Other golf news in brief
Barton delight for Enniscorthy
ENNISCORTHY became the first Wexford club to lift the FBD-sponsored Barton Cup, one the most sought after and oldest trophies in Leinster golf, when they beat Mullingar 6-4 in the final.
The club celebrated their centenary last year and this is their biggest win since capturing the All-Ireland Mixed title in 2006.
The winning team had a mixture of youth and experience. Four of the team had won the Leinster Junior Foursomes title earlier in the year - Graham Donohoe, whose father Maurice was also on the team, Conor Murphy, Jamie Dreelan and Diarmuid Cullen.
Down 3-2 from the first leg in Mullingar, Enniscorthy won the second leg 4-1. Cormac Martin and 15-year-old Cullen beat Eamon Shaw and Paddy Dunne on the 17th. Martin Sludds and 14-year-old Dreelan beat Ronan Maher and Mark Kelly, also on 17th.
Hughie O'Connor and Murt Mangan lost to David Tynan and Dessie Baker 4 and 3, while Munster Boys champion Graham Donohoe and his 15-year-old partner Conor Murphy won on the 15th and the last and crucial match went to the 16th, with Maurice Donohoe sinking a four-foot putt for the victory after partner Ray O'Connor had split the fairway with his drive.
Last-hole eagle seals it for Condren
THE 2008 Connacht Mid Amateur Open had a dramatic finish on Sunday at Claremorris GC when Alan Condren from Greystones claimed a one-shot victory over Galway's Eddie McCormack.
Leading overnight by three shots after opening rounds of 73 and 70, Condren was level with McCormack, who had opening rounds of 68 of 78, playing the final hole. McCormack did all that was asked of him on the par-five, coming up 20 feet shy of the hole in two. Condren looked to have blown his chances when a wayward second finished some 50 yards left of the intended target. But he proceeded to hole his pitch for an eagle three and a one-shot win after McCormack just missed out on his eagle to force a play-off.
Condren, who won the Wicklow Scratch Cup the previous week, finished on 217, McCormack on 218, with Pat Errity a shot further back on level par, 219, and Tony Cleary of East Clare in fourth place on 222.
Mountbellew ladies go for the double
MOUNTBELLEW GC will be the only club chasing a double when the AA Insurance Ladies National finals take place at Limerick GC next weekend.
Mountbellew take on Dún Laoghaire in the Junior Cup semi-final on Friday and face Rathfarnham in the Juniors foursomes semi-finals on Saturday.
Enniscorthy, who won the Intermediate Cup and the Junior Foursomes last year, take on Ballybunion in this year's Junior Cup second semi-final.
The second semi-final of the Junior Foursomes sees Moate face Rathbane from Limerick.
In the Senior Foursomes, Douglas, semi-finalists in the Irish Senior Cup, call on former internationals Eavan Higgins and Kate McCann for their semi-final clash with Shandon Park while the experienced Co Louth tee-up against Galway.
In the Intermediate Cup, Curra West will be the opposition for Slade Valley from Dublin, while Courtown face East Cork in the second semi-final.
Tara Glen will proved the opposition for Monkstown in the first of the Challenge Cup semi-finals, with Powerscourt and Athenry meeting in the second.
The Minor Cup sees Carlow and Cork's Lee Valley in opposition in one semi-final and Malahide and Donegal meeting in the other on Friday.
ILGU members vote heavily in favour of restructuring
THE members of the Irish Ladies Golf Union have voted in favour of a proposal that will transform the structure of the union.
A motion to convert the ILGU into a limited company was unanimously accepted by the union's members at their extraordinary general meeting on Saturday. Delegates voted in favour of the changes, with only seven out of 334 voting against the restructuring.
This status will give company protection to trustees, volunteers and delegates without changing the voting structure of the union.
The union's council will now be replaced by a nine-strong board of directors. This will be made up of the president, president-elect, a finance director, a director from each of the five districts, a Ladies Golf Union representative and a co-opted director. The current constitution will also be replaced by a memo and articles of association.
The operational powers of the company will be delegated to the current CEO, Sinéad Heraty.
"This is an absolutely brilliant day in the history of golf in Ireland. It shows that the ILGU are making considerable strides to modernise itself and bring it in line with many other success businesses in the country," said Heraty.
"It is a real example of the building process that the union is undergoing."
The changes will be phased in over a three-year period beginning on October 1st.
ILGU scatterdays set for Elmgreen
NEW young golfers are being encouraged to pick up a golf club for the first time and give it a go as the ILGU hold open "scatterdays" for youths over the coming winter months.
Girls do not have to be members of a club, nor have a handicap but do need to be under the age of 13 years on January 1st, 2009.
Two scatterdays are booked in Elmgreen GC on Saturday and Sunday, October 4th/5th. To reserve a place contact Marie Collins 046-9241531.
Owens leads Killiney to Irish Times Shield at Tulfarris
THE 81st staging of the Leinster Alliance's Irish Times Shield took place at Tulfarris recently with an excellent turnout of 25 clubs braving bad weather conditions which made scoring very difficult.
However, at the end of a testing day, Killiney and Hermitage tied on 98 points (best three of four cards to count), with Killiney winning on the best fourth card. The Killiney team were led home by their professional Lee Owens with a superb score of 37 points, aided by Keith Bardon, Mary Hoey and Robbie Doody.
In the individual competition, the best score of the day in the nett category was produced by Brendan McDonnell, a six-handicapper from Castlewarden whose score of 35 points won on a countback from Slade Valleys Billy Fitzsimons, playing off nine, and Eoin Buckley (4) of Hermitage. Owens, not surprisingly won the gross prize, with his nearest challenger being Eddie Condren (3) from Greystones.
