Barry Fennelly celebrates with Maynooth University players

Maynooth University’s Barry Fennelly has been selected as the men’s assistant coach for the International Team for the 2022 Arnold Palmer Cup in Switzerland.

The match takes place at Golf Club de Genève in Geneva from July 1-3 and Fennelly, who is manager of the Paddy Harrington Scholarship programme at Maynooth, is delighted to be involved.

"‘I am thrilled with the call up to be involved as an assistant coach with the APC International Team,” Fennelly said. “It is an honour to be involved in such a prestigious international event that is associated with Mr Palmer, I am hopeful now that some of our leading male and female Irish collegiate players go on to qualify for the team for Geneva which would be fantastic.

“On a personal note, I am immensely proud and indebted to the players who have represented Maynooth University with distinction at the Arnold Palmer Cup over the years. In total, we have had five Maynooth players compete in the event but remarkably this has resulted in seven representatives in the last nine Arnold Palmer Cup matches, a feat not matched by any institution outside of the United States.”

Gary Hurley (2013 & 2015), Stuart Grehan (2016 & 2017), Ronan Mullarney (2018), Caolan Rafferty (2020) and Allan Hill (2021) have all represented Maynooth University in the event.

Ryan Potter of Wake Forest and Bill Allcorn of Oklahoma will serve as the United States assistant coaches while the International assistant coaches will be Fennelly and Golda Borst of Kentucky and Sweden.

Longtime Arnold Palmer partner Rolex is continuing its more than 50-year relationship through its support of the matches,

Allcorn, the 2021 Jan Strickland Award presented by TaylorMade Golf Company winner for the nation’s top assistant coach, is in his fifth year with the Oklahoma men’s golf team.

Borst has taken the Kentucky women's golf program to new heights in her 11 seasons on the job. In addition to seven NCAA regional appearances and six team championships, the team broke through with an NCAA Championship Finals berth in 2021, the programme's first since 1992.

Fennelly is in his 11th season as head coach of both the men’s and women’s programmes at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth.

Under Fennellys’ direction, Maynooth has become the perennial leader in Ireland, having won two National club titles and numerous Irish, British and European University titles.

Fennelly has worked with three Maynooth men who have gone on to win The R&A Foundation Scholars Tournament, which is highly regarded as the leading collegiate tournament in Europe.

Maynooth has produced five Arnold Palmer Cup participants, two Walker Cup players, one Curtis Cup player and numerous Irish Internationals.

In 2012, Fennelly led Ireland’s men’s team to a bronze medal at the World University Golf Championship. A member of the Arnold Palmer Cup men’s selection committee in 2016 & 2017, Fennelly has been serving on the international women’s selection committee the past four years.

The Arnold Palmer Cup was co-founded by Arnold Palmer and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) and began at the Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Orlando, Fla., in 1997.

The event is a Ryder Cup-style tournament featuring the top men’s and women’s university/college golfers matching the United States against a team of International players. The Palmer Cup has been played at some of the world’s greatest courses including The Old Course, The Royal County Down, Royal Portrush, Baltusrol, The Honors Course, and Cherry Hills.

Beginning with the 2018 matches at Evian Resort Golf Club, the Arnold Palmer Cup is the only major tournament which features men and women playing side-by-side as partners.

Since its inception, over 125 former Arnold Palmer Cup alumni have gone on to earn cards on the PGA, European, or LPGA Tours; 32 have represented Europe or the USA in the Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup, or Solheim Cup and more than 60 have claimed over 280 victories on the PGA, European, or LPGA Tours, including three major champions in both 2020 and 2021.

The United States leads the Palmer Cup series 13-11-1.

The Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation supports the Palmer Cup, which provides a platform for perpetuating Arnold Palmer’s commitment to youth character development and the growth of amateur/collegiate golf. For more information, please visit ArnoldPalmerCup.com.

About Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation

The Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation champions its namesakes' legacy through grantmaking and initiatives that support children’s health, youth character development, and nature-focused wellness. Learn more at PalmerFoundation.org.

Rolex and the Arnold Palmer Cup

Through an unwavering commitment to the game of golf for more than 50 years, Rolex has developed one of the broadest and longest-standing relationships between brand and sport. These strong ties date back to 1967 when Rolex partnered with legendary golfer Arnold Palmer, making him the first official Rolex Golf Testimonee. The charismatic American holds a special place in golf history thanks as much to his natural talent and successful playing career as to his pioneering role in the sport. Since that pivotal bond began, Rolex has gone on to establish partnerships at every level of the sport, including with the governing bodies responsible for advancing the sport and with the finest players, from The Big Three to the New Guard who lead today’s rankings. The decision to partner with the Arnold Palmer Cup was thus a natural progression for the Swiss watchmaker, and a tribute to Arnold Palmer’s inspiring legacy.