Sara Byrne had a welcome return to form last week when she finished in the top 15 on the Ladies European Tour (LET) in France.
After an opening 74, Byrne rose steadily through the leaderboard with rounds of 68, 70, and a closing 72.
Byrne is splitting her time between the LET and the Epson Tour in the US. Playing on both sides of the Atlantic is a logistical challenge, but Byrne is making the most of both cards.
She has earned more than €16,000 in Europe and $6,000 in the US. Byrne is back in action in Europe again this week in the Czech Ladies Open.
David Howard continued his good run of form when he qualified for the Amateur Championship on Friday.
RUN
The Fota Island member recently won his first major Irish amateur title at the East of Ireland and he’s keeping the run going.
Howard was in action with more than 70 other golfers who were battling for the 20 or so places that were available.
The 26-year-old had a positive start; after nine holes he was two under in Royal Cinque Ports in Kent, and while he gave a shot back on the second nine, he finished on the qualifying mark of -1.
Howard is second on the Bridgestone Order of Merit, and while there won’t be any points on offer this week, it should have a positive effect on his WAGR rankings.
Howard is now inside the top 25 Irish golfers on WAGR and can expect to rise higher if he has another good performance this week.
Howard’s fellow Fota member John Doyle is another Corkman who’s climbing the WAGR ranks.
After wins in the Munster Strokeplay and the Irish Boys Open Doyle was the clubhouse leader late into the final round on the Old Course.
After opening with a round of 69 on the Jubilee course, the Mitchelstown man was just two off the lead. He found the Old Course to his liking after his second round and closed on the final day with rounds of 66 and 65.
His back nine in the final round saw just two pars. Doyle had a double bogey on 13, but he more than made up for it with six birdies that saw him post a leading score of -17.
Cameron Adam was leading the chasing pack and his birdie on the 18th was enough to force a play-off, with the Scot winning on the 19th.
It was a blow for Doyle; a win would have put him firmly on the radar for a Junior Ryder Cup place, and it’s likely that a third win of the season would have brought him into the reckoning for the Walker Cup which takes place in September.
Glengarriff will hold their annual Maureen O’Hara Blair Classic next month, it’s the 42nd staging of the classic which has now extended into an annual festival of golf. The classic is Ireland’s longest-run golf classic and commemorates the longstanding link the club had with Maureen O’Hara.
Neighbour
O’Hara, an honorary Oscar winner was a neighbour of Glengarriff Golf Club. The Dublin-born Hollywood star moved to Glengarriff in 1970 and struck up a strong affinity with the people and the area.
She and her husband Charles Blair were great supporters of the club and helped develop the classic which would benefit the golf club and the wider community.
Over the years the classic has changed and developed, and the current format is eight days of open competitions and different golf and social events to attract as many visitors as possible.
In the early days, O’Hara presented the prizes which was a great attraction for locals and tourists alike, with people arriving an hour or two before presentation to get the best seats to meet the iconic Hollywood film star.
The festival opens this weekend with an 18-hole ladies and gents open singles on Saturday and Sunday.
Entry is €20 for visitors. On July 11-13, the gents open classic takes place and teams of four are €120.
There’s will be an open mixed foursomes on Wednesday, July 16 and the club will host a three-person team event for ladies the following Friday and Saturday.
Entry for the ladies event is €75 per team.
