Damian Mooney Takes Title

Damian Mooney

Damian Mooney clinched top spot in the Ping PGA Ulster Grand Prix after an amazing performance at Castlerock.

Unattached Mooney fired a sizzling six-under 67 and goes into the matchplay draw as No.1, irrespective of what happens in the 10th and final round, at Royal Portrush on April 8.

He stormed off with a hat-trick of birdies, going 3-3-4. At the first hole he steered a pitching wedge to six feet, at the next he drove the green and at the long third he reached the green with a drive and three wood.

From the eighth hole, Mooney had three three-stabs in a row for par, bogey four and bogey five but then reached the surface at the long 11th with a drive and five iron for birdie four, before wedging to three feet and eight feet at 12 and 13 for back-to-back birdie threes.

A drive and nine iron to the 15th green set up eagle three and he finished with three pars, having had five threes in a row from the 12th hole.

Massereene's David Hughes leaped into eighth and final place in the Order of Merit after being second to Mooney, just one stroke back.

There are still a few of the final places still up for grabs at Royal Portrush on April 8. The matchplay will be staged at Killymoon on March 31 and April 1.

Next Tuesday, there will be a further outing for members of the Ulster Golfers' Alliance at Concra Wood.

Club History - Portumna

Portumna Golf Club was founded in 1913 on land directly across the road from the entrance to the present course. In 1934 the move was made to the present location on land rented from the Clanrickard Estate. The new course was designed then by Michael O'Keeffe, B.E. and was opened by Mons. Joyce on June 30th 1935. In 1935 also a new pavilion was constructed mostly of timber supplied free of charge by McAinish & Co. and a new bar and modern toilet facilities were added later.

In 1956 a ninety-nine year lease was secured on the land. In 1971 a new clubhouse was opened and a further thirty acres was added to the lease in 1972 with a view to extending the course to 18 holes. Work on the new course began in the mid eighties and culminated in the official opening of the first eighteen hole course on June 21st 1992.

In 1993 the club availed of an opportunity to purchase the course from Coillte. The eighty-eight acres on the 99 year lease plus 38 other acres were secured for £90,000.

In 1997 the existing clubhouse was extended and refurbished to provide modern facilities for a rapidly expanding club membership. Subsequent alterations and addition to the course has resulted in the fine facility that we now enjoy.

www.portumnagolfclub.ie

Meet the Team - Mountain View

Mountain View Golf Club is owned and operated privately by The O’Neill Family.

On any given occasion the O'Neill's are on site to make sure your visit is personal, enjoyable and memorable. Genuine hospitality and a friendly atmosphere are the key elements that Mountain View thrive on.

No matter whom you meet, or where you meet them, on the course or in the clubhouse, you will no doubt hear a humorous story and receive a warm smile.

The O’Neill Family invite you to experience warm hospitality and a great golfing experience. From start to finish, the team will add those special touches to help clinch that great memory.

Management Team @ Mountain View GC

Bee O'Grady - Managing Director

Michael Dobbyn - General Manager

Edward Power - Course Superintendent

Golf Club Officers 2011 @ Mountain View GC

Noel Roche - Captain

Josie O Gorman - Lady Captain

Patrick Halligan - President

Kathleen Lanigan - Lady President

www.mviewgolf.com

New GolfTwitsIre Society Launched

On Saturday, February 19th, on a glorious morning in Millicent Golf Club, the first meeting of the newly formed @GolfTwitsIre (Golf Twits Ireland) Golf Society was held. Of course, only after a relaxed nine holes !

Our plan initially is to have four outings this year spread across the four provinces and hope to attract other twitter golfers to join us!

We will be announcing the dates and venues over the coming weeks and you can always follow all news updates probably first on @golftwitsire and of course here on the site.

If you are interested in being part of our new friendly and relaxed society, follow @golftwitsire on Twitter and send a message there or here to let us know!!

www.millicentgolfclub.com

Course Designer Knott Dies Suddenly

Lee Westwood and Bob Knott

Bob Knott, who has died suddenly, aged 65, was a champion golfer and international course designer who was the construction manager of the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates where the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World is played as the finale to The Race to Dubai on The European Tour International Schedule.

Knott, who lived in Devon, was associated with Churston Golf Club for most of his life although in 2005 he headed out to the United Arab Emirates to work for Leisurecorp, the company developing Dubai’s leading residential golf community at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

What Knott’s friends thought would be a three year contract ran to almost five years and he watched a dream unfold as on the Earth Course the inaugural Dubai World Championship took place in November, 2009, and Lee Westwood (pictured with Bob) won the title and secured The Race to Dubai.

George O’Grady, Chief Executive of The European Tour, said: “Bob Knott was a lovely man who became a wonderful friend of The European Tour and we offer our sincere condolences to his wife, Sue, and their children, Alex and Ben. Bob was at the forefront of the design and development of the Earth Course with Greg Norman and his team, and the course has now played host to two wonderful Dubai World Championships.”

Knott, who won 11 Churston club championships and played off scratch for more than 40 years, captured the Devon Open – a competition open to professionals and amateurs – in 2003. He became captain of Devon in 1980 and 30 years later he was still playing county golf as a member of the Devon Seniors team in the Channel League. His last match for the team was in a win over Somerset last September which secured the league title. He was also extremely proud of the fact that he played for the English seniors golf team in 2005.

Knott was attracted to the golf and the business of course design after playing football for Torquay United A side in the early 1960s, and he was highly respected by people in the game.

Brian Huggett, the 1977 Ryder Cup captain, said: “Bob was a terrific guy and a good friend. He worked for me as a project manager on several courses including Orchard Leigh in Somerset and The Lakes Course at Hawkstone Park in Shropshire. He will be sadly missed by all who knew him and my condolences go to his wife Sue and their family.”