Bridgestone Order of Merit men’s champion, David Shiel, says adding his name to an illustrious roll of honour makes his 2023 all the more significant.
The Enniscrone golfer was at Golf Ireland HQ along with Bridgestone Order of Merit women’s champion, Emma Fleming, as they celebrated two outstanding domestic campaigns.
Fleming made a fast start in the Scratch Cups and her year culminated in a brilliant Intervarsity success at Laytown & Bettystown. The Elm Park youngster, and UCD student, had already secured her silverware at that stage.
Meanwhile, Shiel was also revelling in his success and subsequent call-up to the Golf Ireland High Performance squad. The 34-year-old finished T8 at the North of Ireland in Royal Portrush to win the Bridgestone Order of Merit.
Shiel also reached the quarter-finals of the South of Ireland, the Last 16 of the West of Ireland, finished T6 in the East of Ireland and made all nine cuts in the championships he played.
And after featuring in the Irish Home Internationals team for the first time he was thrilled to join some of the world’s best who have previously won this trophy.
“I’m extremely proud of winning the Bridgestone Order of Merit. Even since winning it I’ve learned about the history of the Order of Merit and the Willie Gill award from talking to the people in golf,” said Shiel.
“I know it’s changed quite a bit in terms of format over the years, it did include some British and foreign events before and now it’s changed to focus on the Irish events. It has really focused in to incentivise the development of players in Ireland by focusing on the ten events that we have in our season here.
“Even since understanding more about it, it’s really cool to learn that I join a list of players that includes Rory McIlroy and Padraig Harrington, Darren Clarke.
“Bridgestone have a strong connection with the golfing world but their support for the Irish Order of Merit, for the men’s and women’s game are vital. They provide such a huge and really important opportunity to us as players.
“And for me personally it’s opened an awful lot of doors for opportunities within the Irish team, which I’m really relishing.”
Fleming also produced a phenomenal season where she regularly featured towards the top of the standings and was recognised for her achievements with a first Irish senior call-up.
The 18-year-old showed brilliant form in the Scratch Cups early in the year and finished third in the Ulster Stroke Play, her consistent form meant she had enough to finish at the top of the Bridgestone Order of Merit standings.
Fleming also played in the KPMG Women’s Irish Open, she finished seventh in the Flogas Irish Women’s Open and will also be part of the Golf Ireland High Performance squad in 2024.
“I was very happy with how my 2023 season went. I was happy with the start I made in the Scratch Cups, it pointed out a couple of bits that I could work on throughout the summer and I was getting that work done as well during the competitions,” said Fleming.
“I was delighted to win the Bridgestone Order of Merit because it showed that I was playing consistently which was one of my goals. I also learned so much from my experience playing in the Home Internationals and the KPMG Women’s Irish Open, in my first professional event.
“The professionals, their consistency and the lack of bogeys and double bogeys, keeping them to a minimum and how they did that, I learned so much.
“I’ll hopefully be starting my season earlier next year playing in the Spanish and Portuguese Amateurs. I’m hoping for a consistent year with better scoring again and finishing higher in championships.”
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