Patrick Keeling’s dramatic one-shot victory at Seapoint this past weekend has propelled the Roganstown golfer to the top of this year’s Bridgestone Men’s Order of Merit standings.
Having returned home this past Monday from college in Louisville, Kentucky, Keeling wasted little time igniting his Irish championship season, when he sank a 12-foot putt to claim the Flogas Irish Men’s Amateur Open Championship on Sunday afternoon.
The victory earned Keeling 500 points and sent him straight to the top of the leaderboard, where he now sits 75 points clear of Fota Island’s David Howard.
The Flogas Irish Men’s Amateur Open was also Howard’s first ranking event of the season, and the reigning East of Ireland champion produced a stellar final round performance at Seapoint to finish runner-up and collect 425 points.
Defending Order of Merit champion Stuart Grehan and Gerard Dunne (Co. Louth) also make their first appearance on the Order of Merit standings this season following their tied-third finish, while Thomas Abom is this week’s biggest mover. The Edmondstown golfer climbed from T38 to seventh overall after his T5 finish at Seapoint.
Next up for the men is a return to Royal Portrush as the North of Ireland Championship tees up at the County Antrim links from 13 May.
On the women’s side, Anna Abom (Edmondstown) remains top of the Bridgestone Women’s Order of Merit ahead of the Flogas Irish Women’s Amateur Open Championship, which gets underway at Newlands from 15 May.
View the latest Bridgestone Order of Merit rankings here.
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