Having entered the final round with a five shot lead, Caolan Rafferty will be left to rue a costly finish at the home of golf.
It wasn’t to be in the end for Dundalk’s Caolan Rafferty who endured a disappointing finish at The R&A Foundation Scholars Tournament on the Old Course at St Andrews.
Representing Maynooth University, Rafferty had raced into a five shot lead after 36-holes and was hoping to replicate fellow MU student, Ronan Mullarney who won the two-day world ranking event last year.
Unfortunately, three bogeys in his last four holes scuppered any hope of winning as Rafferty signed off on a bittersweet week with a two-over par 74.
That dropped him back into a share of second at three-under par, the same score as defending champion Mullarney who put up a valiant defence of his crown.
The Galway amateur returned a superb five-under par 67 to join Rafferty in the runner-up spot but no doubt the former will be feeling better for the result as both players return home ahead of Thursday’s starting West of Ireland Amateur at Rosses Point.
Maynooth golf scholars had won the title three times in the past six years; Mullarney (2018) Stuart Grehan (2017) & Gary Hurley (2013) but the Kildare University was denied this year by Welshman, Aled Greville who fired a sizzling seven-under par 65 that was worthy of winning any trophy. He claimed the ‘w’ by three.
With Maynooth sending eleven students in total, Dun Laoghaire’s Alan Fahy was next best of the bunch in a tie for 4thafter signing off on an encouraging week with a three-under par 69.
Meanwhile in the women’s event, Hermitage’s Ciara Casey signed off in fine style with a three-under par 73 to claim outright seventh at two-under for the tournament.
Cork’s Rachel Thompson closed with a two-under 74 for a share of 11thwhile Lucan’s Molly Dowling’s 81 saw her drop into a share of 13thon plus eight.
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