Luke O'Neill and Odhran Maguire set for US scholarships

Luke O'Neill (Connemara). Picture by Pat Cashman

Connemara's Luke O'Neill and Slieve Russell's Odhrán Maguire are heading to college in the US next year.

O'Neill has signed a letter of intent to play for Kansas State while Maguire, who is the younger brother of Lisa and Leona, will play for East Carolina.

"This is a great day for K-State Golf," said Grant Robbins, head coach at Kansas State, who has also signed Andover's Cooper Shultz.

"Luke and Cooper were both very highly recruited and our ability to sign them is a testament to the great things going on here at Kansas State. These two guys are highly competitive and have both shown the ability to win at a high level. They both will make an immediate impact on our program."

Boys international O'Neill won the German Boys Amateur this year and is ranked eighth in the U18 European Golf Rankings.

"Luke is an exceptional player who has performed very well on the international level," Robbins said. "He is ranked not only as one of the best players in Ireland, he is regarded as one of the best players in all of Europe.

"He comes from a great family. His father Hugh is a highly respected golf professional who has helped Luke develop a solid all-around game.

"What impressed me the most when I first saw him was the speed he is able to generate and a ball flight that will perform in all kinds of weather. He is extremely competitive, knows how to win and will be a tremendous addition to our programme."

Slieve Russell's Odhrán Maguire. Picture by Pat Cashman

Maguire won the Leinster U14 title four years ago and played in the 2018 Boys Home Internationals and East Carolina head coach Andrew Sapp, who has also signed North Carolina native Eston Lee, is pleased to have him sign for the Pirates.

"He was the HSBC Open Champion in both Ireland and Great Britain and owns eight 16-and-under individual titles,” East Carolina said in a press release. “Maguire finished seventh at the 2018 European Championships and currently shares the course record at Slieve Russell Golf Club with 2016 British Open champion Henrik Stenson at 8-under par 64.”

Sapp added: "Odhrán is a very talented and hard-working golfer who has had some wonderful tournament experience.

“We have been recruiting Odhrán for a long time and are excited for this day to come. He has a great personality, and his work ethic will fit in well with his future teammates. Odhrán will make a wonderful Pirate and we are looking forward to coaching him over the next four years."