Lyons wins the West of Ireland Championship

Galway's Joe Lyons produced a sensational putting performance to win the Radisson-SAS West of Ireland title at Rosses Point.

The 34-year-old holed a series of incredible putts to stay alive against Portstewart's Paul Cutler before draining a six footer for a winning birdie at the 18th for a one hole victory.

Lyons beamed: "I started 6-6-5 in the qualifying last Friday and I was walking to the fourth tee on four over par thinking, 'What am I doing here?' To shoot 72 after that was the best achievement of the

week."

In the morning semi-finals he closed out a 2 and 1 win over leading qualifier Simon Ward of Co Louth with a 40 footer at the 17th.

And he produced more of the same in the final against Cutler, who had dumped out favourite Rory McIlroy in the quarter-finals.

Cutler, 18, beat Strandhill's Tommy McGowan with a par at the 20th in a highly entertaining semi-final in which he was four down after nine.

But he had no answer to Lyons in a final that was watched by over 500 fans - including former Republic of Ireland boss Jackie Charlton.

Lyons went two up after five and while he lost the sixth and seventh, he holed a 30 footer at the ninth to go one up.

The former Birr player three-putted the 13th to go back to all square but that wake up call spurred him on a superb putting performance over the last five holes.

Par putts of between 10 and 25 feet gave him unlikely halves at the 14th, 15th and 16th.

And when Cutler missed a tricky five footer for a win at the 17th, Lyons took full advantage at the 18th with that super six-footer.

Lyons added: "Winning Senior Cup with Galway last year was brilliant and I put this on a par with that. It is nice to win something individual. It's special, I have to say."

Semi-finals

J Lyons (Galway) bt S Ward (Co Louth) 2/1;

P Cutler (Portstewart) bt t McGowan (Co Sligo) 20th.

Final: J Lyons bt P Cutler 1 hole.