Castleblayney Men's Golf Club Notes
1st May 2012
Toby Storms Home
The east wind would go through you for a shortcut. Just ask anyone who tried to golf in Concra at the weekend in our Heineken sponsored competition. Saturday was tough – Sunday was tougher! Concra is a beautiful place, but part of its charm is that it’s completely exposed to the elements. Most mere mortals struggled to hold on to their scorecards. But there was one exception. Toby O’Neill won the competition by a street, amassing a stableford points total of 41. And it could have been more as he reached the turn on 24. 17 points on the back nine was modest, but more than enough for Toby’s maiden victory. The only other player to “shoot his handicap” was Adrian Kelly. A tidy 37 points saw him record a comfortable victory in Category 1. It only took 34 points to win the other categories. Martin Rafter, for a third time this year, took Category 2, while Brendan Carragher is yet another new winner of Category 3.
Next weekend, we have a Golfer of The Year event. The Des McGlynn Cup is one of our major competitions of the season. So let’s hope the winds abate, as we’ll be playing off the Gold Tees.
Our juveniles had another encouraging turnout on Sunday. The winner of their competition was Alan Nugent with Shane Farrell in second place. The next outing is this Sunday at 4 o’clock.
It’s good to report that Paul Murphy didn’t win this week’s Bonus Ball. The winner was Ryan Murphy, and there’s no truth in the rumour that Paul was too embarrassed to use his own name. Ryan has the money spent already!
And now for this week’s senior notes:
Last Friday’s winners were as follows…
1st Team:
Joe Quinn, Larry Coleman, Joe Kelly
2nd Team:
Pat Conlon, Andy Whelan, Eamon Johnstone
We welcome John McGoldrick as a member of our seniors.He intends to be a regular player in all weekly competitions.
And finally for this week, heartiest and belated best wishes to Pádraic Conlon who celebrated a significant birthday on Sunday. It’s a big year in our club – apparently Seán Malone, Séamus Leonard and Tony Brennan all hit the half century.
Pádraic’s not quite as old. In fact, he doesn’t look a day over forty.
Happy Birthday Pigeon!
24th April 2012
Gene Mc Donnell would feature in most people’s team selections at Ulster Fourball level. Paddy King certainly considered picking him for Sunday’s match, but in the end decided to leave him on the bench. This was just the spur to action Gene needed. On Sunday he won our weekend competition which was sponsored by Coyle, Kennedy and Mc Cormack solicitors. His score of 39 points just edged out his namesake Charlie Mc Donnell on the countback. Gene had 22 on the back nine, Charlie had 20. However, Charlie’s consolation is that he’s made his way down to single figures ahead of schedule – and he wins the Category 1 prize. Category 2 was won by Greg Duffy – he also shot 39 points but his back nine score was 19 points. The Category 3 prize went to Gregg Sibley – no dramas for Gregg, just a solid score of 38 points.
In fairness to Paddy King, the omission of Gene was forgiven, as his team enjoyed a 5-0 first leg home win over Temple G.C. on Sunday. Paddy togged out himself, but such was the quality of his partner Brendan Mc Aleavy’s performance, that he was, in effect, a non-playing captain. We trust Paddy’s men will take it over the line in their second leg.
If they do, they’ll match the achievement of Seán Malone’s Ulster Cup team. On Sunday, they travelled to Holywood G.C. hoping to score the two and a half points they needed to advance to Round 2. Heavy overnight rain saw their tee time delayed. But Seán’s men kept their collective cool and romped to another 5-2 victory. This team has the look of real contenders – something we’ve missed in our club of late. We wish them well in round 2.
In other news this week, our Captain Noel hosted a really well attended presentation of prizes on Saturday night. And yes Bill arrived in time (only just) to receive the plaudits for his team’s unforgettable Spring League victory. And the Bonus Ball winner for this week was Noel Myers.
And finally for this week, calling all juveniles! Our President Andy Whelan and Johnny Redmond are organising weekly nine hole competitions for juniors and juveniles each Sunday at 4:00 p.m. This week’s winner was Shane Farrell with Darren Geoghegan in the runner-up spot. Turnouts have been good, but the more the merrier!
17th April 2012
MALONE WINS PRANDY DUFFY CUP
Sometimes you’ve just got to read beyond the headlines! Tell the truth- most of you thought the Malone in question was Carl. But no, this time it was Malone Sr. – Martin, who shot the lights out at the weekend to win the Prandy Duffy Cup by a margin of seven points. On a weekend when many felt that 40 off the Gold Tees would be unlikely, Martin accumulated no less than 45 points. And to what does he attribute this dramatic return to form? Well Martin admitted on Sunday that recently he’s been on a strict fitness regime. So this is clearly another victory for clean living! Second prize was won by Ronan Geoghegan on 38 points. A new name to our winner’s enclosure, Ronan is a student from Dundalk who plays off a handicap of 15. It’s good to see the Louth contingent going from strength-to-strength in Concra. The best gross was won by Padraic Conlon. His five dropped shots were lost when he recorded a treble bogey at 11 and a double on 16. The rest of his round was like watching Jack Nicklaus! Third prize was won by Paul Murphy. Paul’s score of 36 under normal circumstances would be considered modest, however as he spent the weekend entertaining the Duffy clan, who had returned home from America especially for the event, this must be seen as a notable performance. Indeed Sunday night’s presentation was a memorable one as James Duffy and his family marked his father Prandy’s memorial event by attending in a huge number. Our Captain Noel was fulsome in his praise for their continued support and sponsorship which makes this a unique event in our annual calendar.
Sunday also saw our first major inter-club match of the year at Concra. Seán Malone’s Ulster Cup team enjoyed a 5-2 first-leg win over Hollywood G.C. However, well into the back nine, Blayney were behind in four matches. But they played all the way to the line to give themselves a reasonable chance in this Sunday’s second leg. We wish them the best of luck. And of course our other provincial contenders, Paddy King’s Ulster Fourball side, enjoy our best wishes as they kick off this year’s bid for glory at home to Temple G.C. this Sunday at Concra.
Due to circumstances beyond our control, last week’s golf column never quite made it into print. However we’ll make up for that this week, as there were a few noteworthy performances to report. Our weekend competition which was sponsored by Declan Loughman was won by the one and only Martin Shevlin. Playing with Martin is always a joy- whether the golf is good or bad, Martin enjoys the craic. Lately however, he has been getting in quite a lot of practice. 41 points is proof that. Martin’s golf is now officially no laughing matter! Category 1 was won by Charlie Mc Donnell. 39 points gets him within touching distance of single figures. Gerry Mc Geough is among the prizes for the second time in as many weeks winning Category 2 with a score of 38 points, while Paul Shortt flies the flag for the veterans taking the Category 3 prize on that same 38 mark.
On Easter Monday, we had a special Open Singles Stableford. The turnout of visitors was excellent but the leaderboard was dominated by members. The top score of the day came from Barry O’Reilly. On a weekend when his fellow hurlers were having some testing times, Barry cruised to victory on a score of 43 points. This reduces Barry’s handicap to 15 which should prove little problem to him, except of course, when he’s trying to get a few euro off playing partners Joe Brady and Derek Sullivan. Second prize was won by Billy Hanna on a score of 40 points. And one or two eyebrows were raised by the sight of J. Quinn in third place with 39 points. However, Joe hadn’t gone mad – it was Jimmy Quinn who had made it in the winners’ enclosure.
Next weekend our competition is sponsored by Coyle, Kennedy and Mc Cormack Solicitors. This event will be played off the Green Tees. Members are reminded that a presentation of all outstanding prizes takes place on Saturday night in our clubhouse. This takes place at 9 o’clock sharp, with an emphasis on the sharp, as another event will be taking place immediately afterwards - all prize-winners will be notified later in the week by text message.
In other news this week, our Bonus Ball winners over the last couple of weeks have been Séamus Leonard and Pauric Mc Nally. The final week of our pool league takes place this Friday at 9 o’clock – all competitors must attend! And it’s good to report that our Wednesday evening nine-hole event is up and running for 2012. Members may arrange their own tee times and groups on Wednesday evenings, but this year, to facilitate all comers, there will be a draw for partners from 6.00 to 6:30 p.m. each week. It’s hoped that this year the profits will go towards the new buggy paths.
On a sad note, all at Castleblayney G.C. send our condolences to John Montgomery and his family on the death of his wife Frances. John has been the backbone of the staff at our club since its very inception, and continued to be through Frances’ illness. The esteem in which the Montgomery family is held in our club was clear for all to see in the great number of officers and members who formed a guard of honour at Frances’ funeral on Saturday. Our thoughts are with John and his family at this time.
And now for this week’s senior notes:
We played a scramble on Friday last with five three balls out. We waited on Peadar Morgan after his winning return the previous week but he didn't show up.
1st team winners: Gen Toal, Pat Horgan, Gabriel Moore
2nd Team: PJ Harte, Joe Sheridan, Brendan Laverty
Fridays draw is at 2pm.
And finally for this week we come to the final of the Castlecool Spring League. Where does one begin? Well, lets get the easy bit out of the way. Adrian Kelly beat Martin McGinn 6&4. Michael McBride lost to Joe Quinn 6&4. Honours even! Then Noel Flanagan Snr. Beat Paddy King 3&2. So it was all down to Bill Mc Cahey and Dermot Brennan. Sounds simple enough! Well, at this point, depending on who you speak to, or who you listen to, things go a little bit “off road!” shall we say. It would appear that illness, home-made remedies, unforeseen “pit stops”, a short nap, re-negotiations and ultimately some golf all feature in the saga. And once again, Bill, in his own inimitable way, came up with a winning formula! Apparently, he was five down with five to play. However at the end of a near ten hour marathon, he conceded a one hole victory to Dermot on the final green. And while that suggests that he had lost the battle, he had, nevertheless, won the war for his team! Apologies if this account seems confusing – well that’s just the way it was! But suffice to say, Bill will be given every opportunity at Saturday night’s presentation to explain all. In the words of Sir John Mills “Worth waiting for!”
3rd April 2012
It’s April time. Every golfer knows that the week of the US Masters signals the real start of the golfing season. The Irish weather can occasionally get things a little bit in reverse, but nevertheless it’s time to get out there, dust down the clubs , and swing, and get stuck into the season proper.
At the weekend, we had our first Golfer of the Year event of 2012 - the Dick Kernan Cup. These events have been dominated by our junior members over the past couple of seasons, and this week was no exception. The winner on a score of 44 points was Seán Mc Mahon. Seán is one of the new breed of golfers, in that he hits the ball a mile. Over the winter months he’s been practising hard to put manners on his short-game, and the results are instant. This win sees his handicap reduced to 15 - a good start to the season, and an example our other new members are sure to follow.
The runner-up prize was won by Gerry Mc Geough. Gerry is slightly more senior than Seán - but no less enthusiastic. He hasn’t missed a competition in the past couple of years, and must be considered unlucky not to have recorded a first victory on a score of 43 points. The gross prize was won, once again, by the very consistent Ciarán Mc Mahon who shot a 78. And third prize went to Patsy Boyle. Patsy scored no less than 24 points on the front nine, but a more modest 17 on the inward nine means he’ll have to settle for third. It’s encouraging to report that no fewer than eleven members exceeded standard scratch at the weekend. Significantly, last week’s winner Michael Marray lost a shot, and our sponsor Raymond Kernan did his best to take the cup home, and lost a shot in the process. At this rate, he’ll be the lowest handicapped member of the seniors in no time!
Next weekend our competition is sponsored by Declan Loughman Sports. This event will be played off the green tees. On Bank Holiday Monday we have a special singles competition. The cost of €30 for members and €40 for visitors includes a steak dinner in our restaurant. Places are filling up on our timesheet as we speak. Tuesday then sees the return of the Mid-Week Open Singles. And on Wednesday as always, we have our Open Seniors.
Regular visitors to the Pro-Shop will have noticed that Conor has his new spring range in place. The Taylor Made RBZ and R11s, Ping G20 and i20, Callaway Razr (as seen on TV) and Black ranges are all available at keener prices than anywhere else. His new range of Concra Wood Footjoy T-shirts are walking out the door, and he also stocks Adidas, Greg Norman, Nike and Green Lamb clothing. Conor’s preparations for our Europro Tour event continue apace. This week the Europro Tour is holding its Tour School which will determine its full line-up of competitors for 2012. You can keep an eye on developments at www.europro.com, and very soon, it will feature regularly on Sky Sports. We recently had tour officials visit our course and they were blown away by its quality. Indeed they recommended that we should be a venue for the European Tour. It’s good to watch the continued development of our project’s reputation.
And now for this week’s senior notes:
Last Friday’s winners were as follows:
1st Team: Michael McHugh Snr, Vincent Heavin, Frank Murray
2nd Team: Pat Conlon, Tom McHugh, John Keenan
Best wishes to Paddy King who celebrated his 60th birthday during the week but wishes he could start all over again.
Sadly, Paddy you will have to take it easy from now on.
Members are reminded this week, that our annual Mass of Remembrance for deceased members will take place on April 14th in St. Mary’s Church Castleblayney.
And finally for this week, the Castlecool Spring League final takes place this weekend. Adrian Kelly’s team takes on Martin Mc Ginn’s team. The standout match pairs Paddy King with Noel Flanagan Snr. We should know who the winners are on Sunday night. The presentation for this competition and all other outstanding prizes takes place on the following Saturday night (April 14th) in our clubhouse at 9:00 p.m. All prizewinners will be reminded of this by text message. Attendance at these events is encouraged, as it’s important to respect the vital role our local sponsors continue to play in our club.
27th March 2012
MARRAY MASTERCLASS
What a weekend! Concra was bathed in sunshine for those lucky enough to take part in Gerry Mc Mahon’s competition. The record books were checked and apparently Sunday was the warmest March day since 1965. I don’t know what Mickey Marray was doing in ’65, but in 2012 he tells us it’s been all bottles and nappies. Well, he must have been putting in the odd sneaky hour or two on the practice area, because he took the course apart at the weekend, scoring no fewer than 47 points. That’s a round of 76 strokes. The reactions, as always in Blayney, were immediate. “47 points – he must be back at the snooker!” “He shot his age!” “47 points in one day – that’s more than Liverpool have managed in a whole season!” Well it certainly was one of the best scores at Concra so far – I dare say one or two of the pros in Monday’s PGA event would gladly swap cards with Michael.
Not surprisingly no-one got within an ass’s roar of Michael. Category 1 was won by Billy Hanna. 40 points set him up nicely for his Spring League semi-final against Adrian Kelly. Gerry Mc Caul won Category 2 with a modest 37 points – there’s plenty more where that came from. And Dermot Brennan is making a habit of winning Category 3 – this time on a score of 40 points. Oh and while I’m on the subject of people making a habit of things, I’m sure you’ll all be delighted to hear that Paul Murphy won last weekend’s Bonus Ball. Clean living? Apples and orchards? Divil’s childer? Indian signs? You’d think he’d save some of his luck for his putting!
On Monday Concra played host to the PGA Ulster Golfer’s Alliance Pro-Am. Eighteen teams of one professional and three amateurs took part, and everyone was extremely complimentary about our course, especially our greens. The best score of the day was 36 points by Peter Martin. They could all do with lessons from Mickey!
Next weekend our competition is our first Golfer of the Year event of 2012 – the Dick Kernan Cup. We’ll be reverting to placing on the fairway only, and teeing off the gold tees. But I’m assured that the golds will be “generous”.
In other news, our clubhouse hosted its biggest ever crowd on Friday night as our local musicians performed A Tribute to Carmel Redmond. The music was superb and everything ran smoothly thanks to the excellent organisation of Johnny Redmond and Ronnie Morgan. A big thank you goes to Raymond Watters who provided food for all.
Our kitchen is back up and running again, providing meals each day to golfers. On a very busy first weekend, reports were excellent. It’s hoped to have the Restaurant reopened at night in the month of April.
And now for our Seniors Notes:
Prizewinners in last Fridays outing were:
1st M.Allen, P.King, P. Horgan, E. Johnston
2nd N. Flanagan, E. Toal, A. Whelan, PJ McArdle
We celebrated Joe Quinn’s 75th Birthday afterwards with a good attendance. Joe's main focus for the golfing season is plenty of inter club golf and his summer tour in Donegal.
Our pool league has reached its crucial final round, which takes place this Friday night. All players are asked to attend. First rack is at 9 o’ clock.
And finally for this week, the Padraigs in the bar have organised a US Masters Sweep. €10 secures a couple of players in the field. With Tiger and Rory being quoted by the bookies at 5 to 1 and 6 to 1 respectively, this is definitely the best value in town.
20th March 2012
SIBLEY THE BEST!
Darren McQuillan’s Ceol Music sponsored our competition which took three days to complete over the Bank Holiday weekend. Saturday looked like the scoring day as conditions were near perfect. Those who played Sunday and Monday had cold winds and one or two very naughty pin positions to contend with. However, the weekend’s top score was shot by Gregg Sibley on Sunday morning. Gregg (that’s Greg with 3 Gs) had a nice steady card for 14 holes. A visit to Lough Muckno on 15 threatened to spoil his day, but Gregg soldiered on and stood on the 18th tee with 38 points in the bag. A big slice into the right rough and some struggles with a provisional ball looked to have done for Gregg once again, but then his father-in-law Pat Conlon saved the day! He found Gregg’s ball in the long grass. Two seven irons and a putt later, Gregg had shot 41 points for a first win in Concra Wood. No doubt the first of many! Category 1 was won by Charlie Mc Donnell. On a high after beating Adrian Kelly in his Spring League match, Charlie shot a fine score of 39 points on Saturday morning. Another early bird, Francis Murphy, won Category 2. An All Ireland Champion of yesteryear, Francis has struggled with injury in more recent times. So his 38 points will come as a huge relief. Category 3 was won by evergreen Michael Reid. What Michael may lack in length off the tee, he certainly makes up for in tenacity. A very strong putting performance was the key to his 38 point total.
The afore-mentioned Spring League has now reached the semi-final stage. Adrian Kelly was relieved that his team rescued him. His reward is a match against Billy Hanna’s team. The other semi pairs Martin Carville’s team against Martin Mc Ginn’s side. It’s difficult to predict outcomes- Joe Quinn usually tries to run the legs off opponents, but he’ll have a job with Noel O’Reilly. Joe McGrath versus a less than fit Paddy King is another hard call. The next fortnight should sort it out.
The winner of last weekend’s Bonus Ball was Paul Murphy – again!
This weekend’s competition is sponsored by Gerry McMahon and will be played off the green tees.
And finally for this week, we are hosting a big night of music this Friday night in our clubhouse. Several local musicians are taking part in A Tribute to Carmel Redmond. Carmel’s early death last year was a shock to all in our club. Her husband Johnny and children Janine and Neal have decided to hold this fundraiser in aid of our local Cancer Care in Carmel’s memory. Tickets are available at the bar and are selling like hot-cakes.
13th March 2012
Our weekend competition was sponsored by Tavey’s Menswear. Our greens team decided to put us well forward on the green tees, and our members certainly seemed to respond with 59 competitors breaking 30 points- just how golf should be. The main beneficiary in scoring terms was Mark Mc Cahey who won the competition with a total of 42 points. Mark is a recent addition to our ranks, but what he lacks in experience, he has certainly made up for in commitment. This round marks his coming of age in golf - now let’s see how playing partner Ciaran Irwin responds. Category 1 was won by Michael McEnteggart. Michael clearly revelled in the shorter course, shooting a 74 gross for 40 points. Martin Rafter is our current Mr. Consistency. 38 points won him his second Category 2 prize in two weeks. And Category 3 was won by P.J. Lambe, who also recorded a score of 38 points.
Next weekend our competition is sponsored by Darren McQuillan’s Ceol Music. We will again play off the green tees. All Spring League quarter-final matches must be completed by Sunday night. Not many have been played so far. However, I do know that Séamus Mallon and Paul Shortt played out a half match with Paul having to par the last two to halve. More match news next week.
And now for this week’s senior notes:
Senior golf notes for Friday 9th March
1st place J. Quinn, T. McHugh, R. Kernan
2nd P. King, L. Coleman, E. Johnson
Usual draw time this Friday at 1pm
On Friday evening, John White hosted a very enjoyable rules night in our clubhouse. The ladies were particularly well represented. So now you’ll know who to ask if you have any rules related queries!
Our Bonus Ball winner at the weekend was none other than our Vice-captain Martin Malone. Regular readers will have noticed that this is not Martin’s first win. But honest to God it’s not a fix!
This weekend there’s plenty of sport on TV to bring you all into our clubhouse bar and while you’re there, you can indulge in some special green pints for Paddy’s Day. You heard it here first!
On Friday March 23rd, our clubhouse plays host to a musical tribute to Carmel Redmond. A huge number of our local musicians are giving us their services to honour Carmel’s memory. All proceeds will aid our local Cancer Care. Tickets cost €10 and are available from the Padraigs in the bar.
And finally for this week, our captain Noel has put together a list of jobs for volunteers around Concra. This is now posted on our noticeboard. Anyone interested in helping out should leave a note at the board or contact Noel at 087 7800884.
6th March 2012
March is a wonderful month for golfers. The season stretches out ahead of us as far as the eye can see. It’s time to dust down the clubs and get the old game in working order. There’s always a chance of an early season prize or two for the hardy competitors who’ve braved the winter conditions while the rest of us have been hibernating. One such golfer is Johnny Redmond. Johnny pounds the fairways come wind, rain or shine – close seasons are for softies in his opinion. Johnny’s early season reward is an excellent score of 41 points, enough to take top honours in our second eighteen holer of the year, which was sponsored by Cooltrim Oil. Johnny just scraped home by the narrowest of margins. Martin Rafter shot a superb round of 40 points on Sunday, and surely thought he was home and dry. His consolation is a victory in Category 2. There was a major gulf between those two and the rest at the weekend. Two very cheap Category prizes went to two Mc Donnell’s. Frank took Category 1 with a mere 31 points, while Gene saw off all opposition in Category 3 with 30 points. One or two competitors who shot good front nine scores in the Castlecool Spring League will be kicking themselves for not going on, as another handful of points would have won their Categories. Hindsight is 20-20 vision. No doubt lessons have been learned.
In any case, the final week of the league was really well supported and the quarter final draw is now complete. Match 1 pairs Ciarán McMahon’s Team 4 with Billy Hanna’s Team 14. In Match 2, Charlie Mc Donnell’s Team 15 face Adrian Kelly’s Team 2. Match 3 sees Marin Carville’s Team 18 take on Rory Mc Aleavey’s Team 17. And in the final match, Nudie Hughes’ team 11 come up against Martin Mc Ginn’s Team 20. Team Captains are asked to make sure all matches are completed on time and to make their task a little easier, our Competitions Convenor Seán Mulligan has decided to allocate a fortnight to this round. Our Category winners for the final week of the league were Padraig Conlon, Noel O’Reilly, Johnny Redmond and Bart McNamara.
Congratulations to Paul Campbell who shot a hole-in-one on our 12th at the weekend. No doubt one or two nice rewards are coming Paul’s way. Paul Murphy also holed an eagle at the weekend, but as his was on the 3rd, all he gets is a mention in the Standard. However, I’m sure the good wishes from his fourball were truly memorable!
This weekend our 18 Hole competition is sponsored by Tavey’s Menswear. We also have a special event in our clubhouse on this Friday evening. A, G.U.I. referee (John Whyte) will host an R&A rules night at 8 o’clock sharp (and I mean sharp!) Come along and hear a discussion on new rules and take part in a quiz, and a question and answer session. There’s bound to be one or two little queries to be sorted out – or bets to be resolved. Afterwards, Week 5 of our Pool League will go ahead as usual. This week’s competitors will be contacted by text.
Our Bonus Ball winner for this week is Gareth McMahon. Number 28 brings him the €150 prize.
And now for this week’s senior notes:
We had 18 Seniors for our outing on Friday last. We expect to have a few members taking part in the play off in the Spring League.
Team winners were:
1st J. Quinn, F. Murphy, J. Keenan
2nd L. Coleman, T.McHugh, B. McCaughey
3rd P. Horgan, P. King, T. Brennan
Draw time next Friday at 1pm.
Our Professional Conor has sixteen spaces left on his timesheet for the Pro-Am which takes place as part of the Europro Tour event on Tuesday 10th July. These are reserved for members until St. Patrick’s weekend. After that, they go on general sale.
And finally for this week, as preparations continue for this big event, our Captain Noel has asked for members to volunteer to help out with divot repairs in the weeks ahead. What he’s described as a Monday Club will shoot around the course on buggies to sort out any necessary repairs. Anyone who is available should contact Noel at 087 7800884. All help is welcome and appreciated.
28th February 2012
CAPTAINS DRIVE IN THE NEW GOLFING YEAR!
Golf, like many other sports, has its funny traditions. To the outsider, they may seem a little odd-masonic even! The years have seen golf open up to be a more inclusive sport and many feel it’s best to reform and leave our colonial ways behind. “Good afternoon Captain”-“How are you Mr. President?” not surprisingly raise a few eyebrows. The sight of our members marching to our old first tee for a Drive-In behind Peadar Morgan’s piper, totally bemused our Roma friends when they lived in the annex a few years back. I daresay one or two of them thought we were trying to scare them away. Well, on Sunday last we kept this tradition alive for another year as our Captains Noel and Eithne drove in the new golfing season in Concra. It could hardly be described as a haughty or snooty affair when it’s done Blayney style. Noel and Eithne had one or two roars to contend with, but they weren’t fazed and they thoroughly enjoyed the event, as indeed did their many well wishers.
Now before you all think I’m turning into Fergus Lane, maybe I should get on with some golf results. The eighteen hole event which took place in conjunction with the Captain’s Drive-In was won by Pat McNeill who shot a superb score of 42 points. Pat’s putter was red hot on Sunday. Having struggled over the Winter months, he returned to form in style shooting no fewer than 25 points on the front nine. With 42 after seventeen he even had the luxury of losing his ball at the last. Congratulations Pat on a superb round. The runner-up was Daniel McCarthy. Daniel has been putting in serious practice, as have a number of the juniors. Last year, 40 points would have been just out of reach but such is Daniel’s improvement that this is going to be the first of many! The best gross was won by Frank McDonnell. He shot a three over par round in the wind on Saturday, and spent Sunday complaining about how easy conditions were for competitors. Still, 75’s not bad for an auld fella. Third prize went to Eddie Heavin. Eddie shot 39 points. At the presentation when asked if he was the only golfer among the Heavins, Eddie replied, “Not at all. What about Faela?” I wonder what he could possibly have meant!
You’d be forgiven for thinking that the Castlecool Spring League had taken a back seat on such a busy weekend. On the contrary, the turnout was virtually 100%. The league table is posted on our noticeboard. Suffice to say that with all four scores to count this weekend, it’s still anyone’s league. Therefore it’s absolutely vital that every participant gets out there and records a score for his team. The quarter final draw will be made on Sunday night and will appear in this column next week.
Our Category winners for this week’s league read as follows: Cat.1 Frank McDonnell 19pts, Cat.2 Brendan Lambe 22pts, Cat.3 Pat McNeill 25pts and Cat.4 Bill McCahey 22pts.
This weekend sees our second eighteen hole competition of the season. Our sponsor is Cooltrim Oil. Members playing in both Spring League and Cooltrim’s event simultaneously are asked to please return two clearly marked and signed up cards, complete with Team Number.
Our Bonus Ball winner at the weekend was Martin Malone - clearly Martin’s earthly reward for clean living and Lenten observance.
And now for the senior notes: Due to senior golfers in Rossapenna Donegal and Garda retirement functions, our numbers were low on Friday.1st. prize Larry Coleman, Frank Murray and Brendan Duffy.No 2nd prize despite requests from runners up.
Finally for this week, there was a great crowd in our clubhouse on Sunday evening for our first presentation of the year. The Captain and Lady Captain very graciously played second fiddle to Liverpool F.C and Rory McIlroy who were vying for superiority on Sky Sports. Penalties and putts had to be missed before Noel and Eithne finally took centre stage. It would never have happened in the good old days!
21st February 2012
Being able to pick and choose your starting times in the Castlecool Spring League is a luxury that’s not available to every member. Last weekend it was absolutely crucial. Those poor unfortunates who played on Saturday had their hopes of a score blown away – quite literally. In contrast, Thursday, Friday and Sunday’s competitors enjoyed the most benign of conditions. And the scoring on these days was the highest of the league so far. This was reflected in the totals achieved by our Category winners, all of whom squeezed home on countbacks.
Category 1 winner was Ciarán Mc Mahon whose 20 points led his team led his Team 4 to the top score of the weekend. Category 2 went to Gerry Mc Caul who went one better with 21 points. Going even one better still, Greg Duffy won Category 3 with 22 points. Spare a thought here for Johnny Redmond who shot the weekend’s only other 22 points, but just happened to be in the wrong Category. And finally, Category 4 was won by Gerry Mc Coy with 19 points.
So this weekend, the league hits it’s penultimate round when all teams will record three scores out of four. Qualification is still over for most teams but a score this time, will make a huge difference!
This weekend sees the traditional start of the golf season proper – the Captain and Lady-Captains’ Drive-Ins. Sunday at noon is the appointed time for Noel and Eithne to lead the way and set another golfing year in motion. We wish them the best of luck. A presentation of prizes will be held on Sunday evening when the cards have all been checked – hopefully around 5 o’clock!
The team involved in delivering July’s EuroPro tour event are currently in the final stages of negotiations with a global brand regarding the main title sponsor. They hope to have the main sponsor secured prior to the formal national media launch scheduled for next month. A Facebook page with all the latest news and images relating to this event have been set up at http://www.facebook.com/europroeventconcrawood Members are encouraged to connect to this page and spread the word to all their friends! Finally there has been a large enquiry from the general public regarding the Pro-Am event scheduled for the 10th July. As timeslots for the Pro-Am are not on general sale to the public until the 17th March, members are kindly reminded if they are considering playing in this event, to put their name down together with the €25 deposit before this date.
The Bonus Ball winner for this weekend was Fiona Smyth who wins for the second consecutive week. Who says lightning doesn’t strike twice?
And finally for this week, congratulations to Fiona and Maria in the restaurant, and everyone else who made Saturday’s Coffee Morning such a huge success. There was a massive turnout and a figure of approximately €4,500 was raised for Castleblayney Cancer Society in memory of Fiona Connolly.
14th February 2012
It was business as usual in Concra at the weekend as Week 2 of the Castlecool Spring League went ahead. Conditions were excellent for scoring as there was hardly a breath of wind. So there was little surprise that quite a few of our members shot twenty points or more. The best score in Category 1 was Charlie Mc Donnell’s 22 points. When coupled with Paul Carey’s 20 points, it meant that Team 15’s total of 42 was the best of the weekend and pushes them up to second place overall in the league. Category 2 was won by Ciarán Prunty’ with 21 points. Category 3 went to Martin Mc Cague who matched Charlie’s 22 and Category 4 was won by Club President Andy Whelan with a score of 19 points. This weekend members will again compete over the front nine with two scores to count per team. Our competitions committee has requested that members mark their cards clearly remembering to add their Team Numbers and make everyone’s job easier.
News this week of a special charity event which takes place in our clubhouse at the weekend. The Restaurant @ Concra invites everyone along to a coffee morning on Saturday 18th February at 12 noon. This is being held in memory of Fiona Connolly of Annaglaive who died recently. All donations will benefit Castleblayney Cancer Society.
Preparations are well underway in our club for this summer’s big event – the arrival of the Europro Tour. As many of you know, the tournament kicks off with a Pro-Am event. Spaces are available to members only until March 17th at a cost of 100 euro, which includes a full day’s programme of events. Members are advised to contact Conor at the Pro-Shop for further information. And while you’re there, check out the 2012 stock which has been arriving daily at Concra Wood. There’ll be ideas aplenty for all those birthday present hints members enjoy dropping. And remember, gift vouchers are available all year round for those who are so hard to buy for - the guys who have everything.
And now for the senior’s notes:
We had 18 members play in our weekly outing with 1st place going to Joe Quinn, Andy Whelan and Gabriel Moore. 2nd place went to Noel Flanagan Snr, John Keenan and Ted Brennan.
Congrats to Leo Gallagher who celebrated his 80th birthday recently. A modest party was held in the clubhouse by the seniors.
And now for a note from the Secretary Gareth McMahon:
Thank you to all members who have already paid their subscriptions for 2012.
Members are reminded that the golf season runs from January to December. All outstanding subscriptions for the 2012 season are now overdue and require immediate payment. The easy payment plan is still available for those who wish to pay their subscription monthly.
Our Bonus Ball winner this week was Fiona Smyth. Ball number five wins her the tidy sum of 150 euro.
Our Pool League got off to a flying start at the weekend with all matches completed. After Week 1, Seán Malone’s team leads by one point. Competitors will be contacted by text with this Friday night’s draw.
And finally for this week, the traditional Kick-Off of the golf season, the Captain and Lady-Captain’s Drive-In, takes place next weekend February 25th and 26th. Our Captain Noel steps up to the mark at noon on Sunday. This is the weekend of our first 18 hole competition of the year so members who wish to attend the Drive-In are reminded to choose their own time slots carefully and avoid a clash. The evening will see a presentation in our clubhouse as soon as the last card is returned at about 5 o’clock!
7th February 2012
PGA Europro Tour Comes To Concra Wood
Over these last few years our project at Concra Wood has given us some wonderful days - they’ve even made the enormous investments of time and money seem worthwhile. But this week’s announcement of the PGA Europro Tour hosting an event here in July is very special for all members and shareholders. This tournament will be covered by Sky Sports and will bring the name of Concra Wood to a global audience. In the months ahead we’ll keep you in touch with the tour’s venues and TV coverage in this column so that hopefully we’ll all be experts by the time they come to town in the second week of July. So fingers, toes and everything else crossed, the weather will do us a favour. If the sun shines our course will blow everyone away.
Back on the domestic front, Week 3 of the Castlecool Spring League fell victim to the weather. So there are no winners to report this week. Well almost no winners. Our Bonus Ball winner in its first week is the one and only Paul Murphy. “Throwing apples into an orchard” I hear you all say. Indeed, but at least it’ll give Paul something to look forward to at the next presentation – beyond his usual role as Jason’s chauffeur. Congratulations Paul.
This weekend, our pool league gets underway. Padraig Conlon is contacting the players involved even as we speak. First break is Friday night at 9:00 pm.
And finally for this week, the Captains and Lady Captains Drive-Ins are now only three weeks away. Not meaning to give Noel and Eithne the jitters, I’ll keep my comments to the minimum this week - Captains can be very sensitive. It’s good to think that the golf season is nearly upon us. More on that next week!
31st January 2012
It’s never a good idea to start thinking that the worst of the Irish winter is behind you. But of course that’s exactly what the mild January caused us to do, and then what do you know, as they say in cricket, “Rain stopped play.” So we drew a blank on Week 2 of the Castlecool Spring league and it’s back to writing gossip. Let’s hope Week 3 gives us a little scope for golf news.
As many of you are already aware, Concra Wood now features in the Top 50 Courses in several publications. This week we are delighted to report a further honour. The Golfers Guide to Ireland 2012 has named Concra Wood as Ulster’s Hidden Gem. Our Captain Noel accepted this award at a ceremony in Dublin last week. Photos of the event can be viewed on our website concrawood.ie. This exposure can only enhance our growing reputation in Ireland and beyond.
January has seen some further developments in our project. James King has built a new wall that has really tidied up our buggies area and now our captain Noel has overseen a major facelift to our entrance. A huge thanks to James and Noel for very good examples of what a bit of initiative can achieve.
Another new feature in our clubhouse is launched this Thursday (2nd February). Each week we’re going to have a Bonus Ball game. €5 buys a number for Saturday night’s draw. If your number is the Lotto’s Bonus Ball, you’re quid’s in. What could be simpler?
And finally for this week, we have a Fun Rules Night planned for later this month. Keep an eye on our notice boards and website as the date has yet to be confirmed. A GUI referee will host the quiz to test your knowledge of the rules of golf. And through the fun and games, it’s hoped members may even learn a thing or two.
24th January 2012
The start of the Spring League comes as a great relief to golf club PROs who’ve spent the last month scraping the barrel for some bits and pieces to fill up their weekly columns. Now there’s some real golf to report! And we kick off with the very encouraging news that no fewer than 80 out of 88 entrants in the Castlecool Spring League braved the elements at the weekend on the behalf of their respective teams. I’m sure the other eight have sick notes - no “The dog ate my homework” style excuses will do in this Golf Club.
Right from the word ‘go’ Team 4 has hit the front with two of their members winning their Categories in week 1. 20 points apiece for Michael Marray and Seniors captain Tom Mc Hugh saw off all competitors in categories 2 and 3 and gives them a massive boost towards qualification. In second place is Martin Mc Ginn’s Team 20 on 39 points – that’s 19 for Paddy King and 20 for Joe Quinn. Even though they didn’t win their respective categories, all bets on this team making the last eight are off. But the biggest congratulations of the week goes to Ted Brennan who was the top scorer with 21 points. This was enough to win category 4 and propel his team 7 to 38 points. The rest have quite a bit of catching up to do – most teams just about scraped their way into the 30’s. Of those, one man who can hold his head high is Martin Allen, whose 19 points won Category 1. This completed an almost total monopoly for our seniors. Could it be that Friday’s weather was more benign (see seniors notes below) or are they just too strong for the rest of us? Week 2 will surely tell a tale or two. We look forward to another high turnout, and members are asked by our hard-working competition committee to make their job a little easier by marking their name, handicap and team number clearly on their card! Oh, and remember that this time around we play the back nine! That’ll sort the men from the boys.
Members are reminded of one or two more pieces of housekeeping this week. Firstly, those who book slots on our timesheet and then don’t turn up must be more considerate to other members. It’s not much to ask that names are removed 24 hours or more before such a no-show. On busy weekends such as we have during the Spring League time slots are at a premium!
And secondly, annual subs are now overdue. Fines will soon kick in – you have been warned.
And now for this week’s senior notes:
Low turn out last Friday due to cold and showers.
Winning team consisted of the following: Gerry Tracy, Pat Horgan, Andy Whelan.
Draw next Friday at 12:30, Tee Time 1pm.
Please repair pitch marks on the greens which are fantastic for January.
Hear, Hear!
And finally for this week, the draw for our Friday Night Pool Competition will take place this weekend. There are still one or two spots available. Entry is a mere 5 euro. To enter talk to one of the Padraigs at our bar.
17th January 2012
Our four club challenge final took place on Saturday at Concra. Cremartin were victorious as they completed a famous 3-2 win over a fancied Oram side, with Martin Malone and Michael Reid supplying the crucial winning point. In the third place play-off Toome scraped past Blayney, which means our Captain Noel has escaped the indignity of the wooden spoon. That dubious honour goes to Padraig Conlon – possibly the first time in history that a Blayney team Captain has sunk so low! However, Padraig remains upbeat, and is more than happy to discuss the story with customers in our clubhouse Bar.
The Castlecool Spring League draw took place on Sunday night with no fewer than twenty teams going to post. The League will run for six weeks. Two scores will be recorded per team in Weeks 1 to 5, with all four to count on the final week. Then the ever popular Matchplay series kicks in. Members are encouraged to play every week as your teams are counting on you. And don’t forget to sign in to the weekly singles event, which runs in conjunction with the league and costs a mere €3 a time.
We had just such a singles competition at the weekend, and Michael Smyth was the winner returning a score of 20 points. What’s seldom’s wonderful!
And now for this week’s Senior’s News: 17 Seniors turned out last Friday and played the second nine.
1st Team winners were PJ Harte, Pat Conlon, Andy Whelan and Eamon Johnson.
2nd Team were Joe Quinn, John Keenan and Tony Carville.
And finally for this week, any of you who prefer indoor events this time of year should sign up to our pool league. It’s hoped to get thirty-two entrants over the next week or two for this team event. Talk to Padraig at the bar, and don’t forget to congratulate him on his recent distinction.
10th January 2012
The mild conditions of the weekend allowed our members to make a welcome return to golf at Concra Wood. This time around it seems that Spring has sprung a little too soon. It’s going to be tough on the daffodils and crocuses when Winter finally arrives! Back in the world of golf, members competed in a nine hole club competition. The winner on a superb score of 24 points was Barry Reilly. Barry has been hitting the ball very nicely with his three wood for quite a while, but on Saturday he was fortunate to get a lesson from our Captain Noel in the art of driving, and this made all the difference. Nothing can possibly stop him now!
This weekend there’ll be another nine hole event, as well as the most eagerly awaited final of the 4 Club Challenge, between Oram and Cremartin. Next up for members is the Castlecool Spring League. Remember all entries must be made by this Sunday 15th January when the draw will take place. The league will last for six weeks with competitors taking part from each Thursday to Sunday. And anyone who plays more than once over the weekend must submit their first card for the league.
We have a new innovation in our notes for 2012 as our Senior’s Captain Tom Mc Hugh will contribute their latest news each week. Here’s his report for Week 1:
Our Seniors held their first outing of the new year with a good turn out on Friday the 6th.
Also well turned out were the players displaying their Santa gifts of thermal wear, heavy cords and dryjoy shoes.
No buggies were allowed but fair play to Peadar, he arrived for the presentation and a courtesy pint from on/off buddy Joe.
1st team winner Gen Toal, president Andy and Tom McHugh
2nd place was Gerry Tracy, Vincent Heavin, Paddy King and Larry Coleman.
Tee time for Jan 12: draw at 12:30pm, Tee Time 1:00pm.
And finally for this week, our Committees are looking into the possibility of adding a starter’s hut or assembly point to our first tee. As you might guess, there have been many suggestions. Should any member or shareholder have any bright ideas as to the best option, please make your ideas known to our Captain Noel in the weeks ahead. It’s hoped to complete this project by the time the golf season kicks in.
3rd January 2012
A Happy New Year to you all. Let’s hope 2012 turns out to be another wonderful year on the fairways (or close enough) of Concra Wood. The Festive Season saw Stop Start weather conditions, which were a great improvement on the previous two years. The main golfing news was easy victories for Oram and Cremartin over Blayney and Toome respectively in the four club challenge. Celebrated like Championship wins, these results set up this Saturday’s eagerly awaited final. Good luck to Martin, Seán and their teams.
This weekend sees a nine hole competition for members. As the sheet for the Castlecool Spring League has now been posted, all who wish to participate should make their way to the noticeboard to sign up. The draw will be held on Sunday 15th January.
While our course had inconsistent use over the past fortnight, the same could not be said of our clubhouse. The Christmas Party nights were well attended but that was nothing compared to the success of our New Years celebration. The various Paurics behind the bar were run off their feet for the night, and all in attendance could see that Concra is the ideal location for parties and functions. Well done to Padraig Conlon and all his staff on a really well run event.
Annual membership flowed in in December. Yet there are still a number of subscriptions outstanding. Therefore our Premium Credit phased payment scheme has been extended for this month. Members are reminded that signing up early is of great benefit to our club.
And finally for this week, anyone who has squirreled a few shillings away over the Christmas will b e delighted to hear that Conor is offering big discounts in his January Sale in our Pro Shop. Remember all those errors you blamed on your equipment. Don’t let it come between you and golfing greatness in 2012!
Click on date below to read notes
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