McGeady triumphs in wind-affected Connemara Pro-Am
Michael McGeady from the Seamus Duffy Golf Academy during the PGA Assistants' Championship - Ireland Qualifier at County Meath Golf Club on May 16, 2017 in Trim, Ireland. (Photo by Patrick Bolger/Getty Images)
Michael McGeady closed out the PGA in Ireland competition season in style with victory in the weather-reduced Connemara Pro-Am.
The 39-year-old fired a six under par 66 at the Galway venue to win by two shots in an event cut from 36 to 18 holes.
PGA officials were forced to abandon play midway through the afternoon on day one because of strong winds, which was bad news for Damien McGrane, who posted an impressive, level par 72.
“I really struggled in the conditions on day one, it was some of the worst weather I have ever tried to play in,” McGeady said.
“It was very unfortunate for Damien. His level par round was an incredible effort; he must have played some golf.
“That's the luck of the draw. Conditions were perfect on day two. We had a wee bit of wind at the start of the round, but it dropped away as we turned to come home.”
Starting his round on the 10th, the Derry native played his opening nine holes in three under par 34 with a bogey at the 11th cancelled out by birdies at the 13th, 14th, 15th and 17th.
Turning for home, he added three further birdies at the fourth, fifth and seventh to top the leaderboard on six under.
“It was a solid round of golf, and while it could have been a few better, I also had to hole a few par putts to keep things going,” he added.
“I think the key was that I drove the ball very well and I played a lot from the fairway.”
Victory in Connemara was McGeady's seventh of the season and his fourth since August.
“I had PGA exams to deal with earlier in the season, and I think I was probably concentrating more on those than my golf," the former Challenge Tour winner revealed.
"I wasn't focused on golf, I wasn't hitting balls, and I was trying to do a bit of coaching as well.
“For the last three months, with my exams out of the way, I was able to focus on my schedule, maybe play a practice round if I could fit it in and it freed things up. I was able to enjoy it, and I felt really good about things over the last couple of months.”
McGrane, Mark O'Mahony and Cian McNamara carded four-under-par 68s to finish tied for second.
Monkstown professional McNamara also took the team prize with amateur partners Martin Walsh, Jamie O’Mahony and Eddie O'Sullivan.
Connemara Pro-Am, Connemara Championship Golf Links (Par 72)
66 Michael McGeady
68 Cian McNamara (Monkstown GC), Damien McGrane, Mark O’Mahony (Titleist National Fitting Centre)
70 Simon Thornton (Simon Thornton Golf), Colm Moriarty (Drive Golf Performance Ltd), David Higgins (Waterville Golf Links).
