14th May 2023 – Round 4

Great Britain & Ireland’s undisputed number 1 amateur John GOUGH (ENG) won the 2023 Irish Amateur Open Championship after a superb 67 (-5) in the final round at The Island G.C.

With perfect timing he played his best round on the final day and moved to the top of the leaderboard with just a handful of holes to play.

With his father coming from County Meath in Ireland and his mother from County Down in Northern Ireland Gough was particularly delighted to pick up this trophy.

Starting six shots back at the start of the day Gough had to work hard to wrestle this title from the players ahead of him, posting seven birdies and then holding on over the two difficult closing holes.

Two hat-trick’s of birdies on holes 8-10, then 14-16, broke the field and set up the victory before Gough had to find away over the line.

The Englishman had been 5 under par for his third round when he walked on to the 17th tee yesterday and perhaps thoughts of his bogey-bogey finish crept into his mind as he arrived on the same part of the course today.

On the 17th Gough missed the green with his approach before a stone dead chip enabled him to save par.

However, a pulled tee shot meant the Englishman would not enjoy a ceremonial walk up the home hole. After taking a drop from the heavy rough on a bank to the left of the 18th fairway he found the fairway before hitting a superb approach and holing out from three feet for a bogey.

John Gough’s Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

Gough’s total of 280 (-8) proved to be one better than Dylan SHAW-RADFORD (ENG), who posted a solid 70 (-2), and two better than overnight leader Tomi BOWEN (WAL), who could only manage a 75 after his third round heroics.

Alex MAGUIRE (IRL) -5, who had returned from college in USA to compete, finished 4th, Matt ROBERTS (WAL) -4, was 5th and recent West of Ireland champion James CLARIDGE (ENG) -3 6th.

The reduced field of 56 players produced 9 under par rounds in the fourth round.

Here is the final top 20 leaderboard: –

Final Leaderboard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

Click here to view the – 2023 Irish Amateur Open Results

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13th May 2023 – Round 3

Tomi BOWEN (WAL), who won the Darwin Salver at Rye G.C., in March, shot a scarcely believable 10-under par 62 to open up a 4-shot lead heading into tomorrow’s final round of the Irish Amateur Open.

His new amateur course record included one eagle and nine birdies and was three shots better than any of the other competitors could manage.

Talking to Golf Ireland post round the 20 year old from Welshpool said “I got off to a good start. I had three birdies in a row and then I had three birdies around the middle of the round, and then held on really. Hit a really good shot into 15, made an eagle there and just holed a lot of putts and just felt really good with all of my game.”

If Bowen can get over the line tomorrow he will become the first Welsh winner since Rhys Pugh who won at Royal Dublin G.C. in 2011.

Tomi Bowen’s Round 3 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

The Championship had been due to start at 8.00am with players going off both the 1st and 10th tees as they had for the first two rounds. However, the early morning fog refused to lift so the first tee time ultimately had to be pushed back by two hours and 45 minutes.

By closing the gap between the morning and afternoon waves and by reducing the tee time intervals by one minute Golf Ireland were able to catch up some time and it was to their (and the players) huge credit that the third round was able to be completed before sunset.

Once the fog had moved on the near perfect golfing conditions of sun and modest easterly breezes that we had been promised materialised. It was therefore no surprise to see 40 under par scores in the third round and the amateur course record of 67 at the start of the day repeatedly come under pressure.

Matthew WILSON (SCO) and James CLARDIGE (ENG) both equalled the amateur course record of 67 on Saturday to move up to tied 7th and tied 11th respectively on the leaderboard.

Jackson GARNETT (ENG) and Hugh FOLEY (IRL) both posted 66’s as they secured places in the final day field by rising 64 and 43 places in the standings.

Jackson Garnett’s Round 3 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

Hugh Foley’s Round 3 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

TJ FORD (IRL) lowered the amateur course record to 66, the highlight being a holed approach on the par 4 7th hole. Unfortunately for the County Sligo man his efforts would be eclipsed within a matter of hours as Bowen stormed around the links to surprise the locals with his 62.

TJ Ford’s Round 3 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

Dylan SHAW-RADFORD‘s (ENG) six birdie 68 moved him into 2nd place in the Championship on -5 with Matt ROBERTS (WAL), James FOX (IRL), Alex MAGUIRE (IRL) and Harley SMITH (ENG) all finishing the day in tied 3rd on -4. 

It was a disappointing day for the overnight leaders who were perhaps distracted by not teeing off until 4.40pm. Caolan RAFFERTY (IRL) shot 76 (+4), Harley SMITH (ENG) 74 (+2) and Zach CHEGWIDDEN (ENG) 75 (+3). Smith deserves some credit though for limiting the damage after opening his round with a 5-over par 9 on the first hole. 

56 players made the top 50 and ties cut which fell at 222 (+6). Amongst the players to miss the cut were Peter O’KEEFFE (IRL) +9, Joshua HILL (IRL) +11, Quentin CAREW (IRL) +11, defending champion Colm CAMPBELL (IRL) +11 and Joshua BERRY (ENG) +13.

Here is the Round 3 leaderboard: –

Round 3 Leaderboard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

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12th May 2023 – Round 2

Caolan RAFFERTY (IRL) took the 36 hole lead on 137 (-7) at the Irish Amateur Open Championship after a six birdie 68 around The Island course. Importantly two of those birdies came immediately after he had dropped a shot to ensure he maintained momentum.

Rafferty, who played in the 2019 Walker Cup match, is playing a much lighter schedule nowadays due to work commitments but has shown enough good form in recent years for us to know he is fully capable of winning this event. Sleeping in his own bed and travelling the 50 miles down the M1 from his Dundalk home each day will also be helping his chances.

Caolan Rafferty’s Round 2 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

As expected playing conditions were very good on Friday with 23 under par rounds recorded by the field, 9 more than yesterday.

Overnight leader Harley SMITH (ENG) had another good day. His 71 left him one shot back of the Dundalk man on -6.

England’s Zach CHEGWIDDEN produced a tidy 68 of his own to move into 3rd place. Finishing his round with two birdies will certainly have improved his mood.

Zach Chegwidden’s Round 2 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

Matt ROBERTS (WAL) 71 and James FOX (IRL) 70 are tied 4th on 142 (-2) after they maintained their form into the second day.

Robbie CANNON (IRL) 69 tied 6th, John GOUGH (ENG) 69, who was bogey free on the day, tied 11th, Tomi BOWEN (WAL) 70 tied 14th, Caolan BURFORD (WAL) 70 tied 18th, James CLARIDGE (ENG) 71 tied 28th, Gerard DUNNE (IRL) 69 tied 28th and Rob MORAN (IRL) 71 tied 28th all moved up the leaderboard with sub-par rounds. 

Starting on the 10th tee at 1.11pm the low round of the day went to experienced Geoff LENEHAN (IRL) who bounced back from a disappointing 80 in Round 1 to post a 67, adding his name to the growing list of amateur course record holders. As a result he moved up 82 places in the standings to tied 28th.

Geoff Lenehan’s Round 2 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

Looking ahead to the 54 hole cut there are currently 54 players on +5 or better.

Here are the leading players after Round 2: –

Round 2 Leaderboard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

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11th May 2023 – Round 1

18 year old Harley SMITH (ENG), who teed off the 10th hole at 8.33am, showed a welcome return to form in Round 1 of the Irish Amateur Open Championship. His 67 (-5), which tied the amateur course record, on The Island links included six birdies and just the one dropped shot.

Harley Smith’s Round 1 Scorecard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

Smith’s nearest challengers on Day 1 Ross LAIRD (SCO) -4 and Caolan RAFFERTY (IRL) -3 also started their opening rounds off the 10th, Laird at 1.33pm and Rafferty at 9.28am.

Smith and Rafferty’s scores were particularly impressive as they both played in the morning drizzle which eventually gave way to brighter skies in the afternoon.

Paul COUGHLAN (IRL), Keith EGAN (IRL) and Mitchell COWIE (SCO) are all tied 4th after delivering 2-under par 70s. Cowie, who started on the 1st tee, was the only player in the field not to drop a shot in Round 1.

In total just 14 players out of a starting field of 132 broke par today.

Among the eight who posted 71 (-1) were Rob BRAZILL (IRL), Matt ROBERTS (WAL), Alex MAGUIRE (IRL) and Matthew WILSON (SCO), all of whom we can expect to hang around the top of the leaderboard for the duration.

Here is the Round 1 leaderboard: –

Round 1 Leaderboard (Graphic: Golf Ireland / Golf Genius)

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9th May 2023

The Irish Men’s Amateur Open Championship, sponsored by Flogas, starts on Thursday 11th May 2023 at The Island Golf Club in Corballis, County Dublin.

It will be the 85th playing of this prestigious Championship.

13th Hole, The Island Golf Club (Photo: The Island G.C.)

Format

Organised by Golf Ireland the Irish Amateur Open is a 72-hole stroke play event played over four days.

18 holes will be played on each of the first three days before a top 50 and ties cut is made. A final 18 holes will then be played by the leading competitors on the final day.

A tie for the Championship will be resolved by a sudden death play-off. All other ties will be resolved by reference to the last eighteen and nine holes played.

The Irish Amateur Open Champion Golfer is awarded a superb silver trophy (see photo below). Irish winners are allowed to take the trophy back to their Club for the year whereas overseas winners must return it to the organisers after the prize presentation.

Players

132 golfers, primarily from the four home nations, will contest the 2023 Championship.

11 of the 20 GB&I Walker Cup panelists will be in attendance – Joshua BERRY (ENG), Aaron EDWARDS-HILL (ENG), Hugh FOLEY (IRL), John GOUGH (ENG), Connor GRAHAM (SCO), Matt MCCLEAN (IRL), Robert MORAN (IRL), Liam NOLAN (IRL), Peter O’KEEFFE (IRL), Dylan SHAW-RADFORD (ENG) and Harley SMITH (ENG).

Other players I’ll be keeping an eye on this week are Marc BOUCHER (IRL), Jack BROOKS (ENG), Caolan BURFORD (WAL), James CLARIDGE (ENG), Joshua HILL (IRL), Alex MAGUIRE (IRL), Seán KEELING (IRL), Quentin CAREW (IRL), Jack MCPHAIL (ENG), Sam POTTER (ENG), Caolan RAFFERTY (IRL), Matt ROBERTS (WAL), Mark STOCKDALE (ENG) and Gavin TIERNAN (IRL).

Two time winner and the defending champion Colm CAMPBELL (IRL) will also be hoping to pick up where he left off at The Island last year.

The Island’s very own Kevin LE BLANC (IRL), who turned pro in 2017 as a 19 year old before returning to the amateur ranks, is also in the field.

Tee Times

Click here to view the – 2023 Irish Amateur Open Tee Times

Click here to view the – 2023 Irish Amateur Open Leaderboard

Players will tee off, using both the 1st and 10th tees, between 8.00am and 2.50pm on each of the first three days so changes in the weather and wind speeds could play a big part in scoring.

Course

The Island G.C. was founded in 1890 and as its name suggests was originally only accessible by ferry boat.

During the winter of 2019/20 the front 9 holes were updated and lengthened by architects Ebert & McKenzie with the plan being to bring them up to the standard of the already much admired back 9.

With the course bordered by sea on three sides it now plays to 7,257 yards from the back tees and has a testing par of 72. There are twelve par 4’s, three par 3’s and three par 5’s.

Weather Forecast

The weather forecast looks generally good for all four competition days – mainly sunny, albeit a little breezy.

Thu 11th May – Drizzle / Wind 9 mph NE / Temp. Min. 7°C / Max. 14°C.
Fri  12th May – Sunny Intervals / Wind 12 mph NE / Temp. Min. 6°C / Max. 16°C.
Sat  13th May – Sunny / Wind 10 mph SE / Temp. Min. 8°C / Max. 17°C.
Sun 14th May – Light Rain Showers / Wind 10 mph NW / Temp. Min. 7°C / Max. 16°C.

The 2022 Irish Amateur Open Championship

Colm CAMPBELL (IRL), then 35, won the Flogas Irish Men’s Amateur Open at The Island Golf Club last year after a play-off with Matt MCCLEAN (IRL).

It was Campbell’s second Championship having also picked up the famous trophy at nearby Royal Dublin back in 2016.

Now a part-time golfer with a young family Campbell, who plays out of the Warrenpoint Golf Club and works full time as a PING golf salesman, is largely restricted to a domestic amateur schedule.

Click here to view the full – 2022 Irish Amateur Open Results

History, Past Winners and Records

The Irish Amateur Open Championship was first played in 1892 with early winners including the English amateur greats John Ball and Harold Hilton.

Between 1894 and 1901 (6 years) the competition was played as part of the Irish Championship Meeting alongside a professional tournament.

The Championship was not played during both World Wars.

It was also not played between 1960 and 1994 due to a lack of interest from overseas players amidst concerns over safety.

Prior to 1958 it was a match play event but since returning to the amateur calendar in 1995 it has been 72 holes of stroke play.

To view a list of past winners click here – Irish Amateur Open Past Champions

ME.

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