Eire’s elite amateurs will face a much-improved Rosses Level hyperlinks when County Sligo Golf Membership hosts the 102nd Connolly Motor Group sponsored West of Eire Beginner Open from April 18-22.
Architect Martin Ebert and DAR Golf Development are near finishing Section One of many three-phase course renovation plan, which can current the gamers with many new challenges from the tee in addition to delicate run-offs and enhanced inexperienced complexes that may solely add to the problem.
There shall be a subject of 138 for the Championship with no less than six of these rising from the 90-man, 18-hole West of Eire Qualifier on April 16.
As for the sponsors, Connolly Motor Group has prolonged its sponsorship deal for an additional three years till 2027.
“We’re delighted that the Connolly Motor Group have agreed to proceed their sponsorship for an additional three years,” stated males’s captain Robert Fitzpatrick, whose spouse Niamh is Girl Captain, making them the primary husband and spouse captaincy staff on the membership since Mrs and Mrs Arthur Jackson Jnr in 1931.
“To have a sponsor of the status and generosity of Connolly’s permits us to take action a lot for the gamers and volunteers. Their assist of sport is properly recognised and positively appreciated by many.”
Kevin and Neil Connolly of Connolly Motor Group stated: “Connolly Motor Group are delighted to proceed our sponsorship of the West of Eire Championship. As a family-run enterprise within the west of Eire, we have now an enormous buyer base within the space and are synonymous with golf, so it’s very near our hearts, and we’re proud to have your complete model concerned.
“It’s a incredible native match, being one of many longest-running novice golf championships in Eire, with previous winners happening to attain big success.”
The sponsorship from the Connolly Motor Group permits Co. Sligo to supply gamers the absolute best expertise and likewise helps within the provision of reside radio protection of the occasion from Ocean FM,.
As for the golf course, work on Section One of many renovation of the hyperlinks started in October final yr and gamers, together with defending champion Keith Egan, will face an incredible check.
Many of the work within the first part has been on the green bunkers, unifying the design to a rough-edged fashion.
Greenside bunkers will stay revetted.
There at the moment are three giant fairway bunkers on the first, the place the bush on the left has been eliminated.
The fitting-hand fairway bunker on the second has been eliminated and the tough close to the boundary wall in the reduction of.
The golf green bunker on the left has been rebuilt whereas the run-offs across the second inexperienced have been redone, creating extra restoration optiins.
The view from the third tee is now even higher with a delicate mound on the left blocking the view of the equipment sheds. The inexperienced shall be rebuilt throughout a later part of the renovations.
The par-three fourth inexperienced has been prolonged to the left whereas the extreme run-off on the right-handside has been softened significantly, making it simpler to mow with out recourse to a fly-mo.
There at the moment are 5 fairway bunkers on the fifth, moderately than eight, and the inexperienced has been contracted, with the entrance greenside bunkers now 30 yards in need of the placing floor.
There may be additionally a brand new tee located centrally in keeping with the again of the fourth inexperienced.
The fairways bunkers on the sixth have additionally been redone, and a few greenside mounding softened considerably.
The raised seventh tee has been lowered to fairway stage, which implies balls working by way of the again of the 14th will now not run up in opposition to the steep financial institution that shaped the left aspect of the previous seventh tee.
The plan is finally to maneuver the seventh fairway to the left, however for now, the inexperienced has been modified, eradicating the large extension to the correct whereas additionally making a delicate run-off space on the again, the place balls beforehand ran up a steep incline, leaving a clumsy chip from a severely downhill lie.
The tenth inexperienced has additionally been diminished to its authentic dimensions, and the left greenside bunker eliminated, creating a brand new run-off space on the left and on the rear.
As for the par-five twelfth, the pimple in the correct tough shall be eliminated, opening up the tee shot.
The tee on the thirteenth shall be raised, providing a greater view of the inexperienced, whereas on the fifteenth, two greenside bunkers on the left have been eliminated and a subtly undulating run-off space added.
The greenside mound left of the seventeenth has additionally been lowered significantly, whereas on the 18th, two new fairway bunkers, located left and proper of the touchdown space, appromixately 100 and 120 yards from the inexperienced, will give gamers pause for thought earlier than they attain for the motive force.
The inexperienced has additionally been widened on the again following the removing of the again proper greenside bunker.
