Showing posts with label PGAireland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PGAireland. Show all posts

5/16/2016

Profile - Colm Moriarty


With an amateur handicap of (+5), Colm Moriarty enjoyed an outstanding career as a full-time amateur golfer, coupled with a reputation for being one of the most exciting and aggressive players on the world amateur circuit in recent years. He was part of the Irish national team set up since he was sixteen years old and has enjoyed success not only in the most prestigious Irish amateur tournaments, but also in major amateur golf events all over the world.

In 2003, Colm astounded the world amateur game by winning both the Australian (NSW) amateur stroke play and match play titles in New South Wales, Australia. This marked the first time that any player managed to win both titles in one season for almost 30 years. In September 2003, he achieved the highest accolade in world amateur golf when selected to play in the victorious Walker Cup team at Ganton Golf Club. This victory marked the first time that the Great Britain & Ireland team managed to win three Walker Cup titles in a row. 

Leaving his highly distinguished amateur golf career on a high note, Colm turned professional at the end of 2003 began competing on the European Challenge Tour. 

In 2005 showed his potential in the Nissan Irish Open on the European Tour, when he received a sponsors invite to play in the event and went on to finish in 13th place, with Padraig Harrington being the only Irish player to finish ahead of him. Colm had a number of impressive finishes on the Challenge Tour in the 2005 season, the highlight of which was second position in the Kazakhstan Open.

Colm played a combination of Challenge Tour and Europro Tour for the 2007 season. He began the year on a bright note, winning his first professional event, the Europro Tours Wensum Valley tournament at the beginning of May. Then came his first Challenge Tour victory, the First Plus Wales Challenge in July.

Unfortunately those wins were not enough to break back onto the main European Tour, Moriarty finishing 34th in the final 2007 Challenge Tour Rankings. In 2008, Colm finished 55th in the rankings during a disappointing season that had six top 20's, but only two top 10's.

After a slow start to the 2009 Challenge Tour season, Colm produced many consistent performances, missing only 2 cuts from his final 14 events. Only one of these, however, would result in a top-10, and Moriarty finished 52nd on the Order of Merit. Despite a good effort at Tour School, Colm unfortunately missed the four-round cut mark and has played The Challenge Tour again in 2010.

This season Moriarty qualified for the 150th Open Championship where he finished in 37th place on one under in very difficult conditions and also notched up two top ten finishes on the Challenge Tour - ALLIANZ Golf Open du Grand Toulouse and Fred Olsen Challenge de EspaƱa.

Moriarty is currently in 42nd place in the Challenge Tour Rankings with the last event at the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final this week in Iyaly set to decide the top 20 places that offer European Tour exemptions for the 2011 season. 

Fact File
Date of Birth: June 12th, 1979
lace of Birth: Dublin, Ireland
Attachment: Glasson Golf Hotel & Country Club
Turned Pro 2003 (plus 5)
Qualifying School (2001), (02), (03), 04, 05, (06), 07, (08), 09


1/07/2016

Golfing legend - Christy O'Connor Jnr

PA News
1985 Ryder Cup star and former British Senior Open champion Christy O’Connor Jnr has died at the age of 67.

The Irishman, who turned professional in 1967, was best remembered for helping Europe retain the Ryder Cup at The Belfry in 1989 when he fired a stunning two-iron to within four feet of the 18th pin to beat Fred Couples and secure a 14-14 draw with the States.

O'Connor, the nephew of golfing great Christy O'Connor, won four times on the European Tour before joining the senior ranks where he won back-to-back British Seniors Open titles on home soil in 1999 and 2000.

In a statement, the Golf Union of Ireland paid tribute to the Galway man, labelling him a 'gentleman, an iconic figure of Irish golf and a true ambassador'.

"He was a pioneer for professional Irish golfers and inspired a generation of players," the organisation added.

O'Connor, who in his latter years was heavily involved in designing over 30 golf courses across Europe, died in his sleep while on holiday in Tenerife.

Fellow-countryman Shane Lowry said: "Very sad news today about Christy O'Connor Jnr. An absolute legend of Irish golf. Thoughts and prayers go out to his family and loved ones."

George O'Grady, chief executive of the European Tour from 2004-2015, said: "It is a very sad day for the O'Connor family and for Ireland as a whole.

"Christy Jnr was a legendary figure and his immense legacy is far more than purely his playing record. He was a universally popular player and always enhanced every tournament he played, no matter the occasion. His infectious charm will be sorely missed."

Ken Schofield, executive director of the European Tour from 1975-2004, said: "Christy Jnr's playing record will rightly depict him as one of Ireland and Europe's leading players of his generation - the generation that set the template for today's global European Tour. 

"Much more so for everyone involved with the Tour and the game of golf, Christy will be remembered as a gentleman spirit - every amateur golfer's dream as the perfect Pro-Am partner, on and off the golf course. It is a very sad day for the game and our hearts go out to Ann and all the extended family."

Speaking in 2010 about his famous victory over Couples, O'Connor Jnr revealed European captain Tony Jacklin had been one of the few people to have faith in one of his three wild card selections.

"It was the greatest and most emotional moment of my professional life," said O'Connor Jnr, who is survived by his wife Ann, daughter Ann and son Nigel. "I'd felt terrible at breakfast that morning because of an article writing me off in one of the Sunday newspapers.

"I felt the pressure it put on me was too much. Tony Jacklin, the captain, was brilliant on the final hole. He said on the 18th tee that if I put the pressure on, Fred wouldn't be able to take it.

"Even though I was miles behind him after the tee shots, Jacko didn't lose faith. 'Put it on the green, I've a feeling that something will happen,' he said.

"Well everyone knows that I played the shot of my life, a two iron from 235 yards that finished four foot from the hole. I guess you could say I did put it on the green and something did happen. I remember looking up to the sky with my arms outstretched and tears ran down my face. It was unforgettable."