Francis was level par for the last 12 holes, with two streaks of four pars in a row — from the 9th to 13th and, quite brilliantly, the 14th to 18th — punctuated only by his birdie at the 7th, a repeat of that trick at the par-3 11th, and largely harmless bogeys at the 8th and 14th.
Doing his utmost to rain on Francis’s victory parade was Shea Smyth, who shot an awesome gross 68 for a consecutive Saturday, to take the overall runner-up prize.
After being a breathtaking four under par on the homeward trek the previous week, Shea completed the same nine holes in only one stroke more this time. Birdies at the 6th, 10th, 11th, 15th and 18th contributed to Smyth’s scintillating 41 points which, on a break of tie, edged out three other players who returned the same excellent total.
True to the old ‘form is temporary, class is permanent’ adage, Pearse McBride recorded 10 pars and a birdie while amassing 38 points on a day when only no-scores at the 9th and 11th hindered his return to the single-figure-handicap ranks.
In category 1, McBride was outgunned only by Cormac O’Hare, who was one of the 41-point quartet. A purple patch of three under par for the four holes between the 3rd and 6th helped O’Hare to reach the turn just one over par. His homeward nine would include five pars and yet another birdie but, frustratingly, failure to register any points at the 10th or 15th and a double bogey at the last meant that the 11-handicapper’s otherwise majestic round would lead to only category honours.
Francis Smyth, a name amalgam of the tournament winner and runner-up, displayed some of the positive attributes of both with a 39-point showing that simultaneously sealed top spot in category 2 and gave an indication of where Shea’s golfing prowess comes from.
In second place here for successive Saturdays was Terry Chin, whose impressive eight-par haul enabled him to reach the same 39-point mark.
A birdie at the 2nd in addition to pars at the 3rd, 6th, 11th to 14th and 17th contributed greatly to Kevin Boyd’s superb 41-point offering and resultant category 3 success. Gary McAleavey, no stranger to a category prize in 2017, carded the same fantastic score, with seven pars ensuring that his handicap continues to plummet.