Match Play Qualifiers

Match Play Qualifier

On Friday the students completed their final round of the 36 hole match play qualifying. The scoring was excellent in what was fantastic scoring conditions at the Hilton Templepatrick.

Finishing in first place in the qualifying with a net 62 today was Dylan Carton. Following him in second place was Caolan Smith who had an excellent net 63 today. In third place was Conall Murdock who had a steady 70 today.

The best gross scores on the day came from Darragh Lynch with an excellent 73 and Paul Conroy with a 74. Both Darragh and Paul compiled a total of 23 pars and 5 birdies between them.

Well done to each of the students involved who are all showing a great level of progress which has only been made possible by their hard work and commitment so far this term.

Match Play 1st Round Draw

Oliver Doherty Makes First Ever Albatross At Golf School

Massive congratulations to second year student Oliver Doherty who had an albatross on the par 5 16th hole at the Hilton Templepatrick on Friday.

He played his second shot from 228 yards with his hybrid running it up from the front of the green before eventually falling into the cup.

Well done Oliver.

Long Game FlightScope Skills Testing

Last week the students commenced their long game skills testing on the FlightScope. The test is scored out of 345 with the highest score so far being 189. The testing will continue on this week with the aim that every student will have completed it this week. These test give the students a fantastic gauge to start with so they can then measure their progress from this.

Student Success

Former Full Time student Joseph O’Neill is currently studying in the first year of his scholarship at Hutchinson College, Texas. Joe graduated from the Full Time programme only last year after spending two years with us at the school.

Joe is currently studying Sports Management with a weekly timetable that consists of class time from 8.00am – 12 noon and golf training from 1.00pm – 6.00pm 5 days per week. He played for his college team in the Newman Invitational tournament a couple of weeks ago finishing in 6th place with a final round 74.

Joe has described his experience so far as brilliant with the facilities being a fantastic benefit to him with 3 golf courses a driving range, chipping green and a putting green to train on each day.

We would like to thank Joe for taking the time out from his busy schedule to chat to us about his time in America so far and we wish him all the very best for the near future.

Match Play Qualifier

Match Play Qualifier

Portrush Golf Club was the venue for the first round of the 36 hole match play qualifier. Although the sun was shining brightly conditions were extremely difficult with winds recorded at over 30mph. The top 8 net qualifiers after the 36 holes are played will proceed into the quarter finals to compete to be the match play champion.

The leading qualifier after round one was Conall Murdock with an excellent net 67. Conall began his round in steady fashion with three pars in his first four holes. He finished the front nine strongly with a good par on the tricky par three ninth hole. Conall also had a solid back nine compiling a total of four pars and two birdies including an excellent birdie two on the difficult par three fifteenth hole.

In second place two shots further back with a net 69 was Jules Preston. This was Jules' best performance of the year to date having compiled a total of eight pars during his round in the most difficult of conditions. 

In third place was Dylan Carton with a net 71 followed by Caolan Smith in fourth place one shot further back with a net 72.

Short Game Lessons

Last week the students underwent further short game lessons. The shots that they were assessed on this time were the chip shot and the bunker shot. Each student was given specific teaching points with practice drills which were recorded into their dairies. They also received video analysis with the videos later uploaded onto their personal google drive accounts. Timescales were given and these particular short game shots will continue to be assessed over the coming weeks.

Short Game Skills Testing

The students were put through their first recorded short game skills test of the year last Thursday. For most it was their first full test and will therefore act as an excellent starting platform from which to improve upon. There was a total of twelve shots within the test with every shot from a 3 foot putt to a 50 yard pitch shot tested.

The highest score recorded on the day for the test was 104 points from Paul Conroy with the class averaging an excellent total of 92. Everyone will be working hard on all aspects of their short game with their next test scheduled for mid February. 

Long Game Skills Testing

This week the students will undergo their first long game skills test of the year. The test involves approximately 70 shots recorded on the FlightScope launch monitor with the distances ranging anything between 20 yards to 240 yards. Each test will take approximately 45 minutes so every student may possibly not complete it this week. Stay tuned next week for updates on the scoring.

Fitness Testing Results

Having now completed all of the relevant fitness test the students can now view their test results on their google drive accounts. The test involved nine separate tests with the pass mark set at 120 points. However each student had to ensure that they didn't fail a total of four of these tests otherwise they would not pass the test.

The effort and commitment shown to date in the fitness classes has been very refreshing and if this continues throughout the year huge progress will be expected within the fitness department.