Mannan Golf Notes: Pairs events prove popular as Breffni Shield side revealed

After a little delay on Saturday morning due to frost, the weather held up well for most over the weekend of April 15/16th.

Division 1 was won by Mark Lambe with a great score of 40pts. Mark’s round consisted of one eagle, five birdies and three dropped shots. Darragh Kelly finished runner up with a level par round of 39pts.

Trevor Markey shot 40pts to win Division 2. Since the turn of the year, Trevor has found form and is very consistent after finishing runner up in the Spring League. Aaron Kelly finished one shot back on 39pts.

39pts was enough to win Division 3 with Seamus Bellew doing very little wrong in his round and finishing strongly with a great back nine of 21pts, beating off the challenge of Colm Reilly by two shots.

Division 4 saw the biggest score over the weekend with Kenneth Devlin shooting a brilliant 44pts. He shot 23pts in the front nine and came home with 21pts, holding off Micheal Conlon who also had a great score of 43pts.

Weekend Stablerford18 Holes 15th/16th April: Div 1 Mark Lambe (PH.0) 40pts, Div 2 Trevor Markey (PH.15) 40pts, Div 3 Seamus Bellew (PH.20) 39pts, Div 4 Kenneth Devlin (PH.21) 44pts.

MANNAN CASTLE SENIORS

In cool and windy conditions, a good turnout of Mannan Castle seniors had a competitive 13-hole competition in the weekly Tuesday Stableford.

Arthur Mulholland had a very steady card, scoring on every hole and an excellent birdie two on the par 3 12th proved to be critical in his overall victory.

Graeme Woodcock will rue a lost ball on the 11th where he failed to score, finishing just one point behind Arthur with 28 points to take Category 1.

Also on 28 points was Kieran Lally, who recently joined the seniors, and he won the Category 2 prize. Four 3-pointers in his last four holes being a major contribution to his success.

Senior Men 13 Hole Competition Tuesday 18th April (Full Handicap): Overall: Arthur Mulholland (23) 29pts, Category 1: Graeme Woodcock (21) 28pts, Category 2: Kieran Lally (23) 28pts.

MANNAN CASTLE LADIES

There was a fantastic turnout for the Breffni Shield Qualifier this year. We had 17 pairs hit the fairways and the overall scoring across the board was pretty good, especially given the windy conditions of the day.

The format is Scotch Foursomes, with both golfers teeing off on every hole. You then choose the best drive and every other shot until the elusive ball is putted into the hole. You only hit half as many shots as you would in any other round of golf, but sometimes it’s hard to find your rhythm.

Lady Captain Teresa Butler and Geraldine Finnegan had no issues with the format and obviously the partnership worked very well, as they claimed first place with a steady 71 nett. The pair played solid bogey/par golf with a nice little birdie on the 8th hole.

Ali Ellis and Marie Finnegan, another pair of girls who play every well together, finished with 71 nett, pipping Carol McMahon and Angela Evers for second place on the breakdown.

But it is our Lady Captain Teresa and her best friend Geraldine who will represent Mannan Castle in the Final of the Breffni Shield in Ashbourne Golf Club on Monday May 22nd.

Breffni Shield Qualifier (Stroke) 19th April 2023: Lady Captain Teresa Butler & Geraldine Finnegan (20) 71 nett, 2nd Maire Finnegan & Ali Ellis (17) 72nett c/b.

There was a terrific turnout on Friday April 21st for our 2-Lady Team Open, with pairings of members, friends and visitors mingling throughout the day.

Many came to Mannan Castle to play from clubs near and far, including Headfort, Ardee, Dundalk, Ashfield, Greenore, Seapoint, Baltray, Luttrellstown, and beyond, on a spectacularly sunny and warm, yet very blustery day when the course was in fabulous condition.

Everyone had a lot of fun, on and off the course. Not least in the restaurant afterwards, but there were great prizes to be won too thanks to the generous sponsors for this event.

The final group of golfers, who finished just before the light faded, rushed to the tee box straight from work and they were top of the bunch.

The duo of Louise Hanratty and Mary Cassidy claimed first place. This solid pair did very little wrong. Mary had a magnificent birdie on the tricky 13th hole and with six more pars in their round, Mary and playing partner Louise Hanratty finished with the best score of the day 39pts.

Not far behind, Marie Finnegan and Ali Ellis played another great round, but ultimately dropping points on the 11th made the difference between first and second.

Mary MacNamee and Jackie Edwards took third place with a great birdie on the 9th from Jackie, a highlight in their eighteen holes.

A birdie on the third by Angela McBride helped earn her and partner Siobhan Downey take the front 9 prize. While another birdie on the 12th by Angela Hall helped her and partner Frances Molloy to the Back 9 prize. Nearest the pin on the 3rd went to Angela Evers and on the 10th to Angela Gartlan.

Open 2 Lady Team – Stableford 21st April 2023 sponsored by D.G McArdle International: 1st Louise Hanratty (4) & Mary Cassidy (15) 39pts, 2nd Marie Finnegan (11) & Ali Ellis (19) 37pts, 3rd Mary MacNamee (14) & Jackie Edwards (20) 36pts.

Front 9 Winners: Siobhan Downey & Angela McBride 21pts. Back 9 Winners: Frances Molloy & Angela Hall (Ashfield GC) 21pts. Nearest The Pin 3rd Hole: Angela Evers. Nearest The Pin 10th Hole: Angela Gartlan.

Many thanks to all those involved in making this day a success, and special appreciation to our generous sponsor for the event, the Inniskeen-based company, D.G. McArdle International.