McGinley relaxes with friends at the Grange

You would imagine Paul McGinley has plenty on his mind right now, with the Ryder Cup just days away.

His captaincy of this year’s favourites, Europe, at Gleneagles from next week will be the subject of column inches not just on this continent and the United States, but all around the golfing world.

Yet McGinley, Ireland’s first Ryder Cup captain, is a man who never forgets his roots, and his golfing beginnings started in the foothills of the Dublin Mountains at Grange Golf Club, where he is honorary captain in this year of years.

His time may be at a premium but the members were thrilled to see one of their favourite sons honour a commitment two Saturdays ago when despite all of the pressures and obligations that fall on a Ryder Cup captain’s shoulders in the build-up to golf’s great team event, the skipper turned up as the guest of honour for the Grange’s Paul McGinley Day.

“The captaincy has obviously taken up so much of his time these past two years, so it was actually quite comforting to see how comfortable and at home he felt here the other Saturday,” Grange GC director of golf Jon Palmer said.

“We reckon there were more than 500 people at the height of the day and it was certainly the busiest day the club has had to cater for.

“We have 24 holes here and we ran a two by 12-hole shotgun start at 10am, then ran another two by 12-hole shotgun start at 2pm, so there were just about 300 people on the time sheet as well as juveniles and various other members up following that through the day.”

Quite a gathering, then, and Grange members were treated to not just a clinic from McGinley but also a couple of audiences from the man of the hour.

And as Palmer explained, McGinley’s presence among friends even allowed for some gentle ribbing about his three captain’s picks, or rather one golfer McGinley omitted when he named his wild cards just a few days before the big day at Grange.

“There were questions and answers both at the golf clinic he did and then the main Q&A session, which was compered by Scott Crockett from the European Tour,” Palmer said.

“One of the questions up at the clinic to him was: ‘In your opinion, who has the best short game on Tour?’ and someone in the crowd shouted out ‘Luke Donald’!

“Paul just broke his sides laughing and said: ‘Only in Ireland would I get that!’.”

McGinley invests in future beyond Ryder Cup

Win or lose at Gleneagles next week, life will go on for Paul McGinley, right, when the dust of Ryder Cup battle has settled, and the European Tour veteran announced yesterday that he has signed a deal to represent and promote the successful ClubstoHire.com firm until 2021.

McGinley was a founder investor in the Dublin-based company when it launched in 2010 to provide travelling golfers with rental sets of clubs at golf resorts across Ireland, the UK, Mediterranean and South Africa.

ClubstoHire.com now has rental facilities at 21 locations in eight countries, the Ryder Cup captain recently making a presentation of a new set of clubs and bag to its 125,000th customer. And McGinley also announced yesterday that he is to increase his investment in the company.

“I’m really excited about what the future holds for ClubstoHire, given the speed at which the business has grown over the past four years,” McGinley said, as ClubstoHire looks to expand into new markets such as Dubai and the Far East.

Ireland’s finest on way to Carton House

This week marks the annual renewal of one of the highlights of the Irish golfing year as the national finals of the AIG Cups and Shields gets under way at its new home for the next three years, Carton House.

Twenty teams from across Ireland will compete for five All-Ireland titles from tomorrow until Saturday, with Co. Sligo aiming to retain the title won at Royal Tara a year ago when they defend the blue riband AIG Senior Cup.

The Rosses Point team begin their defence on Friday with a semi-final against Ulster champions Banbridge while the other semi-final sees Munster pennant holders Tramore take on Leinster top dogs Rosslare.

First up, though, will be tomorrow morning’s Barton Shield and Junior Cup semi-finals and doing his best to remain impartial will be the Golfing Union of Ireland’s current president, Liam Martin.

Martin’s home club Castletroy will be contesting a Junior Cup semi-final against Connacht’s Athenry but the Limerick man promised to remain neutral.

“Castletroy last won a Junior Cup pennant in 1972 and while they contested the semi-final in 2012, they were unsuccessful in Kinsale,” Martin told the Irish Examiner from Japan, where he and general secretary Pat Finn represented the GUI at the World Amateur Team Championships.

“As the Junior Cup is the oldest of the competitions, it would be a pleasant moment for me personally to present the trophy to my own club. Nevertheless fairness demands that I wish all clubs every success next week. Ultimately may the game of golf be the winner.”

Well said, Mr President.

l More on the AIG Cups and Shields national finals tomorrow and throughout the week in the Irish Examiner.

Kildare track secures world amateur team event

The AIG Cups and Shields national finals’ switch to Kildare’s Carton House for the next three years is a new move for the GUI, having broken with its tradition of rotating the host venue around the country.

Yet Carton House has already staged the Irish Open three times as well as the 2004 Irish Amateur Open and the European Amateur Team Championships in 2012.

And when GUI president Liam Martin and general secretary Pat Finn returned home from Japan over the weekend, they brought back from Karuizawa with them the great news that Ireland will host the 2018 World Amateur Team Championships over Carton’s Montgomerie and O’Meara courses.

The decision was made at the Biennial Meeting of the International Golf Federation (IGF) which means the GUI and the Irish Ladies Golf Union (ILGU) will host the 28th women’s championship for the Espirito Santo Trophy and the 31st men’s championship for the Eisenhower Trophy in late August and early September 2018.

“I am excited that the World Amateur Team Championships will be going to Ireland in 2018, in a country with great golfing tradition and experience in hosting major golf events such as the Ryder Cup,” said IGF executive director Antony Scanlon.