Golfers tee up for €1,000 ace

A FAMOUSLY challenging Irish golf course has become the first club in Ireland and Britain to take advantage of liberal new cash-prize rulesgoverning the amateur game to offer a cool €1,000 to any player who bags a hole in one.

Until January 1, cash incentives for amateur golfers were forbidden by the Royal & Ancient, the organisation responsible for the game’s rules.

But a change of heart now means clubs can stump up unlimited cash prizes for the rare 43,000/1 hole-in-one feat and the superb European Club in County Wicklow’s Brittas Bay — where Tiger Woods holds the course record — are the first to provide the opportunity.

Any golfer with a certified handicap who lands an ace on the tricky 200-yard par-3 sixth during one of the open competitions held daily for the next three months, which cost €60 to enter, will take home a cash prize.

And while the odds are stacked against golfers, Pat Ruddy, the course’s owner and designer, says he hopes it will be won.

Ruddy, a highly-respected golfing figure, welcomed the rule changes.

“This is a totally new dimension for amateur golfers and I certainly hope someone wins or even a few people share the prize,” says Ruddy.

Professional tournaments often have expensive cars and cash prizes forplayers who manage the elusive feat during competition play but this is the first time amateurs can play for cash.

Until now, only vouchers were allowed even though American courses could stump up money.

Ruddy, who doesn’t believe dishonesty will hamper the deal, says it’s only a matter of time before other clubs follow his lead.

“I found a fellow in Myrtle Beach, in South Carolina in America, who had a sign on the highway offering $1 million (€780,000) for a hole in one.

Ruddy added: “Nevertheless, I doubt if we’ll have a €1 million prize here soon.”