Esker Hills' Shane Lowry claimed the West of Ireland Championship with a 2 and 1 win over Mullingar's Dessie Morgan at Rosses Point.

The 20-year-old Irish Close champion crushed Galway's Eddie McCormack 5 and 4 in the morning's semi-finals as Morgan beat The Curragh's Paul O'Hanlon 3 and 2.

Lowry said: "It was Important for me to win. I was beaten in the final of the North last year and if I got beaten again today, you start to doubt yourself.

"I'm really happy to win. It’s a full field, nearly a better field than the Close with the English guys coming over.

"It's great to get another win under my belt. I was a bit ropey in the middle of the round. But I had a talk with myself on 15th tee and played solid from there on in."

Lowry birdied the second and fourth to go two up and took the eighth in bogey to extend his lead to three holes.

He lost the ninth to a par but after winning the 11th to go three up again, he three-putted the 12th and 13th to see his lead cut to one hole.

But a vital par save at the 14th helped him keep his nose in front and he took the 16th in par to double his lead before closing out the match with a brilliant par at the 17th.

“I think the up-and-down on the 14th won it for me,” added Lowry. “I’d say if I was out there for the rest of the day I wouldn’t get up and down. I was going to try and fly it on, but said to myself, pick a spot, hit there and hope for the best. It ran out to two and half feet.”

Radisson SAS West of Ireland Amateur Championship, Co Sligo GC
Semi-finals: S Lowry (Esker Hills) bt E McCormack (Galway) 5/4; D Morgan (Mullingar) bt P O’Hanlon (The Curragh) 3/2.
Final: S Lowry bt D Morgan 2/1.