Dundalk Golf Notes: Team Raven clinches precision cables winter league title with dominant performance

Team Raven have won the Precision Cables Winter League after leading from start to finish over the six rounds of the competition.

Going into the final round, they led by 20pts from Benny O’Shaughnessy’s Team Eagle who had surged through the pack after shooting a best of tournament score of 135pts in the penultimate round.

However, they were unable to repeat that performance in the final round and it was left to Colm Coburn’s Team Robin to try and chase down the runaway leaders. 

They returned an excellent score of 126pts with Vincent Conlon and skipper Coburn leading the way with 33pts and 32pts respectively while David Kelly with 31pts and Stephen Murphy with 30pts were their other counting scores.

They did eat into Team Raven’s lead but only slightly as the leaders held their nerve and returned a score of 118pts to win by 18pts. Team captain Gerry McDermott and Ciaran Corbett led the way with 30pts each while Colm Garvey and Gearoid Ó Conluain both shot 29pts.

Garvey had an excellent tournament, providing a counting score in each of the six rounds, while Corbett had five out of six. The other members of the team were Brian Gaughran, Conor McClenaghan, Austin Shaw and Captain Ultan Herr.

Every one of Team Raven’s eight players produced at least one counting score  over the six rounds as they averaged 124pts per round while their turnout rate of 92% was a key factor in their success.

The winners and runners-up were presented with their prizes by Fergus O’Callaghan, Managing Director of Precision Cables, and President Gerry Campbell at a special presentation in the Clubhouse. 

The President paid tribute to the sponsors for their generous support of the competition and thanked all those who took part in the competition.

Team Finch, captained by John McEneaney, finished third, 11 points off second place while Team Eagle had to settle for fourth after a disappointing return of 107pts from the final round. 

Nigel Giff’s Team Osprey shot 123pts in the final round to lift themselves off the bottom and leave Michael Noone’s Team Kestrel to pick up the wooden spoon.

Richard Smyth emerged a clear winner of the weekend Singles Stableford 14 Hole Winter League sponsored by Precision Cables with an impressive score of 38 points, three points ahead of nearest contenders Laurence O’Hanlon (12), David McDonnell (15) and Gordon Corry (16) who all came in with 35 points.

Richard, playing off an 11 handicap, had a par on the first hole and then had three pars in a row at the third, fourth and fifth holes, before birdying the par four eight to turn on 24 points. He excelled on the remaining five holes, parring the first four and finishing in style with a birdie three on fourteen.

The Last Man Standing competition begins again this weekend and the entry box is located in the Bar. The entry fee is €10 with the option of a €5 buy-in for those who don’t get through the first week. All monies raised will go towards assisting our Elite and Junior Golfers play in regional, national, and international competitions.  

Saturday, January 27 and Sunday, January 28 - Precision Cables Ireland Winter League 14-hole Singles Stableford Competition. Division 1: Vincent Conlon (8) 33pts, Runner Up Billy Cairns (5) 33 points. Division 2: Richard Smyth (11) 38pts, Runner Up Laurence O’Hanlon (12) 35pts. Division 3: David McDonnell (15) 35pts, Runner Up Gordon Corry (16) 35pts. Division 4: David Lawrence (17) 34pts, Runner Up Anthony McGuinness (18) 32pts.

Team Robin

Winter League sponsored by Precision Cables Ireland – Final Standings: 745 - Team Raven ( 119, 123, 128, 131, 126, 118). 727 - Team Robin (115, 123, 128, 120, 115, 126). 716 - Team Finch (107, 122, 122, 112, 128, 125). 714 - Team Eagle (106, 121, 126, 115, 139, 107). 695 - Team Sparrow (112, 120, 119, 115, 115, 114). 688 - Team Harrier (116, 121, 123, 122, 105, 101). 676 - Team Owl (116, 119, 117, 115, 100, 109). 675 - Team Wren (113, 118, 116, 111, 108, 109). 672 - Team Hawk (105, 113, 110, 109, 111, 124). 663 - Team Falcon (92, 115, 127, 123, 96, 110). 645 - Team Osprey (104, 126, 125, 122, 45, 123). 636 - Team Kestrel (110, 106, 117, 108, 86, 109).