Campbell claims 'special one' as O’Keeffe’s South dream evaporates with nightmare finish at Lahinch
Warrenpoint’s Colm Campbell. Picture: Niall O’Shea
Warrenpoint’s Colm Campbell overcame a two-hole deficit with three to play and “horrendous” conditions of wind and rain to claim the 121st South of Ireland Amateur Championship at Lahinch.
His one-up victory was tinged with sadness, however, that it came at the expense of a late collapse from Douglas’ Peter O’Keeffe who had played tremendous golf to get within touching distance of the trophy he covets above all others only to see it carried away on a gale force wind with two fatal shots out of bounds on the last two holes.
An epic final that will go down as one of the most memorable in this great championship proved cruel for the big Corkman, who beat Tramore’s Jack Hearn one-up having been two down after five holes in a morning semi-final played in torrential rain and wind.
But the 41-year-old had to bow to 36-year-old Campbell, a fellow two-time Irish Amateur Open champion, who finally grabbed a matchplay title to go with multiple matchplay feats of derring do in an Irish jersey over the past few years.
“That was as tough of a mental grind as I've ever endured on a golf course from start to finish,” Campbell said after winning the 16th in bogey at the 17th and 18th with pars to win one-up.
“It was horrendous, absolutely horrendous.”
He added: “First of all, I feel sorry for big Peter there. Two up with three to play, it’s never nice to lose in the manner which ended up happening there.
“I know he's been looking to win this one for a while like myself and I'm sure his time will come. But I’m just absolutely over the moon.
“I've been coming to South for a long time and they guys here look after us so well, we’ve got a close close friendship with (general manager) Paddy (Keane) so yeah, this was this bittersweet.”
Played for the most part in driving rain and a steady 25mph southwest wind that gusted to 40mph at times, the final was followed by a doughty gallery who might have been forgiven for abandoning ship after the Klondyke or the Dell.
Campbell was an incredible seven-under par in his 6&5 win over Castleknock’s Paul Coughlan in the morning deluge but he knew he was in a dogfight when O’Keeffe went two-up through three holes.
He lost the fourth to Campbell’s two-putt birdie and looked on as the Warrenpoint man matched his two-putt par at the fifth by knocking in a 10-footer having finished on the hill short with his tee shot.
It was clear Campbell was not going to go away when he got up and down from right of the sixth for a half in bogeys when the wind and rain was at its worst.
O’Keeffe showed his determination at the seventh, which plays parallel to the coast, where he had to lay up from heavy rough on the left (he hit a provisional so bad did his tee shot look) but hit a 140-yard third to 18 feet and made the putt for par.
But Campbell, who was in the swale left of the green in two, matched his four there.
O’Keeffe threw another haymaker with a drilled tee shot to the eighth, where a three was good enough to go two up again.
But while the ninth, 10th and 11th were halved in bogeys as the wind and rain lashed the links Campbell never gave up and salvaged a crucial half in par at the 12th after leaving his first bunker shot in the sand.
O’Keeffe was kicking himself for finding the other bunker back right of the green with his downwind approach and a poor tee shot right into the Mine at the 13th cost him a bogey and the hole.
O’Keeffe made a brilliant pitch and putt par at the 14t, where both men were left off the tee, to go two up again. But he was tentative with an eight footer at the 15th that would have put him three up with three to play and he would rather forget what happened next.
Halved in fives after two good chips. O’Keeffe had this to go
— Brian Keogh (@IrishGolfDesk) July 30, 2023
3 up. Remains 2 up after 15. pic.twitter.com/tVZOg8unE3
Buried in deep rough through the par-three 16th, he shanked his recovery down the fairway and lost the hole to a bogey before driving out of bounds at the 17th.
All square playing the last, the title flew away on the wind when he pulled his long-iron second over the wall and out of bounds and Campbell pitched on and two-putted for par and victory.
“I’ve been chasing a matchplay one for a long time,” Campbell said of win he adds to his three strokeplay championships.
“I've had a few close calls and I'll definitely put this one right up there with the Irish Amateurs that I've won the two of them (and an East). So yeah, this is a special one.”
He added: “From the word go when the matchplay started I had six tough games and I earned every one. There's a lot of satisfaction, especially this season.
"I didn't probably play my best throughout the season. But I was coming down here hitting the ball nicely and playing well and said at the start, if I can get the putter going I wouldn't be too far back come Sunday.
“And you know, it was nice to get the job done there coming down 18. I hit some nice shots coming in which probably put a little bit of pressure on Peter.”
121st South of Ireland Amateur Open, Lahinch (Sponsored by Pierse Motors Volkswagen)
Semi-Finals: Colm Campbell (Warrenpoint) bt Paul Coughlan (Castleknock) 6&5; Peter O'Keeffe (Douglas) bt Jack Hearn (Tramore) 1 up.
Final: Campbell bt O'Keeffe 1 up.
