Meath pair ‘speechless’ after emotional win at Royal Portrush just days before the Open
Royal Portrush has proved a happy hunting ground for Irish golf and the there was more glory at the County Antrim venue again on Friday. Just days before the best golfers in the world arrive for the 2025 Open Championship, won by Shane Lowry in 2019, a county Meath pair struck an unlikely success in an event hosted by the R&A. Irish duo Sharon Conway and Michael Wynne, members of the Rathcore Golf Club in Meath, secured an emotional win in The 9 Hole Challenge Final. READ MORE: LIV star denies theory that Open preparation is a shambles ahead of Portrush READ MORE: Rory McIlroy fires warning as PGA Tour star opens up after granting Erica Stoll her wish Golfers from all over the world played more than 711,000 nine-hole qualifying rounds in the hope of securing the opportunity to play the Championship course just days before the world’s best male golfers compete in The 153rd Open. First staged in 2016, The R&A 9 Hole Challenge encourages people to compete in a shorter format of the sport, with players from Argentina, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand and South Africa all participating to be one of the 40 finalists competing over the iconic Dunluce Links. Conway and Wynne won the Stableford competition with a net aggregate score of 37 points to take the 2025 title over holes 1, 2 and 12-18. This is the third consecutive year that an Irish pairing has triumphed in the Final. Conway said, “I am speechless at the minute which is a first for me. It was such an amazing event, to get to play Portrush is so special and the views from 12-18 are spectacular.” She dedicated the win to her mother and father-in-law who recently passed away within days of each other, “It’s been a hard two weeks, I don’t know what strings they were pulling up there for us, but they helped get us across the line. “My dad text me to say there were two special people looking down on me today, which got me a bit emotional on hole one, and I didn’t have a great start. But I pulled myself together and just didn’t stop until the ball was in the hole. I just tried my best.” Her playing partner, Wynne, remarked, “We’re absolutely thrilled to be involved and to win. Our prize was getting to play Portrush and soaking up the atmosphere. The course is in fabulous condition. It's going to be a tough test next week especially if the wind is up.” 14-year-old Harry Blood and Andrew McWhirter from Brighton & Hove claimed the runner-up spot on 36 points. Following a card countback, the South African pair of Barend Botha and Daryn Shepherd, clamed third place on 34 points. Blood wasn’t the only teenager in the field, as Jack West, 14, of Auchenblae in Scotland teamed up with his father, Neil, for the Final. Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts.
