Thornton cruises to six-shot Irish PGA win
Simon Thornton won the 101st Irish PGA Championship by an impressive six shots from Gary Murphy at Seapoint.
The 31-year old Englishman - now playing out of Newcastle, Co Down and a Team Ireland sponsored player - closed with rounds of 71 and 66 on the final day to finish with a record low total of 19-under-par 269.
Thornton was disappointed that he failed to complete 72 holes without a bogey - he dropped his only shot of the week at the par four 11th in his final round - but he could not have been happier with his victory.
He said: “After the halfway cut, my target was to finish without a bogey at 20-under-par but I missed out on that. However, it feels great to have won the title with such great players as Des Smyth in the draw.”
Gary Murphy finished second after following a course record, eight under par 64 with a closing 69 to finish to finish on 13-under-par with six-time champion Smyth closing with a 70 for joint third place alongside newly qualified Seamus McMonagle (67).
101st Irish PGA Championship, Seapoint (€25,000) August 4-6
Final Scores:
269 Simon Thornton (Team Ireland) 66 66 71 66 (€3,000)
275 Gary Murphy (Unattached) 70 72 64 69 (€1,990)
276 Des Smyth (Unattached) 67 68 71 70; Seamus McMonagle (Dunfanaghy) 70 66 73 67 (€1,495 each)
278 Barrie Trainor (Mayobridge) 68 71 67 72 (€1,205)
279 John Dwyer ( Ashbourne) 68 71 71 69 (€1,120)
280 Damian Mooney (Ballyliffin) 70 71 71 68 (€1,015)
282 Michael Collins (Mallow) 74 67 70 71; David Higgins (Waterville) 69 69 74 70 (€790 each)
283 Glen Robinson (St Helen’s Bay) 67 76 69 71; Neil O’Briain (Unattached) 67 70 74 72 (€685 each)
285 John Murray (Malahide) 70 73 72 70; Brendan McGovern (Headfort) 72 68 71 74 (€540 each)
286 Cian McNamara (Limerick) 72 72 71 71; Michael McDermott (Pure Golf) 74 71 66 75; John Kelly ( St Margaret’s) 76 70 68 72; Peter Martin (Riverside Golf Academy)74 69 72 71; Patrick Devine (Royal Dublin) 70 70 71 75.
287 Brian O’Donovan (Douglas) 72 75 71 69; Mark Staunton ( Castleknock) 68 71 74.
288 Donal Gleeson (Old Conna) 71 72 73 72; Graeme Dunlea ( Adare Manor) 73 75 75 65; David Mortimer (Galway) 69 73 75 71.
289 Colin Lyttle ( Ballyclare) 71 74 71 73; Chris Moriarty (Donaghadee) 72 75 71 71; Niall Kearney (Royal Dublin) 70 73 71 75.
290 Philip Walton (Unattached) 75 69 73 73; Robert Giles (Greenore) 76 68 72 74; Paul Stevenson (Portadown) 72 70 76 72.
291 Padraig Dooley (Cork) 74 70 74 73; Wayne O’Callaghan (www.wayneocallaghangolf.com) 75 74 72 70; David Ryan (Cahir Park) 69, 69 76 77.
292 Daniel Sugrue (Killarney) 69 74 74 75; Michael Allan (Leopardstown) 69 74 73 76.
293 Darren McWilliams ( Blackwood) 76 70 76 71.
294 Mark O’Mahony ( Castleknock) 72 74 72 76; John Sugrue (Tralee) 73 69 78 74; Mark Whelan (Castlewarden) 76 73 74 71.
295 Enda McLoughlin (Wicklow) 75 73 73 74;Eddie Doyle (Natural Golf School) 74 75 72 74.
296 Graham Callaghan (Hollywood Lakes) 76 71 69 80; Kenny Fahey (Golfing Union of Ireland) 75 73 74 74.
297 Brian Kerley ( Green Life) 72 72 75 78; Gerard Hall ( Edenderry Golf Academy) 73 74 76 74; John Dignam (Slade Valley) 74 74 75 74; David Winters (Seapoint) 70 79 75 73.
300 Marc Kynes (Greystones) 73 76 76 75; Kevin Foy (Stepaside) 76 73 79 72.
301 Enda Maguire (Dundalk) 74 73 78 76; Jimmy Bolger (Kilkenny)73 75 75 78.
303 Brendan McDermott (Unattached) 75 73 71 84; Gerry Burke (The Curragh) 76 73 76 78; Steven Ritchie ( Shandon Park) 73 76 76 78; Eamonn Brady (Clontarf) 77 72 79 75; John Dolan (Scrabo) 78 71 76 78.
304 Rory Doran (Royal County Down) 78 70 76 80.
CUT
CUT Peter Hanna Lurgan Golf Club +6
CUT Michael Gallagher Killymoon Golf Club +6
CUT Thomas Niland Athenry Golf Club +6
CUT Mark Cribben Carr Golf Services +6
CUT Derek McNamara Portmarnock Golf Club +7
CUT Mervyn Owens Mallow Golf Club +7
CUT Peter Jones Coollattin Golf Club +7
CUT Patrick Geraghty +7
CUT John McDermott +8
CUT Mark O’Sullivan Ashbourne Golf Club +8
CUT Eamonn Logue Hilton Templepatrick Golf Club +8
CUT Patrick Errity +8
CUT Christopher Sammon Malahide Golf Club +8
CUT Seamus Clinton Letterkenny Golf Club +8
CUT Stephen Galvin Curragh Golf Club +8
CUT Christopher Jelly Dungannon Golf Club +8
CUT Paul Masterson Coollattin Golf Club +8
CUT Darren Walsh Wexford Golf Club +9
CUT David Carroll Seapoint Golf Club +9
CUT Gerard Jones Thurles Golf Club +9
CUT Michael Quinlivan Nevada Bobs +10
CUT Ted Higgins Mount Wolseley Golf & County C +10
CUT Shaun Donnelly Castle Hume Golf Club +10
CUT Henry Byrne Acushnet Ireland +10
CUT Eamonn O’Flanagan Heritage Golf & C Club +11
CUT Conor McCormick Newcastle West Golf Club +11
CUT Shane Deegan Spawell Driving Range +12
CUT Michael O’Shea Callan Golf Club +12
CUT Scott Wilson Royal Tara Golf Club +12
CUT James Fay County Meath Golf Club +12
CUT Brian Cosgrove Athy Golf Centre +12
CUT Leo Hynes Ballinastoe Golf Club +13
CUT Colin Clancy Castle Golf Club +13
CUT Padraig McGrath P & M Golf Superstore Ltd +13
CUT Gregory Leech South County Golf Club +14
CUT Hugh Jackson +14
CUT David McIntyre Wicklow Golf Club +14
CUT Robert Hogan Halpenny Golf +14
CUT Thomas Johnston Castlerock Golf Club +14
CUT Ian Kearney Doonbeg Golf Club +14
CUT Tony O’Regan Carton House Golf Course +14
CUT Douglas Bell Kellys Golf Centre +15
CUT Nigel Howley Balbriggan Golf Club +15
CUT Kealan O’Reilly Headfort Golf Club +15
CUT Greg Massey Hermitage Golf Club +15
CUT Fintan Bonner Black Bush Golf Club +16
CUT William Noble County Cavan Golf Club +16
CUT Mark Heinemann Skellig Bay Golf Club +16
CUT Charles Bell Ardee Golf Club +16
CUT Paddy McGuirk Co. Louth Golf Club +17
CUT Dermot O’Neill Woodbrook Golf Club +17
CUT Peter McClelland Peter McClelland Golf +20
CUT Conor Russell Sutton Golf Club +23
CUT Hugh Feeney Athlone Golf Club +24
CUT Denis McCann Westmanstown Golf Club +27
CUT Jamie McConnell +29
WD Simon Byrne Hermitage Golf Club
WD Ciaran Carroll Bray Golf Club
DQ Kevin Dorrian Scrabo Golf Club +8
DQ Gary Chambers Killymoon Golf Club +8
DQ Fintan Lacey Newlands Golf Club +11
DQ Jim Geraghty Grange Golf Club +23
NC Wesley Ramsay Knockbracken Golf Academy +6
NC Richard Whitford Knock Golf Club +8
NC Shane Madden Athlone Golf Academy +8
NC Darren Moore Townley Hall Golf Club +8