Hugh Foley, Peter O’Keeffe and England’s Arron Edwards-Hill will be the main attraction for the opening two rounds of the Connolly’s Audi West of Ireland Amateur Open Championship.
Royal Dublin’s Foley and Douglas’ O’Keeffe and Edwards-Hill are all part of the provisional 19-man Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup squad. The trio will tee off in the first round at Co. Sligo Golf Club at 12.56 pm.
Foley is a 2021 West of Ireland winner and current North and South of Ireland champion while O’Keeffe won both the Irish Amateur Open and Close titles in 2021. Edwards-Hill (23) made both of his cuts on the Challenge Tour in India last week.
Irish Amateur Close champion Quentin Carew is in the first feature group of the morning alongside Jack McDonnell and local favourite TJ Ford at 8.21am.
Just before them at 7.48am are 2007 winner Joe Lyons (Galway), Eddie McCormack (Galway Bay) and Harry Gillivan (Westport).
Former Irish internationals Keith Egan and Marc Boucher (both Carton House) join Noel Crawford (Mourne) at 8.32 am while Laytown& Bettystown Scratch Cup winner Richard Knightly (Royal Dublin) is grouped with England’s James Claridge and Roganstown starlet Patrick Keeling at 9.16am.
2018 West of Ireland champion and current Connacht Strokeplay holder Robert Brazill (Naas) will be hunting more success out west when he tees off alongside Mullingar Scratch Cup winner Joshua Hill (Galgorm Castle) and Roscommon’s Simon Walker (10.55am)
Defending champion Alan Fahy (Bray) gets underway with Cathal Butler (Kinsale) and Cathal MacCanna (Carton House) at 11.50am. Former Munster Boys champion and ex-professional Ciaran Boggan (Co. Meath Golf Club) makes his return to the West of Ireland alongside Dean O’Riordan (Fermoy) and Shane McGlynn (Portmarnock) at 2.02pm.
The players will compete in 54 holes of stroke play qualifying with the leading 16 players progressing to the match play stages on Easter Monday.
36 holes of match play will be played on Monday before the semi final and final commences on Tuesday.
Tee Times HERE
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