Pitch & Putt Ireland2021 National Strokeplay Facts and Figures
John Manning gives us the significance between this weekend's results
John Manning takes a look behind the stats associated with last weekend’s results in Navan, Tullamore and Stackallen.
Senior Men
Ian Donnelly becomes the fourth Co Louth player in history to win the National Gents Strokeplay Championship (senior grade). All the winners have represented the Killineer or Cement club.
Ian is the eighth player in history (JR Crangle, John Walsh, Damien Fleming, Frank Dineen, William Hill, Leo O’Reilly, Gus Carolan are the others) to win the National Gents Strokeplay Championship (senior grade) after previously being runner-up. (Four players, William Buckley, Ray Murphy, Alan Small and Michael Forrest, have been runner-up after previously been crowned champion). Ian won the 12th play-off in history. It was the first play-off since 2010. Kevin McDonnell was the other Co Louth winner in a play-off (1978).
The 24 year gap between Ian’s runner-up placing (1997) and his victory (2021) is a new all-time championship record. The previous longest gap was eight years (JR Crangle, 2011-2019).
Damien Fleming becomes the ninth multiple runner-up in National Gents’ Strokeplay championship history. Damien finished in the top six of the National Gents’ Strokeplay championship for the eighth time in a row and for the 10th time in all. He is one of four players to have made the cut at both Ryston in 2019 and at Navan this year. Sean Goggin, Jason O’Regan and Shane Murphy are the others. He is the second reigning National Matchplay champion in history to be runner-up in the National Strokeplay in the same year. John Walsh is the other.
An Inter-County winner with Dublin in 2016, Stephen Murray, who shot the low final round of 43 to finish third, achieved his best finish in the championship on his fourth appearance in the Last 18 playoff.
2020 National Matchplay champion Kieran Earls finished fourth in the National Strokeplay championship for the third time.
Two-time National Inter-County winner Anthony Culhane captured the Senor Best Nett award 30 years after he was on the Tipperary team that finished second at Lucan in the Inter-County. Anthony’s first eighteen of 41 equals the lowest round ever scored in the history of the National Gents’ Strokeplay Championship
The senior cut fell at 94 in Navan – the same as at Fermoy in 1999. The low cut remains at 93 (Ryston 2010).
Intermediate Men
Justin McKeon (Prosperous) is the first Kildare player to win the National Gents Intermediate Strokeplay Championship, since Athgarvan’s Ger Brady at Lucan in 1983. Justin’s 141 ties the third lowest winning aggregate in National Gents’ Intermediate Strokeplay championship history, equalling Declan McCarron (2010) and Dayle Donohoe (2016).
Daniel Condon’s 142 ties the lowest-ever runner-up score in National Gents’ Intermediate Strokeplay championship history, equalling Michael Vaughan (2016).
Justin McKeon and Daniel Condon accomplished a Kildare 1-2 – a first ever for the Short Grass County in the Intermediate Championship.
Evan Ganly is the first Meath player to finish third in the National Gent’s Intermediate Strokeplay since Bellewstown’s Luke Heeney at Cunnigar six years ago. Evan’s 91 is the lowest first 36-hole total ever recorded in the National Gents Intermediate Strokeplay championship. He has now been fourth and third in successive National Gents’ Intermediate Strokeplay championships.
Stephen Donovan is the first National Intermediate Strokeplay Best 36 Nett winner to represent a Waterford club.
Junior Men
Cian O’Callaghan is the first Cork registered player to win the National Gents Junior Strokeplay championship since Keith Power in 2017. Cian makes it two Cork wins out of three at Stackallen in the National Gent’s Junior Strokeplay championship following Stephen O’Leary’s 2001 success at the Co Meath venue. He is also the 19th player representing a Cork club to win the National Gent’s Junior Strokeplay championship. Cian’s score of 148 is the second lowest winning 54-hole aggregate in history – second only to since Darren McCann (Cement, now Killineer) who scored 146 at Tullamore in 2003.
Junior runner-up Jack Carr is the first player from the Killineer or Cement club to take second place in the National Gents Junior Strokeplay Championship since Liam Rooney in 1985. Jack is the fourth player from the Killineer or Cement club and the fifth in all from County Louth to take silver in the National Gents’ Junior Strokeplay championship
Dominic Scully finished third in the National Gents’ Junior Strokeplay championship four years after he was second in the National Boys’ Strokeplay. Dominic is the first player representing a Co. Offaly club to win bronze in the National Gents’ Junior Strokeplay championship since third prize was officially awarded in 1987.
Junior 36 Nett winner Sean Cullen tied the low scoring record for this category with his 81 return.
Senior Ladies
Geraldine Ward won the National Ladies Strokeplay championship for the eleventh time in all and for the second time on the Tullamore course. 101 has now won the National Ladies Strokeplay championship twice in four years for Ger, after her previous victory on seven under par at Collins in 2018.
Ger moves on to 23 National individual championships, extending her incredible all-time record. She has now won the National Strokeplay championship in four different decades - the nineties, noughties, teens and twenties.
Chrissie Byrne moves on to five National Ladies Strokeplay championship runner-up finishes, including four in the last five stagings. She has been runner-up to Ger Ward on four of those five occasions. Chrissie’s nap hand of silver medals is second all-time only to Margaret Hogan’s six.
Five-time champion Margaret Hogan was third in the senior grade – her third such ranking since third place was officially awarded in 1987.
Two-time National Girls winner Barbara Furlong scooped Best 36 Nett 35 years since she was first crowned Irish U16 champion at Tipperary Hills in 1986. It was a second National Ladies Strokeplay podium finish in succession for Barbara after her 2020 Intermediate runners-up showing in Kilbeggan back in June.
Intermediate Ladies
Denise Pyke is the seventh player in history and the first since 2002 to win the National Ladies Intermediate Strokeplay Championship over her home course. Denise and her daughter Lauren can now boast wins in the National Ladies Intermediate and National Ladies Junior Strokeplay Championships respectively. She is first player from the Tullamore club to win the National Ladies Intermediate Strokeplay Championship.
2013 National Girls’ Champion Una Brosnan finished second for the second time (2014 the other) in the National Ladies Intermediate Strokeplay Championship – a tournament in which she also filled fourth place in 2016.
Una Brosnan is the second National Girls’ Strokeplay Champion to later achieve a second place finish in the National Ladies Intermediate Strokeplay Championship – a feat she has now achieved twice.
2012 National Ladies Junior Strokeplay Champion Ailish Sexton finished third for the second time in the National Ladies Intermediate Strokeplay Championship – a tournament in which she has also previously been fourth, fifth and sixth.
Margaret Reilly tied the 36 Nett category prize low scoring record in the National Ladies Intermediate Strokeplay Championship on 87.
Junior Ladies
2020 National Ladies Matchplay Nett Cup winner Margaret Hennessy is the second winner of that trophy to go on and win a National Ladies Strokeplay championship afterwards following Sarah O’Neill’s 2020 Intermediate success.
Ann O’Herlihy is the 24th Cork runner-up in the National Ladies Junior Strokeplay Championship
Mary Ann Byrne finished third in the National Ladies Junior Strokeplay Championship for the second time in three years.
Veronica Anglim (Hillview) broke Leinster’s stranglehold on the Best Nett category in the National Ladies Junior Strokeplay Championship.
Tullamore hosted the National Ladies Strokeplay championships for the fourth time which ties Douglas as the venue most often used.
Latest National News
| 2024 National Matchplay Entries |
| National Coach Stephen Enneguess - upcoming sessions |
| UPDATED NEC Announcement 16.04.2024 |
| Provincial Ladies Matchplay |
| Munster Ladies social day |