Golfer David Howard claims first win of the new season

David Howard picked up his first trophy of the season last weekend when he had a play-off win in Rosslare. 

The Fota Island member had an opening round of +2, but he managed to shoot three under in the second round to give him a share of the lead when the cards were finalised. 

David was tied with Colin Woodroofe and the pair headed to the first tee for a sudden death play-off. With light fading after the two rounds of golf, Howard won the first to claim the spoils.

Howard will be happy with his progress as he heads for Sligo this week for the West of Ireland. 

He finished in the top ten at Laytown & Bettystown two weeks ago and his game is trending in the right direction as he plays in the first major championship of the season.

James Walsh is also in action in Co Sligo, the Douglas golfer has had a good start to the year on the R&A Student Series. 

After four events Walsh is second on the order of merit. Representing Maynooth’s Harrington Scholar’s golf team, Walsh has had two top five finishes, taking third place in Malone in October, and a second place in La Sella in Spain in February.

Lee Valley will host their BoyleSports sponsored senior scratch cup on the 25th and 26th of April, marking the start of the scratch cup season in Cork. 

This 54-hole WAGR counting event has usually attracted a top quality field.

Last year Robbie Walsh secured his second win after a dramatic four-hole play-off. 

Walsh went down by one on the first but improved on the 16th and 17th to beat Ben Murray. That competition took place in October last year as Lee Valley rebuilt the second green earlier in the year.

The event returns to its normal April date and it’s expected to attract a very competitive field. Tournament Director Vincent Drinan is currently accepting entries and interest is strong with less than a month to go. 

The field of 81 will play two rounds on Saturday with the top 24 and ties going forward to the final round on Sunday.

A week later Cork Golf Club will host the Munster Stroke Play which incorporates the historic Cork Scratch Cup. 

First staged in 1923, the scratch is the oldest scratch cup that is still played for. 

While the competition celebrated its centenary in 2023, the 100th staging takes place this year as it wasn’t held for 4 years due to World War II. The original cup is still in use, and holds the names of all the Cork greats and charts the history of the sport for over 100 years.

Records dating back to a meeting on 23rd January 1923 detail the decision to purchase a cup for no more than £25—a significant investment at the time and approximately €1,500 in today’s value. 

The inaugural event was played that March, with Cork’s James F. Nicholson defeating Midleton’s T.S. Coppinger 8&7 over 36 holes. 

Thirty-four players entered that first matchplay competition, with Nicholson taking home £5 and the honour of being the first name engraved on what would become a legendary trophy.

Denis O’Sullivan and George Crosbie lead the honour roll as five-time winners, and the great Jimmy Bruen won four in a row before the war break. 

Tom Cleary is also a four-time winner, his first win came in 1986 and 18 years later he captured his 4th title. 

Other multiple winners from Cork include Kieran McCarthy, Peter O’Keeffe, Pat Lyons and Sligo native Barry Anderson who now plays out of Cork.

The Cork Scratch Cup was given Championship status in 2006 and was renamed as the Munster Strokeplay following an agreement between Munster Golf and Cork Golf Club. 

The historic competition was rebranded and assumed status as a 72-hole championship event. 

It’s official title now is the Munster Men’s Amateur Open Stroke Play Championship, but it remains known as the Munster Stroke Play, or even the Cork Scratch Cup by a certain cohort of golfers.

Unfortunately the date for the Munster Stroke Play continues to clash with the Lytham Trophy which takes place in Liverpool the same weekend. The Lytham attracts the top European amateurs and it’s likely that several of Ireland’s amateurs will go to Liverpool, but the Cork Scratch Cup remains one of the biggest local events. 

An entry cut-off of lower than +2 is expected. 75 golfers will take part in the opening two rounds on Saturday with the top 30 going through to the final 36 holes on Sunday.