Weekly Club News

Weekly Club News | Concra Wood Golf Club | Ireland

Concra Wood Golf Club, Castleblayney, County Monaghan, Ireland Weekly News Notes.

Weekly Club News

11th September 2024

Smyth wins Patron’s Prize

Last weekend’s men’s competition in Concra was our Patron’s Prize, kindly sponsored by Michael McHugh. The sun shone on Saturday on what was one of the warmest and sunniest days of the year. No surprise then that the winner was somebody recently back from his holidays in Florida. Declan Smyth was well acclimatised to the warm conditions, and this may have given him an edge over the rest of the field. His 43 points was enough to win the competition, but only just as he pipped Roman Serskis to 1st place by a single point. Tiarnan Murphy was the other player in the first three, finishing with a very credible 40 points with Charlie McDonnell once again winning the gross prize with a 4-over-par score of 76. 

This weekend’s competition is kindly sponsored by Brennan’s Furniture and will be a stableford competition played off the green tees. 

Our senior’s competition this week was a scramble. The competition was won by Finbar Brohan, Andy Whelan and Brendan Laverty on a score of 29.03. second place went to John McGoldrick, Eamon Johnston and Eugene McDonnell with 31.63 and Brendan Lambe, Aidan McNally and Barney McDonald on 31.79.,

Our patron Michael McHugh also sponsored this weekend’s ladies competition. The competition was won by Joanne Loughman on 38 points. Category prizes were won by Dorren Quinn, Andrea Mulligan, Ann Cumiskey and Suzanne McElroy. The 9-hole competition was won by Tracey McMahon with a great score of 22 points. 

Our ladies club played a 9-hole repeater scramble during the month of August. First place in this scramble went to Sandra McAvoy, Cathryna Craig and Ann Duffy with second place going to Ann Cumiskey, Julie-Ann Lacey and Tracey Liddy O’Connor. 

Next week’s ladies competition will be kindly sponsored by Hi Maintenance. 

Our Tudenham Cup team unfortunately fell at the final hurdle last week, losing their final against Esker Hills from Offaly by the narrowest of margins. The match finished 3-2, with the pairings of team captain Padraic Conlon and Adrian Kelly and Gareth Woods and Adrian Connolly winning their matches. Well done to Padraic and his team on reaching the final and this will hopefully kickstart an upturn in inter-club golf fortunes in the coming years. 

Finally, this Friday we will be having a mixed 9-hole scramble competition starting at 4pm. The scramble will be followed by a presentation of outstanding prizes at 8pm. Prize winners will be contacted by text and are asked to make every effort to attend.  

3rd September 2024

Lennon Clinches Professional’s Prize

This weekends competition for both the men and ladies was sponsored by our Head Professional Bobby Fallon. Bobby’s time in Concra began in March and he has wasted no time in becoming an invaluable asset for our club. His prize to the men this weekend was held in a mini Indian summer and the good weather may have had something to do with the good scoring. First prize was won by David Lennon with a score of 43 points. Having gone close to winning our Captains Prize at the beginning of August, David went one better this time round to finish top of the pile. 2nd place went to Gary Morgan who finished a point back on 42 while Tony Brennan clinched 3rd place with 39 points. The gross prize this week went to Ciaran Johnston who shot a 1-over par 73. 

 Next weekend is our Patron’s Prize, sponsored by club patron Michael McHugh and will be a stableford competition played off the green tees. 

 Bobby’s Professional’s Prize to our ladies this weekend was won by Jolanta McMonagle with a score of 38 points. Category prizes went to Andrea Mulligan with 35 points, Ann Cumiskey on 26 points and Niamh Quinn on 23 points. The winner of the 9-hole competition was Joanne Loughman with 19 points followed by Mairead McCreesh in second on 16 points. This week our ladies also play for our Patron’s Prize. Good luck to all taking part. 

This weekend is a very significant weekend for our club as Padraic Conlon’s Tudenham Cup team play in the Tudenham Cup final in Mullingar Golf Club. Esker Hills, home to Shane Lowry, will be their opponents in the final. Impressive wins against Trim, Headfort and Mullingar to this point have paved the way to the final and on behalf of the club we would like to wish Padraic and his team the very best of luck on Saturday. All support will be very welcome on the day

20th August 2024

Top Spot for Paraic Craig 

 Paraic Craig knows every inch of Concra Wood and last weekend he put that knowledge to good use. Paraic shot an impressive 40 points to win the weekend competition sponsored by CombiLift. The key to Paraic’s round was his consistency, scoring on every hole and helped in no small part with a birdie 2 on the 14th hole. 

Second place in the competition went to Carl Malone on 39 points, the highlight of which was an eagle on the 15th. Third prize was won by Damien Moorehead on 38 points. This score was matched by 3 other golfers but an impressive back nine holes meant Damien came out the right side of a countback. One of the players edged out on the countback was Charlie McDonnell. Charlie’s great run of recent form has seen his handicap tumble to +2 and his four under par 68 won this week’s gross prize. 

This weekend’s competition is the Des McGlynn Cup. This will be a strokeplay competition played off the green tees. 

 In Ladies golf, last week’s club competition, the Teresa McHugh Cup kindly sponsored by our patron Michael McHugh, was won by Martina Conlon with a score of 38 points. Category winners were Dorren Quinn 36pts, Julie-Ann Lacey 36pts, Faela Heavin 37pts and Paula Heavin 33pts. Our 9-hole competition was won by Joanne Loughman with a score of 18 points. Second place went to our Lady Vice-Captain Tracey Liddy O’Connor who also finished on 18 points. Last Sunday we held our latest ladies open competition, sponsored by Shoe City. 1st prize was won by club member Patricia Connolly on 37pts. Second went to Joanne Kinsella from Skerries Golf Club on a score of 36pts with Christine Hagan from Lurgan Golf Club coming third with 35pts. Well done to all of the prize winners of these recent competitions.

Finally, on the inter-club front, Padraic Conlon’s Tudenham Cup team take on Mullingar Golf Club this weekend for a place in the final of the competition. Best of luck to Padraic and his team.

13th August 2024

*Paul’s on Form* 

After a number of weeks of particularly high scoring in our weekend competitions, the very breezy conditions this weekend led to lower scores than normal. Only one player shot in the 40’s and that was Paul Leonard who came in with a score of 41pts, winning the weekend competition sponsored by Culloville House. Paul has been playing good golf this summer and that has been reflected by his 4th position in our Golfer of the Year standings and his progression to the latter stages of our singles matchplay competition. 

The nearest challengers to Paul this weekend were Shane Fitzsimons and Micky Byrne, both of whom carded 39 points. Shane’s back nine was enough to secure 2nd place with Micky having to settle for third. 

Once again, the gross prize was won by Charlie McDonnell with a 2-under score of 70. Charlie has hit a rich vein of form in recent weeks and is currently playing golf most of us can only dream of. The weekend’s great score gives him a little breathing space at the top of the Golfer of the Year table but there is still time for a number of others to reel him in. 

Next weekend’s competition is sponsored by Combi Lift and will be a stableford competition played off the green tees. 

In our Seniors section, the following were this week’s prize winners. 1st – Martin Allen 40pts; 2nd Ciaran Prunty 40pts; 3rd Adrian Sewell 37pts. Well done to all who took part. 

In our Ladies Section, last week’s competition, sponsored by Culloville House, was won by Josephine McCahey on a score of 35 points. Dorren Quinn also shot 35 points but had to settle for second place after a countback. Third prize was won by Joanna Campbell with 33 points. 

First place in our weekly 9-hole competition went to Andrea Mulligan with 19 points, one more than Briege O’Reilly who finished in second place on 18 points. 

This week we play for the Teresa McHugh Cup, kindly sponsored by our club patron Michael McHugh. This major will be played in conjunction with our Play in Pink initiative in aid of Breast Cancer Awareness and we would ask that all of our members support this worthy cause if possible. Finally, best wishes to Jolanta McMonagle and Anne Kelly who will be representing Concra Wood in the Stroke Medal Ulster Women’s Silver & Bronze Medal Regional Qualifier in Ballyclare on Monday 2nd September. Well done and best of luck to you both.

8th August 2024

Padraic Conlon is Champion Golfer of the Year 

 In the professional golfing world, the winner of the British Open is given the title of Champion Golfer of the Year. At club level this honour would surely go to the Captain’s Prize winner and that prize was decided in Concra last weekend with Captain Mark Currie’s prize taking place from Friday to Sunday afternoon. 

 Over 130 members entered the competition over the weekend and their golf was truly tested with a very tough course setup and strokeplay format. The pace was set early by Padraic Conlon shooting a very impressive 67 on Friday afternoon. This was the best score on Friday and was such an impressive one that it remained unbeaten all weekend. By the time all of the cards were counted early Sunday afternoon, the closest challengers were David Lennon, three back from the lead on 70 and Declan Smyth, a further shot back on 71. 

As is tradition a nine-hole playoff followed with everyone at a score of 76 or lower qualifying for the playoff. As groups posted their nine hole scores, the lead in the clubhouse changed hands regularly but it became clear that the likely winner was going to come from the final group and this meant that a good crowd gathered around the 9th green to see the competition to its conclusion. A double bogey by Padraic on the previous hole, following a rare mistake off the tee, left the scores in the balance. David Lennon was the closest challenger at this stage and he was very unlucky to see a par putt just slide by the hole on the 9th after an excellent chip from the front of the green. Padraic was left with a tricky downhill putt from five feet to match David’s bogey and he held his nerve to hole out. Once the cards were counted, it became clear that Padraic was the winner by the tightest of margins with only one stroke separating him and David. 

The presentation of prizes took place on Sunday night with a great crowd in attendance. The tough setup over the weekend divided opinion but everyone was in agreement that Padraic Conlon had played the best golf over the weekend and was a deserving winner. Well done to Captain Mark on hosting a great weekend’s golf and congratulations to all of the following prize winners: 1st Prize; Padraic Conlon 2nd Prize; David Lennon 3rd Prize; Paudie Kindlon 4th Prize; Pat McNeill 5th Prize; Shane Donnelly 6th Prize; Declan Smyth Committee Prize; Jack McDonnell Past Captain/President; Adrian Kelly Leading Qualifier; Greg Duffy Nearest the Pin; Gerard Connolly Longest Drive; Calum Callaghan 

Next weekend’s competition will be sponsored by Culloville House and will be a stableford competition played off green tees. This competition will be held in conjunction with our ladies Play in Pink charity initiative. Pink golf clothing will be the order of the weekend and any donation to this worthy cause is much appreciated. 

Our ladies section also played for Captain Mark’s prize to the ladies this week and the presentation of prizes also took place on Sunday night. The winner with an excellent score of 39 points was Eithne McAviney. Category 1 went to Joanna Campbell on 35pts. Category 2 was won by Anne Kelly on 36 points. Category 3 went to Patricia Hamill on 37 points with Niamh Quinn winning Category 4, also with 37 points. The nine hole competition was won by Margaret McQuillan. Well done to all of our prize winners and thanks to Captain Mark for his generosity. This week our Competition is the Teresa Mc Hugh Cup which is very kindly sponsored by our Patron Michael Mc Hugh every year. This will be played in conjunction with our Play in Pink initiative supporting Breast Cancer Ireland – a very worthy cause. Every donation large or small is very much appreciated. 

 Finally, in course news, remedial works to the wall around the fourth green is due to start on the 12th of August. A temporary green will be in use while work is ongoing.

3rd June 2024

Gold Rushe

 Our weekly competition this week sponsored by MM Freight was played off the gold tees but this had no effect on the recent high scores. Mickey Rushe topped the field of 102 golfers with a brilliant 43 points, registering a birdie and an eagle after the turn to play the back nine in level par. This back nine was enough to win on a countback, with Ronan Connolly coming in second place also on a score of 43 points. Scoring really was high when neither of these excellent 43 point totals could be classed as the round of the weekend. This title surely goes to our club captain Mark Currie, who shot a three-under-par round of 42 points to win the gross prize. The prize places were rounded off by Damien Moorehead in 3rd place with a score of 41 points. Next weekends competition will be sponsored by Crust and Crumb Bakery. This will be a stableford competition played off the gold tees. 

 In seniors news, this week saw the Lady Captain’s prize to our senior men. The results were as follows; Overall; 1st Place – Syl Mulligan 36pts, 2nd Place – Pat McNeill 35pts, 3rd Place – Pat Merrick 34pts. Cat 1; Declan McAteer 33pts, Brendan Lambe 33pts. Cat 2; Peter Connolly 34pts, Andy Whelan 33pts. Cat 3 – Paul Shortt 28pts, Patrick McBride 28pts. Nearest the Pin – Martin Shevlin. Last week’s Ladies competition was the Mulligan Cup sponsored by the Mulligan family. 1st Place went to Dorren Quinn on a score of 37 points. Eithne McAviney won the Category 2 prize with 35 points, Michelle Gormley came out on top in Category 3 with 36 points while Category 4 was won by Tracey McMahon with 35 points. The winner of this weeks 9 hole competition was Mairead McCreesh with 21 points. Well done to all. This weeks competition is sponsored by The View Bar and Restaurant and is our 3rd Strokeplay competition of the season. 

 On the Inter-Club front, Jack McDonnell’s Sam Rutherford team continued on their winning ways, defeating Mayobridge GC by two holes overall to book a place in the Quarter-Final of the competition where they will face Down Royal Golf Club. Well done to Jack and his team. 

Finally, a reminder to members that our annual open week will be played next week. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday will be singles competitions, Thursday our annual open fourball and on Friday, anyone brave enough can take on our Black Tees course.

19th June 2024

SEAN’S QUALITY WEEKEND

For the club golfer, what constitutes a really top weekend of golf? How about you win your Pierce Purcell Shield match on Friday night, win your All Ireland Mixed Foursomes match on Saturday afternoon, and then on Sunday you shoot 45 points to win your latest Golfer of the Year competition. Sounds pretty good to me. Well that’s just what Sean Malone did at the weekend. Now unfortunately both inter-club teams succumbed at the dreaded play-off stage, but that didn’t stop Sean from producing a dominant performance on Sunday, in the annual Carna Transport event, when he had six points to spare over his nearest rival. Now top that any of you who are fit to play 54 holes in three days! The runner-up prize was won by last weekend’s victor Jody McMonagle, mining a rich seam of form on 39 points. The Best Gross was won by Charlie McDonnell, who returned a one under par round on this occasion. And third prize went to Paul Murphy, who matched Jody’s 39, but not his back nine of 23 points. This weekend Paul is back in action again, as he sponsors the annual Colt Design competition.

In ladies’ golf, last week’s event was sponsored by Coyle’s Pharmacy. The winner on a score of 45 points was JulieAnn Lacey. This victory puts JulieAnn well on her way to achieving the biggest handicap drop in a single year of all time. Second prize went to Ann Cumiskey on 41 points, with Michelle Gormley in third place on 40. And it’s over once again to Paul Murphy, whose Colt Design sponsor this week’s ladies’ strokeplay event.

Our juvenile competitions for this season kicked off on Sunday, as they competed for Bobby Fallon’s Professional’s Prize. The winner on a massive score of 28 points was Kealan Dignam, with Daire Fitzgerald in second on 18, and Dillon McMonagle in third on 9.

And finally for this week, as already reported, we have had a couple of our inter-club sides reach the end of the road over the past week. However we’re not done yet. After Sunday’s first leg, Jack McDonnell’s Sam Rutherford Cup team are ten holes up on their opponents from Mayobridge GC. We wish them the very best in next weekend’s second leg in Mayobridge, when they’ll probably need every one of th

11th June 2024

DOUBLE MCMONAGLE

The annual Prandy Duffy Cup took centre stage at Concra Wood at the weekend. And what a memorable weekend it was! As always James and George Duffy came home for the event, and as usual they arrived with quite an entourage. Team America came in force to take on Paul Murphy’s Team Ireland. And while the maths of the situation is somewhat clouded in mystery, it appears that they came away with a rare victory in Saturday’s match, with a winning margin of a single point. They certainly celebrated like they had won. Spirits were still high at Sunday night’s presentation of the Prandy Cup. This year’s winner was Jody McMonagle on a score of 40 points. This completed a rare double in our club, as Jody’s wife Jolanta had just won this week’s ladies’ competition. And judging by Jody’s speech, he was more than a little relieved to have matched Jolanta on this occasion. Two other competitors, Garreth Woods and Martin Moore, also returned scores of 40 points, but Jody’s superior back nine of 21 means they’ll have to settle for second and third prize this time around. The Best Gross prize was won by Charlie McDonnell. Charlie’s fine round of 73 was most notable for a rare bird – a hole in one on the par three fourteenth hole. Next weekend, when the dust has settled, our Golfer of the Year competition is sponsored by Carna Transport.

And so to the ladies event, which was sponsored by Castleblayney Credit Union. The winner, as already reported, was Jolanta McMonagle. In windy conditions, her score of 72 nett took the spoils. Runner-up prize was won by Jeannette Keenan on 73, with Niamh Quinn in third place on the same score. Once again the winner of the nine hole event was Michelle Gormley on an excellent score of 28 nett. This week’s competition is sponsored by Coyle’s Pharmacy.

The Gabriel Moore Cup was the focus of our seniors on Monday. The winner for 2024 was Finbar Brohan on a winning score of 38 points. The category winners were: Cat.1 Ciaran Prunty 36, Charlie Geoghegan 36 and Gerry Treacy 33. Cat. 2 Noel Marray 36, Nicky Hore 35 and Andy Whelan 35. Cat. 3 Paul Shortt 36, Syl Mulligan35 and Jim O’Neill 33. Nearest the pin on the sixth was Brian McGovern at 5ft 6 ins.

More good news to report on the inter-club front this week. In the Revive Active Ulster Women’s Fourball, Josephine McCahey’s team overcame a very strong Slieve Russell side in their second round match. And it went right down to the wire, with Catriona Bolger and Martina Conlon getting Jo’s team over the line on a second play-off hole. Congrats to Jo and her team. Next up it’s Rockmount GC in Round 3.

And finally for this week, belated birthday greetings to Pat Conlon, who recently celebrated the Big Eight 0. Or should I say “continues to celebrate,” as this one is going to go on for some time to come!

3rd June 2024

GAVAN MCENEANEY WINS THE PRESIDENT’S PRIZE

We had a June Bank Holiday weekend to remember in Concra, as over one hundred and forty of our male members took part in Martin Malone’s President’s Prize.  As always, this competition was played over twenty-seven holes, with all competitors trying to make the cut after the first eighteen. In near perfect golfing conditions high scoring was predicted, but that’s not how things turned out. The cut was set at 35 points, and only three golfers managed to better 40 points. Nudie Hughes led the way on 44, with Gavan McEneaney a close second on 43 and David Lennon in third on 41. With Monaghan taking on Louth in Clones, Nudie was unable to stay for the play-off, but he did take home the prize for Leading Qualifier. That left Gavan and David and a chasing bunch to battle it out over the final nine. Leading the field is never easy, but Gavan made it look that way. Noone ever got within two points of him and when he signed for 20 points, his grand total of 63 points gave him a five shot margin of victory. David posted 58 points but had to make do with third prize, as Ronan McDonnell squeezed him out of second spot on a countback. Having posted 37 points after eighteen holes, Ronan added 21 over the final nine to take the Runner-Up prize. The Best Gross prize is always played over the first eighteen, and on this occasion it was won by our Captain Mark Currie who went around in level par. The full list of prizewinners was as follows:

1^st  Gavan McEneaney 63 pts.

2^nd  Ronan McDonnell 58 pts.

Best Gross Mark Currie 36 gross pts.

3^rd David Lennon 58 pts

4^th Frank McDonnell 57 pts.

5^th Martin Shevlin 57 pts.

6^th Carl Malone 56 pts.

Leading Qualifier Nudie Hughes 44 pts.

Past Captain Robert Heavin 45 pts.

 Committee Prize Sean Hughes 56 pts.

Best Visitor Sean Maher 34pts.

I think it’s safe to say that President Martin had a great weekend. And he wants to say a big thank you to all who donated to his chosen charity Autism Awareness, who will benefit to the tune of €2000.

Our ladies’ section has a much more straightforward method of deciding their President’s Prize – eighteen holes. This year’s winner is Andrea Mulligan. Andrea crucially parred our difficult eighteenth hole to complete a fine round of 42 points, giving her a two point winning margin over Claire Connolly on 40 points. Third prize was won by Joan McGrath on 37 points. The full list of prizewinners reads:

1^st Andrea Mulligan 42 pts.

2^nd Claire Connolly 40 pts.

3^rd Joan McGrath 37 pts.

Cat. 1 Dorren Quinn 35 pts.

Cat. 2 Eithne McAviney 35 pts.

Cat. 3 JulieAnn Lacey 35 pts.

Cat. 4 Margaret McQuillan 36 pts.

Nine Hole competition

1^st Michelle Gormley 19 pts.

2^nd Briege O’Reilly 18 pts.

In Seniors’ news, the most recent nine hole competition produced the following  results: Cat. 1 Joe Brady 20, Gerry Treacy 18 and Martin Shevlin 17. Cat. 2 Eamonn Johnston 17, Larry Coleman 17 and Joe McGrath 16. Cat. 3 Michael Reid 18, Syl Mulligan 17 and Pat McBride 15. Next Monday (June 10^th) is one of the big days in our calendar, when the Seniors compete for the Gabriel Moore Perpetual Trophy.

We have some good news to report on the inter-club front this week. Following on from our Pierce Purcell Shield victory over Enniskillen GC, Padraic Conlon’s Tudenham Cup side made it through to Round 2 with a 3-2 victory over Trim GC. And Jack McDonnell’s Sam Rutherford Cup team completed their victory over Loughgall GC to set up a second round match against Mayobridge GC.

And finally for this week, we have lots more golf to enjoy in the coming days. For the ladies, this week’s event is sponsored by Castleblayney Credit Union. And for the men, it’s the Prandy Duffy Cup. Once again, James and our American friends are coming in town to take part in our version of the Ryder Cup. And, as always, it’s Team Ireland Captain Paul Murphy’s neck that’s on the line, as the forfeits for losing are not very pleasant. And when all the golf is played on Sunday night, the presentation of the Prandy Duffy Cup takes place in our clubhouse at 8.30 pm.

21st May 2024

NUDIE HUGHES CLUB CLASSIC AT CONCRA WOOD

Congratulations to Nudie Hughes and his organising committee on another very successful Club Classic at Concra Wood. More than seventy teams enjoyed a great weekend of golf, thanks in no small part to that most magic ingredient – the weather. With all teams playing in perfect conditions, it was always going to take over 100 points to win the top prize. And it’s good to report that this time around, four of our own members did just that. Pauric Coyle, Damien Moorehead, Romans Serskis and Jody McMonagle returned a score of 102 points to edge Billy Hanna, Gary Morgan, Brendan Carragher and Paul Campbell into second place by a single point. Third prize was won by Mark O’Riordan, Andrew Harte, Raymond Kelly, and Noel Taylor on 99 points, while Noel O’Reilly, Eugene McGuigan , Gerry McCaul and Sean Malone came in fourth on 98. The other prizewinners were as follows:

5^th: Turlough Fitzsimons, Gerry Brennan, Eoghan Donnelly and Ronan Burke.

6^th: John Mone, Anthony Keenan, Vincent O’Keefe and Daire Smyth

7^th: Paul Murphy, Darren McQuillan, Alan Bolger and Catriona Bolger.

1^st Ladies: Kathryna Craig, Martina Conlon, Anne Cumiskey and JulieAnn Lacey.

2^nd Ladies: Dorren Quinn, Donna Adams, Marion McDonald and Catriona Bolger.

Longest Drives: Mark Currie and Catriona Bolger.

Nearest the Pin: Noel Smyth.

Many thanks to everyone who took part, or contributed in any way to this year’s classic. And of course the last word must go to our sponsors, The View Restaurant Bar, Fred Bishop’s Eurospar, Agnail Group, Donnelly Group, Brennan’s Furniture and Carpets, and our major sponsor Zumtobel Thorn Lighting.

In other news, our inter-club season is in full swing, and it’s good to report on some positive results in the last week. Jack McDonnell’s Sam Rutherford Cup team came away from their first leg at Loughgall GC with a one hole lead to take into Sunday’s home leg. Wins for the pairings of Jonathan Kernan and Adrian Connolly and Frank McDonnell and Sean Hughes give this team every chance to progress. And performance of the week must go to Noel O’Reilly and Joe Brady. Noel led out his Pierce Purcell Shield side in Enniskillen GC, and he and Joe won a valuable away match. A home win for Barry O’Reilly and Shane Fitzsimons left the final score at two matches apiece. So out went Noel and Joe again in the play-off, and they duly did the business again, winning on the first tie hole. Let this inspire our many other club sides in the coming weeks.

This Friday evening sees our second social golf event of the season. We’ll have draws from 4.30 to 6.00 pm for a nine hole competition, with a presentation in our clubhouse when the final card is returned. And Saturday and Sunday sees the first Golfer of the Year competition of the men’s season, which is sponsored by Thomas Brennan’s Consurv Building Consultants.

And finally for this week, the next fortnight sees our members competing in the first major of our season, Martin Malone’s President’s Prize. This weekend it’s the turn of the ladies, while the men’s event takes place over the June Bank Holiday weekend. The timesheet for members is now posted on the competitions noticeboard.

13th May 2024

BACK TO BACK WINS FOR CIARAN MCMAHON

Ciaran McMahon is playing the best golf in our club right now. Last weekend he shot 40 points to win Aidan Boyd’s MACE prize. This time around, he scored 44 points on his way to a comfortable victory in the Tavey’s Menswear, Carrickmacross competition – a round of level par. What chance a hat-trick? I wouldn’t bet against it. Only one other player broke 40 – Ronan McDonnell – whose 41 points took the Category 2 prize. Category 1 was won by Dermot McBride on 39 points, while Peter Coyle picked up Category 3 with 38. There was also a Best Gross prize. Well you couldn’t pass the Captain Mark Currie who played a very tidy round of 4 over par.

Our ladies have certainly made hay while the sun was shining. The first of recent events was sponsored by Shortt’s Butchers. This was won by Claire Connolly on a fine score of 40 points. The runner-up was Anne Cumiskey on 35, with JulieAnn Lacey in third on 33. In the nine hole event Suzanne McElroy came out on top with 16 points, while Eithne McAviney came in second on 15. And all the while the ladies have been playing away in their Fourball Matchplay, which has now been whittled down to the final four. Good luck to Mary McElroy & JulieAnn Lacey and Maura Bowden & Martina Conlon who’ll compete in this season’s final. And as if all that was not enough, Chris Monahan led her All Ireland Mixed side to victory in their first round match against Edenmore GC on Sunday. Wins for the pairings Jack McDonnell and Josephine McCahey, and Charlie McDonnell and our Lady Captain Margie Carville meant the match was tied at two all. So up the nineteenth it went, with Jack and Josephine picking up the crucial point to see Concra’s side advance to round 2. And wasting no time at all, the ladies are off again, competing in this week’s 18 hole competition which is sponsored by McKeever’s Pharmacy.

Our juveniles were also in action last week, in the Ronan Rafferty Cup. Our team, Cormac Conlon, Theo McMahon, Tommy McEneaney, Darragh McBride and Shane Miller were beaten by TandrageeGC on their home patch, but have high hopes of a comeback in next week’s second leg.

Our seniors were unlucky (for once) with the weather as they competed on Monday for the Jimmy Coleman Cup. On the day, nine holes was enough for Eamonn Johnston to win the coveted trophy on a score of 19 points. The three category prizes went to Ronan McDonnell on 16 points, Andy Whelan on 17 points and to Pierce Hughes on 16.

And finally for this week, the Nudie Hughes Classic. After weeks of preparation, dozens of teams will compete in this year’s classic from Thursday to Sunday. All entrants are asked to report to our ProShop where Bobby will point you in the right direction. Then all we need is for the weather to play ball, and allcomers can enjoy a great four days of golf at Concra Wood.

29th April 2024

PAURIC STROLLS TO VICTORY

Pauric McNally played stress free golf on his way to victory in last weekend’s Tate Donnelly sponsored competition. A round of twelve pars and six bogeys gave him a very comfortable 45 points, which was never going to be matched. However, one man did come close. Gerry McCaul returned a score of 43 points  –  more than enough on many weekends, but this time taking the runner-up spot. Roman Serskis continued his impressive early season form, scoring 41 points for third, and Sylvester Quinn edged out a number of others to take the prize in our very competitive Best Gross section on 32 gross points. This weekend’s event is sponsored by Aidan Boyd’s Mace Store in Smithborough.

Congratulations to Sandra McAvoy and her Women’s Intermediate Foursomes team who got our inter-club season off to a flying start on Sunday. They took on our neighbours from Mannan Castle and came out on top on a final score of 2 ½ matches to 1 ½. On the home front, the most recent Lamb Competition was won by Mary McElroy on 19 points, with Ann Cumiskey and Jolanta McMonagle taking second and third prizes on 17 points apiece.

Our Seniors spent a really enjoyable two days in the Slieve Russell last week, and even the weather played ball. The top man after 36 holes was Joe McGrath who returned a very steady 70 points. This week it’s back home for the annual Martin Denny Drive In.

And finally for this week, it’s time, if you haven’t already done so, to get your team together, and sign up for the annual Nudie Hughes Club Classic. Times are available on all four days, from Thursday 16^th right through to Sunday 19^th of May. Many thanks to our main sponsor for this event Zumtobel Thorn Lighting,

2nd April 2024

WINTER AND SPRING LEAGUE RESULTS

Easter Weekend saw the completion of both the men’s Winter League and the ladies’ Spring League at Concra. The men’s event went right to the wire, and in the end only a single point separated first from second. The winners were Team 7 – Adrian Connolly, Shane Fitzsimons, Gregg Sibley and Romans Serskis – who finished on 234 points, with Team 3 – Ciaran McMahon, Ronan McDonnell, Pat McNeill and Pat McBride – in second on 233. The McMahon’s Supervalu Ladies’ Spring League result was rather more clearcut, with Jolanta McMonagle’s Team 8 dominating from pillar to post. Their final score was 208 points, with Dorren Quinn’s Team 6 taking second place on 179. The individual prizewinners were: Cat.1 Catriona Bolger 66 pts, Cat. 2 Maura Bowden 48 pts, Cat. 3 Martina Conlon 56 pts and Cat. 4 Suzanne McElroy 64 pts, while Julieanne Lacey won the Beginners’ Prize on 77 points.

Last weekend also saw our men’s section taking part in nine hole singles competitions. On Saturday, Francie Boylan came out on top with 21 points, with David O’Neill and Martin Allen taking second and third prizes on the same score. Then on Sunday, the winner was Michael Byrne on 22 points, with Brian Morgan in second on 21 and Billy Hanna in third on 19.

This week our ladies’ section take part in a Lamb Competition, while the men’s first eighteen holer of the season, sponsored by Sealo Freight, is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.

And finally for this week, the Ladies’ HiLo matchplay draw has taken place, with thirty ladies taking part. Round 1 must be completed by April 12^th. The men still have a chance to sign up for their HiLo event at the competitions noticeboard, before this weekend’s draw.

26th March 2024

JAMIE WINS AGAIN

Jamie McCann Smyth has made a great start to 2024. And he was at his best again at the weekend, winning our men’s nine hole event on 23 points. He was followed home by a number of 22s, and after a countback, Paul Leonard and Mac Sammon had the pick of them, taking second and third prizes. Unfortunately, our weekend’s golf was somewhat disrupted by the weather, meaning some members were unable to compete in Week 6 of our Winter League. So it’s been decided to extend the league into next weekend, played in conjunction with a nine hole singles.

The McMahon’s Supervalu Spring League has a runaway leader. Jolanta McMonagle’s Team 8 are now 29 points clear of Dorren Quinn’s Team 6. They’re going to take some catching. In the most recent nine hole Lamb Competition, the winner was Julieanne Lacey on 20 points, with Ann Cumiskey in second place on 18.

And there were one or two familiar names among last week’s Seniors’ winners: Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 18, Charlie Geoghegan 18 and Brendan Lambe 17. Cat. 2 Joe McGrath 21, Eamonn Johnston 21 and Pat Merrick 20. Cat. 3 Terence McKeown 19, Barney McDonald 18 and Tom Ryan 17. This week, it’s a four club competition, which should lighten the load.

And finally for this week, our Men’s HiLo Scotch Foursomes entry sheet is now posted on the club noticeboard. Members are invited to sign up for this matchplay competition, which will get underway a little earlier this year, in the month of April.

12th March 2024

CAPTAINS’ DRIVE IN AT CONCRA WOOD

The omens are good for 2024! That’s because dozens of our members came along to our first tee on Saturday morning to see our new captains Mark and Margie tee off the new golf season at the first attempt, with not a Status Red or Yellow Rain or Wind warning in sight. Alongside our President Martin and Junior Captain Cormac, it was smiles all the way as the toughest shots of the year all sailed straight down the middle. When the formalities were completed, our members took part in a nine hole scramble. The front nine winners were Conor McCaul, Ronan McDonnell, Roman Serskis and Catriona Bolger on a score of 29 nett. This was matched by Frank McDonnell, Phil Branigan, Gregg Sibley and Charlie McDonnell who took the back nine prize. On the day members had the opportunity to make a donation to Castleblayney Cancer Society, and it’s wonderful to report that €2880 was raised on the day for this important local charity.

Our lady members are currently competing in the McMahon’s Supervalu Spring League. Jolanta McMonagle’s Team 8 have built up a very sizable lead on163 points. It’s a much closer battle for second spot, with Sandra McAvoy’s Team1 on 139 points, just one clear of Dorren Quinn’s Team 6 on138. Members took part in a nine hole Lamb Competition in conjunction with the league over the past seven days. This was won by Niamh Quinn on 21 points, with Faela Heavin in second on 18, the same score as Ann Cumiskey in third.

The men took a one week break from their league in order to take part in the Drive In on Saturday. So they filled the gap on Sunday by  taking part in a “Waltz”. This was won by the team from Ballybay ( and surrounding districts) of Francie Boylan, James McElroy, Patrick Fitzpatrick and Kenny Farrelly on 47 points. Second prize went to Michael Byrne, Jamie McCann Smyth, Phil Branigan and Declan Smyth on 45, while Paul Leonard, Rory Niland, Tate Donnelly and Gavin McEneaney came in third on 43. This week, it’s the final round of our Winter League from Thursday to Sunday. It looks pretty certain to be a straight race between Ciaran McMahon’s Team 3 and and Adrian Connolly’s Team 7. No Pressure!

Our Seniors took advantage of the dry weather with 37 taking part in the weekly nine hole event. The results were: Cat. 1 Ciaran Prunty 22, Declan McAteer 21 and Brian McGovern 20. Cat. 2 Fergus Treanor 21, Eamonn Johnston21 and Pat Conlon 20. Cat. 3 Joe Gleeson 22, Macartan Lambe 21 and Barney McDonald 17.

And finally for this week, the men’s HiLo scotch foursome matchplay kicks off next month. The entry sheet is now posted on the competitions board. Any member who wishes to take part can sign up for this ever popular event by Sunday March 31^st.

5th March 2024

WINTER LEAGUE IS A TWO HORSE RACE

March came in like a lamb, so it was no surprise that Concra’s timesheet was chock-a-block at the weekend. Our men’s club were competing in the penultimate round of the Winter League. On Saturday, three golfers led the way on 22 points, and when all calculations were completed Conor McCaul came out on top, with Paul Murphy and Brian Morgan taking up the other podium places. On Sunday, 22 points did the business once again, this time for Declan Smyth, who edged his nephew Jamie McCann Smyth into second place on 21, a score matched by Paul Connolly in third. These and all the other results meant that long time leaders Team 7 – Adrian Connolly, Shane Fitzsimons, Gregg Sibley and Romans Serskis – remain in top spot on 199 points. But their lead is now only three points over Team 3 – Ciaran McMahon, Ronan McDonnell, Pat McNeill and Pat McBride. With the rest a long way back, the winner will surely be one of these two. However, they’re all going to have to exercise a little patience, as Week 6 will take place from March 14^th to 17^th. That’s because our Captain’s and Lady Captain’s Drive In takes place this Saturday. All members are invited to come along to the first tee at 11 am to support our Captains as they tee off the new golfing season.  Mark and Margie’s chosen charity for this event is Castleblayney Cancer Society. The Drive In will be followed by a Mixed Scramble, which members may enter by signing up at the club noticeboard before Thursday evening’s draw. We wish Mark and Margie the very best on Saturday, and indeed for the year ahead.

Our ladies’ club was also out in number over the past week.  As usual they’re away ahead of the men, as they’re now into their Spring League, which is generously sponsored by McMahon’s SuperValu. The nine hole singles was won by Julie Anne Lacey on a score of 21 points, with Dorren Quinn in second on 20 and Patricia Connolly in third on 19. Top of the league is Jolanta McMonagle’s Team 8 on105 points, with Sandra McAvoy’s Team 1 in second place on 96.

Our Seniors completed a very busy picture last week with their weekly nine hole competition. The winners and their scores were: Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 21, Charlie Geoghegan 21 and Martin Shevlin 21. Cat. 2 Pat Conlon 22, Pat Merrick 19 and Joe Quinn 18. Cat.3 Jim O’Neill 21, Pat McBride 20 and Michael Reid 19.

In case any Sunday golfers were worrying that they were going to have nothing to play for this weekend, our men’s competitions committee has organised a nine hole waltz for one day only, Sunday March 10^th.

And finally for this week, our Board of Directors recently announced the appointment of Bobby Fallon as our new Golf Professional. Bobby who has years of experience working in a number of our neighbouring clubs, looks forward to coming on board on Saint Patrick’s Weekend. We wish him all the very best in his new role at Concra Wood.

13th February 2024

WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH, THE PAULS GET GOING

During each season’s Winter League, we occasionally switch over to the back nine. This always has the effect of bringing the scoring back down to Earth, and last weekend was no exception. On Saturday, 21 points was enough for Paul Murphy to take top spot. An impressive seven pars saw him come home just one point ahead of six other competitors. After a countback, Philip McCague’s card which featured more birdies than pars won him second spot, while steady as ever Gregg Sibley came in third. Paul Leonard’s 20 points fell just short on Saturday. So out he went again on Sunday, and this time he made no mistake, returning a winning score of 23 points. Second prize was won by Paudy Kindlon on 20, while Martin Moore squeezed into third on 19.

 Our Winter League has now reached the halfway mark. We have clear leaders – Team 7 Adrian Connolly, Shane Fitzsimons, Gregg Sibley and Romans Serskis – on 129 points with Team 5, Ciaran McMahon, Ronan McDonnell, Pat McNeill and Patrick McBride, in second place on 125. Scoring should be high this week, as we head back to the front nine.

Twenty ladies took part in this season’s first nine hole competition. It took a countback to separate the top two, with Suzanne McElroy’s 18 points coming in ahead of Dorren Quinn’s. Third place went to Anne Cumiskey on 17 points. This week it’s another nine holer over the back nine.

In Seniors news, this week’s winners and their scores were: Cat. 1 PJ Ward 21, Johnny Redmond 20 and Johnny McGoldrick 20. Cat. 2  Paraic Craig 20, Pat Merrick 17 and Joe Quinn 17. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 16, Joe Gleeson 15 and Barney McDonald 14. This week’s competition is off the white tees over the front nine.

And finally for this week, a reminder that all golfers must report to the Pro Shop or office before teeing off. This is especially true of anyone using a golf buggy, as their use must be monitored at all times.

6th February 2024

MIXED FORTUNES IN THE WINTER LEAGUE

Those who were lucky enough to play in our Winter League on Saturday enjoyed the mildest and calmest January conditions. Not surprisingly, scoring was hot, with no fewer than seventeen competitors returning scores of 20 points or better. Top of the pile was Shane Fitzsimons who came home on 24 points, with brothers Ciaran and Ronan McMahon taking second and third spot on 23 and 22 respectively. Sunday was a different story. The wind really got up, and by the end of the day only one golfer had broken 20 points. Gerry Hamill continued where he left off last season, by shooting a winning score of 23 points. This time it was the Bus Brothers, Martin Shevlin and Paraic Craig who took the minor placings on 20 points apiece. Week 3 looks like it may throw some sleet and snow our way, so we’ll have to wait and see how that goes.

Our Seniors welcomed Aidan McNally and PJ Ward on board in recent weeks, and PJ has wasted no time in making his presence felt. Last week’s results were: Cat. 1 PJ Ward 22, D. McAteer 21 and John Redmond 21. Cat. 2 J. Quinn 23, Sean Mulligan 21 and P. Craig 20. Cat. 3 E. McDonnell 18, B. McDonald 18 and P. McBride 16. This week’s test is the more difficult back nine.

And finally for this week, the men’s club’s new WhatsApp group is up and running, updating members on club news. If anyone has yet to be included, please leave your details in the office, and they’ll get you plugged in.

29th January 2024

WINTER LEAGUE TEES OFF AT CONCRA

Having been frozen out for a week, our annual Winter League got underway at the weekend, with over eighty members returning cards. Many believe that the winter nine hole scores are the truest indicator of who are the strongest performers off their handicaps. So let’s see who’s quickest out of the blocks in ’24. On Saturday, Adrian Connolly came out on top scoring 25 points – that’s two under par in old money! Second prize went to Francie Boylan, whose 23 points just edged David Lennon into third on a countback. On Sunday, Gerry McCaul produced the goods, winning on 24 points. Five members got within two points of Gerry, with Pat McNeill and Patrick Hanratty taking second and third place respectively. This weekend, we hope to see more of the same in Week 2.

Our seniors got the very best of the weather midweek. The winners of their nine hole singles were: Cat. 1 John Redmond 22, Martin Allen 21 and Brian McGovern 21. Cat. 2 Andy Whelan 21, Eamonn Johnston 19 and Pat Conlon 18. Cat. 3 Barney McDonald 16, Syl Mulligan 16 and Pat McBride 15. The seniors annual sub is now due, and while paying in our Pro Shop, members can sign up for our next outing to Slieve Russell in April.

And finally for this week, congratulations to Sandra McAvoy and James Connor who both shot holes in one at our sixth hole on Sunday. Now that’s the perfect way to get the new golfing season up and running.

16th January 2024

FOURBALL BETTERBALL AT CONCRA

A rather generous January thaw allowed the golfers of Concra Wood to enjoy two very pleasant days of Winter golf at the weekend. The format for our men’s competition was a fourball betterball over nine holes. And as always, calm conditions mean high scores, with all prizewinning pairs returning the same total – 25 points!  On Saturday, the winners were Gerry Brennan and Turlough Fitzsimons who edged Charlie McDonnell and Sean Loughman into second place on a countback. And it was a similar story on Sunday as Stephen McQuillan and Shane Fitzsimons beat Greg Duffy and Ciaran McMahon by a nose. This weekend, if the golfing Gods smile again, we’ll have a singles competition. This will give members one last chance to sign up to this year’s Winter League by entering names in the competitions box.

Last week, our seniors took part in a nine hole singles event. The winners and their scores were: Cat. 1 Pat McNeill 23, Des Morgan 23 and Charlie Geoghegan 22. Cat. 2 Ciaran Coyle 18, Eamonn Johnston 17 and PJ Lambe 16. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 18 and Brendan Laverty 14. News of the next seniors competition will be posted by Andy on the WhatsApp group.

Indeed plans are afoot to increase the amount of communication by WhatsApp within the men’s club. Our Vice Captain Jimmy Lacey is currently putting together a new group for all members. If anyone finds that they have not been included over the next week or two, please contact a committee member or leave your details in the office.

And finally for this week, please please please make course care your New Year’s Resolution for 2024. Pitch marks are particularly damaging during the Winter months, and we seem to have no shortage of them in Concra. Hitting a green should be a good news story. So if you have been skilful, or fortunate, enough to land your approach shot on the green, make it part of your celebration to repair your pitch mark. It only takes a few seconds, but it makes a massive difference to our greens. And if you’re playing with a new member, show them how it’s done!

3rd January 2024

19th December 2023

FESTIVE GOLF AT CONCRA WOOD

A rare dry weekend meant that our timesheet at Concra was chock-a-block on both Saturday and Sunday. Our menfolk took full advantage of the pleasant conditions in our nine hole singles event on each day. Saturday’s winner was Ronan McDonnell, whose 22 points was just slightly better than Ciaran Prunty’s, who took second spot. And third prize went to Damien Moorehead on 20 points. Then on Sunday, another 22 points did the business for Dermot McBride, with Greg Duffy in second on 21 and Mervyn Brown in third on 18. Let’s hope for more of the same over the Christmas Weekend.

Our new Seniors’ Captain Bart McNamara got his season off to the best possible start by taking first prize in the Christmas Scramble. Alongside team mates Frank McDonnell and Brendan Laverty his score of 32 nett edged Ciaran Prunty, Joe Quinn and Pat McBride into second place on a countback, while Martin Allen, Brendan Lambe and Joe Kelly took third spot on 33. This week Seniors’ competition is being played off the white tees on the front nine.

Best wishes this week to our Club Pro Ciaran Lavery who is moving on to pastures new at the end of the month. We wish him all the very best, and hope he enjoys plenty more great golf in the future.

And finally for this week, our Club Captains Mark and Margie and President Martin wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

  28th November 2023

  ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS AT CONCRA

Our four Annual General Meetings took place last week at Concra. It’s good to report that they were well attended, with our members and shareholders having an opportunity to discuss all things golf. Our new teams for 2024 are now in place, with Mark Currie and his Vice Captain Jimmy Lacey taking up the reins of the Men’s Club, Margie Carville and her VC Tracey Liddy O’Connor in charge in the Ladies’ Club, and Martin Malone taking the role of Club President. We wish them all the best for a great year of golf.

Our Men’s Winter League will be getting under way in early December. In the meantime we have had some nine hole singles events. Last Saturday’s was won by Ciaran Prunty on 22 points, with Paul Leonard in second place on 20 and Billy Hanna in third on 18. On Sunday, Ciaran McMahon came out on top on 21 points, with the super-consistent Billy Hanna among the prizes again in second on 19 and Brendan Carragher in third place on 18.

Our Seniors nine hole event produced the following results. Cat. 1 Ciaran Prunty 22, Pat McNeill 21 and Martin Shevlin 19. Cat. 2 Eamon Toal 21, Joe Quinn 20 and Ciaran Coyle 18. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 15, Barney McDonald 12 and Eugene McDonnell 7. It’s the front nine again this week for Seniors, while next week it’s the Seniors’ Christmas Party. The festivities kick off on Monday morning (December 4^th) with a team scramble at 11 am. Let’s hope the weather plays ball.

And finally for this week, a reminder to all members that annual subscriptions are now due. Payments can be made at our office during working hours, or contact (042)9749485 or info@concrawood.ie  to get further details on payment options.

14th November 2023

FOUR MAN WALTZ?

We golfers sure have some strange names on our competition formats.

Last weekend’s men’s event was no exception – the four man waltz. The successful partners on this occasion were Jarlath Denny, Barry O’Reilly, Charlie McDonnell and Joe Brady who glided to a team score of 48 points, while Billy Hanna, Gary Morgan, Ian Brodigan and David O’Neill were left reeling as their super score of 44 points was only just enough to take the runner-up spot.

The Ladies’ Autumn League is sponsored by Wilkie and Flanagan Solicitors. This is played in conjunction with weekly Turkey competition. The first two ladies to take care of this year’s festive fare are Ann Cumiskey who returned 21 points and Faela Heavin who scored 17. The league runs for another three weeks.

Our seniors were out in number in last week’s nine hole event. The results were as follows: Cat. 1 Martin Shevlin (now a super senior) 20, Martin Rafter 18 and Declan McAteer 18. Cat. 2 Paraic Craig 21, PJ Lambe 21 and Joe Quinn 19. Cat. 3 Brendan Laverty 22, Syl Mulligan 14 and Michael Reid 13.

And finally for this week, we send our deepest sympathies to our former Club Captain and President PJ Harte, and his family, on the death of his wife Dympna. Suaimhneas sioraí dá hanam.

7th November 2023

SWINGING IN THE RAIN

2023 must be the wettest year of all time. The incessant rain has presented all sorts of challenges to our club, not least to our competitions committees, who’ve had to reschedule events time and time again. We have, however, a number of recent results to report this week. Firstly, McQuillan’s Staircases sponsored a Scotch Foursomes for Men, which was played over the front nine holes. This competition was won by Patrick Hanratty and Sean McKernan, who returned a four under par round of 32 strokes. Gavin McEneaney and Paul Leonard took second prize one shot back on 33, while Brian McGovern and Andy Whelan came in third on the same score. More recently, our hardy Winter Golfers took part in a nine holes singles event. The winner on a score of 21 points was Paudie Kindlon. He was followed home by Martin Malone and Barry O’Reilly, both of whom scored 19 points. As always our seniors found a gap in the clouds and completed their weekly nine holes. The winners and their scores were: Cat.1 Brian McGovern 18, Declan McAteer 18 and Martin Shevlin 17. Cat. 2 Joe Quinn 18, Pat Merrick 17 and Pat Conlon 17. Cat. 3 Jim O’ Neill 16, Brendan Laverty 10 and Terence McKeown 9 ( Do not adjust your set!) This week, it’s the front nine again off the white tees.

And finally for this week, November is AGM month. All members and shareholders should have received notices by now for our meetings on November 23^rd. This month also sees the start of our Winter League. The entry form is now posted on our noticeboard, with the draw due to take place on November 20^th.

24th October 2023

BRIAN’S BACK IN FORM

Our most recent eighteen hole competition was sponsored by McArdle Office Supplies. The winner on a score of 40 points was Brian McGovern. Brian is known as a Winter golf specialist, so watch out as he dominates the Winter League and Seniors golf over the next few months. Category 1 was won by Stephen McQuillan on 38 points, while Paul Leonard led the way in Category 2 on 37. And Paraic Craig took the top spot in Category 3 on a score of 33 points. The Beginners’ Prize was won by Turlough Fitzsimons on 36 points, and in the nine hole event, Phelim Quinn came in first on 22 points.

Last weekend saw another named storm, but we did manage to hold a nine hole competition on Sunday. This was won by Conor McCaul on a score of 21 points. Jonathan Kernan took Category 1, also on 21 points, a score which was enough for Gerry Hamill in Category 3. And Johnny Redmond won the Category 2 prize with 20 points.

Our matchplay competitions made a welcome return this year. The first of these, for lower handicappers is now complete, with Paul Connolly coming out on top. In Sunday’s final, he had to go all the way to the nineteenth green, where a birdie saw him overcome a stiff challenge from Frank McDonnell. Congratulations to Paul, and we hope to report on our other finals in the coming weeks.

Leavy’s Chemist sponsored last week’s ladies’ nine hole competition. This was won by Joanne Loughman who returned a fine score of 19 points. The runner-up was Catriona Bolger on a score of 18.

Our seniors spotted a gap in the rain, and all headed out together last Tuesday. The category winners were as follows: Cat. 1 Gerry Treacy 21, Declan McAteer 18 and Pat McNeill15. Cat. 2 Joe Quinn 19, Joe Gleeson 18 and Pat Conlon 18. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 20, Syl Mulligan 17 and Michael Reid 14. This week, it’s a four club competition from Monday to Friday off the white tees.

The Ladies Autumn League is now underway and many thanks to Richard Wilke of Wilke & Flanagan Solicitors pictured with Lady Captain Chris Monahan for their very generous Sponsorship. 

And finally for this week, a presentation of outstanding prizes for men and ladies’ competitions will take place this Friday evening in our clubhouse at 8 pm. All recent prizewinners are asked to please make an effort to attend.

9th October 2023

PAUL PUTS IT ALL TOGETHER

Autumn brings challenges for Paul Murphy. In the Summer months, all he needs to get around Concra are his driver, his sand iron and his putter. But come October, he has to throw a few more clubs in the bag. So it was quite a feat for him to win the very first competition of the month, sponsored by Steel Formed Sections. He was absolutely bombing along on 23 points after nine, and although the extra ballast slowed him down on the way home, he eventually signed for a winning total of 40 points. His score was matched by Roman Serskis, who won this week’s Beginners’ Prize. In Category 1, Sylvester Quinn shot a 73 gross, giving him a winning score of 39 points off a handicap of 4. Category 2 was won by Pauric Coyle who also scored 39 points, while Gerry Hamill won his umpteenth prize of the season, taking Category 3 with 36 points. Once again members had the option of playing in the nine hole event, and this was won by Pauric McNally who scored 20 points.

Our seniors competition last week was a nine hole event over the front nine. The winners and their scores were: Cat. 1 Martin Allen 21, Declan McAteer 20 and Michael Quinn 20. Cat. 2 PJ Lambe 21, Joe Quinn 20 and Paddy Niland 17. Cat. 3 Syl Mulligan 20, Michael Reid 15 and Terence McKeown 15. This week it’s a team scramble, with members asked to assemble at 1.30 pm on Tuesday when teams will be drawn.

And finally for this week, on Saturday and Sunday, our competition is sponsored by McArdle Office Supplies. Members can enter the nine or the eighteen hole event.

Picture Credit: Glenn Murphy 

3rd October 2023

PRIZEFEST AT CONCRA

Saturday was yet another washout. But Sunday was a different story, as the annual SINE Engineering competition gave members a first opportunity to choose whether to compete over nine or eighteen holes. And it seems there was a prize for everybody in the audience. We’ll start with the traditional eighteen hole event. The winner on a score of 38 points was Brian Morgan. Brian produced a steady round of golf, but was sure he had fallen short when he finished with a double-double. But those final two points just squeezed him past Gerry Hamill on a countback. Gerry will have to settle for the Category 3 prize on this occasion. Category 1 was won yet again by Ciaran McMahon on 35 points , while in Category 2 Paul Campbell came out on top with 37. And this week’s beginners’ prize was won by Damien Moorehead who returned 26 points. Our first nine hole winner was Roman Serskis, whose 22 points was just one too many for Martin Farnan on 21.

Our SINE Engineering event was also our final Golfer of the Year competition of 2023. Long time leader Gerry McCaul felt no pressure whatsoever, as he scored 36 points, giving him a comfortable 25 point winning margin over this year’s runner-up Adrian Connolly. Congratulations to Gerry on another successful season.

Last week’s Seniors’ competition saw a smaller than usual field go to post over the front nine holes. The best score of the week was 21 points by Andy Whelan, with Joe Quinn and Pat McNeill in hot pursuit on 18. This week, it’s another front nine competition off the white tees.

And finally for this week, our next men’s competition is sponsored by Steel Formed Sections, when once again entrants can choose between a nine or eighteen hole format.

26th September 2023

GENE WEATHERS THE STORMS

Winter came early this year. Many golfers have gone into hibernation at this stage, while others are just happy to get out for a few holes. So it was good to see that over one hundred men took part in last weekend’s Blayney Cup at Concra. The winner on a score of 42 points was Gene McGuigan. Gene shot a very fine round of 76 to take this coveted trophy and finish his season in style. His back nine of level par 36 was crucial, as this just squeezed him past Francis Moore on a countback. Third prize was won by the ever-improving Jarlath Denny who returned 38 points, while this week’s Best Gross prize went to Calum Callaghan on 30 gross points. It was also a good weekend for Gene’s playing partner Gerry McCaul. He picked up another 14 points at the top of the Golfer of the Year standings, meaning only Adrian Connolly can now catch him in this weekend’s final event which is sponsored by SINE Engineering.

Carmel and Brendan McAleavey of Culloville House sponsored last week’s ladies’ competition. This was won by Eithne McAviney , who enjoyed a six point winning margin on 37 points. Maura Bowden and Josephine McCahey both scored 31 points, with Maura taking second prize on the back nine. Mairead McCreesh came out on top in the nine hole event on 20 points, with Joanne Loughman in the runner-up spot on 17. This week’s ladies event is the annual Des McGlynn Cup.

And finally for this week, our seniors headed off to Headfort GC last week to compete for the Smythie Trophy over two days. And while the elements didn’t exactly play ball, the dozens of photos posted online would suggest they had the best of a time. The winner on a 36 hole total of 71 points was Brian Coleman, with Ciaran Prunty and Pat McNeill four points behind on 67.

19th September 2023

PAUL PIPS STEPHEN AT THE POST

How do you separate first from second when they are all square after eighteen holes, and they share the same back nine score? The golf protocol states that you award top spot to the player who has a superior last six holes. It doesn’t happen too often, but that’s exactly what faced our competitions convenor Stephen McQuillan on Sunday evening. Only this time he was involved himself. Not surprisingly, Murphy’s Law dictated that he would miss out by the finest of margins to Paul Connolly. A crucial birdie on 14 meant that Paul completed the final six on a super score of one under par, enough to win our annual Brennan’s Furniture competition. Stephen does, however, have the consolation of a major boost to his Golfer of the Year standing. He moves up to third place on 50 points with two competitions to go, behind Gerry McCaul on 59 and Adrian Connolly on 54. Those two remaining competitions are this weekend’s Blayney Cup and our annual SINE Engineering event at the end of the month. Third prize was won by Rory Kelly on 38 points, while this week’s Beginners’ Prize went to Mick McDonnell on 31 points.

The Corner Pharmacy sponsored last week’s ladies’ competition. The winner on a score of 39 points was Ann Cumiskey. The Category winners were Dorren Quinn on 37 points, Marie McDonnell on 35 and Martina Conlan on 32. This week our sponsors are Brendan and Carmel McAleavey of Culloville House.

And finally for this week, our matchplay events are nearing completion. Already Paul Connolly has booked his place in the low handicap singles final, while the much fancied pairing of our Captain Declan Smyth and Pat McNeill await their next opponents in the final of the HiLo matchplay. We ask all competitors to complete their remaining matches in time for our October presentation.

Many thanks to everyone that took part in our recent Play in Pink weekend and for your very generous contributions. Your continued support is much appreciated.

13th September 2023

JAMIE MCCANN SMYTH WINS THE PATRON’S PRIZE

Last weekend saw some record breaking September temperatures, as our members took part in Michael McHugh’s Patron’s Prize. And hot weather usually means hot scoring in Concra. On this occasion, the man best placed to take advantage of the conditions was Jamie McCann Smyth. He broke 80 for the first time, on his way to recording 45 stableford points off a handicap of 16. This gave him a three shot margin of victory over Gerry “Clontibret” Brennan, who also returned a season’s best of 42 points. The Best Gross prize was won by Gary Morgan, who matched Jamie’s round of 79, while third prize went to Michael Byrne on 41 points. And Turlough Fitzsimons is back on top in the Beginners’ Category, on a winning score of 35 points.

Michael has been rather busy sponsoring competitions of late, as this week he sponsored the Teresa McHugh Cup for our ladies. This event also produced a winning score of 45 points, this time from Suzanne McElroy. Category 1 was won by Josephine McCahey on 34 points, with Sile Moore picking up The Category 2 prize on the same score. In Category 3, Patricia Hamill secured top spot with the second best score of the week, 35 points, while Anne Lambe won Category 4 on 21 points. The winner of the nine hole event was Lady Vice Captain Margie Carville on 19 points. In the process €550 was raised for our Play in Pink charity the National Breast Cancer Research Institute.

And finally for this week, congratulations to Andrea Mulligan and our Captain Declan Smyth, who recorded the best score at the Rose McKeown Cup in Mannan Castle on Sunday. Their 42 points total was unmatched in this annual inter-club event. And congratulations to the host club Mannan Castle GC who won the team event.

(L-R Rita O’Loughlin, Mannan Castle, Cathal Short, Captain Declan Smyth & Andrea Mulligan)

5th September 2023

PADDY’S BACK WITH A BANG

It’s been a while since Paddy Carville won a club competition – how long I just can’t say. Well the wait is well and truly over, as Paddy won our Play in Pink event sponsored by Culloville House at the weekend with a massive total of 45 points. That’s quite a way to announce your return. In the process, Paddy denied Ciaran Prunty in his bid for back to back victories. Ciaran followed up last week’s win with a round of 42 points, but on this occasion, he’ll have to settle for the Category 2 prize. Category 1 was won by Adrian Connolly on 41 points, while we had another long awaited return in Category 3, as Martin Shevlin came home with 38 points. We had two more rounds of note to report this week. Charlie McDonnell won the Best Gross prize with a two under par round of 70, while Damien Moorehead scored 37 points off a handicap of 13 to win in our Beginners’ Section. These results have been added to our Golfer of the Year leaderboard, where Gerry McCaul leads the way on 59 points. There are only four weeks left now for the chasing bunch, starting with this weekend’s men’s competition, Michael McHugh’s Patron’s Prize.

Our ladies took part in the annual Mulligan Cup competition over the past week. The winner was Jolanta McMonagle, whose 38 points is her latest super score in a memorable season. The runner-up prize went to Anne Kelly on a score of 31 points.

Michael McHugh hosted his Patron’s Prize to the Seniors on Monday. This event was won by Thomas Brennan on a score of 38 points. Pat McNeill picked up yet another second prize on 37, while Sean Mulligan came in third on 36.

Pictured L-R Senior Captain Johnny Redmond, Patron Michael McHugh and Winner Thomas Brennan

And finally for this week, our matchplay events, which have proven to be very popular this Summer, are nearing their final stages. However, we have one or two outstanding matches which need to be arranged this week. We’ve certainly got the weather for it. So here’s a call to all lucky enough to still be in contention, to get the matchplay done.

29th August 2023

CIARAN COMES OUT ON TOP

Ciaran Prunty got back to winning ways in last weekend’s Des McGlynn Cup. A regular winner in the seniors’ section, it’s been a while since Ciaran came out on top in a club competition. On this occasion, forty points was enough to get him over the line, but only just. He needed a countback to edge ahead of Gary Morgan. Playing his very best golf of late, Gary hit 21 points on the first nine, but his back nine of 19 means he has to settle for second prize this time around. The Best Gross prize was won by Charlie McDonnell, who returned a level par round of 72, while third prize went to big hitter Sean Hughes on 38 points. In our beginners’ section, Gerry “Annyalla” Brennan did the business once again on 33 points. Our next competition is sponsored by Brendan and Carmel McAleavey’s Culloville House.

Noel Gorman’s Corrigan’s Kitchen sponsored last week’s ladies’ competition. This was won by Sile Moore on 36 points. The runner-up was Anne Cumiskey also on 36, with Linda Connolly in third on 34. The nine hole event was won by Suzanne McElroy on 20 points, with Alice Duffy in second on 17.

And finally for this week, our juvenile’s summer competitions finished up with the annual Canon Morris Cup and a presentation of prizes on Sunday evening. And what an evening it was for Dylan McMonagle, who came out on top in the Canon Morris Cup, which also secured him this year’s Golfer of the Year title. Congratulations Dylan, and a huge thank you to Tom McDermott and all his team for providing another great summer of golf for our younger members.

Dylan McMonagle collecting his trophy from Captain Declan Smyth.

22nd August 2023

NUDIE HUGHES WINS A MEMORABLE CAPTAIN’S PRIZE

Declan Smyth’s Captain’s Weekend for 2023 was a truly memorable event. Set against the backdrop of Storm Betty, it proved to be a really tough golf challenge from start to finish. We’ll start at the very beginning. Day 1 Friday. Very wet and very windy. Getting around eighteen holes was as much the challenge as trying to record a score. Many decided nine holes was enough. Others went on, only to fall victim to the conditions. However, there was one notable exception. Nudie Hughes came home with a nett 68. Remarkable. Some said it wouldn’t be matched. The weather was getting ever worse. Would anyone even get the chance? Friday night brought us Storm Betty, and she was still with us as we arrived for Day 2 Saturday. Some good news. Our Head Greenkeeper Peter declared  the course playable, but the early starters got her at her most challenging. An hour or two in, and as conditions improved, some were even able to reach the fairway off the first tee. As the day went on we even had two competitors, Pat McNeill and Thomas Hughes, manage to bring in level par 72. All agreed that this was the toughest golf they had ever played. If the wind and the rain didn’t get you, the pins certainly did! However, there was talk that things were set to improve on Day 3 Sunday. And indeed that’s how it turned out. Those who held on until Sunday morning had the luxury of playing in 20 mph winds. The word on the street after nine was that scoring had improved. But as usual the back nine brought everyone back down to earth. And while more players on Sunday did make the cut of 4 over par 76, the best score anyone could muster on the day was a 73 by Phil Branigan. So as the qualifiers headed out for yet another punishing back nine, Nudie Hughes held a four shot lead. The rest had it all to do. Many hopes ended at the tenth tee. It was provisional balls all round for a while. But not for Nudie. Experience of three previous wins is gold dust. Not even the challenges of recent times were going to stand in his way. He set out to basically play bogey golf, as he knew this would be enough. As the rest gradually faltered, he eased his way home for a ten shot victory. The emotional scenes at our final green were a fitting end to an unforgettable weekend of golf.

The final result was:

Winner: Nudie Hughes.

Runner-up: Pat McNeill.

Best Gross: Jack McDonnell.

Third: Gerry McCaul.

Fourth: Jimmy Lacey.

Fifth: Kevin McGuire.

Sunday night’s presentation was the final piece in the jigsaw. Our Captain Declan was at pains to express his gratitude to the many people who had helped to turn a really challenging situation into such a successful weekend. He was very proud to announce that our members had donated €1100 to his chosen charity Muscular Dystrophy. And of course, the end of the night brought a standing ovation for our winner Nudie Hughes, whose speech treated us all to a little insight into his sporting philosophy. A further distinction for Nudie was that he became the first recipient of our new Captain’s Prize Perpetual Trophy. Crafted by Liam McElroy and sponsored by Michael McEntegart, this exact replica in maple of the British Open’s Claret Jug records the names of all previous winners, right back to the first event on our old course in 1985. Let’s hope future presentations of this trophy can live up to the first.

Declan also hosted a Captain’s Prize for junior golfers before the main event. The winner was Conor McCaul on 38 points, with Cormac Conlon in second place on 37, and Junior Captain Eimear McGlynn in third on 36 points. Congratulations to all who took part.

As if all that wasn’t enough, we have more golf competitions to report on this week. First of all the ladies, who took part in Ciaran Lavery’s Professional’s Prize. This competition was won by Jolanta McMonagle on a score of 38 points. Suzanne McElroy and Catriona Bolger both returned 34, with Suzanne edging into second place on a countback. The nine hole event was won by Carmel McAleavey.

Golf never stops for our Seniors. Fresh from Sunday night’s celebrations, they were out bright and early on Monday morning to take part in Frank McDonnell’s President’s Prize. There’s just no beating Martin Allen at the minute. He came out on top once again with 39 points. It was second place for a second time in two days for Pat McNeill on 38 points. And third prize went to Des Morgan on 37.

And finally for this week, back to our Captain’s Prize. It’s fair to say that the course set up was the major talking point for much of the weekend. And to confirm just how difficult it was, the Captain himself provided me with some interesting stats on his “US Open” Captain’s Prize. Firstly, there were only twenty one birdies recorded in over 120 rounds. No-one managed to birdie Holes 1, 7, 9, 11, 16 or 17. And only three single figure handicappers made the cut. Will we ever see the like of it again?

15th August 2023

GERRY WINS AGAIN

Gerry McCaul made it two wins on the trot in last weekend’s Forrme Construction singles event. Playing off a handicap of 19, Gerry shot 40 points, and on a course which is still playing very long, this proved to be enough for another victory. A number of competitors got within one point of Gerry. The countback awarded second place to Gavin Corrigan, and third to Brendan Carragher. The Best Gross was won by Conor Callan on 30 gross points, while Turlough Fitzsimons picked up another Beginners’ Prize on 33 points.

So once again, the stage is set for Declan Smyth’s Captain’s Prize. Members are reminded that a whole new timesheet was posted last week, with times available right across Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning. After eighteen holes, the top eighteen scorers and equals will qualify for Sunday afternoon’s nine hole play-off. It looks as if the Weather Gods are going to play fair this time around (fingers crossed!), so good luck to all who take part.

And finally for this week, a good omen for the weekend ahead was the success of Declan’s Captain’s Prize for Ladies. Forty lady members took part, in rather benign conditions, on Thursday last. The winner was Sandra McEvoy. Playing off a handicap of 7, Sandra returned a winning score of 34 points. Second place went to Joan McGrath on 32 points, with Claire Connolly taking third prize on 31 points. The nine hole competition was won by Yvonne McManus who scored 17 points, while the Best Beginner’s Prize went to Julieann Lacey.

8th August 2023

RAIN STOPPED PLAY

Like so many golf courses, Concra Wood was closed on Saturday after yet another deluge. Unfortunately this meant the postponement of Declan Smyth’s Captain’s Prize. After some considerable rearrangements, this event has now been rescheduled for the weekend of Friday 18^th to Sunday 20^th of August. A new timesheet for members has now been posted on our notice board. Sunday did see some golf played, as our members took part in a Fourball Betterball. So who was in form on what should have been Captain’s Weekend? Well, one fourball dominated, with Gerry McCaul and Noel O’Reilly on top with 48 points, edging opposite numbers Eugene McGuigan and Sean Malone into second place on 47. Third place went to Michael Byrne and Mickey Rushe on 45. Declan’s ladies’ and junior competitions also fell victim to the weather. However one of his events, the Captain’s Prize for Seniors did go ahead earlier in the week. The winner on a score of 34 points was Martin Allen. Andy Whelan came in second on 32, with Des Morgan in third place on 31.

And finally for this week, our matchplay events have experienced some delays due to the weather. As the week ahead looks a little better, competitors are asked to complete their current round of matches by this Sunday evening.

1st August 2023

GARY MORGAN KNOCKS THEM FOR SIX

Gary Morgan produced one of the rounds of the season on Sunday morning. With the going best described as soft, he shot a round of level par 72 for a total of 45 points, enough to win MC Blinds annual competition by six. Wet and windy conditions don’t bother Gary, as he’s so long off the tee, with the best back swing to distance ratio you could wish for. And this round saw him win enough greenies and sandies, not to mention skins, oozlers and tweeters, and complimentaries off the sponsor Billy Hanna, to keep him in golf balls for the rest of the decade. Category 1 was won by Sean Hughes, who managed eight pars in a row on his way to 38 points. Category 2 went to Jonathan Moore, the closest competitor to Gary, with 39 points. And Paul Campbell is back in the winners’ enclosure, winning Category 3 on 37 points.

So now our attention turns to the major event of our season, Declan Smyth’s Captain’s Prize. Our seniors have already completed their part of the story. On Monday they competed for Declan’s Senior Prize, with Martin Allen coming out on top on 34 points. The runner-up was Andy Whelan on 32, with Des Morgan in third on 31. Most members are signed up at this stage for the eighteen hole qualifier, which take place on Friday evening, and on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Then it’s a nine hole play-off for the top eighteen and equals on Sunday afternoon. Declan has made one or two changes this time around, most notably opting for a strokeplay format. Will this influence the eventual outcome? Normally it would be seen to favour the lower men, making a surprise winner less likely. But in current conditions, it really is anybody’s guess. One thing’s for sure, it’s going to be a real test of patience. Another innovation this year is a separate competition for junior members. All male and female members aged 15 to 18 are eligible to play in Friday’s event. Good luck to all.

25th July 2023

DONNA NUGENT WINS THE LADY CAPTAIN’S PRIZE

What a day, and what a night. Chris Monahan’s Lady Captain’s Prize. First of all the day. Well it rained, and then it rained, and then it rained some more. Our clubhouse was very cosy, all tea and buns and balloons. But regardless, out the ladies all headed, as our course became wetsuit City for the day. It was quite a test, of resilience as much as golf, but pass it they all did. And by evening some admirable scores had been returned. In the end it took a countback to separate the top two. Donagh Nugent and Joan McGrath led the way on 39 points, and it was Donagh who took this year’s first prize with a superior back nine. The Best Gross was won by Joanna Campbell, while third prize went to our Lady Vice-Captain Margie Carville on 37 points. And so to the night. Chris never does things by half, so it was always going to be a packed, partying clubhouse. And as for Donagh’s victory celebration. It would be impossible to do it justice here, it just suffices to say that it was utterly unique. Congratulations to Chris and all the ladies on a great event, and especially on raising €1500 for Monaghan Arch Club in the process.

It goes without saying that our men’s competition, the Clement McKenna Cup, was played in equally testing conditions. And while the quiet man of golf, Brian Harman, was plotting his way around Hoylake to silence the big guns, Concra’s own quiet man Greg Duffy produced a similar story closer to home. With only a two over par nett after nine, lesser men headed for the car park. But Greg soldiered on, going five under his handicap on the back nine for a winning score of 69. His margin of victory didn’t quite match Harman’s, this time it was three shots, with Calum Callaghan taking second prize on 72. Starting out off a handicap of 3, Calum’s recent form sees him hit a new low of 2.5. The best gross was won by Sylvester Quinn, who shot a round of 76, while Sean Loughman came in third on 72. There’s plenty of prizes to be won at the minute, with Tate Donnelly winning the best stableford prize on 36 points, and Mick McDonnell taking the Beginners’ Prize on 79. This weekend our competition is sponsored by MC Blinds, when members will play for category prizes.

And finally for this week, it’s good to see so many of our matches being played on time in our HiLo and singles matchplay events. And the feedback has been great, with some really enjoyable close encounters already completed. This week, attention turns to the men’s big event of the season Declan Smyth’s Captain’s Prize. As this is a strokeplay competition, members will be drawn in threeballs. So our timesheet looks a little different with eighteen spots in every hour. Members are asked to sign up at your earliest convenience, to ensure the smooth running of this event.

18th July 2023

NEW FOURBALL – NEW BRADY

A change is as good as a rest. Just ask Joe Brady. Last weekend, he made one or two changes to his regular four-ball, and Bingo he shot 41 points to win Chris Monahan’s Lady Captain’s Prize for Men. He had it all sewn up with 40 points after sixteen, but he added another for good measure against the gale on seventeen for a one shot winning margin over Austin Curran. Austin’s second place now gives him an eight-point lead on the Golfer of the Year leaderboard over the early pace setter Billy Hanna. The Best Gross was won by Jack McDonnell. A one under par 71 was quite a score in last weekend’s conditions. Third place went to Sean Malone who returned 39 points, and Gerry “Annyalla” Brennan saw his handicap continue to tumble as he won the Beginners’ Prize on a score of 40 points.

No sooner had Chris completed her men’s event, than she turned her attention to the seniors. On Monday, thirty-nine of their number competed for her Lady Captain’s Prize. In testing conditions, 35 points was enough to take Adrian Sewell over the line. The runner-up was Patrick Comiskey on 33 points, with Martin Allen in third place, also on 33. Next week, our senior’s competition is a team event. Members are asked to sign in at the pro shop by 9.30 on Monday morning when the draw will be made.

Chris now turns her attention to the major event of her season – The Lady Captain’s Prize. This takes place this Saturday, with at least fifty ladies taking part. We wish Chris and all competitors the very best of luck. Let’s hope they all have a great day’s golf.

And finally, this weekend’s men’s competition is the annual Clement McKenna Cup. This Golfer of the Year strokeplay event will once again have best gross and beginners’ prizes.

Lady Captain Chris Monahan presenting Adrian Sewell with first prize along with Senior Captain Johnny Redmond 

11th July 2023

SUCCESS AT LAST

We’ve had quite a modest season on the inter-club front. For our men’s teams, there’s been the odd foray into one or two second rounds, but so far that’s about it. So it’s good to report that our Lady Captain Chris Monahan’s side have brought home some silverware with victory in this year’s Hilton Shield final.  Chris’s team – Yvonne Duffy, Margie Carville, Moira O’Brien, Andrea Mulligan and Joan McGrath – had trailed Crover House GC by three matches to two after the first leg. But in Saturday’s tight second leg, they clawed their way back to five all, and won on a countback. Congratulations to Chris and her team. Let’s hope they’ve shown the way, and that this can be the first of many.

Our men’s weekend competition was sponsored by Paul Murphy’s Colt Design. Last week’s winner Billy Hanna shot 40 points in the very windiest conditions, giving him a real chance of back to back victories. However, he’s had to settle for the Category 1 prize on this occasion, as he was just pipped at the post by Kenny Farrelly. Birdies on holes nine and eighteen gave Kenny a total of 41 points, and a first victory since his return to the fold. Category 3 was won by Adrian Sewell on 38 points, while a quiet week in Category 2 meant that Ian Brodigan picked up this prize on a mere 34 points. This weekend, Chris Monahan sponsors her Lady Captain’s Prize for Men, when we’ll have first, second, third and gross prizes. And she’ll be busy again on Monday, as she sponsors her prize for the senior men.

Michael McHugh’s  Patron’s Prize for the ladies was played over the past week. In really difficult scoring conditions, the winner was Patricia Connolly, whose 35 points just beat Briege Horgan on a countback – Briege’s reward is the Category 3 prize. Category 1 went to Jolanta McMonagle on 34 points, while Category 2 was won by Linda Connolly on 33 points. The winner of the nine hole event was Jeannette Keenan on 18 points.

And finally for this week, the draws for the men’s matchplay competitions are now posted on our club noticeboard. There are two singles and one fourball event, with staggered closing dates to help members to complete their matches on time in each round. Let’s hope our inter-club fortunes get a much needed boost from the return of our matchplay competitions.

                                      Winning Team

4th July 2023

BILLY’S STRAIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE

“You’ve got to love hitting fairways!” We’ve all heard this old golf adage, and yet most of us strain every last cell in our bodies to gain that elusive extra ten yards off every tee. And we all know where that gets us. There are one or two exceptions. Billy Hanna loves the fairways, and he has hardly missed one since he was in short trousers. So while a strong Westerly wind blew across Concra last weekend, Billy plotted his way to a score of 38 points, and won the Paul Hill Cup in the process. Stephen McQuillan matched Billy’s score, but couldn’t equal his 21 points on the back nine, so he took the runner-up prize on 37 points. Stephen is also now in second place on our Golfer of the Year leader board, just two points behind early leader Gerry Hamill. The Best Gross was won by Jack McDonnell with a round of three over par, while third prize went to Rory Niland on 37 points. Roman Serskis is now challenging in our Beginner category on a regular basis, and this time around he returned the best score of the weekend, taking this prize with 39 points. This weekend, our next Golfer of the Year competition is sponsored by Paul Murphy’s Colt Design, when members will compete for category prizes.

The View Restaurant sponsored our most recent ladies’ competition. There was a new name in first place, Joanne Loughman, on a nett score of 70 strokes. Second prize was won by Catriona Bolger on 71, with Linda Connolly in third place on 77. In the nine hole event, Eileen Kerr came out on top on 37 nett, while Tracey Liddy O’Connor took second prize on 39. This week’s sponsor is our Patron Michael McHugh.

Our senior men’s big day of the year, Johnny Redmond’s Captain’s Day took place on Monday. The very popular winner was one Junior McKeown, who left the field in his wake on a score of 42 points. The other prizewinners were: Cat. 1 Thomas Brennan 35, Michael Quinn 34 and Eamonn Johnston 33. Cat. 2 Nicky Hore 32, Andy Whelan 31 and Bart McNamara 31. Cat. 3 Michael Reid 35, Syl Mulligan 32 and Pierce Hughes 27. Congratulations to Johnny and his team, Andy and Nicky, on a very successful day. The next seniors event to look forward to is on Monday July 17^th, when our sponsor will be Lady Captain Chris Monahan.

And finally for this week, in a season which has been low on inter-club success, it’s good to report that Chris Monahan’s Hilton Shield team have given themselves a real chance of victory. They go into the second leg of their final in Concra on Saturday afternoon, trailing Crover House GC by just three matches to two. We wish the very best of luck to our Lady Captain Chris and her team.

Junior McKeown Winner pictured with Senior Captain Johnny Redmond

27th June 2023

GAVIN’S BIRDIE BLITZ

Gavin McEneaney’s putter was red hot in the Steelform Sections Strokeplay competition at the weekend. He recorded four birdies, including at our difficult 5^th and 11^th holes, on his way to a peerless 65 nett, for a two stroke victory. Playing off a nine handicap, Gavin’s gross score was a two over par 74, a figure which was matched by Ciaran McMahon, giving him a nett 67 and second prize. 67 nett was also returned by Frank McDonnell, enough for this week’s third prize. Our Vice Captain Mark Currie got in on the low scoring, recording a 75 to win the Best Gross. As strokeplay is not everyone’s cup of tea, we had a Best Stableford prize, which went to Adrian Connolly on 41 points. And not for the first time, our Beginners’ Prize was won by Turlough Fitzsimons on a score of 68 nett.

This weekend our men’s competition is the annual Paul Hill Cup.

Duffy Oils sponsored the Longfield Rosebowl on Sunday afternoon. This ladies’ major was won by Anne Kelly on a super score of 41 points. The runner-up prize went to Jolanta McMonagle on 37 points, while the Best Gross Prize went to Sandra McEvoy with a round of six over par. The Category prizes were won by Josephine McCahey, Linda Connolly, Briege Horgan and Joanne Loughman. This week, it’s a strokeplay event for the ladies, sponsored by  The View Restaurant.

Our seniors took part in a nine hole event last week. The results were: Cat. 1 Martin Allen 20, Charlie Geoghegan 19 and Martin Rafter 19. Cat. 2 Pat Conlon 21, Pauric Craig 21 and PJ Lambe 18. Cat. 3 Brendan Laverty 21, Michael Reid 17 and Jim O’Neill 16. This week there’s the usual nine hole competition off the green tees, while next week, it’s the big event of the seniors season, Johnny Redmond’s Captain’s Prize. This takes place on Monday July 3^rd, and all competitors are asked to sign in on the BRS system between 10 am and 12 noon.

And finally for this week, our matchplay events for 2023 are about to get under way. Every member can sign up to play in a singles and the HiLo foursomes event. All details are on our club notice board. Members are asked to get their entries in by Sunday July 2^nd.

20th June 2023

KEVIN STRIKES GOLD

After all the recent good weather, and with the ball running a mile on our fairways, our competitions committee decided to put us all back on the gold tees for last weekend’s Carna Transport sponsored event. And as always, this brought the scoring back down to earth, with only two golfers managing to break 40 points. The winner on a score of 42 was Kevin McGuire. A superb 26 points on the front nine laid the foundation for what was Kevin’s maiden victory, while 16 on the back nine was just enough to edge past Francie Boylan on 41.  Francie will have to settle for the Category 1 Prize on this occasion. Category 2 was won by Michael Byrne on 36 points, while Aidan Boyd took the spoils in Category 3 on 39. In our Beginner Category, this week’s winner was Roman Serskis who returned a score of 36 points. This weekend our men’s competition is sponsored by C & R McMahon Construction.

Coyle’s Pharmacy sponsored last week’s ladies’ competition. This was won by Anne Kelly on a score of 40 points. The category prizes were won by Catriona Bolger on 39, Margie Carville on 36 and Tracey Liddy O’Connor on 35, with Niamh Quinn picking up the nine hole prize on 14 points. This Sunday, our ladies take part in one of their season’s major events – the Longfield Rosebowl – sponsored by Seamus and Yvonne Duffy.

Our juvenile golf is back up and running every Sunday afternoon from 3 to 6 pm. There’s been a great turnout so far this year, and new members are very welcome to join. The more the merrier.

And finally for this week, we have some good news on the inter-club front. Alan Bolger’s Tudenham Cup side advanced to Round 2 on Saturday with a comprehensive victory over Black Bush GC. Alas, that’s where the good news ends, as last weekend saw the end of the road for Sandra McAvoy’s Challenge Cup team and Sylvester Quinn’s Senior Cowdy Cup side. We wish Alan and his team the very best of luck in Round 2, when they take on Headfort GC.

13th June 2023

GERRY ROLLS BACK THE YEARS

Gerry Treacy features in a lot of our team photos downstairs in our clubhouse. And it would be fair to say that most of those are from back in the eighties, when our club was really successful on the inter-club circuit. So it was a real case of rolling back the years, and striking a blow for our seniors, when Gerry shot 44 points on Saturday to win the Prandy Duffy Cup. And he needed every one of them, as he just managed to pip Mickey Rushe by a single point. The Best Gross prize was won by Charlie McDonnell who returned a round of one over par, while third prize went to Patsy Boyle on a score of 42 points. As usual the Prandy Duffy Cup weekend meant that our club, and most particularly our clubhouse, was at its very busiest. Paul Murphy was a very relieved man on Saturday night, as his Irish side once again overcame their American rivals in our version of the Ryder Cup – Paul doesn’t do forfeits very well! And by Sunday night’s presentation, all thirty of our American visitors had signed up for another shot at Team Murphy in 2024. Only 362 days to go!

Our seniors were straight back in action on Monday, with thirty-eight of their number competing in the annual Gabriel Moore Memorial competition. And after four weeks of glorious sunny weather, it absolutely tipped down on them. However the conditions didn’t seem to affect Frank McDonnell, who returned a score of 45 points to win the coveted trophy. The category winners were: Cat. 1 Des Morgan 38, Brian McGovern 38 and John Redmond 37. Cat. 2 Andy Whelan 40, Eamonn Johnston 38 and Larry Coleman 37. Cat. 3 Brendan Laverty 36, Syl Mulligan 36 and Pat McBride 35. May thanks from all the seniors to Maura and her son Finian who presented the prizes, for their continued support.

Paul Murphy’s Colt Design sponsored last week’s ladies’ strokeplay competition. This was won by Nuala Traynor on a fabulous score of 62 nett. Second prize was won by Patricia Connolly on 69, while third prize went to Lady Vice Captain Margie Carville on a score of 70. This weekend our ladies competition is sponsored by Coyles’ Chemist, while our men’s sponsor is Carna Transport.

And finally for this week, well done to Sylvester Quinn and his Senior Cowdy Cup side who took a creditable 7 ½ points from their away leg at Loughgall GC on Sunday. This gives them a reasonable chance of progress in this weekend’s second leg. We have a number of club teams in action this weekend, and we wish them all the very best. Let’s hope we have some more good news to report in next week’s column.

6th June 2023

PRESIDENT’S PRIZE WINS FOR JOLANTA AND FERGAL

Frank McDonnell’s President’s Prize was played over four sun drenched days last week. Things got under way in near perfect conditions on Thursday with the ladies’ event. The winner on a fabulous score of 41 points was Jolanta McMonagle. This was Jolanta’s best ever round, and it’s fair to say that there were scenes of joy in our clubhouse on Thursday night. The runner-up prize was won by Caitriona Bolger, who finished three shots back on 38 points. Caitriona’s score was matched by Josephine McCahey, who took third place on a countback. The category prizes were won by Mary McElroy, Eithne McAviney, Jeannette Keenan and Alice Duffy, while the nine hole event was won by Joanne Loughman.

On Friday, it was over to the men, with over 140 competitors taking part in the qualifier over three days. By Sunday afternoon, eighteen had qualified for the nine hole play-off, with Keith Hill leading on 44 points. But with the cut set rather high at 38 points, it was still anyone’s game. The first man to make a big play was Alan Bolger. He played the first eight holes in one under par. However, he narrowly failed to get up and down out of a bunker at the last, and posted level par 22 for the final nine, setting a 27 hole target of 63 points. This lasted all the way to the final group. Fergal Duffy, who had 43 points after nine, produced a wonder up and down on the eighth, to put him on 61 points on the final tee, and a par from victory. When his tee shot on nine came up short and right, it looked like he had a really long chip to a back left pin. But instead he reached for the putter, and played a super shot within five feet of the flag. And after Damien Cumiskey sank his putt for second place, Fergal coolly found the middle of the hole for a first major victory. The full list of prize-winners was as follows:  

1^st: Fergal Duffy

2nd: Damien Cumiskey

Best Gross: Alan Bolger

3^rd: Austin Curran

4^th: Gerry McCaul

5^th: Gerry Hamill

 Leading Qualifier: Keith Hill

Beginner: David McGardle

Past President: Pat Conlon

Committee: Jimmy Lacey

Guest: Michael Marray

Our seniors have another great day to look forward to next week. The Gabriel Moore Memorial Trophy will be played for on Monday 12^th of June. In the meantime, it’s just another ordinary week, with a nine hole competition off the green tees. Last week’s results were: Cat. 1 Declan McAteer 19, Gerry Treacy 17 and John McGoldrick 16. Cat. 2 Eamonn Johnston 22, Joe McGrath 22 and Finbar Brohan 20. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 21, Macartan Lambe 19 and Pat McBride 18.

And finally for this week, Paul Murphy is going to be a very busy man in the coming days. First of all he sponsors the Colt Design ladies’ competition. And then he’s into Concra’s version of the Ryder Cup – the Prandy Duffy Cup. After three years of Covid disruption, James Duffy and his Merry Men are back in town to renew old friendships – and rivalries! It all kicks off on Saturday morning and, all going well, should end with a presentation of prizes at 8.30 pm on Sunday night.

(L-R) Keith Hill, President Frank McDonnell, Fergal Duffy and Damien Cumiskey

29th May 2023

The return of the good weather marked our first stroke play competition of the year in this week’s competition sponsored by Thomas Brennan’s Consurv Building Consultants. Although it’s not everyone’s favourite format, one man that seemed to enjoy it was Pauric McNally. He put together a very consistent round to win by 3 shots with a nett 64. Not too many people like to show their hand the week before the President’s Prize, but surely Pauric is now the early favourite! In second, continuing his early season form, was Jack Carragher with a nett 67 who will start to see his handicap tumble now that the counting competitions are in full swing. The gross was won by Jack McDonnell who had 4 birdies and 4 bogeys in a round of 72, and third place went to Sean Cassidy who had a nett 67. There was also a prize for best stableford score, which was won by Fergal Toal with 41 points.

In the ladies’ stroke competition sponsored by Doreen Harte, the winner was Suzanne McElroy with a nett 71. Patricia Connolly was second with 73, and Margie Carville came third on 75. Joanne Loughman won the nine-hole event. Congratulations to Sandra McAvoy’s AIG Intermediate Cup team who beat Portadown in the second round. The team won two matches at home and two away. Fantastic result ladies

And finally for this week, Frank McDonnell’s President’s Prize will take place from Friday 2^nd to Sunday 4^th June. This stableford event will be played off the green tees. There will be a nine-hole playoff at 3:30pm on Sunday. The entry sheet is on the notice board for members to sign in. Frank’s chosen charity is the Monaghan Arch Club.

22nd May 2023

Nudie Hughes Club Classic

The Nudie Hughes Concra Wood Club Classic took place from Thursday 18th to Sunday 21^st May, and over 4 days just under 90 teams took part. After the recent prolonged spell of poor weather the sun shone all week in the lead up to the classic, enabling our greens staff to start to whip the course into condition for 4 busy days. Nudie was on hand himself over the weekend to meet and greet the teams taking part, and the registration volunteers and starter Mickie Reid made sure the event ran smoothly. By Sunday evening our winning team was Sean Murray, David Burke, Sean McNiff and John D’Arcy, a group of regular visitors from Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim with a score of 106 points. Runners up with a score of 105 points was the tried and tested squad of Noel O’Reilly, Sean Malone, Gerry McCaul and Eugene McGuigan, who pipped the team of Gerry Brennan of Annyalla, Turlough Fitzsimons, Ronan Burke and Cathal Atkinson on a countback. In fourth place was a team of new members Philip & Linda Connolly and Peadar & Angela Hand with a score of 101 points. The Ladies section was won by Claire Connolly Patricia Connolly, Anne Kelly and Zoe O’Donoghue with an excellent score of 97 points, runners up were Martina Conlan, Cathryna Craig, Suzanne McElroy and Mary McElroy. The team of Martin O’Neill, Peter Mallon, Patrick Early and Michael Early took top place in the non Golf Ireland section. Mens longest drive on 18^th went to Eoin Murphy, while the ladies longest drive on the 3^rd hole was won by Lady Captain Chris Monahan. Nearest the pin prizes went to Austin Curran and Noel Boyd.

The presentation of prizes took place on Sunday evening, and Captain Declan, Lady Captain Chris and tournament organiser Joe Kernan thanked all those who took part and who assisted in the running of the classic. Many thanks to all our members and visitors who made this classic a great success. All funds raised will go toward course conditioning and improvement. A huge note of thanks goes to our 5 main sponsors for this classic – Brennan’s Furniture & Carpets Clontibret, Fred Bishop of Eurospar Cloughvalley Stores Carrickmacross, Donnelly Motors Group, the McEnaney Group and Thomas O’Neill’s Steel Formed Sections – and also to all our many tee and green sponsors, as always your support for our club is greatly appreciated.

This weekend’s men’s competition is sponsored by past Captain Thomas Brennan’s Consurv Building Consultants Clontibret, and this will be a strokeplay competition played off the green tees. There will also be a prize for the best stableford score returned to the computer.

Members are reminded that President Frank McDonnell’s Prize will take place from Friday 2^nd to Sunday 4^th June, and the entry sheet is now up on the notice board for members to sign in. The draw will be made on Thursday 1^st June and will be published on the BRS page.

Last weeks Ladies competitions were kindly sponsored by Mementos, and the winners were as follows – 18 holes 1^st Linda Connolly 37 points, 2^nd Jolanta McMonagle 36 points, 3^rd Claire Connolly 34 points. In the 9 hole competition the winner was Alice Duffy, who beat Shirley McMahon on a countback, congratulations to all. Next week’s competitions will be strokeplay, kindly sponsored by Doreen Harte.

On Monday our Senior men competed for the Jimmy Coleman Memorial Trophy, which was won by Adrian Sewell with a score of 37 points. Category results were: Cat 1 Brian McGovern 33, John Redmond 32, Gerry Treacy 31. Cat 2 Eamonn Johnston 34, Pat Merrick 33, Finbarr Brohan 32. Cat 3 Barney McDonald 28, Pat Bolger 25, Jim O’Neill 24.

Finally, on a very sad note, the club would like to express it’s condolences to Mickey & Nuala Conlon and family of Drumakill on the tragic passing of their son Joseph recently in Australia. Joe was a past juvenile member of the club and was a fixture on our fairways during his school holidays. May he Rest in Peace.  

16th May 2023

MARTIN’S SUITED AND BOOTED

Martin Allen is going to be the best dressed man in Blayney this Summer. That’s because he’s heading to Carrickmacross to collect first prize in this year’s Tavey’s Menswear competition. Martin did the hard work on the front nine, scoring 22 points, before adding 18 on the way home for a winning total of 40 points. This left him one clear of Gerry McCaul, whose score of 39 wins him the Category 2 prize. Category 1 was won by Sean McKernan who returned 38 points, while Category 3 sees a new name among the prizes, Philip Connolly, who matched Gerry’s score of 38. This time around the Beginner’s Prize was won by Damien Moorehead on a score of 30 points.

Castleblayney Credit Union sponsored last week’s ladies’ competition. This was won by another new member Linda Connolly who scored a 77 nett. Second prize was won by Anne Kelly on 79, with Ann Cumiskey winning the nine hole event on 37 nett. This week’s ladies’ competition, which is sponsored by Mementos runs until Tuesday May 16^th. This gives everyone a chance to take part in the Nudie Hughes Classic, which is being played over four days, from Thursday 18^th until Sunday 21^st of May. Times are still available, and can be booked by contacting info@concrawood.ie or by calling our office at (042)9749485.

Last week’s seniors competition was a nine hole singles. The results were: Cat.1 Martin Shevlin 20, Martin Rafter 18 and Martin Allen 18. Cat. 2 Patrick Niland 22, Kevin Maguire 21 and Paraic Craig 20. ( No Martins ). Cat. 3 Brendan Laverty 20, Tom Ryan 18 and Jim O’Neill 17. The senior’s next major event is the Jimmy Coleman Cup, which takes place on Monday 22^nd of May. Tee times are available from 9.30 to 11.30 am. This is an 18 hole competition off the green tees.

And finally for this week, it’s been a really tough season so far for our men’s teams. In the past week, our JB Carr, Junior Cowdy Cup, Jimmy Bruen Shield and Barton Shield sides have all bitten the dust., and our Rossmore Cup side are 4 nil down after their first leg at Down Royal GC. However, teaming up with our more competitive ladies does seem to have given our men a little lift. On Sunday, Sylvester Quinn’s team won four matches against Armagh GC to make it through to Round Three of the All Ireland Mixed Foursomes. Let’s hope our fortunes have taken a much needed turn for the best.

8th May 2023

IT’S A BOYD THING

Last weekend 38 points did the business for Sean Malone. This time around, in rather sticky conditions, 37 was enough for Noel Boyd to take first place in Aidan Boyd’s Mace Stores competition. A front nine of highs and lows brought only fifteen points for Noel. But a super 22 on the way home saw him edge ahead of recent winner Jack Carragher on a countback. Jack will have to make do with the Category 2 prize on this occasion. No fewer than nine other competitors came within two points of victory, but when all cards were checked, Mark O’Grady won Category 1 on 35 points, while Category 3 went to Francis Moore on 36. And little surprise that the Beginners’ prize was won by Turlough Fitzsimons, this time on 28 points.

Our men’s inter-club season is proving pretty challenging so far. This week saw Frank Nolan’s Pierce Purcell Shield side lose out to Lurgan GC, while Mervyn Brown’s Junior Cowdy Cup team went down by three matches to one in their home leg against Lisburn GC. Jimmy Lacey’s Senior Cup team missed out in their qualifier at Clandeboye GC, and Adrian Sewell’s JB Carr side suffered a 5-0 first leg reverse at Rossmore GC. Our one piece of good news came in the Barton Shield, where Charlie McDonnell’s side overcame a strong Warrenpoint team. A 1 up victory for Charlie and playing partner Conor Callan at The Point was matched by Mark Currie and Jack McDonnell in Concra. They face Tandragee GC in Round 3 this Saturday afternoon.

Things are looking much better for our ladies’ teams. In the AIG Intermediate Cup, Sandra McEvoy’s team beat Armagh GC by three matches to two.  Josephine McCahey’s Challenge Cup side beat Portadown GC by the same score. On the home front this week’s competition was sponsored by Lorna and Mandy of Hi Maintenance. The winner on a score of 35 points was Sheila Moore, with Joan McGrath in second on 33, and Lady Captain Chris Monahan in third on 30 points. Next week’s ladies’ sponsor is Castleblayney Credit Union, while it’s Eamon Tavey’s Menswear, Carrickmacross for the men.

Our seniors took part in a front nine singles last week. The results were: Cat. 1 Declan McAteer 19, Brian McGovern 19 and John Redmond 19. Cat. 2 Paul Shortt 21, Nicky Hore 21 and Pat Conlon 19. Cat. 3 Macartan Lambe 23, Joe Gleeson 22 and Barney McDonald 19. It’s the same again this week, off the white tees.

And finally for this week, there’s only one week to go now until the start of this year’s Nudie Hughes Classic. Once again we’ve had a great response from our sponsors for our major fundraiser of the season. In order to book a slot on the timesheet, contact info@concrawood.ie or ring our office at (042)9749485.

1st May 2023

38 DOES THE TRICK FOR SEAN MALONE

There’s nothing like a counting competition to bring scores crashing back down to earth. After a winter of cricket scores, 38 points was enough for Sean Malone to take top spot in his playing partner / opponent Noel O’Reilly’s competition. Sean had most of the spade work done by the fifteenth, so no doubt there’s plenty more where this came from. Category 1 was won by Charlie McDonnell. He shot a level par round for a total of 35 points. 36 points did the business for Bart McNamara in Category 2, while Rory Niland came out on top in Category 3 on 37. Turlough Fitzsimons continues to dominate our Beginners’ section, this time winning on 38 points.

Last week’s ladies’ competition was sponsored by Shortt’s Butchers. The winner was Jolanta McMonagle who returned a fine score of 35 points. The runner-up was Josephine McCahey whose 33 points included a 2 at the 14^th. Third prize went to Claire Connolly on 31 points, while the nine hole event was won by Martina Conlan on 18 points.

Our senior members headed to the Slieve Russell Hotel for two days of pampering last week. They also managed to fit in thirty six holes of competitive golf, with Des Morgan producing the winning score of 78 points. This week, its back to slumming it around Concra, in a nine hole event off the white tees.

 This weekend’s men’s competition is sponsored by Aidan Boyd’s Mace Store in Smithborough, while our ladies’ event is sponsored by Lorna and Mandy’s Hi-Maintenance.

And finally for this week, the Nudie Hughes Golf Classic is now only a fortnight away. We have four great days of golf to look forward to from Thursday 18^th through to Sunday 21^st of May. This year’s event is sponsored by Raymond Donnelly Group Motors, Brennan’s Furniture and Carpets, Clontibret, Thomas O’ Neill’s Steel Formed Sections, McEnaney Group and Seamus Bishop’s Eurospar, Carrickmacross. To book a timeslot, email info@concrawood.ie or call our office at (042) 9749485.

24th April 2023

JAMES WINS BIG

James Connor is one enthusiastic golfer. Every weekend he gives his all in our singles competition. And last weekend his efforts were richly rewarded, as he took first place in the Members’ Prize. James had a dream first nine, scoring 24 points, before having a bit of a wobble at the start of our difficult back nine. But he steadied the ship over the final six holes, and returned a winning score of 43 points. This gave him a comfortable four point margin of victory over Eugene McGuigan. Eugene also found the going tough on the inward nine, but returned 39 points to win the Category 1 prize. That back nine was even crueler to Sean Cassidy. On 30 points after twelve holes, Sean was heading for a record score, but a testing final six saw him sign for 38 points, and the Category 3 prize. And Patrick Niland picked up the Category 2 prize on a score of 37 points.

RB Coogan sponsored this week’s ladies competition. This was won by Anne Kelly on a score of 38 points. Her better back nine meant she squeezed Jolanta McMonagle into second place on the same score, with Josephine McCahey coming home third on 34 points.

This is a big week for our seniors as they head off for a couple of days of golf at the Slieve Russell. This means there’s no home competition this week. However, there was one last week and the results were: Cat. 1 Ciaran Prunty 23, Martin Shevlin 21, and Brian McGovern 20. Cat. 2 Eamonn Toal 26, Michael Quinn 24, and Pat Conlon 21. Cat. 3 Michael Reid 20, Terence McKeown 18, and Barney McDonald 15.

This weekend’s men’s singles is sponsored by Noel O’Reilly’s Forklift and Hire, while the ladies competition is sponsored by Shortt’s Butchers.

And finally for this week, our inter-club season got under way at the weekend. Unfortunately it didn’t last very long for our club’s first two teams. On Saturday, Chris Monahan’s Revive Active Fourball side were beaten 4 – 1 by Dungannon GC. And then on Sunday, Paudie Kindlon’s Ulster Cup side went down on a score of 4 ½ to 2 ½ to the team representing Loughgall GC. Let’s hope there’s better luck in store for Ruairi O’Neill’s Junior Cup side, who are in action on Saturday afternoon against Armagh GC. We wish them the best of luck.

20th April 2023

Rules night provided by Golf Ireland will take place on Thursday 4th May at 6pm in the O’Connor Suite. All members are encouraged to attend. 

17th April 2023

JONATHAN SHOOTS THE LIGHTS OUT

For most golfers, the US Masters signals the start of the new golfing season. It’s time to get out there and dust down the old swing. It seems to have had an effect at Concra, as we had well over one hundred entrants in our early season singles event, which was sponsored by Eastern Electrical. And just like Augusta, our course is playing at its very longest, after months of heavy rain. This is not a problem for Jonathan Kernan. Probably our biggest hitter, Jonathan returned his best ever round, a two over par 74, for a winning total of 44 points. This gave him a four point winning margin over Ciaran Prunty. Having dominated the seniors over the winter months, Ciaran proved he can keep it up for eighteen holes, taking the Category 3 prize on 40 points. 39 points did the business in Categories 1 and 2, scored by James Carville and John Mone respectively. And Damien Moorehead picked up the Beginners’ Prize on a score of 25 points.

The McMahon’s Super Valu Spring League for ladies came to its conclusion at the weekend. Our Lady Captain Chris Monahan’s Team 3 comprising of Faela Heavin, Martina Conlan, Anne Lambe and Suzanne McElroy took the top spot on a super score of 195 points. Sandra McEvoy’s Team 2 – Donagh Nugent, Marina Ni Threasaigh, Anne Cumiskey and Niamh Quinn were in second place on 185 points. The category winners were Caitriona Bolger, Jolanta McMonagle, Carmel McAleavey and Mairead McCreesh. Many thanks to Pete McMahon for his generous sponsorship.

Our seniors had a quiet week on the course, but it was a good one for Jarlath Denny who won the Masters sweep. This week its out to the front nine, with members asked to check in the pro shop for any current local rules.

We send our deepest sympathies this week to our Lady Captain Chris Monahan on the death of her brother-in-law Stephen Brennan. May he rest in peace.

And finally for this week, our men’s competition this weekend is the Members’ Prize. Please note that all members need to have paid their membership in full.  When signing in, members are encouraged to book a time for the upcoming Nudie Hughes Classic, which takes place from Thursday 18^th to Sunday 21^st of May.

10th April 2023

JACK OF CLUBS

The upcoming GAA season, and its tasty local derbies, is no doubt the main focus of Cremartin’s footballers. However, that hasn’t stopped a number of them from spending a lot of time on the golf course at Concra of late. The pick of the crop would appear to be Jack Carragher. Starting out on a handicap of 17, Jack won our first eighteen hole competition of 2023, returning a score of 39 points. Congratulations to Jack – a marker has been laid down! Category 1 was won by the more experienced Anthony Keenan on 38 points. Category 2 went to perennial winner Gerry McCaul, who also shot 38, while Ciaran Prunty’s good form continued, winning Category 3 on 37 points. Once again, Turlough Fitzsimons lifted the Beginners’ Prize, this time shooting 37 points.

Our Seniors’ season curtain raiser, Captain Johnny Redmond’s Drive-In was played over nine holes on Monday last. Captain Johnny’s first duty was to present the Martin Denny Memorial Cup to Sean McCoy, who came out on top with a massive score of 27 points. The full list of prizewinners read: Cat. 1 Ciaran Prunty 23, Gerry Treacy 23 and Martin Rafter 20. Cat. 2 Eamonn Johnston 24, Pauric Craig 23 and Pat Conlon 22. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 21, Barney McDonald 20 and Brendan Laverty 20. Many thanks to Jarlath Denny for his generous sponsorship, and a special mention for Michael Smyth, who fed all our senior members so very well.

And finally for this week, we have a very busy schedule ahead over the coming weeks. This weekend, our second eighteen holer of the season is sponsored by Eastern Electrical. The Members’ Prize takes place over the weekend of April 22nd  and 23rd. May is all about the Nudie Hughes Classic. Our big fundraiser of 2023 takes place from Thursday 18^th of May through to Sunday 21^st. Members and visitors are asked to contact our office to book in their teams for this ever popular annual event.

Jarlath Denny, Sponsor Seniors Drive-In, Seán McCoy, winner, Martin Denny Cup & Johnny Redmond, Seniors Captain. 

27th March 2023

NEW GOLF SEASON UNDER WAY AT CONCRA

You may have noticed that it’s been rather wet of late. Well the good news is that the skies cleared just long enough for some golf to take place at Concra over the weekend. However, as we had a reduced timeframe, it was decided to also reduce the competition to a nine hole event. And while conditions were less than perfect, there was nothing wrong with the scoring. The winner on a score of 25 points was Kenny Farrelly. Category 1 was won by a new member, Adrian Connolly on 20 points, while hardy annuals prevailed in Categories 2 and 3, namely Michael Byrne and Shane Fitzsimons, on 19 and 23 points respectively.

Our ladies Spring League is sponsored by McMahon’s SuperValu. With one week to go, our Lady Captain Chris Monahan’s team is leading on 145 points, with Catriona Bolger’s team in second place on 140 points. Alongside the league, there was a nine hole Lamb Competition. This was won by Suzanne McElroy on 20 points, with Bernie McArdle coming in second on a countback.

In seniors’ news, there was only one winner this week , and that was Martin Shevlin. He posted 20 points early in the week, before the deluge rained off everyone else’s chances. This week’s nine hole event is off the white tees, and over the front nine.

And finally for this week, a few dates for your golf diaries. This weekend, it’s our first men’s 18 hole competition of the year, which is sponsored by Corrigan’s Kitchen. On Monday, John Redmond tees off the seniors’ season in the annual Martin Denny Seniors’ Drive In. This is also an 18 hole competition with a meal and presentation after the golf. And then on the following weekend, April 8^th and 9^th, it’s the annual Members’ Prize. In order to enter this competition, annual membership must be paid up in full. All we need now is a little bit of luck with the weather.

Don’t forget that our Ladies Introduction to Beginner golf takes place on Tuesday 28th March at 6.30pm. Contact  042 97 49485 for more details.

20th March 2023

Captain’s Drive In.

The weather certainly didn’t dampen the spirits for the Captain’s drive in last Saturday morning at Concra Wood Golf Club. Fellow golfers, family and friends all joined in to wish every success for the year ahead to Captain Declan Smyth, Lady Captain Chris Monahan and Junior Captain Eimear McGlynn.

Following the mixed scramble competition, the presentation of prizes and refreshments were served in our wonderful clubhouse.

A generous €1,680.00 was raised on the day for the Captain’s chosen charity of Muscular Dystrophy.

A Big Thank you to all and looking forward to a great year of golf.

Just a reminder that our information evening for Ladies Beginner Golf takes place on Tuesday 28^th March at 6.30pm, with the 6 week course starting on Tuesday 11^th April  ( Golf equipment will be provided) – Please contact Recruitment Officer Martina Conlan 086-1790487 or Concra Wood Office on 042-9749485 for more details

6th March 2023

IT’S TEAM 7 FROM PILLAR TO POST

Team 7 made a very fast start in this year’s  McElvaney Motors Winter League, and try as they might the rest simply couldn’t catch them. With eight members on every team, scoring was always likely to be high, but a six week total of 493 is well in excess of 20 points per card. Congratulations to the winning team – Calum Callaghan, Mervyn Brown, Philip McCague, Ronan McDonnell, Patrick Niland, Shane Fitzsimons, Pat Merrick and Tom Ryan. And bad luck to teams 3 and 5 who scored so well, only to come up short. Regular readers will not be surprised to learn that the Category 1 prize in Saturday’s singles was won by Brian McGovern, this time on 20 points. Category 2 went to Martin Allen on 21, while Des Morgan was the star performer, scoring 24 in Category 3. On Sunday Ronan McMahon topped Category 1 with 22 points, Greg Duffy took Category 2 on 23, and Ciaran Prunty rounded off an excellent league in Category 3 with 25 points.

This weekend – weather permitting – will start off with a nine hole scotch foursomes on Saturday. Then Sunday sees the annual curtain raiser of the golf season – the Captains’ Drive-In, on our first tee at 11.30 am. All members are welcome to sign up for the team scramble which will be held in conjunction with our Drive-In. The entry sheet is on the competitions noticeboard, and the draw for partners takes place on Friday evening.

Our ladies Spring League got under way at the weekend, and straight away the standard of scoring is high. The winners on the front nine were: 1^st Sandra McEvoy 19 pts, and 2^nd Jo McCahey 18 pts, while the back nine event was won by Jeannette Keenan on 18 pts. After Week 1 the leading side is Sandra McEvoy’s Team 2 on 52 points, with Catriona Bolger’s Team 5 on 51 in second spot.

In seniors news, we had another week of heavy scoring from the old boys. The winners were: Cat. 1 Des Morgan 26, Ciaran Prunty 21 and Martin Shevlin 21. Cat. 2 Paul Shortt 24, Eamonn Toal 22 and Kevin Maguire 19. Cat. 3 Pat McBride 23, Jim O’Neill 19 and Barney McDonald 19.

And finally for this week, our competitions committee is holding a scratch matchplay competition this year. This will run on a league basis at first, with later knockout stages. Any member with a handicap index of 9.5 or lower is eligible to play. Again the competitions board is the place to sign up, and the entry fee is €10.

Information night for Beginners Ladies Golf is Tuesday 28th March posters are up and if you could please let anyone know who you think might be interested.

27th February 2023

AND THEN THERE WERE TWO

There’s just one week to go in the McElvaney Motors Spring League, and it looks like we’ve got a two horse race on our hands. A quiet week for Frank Nolan’s Team 5 means that it’s now down to Calum Callaghan’s Team 7 and Ian Brodigan’s Team 3 in this year’s battle for top spot. And it’s all to play for as they’re only separated by three points. May the best team win! Once again this week our singles competitions produced extremely high scores. On Saturday, Brian McGovern continued his dominance of Category 1, this time returning 23 points. Category 2 was won by David O’Neill on 21, while Sean Cassidy came out on top in Category 3 on 23 points. In Sunday’s singles, our Captain Declan Smyth won the Category 1 prize on 22 points. Category 2 went to Paul Leonard on no less than 25 points, while 23 was enough for Des Morgan in Category 3. For Week 6, it’s out to the back  nine for all.

This week’s ladies competition was won by Cathryna Craig on a score of 19 points.

Our seniors have been shooting big scores all Winter long, but I think it’s fair to say that this week’s results take the biscuit. They read: Cat.1 Brian McGovern 25, Ciaran Prunty 24 and Martin Allen 23. Cat. 2 Joe McGrath 25, Eamonn Johnson 22 and Pat Merrick 22. Cat. 3 Brendan Laverty 26, Tom Ryan 18 and Macartan Lambe 17. 

And finally for this week, the clock at the first tee is ticking down to this season’s opening event – the Captains’ Drive-In, which takes place on Sunday March 12^th at 11.30 am. Chris and Declan are both playing so well at the moment, that it’s going to be more like a longest drive competition. All members are welcome to enter the Mixed Scramble which is being played in conjunction with the Drive-In by signing the entry sheet on the competition noticeboard. The draw for teams takes place on Friday 10^th.­­­­­­

20th February 2023

TEAM 7 STILL ON TOP

Teams 3, 5 and 7 were quick out of the blocks in this season’s McElvaney Motors Winter League. They got ahead early on and haven’t looked back. After Week 4, Team 7 lead the way on 328 points , Team 3 come second on 326, while Team 5 are still in contention on 320. With only two weeks to go, it looks likes it’s down to the three of them in this year’s league. Our Saturday singles produced more big scores this week. Brian McGovern has been in the form of his life over the Winter months, and once again, he won Category 1 on 24 points. Keith Hill matched this score to win Category 2, while 22 was enough for Pat Conlon in Category 3. Sunday turned to be the breeziest day of the week, so it was no great surprise that scoring was a little lower. Billy Hanna won Category 1 on 20 points, Sean Malone came out on top again in Category 2 on 22, with Ciaran Prunty top scoring in Category 3 on 23 points. For the final two weeks of the league it’s back to the front nine, so no doubt we can look forward to another fortnight of high returns.

Our Seniors spent last week out on the back nine, and the winners were as follows: Cat. 1 Pat McNeill 20, Des Morgan 20 and Ronan McDonnell 19. Cat. 2 Joe McGrath 22, Andy Whelan 21 and Joe Quinn 21. Cat. 3 Tom Ryan 23, Junior McKeown 20 and Macartan Lambe 19. This week our Seniors will, rather conveniently, play the front nine.

Last week’s winner in our ladies’ section was Suzanne McElroy, who returned a score of 17 points. This week it’s the back nine for the ladies’ singles. And there may just be enough time for last minute entries in the Spring League, with the closing date on Tuesday 21^st of February.

And finally for this week, all members are encouraged to sign up for our first big event of 2023, the Captains’ Drive-In.  This takes place on Sunday 12^th of March, and the timesheet for entry in the team event is downstairs in our clubhouse on the noticeboard.

13th February 2023

HIGH SCORING WINTER LEAGUE

Scoring in the McElvaney Motors Winter League just goes from strength to strength. Last week, we reported on record returns, and this week there’s been no let up. After Week 3, three teams are still averaging over 20 points per nine holes, with Team 7 leading the way on 247 points, Team 3 in second place on 242 points, and Team 5 in third on 241. And 20 points won’t win you very much in our weekly singles. On Saturday, Stephen McQuillan won Category 1 on 21 points, Barry O’Reilly took Category 2 on 23, while James King went one better in Category 3, on his winning score of 24. Then on Sunday, another 21, this time from Rory Kelly, took Category 1, with Gerry McCaul and Shane Fitzsimons shooting 22 apiece to take Categories 2 and 3. And with another pleasant week’s weather on the cards, all competitors be warned – only your A-Game will do this time around.

It was the same story in our seniors’ singles. The prizewinners and their scores were: Cat. 1 Pat McNeill 23, Brian McGovern 21 and Declan McAteer 21. Cat. 2 Joe Quinn 23, Sean Mulligan 23 and Andy Whelan 21. Cat. 3 Pat McBride 23, Barney McDonald 21 and Macartan Lambe 20. This week to make things easier, both the Winter League and our Seniors competition will be played over the back nine holes.

Our ladies held their first singles event of the season last week. This was won by Eithne McAviney on a score of 15 points. All lady members are reminded that the sheet for entry in this year’s Spring League is posted in the ladies’ locker room. The final date for entries is Tuesday February 21^st, with the league set to start on Friday 24^th.

And finally for this week, all members are asked to please enter all competition scores in the computer. While we have had one or two technical problems earlier in the year, these have been sorted. Our competitions committee have had some very busy Sunday evenings of late, balancing what’s in the cards box with what’s been entered on the computer. It sometimes takes a little time, but it really does make their job a lot easier.

7th February 2023

CRICKET SCORES ALL ROUND

It appears that the golfers of Concra took advantage of the pleasant weather to play twelve holes instead of the usual nine at the weekend. Just take a look at the winning scores and you’ll see what I mean. On Saturday, Brian McGovern won Category 1 with a fine score of 22 points. But this was nothing compared to Sean Malone and and Turlough Fitzsimons who won Categories 2 and 3 on 25 points apiece. Then on Sunday, 22 points prevailed once again in Category 1 – this time from Ronan McMahon. Paul Leonard went one better taking Category 2 on 23. And Eamonn Johnston shot the lights out winning Category 3 with another 25 pointer. Not surprisingly, three of our teams are averaging over 20 points a man in the McElvaney’s Winter League. It’s going to take some total to win this one.

 And as you might expect, our seniors were not to be outdone. Their results must surely have set a new record.  They were – Cat. 1 Des Morgan 28, Gerry Treacy 23 and Ciaran Prunty 23. Cat. 2 Pauric Craig 25, PJ Lambe 22 and Andy Whelan 22. Cat. 3 Terence McKeown 20, Brendan Laverty 19 and Tom Ryan 18. This week the seniors are going to be busy as their competition is to be played over the front nine, while the Winter League heads out to the back nine.

And finally for this week, a reminder to all members and shareholders that our Information Meeting regarding our course paths takes place this Friday evening at 7 pm.

31st January 2023

MCELVANEY MOTORS WINTER LEAGUE GETS UNDERWAY

With the Weather Gods finally smiling on us, our members teed off the McElvaney Motors Winter League at the weekend. This year’s format sees teams of eight for the first time, with the best four scores counting each week. After all the weather disruption of recent times, many would have expected rusty golf swings and low scoring. But nothing could have been further from the truth, as four teams recorded 80+ points. And as for the category winners! On Saturday, Brian McGovern and David O’Neill shots 22 point apiece to win categories 1 and 2, while Tony Brennan went one better taking category 3 on 23 points. On Sunday the scoring was even hotter. 23 points was required in categories 1 and 3 for Paudie Kindlon and Aidan Boyd, while Sean Malone produced the golf of his dreams to win the category 2 prize with 25 points. All going well, this league should last for six weeks, finishing before our Captains’ Drive-In on March 12^th.

Last week’s Seniors competition also produced some really high scores. The category winners were: Cat. 1 John McGoldrick 21, Brian McGovern 21 and Martin Allen 20. Cat. 2 Patrick Niland 24, Joe McGrath 22 and Pat Merrick 22. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 24, Pat Mc Bride 24 and Macartan Lambe 24. This week’s event will be played on the front nine, and as in our Winter League, it’s off the white tees.

And finally for this week, all members and shareholders are invited to attend our Information Meeting regarding proposed course paths on Friday February 10^th. The meeting gets underway in the O’Connor Suite in our clubhouse at 7 pm.

10th January 2023

CONCRA’S GOLFERS BRAVE THE ELEMENTS

Only the bravest and most committed of golfers venture out in the first week of January. It may be  cold and wet and windy, but even so, they find a way to get their weekly golf fix. At the weekend, we had a healthy uptake for our nine hole singles competition, and the Hardy Bucks who came out on top were – Cat. 1 Aidan Carragher 18 pts. Cat. 2 Paul Leonard 19 pts. and Cat. 3 Paul Campbell 17 pts. This weekend, for those of a resilient nature, our competition is a Two Man Scramble (no doubt for the haven of the bar). And this weekend also gives members one last opportunity to sign up for the McElvaney Motors Winter League, the draw for which takes place on Monday evening.

 When it comes to Year-Round Golfers, it’s hard to beat our Seniors. They play their nine hole singles hail, rain or snow – well almost! Last week the category winners and their points totals were: Cat.1 Ciaran Prunty 22, John Mc Goldrick 22, and Charlie Geoghegan 20. Cat. 2 Joe Quinn 21, Nicky Hore 19, and Joe McGrath 18. Cat. 3 Pat McBride 21, Barney McDonald 19, and Macartan Lambe 14. This week it’s another nine hole singles, while Andy is taking bookings for the next outing to Slieve Russell GC on April 26th and 27^th.

And finally for this week, congratulations and best wishes to our new Junior Captain Eimear McGlynn. Eimear has made a little bit of history in our club, becoming our first female Junior Captain. She takes over from Conor McCaul, who took the role to a whole new level in 2022. With Convenor Tom McDermott and his team behind her, she can look forward to a memorable year in 2023.

6th December 2022

GERRY AND GENE CAN’T BE BEAT

Aggregate Pairs was the latest format for our members to try out in last weekend’s competition. On Saturday, two pairings returned winning scores of 41 points, with Noel Boyd and Shane Fitzsimons coming out on top, edging Barry O’Reilly and Joe Brady into second place on a countback. Then on Sunday, Gerry McCaul and Eugene McGuigan had it all their own way, winning on 43 points. Their fourball opposition, Sean Malone and Noel O’Reilly, got dragged along in their slipstream, taking second prize on 39 points. There’s a cold snap on the way, so there’s no telling what next weekend holds at this stage. Let’s hope there’s some golf to look forward to. Our Winter League draw is being held back for another couple of weeks to give as many members as possible a chance to sign up.

There was some exceptional scoring in our seniors singles last week. The prizewinners and their scores were as follows: Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 20, Martin Allen 20 and Ciaran Prunty 20. Cat.2 Joe Quinn 25, Paraic Craig 22 and Andy Whelan 19. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 22, Barney McDonald 21and Syl Mulligan 19. This Wednesday it’s the Seniors Christmas Party. The golf – a 3 man Waltz – starts at 11 am, with a presentation, and refreshments, in the clubhouse at 2 pm.

And finally for this week, our AGMs are now complete, as the ladies meeting took place on Friday night. Best wishes to our new Lady Captain Chris Monahan, Vice Captain Margie Carville, and their new committee for a great golfing year in 2023.

29th November 2022

CLUB SINGLES RESULTS

It was singles all the way over the last week in Concra Wood. A wet Saturday morning saw a smallish turnout, and pretty modest scoring. The one exception was Barry O’Reilly who won Category 2 with 22 points. A mere 16 points was enough for Ciaran McMahon in Category 1 and Paul Campbell in Category 3. Sunday was a much better day, and this was reflected on the scoreboard. Eugene McGuigan won Category 1 with 20 points, his playing partner Gerry McCaul took Category 2 on22, while Frank Bourke came out on top in Category 3 once again, this time on 21 points.

Our seniors played their singles on the front nine. The winners were: Cat.1 Brian McGovern 19 and Ciaran Prunty 19. Cat.2 Sean Mulligan 19 and Andy Whelan 19. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 20 and Michael Reid 15. It’s the front nine again this week, and a reminder to members to place the ball to the side of the fairway.

And finally for this week, we got three of our AGMs completed on Friday last. Now that our new Captain Declan Smyth has his team for 2023 in place, all that remains to be done is for our outgoing Lady Captain Donagh Nugent to hand over the reins to Chris Monahan at Friday night’s Ladies AGM. We wish all our new committees the very best for the year ahead.

22nd November 2022

WINTER WALTZ AT CONCRA

A Four Man Waltz was our rather interesting sounding competition at Concra last weekend, and despite the wintry conditions, no fewer than one hundred members took part over two frost delayed days. 43 points was the score that guaranteed a place in the prizes with Mac Sammon, James McElroy, Francie Boylan and Kenny Farrelly taking top spot on Saturday on a countback over Mark McCahey, Sean McKernan, Patrick Hanratty and Emmet Brennan. On Sunday, 43 once again proved enough for team specialists Sean Malone, Gerry McCaul, Noel O’Reilly and Eugene McGuigan with Billy Hanna, Gary Morgan, Paudy Kindlon and Brendan Carragher taking second prize on 41 points. Who knows, we may try some more Dancing on Ice this weekend – weather permitting!

As ever, our seniors soldiered on last week in their nine hole singles event. The winners were: Cat. 1 Pat McNeill 23, Martin Allen 20 and Charlie Geoghegan 19. Cat.2 Andy Whelan 24, Eamonn Toal 21 and David Hutchinson 20. Cat. 3 Macartan Lambe 18, Syl Mulligan 18 and Michael Reid 17. This week it’s the front nine holes, teeing off the white tees.

And finally for this week, one last reminder of our AGMs. This Friday night (Nov. 25^th), there are three – Joint Club at 6 pm, Men’s Club at 7 pm, and PLC at 8 pm. And then on Friday 2^nd of December the ladies’ meeting takes place at 7pm.

15th November 2022

MCMAHON BROTHERS ON TOP

Ciaran McMahon clearly wasn’t happy with second prize in last week’s Scramble. This week he selected his brother Ronan as playing partner, and sure enough they went one better, taking first prize on 32 nett. Six pairings finished one shot back, and after a countback it was Sean McKernan and Patrick Hanratty who claimed second spot. This weekend we’ll have more of the same, and members can sign up for this year’s Winter League which is coming soon.

Our seniors were out in force once again in their weekly nine hole singles. As usual we had one or two high scores – Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 22, Ciaran Prunty 20 and Charlie Geoghegan 19. Cat. 2 Eamon Toal 24, Nicky Hore 20 and Joe Quinn 19. Cat. 3 Joe Gleeson 23 Brendan Laverty 18 and Barney McDonald 17. This week, it’s back to the front nine, and once again members are asked to place to the side of fairways.

And finally for this week, our first three AGMs take place next Friday night (Nov. 25^th). Our joint club meeting is at 6 pm, followed by the men’s at 7 pm, and the PLC at 8 pm. The Ladies’ AGM takes place on the following Friday (Dec. 2^nd ) at 7 pm.

8th November 2022

NINE HOLE SCRAMBLE AT CONCRA

Our members were back in action at the weekend, with over seventy men taking part in a Two Man Scramble. The format clearly suited very well, as no fewer than nineteen pairings shot sub-par rounds. The winners on a nine hole score of 29 nett were Frank Bourke and Pauric Coyle. They edged out three pairs by a single stroke, with Ciaran McMahon and Patrick Comiskey’s 30 nett taking second prize on a countback. We hope to do it all again this weekend – weather permitting. And our ever popular Winter League gets under way later this month. Details of entry will be posted on our noticeboard in the coming week.

It takes much more than a drop of rain to knock our seniors off their stride. They were out in force last week, and the results were as follows: Cat.1 Brian McGovern 19, Declan McAteer 19 and Gerry Treacy 19. Cat. 2 Andy Whelan 21, Joe McGrath 20 and Paul Shortt 17. Cat. 3 Tom Ryan 21, Michael Reid 19 and Jim O’Neill 18. This week’s competition will be played over the front nine, and members are asked to place to the side of fairways until further notice.

This Friday night sees our final presentation of the season take place in our clubhouse at 8 pm. We’ve got a number of cups and our Golfer of the Year prize to present, so all the relevant prize-winners will be notified by club text.

And finally for this week, a reminder to members and shareholders of our upcoming AGMs. On Friday 25^th of November we have three – Joint Club 6 pm, Men’s Club 7 pm and PLC at 8 pm. And our Ladies’ AGM takes place on Friday December 2^nd at 7 pm.

18th October 2022

O’NEILL TAMES CONCRA

October is always the month of the big hitter in Concra Wood. With the fast fairways of Summer now a distant memory, the golfers who can smack the ball that bit further come to the fore. So it was no surprise that the top of our leaderboard in last weekend’s McArdle’s Office Supplies competition was dominated by exponents of the long game. Our winner Ruairi O’Neill certainly ranks highly in this category. On this occasion, he started his round with two birdies, and not even a bogey-bogey-bogey finish could halt his march to victory on a score of 41 points. It’s a well known fact that Dermot McBride is no slouch with the driver. And now he’s getting back to his very best golf, winning Category 1 off a handicap of 10 with 39 points – and picking up two rather lucrative twos along the way. Another distance specialist, Pauric McNally boomed his way to 39 points, enough to win this week’s Category 2 prize. And Category 3 was won by Nicky Hore. More a marathon man than a big hitter, Nicky played 36 holes in Portmarnock on Friday and Saturday, with an appearance on stage in between for good measure, before posting his winning score of 38 on Sunday morning. That’s quite a weekend! And once again Gerry Hamill came out on top in our Beginners’ Category, this time on 31 points. This weekend our competition is sponsored by McQuillan’s Staircases.

The ladies’ weekly nine hole competition was won by Lady Captain Donagh Nugent who scored 19 points. A countback was required to separate second and third place, with Sheila Moore squeezing past Josephine McCahey on 17 points. Lady members are reminded that it’s time to sign up for the Autumn League, the draw for which takes place later this week.

 Our Seniors were back at full strength last week. Their nine hole competition results were as follows: Cat. 1 Gerry Treacy 23, Brian McGovern17 and Ciaran Prunty 17. Cat. 2 Joe Quinn 22, Pat Merick 20 and Pat Conlon 20. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 14, Michael Reid 14 and Macartan Lambe 14. This week, it’s out to the back nine, for nine holes off the white tees.

And finally for this week, our AGMs for 2022 take place on Friday November 25^th. We start with our Joint Club at 6 pm, followed by the men’s meeting at 7 pm. And if all goes to schedule, our PLC AGM will begin at 8 pm. Motions for any of these meetings must be submitted to the relevant committee secretary by Friday November 18^th. And our Ladies Club AGM takes place one week later on Friday 2^nd of December at 8 pm.

11th October 2022

MCELROY STROLLS IT

There were contrasting fortunes for competitors in our annual Steel Formed Sections competition at the weekend. Saturday was a pleasant Autumn day, while Sunday was a complete washout. So not surprisingly, all the scoring was done by Saturday night. The winner by a massive margin of six points was James McElroy. Playing off a handicap of 20, this was the day James’ game really came together. He scored no fewer than 25 points on the front nine, leaving him with a stroll to victory on the homeward nine, where he scored 20 more for a total of 45. Category 1 was won by Paul Murphy on 39 points – a consolation on a tough weekend for Toome (not to mention another team in red). And the Conlon family had a rather good weekend, with Mark taking the Category 2 prize and Pat Category 3, both on 39 points.

This coming weekend, our men’s competition is sponsored by McArdle’s Office Supplies.

In our ladies’ section, last week’s nine hole event was sponsored by Hi-Maintenance. The winner on a score of 20 points was Margie Carville, with Caitriona Bolger in second place on 18.

Some foul weather meant that our seniors had one of their quietest weeks ever. So we have only three prize winners this week – Cat.1 Martin Shevlin 17, Cat. 2 Patrick Niland 19 and Cat.3 Barney McDonald 19. This week it’s out to the back nine for a change.

And finally for this week, a reminder to members that there will be rolling hole closures over the coming weeks due to drainage work on fairways. Please call to the Pro Shop before heading for the first tee to receive the latest updates.

4th October 2022

MOORE’S MAIDEN VICTORY

 Autumn has truly arrived at Concra. But the turn of the seasons didn’t deter our golfers from taking part in the annual Dick Kernan Cup competition at the weekend. Over one hundred competed for this, our oldest trophy. And in the end, there was a new name at the top of the leaderboard – Francis Moore. The key to Francis’ maiden victory was consistency, as he returned points at every single hole on his way to a fine total of 43. In tough conditions, only one other golfer broke through the 40 point barrier, Sean McKernan, who took the Category 1 prize on 41. Gregory Leonard picked up the Category 2 prize on 39 points, while Jamie McCann Smyth came out on top in Category 3 on 37. And in our Beginners’ Category, this week’s winner was Peter Bell on 28 points.

Last Tuesday saw over forty of our seniors take part in a mixed scramble over nine holes. The winners were Ronan McDonnell, PJ Lambe and Patrick McBride on 33 strokes. In second place were Gerry Treacy, Eamonn Johnson, Junior McKeown and Eithne McAviney on 36 with Nicky Hore, Chris Monahan, Gerry Monahan and Pat Bolger in third on 37. Such was the success of this event that our seniors plan to do it all again later in the month. In the meantime, it’s back to our usual nine hole singles this week.

Our greens team has started a major drainage programme this week. This sandbanding programme will mean that midweek hole closures will be rolled out over the coming weeks. All members are therefore asked to report to our Pro Shop before golfing, in order find out which holes are affected on that particular day.

And finally for this week, our pro Ciaran Lavery enjoyed yet another success in the last week. On Friday he competed in the Golf Mad Events ProAm at Clover Hill GC. On the day his round of three under par 67 was good enough to take first prize, with notable names Simon Thornton, Brendan Lawlor, Damien Mooney and Brian Kerley one shot back on 68. Congratulations to Ciaran on an excellent season, and here’s to more success in ’23.

27th September 2022

The last Golfer of the Year event, the Patron’s Prize, was won by Michael Byrne with a wonderful high scoring 45pts. Micky has been shooting some good scores recently which culminated in this fine round of very steady golf. Adrian Sewell, who might have won on another week, had to settle with winning Category 3 with another great score of 43pts. Category 2 was won by David Brennan and Category 1 by Stephen McQuillan, both on 39pts. There were two additional prizes last week, Nearest the Pin and Longest Drive, and both were won by Charlie McDonnell, showing us a variety of his skills. Another big turnout, with 123 members playing. Many thanks to our Club Patron, Michael McHugh, for sponsoring this prestigious event in the club calendar.

The ladies also would like to thank Michael for his support in sponsoring their last major of the year. The Patron’s Prize was won by Faela Heavin on 34 points; Category 1 Jolanta McMonagle 33pts, Category 2 Síle Moore 29pts and Category 3 Ann Cumiskey 28pts. The nine-hole competition was won by Lady Captain Donagh Nugent 17 pts.

In the end, there was a clear winner for Golfer of the Year. Congrats to Gavin McEneaney who came out on top with 72pts after a good run over many highly contested competitions. Mark McCahey took second place on 54pts and Declan Smyth was third on 40pts.

The Seniors weekly competition was, as usual, very competitive, with 29 players out during the week. Category 1: C.Prunty 23pts, B.McGovern 22pts, J.McGoldrick 21pts; Category 2: J.Quinn 23pts, K.McCooey 18pts, E.Toal 18pts; Category 3: T.Ryan 19pts, J.O’Neill 17pts, J.McKeown 17pts.

Watch out for the new Concra Wood promotional video which showcases the wonderful course and magnificent scenery. It was made by local video maker Brendan McElroy, and ‘stars’ our Club Professional, Ciaran Lavery.

This Thursday 29^th and Friday 30^th sees the annual classic in aid of Castleblayney Cancer Society. There are golfers teeing up from all over the country to support the event. If you would still like to support this very worthwhile cause, contact Concra Wood office 042 9749485.

20th September 2022

A Bevy of Birdies for Carl

It took a run of birdies for Carl Malone to win last weekend’s Ciarán Lavery Professional’s Prize. Playing his best round for a while, Carl’s three birdies in a row at the 15^th, 16^th and 17^th doubled his birdie count, to help him to an excellent 43 points playing off a 9 handicap. Category 1 was won by Dylan Fee 38 pts, Category 2 Ronan McDonnell 40 pts and Category 3 Jamie McCann-Smyth 38 pts. The Beginner’s (Year 1-2) winner was Ronan McCarron 32 pts. Great to see another big turnout of members with 137 in the field – many looking for Golfer of the Year points. Next weekend will be the final competition for Golfer of the Year points. Gavin McEneaney on 66 points and Mark McCahey on 54 points are battling it out on the leaderboard.

The ladies were also sponsored by our Professional, Ciarán Lavery. Sandra McAvoy won with a decisive 37 points, followed by Martina Conlon on 34 points and Faela Heavin on 32 points. In the 9-hole competition, Bernie McArdle had a super score of 21 points.

Thanks to Ciarán for his generous sponsorship of the men’s and ladies’ competitions.

The Seniors played their usual format during the week off the white tees. Category 1 winners: M.Shevlin 21 pts, J.McGoldrick 19 pts, C.Prunty 19 pts; Cat 2: J.Quinn 18 pts, D.Hutchinson 17 pts, N.Hore 16 pts; Cat 3: J.Connolly 27 pts, M.Lambe 22 pts, J.O’Neill 21 pts.

Next week’s Seniors will be a Mixed Scramble on Tuesday 27^th. Watch out for more details from Andy.

Our long-serving member and esteemed Club Patron, Michael McHugh, is sponsoring next weekend’s competition. The Patron’s Prize is an important event in the club calendar and with the good Autumnal weather still to be with us, no doubt there will be another great turnout.

13th September 2022

The Blayney Cup stays in Blayney

Last weekend saw nearly a hundred players take part in one of the club’s big competitions, the Blayney Cup. This strokeplay event produced some top-class scoring, with our Vice-Captain, Declan Smyth, winning with a net 65, followed by Gareth McMahon on 67 who pushed Shane Farrell into third on a countback. Best Gross, not for the first time, was Charlie McDonnell, who had an excellent 72, playing off scratch. In the Beginner (Year 1 & 2) section, Gerry Brennan, Annyalla, came out on top with a net 83.

During the week, the ladies played a stableford competition, sponsored by the Credit Union. Margie Carville made the winning spot with 39 points, just ahead of Cathryna Craig on 38. Jolanta McMonagle took third place on 36 points, and the nine-hole winner, on 18 points, was Margaret McQuillan.

Thirty Seniors travelled to Athlone Golf Club last week for two days of golf, and stayed at the Hodson Bay Hotel. There were many prizes won in category and team events, all needing good scores to win. The overall winner, over the two days, was Frank McDonnell, whose recent good form with the Seniors was required to get ahead of second placed, Seniors Captain, Brian McGovern. This week the Seniors will play the usual front nine holes, Monday to Friday on the White Tees.

This week for the ladies, and next weekend for the men, the competitions will be kindly sponsored by our Club Professional, Ciarán Lavery. As a small gesture to club members, who have been very supportive in recent times, there will be no entry fee. Best of luck everyone.

6th September 2022

GREG IS THE COMEBACK KING

Greg Duffy made the worst possible start in last weekend’s Culloville House competition – he blanked the first hole. When he blanked the Index 1 fifth, he had left himself with a mountain to climb. But climb it he did, and with the calming influence of playing partner Dermot McBride, he returned a superb 23 points on the back nine, giving him a final total of 43 for a comfortable victory. His nearest rival was Frank Bourke. For a second week in a row, Frank broke 40 points, this time shooting 41, enough to pick up the Category 3 prize. The Category 1 prize was won by Mark McCahey on 38 points. This result introduces an element of competition into our Golfer of the Year leaderboard, as Mark is now only twelve points behind longtime leader Gavin McEneaney with three weeks to go. The Category 2 prize went to Daniel McCarthy, returning from injury with a fine score of 39 points. And once again our Beginners’ Prize was won by Gerry Annyalla Brennan on 39 points.

Carmel and Brendan McAleavey’s Culloville House also sponsored our ladies’ competition. This was won by Chris Monahan on a score of 69 nett. Jeanette Keenan was second on 70, while Martina Conlon came in third on 71. This week’s sponsor is Castleblayney Credit Union.

Over forty of our seniors took part in Pierce Hughes’ Presidents Prize on Thursday last, and it proved to be a very high scoring event. The winner on 43 points was Frank McDonnell. And he needed every one of them as Charlie Geoghegan just missed out on 42. And they weren’t the only ones to score big as the Category results show: Cat. 1 Charlie Geoghegan 42, Phil Brannigan (new member!) 41 and Brian McGovern 38. Cat. 2 Pat Conlon 41, Kevin McCooey 39 and Paul Shortt 38. Cat. 3 Terence McKeown 40, Barney McDonald 34 and Ciaran Coyle 33. This week it’s the trip to Athlone GC and the Hodson Bay Hotel on Tuesday and Wednesday.

And finally, this weekend’s men’s singles competition is the Blayney Cup. Sponsored by the Mulligan family, this is our oldest competition, dating back to the days of the Castleblayney Golf Society. It’s one trophy that every golfer in Blayney would like to get their hands on – at least once.

30th August 2022

SIBLEY THE BEST

We’ve had so many ties at the top of our leader boards this season. And as play-offs are just not practical in club golf, these results are decided on a countback. To many, awarding top spot to the player with the best back nine score may seem quite random, but this system has stood the test of time. We had another such case at the weekend in our small town version of the FedEx Cup – the Members Prize. Three competitors returned scores of 43 points, but there can only be one winner. And that was Gregg Sibley, who shot an unassailable 24 points on the back nine. The two unfortunate golfers who missed out were Eugene McGuigan and Frank Bourke. They both returned 20 points on the inward nine, and so they must make do with the second and third prizes. The best gross was won by Calum Callaghan, whose round of 73 included three birdies and an eagle. And congratulations to Pat Conlon, who becomes our latest member to record a hole-in-one – this one at our very difficult 12^th hole.

Last week, our lady golfers competed in a competition which was sponsored by McKeever’s Chemist. The winner on a score of 36 points was Jolanta McMonagle. The runner-up on 35 points was Briege Horgan, with Sheila Moore in third place on 32. In the nine hole event the winner was Eileen Kerr on 18 points, with Cathryna Craig in second on 17. This week it’s the final strokeplay competition of the season, which is sponsored by Carmel and Brendan McAleavey of Culloville House.

Well done to all the Juveniles that played in all our Sunday competitions throughout the summer. For our final weekend, there was a great turnout for the Canon Morris Cup. The winner was Caolan Donnelly, with Cormac Conlon in second place. Congratulations to Caolan on an exceptional round of golf with 24 points, and also well done to Cormac on his 20 points. Our Juvenile Golfer of the Year 2022 went to Caolan Donnelly who had an excellent summer of golf. The Most Improved Juvenile player of 2021 went to Dillon McMonagle. Well done to Dillon who golfed all year with a smile on his face. The future of Golf looks bright for Concra Wood with large numbers and talented juveniles coming through. New members are always welcome, enquires can be made at the Concra Wood office. We would also like to thank our Junior Captain Conor McCaul for all his help throughout the year. He is an inspiration to all the juveniles and we were very lucky to have him as our Junior Captain. Finally a big thank you to all our Sponsors and Volunteers each week, without whose support we could not make our juvenile golf the success it is.

In last week’s seniors nine hole event, the prize winners were as follows: Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 22, Ciaran Prunty 22, and Martin Shevlin 21. Cat. 2 Sean Mulligan 22, Pauric Craig 20, and Patrick Niland 19. Cat. 3 Brendan Laverty 21, Syl Mulligan 20, and Barney McDonald 19. This week it’s Pierce Hughes’ President’s Prize for Seniors, which takes place on Thursday 1^st of September.

And finally for this week, this season’s men’s Golfer of the Year competition is nearing its end, with only four weekends remaining. Since Week 2 the runaway leader has been Gavin McEneaney. He now has 66 points, with Mark McCahey in second position on 44, Eugene McGuigan in third on 36 and Paudie Kindlon in fourth on 32. It’s going to take something special to catch him, but with 20 points for each weekend’s winner, it’s just about possible.

23rd August 2022

CIARAN STEALS THE SHOW Concra Wood was buzzing at the weekend as over ninety teams competed in the Nudie Hughes Club Classic. And while no doubt focused on their own teams fortunes, our members were keeping an eye all the while on our professional Ciaran Lavery’s exploits. Ciaran got his week off to a memorable start, shooting a new low of 63 in Concra’s Summer Series. This was just the boost his game needed as he headed off to the Irish Professional Championship at Carne Links in Mayo. All weekend long his name was up among the Tour Pros on the leader board, culminating in a seventh place finish on one over par. Congratulations to Ciaran on a fine display, and for anyone considering investing in golf lessons, this guy knows what he’s talking about. Meanwhile back at home, a four man team from Greenacres GC in County Antrim ran out winners in the Nudie Hughes Club Classic. Gary Cooke, Gerard McNally, Kieran Mallon and Barry Lynagh returned a score of 112, to win by eleven clear points. The next three teams all scored 101, with Tom McDermott, Brian Busby, Brendan Gargan and Barry McArdle in second place, Greg Duffy, Alan Bolger, Adrian Kelly and Alan Nugent in third, and James King, Damien Cumiskey, Eamon Burns and Nudie himself in fourth. The Ladies prize went to Jeanette Keenan, Cathryna Craig, Dorren Quinn and Martina Conlan on 97 points, while the non-Golf Ireland prize was won by Chris Monahan, Gary Doyle, Jim Egan and John Dolan on 95 points. Congratulations to our ex-Captain Thomas Brennan who had a Hole-in-One at the sixth hole. Many thanks to all our members and visitors who made our classic such a great success. And a special word of thanks to our major sponsors – Brennan’s Furniture and Carpets Clontibret, Donnelly Motors of Caledon, McEneaney Group, Thomas O’Neill’s Steel Formed Section and Fred Bishop of Cloughvalley Stores Carrickmacross. This week it’s business as usual in our club with a singles competition, the Members’ Prize. And on Friday evening there’s a presentation of prizes in our clubhouse at eight o’clock, with the relevant prize winners to be informed by club text. And finally for this week, some recent seniors news. On Tuesday last, we had a good turnout for our Three Man Waltz. This was won by John McGoldrick, Finbar Brohan and Junior McKeown on 43 points. Second prize went to Frank McDonnell, Jim O’Neill and Brendan Laverty on 41, while Brian McGovern, Pat Conlon and Pat McBride came in third on 39. Unfortunately, Pierce Hughes’ President’s Prize for Seniors fell foul of Monday morning’s downpour. So this event has now been re-scheduled for Thursday September 1^st, with all participants asked to sign up on the BRS system.  

16th August 2022

THE NUDIE HUGHES CLUB CLASSIC AT CONCRA WOOD Our major club fundraiser of 2022, the Nudie Hughes Club Classic takes place this weekend from Thursday 18^th through to Sunday 21^st of August. The cost per team of four is €240, which includes golf, a goodie bag and a meal in The View Restaurant for every participant. The format is simple, each team just records the best two scores on every hole. There are prizes for the first ten teams, as well as nearest the hole on all par threes, and of course the longest drive. And there’ll be one or two well known faces from the world of GAA around for the selfie hunters. Our committee wishes to thank our major sponsors, Brennan’s Carpet and Furniture Clontibret, Raymond Donnelly Motors Caledon, Seamus McEneaney, and Steel Formed Sections, whose support ensures we all have a great weekend to look forward to. All proceeds will be spent on a programme of improvements to our bunkers at Concra Wood. Last week our men’s and ladies sections competed for the Des McGlynn Cup, a trophy named in memory of our long serving club secretary. After the hottest August week ever, our course was playing short(ish), so it was expected that there might be a few big scores in the men’s competition off the gold tees. How wrong we were, as only one golfer managed to break the 40 point barrier. Shane Farrell returned his best round ever, a score of 42 points off a handicap of 13, to lift the prestigious cup. A birdie on the first can be a blessing, and Shane certainly made the most of it, going on to record three more on a memorable day. His margin of victory was two points over no fewer than four golfers. 40 points won the Category 1 prize for Mark McCahey, Category 2 for Greg Duffy and Category 3 for Paul C.McArdle, while Patrick Tavey went home empty handed. There was better news for Eoghain McTiernan who won the Beginners’ Prize on a score of 38 points. In our ladies’ event, Margie Carville continued her fine run of form to win on a score of 38 points. Her back nine total of 19 points was crucial, as it just edged Marie Sweeney’s 38 into second place by a single point on a countback. Third prize was won by our Lady Captain Donagh Nugent on 37 points. And the nine hole event was won by Shirley McMahon on 22 points. There is no ladies’ competition this week in order to give members an opportunity to take part in the club classic. Members are asked to take note of the following date in your golf diaries. A presentation of prizes takes place in our clubhouse on Friday 26^th of August at 8 o’clock. All prizewinners will be contacted by club text. And finally, our club lost a long serving member last week, with the death of Phil Sherry. Having grown up in a golfing family in Mullingar, Phil was a founder member of our club. She and her late husband Brian fulfilled many roles over the years, and she served as Lady Captain in 1998, while he was Club Captain in 1994. All at Concra send our deepest sympathies to Phil’s family. Go raibh suaimhneas síoraí aici.

9th August 2022

And finally for this week, the clock is ticking down to our major fundraiser of 2022, The Nudie Hughes Club Classic, which takes place from Thursday 18th to Sunday 21st of August. Our organising committee has already been in touch with all our members and sponsors, and if early indicators are anything to go by, we can hope for a record weekend. Our greens have all been sponsored at this stage, but tee boxes are still available. Anyone who wishes to book a team or to sponsor a tee should contact our office at 042 979485 or email info@concrawood.ie

 

2nd August 2022

CAPTAIN’S PRIZE JOY FOR TIARNACH O’NEILL Tiarnach O’Neill produced the golf of his dreams to win Frank Nolan’s Captain’s Prize on Sunday evening. Having only just made the cut on 38 points after eighteen holes, Tiarnach was out in the play-offs opening group. However, there was a very congested field ahead of him, with only three points separating him from the leading qualifier Pauric Donaghy. Seven scoring holes eased him into contention, and then a super three – three finish gave him a total of 61 points, which no one in the following groups could surpass. The best of the rest was Pauric Donaghy who matched Tiarnach’s 61, but his final nine of 20 points was pushed into second place by Tiarnach’s 23. Third prize went to comeback kid Brian Coleman, his score of 60 points a real blast from the past. And the best gross prize was won by Sylvester Quinn who returned a one over par 73 for a total of 35 gross points. Our ladies also took part in Frank’s Captain’s Prize over the past week. The winner, completing a unique double of Captain’s and Lady Captain’s Prize in the same year, was Moira O’Brien. She certainly needed no countback, returning a score of 67 nett to win by four clear strokes. Category 1 was won by Mary McElroy on 74, with Josephine McCahey taking the Category 2 prize with a 73. Category 3 went to Ann Cumiskey on 71, while Tracy McMahon won Category 4 on 72. The ladies also held a nine hole event, which was won by Mairead McCreesh who returned a 35 nett. Three hectic days of qualifiers and play-offs didn’t stop our members from celebrating another great Captain’s Weekend on Sunday night. After dinner, and some memorable entertainment, it was time for the prize giving. It’s good to report that the art of the acceptance speech is alive and well in our club, with so many taking the opportunity to thank our Captain Frank for all his hard work, and to praise Peter Robinson and his staff on the wonderful condition of our course. Our Captain himself couldn’t have sounded happier as he expressed his joy and gratitude to all who helped to make his weekend such a great success. And at the end of the night, he had the very pleasant task of presenting Eileen Kerr, of his chosen charity the Monaghan Arch Club, with a cheque for €1900, donated by our members over the weekend. This weekend it’s back to the real world for our members, who take part in The Formme Constuction strokeplay event, off the green tees. Our seniors’ season contined last week with a nine hole singles event. The results were as follows; Cat. 1 Charlie Geoghegan 20, Brian McGovern 19 and John McGoldrick 19. Cat. 2 PJ Lambe 21, Finbarr Brohan 21 and Joe Kernan 20. Cat. 3 Pierce Hughes 25, Barney McDonald 19 and Syl Mulligan 19. This week it’s another nine hole competition off the white tees. And finally for this week, news of our major fundraiser of the season, The Nudie Hughes Cub Classic. This event takes place over four days, from Thursday 18^th to Sunday 21^st of August. The cost per team of four is €240, and tee and green sponsorship is also available by contacting our office at 042 9749485 or by emailing info@concrawood.ie .Members are asked to please support this classic, with all monies raised being spent on a programme of bunker improvements.

26th July 2022

A HOME WIN FOR GLOBETROTTER SMYTH It’s a known fact in club golf, that only the most honest and upright players shoot the lights out on the weekend before the Captain’s Prize. Well we can now say for sure that we have at least two of those in Concra, after last weekend’s MC Blinds competition. Playing off the very challenging Gold Tees, both Declan Smyth and Jimmy Lacey returned super scores of 43 points. And it was our Vice Captain Declan who took the top spot, having shot an excellent one over par on the back nine. It’s been quite a year for Declan so far, as he’s golfed in the four corners of the planet, and it’s rumoured that he outscored Tiger Woods at St. Andrew’s. And now that he’s brought that form home, who’s to say he won’t win the big one next weekend? Jimmy must surely have felt that he had done the business, but on this occasion he has to settle for the Category 1 prize. Category 2 went to Brendan Carragher, whose golf continues to improve, on 38 points. And Shane Fitzsimons was very pleasantly surprised to win Category 3 on 35 points. Once again our sponsors added a Beginners’ Prize, which was won by Liam O’Doherty on 33 points. Congratulations to Calum Callaghan who won Sunday’s Top Golfer Junior Scratch Cup with a fine score of 75, and also to Alan Bolger who took third spot on 77. Our Seniors competed in their usual nine hole singles last week. The winners details were: Cat. 1 Martin Rafter 18, Martin Shevlin 17 and Gerry Treacy 17. Cat. 2 Pat Conlon 21, David Hutchinson 21, Paul Shortt and Jarlath Denny joint third on 20. Cat. 3 Terence McKeown 22, Gerry Monahan 22 and John Smyth 21. This week, it’s another nine hole event off the green tees. Last week, our ladies took part in their annual Corrigan’s Kitchen sponsored event, and it produced one of this season’s great rounds at Concra. The winner, Sandra McEvoy, returned a score of 42 points – that’s three over par off a handicap of 9. The runner-up was our Lady Captain Donagh Nugent who scored 38 points, with Mona Metcalfe in third place on 35. In the nine hole competition, Alice Duffy came out on top on 23 points, while Sheila Moore took second prize on 20. This week our ladies are competing in the Captain’s Prize. All cards must be returned by Thursday. It’s been a really tough season for us on the inter-club scene. On Saturday, our last men standing, Billy Hanna’s Junior Cowdy Cup side, bowed out of this year’s event, going down to a very strong team from Loughgall GC in their third round match. Billy would like to thank all the guys who played for him this season, and carried the flag for our club. Let’s hope the experience gained will stand us in good stead in the coming years. The Nudie Hughes Club Classic takes place this year from Thursday 18^th to Sunday 21^st of August. This is our club’s major fundraiser of 2022, and members are asked to please give it all your support. The cost per team of 4 is €240, while green and tee sponsorship is available at €200 and €100 respectively. All funds raised will kickstart our programme of improvements to our bunkers. And finally, this weekend it’s the big one, the Captain’s Prize. It’s every club golfer’s dream to win, even just once, but after all the restrictions of the last two years, this one feels extra special. And if our Captain Frank Nolan’s commitment to date is anything to go by, we can be sure this will be a truly memorable weekend. In years gone by, it was customary to make a prediction in this column. It was easier back then when the number of competitors was lower. And who would have guessed that Noel Boyd would stroll to victory last year? But in keeping with tradition, this year the Captain’s Prize is heading for…….Ballybay!

19th July 2022

MOIRA O’BRIEN WINS THE LADY CAPTAIN’S PRIZE For most golfers, our course at Concra Wood becomes a little easier when our fairways dry out and there’s a bit of run on the ball. So in such wonderful conditions, it was no surprise to any of us that Donagh Nugent’s Lady Captain’s Day produced record scores at the weekend. The winner with a massive total of 46 points was Moira O’Brien. This was just enough to knock Yvonne Duffy’s 45 points into the runner-up spot. And third prize was won by Briege O’Reilly on a score of 43 points. It’s fair to say that our ladies made the most of the weekend, with huge crowds on the course, and also in our clubhouse for Saturday night’s presentation. Donagh would like to thank all the lady members who helped to raise €1100 for her chosen charity The Perfect Gift, and also her sponsors for the weekend Gribben Motors, Armagh, Tullynagrow Fuels, Culloville House, SINE Engineering and Circle of Light. On Sunday, Donagh sponsored our juvenile competitions. The winners were: Red Group Caolan Donnelly and Eimear McGlynn. Blue Group Daniel Agnew and Daire Fitzgerald. Yellow Group Caolan O’Connor and Matthew McShane. And the winner of a special prize for girls was Bella O’Neill. All the while, one hundred and twenty five of our male members were taking part in the annual Clement McKenna Cup. And it’s great to report on some new names in the winners’ enclosure. The winner on a super score of 44 points was big hitter Brian McGuinness. Second prize was won by Sean Cassidy, who recorded a record 28 points on the front nine, on his way to a total of 43 points. The best gross went to Mark Currie on 35 gross points. And in third position came Gavin Corrigan on 42 points. This weekend’s our men’s competition will be sponsored by M.C. Blinds, the last before our major event of the Summer, Frank Nolan’s Captain’s Prize. Last week was Open Week at Concra, with over one hundred entrants taking part in each of our singles competitions. Results, as always, are available on masterscoreboard. As our seniors were supporting these events, they didn’t hold their weekly competition. They did, however, hold an Open Championship Sweep, which was won by Ciaran Coyle. And finally for this week, it looks like this is going to be a very tough season for our inter-club teams. On Thursday, Paudie Kindlon’s Ulster Cup side were beaten by four matches to three by Banbridge GC. This means that Billy Hanna’s Junior Cowdy Cup team are our last men standing. They travel to Loughgall GC on Saturday, trailing after the first leg by 2 ½ points to 1 ½. While we know they have it all to do, we wish them the very best of luck.

12th July 2022

RAYMOND KERNAN RIP Raymond Kernan was one of life’s gentlemen. In our club he was liked and respected by all in equal measure. And golf being a game of honour, it suited Raymond down to the ground. Raymond loved our club, and served our club as Honorary Secretary for over a decade, before moving on to the role of Club President in 2010 and 2011. Never one to side with any factions or cliques, Raymond sought only to facilitate others to enjoy our game. He holds the unique distinction of being the only golfer to have been a member of all three clubs in our town’s history – at Annahale, Onomy and Concra. While news of his death wasn’t unexpected, it was met with great sadness in our club. The great number of our members who stood in the Guard of Honour at Thursday’s funeral was a fitting tribute to such a loyal servant of our club. We extend our deepest sympathies to Raymond’s wife Maura, his daughter Irene and his son Gareth. Ní bheidh a leithéid ann arís. This Saturday our ladies take part in the biggest competition of their season – Donagh Nugent’s Lady Captain’s Prize. As is traditional, Donagh sponsored our men’s competition last weekend to start the build up to the big event. And it proved to be a very high scoring weekend, with no fewer than twenty members shooting 38 points or better. James King held his Captain’s Prize of the ABW society on Saturday, and instead of sitting around the clubhouse for the day, he went out and took part in Donagh’s competition. And what a good decision that proved to be, as he put together a superb round of 45 points – enough to ensure an invite to Saturday night’s festivities. On any other weekend James would have won by a street, but on this occasion each of our category winners had a chance to better his 45, only to slip up on our tough last three holes. While he shot an excellent 43 points, Category 1 winner Patrick Tavey was three over for the last three. In Category 2 David Lennon shot four over on the final three on his way to 41 points. And in Category 3 Patsy Boyle let five shots slip over the same holes, in an otherwise super round of 42 points. Let’s hope the high scoring continues into this weekend’s competition, the Clement McKenna Cup. This year’s Golfer of the Year competitions have been running every weekend since Presidents’ Prize. The complete scoreboard is on the competitions noticeboard. The early pace setter is Gavin McEneaney on 52 points, with Thomas Brennan in second place on 30 points, closely followed by Mark McCahey on 28 points. It’s not too late for the rest to catch up, as this competition runs right on through to September. Our ladies took part in the Leavy’s Pharmacy sponsored event last week. The winner on 68 nett was Patricia Hamill. Second prize went to Suzanne Cumiskey on 73 with Yvonne Duffy in third place on74. The nine hole event was won by Briege O’Reilly on 41 nett. On Sunday afternoon our ladies section hosted an open three person team event The winners were from Lurgan GC, the runners-up from New Forest, with our Lady Captain Donagh, Vice-Captain Chris Monahan and Margie Carville in third place. And finally for this week, we’ve had a really challenging season so far on the inter-club front. On Saturday Billy Hanna’s Junior Cowdy Cup side hosted Loughgall GC at Concra in their third round first leg. It proved to be a very tough day for Billy’s men as they suffered a 2 ½ – 1 ½ reverse. They did however have something to cheer about, as Gareth Mone produced the shot of the day, chipping in over the bunker on 17 to secure a point for himself and his brother John, while Shane Fitzsimons and Lorcan Keenan sealed the other half point. Billy’s men are going to have to go some in their second leg in Loughgall on July 23^rd. We wish them the very best of luck.  

5th July 2022

BARRY’S BACK IN FORM After a season of countbacks and close finishes, we finally have a convincing victory to report. In last weekend’s Paul Hill Cup, Barry O’Reilly won by a street, with a winning margin of five points over his nearest rival. On a wet weekend our course was playing long, too long for most. But long suits Barry, and if the driver‘s not going far enough, he reaches for his secret weapon – the three wood. On this occasion he put it to very good use, on his way to a superb total of 44 points. Category 1 was won by the in-form Gavin McEneaney who returned a creditable 39 points.  The Category 2 prize went to Thomas Brennan on a score of 36 points. And the ever-improving Aidan Boyd won Category 3 on 39 points. The Hill Family would like to thank all the members who took part in this event, which is held every year in memory of our very popular past member Paul. If it’s close finishes you like, you can rely on our ladies. In their annual Theresa McHugh Cup, there were three leading scores of 39 points. The winner was Sheila Moore who squeezed home with the best back nine. Category 1 was won by Catriona Bolger on 33 points. Jolanta McMonagle‘s 39 points won in Category 2. Category 3 was won by Briege Horgan on 31 points. And in Category 4, Tracy McMahon came out on top with the other 39 points. And the nine hole event was won by Nuala Traynor on 21 points. This weekend’s competition is sponsored by Leavy’s Pharmacy. This strokeplay event is the latest in this Summer’s Ladies’ Stroke Medal competition. And there’s an extra competition for our ladies to look forward to this weekend. On Sunday afternoon Concra is hosting a Three Ladies Team Event, a final chance for our members to hone their skills before Lady Captain’s Day on July 16^th.  And as if that wasn’t enough, our Lady Captain Donagh is the sponsor of this weekend’s men’s competition as well. Good luck with all that. Our men aren’t going to go short on golfing opportunities either. Next week it’s Open Week. On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday our singles stableford events are sponsored by McElvaney’s Waste, Watters’ Electrical and Moneycare. On Thursday Combi-Lift sponsor our Fourball Betterball, and then it’s our regular Black Tees Friday sponsored by Concra Wood. All details are available on our Concra Wood Facebook page. For our Seniors, Monday was Brian McGovern’s Captain’s Day. A record fifty members took part on the day. The winner on a fine score of 38 points was Thomas Brennan. The other prizewinners were: Cat. 1 Patrick Cumiskey 37, Martin Farnan 37 and Frank McDonnell 37. Cat. 2 Eamonn Tavey 33, Des Morgan 32 and PJ Lambe 32. Cat. 3  Macartan Lambe 32, Syl Mulligan 32 and Pat McBride 32. And finally for his week, good luck to Billy Hanna and his team in their Junior Cowdy Cup quarter final first leg against Loughgall GC in Concra on Saturday. It’s been a tough season so far for our inter-club sides, so we really hope Billy’s men can give us an interest in the latter stages of this year’s championships.  

28th June 2022

CONCRA WOOD PLAYS IN PINK Our weekend competitions at Concra Wood were fundraisers for the National Breast Cancer Research Institute, and all competitors were encouraged to wear something pink to raise awareness of their cause. Unfortunately the weather refused to play ball, and so it was pink wetsuits and umbrellas all the way. The men’s event was sponsored by Paul Murphy’s Colt Design. Most competitors hopes were blown and washed away, but two men managed to break 40 points, and it took a countback to separate them. The winner on a score of 42 points was Adrian Sewell. It’s been a while since Adrian has won a singles competition, but he’s just had a good run in the HiLo matchplay, and no doubt he picked up one or two tips from our Captain Frank along the way. The unlucky man who was pipped at the post was Paraic Craig. He surely thought his 42 points was good enough for top spot in such conditions, but his back nine of 21 fell one short of Adrian’s. There were four scores of 39 points recorded in this competition, with Gavin McEneaney claiming third prize on a breakdown. And the best gross prize was won by Calum Callaghan who returned a score of 31 gross points. Our Ladies’ event was sponsored by Michael Smyth’s The View Restaurant. The overall winner was Carmel McAleavey who returned a score of 39 points. Once again we needed a countback to separate the top scorers, with Suzanne McElroy’s 39 just coming up short on the back nine. She has to settle for the runner-up prize on this occasion. And the third prize was won by Jolanta McMonagle on 38 points. A number of our lady members took part in the nine hole event, and the winner was Margaret Flack on a super score of 22 points. On Monday our club played host to the North Leinster Past and Present Lady Captains’ competition. The winner on a score of 39 points was our own Josephine McCahey, with our past Lady Captain Rita O’Loughlin taking second prize on 37 points. Third prize went to Bernie Connolly of Rossmore GC on 36 points, while the Best Gross prize was won by Jill Roullier of Mannan Castle GC. PICTURED L TO R: WINNER JOSEPHINE MCCAHEY, LADY CAPTAIN DONAGH NUGENT, LADIES SECRETARY CATHRYNA CRAIG Most of our seniors managed to get their weekly nine holes in before the storms arrived. The results were as follows: Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 23, Johnny McGoldrick 21, Martin Allen and Johnny Redmond 20 points apiece. Cat. 2 Andy Whelan 22, Adrian Sewell 20 and Joe McGrath 19. Cat. 3 Terence McKeown 20, Gerry Monahan 20 and Tom Ryan 18. It’s nine holes again this week, and then on Monday 4^th of July it’s Brian McGovern’s Senior Captain’s Day. Any member who wishes to take part should sign up on the BRS system. We wish Brian the very best of luck – no doubt the Child of Prague is already out. It’s mostly good news this week for our club teams. Paudie Kindlon’s Ulster Cup side have made it through to Round 3 as they won Friday night’s match with Greenacres GC on a scoreline of 4 – 3. Team Captain Paudie was the hero on the night, winning his match with a birdie on the first tie hole. They now face Banbridge GC in Round 3. Billy Hanna’s Junior Cowdy Cup team had a more comfortable victory, beating Tandragee GC by 5 matches to 3 over two legs. Next up for them, it’s Loughgall GC. But unfortunately, Jack McDonnell’s young Sam Rutherford Cup side came unstuck on Sunday, losing out to Killymoon GC by 8 holes. And James King’s Rossmore Cup team exited this year’s event, losing out to Lisburn GC in Sunday’s second leg. And finally for this week, our next mens’ competition is the annual Paul Hill Cup, which takes place  this Friday evening, Saturday  and Sunday. This stableford event will be played off the green tees. And for our ladies, it’s the Teresa McHugh Cup, which must be played by Thursday 30^th of June.  

21st June 2022

SPARKS IS FLYING We’ve all heard it said that strokeplay favours the low handicappers. Is this a fact, or just another golfers’ myth? Well if last weekend’s C & R McMahon Construction event is anything to go by, it may well be that the latter is true. Because none of our top three golfers would consider themselves to be low handicappers, but that didn’t stop them all from breaking 70 nett. The winner on a score of 68 was Pat “Sparks” McNeill. On the same weekend as he and his foursomes partner Mervyn Brown made it through to the HiLo final, Pat laid down a marker for the Seniors – and the 20+ handicappers – with this significant result. And in the end he only just managed to squeeze past Eugene McGuigan, who also returned a 68. Eugene was flying after fourteen holes, but as so often happens in Concra, the final fours holes did for his chances of victory. Third prize was won by last year’s Captain Thomas Brennan on 69. And on a difficult weekend for the low men, Ciaran McMahon was the only competitor to break 80 gross. His 79 strokes won him the Best Gross prize. This weekend our competition is sponsored by Paul Murphy’s Colt Design. As this is our Play in Pink weekend, all members are asked to wear something pink, and can make a donation to the National Breast Cancer Research Institute. And due to the large numbers taking part in our competitions, all competitors now have the option of competing on Friday evenings from 2.30 pm. Our lady members competed in the annual Longfield Oil Rosebowl event. The winner on a superb score of 41 points was Anne Cumiskey. This is Anne’s second major win in a fortnight as she also won our Presidents’ Prize. Anne Lambe was runner-up on a score of 39 points, while Eileen Kerr won the nine hole event. Our category prize winners were Mona Metcalfe, Sheila Moore, Margie Carville and Mairead McCreesh. This weekend’s sponsor is The View Restaurant, and as in the men’s competition, this is a Pretty in Pink fundraiser. Our Seniors took part in a nine hole Mixed Scramble on Tuesday. The winning team on a score of 36 were Frank McDonnell, Brigitte LeJuez and Maura Moore. Second place went to Pat McNeill (again!), Adrian Sewell and Suzanne McElroy, while third were Declan McAteer, Raymond McCooey and Liz Coleman. This week, it’s our usual nine hole competition off the white tees. Our most recent inter-club success was in the 2019 Senior Cowdy Cup. Due to Covid this was our first chance to defend this prestigious trophy. And sadly Alan Bolger’s men have fallen at the second fence, going down by 22 points to 18 to a strong Spa GC side. James King’s Rossmore Cup team kicked off their season with a home leg against Lisburn GC on Sunday. On the day they earned a 2 ½ points to 1 ½ advantage to take into this weekend’s second leg. And Jack McDonnell’s Sam Rutherford Cup side also debuted on Sunday. They came away from Killymoon GC with a six hole deficit, which gives them every chance in Sunday’s rematch at Concra. And finally for this week, our HiLo matchplay semi-finals were completed over the weekend. As I’ve already reported, Pat McNeill and Mervyn Brown have made it through to the final, having defeated our Captain Frank Nolan and Adrian Sewell by 3&2. In the second semi-final, Stephen McQuillan and Paul Campbell overcame Jonathan Kernan and Martin Malone to set up a very interesting final match. This has been a really enjoyable competition, with everyone who took part looking forward to more matchplay in our club.  

14th June 2022

NUDIE HUGHES WINS THE PRANDY DUFFY CUP The weekend of the Prandy Duffy Cup has been a little bit on the quiet side these past couple of years. Covid restrictions have prevented the American Friends of Concra from celebrating this special event with us. However, the weather was anything but quiet this time around, with gales blowing across our course all weekend long. And our Pro Ciaran said he thought there was a Spandau Ballet concert in his shop, as members all shouted, “GOLD! GOLD!” Yes, it was all the way back to our gold tees for the toughest of tests. And when the going got tough, Nudie Hughes got going. Nudie’s battling qualities are legendary, and once again, he put them to very good use. He returned a score of 42 points – the only 40+ score of the weekend – to land one trophy that he’ll be delighted to lift for the first time. Damien Cumiskey gave himself a real chance of breaking 40 as well, but he struggled with the challenge of our final four holes, eventually signing for 39 points, enough to take the runner-up spot. The best gross prize went to big hitter Kevin Power who returned 29 gross points. And third place went to Concra’s own resident golfer Mervyn Brown on a score of 38 points. Once again our sponsors included a Beginners’ Prize, and this was won by Ronan Peter McCarron on 32 points. This weekend our sponsors are Ciaran and Ronan McMahon of C & R McMahon Construction. It’s back to the green tees, and this is a strokeplay Golfer of the Year competition. Another busy weekend on the inter-club scene saw two of our teams exit this season’s Golf Ireland events. Brian McGovern’s Fred Perry Trophy side were beaten by three matches to two by Silverwood GC on Saturday, while Yvonne Duffy’s All Ireland Mixed Foursomes team suffered the narrowest of defeats to Kirkistown Castle GC. With the sides tied at two matches each, Calum Callaghan and Josephine McCahey took their match down nineteen, only to be beaten in the sudden death decider. Alan Bolger’s Senior Cowdy Cup side have it all to do in defence of their title. On Sunday they lost their away leg at Spa GC by 16 ½ points to 3 ½. So for some good news we have to turn to Billy Hanna’s Junior Cowdy Cup side. They returned from their away leg at Tandragee GC undefeated. They earned three half matches, and a priceless win from Gregg Sibley and debutant Tom McDermott. We wish Alan’s and Billy’s men the very best in this weekend’s second legs. Our Seniors also battled last week’s winds as they took part in the annual Gabriel Moore Memorial tournament. The winner on a super score of 39 points was our Captain Frank Nolan. Frank’s round contained three birdies, including at our very difficult sixteenth hole – a truly rare bird. The category winners and their points totals were: Cat.1 Brian McGovern 37, Johnny Redmond 35 and Martin Rafter 32. Cat. 2 Andy Whelan 33, Bart McNamara 312 and Paul Shortt 31. Cat. 3 Macartan Lambe 28 and Pat McBride 27.  This week, it’s a mixed scramble on Tuesday morning at 11.10 am. And finally for this week, while the American Friends of Concra Wood were unable to travel to Blayney last weekend, they more than made up for their absence with a magnificent gift to our club. A fabulous clock with the inscription “In memory of Prandy Duffy” now stands tall beside our first tee box. Custom built by the Verdin Company of Cincinnati, this unique timepiece was shipped from New York just in time for this year’s playing of Prandy’s Cup. “Under Prandy’s Clock” is already the must have photo on social media, and we may just have one or two of our American friends in the picture before the year is out.

7th June 2022

GRANDSTAND FINISH TO THE PRESIDENTS’ PRIZE The crowds of members who came out to watch the play-off for this year’s Presidents Prize on Sunday evening were treated to a grandstand finish. The battle for top spot was between Gerry McCaul and Tony Brennan, who were well in front after the 18 hole qualifier on 44 and 43 points respectively. It was nip and tuck all the way, and by the time they got to the final hole, it was Tony who held a one shot lead. Tony’s tee shot came up just short, while Gerry stuck his ball on the middle of the green. And when Tony failed to get up and down, Gerry nailed his birdie putt for a total of 62 points, and a first victory in a major competition. The chasing pack had narrowed the gap somewhat, and a number of competitors returned scores of 60 points. On a countback, the runner-up spot went to Dean McMahon, with Keith Hill taking third prize. And the best gross prize was won by Christopher Brennan, who returned a score of 73 on the first eighteen. Sunday night’s presentation was a unique event as we had two Presidents celebrating their successful weekend. Pierce and Seamus certainly seemed to enjoy themselves. It was great to see so many of our prize winners taking the opportunity to say a few words, and time and again it was Peter Robinson and his team who were praised for the superb condition of our course.  Over the weekend, our members made generous donations to the Monaghan Arch Club, and the formalities ended with our Presidents presenting the proceeds to Eileen Kerr, who will put them to good use. So this weekend it’s back to the regular 18 hole format for the annual Prandy Duffy Cup. And after a quiet weekend on the inter-club front, our teams are back in action. Good luck to Brian McGovern’s Fred Perry Trophy side, and Yvonne Duffy‘s All-Ireland Mixed team as they represent our club. And finally for this week, news from our Seniors. On Thursday last, in quite challenging conditions, the members took part in a Three Man Waltz! The winners on a score of 48 points were Brian Coleman, Jim O’Neill and Tom Ryan. The runners-up were Martin Farnan, Joe Quinn and Arthur McGeough on 46 points, with Martin Allen, Paul Shortt and Macartan Lambe taking third spot on 45. This Thursday is a big day in our seniors’ calendar as they compete for the Gabriel Moore Memorial Trophy. All members are asked to book in on the BRS system before noon. The golf will be followed by a meal with the presentation of prizes taking place at 5 pm.  

31st May 2022

PAUL IS THE REAL DEAL Paul Murphy has long had the potential to play off a very low handicap. He hits the ball a mile so, for him, Concra Wood is really a par 68. Last Saturday in Paddy Carville’s SINE Engineering competition, he took a major step towards fulfilling that potential, shooting a gross 75 for a total of 43 points. Scoring three birdies on his way to victory, he even had the luxury of finishing with a 6 on 18 – further proof that his new Handicap Index of 7.8 is just a start. On a high scoring weekend, Paul needed every point. Categories 1 and 3 were won by Mac Sammon and Fergal Toal who scored 42 points apiece. In Category 2 the winner was Seamus McElroy, who returned a score of 39 points. And once again we had a special category for Beginner Members, and this was won by the ever improving Gerry Hamill on 38 points. This weekend it’s our first major competition of the year, The Presidents’ Prize. And in a unique twist we have not one, but two Presidents hosting the event. Seamus Mallon waited patiently for the pandemic to end before going ahead with his competition, and now he’s sharing the stage with his nominee Pierce Hughes. It’s rumoured that the winner is going to get two prizes on this occasion, so there’ll be no holding back. Any member who has yet to sign up is asked to get their name on the timesheet during the week. In our Seniors section, last week’s nine hole singles results were: Cat. 1 Ciaran Prunty 20, Martin Farnan 20 and Brian McGovern 19. Cat. 2 Pat Conlon 21, Joe Kernan 20 and Finbar Brohan 19. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 16, Tom Ryan 14 and Brendan Laverty 14. This week’s competition is a Team Waltz, which takes place on Thursday. Members can sign up for Wednesday’s draw on the Seniors Whatsapp Group. And finally for this week, some not so good news on the inter-club front. Noel O’Reilly’s Pierce Purcell side were beaten 4-1 by a strong Warrenpoint GC side in the second round of this year’s championship on Thursday. And then on Sunday, Stephen McQuillan’s Tudenham Cup team were edged out of this year’s event by Rathcor GC . The match was poised at 2 ½ points apiece, meaning Alan Bolger and Thomas Brennan’s match went to a sudden death play-off, and unfortunately they came unstuck at the second tie hole. Let’s hope for better news for our other teams as we head into a busy June calendar.

24th May 2022

PADRAIC PUSHES HIS CASE Padraic Conlon was a member of the Senior Cowdy team which won the cup in 2019. This year he didn’t make the team for our first round match against St. Patrick’s GC. That despite playing with the team captain every weekend, not to mention beating him every time. He was told he had to do more. And that’s just what he did on Saturday morning , shooting a 73 for 44 stableford points, enough to win the Mace Store, Smithborough singles competition. One man who did make the team was Ciaran McMahon. Not only did he justify selection by winning home and away, he returned a round of 40 points to win this weekend’s Category 1 prize. Category 2 was won by Martin Rafter, who scored 37 points, and it all came together for Frank Bourke on this occasion, as he won Category 3 on 36 points. The aforementioned Senior Cowdy Cup team has made it through to the second round of this year’s event. On Sunday they won their second leg in St. Patrick’s GC by 11 ½ points to 8 ½, leaving team captain Alan Bolger with one or two selection dilemmas for Round 2. Paudie Kindlon’s Ulster Cup side also made a winning start on Sunday, beating Killymoon GC by 4 ½ points to 2 ½. Billy Hanna’s Junior Cowdy Cup team completed a very busy Sunday at Concra, winning their first leg against Lurgan GC by 2 ½ points to 1 ½. And unfortunately, Sean Malone’s Jimmy Bruen Shield side were knocked out of this year’s championship on Saturday, beaten in Round 2 by Holywood GC on a scoreline of 3 matches to 2. This weekend our competition is sponsored by Paddy Carville’s SINE Engineering. Members are reminded to sign up for the Presidents’ Prize which takes place over the following weekend. Our seniors have a couple of big days to look forward to next month, especially the Gabriel Moore Memorial Cup on June 9th. Last week they competed in a nine hole singles, and the winners and their points totals were: Cat. 1 Martin Shevlin 19, Brian McGovern 18 and Martin Allen 18. Cat. 2 Nicky Hore 19, Ronan McDonnell 19 and Sean Mulligan 16. Cat. 3 Gerry Monahan 25, Michael Reid 20 and Terence McKeown 19.

And finally for this week, our HiLo knockout has proven to be a great success. Members have really enjoyed the format, and have even managed to fulfil their fixtures on time. We’ve now reached the quarter-final stage, and all pairings are asked to keep up the good habits, and complete their matches by this Sunday, May 29th.

17th May 2022

KEVIN TOPS THE SCORING CHARTS There was some proper scoring in our annual Carna Transport competition at the weekend. The winner on a score of 43 points was Kevin Power. Like so many big hitters, Kevin can reach the par five greens in two, and this time around he started with an eagle 3 at the first, and never looked back. In the end his winning margin was a single point from Francie Boylan, who returned a round of 42 points to take the Category 2 prize. Category 1 also saw a high scoring winner, this time Billy Hanna on 41 points. And Category 3 was won by Cathal Shortt on a score of 37 points. This weekend our competition is sponsored by Aidan Boyd’s Mace Store in Smithborough. When entering scores at the computer, members can sign up for this season’s Presidents’ Prize which takes place on the June Bank Holiday Weekend. This competition will be our first Golfer of the Year event of 2022. Our seniors took part in a scramble on May 11th. The winners on a score of level par were Johnny Redmond, Andy Whelan and Jim O’Neill. They squeezed Johnny McGoldrick, Pauric Craig and Brendan Laverty into second place on a countback. And third prize was won by Brian McGovern, Raymond McCooey and Junior McKeown on one over par. This week it’s business as usual – a nine hole singles – Monday to Friday. Andy has asked senior members to add a couple of dates to their busy schedules: June 9th for the Gabriel Moore Memorial Cup and June 14th for a mixed scramble. He would like to thank our Ladies’ Club for their generous donation of €500 to the Gardening Club, which will be put to very good use over the Summer months. Our Seniors inter-club season got underway on Sunday with Brian McGovern’s Fred Perry Trophy team taking on Donaghadee GC in their first round match. An away win for Andy Whelan and Patrick Cumiskey was the key to victory for Brian’s men, who are safely into Round 2 on a score of 3 matches to 2. Also in action for our club was Alan Bolger’s Senior Cowdy Cup side. While they kicked off the defence of this trophy with a first leg 11 ½ to 8 ½ advantage over St. Patrick’s GC, they have it all to do in this weekend’s second leg. And finally for this week, Concra Wood’s annual Arch Club Party has been re-scheduled for Thursday May 26th at 8.00 pm. Eileen Kerr and her committee welcome all members to come along and participate in the evening’s fun.

10th May 2022

HUGO FINDS THAT WINNING FORMULA We golfers are forever looking for that certain something, the key to unlocking our potential, to deliver that elusive victory. Some spend thousands on equipment, others hours on the practice ground. Well Hugo Connolly seems to have come up with his perfect recipe – a lesson from our Pro Ciaran, and then escape from your regular fourball. At the weekend, in the company of his new playing partners, Hugo blazed a trail around the front nine, scoring 24 points. After a wobble on 10, 11 and 12 he steadied the ship, before the highlight of his round at 17 – a drive and a wedge to ten feet, followed by a birdie putt. An eventual total of 44 points was enough to win the annual Tavey’s Menswear Carrickmacross prize, and the three shots he lost in the process are not going to cost him a thought. Category 1 was won by Mel Currie who returned the steadiest of steady rounds, fourteen pars and four bogeys for a total of 38 points. There have been very few scores over 40 points in Concra so far this season, so David Lennon can consider himself very unlucky to only win the Category 2 prize with 41. And Category 3 was won by Patsy Boyle, who enjoyed his Busman’s Holiday so much, he scored 39 points. This weekend our competition is sponsored by Carna Transport. Our timesheet for the weekend is chock-a-block with several inter-club matches taking place. We wish all our teams the very best of luck as they represent our club. Our seniors played in their regular nine hole event last week. The results were; Cat. 1 Martin Rafter 20, Gerry Treacy 20 and Declan McAteer 17. Cat. 2 Joe Gleeson 19, Paul Shortt 19 and Joe Kernan 18. Cat. 3 Junior McKeown 20, Michael Reid 18 and Syl Mulligan 17. This week it’s a team scramble on Wednesday afternoon with tee times from 3.30 pm. And finally for this week, our juvenile golfers got together for the first time this season on Sunday afternoon. Our new members got an opportunity to use all our club practice facilities, and they played the first two holes. We will have juvenile golf on most Sundays right throughout the Summer months. For further details contact our office at (042)9749485, check out our noticeboard, or come out to Concra and speak to Tom, Gregg or Chris on any Sunday afternoon.  

3rd May 2022

QUINN WINS WITH 38 POINTS It was one wet weekend at Concra. It was a tough job keeping yourself and your clubs half-dry, not to mention the various accoutrements today’s golfer carries. It was a real case of survival of the fittest in Thomas Brennan’s Consurv Building Consultants competition. And the fittest man was Sylvester Quinn who scored an excellent 38 points off a handicap of 2. Sylvester’s success was built on a superb return of four under par on the par fives, including an eagle 3 at the first. His margin of victory was a single shot from Paul Leonard. Paul was bombing along on 22 points after nine, but conditions took their toll on his way home, and his eventual total of 37 points sees him win Category 2. Category 1 was won by Gavin McEneaney , whose round of 36 points included two very lucrative twos. And Category 3 went to Michael Byrne who also returned a score of 36 points. The May Bank Holiday weekend saw a number of our club teams kick off their 2022 season. Firstly, the good news. Sean Malone’s Jimmy Bruen Shield side won their match against Knock GC. The key to victory was an away win for Billy Hanna and Barry O’Reilly. Sean’s next opponents are Holywood GC. In the Tudenham Cup, Stephen McQuillan’s men enjoyed a 3-2 victory over Slieve Russell GC. Again it was an away win, this time by Francie Boylan and that man Billy Hanna that made all the difference. However, in the Barton Shield, Mark Currie’s side were beaten by St. Patrick’s GC, whose winning margin was two holes. And in the Junior Cup, Mel Currie’s men were beaten by 4 matches to 1 by a strong Rockmount GC side. A presentation of prizes will take place this Friday evening in our clubhouse at 8pm. Prize winners will be contacted by text. And finally, our seniors were away on their annual outing last week, this time to Roganstown GC. Their competition was played over 36 holes. The winner on a score of 76 points was Frank McDonnell, with both Frank Nolan and Patrick Cumiskey two points back on 74 apiece. This week it’s back to the good old 9 hole format – Monday to Friday.

26th April 2022

IT’S DAVID O’NEILL AGAIN – OR IS IT? When the results of the Brennan’s Furniture competition were published on Sunday night, confusion reigned. For a second weekend in a row, the winner was David O’Neill, but which one? Well in the interest of clarity, it may help to introduce a couple of geography based adjectives. Last time it was Oram Davy, but on this occasion it’s Doohamlet Davy who came out on top. On Saturday he returned a score of 40 points, and in such windy conditions, it came as no surprise to the other 125 competitors that his score prevailed on Sunday evening. Category 1 was won by Noel O’Reilly on 38 points. Noel now has the great distinction of being the lowest handicapper in his storied fourball. Category 2 went to Martin Allen, who opens his account for 2022 with a round of 36 points. Category 3 was won by Patrick Hanratty, now a regular among the prizes, on a score of 39 points. And in our Beginner Category, the winner was Ronan Peter McCarron, who returned a score of 36 points. This weekend our sponsors are Thomas Brennan’s Consurv Building Consultants, with members playing off the green tees. Our Seniors turned out in numbers for the annual Jimmy Coleman Cup on Wednesday last. The winner on the day, on a super score of 40 points, was Johnny McGoldrick. The category winners were as follows: Cat.1 Martin Rafter 37, Patrick Cumiskey 36 and Martin Shevlin 35. Cat. 2 Bart McNamara 38, Paul Shortt 36 and Pat Conlon 35. Cat. 3 Brendan Laverty 38, Joe Gleeson 33 and Gerry Monahan 29. And Jimmy’s son Brian was on hand to present all the prizes afterwards in our clubhouse. The news wasn’t so good for our seniors in the JB Carr trophy. On Thursday, they were beaten by Rossmore GC in the first round of this season’s competition. However, there’ll be little time for them to lick their wounds, as they’re in action again on this Monday and Tuesday, this time on their outing to Roganstown GC. Our club plays host to the Big Tom Classic on this Friday (April 29^th). We wish Oram GFC the very best of luck with this major event. And finally for this week, our inter-club season hits top gear in the coming days. First up, it’s Mark Currie’s Barton Shield side who are in action on Friday evening against St. Patrick’s GC. Saturday sees two of our teams competing in Concra – Sean Malone’s Jimmy Bruen Shield side take on Knock GC, while Joe McGrath leads the All Ireland Fourball team in their match with Donegal GC. And then on Sunday Mel Currie’s Junior Cup side face opponents from Rockmount GC, while Stephen McQuillan’s Tudenham Cup first round match is against Slieve Russell GC. We wish all our representatives well in their matches, and encourage members to pop out to our course to support our club teams.

19th April 2022

SEAN MALONE WINS THE FIAT 500 DRAW Our club draw took place on Monday night in our clubhouse. Captains Frank and Donagh officiated on the night, supported by local Fiat dealer Dermot McGuigan, and a large turnout of members. The winner of the Fiat 500 was Sean Malone, who made a very swift dash from Annyalla to Concra to accept his prize. Second prize was won by Danny Duffy from Ballybay. Third prize went to Ashling Woods from Annyalla. Fourth prize was won by Allen Reilly from Ardee, while fifth prize went to Tom Ryan. Many thanks to everyone who bought and sold tickets, and helped to make our draw successful. The draw itself was recorded by Billy Hanna, and can be viewed on our facebook page. A countback was required once again this week, this time to separate the top golfers in our Eastern Electrical competition. Both David O’Neill and Sean Farrell returned scores of 41 points, and they each had 20 points on the back nine. And so it took a check of the final six holes to establish that the winner by the narrowest of narrow margins was David. Sean, for his troubles, picks up the Category 2 prize. Category 1 went to Charlie McDonnell, who shot five birdies on his way to a 71, or 37 stableford points. 33 points was enough for Martin Rafter to win Category 3. And we had a special prize for beginners once again this week, which was won by Turlough Fitzsimons on a score of 36 points. This weekends competition is sponsored Brennans furniture – Clontibret.  This is a Stableford competition played off the green tees. Our seniors turned out in numbers for their regular nine hole competition last week. The winners and their points totals were: Cat. 1 Declan McAteer 19, Johnnny McGoldrick 19 and Michael Quinn 17. Cat. 2 Joe Quinn 18, Pierce Hughes 18 and Pat Conlon 17. Cat. 3 Gerry Monahan 22, Michael Reid 16 and Syl Mulligan 15. This week it’s the first major competition of the seniors’ calendar – the Jimmy Coleman Cup, which takes place on Wednesday (20^th). Wednesday also sees the return of our weekly Open Singles, which will run right through the Summer months. And finally for this week, the draw for our HiLo matchplay is now posted on our noticeboard. Participants have a few weeks in which to get their first match played, and are reminded that they can arrange to compete over nine or eighteen holes.

12th April 2022

MALONE’S SPRINT FINISH Concra was playing really tough at the weekend. A cool North wind was blowing in over the lake, always an indicator of lower scoring. By Sunday evening, only six out of one hundred and seventeen competitors managed to better 36 points in Noel O’Reilly’s Forklifts & Hire competition. The winner on a score of 38 points was Martin Malone. Martin looked to be heading for an OK score, standing on the 15^th tee, with 27 points on his card. But a birdie on the par five changed everything, and he finished with 11 points on the final four holes to win on a countback from Austin Curran. Austin’s 18 points on the back nine fell two points short of Martin’s total, so he’ll have to be content with the consolation of the Category 2 prize. Category 1 was won by another fast finisher. Sylvester Quinn was two under for the last four, birdying 15 and 18 on his way to a one over par round, giving him 37 points off a handicap of two. In such conditions, this was surely the round of the season so far. And the Category 3 prize was won by Pat Conlon, who also birdied the 15^th (it’s an ill wind!) on his way to a score of 37 points. Our Easter weekend competition is sponsored by Eastern Electrical. This stableford event will be played off the green tees. On Easter Monday Concra is hosting a very heavily booked Bank Holiday Open competition. On Monday evening we’re holding a nine hole Ladies and Gents Club Singles competition from 5.00 to 6.30 pm, after which our Club Draw will be made in our clubhouse. Members are asked to please return all tickets and money for the draw to our Pro Shop or office by this Friday at the latest. The draw for our first match-play event of the new season, the Hi-Lo Foursomes sponsored by Malone’s Cakes, is being made this Wednesday evening (13^th). So there’s maybe just enough time for members to make a last minute entry. Golf Ireland has recently advised club handicap committees that they can set a maximum playing handicap for club competitions. Therefore our committee has decided that, from April 30^th, the maximum playing handicap in all Men’s Club competitions will be 28. And finally for this week, our Wednesday Open Singles returns next week on April 20^th. These very popular open singles will run weekly right through the Summer months. For details of all the season’s open competitions, visit concrawood.ie and go to the visitor information section.  

5th April 2022

HANRATTY WINS CORRIGAN’S KITCHEN PRIZE Many golf clubs have reported a Covid dividend in recent times, as an increasing number of new members have found some time in their busy lives for golf. That’s certainly been the case at Concra Wood, and if our weekly scoreboard is anything to go by, quite a few are already becoming competitive. Having already won a category prize, Patrick Hanratty became the first of this cohort to win a weekend competition, as he came out on top with 41 points in our annual Corrigan’s Kitchen event. His winning margin was a single point over Cathal Shortt, whose 40 points win him the Category 3 prize. Jack McDonnell won the Category 1 prize, with a two over par round, for a total of 36 points. Category 2 was won by this season’s early bird Sean Malone, who’s in the winner’s enclosure once again with 34 points. And as an added bonus for our new recruits, our sponsors included an extra prize for beginners, and this was won by Gerry Brennan AKA “Annyalla” on a fine score of 34 points. Last weekend also saw our first inter-club match of the new season, as Jimmy Lacey’s Senior Cup team took on Belvoir Park GC in the preliminary round of this year’s event. This was always going to be a tough task for Jimmy’s men, as their opposition had won the national title on a number of occasions. And while Jimmy’s side went down by 3 ½ points to 1 ½, there were positives to be taken, as Jack McDonnell picked up a commendable half point in the away match, while his brother Charlie enjoyed a one up victory at home in Concra over former South of Ireland title holder Simon Ward. The coming weeks will see our club return to competing in all Golf Ireland, Cowdy Area and Senior inter-club competitions. Our Captain Frank has asked that all members make themselves available for selection by Team Captains, as we aim for a record level of participation. Members will be made aware of all upcoming matches, and it would be great to see as many as possible supporting our teams on the first tee and around the greens on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. This weekend our competition is sponsored by Noel O’Reilly’s Forklifts & Hire. This stableford event will be played off the green tees. When signing in, members will have one final chance to enter our Hi- Lo matchplay, the draw for which takes place next week. Monday was a special day for our seniors, as the new Seniors Captain Brian McGovern had his Drive-In. Due to the rather cool weather conditions, the singles event held in conjunction with the drive-in was reduced to nine holes. Once again the players were competing for the Martin Denny Sr. Cup. The winner on a score of 23 points was Martin Rafter, and Jarlath Denny was on hand to present Martin with his prestigious prize. The category winners and their points totals were as follows: Cat. 1 PJ Cumiskey 20, Declan McAteer 20 and Thomas Brennan 17. Cat. 2 Joe Quinn 21, Paul Shortt 20 and Syl Mulligan 18. Cat. 3 Tom Ryan 17, Barney McDonald 17 and Junior McKeown 15. And the draw for the driver was won by Pat Horgan. And finally for this week, our committee has been busy in recent weeks, working on our annual draw. All members are asked to please return all tickets and money over the next fortnight, in time for Easter Monday’s draw.

22nd March 2022

MCCAUL BACK TO WINNING WAYS Our members were treated to some beautiful sunshine as they competed in a fourteen hole singles event at the weekend. There was, however, a very chilly and challenging East wind to contend with, which ensured that scoring would at best be modest. Only six managed to better their handicap, with the top score coming from Gerry McCaul. His 31 points was matched by Patrick Hanratty, but Gerry’s stronger finish means he wins first prize, while Patrick must settle for a win in Category 3. Category 1 went to Charlie McDonnell who shot a one over par round for a total of 27 points, and Category 2 was won by the ever improving Paraic Craig on 29 points. This weekend our first 18 holes singles event of the new season is sponsored by Sealo Freight Transport. There was great shock and sadness in our club and wider community at the weekend, due to the tragic death of Kieran Brennan. All at Concra Wood send our deepest sympathies to our ex-Captain Thomas Brennan and his wife Sadie on the death of their son. May he rest in peace. As a mark of respect, our Arch Club party at Concra Wood, which was due to take place next week, has been postponed.  

15th March 2022

BACK TO BUSINESS AT CONCRA WOOD Did we ever think we’d see the day when we’d be toasting normality? Well that’s just what we did last Saturday, as the crowds were back on our first tee – and in our clubhouse – for our season opener, the Captain’s Drive – In. And it’s good to report that our Captains Frank, Donna and Conor all responded to the galleries with cracking tee shots – hopefully a good omen for the season ahead. Over seventy members then took part in a Mixed Scramble over nine holes. The front nine winners were Charlie McDonnell, Brigitte Le Juez, Pauric Coyle and Jamie McCann Smyth who returned a six under par card for a nett score of 25. And on the back nine Phil Branigan, Brian McGovern and Brendan Laverty came out on top with a two under par round for a nett score of 29. Our competition doubled up as a fundraiser for Down Syndrome Centre North East. Many thanks to our members who contributed €1850 on the day, which will be spent on providing programmes for the service users. This week sees our first Open Days of the season on the two Bank Holidays, Thursday 17th and Friday 18th. Our weekend event is a singles competition, which will be played over nine or fourteen holes – depending on weather conditions. And when visiting our clubhouse, members will have the opportunity to enter our Hi-Lo Matchplay, which makes a welcome return this season. Always a great way to get to play with other members, this year’s competition is sponsored by Malone’s Cakes. There was a very healthy turnout for our weekly seniors competition. The winners and their points totals were: Cat. 1 Martin Allen 18, Brian McGovern 18 and John McGoldrick 17. Cat. 2 Eamonn Johnson 17, Pat Conlon 16 and Pat Merrick 13. Cat. 3 Pierce Hughes 20, Brendan Laverty 19 and Junior McKeown 16. News this week of a significant event which is being hosted by Concra Wood. After two years of cancellations due to Covid19 restrictions, Eileen Kerr has organised the Arch Club party on Thursday March 24th from 8.00 to 10.30 pm. This event is being sponsored by our members, as this was Thomas Brennan’s chosen charity on his Captain’s Day last year. Eileen wishes to thank Sean Hughes and The Outlaws and Gerry McMahon who have committed to provide music on the night. All members are welcome to come along and join in the fun. And finally for this week, another date for your diaries. Golf Ireland is hosting a Rules Night for members of Mannan Castle and Concra Wood in our clubhouse on Tuesday March 29th at 7.00 pm. There have been a number of changes to the rulebook over the past couple of years, so this is a great opportunity for beginners and more seasoned golfers alike, to brush up on our knowledge of the Royal and Ancient game.  

8th March 2022

BUSY WEEKEND AT CONCRA Members had to wait for the overnight frost to thaw before teeing off in our Fourball Betterball on both Saturday and Sunday morning. But once the mercury lifted, our course was chock-a-block on both days. Three pairings managed to score 23 points, and after a countback Paudie Kindlon and Brendan Carragher were declared the winners. The runners-up were Tony Brennan and Sean Malone, with Ronan and Jack McDonnell picking up third prize. This week our Seniors competition is a nine hole singles. Members can play at any time from Monday to Friday. When signing in, members are reminded that the annual sub is now due. And for anyone who has yet to sign up for this year’s outing to Roganstown, apparently there are five places still available. And finally for this week, anyone thinking of taking part in our mixed scramble on Saturday should have signed up by now. This is of course being played in conjunction with our Captains’ Drive-In, which takes place at 11.30 am. We wish Frank, Donagh and our Junior Captain Conor the very best of luck. No pressure!

1st March 2022

CAPTAINS’ DRIVE-IN AT CONCRA WOOD The traditional ceremonial start of our golf season, the Captains’ Drive-In, takes place on Saturday 12^th of March at 11.30 am. Members and friends are all welcome to come along to our first tee to wish our Captains Frank and Donagh, and our Junior Captain Conor, the very best for 2022, as they launch their first drives of the golfing year. When this business is sorted, members can take part in a Mixed Scramble over nine holes. Anyone who wishes to take part should book in on the BRS system by Wednesday 9^th of March, after which time teams will be drawn. All we need now is a little smile  from the Weather Gods. At the weekend, our members took part in a nine-hole singles competition. The winners and their points totals for both days were as follows: Saturday Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 16, Cat. 2 Thomas Brennan 18 and Cat. 3 Adrian Sewell 17. Sunday Cat. 1 Conor McCaul 22, Cat. 2 Patrick Niland 21 and Cat. 3 Michael Byrne 21. This weekend our competition is a nine-hole Fourball Betterball, and members can play on both days, but as usual, with different partners. Our Open Competitions for 2022 get under way on St. Patrick’s Day 17th of March and Friday 18^th March, with a singles event being played on each day. Members are reminded that bookings should only ever be made when absolutely certain of playing, and should be removed early if, due to unforeseen circumstances, a player has to withdraw. Our Seniors are back in action this week. The format is something of a novelty – a four club competition – think carefully when choosing your weaponry! Members can play at any time – Monday to Friday. Many congratulations to our Professional Ciaran and his wife Emily on the birth of their son Zac Tiger Lavery. With a name like that, he’s got to be a top golfer! And finally for this week, as Covid 19 restrictions are lifted, our club is taking the opportunity to finalise our club draw. Members are asked to return all tickets and monies to our Pro Shop or office in the coming weeks, or indeed pick up more tickets when they visit. The draw will be held on Easter Monday 18^th of April, and all proceeds will be spent on improving your golfing experience at Concra Wood.

8th February 2022

WINTER LEAGUE VICTORY FOR TEAM SMYTH Competitors in Week 8 of our Winter League battled forty mile an hour winds around Concra’s front nine last weekend. Most agreed that there’d be no big scores, and that the league table would remain as was. How wrong they were! Declan Smyth’s Team 23 needed a minor miracle to win from third spot after Week 7, but that’s exactly what they produced, due in no small part to Declan’s 22 points total. This score has the unique distinction of winning three prizes – Sunday’s Category 1, the Winter League and the league’s individual prize. Quite a start to his year as Vice-Captain for Declan. The full league result can be viewed on Concra Wood’s Facebook page, but for now, here are the top three teams: Team 23 Declan Smyth, Paul Campbell, Jim O’Neill 223 pts. Team 3 Stephen McQuillan, Martin Farnan, Pat McNeill 220 pts. Team 4 Paudie Kindlon, Jamie McCann Smyth, Barney McDonald 217 pts. In the individual event, the category winners were Declan Smyth on 121 pts, Sean Malone on 117 and Pat McNeill on 108. As usual members took part in our weekly nine hole competition. The prize winners and their points totals were as follows: Saturday Cat. 1 Brian McGovern 18, Cat. 2 Sean Malone 20 and Cat. 3 Jarlath Denny 17. Sunday Cat. 1 Paudie Kindlon 20, Cat. 2 Declan Smyth 22 and Cat. 3 Patrick Hanratty 17. Our Seniors enjoyed the best of the weather last week. There was a great turnout for their weekly event, and the winners were – Cat. 1 Pat McNeill 18, Brian McGovern 18 and Declan McAteer 18, Cat. 2 Joe McGrath 17, PJ Lambe 17 and Joe Quinn 17, and Cat. 3 Macartan Lambe 21, Tom Ryan 20 and Syl Mulligan 18. This week’s competition is a 3 man scramble on Thursday 10^th between 10.00 and 11.50 am. All details are available on the Seniors WhatsApp group. And finally for this week, our next competition is a nine hole aggregate fourball. Members can play on Saturday and/or Sunday (with different partners). The full list of rules can be read on our noticeboard when signing in. Good luck with that!

18th January 2022

CONCRA WOOD WELCOMES NEW GREENKEEPER Congratulations and welcome to Peter Robinson, our new greenkeeper at Concra Wood. Peter comes to Concra with twenty-five years of greenkeeping experience, having previously been employed as course manager at Slieve Russell Golf and Country Club since 2005. Prior to that date, Peter worked on the Centenary Course Gleneagles in Scotland and at the Forest of Arden Golf and Country Club in England. We wish Peter every success in his new role. It’s good to report that the Weather Gods smiled on us last week, and so our members enjoyed an uninterrupted seven days of golf. First out were our seniors, who played their weekly competition over our front nine holes. The winners and their points totals were – Cat. 1 Martin Allen 22, Martin Rafter 21 and John Redmond 19. Cat. 2 Finbar Brohan 22. Adrian Sewell 21 and Paul Shortt 18. Cat. 3 Eugene McDonnell 20, Jim O’Neill 19 and Pat McBride 15. Andy Whelan has wasted no time in organising this year’s seniors’ outing. It takes place on April 26 and 27, and takes in two of North Dublin finest courses, Corbalis and Donabate. Book early to avoid disappointment. The weekend saw the return of our Winter League. It clearly didn’t take long for our members to get back into the swing, as scoring was extremely high on our normally challenging back nine. The category winners and their scores were as follows: Saturday – Cat. 1 Mac Sammon 20 pts. Cat. 2 Ronan McDonnell 24 pts. Cat. 3 Patrick Hanratty 21 pts. Sunday – Cat. 1 Eugene McGuigan 24 pts. Cat. 2 Sean Malone 22 pts. Cat. 3 Aidan Boyd 17 pts. This weekend it’s Week 6 of our league, and members can keep up to date with the latest league table on the Concra Wood Facebook page.

11th January 2022

WINTER LEAGUE RETURNS A Happy New Year to you all. It’s incredible to think that we’re heading into our fifteenth season of golf at Concra Wood. How time flies. Our new team, headed by Captains Frank Nolan and Donagh Nugent, is up and running, making plans for what we hope will be a full post–Covid golf season in 2022. And congratulations to Conor McCaul who has been selected for the role of Junior Captain. We wish all our officers, volunteers and members the very best of luck for the year ahead. This weekend sees the return of the Winter League, which is now in its fifth week. It will be interesting to see how well members cope with playing on the very challenging back nine over the next fortnight. Good luck to all. One thing you can always be sure of in Concra is that our Seniors will fulfil their fixtures. Last week – in somewhat inclement conditions – they played their nine hole weekly competition. The category winners were Brian McGovern, Joe Quinn and Adrian Sewell who all returned scores of 18 points. This week, it’s back to the front nine with the usual rules.

30th November 2021

WINTER LEAGUE WEEK 2 It was a tale of two very different days for our members who took part in Week 2 of our Winter League. Saturday’s Storm Arwen was followed by a really calm Sunday, and this was reflected Big Time in the scoring. Our nine-hole category winners were as follows: Saturday Cat. 1 Billy Hanna 17 pts, Cat. 2 James King 16 pts and Cat. 3 Kevin Maguire16 pts. And on Sunday Cat.1 Dermot McBride 21 pts, Cat.2 Austin Curran 23 pts, and Cat. 3 Jack Draper 21 pts. This weekend it’s back to the front nine, which should make things a little easier. And members who enter both the league and the nine hole competition are asked to enter a card for each event into the computer after play. Our seniors also took part in a nine-hole competition. The results were: Cat. 1 Martin Rafter 21, Brian McGovern 17 and Declan McAteer 16; Cat.2 Andy Whelan 17, Pat Conlon 16 and Paul Shortt 14; Cat. 3 Tom Ryan 18, Pat McBride 17 and Terence McKeown 16. Our Seniors Christmas Party takes place on Tuesday 7th of December at 3.45 pm. Of course there’ll be golf before that with a draw for teams on Sunday evening. There’ll be raffles and spot prizes, and someone will go away with a rather valuable new driver. It’s Paul Shortt’s final event as Seniors Captain, so let’s give him a good send off! And finally for this week, all shareholders and members are reminded that our AGMs have been moved online due to COVID 19 concerns. All details on attendance will be issued in the coming week.

23rd November 2021

WINTER LEAGUE GETS UNDERWAY AT CONCRA Our Winter League got underway at the weekend, with eighty-three members participating in Week 1. As usual, playing on the back nine resulted in rather modest scoring. The category winners and their scores were as follows: Saturday – Stephen McQuillan 19 pts, Thomas Brennan 18 pts and Kevin Maguire 17 pts. Sunday – Gavin McEneaney 18 pts, Gerry McCaul 20 pts and Aidan Boyd 18 pts. This means that Stephen McQuillan’s Team 3 are the early leaders of this year’s league. This weekend, it’s out to the back nine again, while weeks 3 and 4 will be played on the front nine. Last weekend saw members take part in an unfamiliar format – the nine hole Waltz. The winning teams were: 1^st Eugene McGuigan, Sean Malone, Noel O’Reilly and Gerry McCaul 45 pts. 2^nd Brian McGovern, John McGoldrick, John Redmond and Andy Whelan 43pts. 3^rd Charlie McDonnell, Jimmy Lacey, Barry O’Reilly and Frank McDonnell 42pts. And finally for this week, our seniors held a charity team event on Tuesday last. Forty members took part and enjoyed a meal in The View Restaurant afterwards. 2021’s outgoing Captain Paul Shortt  announced Brian McGovern as his successor for 2022. He also thanked all the competitors for their generous donations as €1000 was raised for St. Mary’s Hospital. And the winning teams were: 1^st Brian McGovern, Martin Rafter and Joe Kernan 53 pts. 2^nd Gerry Treacy, Michael Quinn, Raymond McCooey and Andy Whelan 47 pts. 3^rd Charlie Geoghegan, Eamonn Toal, Nicky Hore and Tom Ryan 47 pts.

9th November 2021

NOVEMBER NINE HOLES Our Winter League starts in a fortnight, so in the interim our members have been taking part in a number of nine hole events. In our Saturday Singles the winners were as follows; 1st Brian McGovern 21 pts. 2^nd Barry O’Reilly 21 pts. 3^rd Stephen McQuillan 19 pts. Beginner Robert Murphy 19 pts. And in our Sunday Singles; 1^st Greg Duffy 23 pts. 2^nd Gerry McCaul 23 pts. 3^rd Michael Byrne 22 pts. Beginner Jarlath Denny 23 pts. Our Seniors also took part in a nine hole event, and as usual they like to spread the prizes around. Cat 1 Declan McAteer 22 and Pat McNeill 18. Cat 2 Joe Kernan 17 and Pat Conlon 16. Cat 3 Jim O’Neill 15 and Barney McDonald 12. On Tuesday 16^th there’ll be a seniors’ team event, with a meal afterwards. The draw for teams will take place on Sunday evening, with members then notified of tee times on the WhatsApp group. And finally for this week, members have one more weekend competition before our Winter League commences. This is a four person Team Waltz – one score on the first, two at the second, three at the third, then repeat. All entrants may repeat this nine hole event – but not with the same team – Enjoy!

2nd November 2021

PJ AND GREG WIN THE SCOTCH FOURSOMES Scotch Foursomes is one of golf’s more tactical formats. Both members of each pairing tee off, and then must select one ball with which to play out the hole – hitting alternate shots. It’s partner golf in its purest form, with no substitute for experience, and an understanding playing partner! Last weekend, forty pairings took up this challenge in the McQuillan Staircases Scotch Foursome at Concra. The winners on a score of 42 points were PJ Harte and Greg Duffy. One of our clubs most long-established partnerships, with more than a hint of Master Po and pupil Grasshopper, they certainly fit the description of foursome dream team. The runners-up were Paul Murphy and our Captain Thomas Brennan who missed out by a single point on 41. Third prize was won by Gareth McMahon and Gavin McEneaney who also scored 41 points. And the Beginners’ Prize was won by David Callan and Eoghan McTiernan who returned a round of 46 points. Our most recent competition was a nine hole singles on Saturday. The winner was the very in-form Rory Niland on a score of 21 points. Paul Leonard equalled Rory’s 21, but takes second prize on a countback. And third prize went to Paul Campbell on a score of 20 points. Our seniors were less fortunate with their weekly nine hole competition. Due to the adverse weather conditions, it has been decided to let it run on through to the end of this week. And finally for this week, on visiting our Pro Shop, members can take the opportunity to sign up for this year’s Winter League. Just pop €10 in an envelope, with your name and current handicap, and stick it in the entries box. The draw takes place on Monday 15^th November, with the league starting on Thursday 18^th.

19th October 2021

SHANE’S MAIDEN VICTORY Shane Farrell has been knocking on the door on a regular basis this season, but up until now his best efforts had fallen just short of the prizes. That all changed at the weekend, as he recorded a fine score of 42 points to win first prize in our annual McArdle Office Supplies competition. Congratulations Shane, no doubt this is the first of many. Category 1 was won by Mickey Rushe, who shot his best score of the season, 39 points. Eamonn Burns fine run of form continued as he won Category 2 on 40 points. Finbar Brohan was bombing along on 22 points after nine, only to miss out on first prize by a single point. His 41 points total is rewarded with the Category 3 prize. And Pauric McNally broke the forty point barrier for the second week in a row, taking the Year 1/2 Beginners prize on 41 points. This weekend’s competition is a Scotch Foursome sponsored by McQuillan Staircases. This is a repeater competition – both only with different partners. Our seniors took part in a nine hole competition last week. The winners and their points totals were; Cat.1 C. Prunty 20, M. Allen 20 and M. Farnan 19. Cat. 2 B. McNamara 19, PJ Lambe 18 and S. Mulligan 18. Cat. 3 M. Reid, T. McKeown 17, and J. Gleeson 17. This week it’s nine holes again – Monday to Friday. And finally for this week, it’s that time of year again. The nights are closing in, and it’s time to sign up to our Winter League. Members who wish to enter, should stick the €10 fee in an envelope with their name and handicap clearly printed on the front, and post it in our competitions box in the clubhouse.

12th October 2021

IN FORM NILAND WINS THE DICK KERNAN CUP Rory Niland did it again at the weekend. He scored at every hole in Concra. And on this occasion he plotted his way to an excellent score of 43 points to win the oldest trophy in our club, the Dick Kernan Cup. He’s not the only man enjoying a strong finish to the season. Dermot McBride won Category 1 for a second week in a row, this time on a score of 38 points. Category 2 went to Gareth McMahon, who returned his best score of the year – 42 points. In Category 3, Kevin Maguire came out on top, announcing his return with a round of 38 points. And in our beginner section, the winner was Pauric McNally, who rounded off a super weekend of scoring with 42 points. Eleven teams took part in our Seniors’ Mixed Scramble on Tuesday. The winners were Vera Conlon, Pat Conlon, Brian McGovern and Joe Gleeson who completed the nine holes in 34 strokes. The runners-up were Bernie McArdle, John McGoldrick and Pat McBride, four strokes back on 38. This week it’s back to nine hole singles, on any day from Monday to Friday. And this week Andy Whelan is looking for more volunteers for his gardening club. Anyone interested can speak to our staff in the Pro Shop or office, and Andy will be in touch. And finally, for those who aren’t away in Lough Erne, this weekend’s competition is sponsored by McArdle Office Supplies. This stableford event will be played off the green tees.

5th October 2021

MC ELROY’S BACK IN FORM James McElroy is a big hitter. When he scores at all eighteen holes, his points total is likely to be massive. At the weekend, he managed to earn points at sixteen holes, and while he left one or two out there, it’s no surprise that he came out on top in Thomas O’Neill’s Steel Formed Sections competition on a score of 41 points.  It was a case of birdies and blanks all the way for Dermot McBride, as he won the Category 1 prize in typically cavalier fashion on 38 points. Sean Malone so very nearly managed to score on every hole, but a ding at our notorious eighteenth means he has to settle for the Category 2 prize on 40 points. And Category 3 was won by the steadiest of Steady Eddie’s Rory Niland, who is this week’s Teacher’s Pet, scoring at every hole for a total of 36 points. In seniors’ news, this week’s competition was a nine hole singles. The winners were as follows; Category 1 Gerry Treacy 18, Ciaran Prunty 17 and John Redmond 15. Category 2 Paul Shortt 18, Andy Whelan 17 and Sean Mulligan 16. Category 3 Brendan Laverty 23, Joe Kelly 19 and Macartan Lambe 16. This week it’s a mixed scramble on Tuesday at 12.45 pm with the draw for partners on the group WhatsApp page. And so to this weekend, when members can take part in our annual Dick Kernan Cup. This stableford competition will be played off the green tees.

28th September 2021

MARTIN ALLEN DOES IT AGAIN For a second time this month, Martin Allen has come out on top in one of our season’s major prizes. Fresh from claiming the Blayney Cup, Martin has now added Michael McHugh’s Patron’s Prize to his CV. A round of 41 points was just enough to edge Michael’s son Raymond out of the top spot on a countback. Raymond’s return to form has been one of the stories of the season, but Martin’s superb back nine score of 22 points means he will have to be content with the Category 1 prize on this occasion. Category 2 was won by Alan Nugent on 40 points – a score which sees his handicap reduced to 12 – which is quite a fall from 20 as recently as June. And Category 3 went to Martin Malone, who turned a poor start into a very decent round of 36 points. Beginners’ category was won by Gerry Hamill on 43 points. It was business as usual for our seniors last week who took part in a nine hole competition. The category winners and their points totals were as follows; Cat.1 Ciaran Prunty 19, Eamonn Johnston 14 and Michael Quinn 14. Cat.2 Andy Whelan 18, Paul Shortt 15 and PJ Lambe 15. Cat.3 Jim O’Neill19, Brian Laide 17 and Joe Gleeson17. This week it’s nine holes again – Monday to Friday. And finally for this week, this wekkend’s competition is sponsored by Thomas O’Neill’s Steel Formed Sections. This stableford event will be played off the green tees.

21st September 2021

DECLAN EARNS FIRST PRO VICTORY Declan Smyth enjoyed a return to form in winning Ciaran Lavery’s Professional’s Prize at the weekend. Having seen his handicap drift over the Summer months, Declan meant business this time out, starting his round with a birdie, and finishing off with an impressive 43 points. His margin of victory was two, over Eamonn Burns. No doubt buoyed by his teams’ efforts in our recent Club Classic, Eamonn had already amassed 41 points as he stood on the eighteenth tee. But as happens so often in Concra, he drew a blank on the last, and has to content himself with the runner-up prize. The Best Gross was won once again by Christopher Brennan on a fine score of one over par. And third prize was won by Paul Murphy, just back from Portuguese training camp, on 39 points. Our Seniors’ outing to Slieve Russell was a great success. The golf was pretty good as well. The winner over two days was Paddy Cumiskey, who returned a 36 hole total of 77 points. The runner-up was Pat McNeill on72, with Finbar Brohan in third place on 65. This week it’s back to slumming it at home, in a nine hole event from Monday to Friday. And finally for this week, members can take a break from the Ryder Cup on Saturday or Sunday to take part in Michael McHugh’s Patron’s Prize. This stableford competition will be played off the green tees.

14th September 2021

MARTIN LIFTS THE BLAYNEY CUP WITH A 66 Martin Allen knows every blade of grass in Concra. He plays eighteen holes several times a week, and during lockdown he walked the course every day. At the weekend he put all that local knowledge – and fitness – to good use, shooting a super round of 66 to win the coveted Blayney Cup. The runner-up on 67 was Jonathan Kernan. Having played no golf in over a decade, Jonathan has wasted no time in reducing his handicap on his return – this score sees his index down to a very creditable 7.6. Another man losing a shot is third placed Gerry McCaul on 68. Now that his son Conor is giving him four shots, he’s certainly had to tighten himself! And the best gross was won by a new member David Duffin. Playing off a handicap of 6 he returned a fine round of 76. In our seniors section, last week’s competition was a nine hole singles. The winners and their scores were as follows; Category 1 Charlie Geoghegan 20, Patsy “The New Boy” Boyle 20 and Gerry Treacy 18. Category 2 Pat Conlon 22, Joe Kernan 19 and Paul Shortt 18. Category 3 Joe Kelly 22, Michael Reid 17 and Pat McBride 17. This week it’s off to the Slieve Russell! And finally for this week, our pro Ciaran Lavery has enjoyed a great first year in the job. This weekend he sponsors his Professional’s Prize. This stableford event will be played off the green tees.

7th September 2021

NUDIE HUGHES CLASSIC AT CONCRA WOOD Nudie Hughes hosted his hugely successful golf classic at Concra Wood over the weekend. Over ninety teams from all over Ireland took part, among them many famous names from the world of sport. And Nudie very nearly achieved the perfect result, as he teamed up with Eamonn Burns, Damien Cumiskey and James King to produce an excellent score of 103 points. However, they were pipped at the post, as a team from Leitrim – David Burke, Ciaran Murray, Sean Murray and Ray Logan – shot a massive back nine score of 58 points to win on a countback. Third prize was won by locals Noel O’Reilly, Gerry McCaul, Sean Malone and Eugene McGuigan on 102 points. While fourth prize went to Declan Smyth, Phil Branigan, Frank Nolan and Pat McNeill also on 102 points. Many thanks to Nudie for his incredible commitment to this annual event, and also to the organising committee who made it such a wonderful success. As restrictions are gradually lifted, our seniors have been getting back to what they do best, team events. Last Tuesday, the winners were Thomas Brennan, Pat Merrick, Michael Reid and PJ Harte on 44 points. Runners-up were PJ Lambe, Syl Mulligan and Brendan Laverty on 38 points, with Brian McGovern, Nicky Hore and Arthur McGeough in third on 38. This week it’s back to nine-hole singles, with seniors playing from Monday to Thursday. And next week it’s the annual “school tour” – two days in the Slieve Russell! And finally for this week, our final major of this season, the Blayney Cup takes place this weekend. Sponsored by the Mulligan family, this was the big event in the days of Castleblayney Golf Society, and has been an annual highlight of local golf for over half a century. Members will play this strokeplay competition off the green tees.

31st August 2021

MEMBERS’ PRIZE VICTORY FOR ALAN NUGENT Sky Sports viewers who sat up late on Sunday night were treated to one of the great golf play-offs, as Patrick Cantlay overcame Bryson De Chambeau at the sixth tie hole. In an ideal world, every tournament that ended in a tie would be decided in a similar fashion. However, such are the practicalities of club golf, that we have a somewhat less dramatic method of determining who comes out on top. The countback prioritises the stronger finish, meaning the golfer who performs best on the back nine is declared the winner. It’s tough on the golfer who misses out, but as Harry Hill would say, “You gotta have a system”! In our annual Members’ Prize at the weekend, this countback system was not only called into action, it was put to the test. Alan Nugent and Conor McCaul, two of our most promising young golfers, chose the same weekend to produce their rounds of the season. Both playing off the same handicap of seventeen, they recorded identical scores of 45 points. And to complicate matters further, they both scored twenty-two points on the back nine. In such circumstances the scores over the final six holes are compared, and it was there that Alan’s seventeen points gave him victory by the tightest of margins. To the victor the spoils, but as every golfer learns, a good round of golf is the greatest prize of all. Not surprisingly, the rest of the field was a long way back. The best of the rest was Kevin Power who took the Category 1 prize with 38 points. Conor McCaul has the consolation of the Category 2 prize, while Category 3 was won by the in-form Darren McQuillan who also scored 38 points. And in our beginner category, Jonathan Kernan came out on top with 38 points. Our juveniles took part in their final competition of the season, the Canon Morris Cup, on Sunday afternoon. This year’s winner was Caolan Donnelly, with Daragh O’Connor coming in in the runner-up spot. In the Blue Group, first prize was won by Daragh Fitzgerald, with Keira McLoughlin in second place. And it was a family affair in the Yellow Group, with Erin Carragher in first place, ahead of her sister Eabha in second. This year’s Golfer of the Year is Caolan Donnelly, who enjoyed a wonderfully successful Summer of golf. Most Improved Golfer went to Erin Carragher. The future of Golf looks bright for Concra Wood with large numbers of talented juveniles coming through. New members are always welcome, and enquires can be made at the Concra Wood office. Tom McDermott, Chris Monahan and our juvenile committee would like to thank our Junior Captain Jamie McCann-Smyth and his good friend Conor McCaul for all their help throughout the year. And a big thank you to all our sponsors and volunteers each week, without whose support we could not make our juvenile golf the success it is. In seniors’ news, this week’s competition is a team event. This takes place on Tuesday 31^st, with a draw for partners at 1.30pm. And finally for this week, our timesheet is looking pretty impressive for this weekend’s Nudie Hughes Club Classic. All we need now is for this fine spell of weather to make it through to Sunday evening, so that our all our competitors can enjoy Concra at its very best. Anyone who wishes to make a late entry, or to sponsor a tee box, should contact our office at (042)9749485 or email info@concrawood.ie

24th August 2021

ROBERT ROMPS HOME How many holes does it take to win a golf competition? Well it seems for Robert Heavin it only takes fifteen. In our most recent event, which was sponsored by Brendan McEleavey’s Culloville House, Robert walked off the fifteenth green with forty points on his card. Little did he know at the time, that he had already scored more than enough for victory. So he went on an added another four on the final three holes, for a six point winning margin. A number of golfers scored thirty eight points – among them Category 2 winner Gareth McMahon, Category 3 winner Phelim Quinn, and Beginners’ prize winner Kevin Lawless. While Category 1 was won by Ciaran McMahon on a score of 36 points. This weekend our competition is the annual Members’ Prize. On Monday Paul Shortt hosted his Seniors’ Captain’s Prize. The winner on the day was Eamonn Johnston, who returned a superb score of 44 points. As always in the seniors section, there were plenty of prizes to go around, and so the winners in all three categories and their scores were as follows; Cat. 1 Martin Allen 37, Patrick Cumiskey 37 and Declan McAterr 34. Cat. 2 Joe Kernan 35, PJ Lambe 35 and Nicky Hore 34. Cat. 3 Syl Mulligan 36, Macartan Lambe 34 and Michael Reid 32. No doubt many of you have already signed up to this year’s Nudie Hughes Club Classic. For those who haven’t, a visit to concrawood.ie will provide all the details of how to take part in our major fund raiser of 2021. And finally for this week, congratulations to Chris Monahan who won Sile Moore’s Lady Captain’s Prize on Saturday. A victory for hard work and commitment if ever there was one!

17th August 2021

DARREN WINS THE LADY CAPTAIN’S PRIZE FOR MEN Darren McQuillan has worn a lot of hats at Concra Wood. He’s been captain, manager, director and treasurer in his day. However, he hasn’t been a prize winner quite as often as he would have liked. And he certainly hasn’t wanted for advice! So victory in Sile Moore’s Lady Captain’s Prize for Men at the weekend tasted particularly sweet. Darren put together a score of 41 points for the narrowest of narrow winning margins. Bart McNamara and Seamus Leonard both matched Darren’s points total, but couldn’t compete with his back nine score of twenty one points. This is yet another countback disappointment for Seamus, who has become something of a front nine specialist. There’s only one thing for it Seamus – come and join the seniors! Bart and Seamus took the spoils in Categories 2 and 3 respectively. In Category 1, Raymond McHugh continued his fine run of form, taking top spot with 38 points. And we wish Sile and all in our Ladies section the very best of luck for this Saturday, when she hosts her Lady Captain’s Prize. This weekend our men’s competition is sponsored by Brendan McAleavey’s Culloville House. Our Seniors competed for the Gabriel Moore Memorial Cup on Tuesday last. This year’s winner on a score of 38 points was Declan McAteer. The category winners were as follows; Cat 1 Gerry Treacy, Ciaran Prunty and Charlie Geoghegan. Cat 2 PJ Lambe, Larry Coleman and Paddy Niland. Cat 3 Macartan Lambe, Paul Shortt and Jim O’Neill. This week it’s a nine hole competition with no draws. And then next Monday it’s the seniors’ main event – Paul Shortt’s Captain’s Day. Competitors should sign up on our BRS system between 10 am and 12 noon. And finally for this week, a reminder that the Nudie Hughes Club Classic takes place at Concra Wood on Friday 3^rd, Saturday 4^th and Sunday 5^th of September. The cost is €250 per team of 4. To enter a team, contact our office at (042)9749485 or email info@concrawood.ie

10th August 2021

JONATHAN PIPS SHANE IN THE RAIN Irish weather. If there’s one thing you can rely on it to be, it’s unreliable. In the past fortnight we’ve gone from heatwave to flood. Not only did this halve the turnout in Mark Currie’s Formme Construction competition, but it meant that only our hardiest golfers managed to complete their rounds. When all cards were checked on Sunday night, just three members had managed to better their handicaps. And it took a countback to separate the top two – Jonathan Kernan and Shane Fitzsimons, who both returned rounds of 70. Having finished four – four, Shane had every reason to be optimistic, but Jonathan went five better, parring every hole from 12 to 18. This gave him the first victory of his long awaited comeback. And spare a thought for Shane, who finds himself in the runner-up spot for the second time in as many months! It can only be a matter of time. The best gross was won by Christopher Brennan, who shot a round of level par in the very toughest of conditions. And third prize went to a new name in our club, Dean McMahon on a score of 72. This weekend, our competition is the Lady Captain’s Prize for Men. We wish Sheila Moore the very best of luck as she hosts all her big events in the coming weeks. And news this week of another major event in our club. The Nudie Hughes Club Classic takes place on the weekend of the 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th of September. Team slots can be booked by contacting our office at (042) 9749485, or you can catch up with the man himself, and he’ll sort you out with a time. And finally for this week, our Captain Thomas would like to thank all the participants in his Captain’s Prize for their generous donations to his chosen charity, the Monaghan Arch Club. On Sunday night last, he presented a cheque for €1520 to their local President Donal Kenny and our own Eileen Kerr. All proceeds will be spent on Arch Club social events, including our local Christmas party at Concra Wood.

3rd August 2021

NOEL BOYD WINS THE CAPTAIN’S PRIZE It’s surely every club golfer’s dream. To stroll onto the final green, and sink the winning putt in the Captain’s Prize to the cheers of the packed gallery – British Open style. Well that’s precisely how it was for Noel Boyd on Sunday evening. And he even had an eight points winning margin, which left him stress-free to savour the moment. Noel had done most of the hard work on Saturday. He produced his best ever round of golf on the big day, returning a massive score of 47 points. This gave him a lead of four points over Raymond McHugh on 43, with Frank McDonnell in third on 42, and Phil Branigan a further shot back on 41. So it was this foursome that made up the final group in Sunday evening’s nine hole play-off. And Noel got off to the perfect start, with a par on the first to settle the nerves. He continued to pick up points at every hole, and still held a five shot lead over Frank McDonnell after six. And then any hopes that the chasing pack may have still held were blown away, as Noel birdied the seventh, leaving him with that comfortable stroll to victory. Noel’s final points tally was 71. The runner-up prize was won by Frank McDonnell. He chipped and putted his way to a final nine score of 21, for a total of 63 points. Frank Bourke played the best golf in the penultimate group, scoring 22 points, just enough to leapfrog the other challengers into third place on 62. And the best gross was won by Ciaran McMahon. This prize is always awarded for the lowest round over the first 18 holes, and a 74 did the trick for Ciaran. The turnaround from golf to presentation was the quickest on record. And it had to be as all formalities took place outdoors. Our Captain Thomas Brennan began by presenting the winners in the ladies and junior sections. Congratulations to Marita Kiernan and Conor McCaul who won these two prizes. And then it was over to the men. Thomas was absolutely thrilled that a record number of 170 competitors had taken part in the event. And it’s good to report that the art of acceptance speaking is alive and well in Concra Wood, as each prize winner took the opportunity to thank the team who had organised such a wonderful weekend of golf. The star of the show as usual was the course itself, with enormous praise reserved for Patsy Boyle and his greens team. In his closing comments our Captain Thomas summed it all up, saying that in these two most difficult years, the hard work of our committees had turned all the many challenges into successes. This weekend, it’s back to business as usual. Our club competition is sponsored by Mark Currie’s Formme Construction. And finally for this week, eighteen teams took part in our seniors’ mixed scramble on Tuesday last. The winners on a super score of three under par were Joe Kernan, Paul Shortt and Josephine McCahey. Second place ended in a tie between our Captain Thomas Brennan, Lady Captain Sheila Moore and Pat McBride and the team of Frank Nolan, Brendan Laverty and Yvonne Duffy. And there’s lots more seniors golf to look forward to in August. On Thursday 12^th it’s the Gabriel Moore Memorial Cup. And then on Monday 23^rd it’s Paul Shortt’s Seniors Captain’s Prize. Members should book times on the BRS system.

27th July 2021

SEAMUS SHOOTS 45 POINTS Our Club President Seamus Mallon picked up a very nice souvenir of his year in office at the weekend, winning first prize in the MC Blinds sponsored competition. In blisteringly hot conditions, he left everyone else in his wake as he completed a round of 45 points, for a winning margin of four shots. He even had a two at the sixth, in a round that ticked all the boxes. Category 1 was won by Adrian Kelly, who had four birdies on his way to a total of 39 points. Category 2 went to Mark Conlon, Seamus’s nearest contender, on a score of 41 points. And in Category 3, Brian Sherry made a long awaited return to the winners’ enclosure, with his round of 40 points. This weekend, it’s the big one – Thomas Brennan’s Captain’s Prize. As usual this is a 27 hole contest, with the best 18 scores, and equals, after round 1 qualifying for Sunday evening’s nine hole play-off. For all details on eligibility and format, members should read the notice in our clubhouse as they sign up to the timesheet for the event. In these days of protocols and restrictions, Thomas and his committee have organised an outdoor weekend – so let’s hope the weather continues to play ball, and may the best man win. In our juvenile section, congratulations this week to Caolan Donnelly, Dillion McMonagle and Aodhan Finnegan, all winning their respective groups on the 18th of July. This competition was kindly sponsored by our own club professional Ciaran Lavery. We have a break next weekend for both the Juvenile Sunday golf and Monday camp due to Captains Weekend, but will return on Sunday the 8th of August. And finally for this week, our regular Seniors event had a lower turnout than usual last week, no doubt due to heat exhaustion. Of the twenty-two who did brave the heatwave, the following were the prize winners; Cat. 1 Charlie Geoghegan 20 and Ciaran Prunty 20. Cat.2 Nicky Hore 24 and Larry Coleman 17. Cat. 3 Jim O’Neill 20 and Pat Bolger 18. This week our competition is a mixed scramble.

20th July 2021

MCMONAGLE PIPS LEONARD TO LAND THE CLEMENT MCKENNA CUP We had the closest of close finishes for top spot in the Clement McKenna Cup at the weekend. We needed a countback to separate Jody McMonagle and Seamus Leonard, who both withstood the heat, to return scores of 41 points. And while Seamus had it all his own way on the front nine, where he led on 23 points, nobody could match Jody’s back nine of 20 points. This was just enough to clinch his maiden victory, and to lift one of our most prestigious prizes in the process. It’s certainly one Seamus would love to win, but then again, there’s always next year. Third prize was won by James Carville, who finished a point further back on 40. The Best Gross prize went to Mark Currie. He shot a level par 72 for a total of 36 gross points. And there was an extra prize for beginners this week, which was won by Kevin Lawless on a score of 38 points. Our Open Week was our most successful ever, with over one thousand golfers taking part. All results can be viewed on Master Scoreboard and on our club’s Facebook page. Many thanks to all who took part, and remember our Open Wednesdays continue right through to October. Our Seniors took a week off in order to take part in Open Week. But normal service is resumed this week, with a nine hole event on this Thursday and Friday. Our juvenile competition on Sunday last was kindly sponsored by Thomas O’Neill’s Steel Form Sections. The category winners were Caolan Donnelly, Dillon McMonagle and Erin Carragher. Our juveniles’ Summer Camp continues each Monday morning from 9 to 11 am, with all details on our noticeboard. Belated congratulations this week to Pat McNeill, who recorded a hole-in-one at the 6^th hole in the recent Des McGlynn Cup. You never lost it, Pat! And finally for this week, news of our upcoming events at Concra Wood. Firstly, this weekend’s competition is sponsored by MC Blinds. For many, this will be the last chance to sharpen up for Thomas Brennan’s Captain’s Prize, which takes place on Friday 30^thand Saturday 31^st of July, and on Sunday 1^st of August. The timesheet for the weekend is on our noticeboard, and when signing up, all participants are asked to read the rules on eligibility and this year’s format. Let’s hope the weather holds for what is planned to be an outdoor weekend.

13th July 2021

GERRY MCGEOUGH WINS THE DES MCGLYNN CUP Experience was clearly the key to success in the Des McGlynn Cup at the weekend. Gerry McGeough, who won’t at all mind being described as a veteran, enjoyed a very welcome return to form, coming out on top with 42 points. His back nine of 21 points was just enough to squeeze past Martin Farnan on a countback. They don’t come any more experienced than Martin, whose association goes right back to the days of the Castleblayney Golf Society. On this occasion he’ll have to settle for the Category 2 prize. Adrian Kelly now also ranks as a senior, but he’s still capable of quality golf. His one over par round earned him 41 points, and the Category 1 prize. And Category 3 was won by another stalwart of the old club, Adrian Sewell. He too flew the flag for the seniors on a score of 40 points. Martin Farnan is most certainly the man in form at the moment, as he also topped the leaderboard in this week’s seniors’ competition. The full results were as follows: Category 1 Martin Farnan 21, Gerry Treacy 20 and Ciaran Prunty 19. Category 2 Paul Shortt 19, Pat Merrick 17 and Patrick Niland 17. Category 3 Syl Mulligan (again) 17, Macartan Lambe 16 and Michael Reid 15. There’s no seniors competition this week as our members are taking part in the Open Week events. This weekend our competition is the Clement McKenna Cup. Members can take part on Saturday or on Sunday morning. And finally for this week, a great number of our members took part in the club’s Guard of Honour which escorted the funeral cortege of Vincent Heavin from his home to St Mary’s Church in Blayney on Thursday last. It was a fitting tribute to Vincent and his family, who have been at the centre of all our club’s activities for many years. Having served on various committees, Vincent became our Club Captain in 1998, and went on to fulfil the role of Club President in 2004 and 2005. And he remained a very active member, continuing to enjoy his golf when we moved out to Concra Wood. Our Captain Thomas, Lady Captain Sheila and everyone in our club extend our deepest sympathies to Vincent’s wife Mary, to his sons Eddie, Robert and Dermot and to his daughters Faela, Marese and Auriel on their sad loss. Ar dheis De go raibh a anam dilis.

6th July 2021

CONCRA WOOD’S PRETTY IN PINK Our annual Colt Design competition doubled up as a fundraiser for the National Breast Cancer Research Institute’s Pretty in Pink campaign at the weekend. Members never looked as well as they did in pink, most notably Greg Duffy, who will no doubt be signed up to front all future promotions (see Concra Wood Facebook page). And it’s good to report that a cheque for €1053 is now winging its way to the aforementioned charity. Congratulations to all who took part. And particular congratulations to Pauric Coyle who won this competition on a mighty score of 45 points. Bagging three birdies is great in any round, but it was especially sweet for Pauric as they just squeezed him past Johnny Redmond, who would surely have fancied his chances of victory when he signed for 44 points. Hard luck this time Johnny – the Category 2 prize will hopefully prove a pleasant consolation. Category 1 was won by Billy Hanna – one of many to return a score of 38 points. And Category 3 was won by Nicky Hore, who’s no stranger to the winners’ enclosure, and not going to be long of Category 3, returning yet another quality score of 42 points. Last weekend, members competed in this year’s Paul Hill Memorial Cup. This was won by Noel O’Reilly who matched Pauric’s haul of three birdies on his way to a total of 43 points. When there’s a bit of run on the ball, Noel is a hard man to beat, as many an opponent has recently found to his cost. The Category 1 prize was won by big hitter Brian McGovern who shot a score of 40 points. Category 2 went to Liam O’Connor. His forty-two points shows that sibling rivalry is alive and well in Concra Wood. And Category 3 was won by recent winner Aidan Boyd, whose handicap is falling like a stone, on 41 points. Our very generous sponsors and committee added an extra prize for beginners in this event, and this was won by Pauric McNally on a score of 37 points. Keith Hill and his family would like to thank all who took part in this event, which is played every year in memory of his brother Paul, who was one of our keenest golfers back at our old home in town. A great turnout of 50 seniors played in our annual Jimmy Coleman Memorial Trophy last week and enjoyed barbecue food alfresco after the round. The results were as follows. Popular overall winner was Kevin McCooey with a great score of 42 points. Category 1; Brian McGovern 39, John McGoldrick 38, Declan McAteer 37. Category 2; Andy Whelan 41, Pat Conlan 36, Nicky Hore 36. Category 3; Jim O’Neill 41, Ciaran Coyle 36, Barney McDonald 32. Elizabeth Coleman presented the prizes, and Seniors Captain Paul Shortt spoke of how popular Jimmy was in our club. Jimmy held the position of President at Castleblayney Golf Club when we played at the old course. And finally sad news of the passing of one of our long time senior members, Heber McMahon. Rest In Peace Heber, from all your senior friends at Concra Wood. In our juvenile section, congratulations to Katie Scarlett McCaul, Heather McDonnell and Eabha Carragher who were the winners in their groups on June 20^th, and to Joe Donaghy, Aaron Gurn and Eoghan Duffy all winning their respective groups in our competition on 27^th of June which was sponsored by SteelForm Sections. Our Sunday golf got cancelled this week due to the bad weather, but we will return next week, when our competition will be sponsored by the Mens Golfers at Concra Wood. There will be no Juvenile golf camp on Monday the 12^th of July due to the club Open Week, but we’ll be back in action on July 19^th at 9 am. And finally for this week, there may be just one or two spots left on our Open Week timesheets for last minute entrants. It takes place from Monday 12^th to Sunday 18^th of July. The competitions and their sponsors are as follows: Monday 12^th – Singles Stableford (Green Tees) McElvaney Waste. Tuesday 13^th – Singles Stableford (Gold Tees) Watters’ Electrical. Wednesday 14^th – Singles Stableford (Green Tees) Moneycare.  Thursday 15th – Fourball Betterball Combi-Lift. Friday 16^th – Black Tees Friday. Sunday 18^th – Ladies Three Person Team Event. And before all that, our members will take part in the Des McGlynn Cup, which will be held on this Saturday (10^th) and Sunday (11th). Good luck  to one and all!

22nd June 2021

AIDAN BOYD WINS SHOE CITY PRIZE Concra was as dry as a bone at the weekend. And while a bit of run on the ball is always welcome, chipping and putting could only be described as treacherous. One or two tempers frayed – and strokeplay only added fuel to the fires. So huge credit goes to Aidan Boyd who was the clear winner of the Shoe City competition on a superb score of 65 strokes. This is Aidan’s third prize-winning performance of the year, but this time his consistency has been rewarded with a maiden victory. Only four other golfers out of a field of 107 managed to break 70. The pick of them was Shane Fitzsimons. He returned a round of 68 strokes, enough to take the runner-up prize. Shane’s 31 nett on the back nine squeezed Phelim Quinn’s 68 into third spot on a countback. The best gross prize was won by Mark Currie who returned a 76 playing off a handicap of 1. And congratulations this week go to Raymond McHugh. On Saturday his 8 iron tee shot went straight into the hole at the 14th for a very well celebrated hole in one. Congratulations also to Noel O’Reilly’s Ulster Cup side who enjoyed a comfortable victory over Slieve Russell GC in their second round match on Saturday evening. Winning all three home matches, Noel’s men needed only one away win, and Eugene McGuigan duly obliged. Their quarter final draw takes place in a fortnight. Concra Wood’s fiery fairways and fast greens seem to suit the seniors, if this week’s scores are anything to go by. Another big turnout last week, and with all competitions now on the computer, the handicaps are starting to stabilize. And just in time for our second major of the season, which is the Jimmy Coleman Memorial Trophy on Monday 28th June. Michael Fish has guaranteed sunny weather. The time sheet is filling up – so get your name in soon. Last week’s winners and their scores were as follows; Cat.1 Johnny McGoldrick 23, Donal McGuigan 20 and Ciaran Prunty 20. Cat.2 Larry Coleman 19, Nicky Hore 19 and PJ Lambe 19. Cat.3 Syl Mulligan 15, Joe Gleeson 15 and Jim O’Neill 15. This week’s competition can be played on Monday, Tuesday or Thursday. In Juniors News, congratulations to Darragh O’Connor, Rian McGrath and Eabha Carragher who won  their respective groups on the 13th of June. We had another large turnout for last weekend’s juvenile golf sponsored by SecureGate, results for which will get posted later this week. A reminder that our Monday summer camp begins on the 28th of June from 9-11am with our club professional Ciaran Lavery – a great opportunity for kids to develop their golfing skills. Thank you to all our volunteers, and see you all next Sunday for more juvenile golf sponsored by Steel Form Sections. And finally for this week, this year’s Open Week takes place from Monday 12th to Sunday 16th of July. The competitions and their sponsors are as follows: Monday 12th – Singles Stableford (Green Tees) McElvaney Waste. Tuesday 13th – Singles Stableford (Gold Tees) Watters’ Electrical. Wednesday 14th – Singles Stableford (Green Tees) Moneycare.  Thursday 15th – Fourball Betterball Combi-Lift. Friday 16th – Black Tees Friday. Sunday 18th – Ladies Three Person Team Event.

15th June 2021

CIARAN MCMAHON IS THE TOP GOLFER On a really busy weekend, Concra Wood played host to the latest Top Golfer Junior Scratch Cup. And while the vast majority of the participants were visitors, it was a pair of locals who did battle for the top spot. Playing partners Ciaran McMahon and Alan Bolger were neck and neck all day long, with Alan enjoying the narrowest advantage as they faced into Concra’s sternest test – our final three holes. And it was Ciaran who finished the stronger with a bogey and two pars for a round of 74 and a two shot winning margin. Alan has the consolation of the runner-up prize for a score of 76. Ciaran wore another hat over the weekend as his company C & R McMahon Construction were the sponsors of our club weekend singles. Category 1 was won by Shane Donnelly, matching Ciaran’s score of 74, which gave him a points total of 38 off a handicap of 4. Second prize was won by Philip McCague, who was just one point back on 37. In Category 2 we had the highest points total of the weekend from Sean Hughes who returned a score of 43 points off a handicap of 17. It was pars and bogeys all the way for Sean, who is definitely benefitting from the Currie factor. Runner up in this category was Cathal Crowe, who recorded a fine score of 39 points. And Category 3 was won by Tom McDermott on 41 points – a reward for all this year’s hard work! Second place went to Aidan Boyd on a score of 39 points. This weekend our competition is sponsored by Shoe City. This strokeplay event will be played from the green tee markers. On Sunday we kicked off our competitive juvenile golf for 2021 with a large turnout. This weekend was kindly sponsored by Beauty World. Congratulations to all the players who took part and results will get posted during the week. Thank you to all our volunteers and see you all next Sunday for more juvenile golf, kindly sponsored by SecureGate. Thirty four senior members took part in another nine holes singles competition in the last week. The winners and their points totals were as follows; Category 1 Mickey Quinn 20, Pat McNeill 19 and Frank McDonnell 19. Category 2 Adrian Sewell 21, Des Morgan 19 and Paul Shortt 19. Category 3 Pat McBride 23, Jim O’Neill 19 and Tom Ryan 18. This week’s singles can be played on either Tuesday or Thursday. And Andy and Nicky are busy collecting deposits for the outing to the Slieve Russell. All those travelling are asked to put €50 in the senior’s box in the pro shop. The inter club season got underway at the weekend, with two of our teams taking part in Round 1 of Golf Ireland’s tournaments. Unfortunately James King’s All Ireland Fourball side fell at the first fence, going down to Killymoon GC on a score line of three points to two. However there was better news in the Pierce Purcell Shield, as Sean Malone’s men overcame Slieve Russell GC. Away wins for team captain Sean and his partner Declan Smyth, and the pairing of Eugene McGuigan and Gerry McCaul, built a very strong foundation for their 4 – 1 winning margin. Their reward is a very tricky second round test against Aughnacloy GC. And finally for this week, some dates for your diaries. Next Tuesday (22^nd June) sees our club host a Mixed Over 50s Open Singles. As usual there’s an Open Singles on Wednesday. And our major club competition of the season – Thomas Brennan’s Captain’s Prize – takes place over three days, Friday afternoon 30^th of July, Saturday 31st of July and Sunday 1^st of August.

8th June 2021

BRENDAN’S HAPPY WITH THAT Golfers are always searching for the recipe for the perfect round. So what are the ingredients? Well, a clear head and an even temperament make for a good start. Realistic expectations help. A few golfing miles on the clock doesn’t hurt. Then it’s down to putting all those hours of preparation into practice, in the company of supportive playing partners. Sound familiar? Well it certainly does to Brendan Carragher. Not a weekend goes by that Brendan doesn’t grapple with the challenges of Concra in his own philosophical way. And on Saturday it all came together, as he produced an excellent score of 43 points to win the coveted Prandy Duffy Cup. And if the rumour mill has it right, he went back out on Sunday and shot 42! So there’s plenty more where that came from. Congratulations Brendan. Much of the same applies to Jack McDonnell – especially the golf miles! He shot a one over par round of 73 for a points total of 41 – enough to take second prize. His brother Charlie shot an even better score of 69 strokes. But such are the wonders of the handicap system, that he has to settle for the Best Gross prize. Third place went to Enda O’Connor. Along with his brothers, Enda has become a regular in all our competitions, and their commitment has been rewarded with a fine score of 41 points. And this week we have a Brucie Bonus in the winners’ enclosure – a Best Beginners’ prize which was won by Fergal Duffy on a score of 40 points. Our seniors were out again in force last week, and therefore it’s no surprise that the scoring was of a very high standard. The winners and their scores were as follows; Cat. 1 Martin Farnan 22 pts, Martin Allen 21 pts and Thomas Brennan 18 pts. Cat. 2 Des Morgan 20 pts, PJ Lambe 17 pts and Pat Conlon 16 pts. Cat. 3 Barney McDonald 20 pts, Syl Mulligan 18 pts and Ciaran Coyle 17 pts. Seniors Secretary Andy continues to innovate, and this week he’s taken on some help. He has appointed Nicky Hore as Seniors’ Treasurer. He has also decided to put all future prizes on members’ cards, so that they can be used in our bar, restaurant or pro shop. Good work Andy! This week our singles competition can be played on Tuesday or Thursday, affording members every opportunity to take part in our club’s opens (see below). And finally for this week, just as we return to using all our outdoor clubhouse facilities, there’s a huge number of opportunities for members and visitors to take part in some competitive golf. This Wednesday (June 9^th) sees the first of this season’s midweek opens. On Friday (June 11^th), we go all the way back to the black tees, as the bravest among us face the ultimate golfing challenge in the aptly named Black Tees Friday. And then it’s members only in our weekend competition, which is kindly sponsored by C & R McMahon Construction. Enjoy!

1st June 2021

SUMMER SCORING AT CONCRA WOOD Summer has arrived at Concra, and with it the scoring has really heated up. No fewer than seven of the competitors in last weekend’s McElvaney’s competition returned scores of forty points or more. In Category 1 it was Kevin Power who came out on top with 40 points. This category saw the lowest scoring for a change, with Adrian Kelly making a long-awaited return to the prizes in second place on 38 points. In Category 2 it was 42s all the way, with Bart McNamara pipping Sean Malone for the top spot on a countback. And in Category 3 there was also a welcome return, this time for Gregg Sibley who top scored with another 42. The runner-up spot went to Gerry Hamill who won his breakthrough prize with 41 points. And spare a thought for John Gorman and Paddy King. While at opposite ends of their golfing careers, they shared the unfortunate distinction of missing out on the prizes while shooting 42 and 41 points respectively. Our seniors enjoyed another bumper turnout last week. The winners and their scores were as follows: Cat.1 Donal McGuigan 20 pts, Frank Nolan 19 pts and Gerry Treacy 19 pts. Cat.2; Paul Shortt 17 pts, Pat Conlon 16 pts and Pat Merrick 16 pts. Cat.3; Pat McBride 17 pts, Macartan Lambe 16 pts and Joe Gleeson 16 pts. And a big welcome this week to our new recruits to the Senior ranks – Paul McKearney, Joe Kernan and Eamonn Tavey. On Sunday we kicked off our juvenile golf for 2021. We had a large turnout and a very warm welcome to all our new juvenile members. The kids all played with a smile on their face, and really enjoyed playing golf again, with some great golf played. Thank you to all our volunteers, and see you all next Sunday for more juvenile golf. And finally for this week, there’ll surely be a massive turnout in the annual Prandy Duffy Cup this weekend. While it’s great to be back golfing, we haven’t yet got to the point where our American visitors can renew their annual rivalry. Let’s hope we can welcome them back in ’22!

25th May 2021

CARVILLE TOP SCORES WITH 38 POINTS Our club committee decided to make a few changes to our competition format for the next few weeks, to take account of the major impact of the new WHS system. Due to the massive variations in handicaps, they felt that it would be fairer to have members competing within their own categories.  The first competition to be played in this way was sponsored by Brennan’s Furniture and Carpets Clontibret. Category 1 was won by James Carville who produced the best score of the week – 38 points. The runner-up was Brian McGovern on 36 points. Category 2 was won by the ever improving Paraic Craig with 37 points. This gave him a one shot winning margin over runner-up Gareth McMahon. And in Category 3 a countback was required to separate Patrick Hanratty and Aidan Boyd’s rounds of 37 points, with Patrick taking the spoils. This weekend our competition is kindly sponsored by McElvaney Motors. This stableford event will be played off the green tees. In Seniors news, we had a great turnout over three days last week. The winners in our three categories and their points totals were as follows; Category 1 Ciaran Prunty 19, Frank Nolan 19 and PJ Harte 17. Category 2 Eamonn Johnson 17, PJ Lambe 17 and Nicky Hore 16. Category 3 Hugh Cullen 17, Syl Mulligan 17 and Pat McBride 17. This week’s event is again being played over three days, and with members inspired by the heroics of our fellow Senior Phil Mickelson, our quality of golf will surely be higher than ever. And finally for this week, our open competitions are making a welcome return in the coming weeks. First up, we have an open singles event on June Bank Holiday Monday (7^th) . This will be followed by our regular Wednesday opens, the first one being held on June 9^th. For anyone seeking the ultimate challenge, our Black Tees Friday is back on June 11^th. And our competitions committee has put together a very full open week in mid-July, with all details available online at www.concrawood.ie/visitor-information/open-competitions

18th May 2021

FERGAL FIRES A 49 As the new season got under way, Fergal Toal was one of quite a number of golfers who found that the new WHS system had handicapped them rather generously. Well he certainly had no intentions of holding on to the shots. As he took to the fairways at the weekend, he compiled his best ever round, to produce the very rare score of 49 points. This saw him take first place in our annual Carna Transport competition, and in the process, he lost – wait for it – 15 shots off his Handicap Index! And no, there is no decimal point in there – it’s FIFTEEN shots. That’s more than most people lose in a lifetime, and most certainly a club record. Congratulations Fergal! So may I suggest, that for those of you who reckoned you had this new system all worked out, it’s time for a little more head scratching. The Category 1 prize was won by Ciaran McMahon, who returned a round of two over par for 38 points. The second best total of the weekend was Sean Malone’s 39 points, which saw him lose a mere 0.6 shots, on his way to victory in Category 2. And in Category 3, Pat McNeill prevailed with a fine score of 37 points. In Seniors news, our weekly winners were as follows; Category 1 PJ Harte, Joe Quinn and Martin Farnan. Category 2 Bart McNamara, Andy Whelan and Pat Conlon. Category 3 Category 3 John Keenan, Ciaran Coyle and Michael Reid. Andy would like to thank members for their cooperation with the new system, and again requests that all cards are returned. This week’s competition takes place over three days – Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and members are remindeded to rake bunkers with their feet in accordance with Covid guidelines. And finally for this week, our next club competition is sponsored by Brennan’s Furniture and Carpets, Clontibret. Members can take part on Saturday or Sunday.

11th May 2021

ALL SYSTEMS GO As the vaccine rollout continues apace, Golf Ireland have announced further relaxation of restrictions this week. From 10^th of May onwards, clubs can welcome back visitors, organise competitions, and all fourballs are allowed. From June 7^th major events, inter-club matches and open competitions can recommence, and all going well we may even see the return of some clubhouse facilities. Fingers crossed! So our first official competition of 2021 takes place this weekend in Concra. The sponsor is Carna Transport, and this 18 hole singles event will be played off the green tees. Last weekend our competitions committee organised another handicap qualifier, and no fewer than 117 members took part. The top scorer was Conall McHugh with a super total of 43 points. Conall certainly won’t be short on guidance, as he has generations of golf experience to call upon – if needed. Category 1 was won by Jimmy Lacey, who would have had a couple more than his 40 points, if it hadn’t been for the new golf phenomenon of putts bouncing out off the pin. Category 2 went to a new name – Sean Hughes – on a score of 36 points. And the same total was enough in Category 3 for Frank Bourke, whose game seems to have benefitted from the enforced break. And finally for this week, our seniors kicked off their season with the Martin Denny Sr. Drive-In on Thursday last. For many it was their first opportunity to sign into the new WHS system, which we will use in all our competitions this year. This 15 hole event was won by Pat Conlon, who returned a fine score of 32 points. In Category 1 the prizes went to Pat McNeill, Ciaran Prunty and Joe Quinn, in Category 2 Paul Shortt, Des Morgan and Bart McNamara, and in Category 3 Pat Bolger, Michael Reid and Joe Gleeson.  Many thanks to Jarlath Denny who sponsored this competition in memory of his father Martin, who was a very popular Past Captain and President of our club. We are delighted to announce that Jarlath has committed to make this an annual event.  

04th May 2021

IT’S GOOD TO BE BACK I don’t think any of us have ever seen so many happy golfers as we have in the past week. Monday 26^th of April was an absolutely perfect day for the return of golf at Concra Wood. T-shirts and shorts were the order of the day, as the beautiful Spring sunshine provided us with a little slice of Heaven. And for those of us who were lucky enough to get our names onto the timesheet, the number of club volunteers out working on our course was a sight to behold. So many improvements have taken place while we were away. Our Greens’ team have been very impressed by the commitment of our course consultants, who have been visiting the course several times each week. It’s clear to see the improvements in our fairways and rough, and we hope to see the benefits of their programmes in all other areas in the weeks and months ahead. Our Seniors were the first to get back playing, with a very good turnout for our first week. A big welcome back to Joe Kelly. Special mention must be made of the efforts of Rita and Nicky Hore, who litter pick around Concra Wood each day on their walks. It’s very much appreciated. Our winners this week were as follows; Category 1. 1st Johnny Redmond. 2nd Brian McGovern. 3rd Martin Allen. Category 2. 1st Larry Coleman. 2nd Pat Conlon. 3rd Andy Whelan. Category 3. 1st John Smyth. 2nd Michael Reid. 3rd Joe Kelly. This week’s competition is the Martin Denny Senior Drive In, which takes place on Thursday. No doubt Andy will keep everyone up to date on WhatsApp. At the weekend, there was a chance for members to put their new WHS Apps to the test, as they took part in a Handicap Qualifier. The top scorers were Jack Carragher and Patrick Niland Jr. on 40 points, closely followed by a very generously handicapped Tony Brennan on 39. Our Handicap Convenor Dessie Duffy has never been so busy, and I’m sure at this stage all members have received his email encouraging interaction – and patience – with the new system. And finally for this week, Golf Ireland have issued an updated Return To Golf Protocol for the Republic of Ireland, which is effective from May 10^th. All forms of fourballs are permitted, inter county travel is allowed, and guests and visitors are welcomed back in all clubs. They remind all golfers that the principle of Arrive – Play – Depart should continue to be implemented.

20th April 2021

  BACK TO CONCRA The 26^th of April. It’s been circled in red on every golfer’s calendar for the past month. When our timesheet went live on Sunday night, so many members were ready to book their return to Concra, that it only took a few minutes for the first one hundred to sign in. We wish all our members well, and hope it doesn’t take too long to get back into the old swing. As all golfers are no doubt aware, Golf Ireland has issued guidelines for our return to golf. Members are advised to read all about them at www.golfireland.ie/covid-19 before playing your first round at Concra. A huge amount of work has been done on our course over the past four months. Improvements in drainage have been made, which will hopefully enhance every golfer’s experience of Concra Wood in the coming season. There have also been a number of areas on our course re-designated as Penalty Areas under The Rules of Golf Rule 17, which was introduced in 2019. These areas are marked by a single row of red stakes. Again, members are advised to study the changes at www.randa.org/Rog/2019/Rules/The-Rules-of-Golf/Rule17  Maps of these changes will be posted on our noticeboard. In our Seniors section, members can take part in a nine hole event from Monday to Friday each week. This will be played on the front nine, with members sending all scores to Andy. In the coming weeks, a new Seniors event, the Martin Denny Memorial Drive-In will take place. For further details, watch this space. And finally for this week, we wish Ciaran Lavery the very best of luck as he takes up the position of Golf Professional at Concra Wood. Ciaran has served his time as assistant over the past three years, and now assumes the senior role. Let’s hope for Ciaran, and for all our members, that this time we’re back for good.