EAST OF IRELAND CHAMPIONSHIP:A FORTNIGHT ago to the day, Shane Lowry's shoes squelched into the then sodden turf on his way to an historic Irish Open win. Yesterday, those fairways here at sun-kissed Co Louth Golf Club were transformed; and, as the sound of crisp iron shots resonated off the baked surface of perfect links terrain, the course was the undisputed winner as only five players reached the midway stage of the East of Ireland amateur championship with sub-par aggregates.
Paul Cutler, a 20-year-old of rich promise who has thankfully recovered from an injury interrupted start to the season, and James Fox, who previously caddied in this championship for his older brother Noel, added second rounds of 72 to their opening efforts of 69 for 36-hole totals of 141, three under, which left them one shot clear of Ulster teenager Luke Lennox, their closest pursuer.
Given that his brother came from 10 shots behind on the final day to win in 1996 on the way to the first of his three East of Irelands, Fox – a 26-year-old Dubliner with a Masters degree in finance but interested in pursuing a life on tour – is very much aware that this is not a course where leaders can become complacent.
Indeed, there are a wealth of quality challengers in pursuit, among them Niall Kearney, from Royal Dublin, who two weeks ago won the Brabazon Trophy – the English amateur open strokeplay title – and who looks certain to be part of the Walker Cup team in Merion in Pennsylvania come September.
Yesterday, Kearney reached the mid-point on 149 – after rounds of 74 and 75 – and, fortunately for him, was alerted to the fact that he had failed to hand in his card before it was too late.
Having started the journey home to Raheny, Kearney – the top ranked Irish player in the world rankings in 63rd – did a U-turn at the M1 interchange and returned to hand in the precious piece of paper that will see him attempt to close the eight stroke gap in today’s final two rounds, a task he remarked was “doable”.
Fox, for one, concurred.
“Anything can happen over the last two rounds here. The greens are so good that someone is going to shoot in the mid-60s at some stage,” said the Portmarnock man, who caddied for big brother Noel – a former Walker Cup player who is now playing on the Challenge Tour – in his wins here in 2000 and 2002.
Now, James Fox is seeking to maintain a proud family tradition on this links. For most of his second round, Fox looked set to be the sole leader. Cutler, one of only two members of Ireland’s six-man winning team in last year’s European Championship (along with Kearney) still in the amateur ranks, was among the morning starters and had posted a second-round 72 to set the clubhouse target which Fox, out in the afternoon, for a long time looked set to surpass.
Fox picked up birdies on the fourth and seventh, where his nine-iron approach finished next to the hole, and then produced another birdie on the 13th to offset a bogey on the 11th where he’d pulled his drive into the left rough.
However, having driven to the edge of the green on the 332 yards 14th, Fox got a poor lie, duffed his pitch and walked away with a bogey. On the par-three 15th, he overshot the green with a seven-iron and, again, ran up a bogey. However, he came home with three successive pars – missing a five-footer for birdie on the last – to match Cutler’s mark.
After a winter spent playing as an amateur on the mini-tours in Florida, where his coach Dowey Arnett is based and where he sharpened his competitive edge by competing against the likes of Patrick Sheehan, a winner on the Nationwide Tour this season, and PGA Tour regular Robert Gamez, Fox has returned to the domestic scene with renewed expectations. So far, he has put himself in a position to deliver.
Cutler, from Portstewart, finished eighth in the recent Irish Amateur Open at Royal Dublin and has maintained that good form.
On Saturday, he had an eagle two on the ninth here when he holed out his second shot from 100 yards with a lob wedge; and, yesterday, having started on the 10th, he finished his round on the ninth by holing a 15-footer for birdie.
Lennox, a 19-year-old plus-two handicapper from Moyola Park in Co Derry, added a 70 to his opening 72 for 142 while Eoin Arthurs, the defending champion, posted a second-round 69 for 143, the same mark as Dunmurry’s Stephen Crowe.
Alan Dunbar, another teenager who was part of Ireland’s Home Internationals senior and boys’ winning teams last year, and James Monaghan reached the mid-point on 144 and very much within striking distance.
The leading 51 players survived the cut, with Royal Dublin’s Liam Brady the only one of 10 players on 151, seven over, to make it into the final day based on his superior second round.
Given that this was the scene for Lowry’s amateur dramatics in winning the Irish Open a mere two weeks ago, you can bet your bottom dollar that this championship will have some twists and turns of its own before reaching the final act. More drama, please?
East of Ireland Details
SECOND ROUND
141– P Cutler (Portstewart) 69 72, J Fox (Portmarnock) 69 72.
142– L Lennox (Moyola Park ) 72 70.
143– E Arthurs (Forrest Little) 74 69, S Crowe (Dunmurry) 73 70.
144– A Dunbar (Rathmore) 75 69, J Monaghan (The Island ) 72 72.
145– K McDonagh (Athlone) 76 69, C Doran (Banbridge) 74 71, D Reilly (Westmanstown) 73 72, C Curley (Newlands) 73 72, D Morgan (Mullingar) 71 74.
146– S Power (West Waterford) 74 72, A McCormick (Scrabo) 73 73, J Hopkins (Skerries) 72 74
147– D Lernihan (Castle) 76 71, R Cannon (Laytown Bettystown) 75 72, R McConnell (Belvoir Park ) 74 73, G Kelly (Co Louth) 73 74, G Bohill (Co Louth) 73 74, N Grant (Knock) 72 75, N Beirth (Co Louth) 71 76.
148– D Beattie (Whitehead) 76 72, N Goulding (Portmarnock) 75 73, K Canty (Douglas) 74 74, D Carroll (Grange) 73 75, D O'Donovan (Muskerry) 72 76, D Crowe (Dunmurry) 71 77, A Morris (Belvoir Park ) 70 78.
149– J McGinn (Laytown Bettystown) 78 71, A Smith (The Island) 77 72, P Dunne (Greystones) 76 73, C Selfridge ( Moyola Park ) 74 75, K Egan (Curragh) 74 75, N Kearney (Royal Dublin ) 74 75, C Drumm (Rosslare) 73 76, F Rafferty (Dungannon) 73 76.
150– R Weldon (Luttrellstown Castle) 80 70, G McGee (Malone) 78 72, D Leathem (Lisburn) 77 73, G O'Flaherty (Cork) 77 73, D Finn (Mallow) 76 74, J Carvill (Warrenpoint) 75 75, C Hughes (Royal Portrush) 75 75, S Morrison (City of Derry) 74 76, K Condren (Greystones) 74 76, S Loftus (Lahinch) 74 76, M McAlpin (Royal Portrush) 74 76, G McGrane (The Royal Dublin) 73 77, M Brett (Portmarnock) 72 78.
151– L Brady ( Royal Dublin ) 77 74.
