Mark McGowan at Killeen Castle
Max Kennedy’s maiden professional campaign is going very much to script and the Royal Dublin man finds himself in the spotlight at this week’s Irish Challenge at Killeen Castle.
Each week, the HotelPlanner Tour’s video production team select a player to be the main focus for the weekly highlights package, and it’s testament to their performances that Kennedy is this week’s focus, following Liam Nolan who became the centrepiece back in May.
It’s hardly too laborious, requiring some sit-down video interviews each day, but it’s a shift from the normal week-to-week tournament life, and if it’s any sort of a problem, it’s a first world one.
“You’ve just got to get used to it, don’t you?” he grinned, shortly after the cameras stopped rolling on his five-minute post-first-round segment. “That’s the plan, isn’t it? Straight to the top!”
That Kennedy’s opening round didn’t go exactly as planned doesn’t change the overall mindset. He’s only six back, he’s in position to make it through to the weekend, and he’s going to give it everything he’s got.
“Yeah, I didn’t hit it well at all,” he shrugged after an opening one-over 73 on a tough course and in tough winds. “Tee-to-green, I didn’t really have my best stuff. In the practice rounds I was flushing it, so it was a bit of a difference today. But I did well in terms of missing in the right spots and not putting myself under too much pressure to save pars.
“I gave myself good chances to get up and down and and was able to convert them and then made a couple of birdies here and there too, but, overall I’m happy that I kept myself in it and I’m hopefully looking forward to a good round tomorrow.”
He might be a rookie pro, but this is his 17th HotelPlanner Tour start, so he’s well aware that no prizes are handed out on Thursday and it’s all about putting yourself in position to have a chance on Sunday.
Nowhere was that better illustrated than at the Blot Play9 in France back in June when he opened with a round of 60 and led by four at the end of day one, only to be pipped in a playoff by England’s James Morrison.
“It’s tough out there, not many birdie chances, and you’ve got to hit really, really good golf shots to make the birdies, you know,” he said. “Yeah, it’s all about just staying in the tournament. It was always going to be a tough golf course, so it’s hard to see anybody running away with it.”
Like several others in the field, Kennedy is playing his first professional event on home soil but he’s now so comfortable in his environment that the fact hadn’t crossed his mind.
“I didn’t even think about that,” he admitted. “But yeah, it’s good to have the support playing at home. It’s amazing. Royal Dublin is extremely good with supporting their players and it was no different today.
“There were plenty of guys out there watching and if I can make a few more birdies over the next couple of days then we might get a few more down watching over the weekend. But you’ve got to get to the weekend first.”
For most rookies, their maiden professional campaign is about finding their feet, first proving to themselves that they belong and then looking to climb the ranks in the years that follow. But Kennedy makes no bones about it; he doesn’t want to get too comfortable on Europe’s second tier.
“I do tend to take it as it comes and try to learn from each week, but at the same time, I definitely want to get my [DP World] Tour card. To be in the top 20 on the HotelPlanner tour rankings and progress from there.
“Even though it’s great out here, I don’t really want to spend another year on the HotelPlanner Tour. You want to get to the main tour as soon as possible.”
Close friends, both he and Liam Nolan are in a similar position as we enter the closing stretch of the season, but in their approaches to the situation, they are polar opposite. Kennedy readily admits that it’s the number one goal, but Nolan prefers to remain coy, and it might be the right approach for both.
There are nine events remaining on the schedule – the second-and third-to-last offering elevated ranking points and the final event offering double – but there’s a delicate balancing act as you don’t want to play too much and suffer late-season burn out.
“I play every event bar one or two,” Kennedy admits. “I’ll take either one or two breaks, but I’ll definitely be playing the last couple.”
To watch Max and the other leading Irish players at Killeen Castle, you can register for free tickets at the following link.
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