The curtain comes down on the 2025 PGA in Ireland campaign with the fifth staging of the Annesley Williams Sutton 9-Hole Matchplay at Sutton Golf Club in North Dublin.
Since its first appearance on the region in 2019, the event has become one of the most eagerly anticipated on the PGA in Ireland calendar and is a fitting end to the race to secure top spot in the Elavon Order of Merit.
Preceded by a Pro-Am on Friday, 3 October, 32 of the leading players in the Elavon Order of Merit rankings will compete in the game’s oldest format over Saturday and Sunday.
Once again, thanks to Annesley Williams and the hard-working team at Sutton Golf Club, a healthy prize fund is on offer and all 32 participants are guaranteed a cheque. The format sees the 32 professionals divided into eight groups of four players with everyone guaranteed three matches on Saturday in a round-robin format.
The eight group winners advance to contest Sunday’s quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final. The draw for the composition of the groups will take place after the Pro-Am on Friday evening and it open to anyone to attend.
Defending champion Brian McElhinney of North West Golf Club in Donegal is the defending champion, and 2023 winner Neil O’Briain and Tim Rice, who won the inaugural event and then successfully defended his title on the second staging, are all in the field. Simon Thornton, the reigning Irish PGA Championship winner and leading player in the Elavon Order of Merit rankings, Cormac Sharvin, ranked number two, and Colm Moriarty, who secured five wins in the past six weeks, are also in attendance and headline a top-class field.
The event is the brainchild of Sutton’s own Head Professional, Paddy Devine, and the club has a long association with the PGA in Ireland, dating back to the 1980s when the Sutton Pro-Am was perhaps the most eagerly anticipated Pro-Am in the region. James Bowen, one of the leading organisers of this year’s event, is relishing a festival of golf at Sutton Golf Club and feels the event is the perfect end-of-year climax for the PGA season.
“Sutton has become an established venue for the PGA in Ireland region, we feel our golf course has a brilliant mix of risk and reward holes which makes it the ideal setting for matchplay.
“The members always enjoy watching the best pros in action on our links. We are very proud to host the event and we are always delighted to welcome the PGA and the professionals.
“It’s a festival of golf for us and we are all very excited for the weekend.”
“I suppose being a member of Sutton for 25 years, and being the MD of Annesley Williams Skoda, we really look forward to this event every year. There is a real sense of excitement in the club,” said Cian Bennis, a former Captain of Sutton Golf Club and a Director at Annesley Williams who have been on board from the beginning.
“It is rare to have an event so close to home and the event gives both the golf club and Annesley Williams great exposure.”
Conor Dillon, Manager of the PGA in Ireland added: “The Annesley 9-Hole Matchplay is a standout event that we look forward to every year. Combining the thrill of matchplay with the support and enthusiasm of the members, the tournament always delivers fireworks as Ireland’s leading PGA professionals bring the curtain down on another hugely successful PGA in Ireland Elavon season.
“This special event would not be possible without the valued support of Head PGA Professional Paddy Devine, Cian Bennis of Annesley Williams, James Bowen, and the dedicated organising committee. Their continued commitment ensures the event remains one of the highlights of the season.”
For more information contact Sutton Golf Club on 01-8323013 or email: gm@suttongolfclub.org
