HE had to endure one or two scares along the way but there was still a touch of the inevitable about Keith Nolan's win in the Irish Amateur Open Championship at Fota Island yesterday. Indeed, the 24 year old Eisenhower Trophy player had six shots to spare, in the end, over fellow internationals Richie Coughlan and Noel Fox.
Nolan, in fact, was the only player under par as he successfully retained the stroke play title with a 72 holes aggregate of five under par 279. Yet, Nolan, who narrowly missed out on the NCAA collegiate championship in the United States last week, was forced to dig deep into his reserves to fend off Fox, who trailed by just one shot at one stage on the back nine.
"I was getting a little tired, but playing beside Noel helped me," confessed Nolan, a graduate of East Tennessee. "It kept me on my toes and I'm very proud to have won this particular event again. I haven't played on this side of the Atlantic since the Home Internationals in Scotland last September, so it was important for me to come back and win, to prove what I can do."
It was rather appropriate too that Nolan should choose an occasion when the Walker Cup selectors were present to perform such a feat, and the 24 year old must be considered a strong candidate for selection on that British and Irish team to play the US at Quaker Ridge in August.
Before that, however, the Bray golfer has an even more pressing engagement, the European Amateur Team Championships at Portmarnock on June 25th-27th. The six man Irish team, selected last night, is: Nolan, Coughlan, Fox, Jody Fanagan, Garth McGimpsey and Peter Lawrie. Bryan Omelia has been named as first reserve. Three of the team (Fox, Coughlan and Lawrie) will be making their European debuts.
Fox had a run of three birdies to the 10th to reduce the deficit to two shots, and was just one in arrears when Nolan three putted the 12th.
"I knew I was in a battle then," said Nolan, who responded with a superb seven iron to four feet at the 183 yard 13th. He failed to get his birdie, but Fox failed to salvage par after missing the green, so Nolan's two shot advantage was restored.
Nolan increased that lead to three shots at the 16th when Fox again failed to get up and down after missing the green, and chipped in for a birdie from 25 feet at the 17th. There was no way back for Fox, then, and unfortunately the Portmarnock man lost a ball in the trees right of the 18th on his way to a finishing double bogey seven for an adventurous final round of 74, for 285, which tied for second place with Coughlan.
Karl Bornemann, of Douglas, completed four very solid rounds: to take fourth place on 286, while Tim Rice, who shot a best of the day 68 in the third round, and McGimpsey finished on 287.
Birr's Coughlan, who, like Nolan, only arrived home in Ireland from the United States earlier in the week, admitted to feeling tired and "grinded my way" to a final round 75.
