Kieran Earls becomes the eleventh multiple winner of the National Gents Matchplay championship.

Kieran joins T.J. O'Riordan (Rocklodge),  '64, '65, Joe Fitzgerald (N.B.P.M. and Ferrybank), '77, '81,
David Hayden (Old County),  '88, '89, Sean Downes (Stackallen)  '92, '95 and Mark Millar (Cement) 2000, 2001 as two-time winners.

Kieran moves on to three national individual titles, putting the Bruff man on a par with the likes of Joe Doyle (three Matchplay), Sean Harkins (three Matchplay), Joe Fitzgerald (two Matchplay and one Strokeplay), David Hayden (two Matchplay and one Strokeplay), Mark Millar (two Matchplay and one Strokeplay), Liam O’Donovan (three Strokeplay) and Gus Carolan (two Strokeplay and one Matchplay).

Kieran has won the National Matchplay while representing two different clubs, as did Ray Murphy, Sean Harkins and Joe Fitzgerald.

Kieran has a 100% record in his two semi-finals.

Kieran’s win means eight consecutive National Gents Matchplay successes for Munster players.

22 of the last 24 National Gents Matchplay champions have represented Munster clubs.

Kieran won the National Matchplay championship having been National Strokeplay champion the previous year.

That has been achieved eight times in all, by seven different players – in addition to Kieran, Ray Murphy (twice), Damien Fleming, Darren Collins, Sean Downes, David Hayden and Kevin McDonnell.

Chrissie Sheedy has now won the National Ladies Matchplay championship for the seventh time, which means the Ryston lady needs just one more win to equal the Matchplay record of the great Clare Keating.

Chrissie’s national individual title haul (at elite level) stands at twelve (seven Matchplay and five Strokeplay), again leaving her within touching distance of Clare Keating (on fourteen).

Chrissie played Tara Dillon at the semi-final stage for the fourth time. Chrissie has won all four.

Chrissie’s semi-final record is W13 L4. She has won seven of her thirteen finals.

The now 22-year gap between Chrissie’s first and most recent win is still the third longest in history, behind Ger Ward (34) and Margaret Hogan (31).

Chrissie is the second Kildare player to win the National Ladies Matchplay championship in Co. Offaly. Athgarvan’s Mary Snell won at Arden (Tullamore) in 1971.

Chrissie won the National Ladies Matchplay championship having been National Ladies Strokeplay champion the previous year – for the third time in her career.

That has been achieved fifteen times in all, by ten different players – in addition to Chrissie, Clare Keating (three times), Geraldine Ward (twice), Martha O’Brien, Peggy Campbell, Bernadette Coffey, Marie Mallin, Margaret Hogan, Ann Ginnane and Teresa McGuigan.

31 of the last 34 National Ladies Matchplay champions have been from Leinster.

It is the first time in history that both the reigning National Ladies and Gents Strokeplay champions from the previous year won the National Ladies and Gents Matchplay championships respectively.

Eamon Gibney reached the National Matchplay final for the first time.

The Castletown player is the fourth Co. Meath player to contest a final – Sean Downes (4), Robert Branigan and Tommy Rusk are the others.

Eamon is the third Co. Meath player to be a National Matchplay runner-up. Sean Downes (twice) and Robert Branigan are the others.

Earls v. Gibney was the first Limerick v. Meath final in National Gents Matchplay history.

Amy Galvin reached the National Ladies Matchplay final for the second successive year.

Amy is the eighth first-time Ladies champion to reach the final the following year as holder. She is the third of those eight defending champions to be runner-up the following year.

Amy Galvin is the second Co. Offaly player to be a National Ladies Matchplay runner-up.

Chrissie v. Amy was the second Kildare v. Offaly National Ladies Matchplay final ever. Margaret Hogan beat Tara Dillon in the 2011 final at Collinstown.

Anthony Galvin is the fourth player representing an Offaly club (and the first since William Buckley in 2022) to reach a National Matchplay semi-final. 1973 winner Padraig Hogan was a native of Co. Offaly but represented Catholic Institute.

Ray Murphy reached the National Matchplay semi-finals for an incredible sixteenth time. His record is now W11 L5.

2008 champion Tara Dillon contested the National ladies Matchplay semi-finals for the eighth time. W4 L4

2014 champion Breda White reached the National ladies Matchplay semi-finals for the twelfth time. Her record is W4 L8.

Mark Hogan is the fourth Leinster winner of the National Gents Intermediate Matchplay championship.

Mark is the first player to win both the Leinster Gents Intermediate Matchplay championship and the Gents National Gents Intermediate Matchplay championship.

Noel Stapleton Is the first Munster Intermediate Matchplay champion to reach the National Gents Intermediate Matchplay championship final in the same year (Phillip Burns was in the 2023 play-off between the provincial champions).

Billy Buckley and John O’Keeffe are the first two players to be Leinster Intermediate Matchplay runners-up and National Intermediate Matchplay semi-finalists – John achieving this in the same year.

Billy Buckley is the first player to win Leinster Schools’ tournament honours and reach the National Intermediate Matchplay semi-finals in the same year.

John Kelly is the third Leinster winner of the National Gents Junior Matchplay championship.

Padraig Hannon is the first player to be a National Inter-Club winner and a runner-up in the National Gents Junior Matchplay championship

Paul Core adds National Gents Junior Matchplay championship semi-finalist to his ninth place in last year’s National Junior Strokeplay championship.

He is the second Bagenalstown player in successive years to reach the National Gents Junior Matchplay championship semi-finals, following 2024 runner-up Sean Kelly.

P.J. Ryan is the first player history to win a National Scramble title and reach the National Gents Junior Matchplay semi-finals

Audrey Donnelly becomes the first player in history to win the All-Ireland Ladies Matchplay Nett Cup twice.

Audrey has beaten an Athgarvan player in each of her two All-Ireland Ladies Matchplay Nett Cup final wins

Audrey’s victory makes it five Leinster wins in a row in the All-Ireland Ladies Matchplay Nett Cup

Laura Fogarty Is the second member of Athgarvan after Christina Foley in 2023 to be All-Ireland Ladies Matchplay Nett Cup runner-up.

Marie Clarke (Poulaphouca) and Angela Connolly (Eden) ensured that all four All-Ireland Ladies Matchplay Nett Cup semi-finalists represented Leinster clubs, the second time that this has occurred in the championship’s history.

Laura Fogarty is the daughter of Bridie Kelly who won the short-lived National Ladies Intermediate matchplay at Athgarvan in 1990.

John Kelly is the son of Bridie Kelly who won the short-lived National Ladies Intermediate Matchplay championship at Athgarvan in 1990.

Amy and Anthony Galvin are the first daughter and father to reach the National Matchplay semi-finals in the same year since Norma and Liam O’Brien in 1993.

John Kelly and Laura Fogarty are the first brother and sister to contest National Matchplay finals since Paul O’Brien (2007) and Martha O’Brien (2020), Tara Dillon (2008, 2011, 2014, 2015) and Ian Dillon (2020) and Chris Scannell (multiple times) and Siobhan Scannell (2009). The Kildare duo achieved this in a single year.  

Huge thanks to John Manning for this comprehensive review

Latest National News

Hotel Deal with Delata Hotel Group In Cork

Good Luck

Matchplay 2025 Stats

REMINDER

2025 National Matchplay Finals Scoreboard

Latest Regional News

PPI Affiliation

Galway Masters June 1st

Galway Masters at Mellows

Kilbeggan - Bob Gorman Memorial Open Scotch Foursomes.

Old County Open 2025