Galway duo Joe Lyons and Ronan Mullarney will be vying for the biggest prize in Irish amateur golf when the Flogas Irish Amateur Open Championship begins at Royal Dublin on Thursday (5 May).
A former Ireland international and West of Ireland champion, Lyons will bring all his experience to bear this week. Rising star Ronan Mullarney, a teammate of Lyons on the Galway team that reached the All-Ireland Barton Shield Final last year, has made rapid progress since joining the Paddy Harrington Golf Scholarship programme at Maynooth University. Mullarney impressed at the home of golf last month, finishing third in the prestigious R&A Foundation Scholars Tournament at St Andrews.
A championship which has witnessed victories by the greatest names in Irish amateur golf during its 124-year history, the Flogas Irish Amateur Open will be played over four days at Royal Dublin. Boasting a stellar international field and with a roll of honour that includes Major champions such as Padraig Harrington and South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen, the Irish Amateur Open is Ireland’s blue riband championship.
This year’s 120-man field includes 77 overseas players from 16 different countries. World number 10, Jack Hume from Naas, is the highest ranked player in a championship that features six of the world’s top 100.
And as an added incentive, the winner of this year’s Irish Amateur Open will receive a place in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at The K Club.
There will be a 54-hole cut at Royal Dublin. The top 50 and ties will progress to the final round on Sunday (8 May) to battle it out for the trophy.
Flogas have joined forces with the Golfing Union of Ireland to become the new title sponsor of Ireland’s premier men’s amateur golf championship. After 10 years at Royal Dublin, the Flogas Irish Amateur Open Championship moves north in 2017 for a two-year stint at Royal County Down. Flogas have agreed a three-year sponsorship deal, beginning with this year’s tournament at Royal Dublin and continuing until 2018, when the tournament will be staged on the world famous links at Royal County Down.