David Penrose wins his first major in Collinstown
David Penrose receiving the Des McManus Cup from Nick Sheldrick
Last Wednesday night (23rd April) saw the opening mid-week competition of the year. The competition was the Des McManus Cup, sponsored by local publican Des McManus a number of years ago. 24 eager beavers took the the course to try to win this coveted cup but in the end, only one could succeed. The evening was perfect for Pitch & Putt – virtually no wind and receptive greens. Early noises were heard from many corners of the course. Larry McGinn got a near perfect start, birdying 3 of the opening 4 holes. John Browne went one better going 4 under for his first four holes having started on the 10th – this including an ace on 12. Kevin Flanagan made sure that anyone who had not seen his oner (also on the 12th) was told about it anyway – he really is a superb character!
After the opening 18 holes John Browne had set the pace with an impressive 46. David Penrose was also very much in the mix with an equally impressive 50, considering his 9 handicap. Paddy Gorman – as ever a threat around Collinstown, recorded a 53 which included a 6 on the treacherous 15th. This was not the most troublesome hole on this occasion though…….. a 15 (fifteen!!!) was recorded on the second hole by a certain member. I don’t think it would be fair to name the individual but suffice to say – it didn’t phase him in the slightest. Indeed that same player improved by 23 shots in his second round shooting a 74 & 51 – that must be some sort of record – what do you think John Manning??
John Browne receiving the runners-up prize from chairman Michael Buckley
Anyway back to the subject in hand. Browne was aware that Penrose was rocking and rolling and knew that he needed at least the same again or maybe even better. Some putts slipped by unluckily, others because of early season rustiness but still he managed to post an impressive 93 score to set the club-house lead. Paddy Gorman was one away when he shot another 53 for a 106 total (94 nett+gross combined total). The scores came in one by one and it became apparent that ‘Duckeen’ Penrose was the only remaining threat to Browne’s total. Penrose, originally from Lough Owel, is a very decent player though and was not phased in the slightest by the pressure. He signed for another solid 50 second round to give him a gross total of 100 and a winning nett+gross combined total of 91.
David was visibly delighted with his win and although he was a man of few words in his speech, the words spoken were from the heart and full of pride. Well done David – this might be the first of many!