McCormack surges to fourth Connacht Mid-Amateur victory
Eddie McCormack. Picture: Pat Cashman
Galway’s Eddie McCormack won the Connacht Mid-Amateur Championship for the fourth time since 2009 when he closed with a three-under 68 to win by an impressive three strokes at Roscommon.
The Cavan native finished double-bogey, bogey in the morning to open with a two-over 74 and find himself four strokes behind Athenry’s Joe Bernie Jnr, who carded a brilliant 70 to lead by three strokes from Banbridge’s Jim Carvill, Corrstown’s Christopher O’Connor, Dun Laoghaire's Peter Kirby and Donaghadee’s Gavin McKenna on two-under par.
McCormack remains a ferocious competitor, however, and having gone out in a seven-way tie for sixth, he raced through the field in the afternoon to add to his Connacht Mid-Amateur wins of 2009, 2014 and 2017
After opening with a bogey five, he produced a blistering run on the front nine and followed a birdie at the second with four in a row from the fourth to turn in 32 in tough conditions.
He then made another birdie at the par-five 11th and while he’d drop a stroke at the 14th, four closing pars were enough to give him the title by three shots on two-under 142 from Bernie, who followed his 70 with a 75.
Carvill was third on 147 after rounds of 73 and 74 with Mount Temple’s Edward Egan fourth after two 74s.
Connacht Mid Amateur Open Championship, Roscommon Golf Club (Par 72)
142 E McCormack (Galway) 74 68
145 J Bernie Jnr (Athenry) 70 75
147 J Carvill (Banbridge) 73 74
148 E Egan (Mount Temple ) 74 74
149 A Condren (Greystones) 77 72, J McLoughlin (Portumna) 74 75, A Moran (Tuam) 74 75
150 S Kelly (Ballinasloe) 78 72, D Basquill (Enniscrone) 77 73, C Gilcreest (Letterkenny) 76 74
151 D McDermott (Carrick-on-Shannon) 76 75, M Judge (Stackstown) 76 75, N Mackell (Dundalk) 75 76, D Glynn (Galway Bay) 75 76, J Mulready (Castle) 74 77
152 D Kinneen (Galway Bay) 75 77, G Cohen (Beaverstown) 74 78, C O'Connor (Corrstown) 73 79
153 S Miskelly (Knock) 79 74, M Kelly (Naas) 77 76, N Crawford (Mourne) 76 77, T O'Connor (Athlone) 76 77, C Jameson (Wicklow) 75 78, P Mitchell (Co. Longford) 75 78
154 O Grogan (Moate) 81 73, D Coughlan (Castleknock) 81 73, S Carter (Mountrath) 79 75, G Fitzpatrick (Naas) 78 76, J Crangle (Fortwilliam) 77 77, J Kiely (Slievenamon) 77 77, P O'Sullivan (Old Conna) 76 78, P Kirby (Dun Laoghaire) 73 81
155 A Craven (Roscommon) 79 76, B Lenihan (Ballybunion) 74 81, G McKenna (Donaghadee) 73 82
156 L Casey (Roscommon) 79 77, R Mc Daid (Co. Sligo) 79 77, P Ryan (Tuam) 77 79
157 L O'Rourke (Naas) 77 80, M Dunne (Newlands) 76 81
158 M Hogan (Tullamore) 80 78, D Dore (Newcastle West) 78 80, M O'Rourke (Royal Dublin) 76 82, D Hunt (Nenagh) 76 82
159 K Canavan (Balbriggan) 82 77, J Hehir (Galway ) 80 79, A Gunning (Carton House) 77 82, B Dore (Newcastle West) 76 83
160 S Hession (Dundalk) 82 78, C Lennon (Beaverstown) 80 80, R O'Reilly (Cregmore Park) 77 83
161 D O'Brien (Roscommon) 81 80, P Barry (Goldcoast) 81 80, N Maher (Mountrath) 80 81
162 R Connolly (Grange) 83 79, J McLynn (Galway Bay) 83 79, B Penney (Athenry) 76 86
163 J McHale (Roscommon) 82 81
164 J Hunt (Clontarf) 83 81, A Conway (Cregmore Park) 82 82, R Connolly (Tullamore) 81 83, D Flaherty (Athenry) 79 85
165 S Eyres (Loughgall) 87 78, G Claffey (Athenry) 78 87
166 M Burke (Galway) 82 84
167 J Whelan (Athenry) 83 84
168 B Timlin (Galway) 86 82
169 M Hassett (Castleknock) 83 86
171 B O'Connor (Athenry) 89 82, W McDonagh (Oughterard) 81 90
178 P Kenny (Athlone) 89 89
RTD 77 C O'Donoghue (Castletroy)
WD 80 J Williams (Castle)
NR 82 S Boyce (Rosapenna)
WD D Coyne (Tuam)
