Lahinch Golf Club and the Munster Branch do fantastic work for Irish golf but while they are grateful to the GUI for rescheduling the Interpros and Irish Close to make it easier for our top players to head to Clare for next month’s South of Ireland Amateur Open, the measures don’t appear to have worked.

WHEN it comes to choosing the young Irish golfer most likely to fill the shoes of the modern stars like Padraig Harrington and Darren Clarke, it is difficult to look beyond Graeme McDowell, the former amateur star from the Rathmore club in Portrush.