AN HISTORIC CLUB WITH A MAGNIFICENT GEORGIAN PARKLAND SETTING SINCE 1893

Exactly three weeks after Paul Doyle landed the Sunday spoils at County Armagh Golf Club, son Caolan followed in his old man's footsteps with a three-over-par masterclass that prevailed in the club stableford tournament on 2 July.

In the event sponsored by Whittles Spar Supermarket, Caolan stormed round the front-nine aisles to reach the turn with 20 points in his stableford trolley, before eventually arriving at the 18-hole checkout with a massive 42-point salvo. The resultant first prize was a not so unexpected item in Doyle's bagging area.

Playing off nine at the start of proceedings, Caolan bogeyed the 1st before embarking on a run of five pars in a row that was halted only by a birdie at the 7th.

This high was followed by his only true blunder of the day — a double bogey at the 8th — but, completely unperturbed, Doyle the younger proceeded to record seven pars and a birdie in his next eight holes before ending with a pair of fives for a fantastic gross 73.


County Armagh's most difficult par 3? The 9th, Plateau.

Paul Rice, who knows a thing or two about the supermarket trade himself, lost out to Caolan only by virtue of his inferior homeward-nine points haul. Rice triumphed in his category on Captain's Day a week earlier, and this latest outstanding 42-point offering and consequential second-place finish suggests that there'll be no imminent let-up in his terrific run of form.

Paul may rue a no-score at the 18th, but he ought to reflect with great satisfaction on the excellence of two birdies and five pars and his speedily downward handicap trajectory.

Not many rounds at County Armagh are closed out with back-to-back birdies but Joe Rooney did just that as he emerged victorious in category 1 with 39 points from a magnificent gross 71.

Having returned a nett 67 to pocket 5th prize in the Henry and May White Memorial Open the day before, Johnny Brown iced his profitable weekend cake with a no-nonsense outing of 11 pars and seven bogeys that earned him 38 points and the category 1 runner-up spot.

The prolific Christopher Lester started with four consecutive pars before ultimately signing for a 39-point total that was enough to see off all of his category 2 opponents.

Equalling Lester's score but beaten on a break of tie was Roy Davis who, remarkably, failed to register at both the 1st and 18th but accumulated 39 points in the intervening 16 holes, thanks in no small part to birdies at the 3rd and 12th.

In a clash of the Ciarans at the top of the category 3 reckoning, Conroy's 41-point scorecard, which showed no fewer than seven pars, bested that of McCreesh, who birdied the 2nd and parred the 6th and 12th in amassing 37 points.

Meanwhile, Niall Brady took the plaudits in the midweek Open on Wednesday 5 July with a masterly gross 72 and its accruing 40 points.

The Seniors' Open on the same day was won by Club President, Walter Neville, with a typically neat-and-tidy display of seven pars, 11 bogeys and 39 points.

Finally, our All-Ireland Four-Ball Trophy team, who in many ways have been the leading lights of County Armagh's inter-club season, endured a 7.5 to 2.5 round 4 reverse against Rossmore over two legs on the Sundays of 2 and 9 July.

Sadly, this marks the end of the road for Tim Teahan's crew but it has been a campaign of many fond memories that will no doubt have whetted the appetite for another challenge next term.