The 2012 cups and shields get off to flying start at Kinsale Golf Club today with the Barton Shield semi-finals.

England’s James McCormick was the surprise leader after the opening stroke play round of the Radisson Blu-sponsored West of Ireland Amateur Open Championship at a damp and gloomy Rosses Point yesterday.

The Lee Valley Scratch Cup tees off this weekend.

BALLYMENA teenager Dermot McElroy ticks all the boxes as he pitches up at County Sligo today bidding to become the youngest winner of the West of Ireland Championship since Rory McIlroy.

KEEPING Rathmore golfers out of the news these days is far from being an easy task.

PAUL CUTLER, the Portstewart golfer who reached the British Amateur Championship quarter-finals at Muirfield yesterday before going down to the South Korean, Jin Jeong, won’t need to contest the weekend’s 36-hole qualifying procedure for the Golfsure Irish Close Championship at Royal Dublin.

A total of 13 Irish players are included in the field for the 115th Amateur Championship which gets underway next Monday June 14 at Muirfield & North Berwick Golf Clubs.

THEY say the weather alters one’s mood but the momentous change in the conditions at Baltray over the weekend didn’t seem to bother Newlands’ Cian Curley as he opened a commanding four-stroke lead at the halfway stage of the East of Ireland Amateur Open Championship.

Pat Murray (Limerick) will seek to defend the Golfsure sponsored Irish Amateur Close Championship title at The Royal Dublin Golf Club from June 19-23.

SUCH are the twists and turns of life that unheralded Skerries teenager Jeff Hopkins could easily be playing at centre half for the likes of Liverpool or Blackburn Rovers. Instead, a series of chronic injuries ended his dreams of a professional soccer career when he was just 14 years old.

AFTER finishing runner-up in four previous championships, Rory Leonard finally won the big one when he lifted the Radisson-Blu West of Ireland trophy at Rosses Point yesterday.

WINNING All-Ireland titles comes easily to some parts of the country, and Kilkenny were at it once again in glorious conditions at Tullamore yesterday.

THE finals of the Bulmers Irish Cups and Shields got off to a successful start in ideal conditions at Tullamore yesterday when Banbridge and Kilkenny produced golf of the highest calibre to qualify for today’s final of the Bulmers Barton Shield.

Defending champions Leinster were held 6 ½ - 6 ½ by Munster on the second day of the Golfsure sponsored Interprovincial Championships at Douglas Golf Club, while Ulster beat Connacht by 9 ½ - 3 ½ .

Five Irish internationals have made an early exit from the West of Ireland championship at Rosses Point.

Newlands’ Andrew Hogan defied 40 mph gusts to card a four-under par 67 and grab the silver medal for the leading qualifier in the West of Ireland Championship at Rosses Point.

Walker Cup hopefuls Simon Ward and Jonathan Caldwell will lead the chase for the East of Ireland Amateur Open at Co Louth on Saturday.

Rory McIlroy shrugged off some putting problems to cruise into the last 16 of the Radisson-SAS West of Ireland Championship at Rosses Point.

Ulster and Leinster today enjoyed convincing Interprovicial victories at the Ballyliffin Golf Club.

Ulster and Leinster both hold comfortable leads at the Interprovincial Championship at Ballyliffin after today's action.

After a duel in the sun at Royal Portrush, Dunmurry plus-three handicapper Darren Crowe was crowned Magners' North of Ireland Amateur Open champion.

It's now down to the last four in the Magners' North of Ireland Championship at Royal Portrush with the line-up being Rory Leonard (Banbridge) v Darren Crowe (Dunmurry) and Connor Doran (Banbridge) v Andrew Pitcher (The Island) with the possibiloity of tomorrow afternoon's final being an all-Banbridge affair.

Warrenpoint senior international and former professional Jim Carvill was put out of the North of Ireland Championship in the second round by Ballymena scratch handicapper Alex McCoy at Royal Portrush today.

Banbridge 24-year-old Connor Doran collected the silver medal as leading qualifier in the Magners' North of Ireland Amateur Open Championship at Royal Portrush this evening.

Teen idol Rory McIlroy cruised into the matchplay stages of the Radisson SAS West of Ireland Amateur Open championship at Rosses Point.

Pre-Championship favourites Ulster captured the Golfsure sponsored Interprovincial

DARREN CROWE, a 24-year-old full-time golfer from Dunmurry, meets Pat Murray, 34, secretary/manager at Limerick Golf Club, in the first semi-final of the South of Ireland Championship at Lahinch this morning.

THERE have been one or two serious negatives, but on balance Jim Carvill’s return earlier this year to the amateur game after 15 years as a professional has proven a great success.

Teenage prodigy Rory McIlroy is through to the semi-finals of the Irish Amateur Close Championship.

Irish Amateur Close Championship at Westport Golf Club

Trevor Coulter's fairytale continued at Royal Portrush as he clinched the Magners North of Ireland Amateur Open Championship title with a one hole win over Ulster player Rory Leonard.

Trevor Coulter has continued his giant-killing acts in the Magners North of Ireland Amateur Open Championship at Royal Portrush.

Four players will reach virgin territory in tomorrow's semi-finals of the Magners North of Ireland Amateur Open Championship at Royal Portrush.

TWENTY ONE-year-old Connor Doran performed the necessary heroics over the closing holes to play the lead part in yesterday’s Bulmer’s Barton Shield victory for Banbridge over Stackstown at Lisburn.

ROSSES Point, Easter and the West of Ireland Championship invariably mean only one thing — wind, rain and cold.

Shandon Park, winners of the European Senior Cup in both 2000 and 2001, will defend the title this season but not as Irish Cup holders.

The line up for tomorrows semi-finals of the Carlsberg North of Ireland Amateur Cup is new cup cap Graham McDowell against David Jones and leading Qualifier Stewart Paul against Mark O'Sullivan.