IN THE members’ lounge of Dungannon Golf Club hangs a framed picture of Darren Clarke taking a swing with one of his golf clubs. You sense pride of place will soon be taken by another picture, one of the new open champion lifting the Claret Jug.
For Sean T Hughes, honorary secretary of the club, 42-year-old Clarke’s maiden Major was the culmination of a long journey he has seen close up.
“Darren joined here as a young kid and immediately we recognised he was going to be an absolute star. In fact, when he was in his early teens and was winning amateur tournaments, he had such charisma that we said he was going to be the golfing world’s version of George Best and so it has proven.
“He’s a fantastic guy and we are delighted for him as he has been so good to us. He reopened the club for us in 2001 and designed four holes on our course. When he won his first professional competition, the Alfred Dunhill Open in 1993, he phoned back to the club and said the round was on him. It cost him £750 but it was a measure of the man.”
Hughes said the win put Dungannon on the map and that many in the golf club had an extra reason to celebrate.
“He was 150/1 before the competition so a good few people here put a fiver or tenner on him and now it feels like everybody has won. He has made a lot of people a lot of money this week.
“We were pleased about Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy’s Major wins but Darren is our local boy. When he has his homecoming here with the trophy, the reception he will get will be like nothing on Earth.”
Scores of locals were in the bar to watch Clarke fire a final round 70, ensuring he finished five under, ahead of Americans Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson.
He follows in the footsteps of Portrush’s McDowell and Holywood’s McIlroy, who won the US Open in 2010 and 2011 respectively.
Club captain Joe Cavlan said Clarke is “one of the nicest men you could ever meet”.
“His family are just lovely people and he has taken that from them. His father Godfrey still visits the club regularly and in fact recently played in our open competition.
“We’ve known for years Darren is the best golfer in Ireland but it’s fantastic to see others starting to believe it now.
“We are over the moon that a lad from Dungannon is a Major champion. It feels strange but great to be able to say that.”
The phenomenal success of Northern Ireland’s golfers has intensified calls for the open championship to return to its shores. It has only hosted the tournament once before – the 1951 championship at Royal Portrush.
Peter Dawson, the chief executive of open organisers the Royal and Ancient, said the option would be considered.
But he noted the concerns related to whether the infrastructure around the event was adequate.
“Portrush is a wonderful golf course, a big strong course,” he said. “But of course an open is not just about the golf course – it’s about the infrastructure, the hotels, the roads,” he added. – (Additional reporting PA)