the tee up the right hand side of the eighteenth, finding semi-rough a hundred and forty yards from the pin. Will screamed a drive up the right hand side leaving himself seventy yards. Advantage Greystones perhaps ?

In Blainroe, Cian had found trouble off the tee and had to hack out but hit the left hand side of the green in four with his opponent yet to play his third.

Back in Greystones, Will’s opponent hit a great approach from the rough on eighteen which just failed to reach the putting surface. This was followed by a sublime pitch by Will to six feet above the hole. A putt for the match perhaps ?  Perhaps not!  The Blainroe man elected to putt his next shot and it looked hole-bound from the moment it left the face of the putter.  Good putts make noise, and this one did – birdie. Will was now faced with a six foot, downhill putt for a half and to keep the match alive.  As he had done in a recent Fred Daly match, Will held his nerve and slotted the putt home and the gallery and players headed back to the first.

The Blainroe player was still first to play on the first and his tee shot landed in the bunker on the right of the green.  Will then hit a magnificent seven iron, into the wind, to ten feet. His opponent played a decent bunker shot but was still away and failed to make his par putt. With two for the win, Will stroked his putt to the hole side to secure the vital, tie winning point for Greystones.

Cian was called in at one up playing the last away from home.

Well done to Ray, Collie, Brian and all their squad on reaching the Leinster South final which will be played in Wicklow G.C. at the end of the month.

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Hard luck to Karl Holmes and his Senior Cup team who came off just second best to a strong Castle team in the semi-final of the Leinster South competition this morning.

Some last minute changes to the team with David Byrne and Adam Packman both being unavailable due to injury while Darren McCormack had only just returned from holiday,  presented Karl with a dilemma but also with an opportunity to give experience to other players.

The five matches were played in Blainroe which was in great condition today.

First out this morning was Toby Murphy, his first foray at this level. Toby, playing off 2.7, was pitched against the number one player from Castle, Rob Moran. Rob, who is on the Walker Cup panel, is currently playing off +4.6. The first in Blainroe is a 355 yard par four and the Castle man, who had the honour, drove the green with the ball coming to rest eight feet from the pin.  Toby’s drive found the trees to the left and he had to hit out sideways, taking four to get to the green via a green side bunker.  Needless to say , the hole went to Castle but while many players might capitulate under such circumstances, Toby is made of sterner stuff and he, with his caddie, Adam Packman, settled down to play some excellent golf for the remainder of his round.  The next seven holes were halved and Toby made a great birdie on the ninth to win the hole and get the match back to all square at the halfway point on the course. On the back nine, Toby lost three in succession from the eleventh where his opponent’s experience of flighting wedge shots into the wind came to the fore. Another birdie on the fourteenth got a hole back for Toby, two down with four to play.  The par three fourteenth was playing into wind today and Toby found the green side bunker while the Castle player found the green, finishing ten feet from the hole. It looked like it would be dormie but a brilliant up and down from the bunker kept the score at two down, now with three to play. Unfortunately fifteen went to Castle and they got the first point of the day, 3&2.  This was a brilliant performance by fifteen year old Toby however and one that he should be proud of.

Shane O’Connor was out next and in good form from the off, splitting the first fairway leaving himself a hundred yards in. The hole was halved in pars as was the second.  Three and four went to Castle but Shane was playing very well and wins on the fifth and the seventh, where his opponent hit his drive OB, had the match level. On eight, caddy Brian Frawley and Shane wasted no time in deciding on what club to hit and then Shane hit a fantastic shot with his hybrid to fifteen feet while his opponent was way left, on the path, behind a line of trees and facing what looked like an impossible shot to even find the green. At this level however you count your chickens at your peril and, after Castle made a miraculous up and down, Shane had to hole a three footer to secure the half.  Nine was also halved and and the match turned all square.

Dylan Holmes, with Alan Keane pulling the bag, was in the third match and got off to a fine start, winning the first two holes and the third to take a three hole lead. It was poor club selection rather than bad shots that caused Dylan to lose the par five, fifth, and it was a similar story on the next two holes with the match back to level by the eighth tee box. The long par three, eighth hole was playing very difficult today with a strong cross wind. The well struck, Castle tee shot looked all over the flag in the air but rolled through the green while Dylan’s missed the green right, leaving himself short sided with a bunker guarding the green.  Dylan didn’t manage to get up and down and went behind for the first time in the match. A good par for Dylan on the ninth was enough to win the hole with his opponent missing a short putt to half the hole and, as with Shane’s match, the game was all square heading into the back nine.

Junior Boy’s Captain, Jamie Anderson was out fourth for Greystones this morning with the experienced David Kirby on the bag. Jamie didn’t get the start he might have wished for, hitting the ninth fairway with his first tee shot but was far enough left to have a clear shot to the green and was able to make par to halve the hole. The second and fifth were lost but Jamie came back immediately, winning the sixth and seventh holes. Neither player found the putting surface on eight and the hole was halved, as was the ninth. A third match all square after nine.

Last man out today for Greystones was Daniel O’Byrne, with Chris Boylan on his bag. Both Daniel and his opponent found trouble off the first tee and the hole was halved in bogey.  On two, Dan was again struggling with his driver with his ball going OB left and, despite a good recovery shot off his second drive, the hole went to Castle. It was a similar story on three where Daniel was blocked out on the left and the Castle advantage was doubled.  Four and five were halved but on the dogleg, par four sixth Daniel’s tee shot found OB once again and he found himself three down and not really playing to his normal high standards. After another loss on nine Daniel’s match headed for the second half with Castle ahead by four holes.   On ten, Daniel found the green in two and when his opponent left his ball in the green side bunker Daniel claimed back a hole with a par. He hit a good drive up the middle of the fairway on eleven and was in prime position. The Castle man went left off the tee, was lucky not to find trouble, and left himself a straightforward pitch to the green. The hole was halved but unfortunately twelve and thirteen were Castle wins and the match was closed out on the fourteenth, 5&4.

Shane was continuing to play well and the first five holes on the back nine were halved.  On the fifteenth, Shane found the same bunker that Toby had just been in ahead of him but failed to get up and down and lost the hole to a two putt par and headed back to the front side of the course, one down.

Right behind him, Dylan had won eleven to go one up but lost fourteen to a birdie to level the match once again. Like Toby and Shane, Dylan also found the green side bunker on fifteen and, like Toby, made an excellent up and down to half the hole.

Meanwhile, Jamie had won ten to go one up, lost eleven to go level and won twelve to go ahead once again. The standard of golf in this match, and them all in fact, was excellent and Jamie was still one ahead after fifteen as he too, headed for the front part of the course once again.

Needing the three matches the Greystones supporters were trying to watch all three simultaneously at this stage.

Shane halved sixteen and, on the par three seventeenth, it looked like his birdie putt was destined for the hole but ran agonisingly by to six inches giving his opponent the opportunity to close the match out if he could make his birdie.  The Castle man raced his putt which, luckily for him, caught the edge of the hole and stopped three feet from the cup when it looked like he might have been eight feet past. He made his par putt and the match continued to eighteen with Castle dormie one up.

In the next match Dylan had hit two good shots to sixteen but an uncharacteristic three putt meant the hole was halved and the match moved to the seventeenth, still all square.

Both Shane and his opponent found the fairway on the par five eighteenth, and both hit good second shots but Shane got an unlucky bounce and his ball came to rest near a tree.  First to play, the Castle player hit his chip to fifteen feet and Shane was unable to find the putting surface, hindered as he was by the tree.  Despite a good recovery chip under the circumstances, Shane could only make bogey and the hole was lost to par.

The third, and deciding point, for Castle in an extremely tight semi-final.

Dylan was all square and Jamie was one up when called in on seventeen and sixteen, respectively.

Hard luck to Karl and all his squad who have made progress this year and have had a number of notable results to reach the final of the Darcy Trophy as well the semi-finals of both the Barton Shield and Senior Cup.

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Two (or three ) big matches this weekend to look forward to.

First out in the morning ( Saturday 8th ) Karl Holmes’ Senior Cup team play, what its expected to be an extremely strong, Castle Golf Club team in the Leinster South semi final. The match will tee off at 08.30 in Blainroe with the final awaiting the winners in the afternoon.

Then on Sunday our Junior Cup team, managed by Ray Crotty, Collie Dunne and Brian Frawley play Blainroe in another Leinster South Semi.  Tee off on Sunday is 14.30 and with a strong team out and home advantage, it’s fingers crossed.

Best of luck to both teams.

Congratulations to the players who qualified for the Resident’s Cup 2023.

Draw is available in there Men’s locker room and by clicking here.