Hermitage’s Rowan Lester held off a late challenge by Kilkenny’s Mark Power to claim a two-shot win in the Connacht Stroke Play Championship at Portumna.

On a sun-soaked Sunday in south Galway, the Dubliner started the third round with a three-stroke advantage over Malone’s Matthew McLean and extended that lead at five shots early in the round as his nearest challengers started to falter.

However, through ten holes that lead was back to one stroke as back to back bogeys mixed with an eagle and birdie on the 12th and 13th for Galway’s Liam Nolan ensured Lester was going to have no easy march for the title.

An Irish international, Lester picked up birdies at the 12th and 17th to stretch his lead to four strokes after the morning’s play.

Bridgestone Order of Merit leader Alan Fahy, Nolan and Dubai Duty Free Irish Open-bound Mark Power were his nearest challengers at two-under-par.

Lester’s only blunder of the week which threatened to derail his hopes of a first 72 hole stroke play championship victory in Europe came at the 189-yard, par-three fifth hole, where he made a costly double-bogey five.

But he responded in a manner worthy of a champion as he birdied two of his next three holes to stretch his lead out to two again.

“I hit it there this morning, it was a nightmare of a spot and I tried to dink it maybe five yards in front of me and I just, I don’t know I should have taken my medicine,” the eventual champion said of the fifth. “I was probably trying to get too cute and just then maybe ‘decelled’ a little. It was dead where I hit it.” 

The only other dropped shot of his final round was on the tenth but again he responded in style with birdies on the 11th and 15th while showing great composure with clutch up-and-downs on the 13th and 16th to close out a two-stroke victory over Power, who shot 69.

“Delighted I’ve never won a 72 hole stroke play event, it was always something I wanted to do,” Lester said, forgetting his two-shot win in the 2017 NAIA Championships in Illinois.

“Surprisingly for myself, I haven’t won one but delighted to get across the line, it wasn’t easy. I had a few great up and downs here and there coming down the back nine and I held a few great putts, yeah I’m chuffed.”

After clinching the North of Ireland Championship in 2017, Lester was eager to get over the line in 72 holes of stroke play.

“I feel a true champion is over 72 holes, I feel anybody can win in match play but in 72 hole stroke play the real winner comes out on top.”

Power will be buoyed with his performance this week as he took second place, proof his game is trending in the right direction ahead of his Dubai Irish Open debut next week where a mix of youth and experience will be on show as Dermot Byrne will be on the bag for the Wake Forest superstar.

Byrne previously worked with Shane Lowry for nine years.

Elm Park’s John Cleary took third spot on four under, which was secured through a fine closing round of 69 while Caton House’s Marc Boucher shot a bogey-free 64 to share fourth with Bridgestone Order of Merit leader Alan Fahy

Fahy extended his lead to 60 points over Galway’s Liam Nolan, who was sixth in Portumna, with Power two points back in third , ahead of the final-counting. 54-hole AIG Irish Amateur Close at Rosapenna from October 9-11.

Connacht Stroke Play Championship, Portumna GC (Par 72)

Sponsored by the Murray Timber Group

SSS: 73, CSS: Round 1 = 75, Round 2 = 75, Round 3 = 75, Round 4 = 73

Detailed scores

281 R Lester (Hermitage) 68 70 72 71

283 M Power (Kilkenny) 72 70 72 69

284 J Cleary (Elm Park) 71 72 72 69

285 M Boucher (Carton House) 73 75 73 64, A Fahy (Dun Laoghaire) 73 69 72 71

288 L Nolan (Galway) 72 72 70 74 289 G Dunne (Co. Louth) 76 69 76 68, K Egan (Carton House) 75 75 72 67, T Higgins (Roscommon) 73 71 77 68, H Foley (Royal Dublin) 72 77 73 67

291 C Campbell (Warrenpoint) 74 74 73 70, R Abernethy (Dun Laoghaire) 70 75 71 75, M McClean (Malone) 70 71 76 74

292 S Murphy (Portumna) 75 74 74 69 293 J Whelan (Newlands) 79 70 74 70, A Ryan (Thurles) 76 76 73 68

294 D Marshall (Naas) 79 72 72 71, J Hill (Galgorm Castle) 77 73 72 72, D Reddan Jnr (Nenagh) 73 77 74 70

295 L Grehan (Mullingar) 75 77 74 69, T O'connor (Athlone) 75 73 74 73 296 D Flynn (Carton House) 74 74 74 74, C Nolan (Portmarnock) 72 77 71 76, P O' Keeffe (Douglas) 72 74 75 75

297 S Flanagan (Portmarnock) 78 73 74 72, P Coughlan (Castleknock) 76 75 70 76, A Hickey (Galway Bay) 75 76 73 73, J McDonnell (Forrest Little) 74 76 75 72

298 D Kitt (Athenry) 75 74 70 79, J McCabe (Roganstown) 74 76 76 72 299 R Moran (Castle) 75 76 73 75

300 P Buckley (Cork) 71 75 77 77 301 C Geraghty (Laytown & Bettystown) 79 72 76 74, K Murphy (Dun Laoghaire) 76 75 75 75 302 S Desmond (Monkstown) 71 79 76 76

303 J Rackard (Enniscorthy) 78 73 74 78

304 D O'Sullivan (Tralee) 77 74 78 75, S Walker (Roscommon) 75 74 79 76, M Deasy (Lee Valley) 75 73 80 76

307 C Butler (Kinsale) 76 76 75 80

308 B Best (Rathmore) 72 77 78 81

RTD 230 J McLoughlin (Portumna) 78 74 78

Missed Cut

153 C Taylor (Kanturk) 81 72, A McCormack (Castletroy) 78 75, J Byrne (Baltinglass) 78 75, J Blake (The Island) 77 76, R Knightly (Royal Dublin) 75 78, K McCarthy (Lee Valley) 75 78, R Milne (Faithlegg) 75 78

154 A McCabe (The Links Portmarnock) 79 75, J Lyons (Galway) 79 75, E McCormack (Galway) 77 77, P Conroy (Enniscorthy) 74 80, E Sullivan (Carton House) 73 81

155 A Smith (Mullingar) 81 74, S Hogan (Nenagh) 79 76, S O'Connell (Athenry) 78 77, E Murphy (Dundalk) 75 80

156 A Collins (Laytown & Bettystown) 74 82

157 S Ryan (Royal Dublin) 82 75, J Keane (Lahinch) 80 77, E O'Donnell (Tralee) 80 77

158 D Keating (Seapoint) 78 80, T Ford (Co. Sligo) 78 80, G McKenna (Donaghadee) 77 81

159 S McDermott (Co. Cavan) 80 79, E Shipp (Headfort) 80 79, D Mulligan (The Links Portmarnock) 79 80, H Gillivan (Westport) 78 81, N Hearns (Mountrath) 75 84

163 E Collins (Laytown & Bettystown) 85 78

164 R Brazill (Naas) 80 84 169 S O'Connor (Castlebar) 83 86

RTD 76 Q Carew (Palmerstown House Estate)

RTD 79 T Dowdall (Woodbrook)