Castle’s Alex Gleeson shrugged off some late resistance from Whitehead’s John-Ross Galbraith to win the AIG Irish Amateur Close title 3 and 1 on the majestic Glashedy Links at Ballyliffin.

Irish Amateur champion Colm Campbell saw both sides of tour life this week. While he could look back on his Irish Open debut and lament missing the cut after being put on the clock completely destroyed his rhythm, he will remember it fondly instead thanks to Martin Kaymer.

Three weeks out from the Walker Cup and Irish top amateurs are already claiming the headlines.

Jack Hume sets out at Royal Portrush today in the 119th Amateur Championship determined to continue his summer of consistency and book his place in the St Andrews Trophy team to take on the Continent of Europe later in the year.

It was 10 minutes before 8am yesterday when Rory McIlroy glanced warily at Kildare’s greying skies, stepped forward onto the 10th tee and smacked his dimpled Nike straight down the throat of his first hole of the day.

UCC’s Ian O’Rourke smashed the men’s course record at Strandhill Golf Club with a dazzling eight-under-par 62 to coast to victory in the second event in the Intervarsity Series.

BARRIE TRAINOR pressed the pedal over the weekend to take the chequered flag in the final lap of the Lexus Race to Mount Juliet in association with Ping and Bord Fáilte.

DEFENDING champion Alan Dunbar hopes his batteries will be recharged when he tees it up at Royal Dublin this morning and takes on six of his fellow Walker Cup squad members in the Irish Amateur Open.

CAREERS honed on the windswept links gems of Ireland paid dividends for all six Irish players on the opening day of the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters in Doha.

IRISH Amateur Champion Rory McIlroy made an impressive European Challenge Tour debut at the Morson International Pro-Am in Manchester yesterday.

RICHARD MCEVOY’S mettle will be tested to the full today after his lead in the Omega Hong Kong Open was cut by defending champion Fredrik Jacobson, a man in no mood to relinquish his title without a fight.

ENGLAND’S Carl Mason consolidated his place at the top of the European Seniors Tour Order of Merit when he defeated Denis O’Sullivan by one hole in a dramatic final at the Daily Telegraph/ Turismo Andaluz Seniors Match Play Championship.

SCOTLAND’S Mike Miller and Australia’s Noel Ratcliffe hold a one-shot lead over Denis O’Sullivan after the first round of the Tunisian Seniors Open at El Kantaoui.

An all-Irish battle has been set up for the semi-final of the Daily Telegraph/Sodexho European Seniors Tour Match Play Championship over the new Flamingos GC in southern Spain.

Thomas Bjorn said in March that he thought himself and Padraig Harrington had closed the gap on Europe’s ‘‘big three’’ of Lee Westwood, Darren Clarke and Colin Montgomerie.