A spectacular chip in for eagle at the final hole for a round of one under par 71 enabled Rowan Lester of Hermitage to ensure his place at the head of affairs after the second and final qualifying round of the Pierse Motors South of Ireland Championship at a wet and windy Lahinch yesterday.

Not a single member of one of the strongest fields to contest the Pierse Motors South of Ireland managed to break the par of 72 in yesterday’s first qualifying round of the 116th championship.

The latest phase in the 125th-anniversary celebrations at Lahinch Golf Club gets underway this morning with the first qualifying round in the Pierse Motors South of Ireland Championship and continues until Monday when many past champions will be honoured in a special competition followed by a gala dinner.

Ireland are on course to secure a top-eight place at the European Men’s Team Championships today after a solid start at Diamond in Austria.

Six PGA in Ireland professionals will compete at next week’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, hosted by the Rory Foundation at Portstewart.

Paul McBride’s hopes of Amateur Championship glory were dashed yesterday with defeat by two holes at the hands of Englishman Harry Ellis in their quarter-final on the Kent coast.

Paul McBride is the only Irish star left standing in the 122nd Amateur Championship at Royal St George’s on the Kent coast.

Caolan Rafferty showed his title credentials as he beat Frenchman David Ravetto to cruise into the last 32 of the 122nd Amateur Championship at Royal St George’s, Sandwich on the Kent coast.

I’m in bed with the flu. I’ve been battling a sinus problem for a while so I’ve come home to Waterford to rest up. 

It was great to go home to Waterford for a couple of days before heading to Spain for this week’s Nations Cup. I came home for my Grandad’s year Mass and to see my family before a busy couple of weeks on the golf course.

AIG Irish Close Champion Alex Gleeson will head into the European Nations Cup in Spain next week in confident mood, his early season form kick-started by warm-weather winter competition and a positive vibe from a close-knit Ireland squad.

It could easily have been two wins in South Africa but I’ll take it on the chin and move on, writes Robin Dawson.

Stuart Grehan fired in a flawless three-under-par opening round of 69 in tough conditions to lead the Irish assault on the European Amateur Championship in Estonia.

Jack Hume led the fightback for Great Britain & Ireland who trail 8-4 at the midway stage of their St Andrew’s Trophy clash with the Continent of Europe in Kent.

Ireland bounced back from their European Amateur Team Championship quarter-final defeat to Italy with an impressive 3½-1½ win against Spain over France’s challenging Chantilly course.

Three-under par rounds of 68 over the challenging Chantilly course by Walker Cup star Jack Hume and Stuart Grehan helped Ireland cruise into the quarter-finals of the European Amateur Team Championship.

The Island’s Kevin LeBlanc is determined to prove the doubters wrong and become the youngest West of Ireland champion since Rory McIlroy.

Co Sligo’s Sean Flanagan coped with southerly winds gusting up to 48mph to take a one-shot lead after the opening round of the Radisson Blu sponsored West of Ireland Amateur Open at Rosses Point.

Tommy Quigley hugged his sons and team-mates Stephen and Shane as Thurles celebrated their first AIG Pierce Purcell Shield win for 18 years.

As a player accomplished enough to win the prestigious Mullingar Scratch Trophy over the August Bank holiday weekend and having seen his brother Shane thrill the golfing world both as an amateur and professional, Alan Lowry is no stranger to outstanding deeds and shot making on the golf course.

Thomas Mulligan, the talented 16-year-old from Co Louth GC, demonstrated during yesterday’s second qualifying round in the AIG Irish Close Championship at Tramore why, only two days ago, he was included in the British & Irish Jacques Leglise boys team for the forthcoming bi-annual challenge against the Continent of Europe.

The sunny south-east lived up to its reputation in style at Tramore, Co Waterford, yesterday when the opening day of the AIG Irish Close Championship was favoured by glorious weather conditions.

A Maynooth University team of considerable talent has emerged as warm favourites to capture the AIG Irish Senior Cup, having come through the Leinster qualifying section in highly impressive fashion.

Memories of the 1987 final at Tramore will be revived this week when the AIG Irish Close Championship takes place over the outstanding seaside layout for the third time.

Ireland suffered an agonising tie with England as they opened the defence of their Amateur Home International series at Royal Portrush yesterday.

Irish team captain Tony Goode has backed late call-ups Robin Dawson and Rowan Lester to make the most of the opportunities handed to them by the withdrawals of Paul Dunne and Gary Hurley from next week’s Home International defence at Royal Portrush.

Open Championship hero Paul Dunne will attract much of the attention at Royal Portrush in two weeks as Ireland bid to defend their Home Internationals title on home soil.

Stuart Grehan from Tullamore was last night crowned winner of the 114th South of Ireland Championship after a four and three final win over Ulster golfer Colin Fairweather from Knock.

With the majority of young amateurs nowadays turning professional as soon as they make any kind of mark in the championship arena, the days of course specialists have more or less dwindled away to nothing. 

Paul McBride, a student at the famous golfing academy of Wake Forest in North Carolina which numbers Arnold Palmer, Eoghan O’Connell and Darren Clarke among its alumni, demonstrated once again at Lahinch yesterday that Malahide continues to produce young golfers of the highest calibre.

Ever since the distinguished golf course architect Martin Hawtree modified and considerably altered the famous old links in 2001, Lahinch has become a formidable challenge for the game’s finest, whether amateur or professional.

With handicaps ranging from plus 4 to 1.1, the high quality of the entry for the West Coast Hotels sponsored South of Ireland Championship beginning at Lahinch this morning is a source of considerable satisfaction for the organising committee.

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.