It was all over by 2.0 p.m. At that stage yesterday, John McHenry knew that a level-par 73 would not be sufficient to get him through Regional Qualifying for the British Open at Co Louth. Druids Glen had taken a heavy toll.
The challenge was significant in more ways than one. Not only was a Republic of Ireland club playing host to this qualifying process for the first time, but it was a challenge that marked the start of what is effectively a new career for the Corkman.
Having driven home to Cork yesterday afternoon, McHenry will fly out to the Stg£850,000 Standard Life Loch Lomond tournament this morning in the belief that "one more cut should do it". He was referring to the cash needed to make the top-120 in the Order of Merit at the end of the season, so securing exempt status for 1999.
Then there is the fact that British Open qualification is not necessarily closed to him. After failing to get through the first stage yesterday, another route is open to him. Exemptions will be given to the first five and anyone tying for fifth place, not otherwise exempt, in the top-20 of a cumulative money list from all European Tour events, from the Volvo PGA Championship up to and including Loch Lomond.
At the moment, McHenry is 19th in that list and those ahead of him who are not otherwise exempt for the Open are: David Howell (18th), Olle Karlsson (17th), Philip Walton (15th), Peter Senior (13th), Peter Baker (12th), Sam Torrance (7th) and David Carter (3rd). Which serves to emphasise the importance of making the cut this Thursday.
Paul McGinley had also pinned his hopes of getting through by this route. He missed an exemption by one place through being 21st in the European Order of Merit at the end of last season and is now 31st in the cumulative table, with £42,165. "It is a goal of mine to play in the British Open," said McHenry. "I remember travelling once before to Regional Qualifying - at Langley Park eight years ago. And I got through. The problem with today was that it happened to come at the wrong time."
He explained: "I feel very, very tired mentally after yesterday. Coming down the 18th, I was aware that I hadn't done enough." And his prospects were emphatically crushed by a drive into rough which forced him to settle for a par where most competitors of his quality were making birdie, downwind.
Turning towards Loch Lomond, he concluded: "I will be meeting this week with European Tour people, hopefully Ken Schofield, in the hope of lining up some sponsors' invitations. That is the traditional procedure for a player in my position."
Meanwhile, there were some raised eyebrows at Druids Glen on Sunday about the manner in which the Murphy's Irish Open was decided. It will be recalled that with David Carter safely on the green in two at the first playoff hole, Colin Montgomerie conceded defeat after failing to chip into the hole with his fifth stroke.
Some observers questioned the legality of completing a strokeplay event with what amounted to a matchplay concession. But it was perfectly within the rules, as we discovered at Woburn six years ago when, in similar circumstances, Tony Johnstone conceded the British Masters title to Christy O'Connor Jnr.
The action by Montgomerie and Johnstone is covered by Decision 33-6/3 of the Rules of Golf under the heading: "Determining winner and positions in strokeplay playoff."
The Decision says: "If there is a strokeplay play-off between two competitors and one of them is disqualified or concedes defeat, it is not necessary for the other to complete the play-off hole or holes, to be declared the winner." So, the procedure followed on Sunday was entirely in order.
McHenry's presence gave a significant lift to the attendance on the final day, according to tournament official Paddy Rossi. "We believe that his `Cinderella Man' appeal was a major factor in an increased attendance of 20 per cent on Saturday's figures," he said. In a long association with the Irish Open and previously with the Carrolls International, Rossi fully appreciates the importance of having an Irishman in contention. "The fact that John happens to be such a nice character, who has overcome so much adversity, gave it an added dimension," he said.
"On a general level, I would have to admit that we felt an immense sense of relief that the greens stood up as well as they did," he added. "This represented quite an achievement by the Druids Glen greenkeeping staff, considering the recent weather we've had."
He concluded: "Attendances were similar to last year, representing a figure of between 75,000 and 80,000 spectators over the four days of the tournament. Saturday's attendance dropped by up to 3,000, presumably because of the World Cup soccer, but the boost in Sunday's figures more than compensated."
As McHenry looks towards another tough challenge at Loch Lomond this week, he can take considerable comfort from the manner in which he handled Druids Glen, which had never been more difficult. The fact is that of the leading four finishers, he was the only one to keep a double-bogey off his card.
Carter also had a clean sheet in this regard until the notorious 13th in Sunday's round, but Montgomerie had come to grief much earlier in the event, carding a wretched triple-bogey seven at the 15th on Friday. The Scot also double-bogeyed the sixth in the third round.
Peter Baker had two double-bogeys - at the 18th in a second round of 75 and at the relatively easy third, in an otherwise exemplary third round of 66 on Saturday. Either way, it is clear that the course presented the desired challenge.
