Door finally opens for Rafferty
Caolan Rafferty (Dundalk) raises the South of Ireland Amateur Open Championship trophy to the heavens after his 20th hole win over Rowan Lester in the 117th edition of the Pierse Motors Volkswagen sponsored event at Lahinch Golf Club on Sunday 29th July 2018. Picture: Thos Caffrey / www.golffile.ie
Putts might win championships but for Dundalk’s Caolan Rafferty his maiden victory in the South of Ireland Amateur Open owed as much to heart as it did to the deadly 18 footer that clinched victory or the stellar ball-striking that kept his title bid alive.
The powerful 25-year old became the first Dundalk member to win an amateur “major” when he consigned international teammate Rowan Lester to his second championship final defeat at the Co Clare links in the space of three years.
While 22-year-old Lester may beat himself up for missing a three-footer for birdie and victory on the 18th after his spectacular third fizzed back to the hole-side, Rafferty raw determination — even more so than his often brilliant ball-striking — proved the difference.
A 270-yard three wood into the heart of the 18th green kept him alive and while he drove into sand at the 20th, he didn't panic but hit a searing, 209-yard four-iron to 18 feet to set up the winning birdie putt.
South of Ireland final 2018: Caolan Rafferty v Rowan Lester. Level after 12 https://t.co/5mlIRf7yVc
— Brian Keogh (@IrishGolfDesk) July 29, 2018
While Lester outgunned Forest Little’s Jack McDonnell (23) by 3 and 2 in his semi-final, Rafferty showed he meant business when he gave leading qualifier Mark Power of Kilkenny no option with a 5 and 4 win to join him in the final.
When the action started, he found it hard to see his reads clearly but twice came from behind to force sudden death before claiming his long-awaited “major” win with that sweet birdie four at the second extra hole.
“The door eventually opened,” Rafferty said with a grin. "I'm delighted it did. I've been knocking and kicking and running into that door today and I wasn't letting it go.
8th Advantage @Raff_1992 as Lester pushes tee shot pic.twitter.com/E6hYPtf5BM
— Brian Keogh (@IrishGolfDesk) July 29, 2018
“As everyone saw on the last three holes, I showed everyone how much I wanted it.
“I've been wanting to win one of these since I started playing the championships. It seems like forever ago. But to actually get over the line is massive."
He was determined to give it his all and accept the consequences and while he struggled on the greens at times —he missed makeable birdie chances at the second, seventh, ninth and 10th— he found his range when it mattered most - on the second extra hole.
"I was just saying to Eoin, this morning against Mark [Power] I was walking onto greens and seeing the line straight away," he said of his caddie, Eoin Murphy, who is his Barton Shield parnter and a Boys international. "Whereas this afternoon, I kept seeing it going both ways. I seemed to leave myself in a lot of valleys and I was picking the wrong side then, which didn't help.
"On the 20th, I could see my putt was a ball outside left and as soon as I got behind it, I had the line straight away. I heard Rowan saw to his caddie Evan that he was happy with his line and I was delighted with mine. I had it locked down."
How right he was. And what scenes there were as the putt fell in to bring an evenly contested final to a dramatic conclusion.
Two down after Lester won the second in birdie and the fifth with a solid in par, Rafferty fought back to win the eighth with a conceded two after Lester pushed his tee shot onto the hill, and the 12th with a birdie four from five feet after being forced to lay up.
6th: brilliant 200 yard shot to the back of the green by Lester. @Raff_1992 mat be a touch nervous in his first final. Leaves his 35 footer 4 -5 ft short pic.twitter.com/nDp7SRbRpB
— Brian Keogh (@IrishGolfDesk) July 29, 2018
When he won the 13th with a gritty par — Lester's tee shot went right into touble and he failed to find the green in two — he has his nose in front and looked unlikely to make many mistakes having struggled to take myriad chances up to that point.
In truth, both men struggled to find their range on Lahinch's pristine greens and it was not until Rafferty overshot the 15th and failed to judge a difficult lie and then found a bunker from the tee at the 17th and lost both holes to pars that the final really came to life.
Lester suddenly found himself one up playing the last and within touching distance of the title that escaped him at the final hurdle two years ago.
With the new championship tee adding 35 yards to the 18th, he decided to hit three-wood and play it as a three-shotter.
Rafferty had no option now but to go for broke and he hit the jackpot.
Caolan Rafferty unleashes the driver. Picture: Thos Caffrey/ Golffile.ie
After Lester had hit a lay up that left him around 90 yards from the pin, Rafferty’s big drive left him 260 yards to the front edge from the left rough and he caught his three-wood perfectly, rifling a high draw off the right-hand bunkers that settled 40 feet below the pin.
“I probably won’t hit two better strikes,” Rafferty said of the shots that set up the easy four at the 18th that put Lester under huge pressure.
"That new tee makes the hole fantastic. We reckoned we had 260 front and whatever the pins was on. I knew I had to hit it out of the screws."
Lester’s reply was world class, floating to the back of the green before screwing back to finish little more than three feet above the hole.
“When his shot came in, I had the raise the putter to acknowledge it," Rafferty said of Lester's wonderful wedge. "You have to take your hat off and clap it because it was class."
But the coup de grace never came and while Rafferty lipped out from 12 feet for birdie and victory at the 19th, he made four at the 20th despite driving into sand, sending a 209-yard four-iron rocketing to 18 feet after Lester missed the green right and wedged to 25 feet from fluffy rough.
“You never want to see anyone miss a putt like that especially on 18,” Rafferty said of Lester’s miss on the last. “But for it to slip by and for him to give me the chance again, then I said to myself, ‘Now you have to take it’.”
South of Ireland Amateur Open, sponsored by Pierse Motors Volkswagen, Lahinch
Semi-finals
- Rowan Lester (Hermitage) bt Jack McDonnell (Forrest Little) 3/2
- Caolan Rafferty (Dundalk) bt Mark Power (Kilkenny) 5/4.
Final
- Caolan Rafferty (Dundalk) bt Rowan Lester (Hermitage) 20th
