Brave effort from Walsh

Headfort golfer Pauline Walsh narrowly missed out on the Senior Women"s Close title when she lost to Castleknock"s Marilyn Henderson at Ardee Golf Club on Friday. The tense contest went right down to the wire with Henderson only prevailing after an extra hole play-off to claim the title for the first time. Henderson started brightly and held a one hole lead from early on and through to the turn. After Henderson experienced some problems on the 10th, Walsh holed from three feet to square the match. The Headfort woman made no mistake at the next, comfortably holing out from four feet to edge ahead. Henderson"s up and down from the sand on the short 13th brought her level but Walsh chipped well on the 14th to go ahead by the slimmest of margins. The lead was maintained through the 16th, but Henderson"s steady nerve held firm to square the matter on the penultimate green. Neither player was able to grab a decisive lead on the last and a play-off was inevitable. Walsh failed to find the green in three after her tee shot found water in the play-off and Henderson"s regulation par was good enough to claim her first Irish Senior Women"s Close title. Earlier in the day, Henderson ended Patricia O"Reilly"s (Headfort) hopes with a 4&2 victory while Walsh dispatched Olivia Conroy (Co Longford) by the same margin. Henderson will now lead the Irish team of six, to be announced shortly, at the Senior European Team Championships in Dun Laoghaire, between Monday, 31st August and Friday, 4th September. Ciaran Boggan from the Co Meath Golf Club in Trim won the Munster Boys Golf Championship on Friday at Charleville, Co Cork. The competition took place over four rounds and is one of the most prestigious events on the juvenile golfing calander each year. Boggan won by two shots with a score of 287. The 17-year-old plays off a handicap of one. He was also on the Boyne Community School team that won the Leinster Schools" Championship earlier this year.