Irish college golfers hoping to turn pro

Irish college golfers have much to be proud of as they head into the summer.

Some are destined to turn pro come the autumn while others will go back to school in the States to continue both their studies and their collegiate golfing careers.

Cork duo Peter O'Keeffe and Niall Turner both intend to join the paid ranks in September.

Douglas member O'Keeffe intends to attend qualifying schools on both sides of the Atlantic having left Southeastern Louisiana University.

Turner, a Muskerry member who has graduated from the University of Minnesota, will return to the States after a final season of amateur golf at home.

Turner helped the Gophers secure a second top-10 finish in as many years at the NCAA national championships earlier this month and had scored four top-10 finishes individually in his final, senior year.

Now he is targeting a Nationwide Tour card at least from the PGA Q-School and will probably base himself in Arizona over the winter rather than the frozen climes of Minnesota.

Lisburn's Gareth Shaw is hoping to return to East Tennessee State University for his senior year with a Walker Cup victory under his belt.

Shaw, who represented Europe's collegiate golfers against their American counterparts earlier this month, is in the GB&I squad to face the USA in the amateur version of the Ryder Cup at Royal County Down this summer.

He finished his junior year by being recognised as an honorable mention All-American squad member, finishing the year with a stroke average of 71.8 and five Top-13 individual finishes.

His team-mate Seamus Power of West Waterford, meanwhile, capped a great freshman year at ETSU by winning the Atlantic Sun Conference title.

Shaw's fellow Walker Cup panelist Johnny Caldwell will return to the University of South Alabama for his senior year with high hopes having earned selection to the 2007 Sun Belt Conference men's golf all-conference team.

The Belfast golfer was also a member of both the 2005 and 2006 all-conference teams.

Caldwell won his first collegiate title in October when he won the Squire Creek Golf Classic with a five-under par 67 and also gained three top-10 finishes.

"Jonny followed his tremendous summer with a very solid performance this season," said Caldwell's head coach Ben Hannan.

"He showed signs of great play by shooting low scores and breaking par often, I look for Jonny to have a tremendous senior year and the possibility of

multiple tournament wins."

Kilkeel's Danielle McVeigh will return to Texas A&M with much to live up to having been named her conference's rookie of the year, landing the Big 12 Newcomer of the year award, while Carlow's Curtis Cupper, Tara Delaney, will enter her senior year at Kent State in Ohio having been named as honourable mention on the prestigious Golfweek women's golf team.

Delaney had already earned the Mid-American Conference Player of the Year accolade for the second straight season, leading her team with a 74.3 scoring average, and two top-10 finishes, including the individual medalist honours at the Lady Northern Invitational last September.

Tara's elder sister Karen Delaney, meanwhile, got her post-collegiate career off to a flying start by claiming the 2007 Lancome Irish Ladies' Close Championship at Lahinch.

Karen Delaney will now lead the Irish team at the ladies' European Team Championship in Italy on July 10-14.