Two into one won't go, and the West of Ireland championship's clash with the Lytham Trophy in England has deprived the domestic season's first major event in Enniscrone of a number of top players.
Paddy Gribben, the European amateur champion and a member of the British and Irish team that won the Eisenhower Trophy, has an eye on Walker Cup selection and has opted to play in Lytham where he will be joined by a number of Ireland's top young players who are playing in the English tournament en route to international duty in Wales.
James Clarke (Holywood), David Jones (City of Derry), Graeme McDowell (Rathmore), Michael McGeady (City of Derry), Colm Moriarty (Athlone) and Dan Sugrue (Killarney) are all competing in the Lytham before travelling on to represent Ireland in a youths' international against Wales at Royal St David's on Friday week and, then, compete in the 72-holes St David's Gold Cross tournament.
However, the West - which this year doesn't have a sponsor - still has a strong field with Noel Fox, another player with Walker Cup aspirations, defending the title he won so well last year. And, for the second year running, there is a strong international flavour with the nine members of the Finnish and Norwegian national squads, who are training in the north-west, participating. Saturday's Scramble in Malahide golf club turned into a battle between youth and experience with the youth side taking the spoils. Stuart Caul, Joe Connolly, Darragh Smith and Mick Craddock junior shot a 13 under par 57 to beat the vastly experienced Mick Craddock senior, Bernard Sweeney, Dereck Mahon and Ben Dowling by one shot. Club President, Bob McAdoo, led home the third placed side of Alan Reilly, Alan Doyle and Frank Coogan.
Linda Keartland and Diana Needham have given the centenary celebrations at Rathfarnham a lift with victory in the Open Foursomes matchplay at Castle on Sunday. The event has been running since 1939 and boasts several big name winners including Philomena Garvey who was successful on three occasions.
The Rathfarnham duo were underdogs going into the final against twice former winner Yvonne Manahan of the home club and her new partner Mary Inglis (Foxrock), but a solid par on the 18th gave them victory by one hole.
It's getting hard for club secretaries to find sufficient competitions to act as qualifiers for the increasing number of national events. The latest is the SDS Challenge in aid of the Central Remedial Clinic and the Irish Hospice Foundation. The winners in four classes of both men's and women's May Medal competitions will be possible participants in the SDS Grand Finale with the top 120 qualifying for the shootout at St Margaret's on June 28th. All participants will be entered in a draw for a trip for two to the Ryder Cup in Massachusetts next September.
