Campbell wonder shot kills off Boucher as players fight 60 kmph gusts at Lahinch
Colm Campbell (Warrrenpoint) in action at the 2023 South of Ireland, sponsored by Pierse Motors Volkswagen Picture: Niall O'Shea
Colm Campbell hit one of the shots of the championship to beat Carton House’s Marc Boucher 1 up and move into the quarter-finals of the 121st South of Ireland Amateur Championship at Lahinch.
Battling a 40 kmph southwest wind that gusted to 60 kmph at times, he came back from one down with three to play by finishing birdie-par-birdie to set up a quarter-final clash with Rosapenna’s Ryan Griffin, who was a 3&1 winner over Roscommon’s Cian O’Connor.
“I hit a lovely eight iron into 17 and I was ten yards closer,” said Campbell, who hit a nine-iron to eight feet at the 16th to square the match, “So I said to Daniel my caddie there on 18, it was the same club and just the same shot.”
Forced to lay up at the par-five finishing hole after find sand left off the tee, Campbell held up his 135-yard eight iron into a gale force right to left win and left it just inches from the hole for a conceded birdie four.
Boucher, who had missed from around 10 feet for par at the 15th to go two up, faced a tricky pitch from left of the greenside bunker but while he hit a good shot to within 10 feet of the hole, he missed on the high side,
“It’s nice I can still pull off those shots when you have to,” Campbell said. “I was just trying to give myself a chance for a four and Mark still had a tricky enough up and down. So I am a relieved man to get over the line, i It was a tough game.”
Campbell has had some near misses at Lahinch, most notably in 2016, when he lost to eventual champion Conor Purcell by one hole in the semi-finals.
He now faces Ryan Griffin, who had a 3&1 win over Roscommon’s Cian O'Connor with the winner to face Enniscrone’s David Shiel or Castleknock’s Paul Coughlan.
At the bottom of the draw, Tramore’s Jack Hearn made a 10-footer for birdie at the last to beat Enniscorthy’s Graham Donohoe one up and set up a quarter-final meeting with Strabane’s Conor Byrne (21), who came back from five down after eight holes to beat Naas’ Robert Brazill with a birdie at the 19th.
“Walking down the ninth with my caddie Jordan, it was all about damage control at that point,” said Byrne, who is heading into his fourth year at the University of Hartford. “I was just trying to win a few back and not go down to too bad a defeat and I hit a wonder shot into 10 from 230 with a three-wood.
“At that point I was thinking I had nothing to lose.”
Byrne won that hole with a par, then went par-par-birdie to win the 11th, 12th and 13th to lie just one down with five to play.
Brazill won the 15th with a par to go two-up, but Byrne won the 16th and 17th with pars and halved the last in bogey before winning with a birdie at the 19th, knocking in a 20-footer when he had two putts to progress.
The winner of that one will play Peter O’Keeffe or Co Louth’s Gerard Dunne, who had relatively facile third-round wins.
South of Ireland Amateur Open, Lahinch, sponsored by Pierse Motors Volkswagen
Live scoring
29 July - Quarter-finals
David Shiel (Enniscrone) v Paul Coughlan (Castleknock)
Colm Campbell (Warrenpoint) v Ryan Griffin (Rosapenna)
Jack Hearn (Tramore) v Conor Byrne (Strabane)
Peter O'Keeffe (Douglas) v Gerard Dunne (Co Louth)
29 July - Third round
David Shiel (Enniscrone) bt Adam Smith (Mullingar) 3&2;
Paul Coughlan (Castleknock) bt Matthew Giles (Greenore) 6&4;
Colm Campbell (Warrenpoint) bt Marc Boucher (Carton House) 1 up;
Ryan Griffin (Rosapenna) bt Cian O'Connor (Roscommon) 3&1;
Jack Hearn (Tramore) bt Graham Donohoe (Enniscorthy) 1 up;
Conor Byrne (Strabane) bt Robert Brazill (Naas) 19th;
Peter O'Keeffe (Douglas) bt Joe O'Neill (Berehaven) 5&4;
Gerard Dunne (Co Louth) bt Jordan Boles (Charleville) 7&6.
