PAT MURRAY has seen it all at Lahinch, but after reaching his seventh semi-final thanks to two sterling displays, he’ll be forgiven for thinking he’s been caught in a time warp when he takes on the unheralded John Greene of Carlow at the classic Clare links this morning.
Dressed in shorts and with nothing more than a polo shirt to keep out the chill wind, Greene (24) sports the kind of hairstyle that makes Rory McIlroy’s look like something from bootcamp.
“You might as well pretend you’re in Florida,” said Greene with a grin. “I think I’m a blast from the past, like something from the 70s.”
He might not look the part, but Greene has the game to add to 39-year-old Murray’s tales of woe in what will go down as one of the most open editions of the South.
The plus one handicapper, who won this year’s Waterford Scratch Cup and is on a golf scholarship at UCD, is a dangerous animal in that he’s got nothing to lose.
He broke a couple of teenage hearts yesterday as he followed a 2 and 1 win over 16-year-old Milltown star Liam Harnett with a miraculous comeback victory against Skerries star Sam Devey.
Two down with three to play against Devey, Greene finished birdie-par-birdie to win by one hole and confessed he’s amazed he’s come so far.
“I don’t know how I am still here, to be honest,” said Greene, who got some help in his quarter-final win as Devey hit his second shot out of bounds at the last. “I can’t believe Sam’s not a Boys international or even a Boys interpro. He’s easily good enough, but I just broke his heart today.”
One of four amateurs invited to play in this week’s Irish Open in Killarney, Murray hopes to make the 80-mile drive tonight with some extra luggage in his boot.
Six times he has driven away from Lahinch a beaten semi-finalist, but having broken his championship duck by claiming last year’s Irish Close title at Enniscrone, he believes his luck is about to change.
“I’ve come up against it in six semis,” said Murray, who saw off West Waterford’s Mark Shanahan by two holes before ending the dreams of Lahinch’s Thomas Neenan with an impressive 6 and 4 quarter-final victory. “It just wasn’t my time, but I’m feeling good about the game this year.
“The South means a lot to me because it was the first championship I ever played in and it’s the one where I’ve gone furthest the most times. It would be nice to be going down to Killarney for the Irish Open with the trophy in the boot.”
If Murray makes it to his first final he’ll face the winner of the clash between Athlone’s Kelan McDonagh, the 20-year-old international, and Munster interprovincial Cian Daly (27) of Castletroy.
A 4 and 3 winner over Old Conna’s Mark Sheridan in the morning, McDonagh then eliminated the joint favourite and Irish Close champion Dara Lernihan by one hole in the afternoon to make it to his first senior final.
