Teenager Joshua Hill fired 11 birdies in a 10-under 62 to lead the qualifiers for the match play rounds in the Pierse Motors sponsored South of Ireland Championship at Lahinch.
The 18-year old boys international from Galgorm Castle insisted he never thought about shooting 59 as he took advantage of windless conditions and caressed a magical sub-60 score by getting to nine under with five to play.
While he birdied the 16th from four inches to head to the 17th needing a birdie-eagle finish, he lipped out from around 10 feet for birdies on the last two greens to top the qualifiers by two shots from defending champion TJ Ford from Co Sligo on 12-under 132.
“To be honest with you, I was just trying to qualify and shooting 59 never entered my head, not even when I birdied 16,” said Hill, whose only error a three-putt bogey at the eighth.
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“I just wanted to qualify and I was playing safe to the middle of the greens and all of sudden 30 and 40 footers started to drop on the front nine. Then on the back nine I thought I might as well go for it a little bit and have fun with it. It was good fun out there.”
After a birdie at the second, he made a 30 footer at the third, then added birdies at the fourth (six feet), sixth (50 feet), seventh (12 feet) and followed a three-putt from 30 feet at the eighth with another birdie from 30 feet at the ninth.
Out in 31, he birdied the 10th (10 feet), 11th (six feet), 12th (chip and putt) and the drivable 13th, where he hit a hybrid on the green and missed from around 10 feet for eagle.
Defending champion Ford carded a bogey-free, eight-under 64 to finish second on 10 under as Elm Park’s Charlie Denvir also shot 64, making two eagles (from six feet at the second and 80 yards at the ninth) to finish third on nine under.
North of Ireland champion Hugh Foley from Royal Dublin shot 68 to tie for fourth with clubmate and Munster interprovincial Richard Knightly (70) and East of Ireland champion Alex Maguire (69) on seven under as the cut for the top 64 fell at two-over-par 146 with four of the six players on that mark surviving.
Qualifiers
132 J Hill (Galgorm Castle) 70 62
134 T Ford (Co Sligo) 70 64
135 C Denvir (Elm Park Golf & Sports Club) 71 64
137 H Foley (Royal Dublin) 69 68, A Maguire (Laytown & Bettystown GC) 68 69, R Knightly (Royal Dublin) 67 70
139 D Kitt (Athenry) 69 70
140 S Flanagan (Portmarnock) 70 70, C Campbell (Warrenpoint) 70 70, K Egan (Carton House) 70 70, H Fanagan (Milltown) 70 70, J Foley (Elm Park) 69 71, J Hood (Galgorm Castle) 67 73
141 J McDonnell (Forrest Little) 75 66, R Cannon (Balbriggan) 74 67, M Kennedy (Royal Dublin) 72 69, C Rafferty (Dundalk) 72 69, J Madden (Royal Portrush) 71 70, A McCormack (Castletroy) 70 71, J Cleary (Elm Park) 70 71, J Robinson (Lisburn) 69 72, R Brazill (Naas) 68 73
142 M Dodd (St Anne’s) 73 69, R Latimer (Clandeboye) 72 70, D Hogg (Belvoir Park) 72 70, A King (Faithlegg) 71 71, P Coughlan (Castleknock) 70 72, P O’ Keeffe (Douglas) 70 72
143 J McCabe (Roganstown) 75 68, D Reddan Jnr (Nenagh) 74 69, A Collins (Laytown & Bettystown GC) 73 70, R Abernethy (Dún Laoghaire) 73 70, B St John (Portmarnock) 73 70, J Whelan (Grange) 72 71, M Boucher (Carton House) 72 71, J Rackard (Enniscorthy) 70 73, K Morris (Wexford) 70 73, S Loftus (Lahinch) 69 74
144 S Hogan (The Heritage) 77 67, J Doherty (Carton House) 76 68, P O’Hanlon (Carton House) 75 69, D O’Riordan (Fermoy) 73 71, A Fahy (Bray) 73 71, A Riordan (Blarney) 72 72, J Hearn (Tramore) 72 72, D O’Sullivan (Tralee) 72 72, P Conroy (Enniscorthy) 71 73, D Keating (Seapoint) 70 74
145 S McLoughlin (Co Sligo) 76 69, D Kelleher (Blarney) 75 70, E Murphy (Dundalk) 74 71, J Hewitt (Tandragee) 74 71, M Mullen (Rosslare) 74 71, E Sullivan (Carton House) 73 72, P Adler (North Shore Country Club) 73 72, S O’Brien (Nenagh) 73 72, L Nolan (Galway) 72 73, A McNulty (Lahinch) 72 73, E Farrell (Ardee) 70 75, D Flynn (Carton House) 70 75
146 C Harkin (Letterkenny) 75 71, G O’Flaherty (Cork) 74 72, G O’Neill (Malahide) 74 72, H Gillivan (Westport) 73 73.
Non-qualifiers
146 J Butler (Killeen) 73 73, K McCarron (North West) 70 76
147 F Dobbin (Malone) 78 69, R Galligan (Elm Park Golf & Sports Club) 77 70, S Hogan (Nenagh) 76 71, K Robinson (Castlewarden) 76 71, S Lillis (Kilrush) 75 72, C Ryan (Bray) 75 72, J Blake (The Island) 73 74, A Brady (Co Sligo) 72 75
148 E Dunlea (Killarney) 77 71, P O Dochartaigh (Gweedore) 75 73, A McCabe (The Links Portmarnock) 75 73, Q Carew (Castleknock) 75 73, C Hickey (Dooks) 75 73, R McNelis (Fintona) 74 74, M Murphy (Clandeboye) 74 74, J Hanney (The Island) 73 75, T Dowdall (Woodbrook) 71 77
149 I O’Connell (Castleknock) 78 71, M Auerbach (Bellport) 78 71, L Cunningham (Galway Bay) 77 72, E Shipp (Headfort) 77 72, S O’Neill (Killarney) 76 73, P Murray (Tramore) 76 73, N Hearns (Mountrath) 75 74, S McDermott (Slieve Russell) 74 75, M Deasy (Douglas) 74 75, D Muldowney (Carton House) 73 76, J Walsh (Douglas) 73 76
150 K Bornemann (Douglas) 79 71, L Abom (Edmondstown) 78 72, J Greene (Portmarnock) 77 73, K Murphy (Arklow) 77 73, R Walsh Jnr (Douglas) 76 74, B Keenan (The Heath) 76 74, A Smith (Mullingar) 75 75, A Hickey (Ballyhaunis) 75 75
151 D Foy (Laytown & Bettystown GC) 80 71, S Murphy (Portumna) 78 73, K Howard (Dromoland) 78 73, C Kenny (Portmarnock) 77 74, J Byrne (Baltinglass) 76 75, M McKinstry (Cairndhu) 76 75, T Higgins (Roscommon) 75 76, S McAufield (Ardee) 75 76, P Sheehan (Ballybunion) 73 78
152 I Lynch (Rosslare) 77 75, P McGrath (Galway Bay) 77 75, R Fitzpatrick (Naas) 76 76, G Collins (Rosslare) 75 77, R Williamson (Holywood) 75 77, L O’Connor (Edmondstown) 75 77, P Buckley (Cork) 75 77, S Desmond (Monkstown) 74 78, A Dooley (Carton House) 74 78, J Fox (Portmarnock) 74 78
153 T Plunkett (Crover House) 84 69, D Shiel (Powerscourt) 77 76, A Marshall (Lisburn) 77 76, M O Sullivan (Ballyneety) 76 77
154 R Kennelly (Castleknock) 81 73, J Rowe (Belvoir Park) 78 76, D Hogan (Killeen Castle) 78 76, C Byrne (Strabane) 73 81
155 S Addie (Kilmarnock Barassie) 79 76, R O’Connor (Co Sligo) 72 83
156 A McCormick (Scrabo) 80 76, S O’Rourke (Tulfarris) 79 77, C Johnston (Dundalk) 77 79, J O’Neill (Tralee) 75 81
157 C Butler (Kinsale) 83 74, J O’Driscoll (Grange) 83 74
158 J Boles (Charleville) 82 76, S McDermott (Esker Hills) 80 78
159 P Flynn (Tramore) 79 80, J Lyons (Galway) 77 82
161 C Hall (Castletroy) 79 82
163 S O’Connell (Athenry) 85 78
164 J Kelly (Ardee) 84 80, D Byrne (The Els Club Dubai) 78 86
165 M Giles (Greenore) 85 80
169 J O’Leary (Golf Club at Terra Lago) 77 92 RTD 81 S Whelan (Royal Tara), 79 D Connellan (St Anne’s), D Smith (Palmerstown House Estate).
First-round draw
07:00 J Hill (Galgorm Castle) v H Gillivan (Westport)
07:09 A Collins (Laytown & Bettystown) v R Abernethy (Dún Laoghaire)
07:18 J McDonnell (Forrest Little) v S McLoughlin (Co Sligo)
07:27 R Cannon (Balbriggan) v D Keating (Seapoint):
07:36 A Fahy (Bray) v L Nolan (Galway)
07:45 R Latimer (Clandeboye) v S Hogan (The Heritage)
07:54 C Denvir (Elm Park) v S O’Brien (Nenagh)
08:03 M Dodd (St Anne’s) v J Doherty (Carton House)
08:12 A Maguire (Laytown & Bettystown) v C Harkin (Letterkenny)
08:21 P O’ Keeffe (Douglas) v M Boucher (Carton House)
08:30 H Fanagan (Milltown) v J Hewitt (Tandragee)
08:39 A McCormack (Castletroy) v J Hearn (Tramore)
08:48 R Knightly (Royal Dublin) v D Flynn (Carton House)
08:57 P Coughlan (Castleknock) v J Rackard (Enniscorthy)
09:06 K Egan (Carton House) v M Mullen (Rosslare)
09:15 J Cleary (Elm Park) v A Riordan (Blarney)
09:24 TJ Ford (Co Sligo) v G O’Neill (Malahide)
09:33 D Reddan Jnr (Nenagh) v B St John (Portmarnock)
09:42 J Hood (Galgorm Castle) v D Kelleher (Blarney)
09:51 M Kennedy (Royal Dublin) v P Conroy (Enniscorthy)
10:00 C Rafferty (Dundalk) v A McNulty (Lahinch)
10:09 D Hogg (Belvoir Park) v S Loftus (Lahinch)
10:18 D Kitt (Athenry) v P Adler (North Shore Country Club, USA)
10:27 R Brazill (Naas) v P O’Hanlon (Carton House)
10:36 H Foley (Royal Dublin) v G O’Flaherty (Cork)
10:45 J McCabe (Roganstown) v J Whelan (Grange)
10:54 J Foley (Elm Park) v E Murphy (Dundalk)
11:03 J Madden (Royal Portrush) v D O’Sullivan (Tralee)
11:12 C Campbell Jnr (Warrenpoint) v E Farrell (Ardee)
11:21 A King (Faithlegg) v K Morris (Wexford)
11:30 S Flanagan (Portmarnock) v E Sullivan (Carton House)
11:39 J Robinson (Lisburn) v D O’Riordan (Fermoy)
