Mayo club celebrate AIG victory in Athlone

It was a memorable weekend for Connacht golf at Athlone Golf Club as Claremorris and Gort claimed their first AIG Pierce Purcell Shield and Women’s Intermediate Foursomes Championships respectively, writes Caomh Breen Allen.

Claremorris reached Saturday’s decider after edging out Munster East representatives Tramore 2.5-1.5 in Friday’s semi-final. In the final they faced Cushendall and carried the momentum of that narrow win into the contest as they made a fast start, leading in all four matches thru the opening nine holes.

Enda Gurren and Brian Burke delivered the first point with a 5&4 win in the top match, while Rossa Higgins and John Finn followed up with a 4&3 victory in the anchor match to put Claremorris on the brink.

With just a half point required, Michael Lohan and Martin Murphy held their nerve to go 1up through 17 and secure the title, leaving the Mayo club to celebrate their first success in the Pierce Purcell Shield.

“We started this campaign five months ago and we did give it a good fist, but we never thought we’d be standing here winning this pennant. It’s the best feeling in the world because there’s a lot of work and a lot of effort gone into this,” said Claremorris team captain Derek Reilly.

“We played in one 12 years ago, and we lost it, and we haven’t been in the final since. It’s great to come up this year and get to it and win it and tick that box.

“It is huge for such a small club. We’re surrounded by clubs like Ballinrobe and Castlebar who have won this before and we kind of felt a bit left out, but we’ve proven this year that we are a club to be reckoned with. Let’s hope this can drive the club on now for the future and we can win more at All-Ireland level.”

Gort added a second trophy for Connacht with an impressive display in the Women’s Intermediate Foursomes. Having eased past Monkstown 3.5-0.5 in Friday’s semi-final, they maintained that form against Munster West champions Ballyneety in the final.

To make it an even more memorable weekend for the sport locally, Castlebar Golf Club sealed a place in the final of the Mary McKenna Diamond Trophy at scenic Woodenbridge GC, Co. Wicklow, after a merited victory over Belvoir, Belfast, in the penultimate round.