Different Strokes: Peter McEnery set for a second wish to come true at Irish Open

One wish came true – just over a decade ago – and now Killarney Golf Club member Peter McEnery is going to get the opportunity to get the full pro-am experience when he partners Pádraig Harrington in the team event ahead of this year’s Horizon Irish Open at Mount Juliet in Thomastown, Co Kilkenny, on June 29th.

Back in 2010, as a 14-year-old year, Peter – who lives with Cystic Fibrosis – got to play a number of holes with the three-time Major champion ahead of the Irish Open when it was staged on his home course of Killeen at Killarney Golf & Fishing Club.

Now aged 26, and a four handicapper, he will again team-up with Harrington who is an ambassador for Make-A-Wish Ireland, which has been named as the official charity for the Irish Open as part of a six-year deal that ties in with Horizon Therapeutics sponsorship commitment to the tournament on the DP World Tour. The tournament takes place from June 30th to July 3rd.

McEnery credits that encounter with Harrington in 2010 as a primary reason for his continued love of golf and he will represent Make-A-Wish at the pro-am with the hope of raising awareness for the charity’s work.

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There will be a number of fundraising activities throughout the week at the Co Kilkenny venue, including a mega putt competition in the tented village.

“I remember very well the day I met and played with Peter and it is truly inspiring to see how far he has come with his golf in the 12 years since Make-A-Wish made his dream come true,” said Harrington.

“I look forward to playing alongside him again at this year’s pro-am and hopefully he will inspire other children who might be experiencing something similar to what he was going through at the time,” said Harrington who, along with his wife Caroline, has been an ambassador for the Make-A-Wish foundation for a number of years.

By the Numbers: 2

This week’s Cognizant Founders Cup on the LPGA Tour will see Leona Maguire, aiming to bounce back from successive missed cuts, and Stephanie Meadow in the field: Maguire is currently 22nd in the Rolex world rankings, while Meadow is up to 112th after two top-20 finishes in her last five outings.

By the Numbers: 3

There are three Irish players in the field for this week’s DP World Tour stop, the Soudal Open in Antwerp, Belgium: Jonny Caldwell, Cormac Sharvin and Niall Kearney are all playing at Rinkven International Golf Club and all need to get their season’s kick-started.

Kearney, despite limited outings so far and with just four tournament appearances, is actually best-placed of the trio on the Race to Dubai rankings. The Dubliner is in 176th position, with Caldwell – who has 12 outings so far – in 184th and Sharvin, with seven appearances to date, in 234th place.

Word of Mouth

“I’ve been doing a little AimPoint and, jeez, my stats have really improved. I’m happy with where that is. It’s the best it’s been since I’ve had the belly putter and it’s not even close . . . I feel like I can do a lot of damage the rest of the year” – Keegan Bradley, who finished runner-up to Max Homa in the Wells Fargo, on how his putting has improved since hooking up with short game coach Phil Kenyon.

On this day: May 10th, 1964

Billy Casper – the man known as “Buffalo Bill” – claimed the Colonial National Invitational in Fort Worth, Texas, with a closing round 70 for a total of one-under-par 279 that gave him a four strokes winning margin over Tommy Jacobs.

Among those included in a group in tied-fourth were Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer. It was, however, Casper – claiming a 22nd PGA Tour title – who reigned supreme with an impressive display that saw him move into the lead with an opening six-feet birdie to his final round at Colonial Country Club.

Gene Littler had appeared to be Casper’s main rival but his cause was hurt with a bogey on the sixth hole when he was distracted by a helicopter landing close to the hole, which resulted in a five minutes disruption to play but with the damage already done. Littler’s chances effectively disappeared on the eighth hole where Casper holed an eight-footer for birdie and his own tee shot on the par-three disappeared into the Trinity River, running up a double-bogey in what would be a three shot swing on the hole.

Casper earned $14,000 for this win, which had the effect of moving him from seventh to third on the season’s order of merit.

Twitter Twaddle

Disappointing par at the last to finish one shot short at the Mitsubishi Classic. Nice to shoot -8 (64) on Sunday. The second shot into 18 with a 5 iron from 220 (10 yards downhill) was exactly the shot I asked for in my preview. I hit it long into the back bunker @ChampionsTour -–Pádraig Harrington on narrowly missing out on his first Champions Tour win, finishing one stroke behind winner Steve Flesch. Harrington has two runners-up finishes on the seniors circuit so far this year and is up to 18th on the season’s Schwab Cup order of merit.

My soon to be born son is gunna have a hell of a job topping that Mother’s Day. Good luck kid! Thx for the support everyone. I appreciate u all! #golf – Max Homa putting it up to his to-be son after winning the Wells Fargo on Mother’s Day (in the United States).

A disappointing finish to a challenging week @PGATour @WellsFargoGolf here in the DC area. A big thanks to the Indian community for coming out and supporting me. I felt the love look forward to being back soon #currypower #keepknocking – Anirban Lahiri with a message to his followers, after his tied-sixth place finish in the Wells Fargo.

In the Bag: Thorbjorn Olesen (British Masters)

Driver: TaylorMade Stealth Plus (9 degrees) 3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth (15 degrees) 5-wood: TaylorMade Stealth (18 degrees) Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3), TaylorMade P7MC (4-PW) Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind 3 TW (56 and 60 degrees) Putter: Scotty Cameron Tour Type GSS

Know the Rules

Q In preparing to take a shot from the fairway to the green, Player A takes a number of practice swings and, on their last one, accidentally moves his ball in play on the fairway with their club. What is the ruling?

A Such a situation is covered by Rule 9.4b and, in this case, the player gets one penalty stroke and must replace the ball. If a player causes his/her ball in the general area to moving without making a stroke there is a one-stroke penalty.