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Donaghadee Golf Club wins 2008 Irish Team Championship
Donaghadee Golf Club from County Down, Northern Ireland has won the Irish final of the 2008 John DeereTeam Championship golf tournament. This was held in August on the stunning Ailsa Course at The Westin Turnberry Resort in Scotland, venue for the 2009 Open Championship.
Rotherham Golf Club from South Yorkshire won the tournament overall, with a net score of 54 (15 under par) in the modified scramble event. This was just one shot ahead of Kemnay Golf Club from Aberdeenshire, with Donaghadee Golf Club one shot further back in third place on a net score of 56.
This made them the top placed Irish team on countback, after tying with Bandon Golf Club from County Cork, Ireland. Other GB teams with a net score of 56 were The Royal St Georges Golf Club from Sandwich, Kent, and Cavendish Golf Club from Buxton in Derbyshire.
The team from Donaghadee – made up of general manager Jim Cullen, past club captain Neale Jenkins, course manager Aaron Small and John Deeredealer salesman Neill Finlay from Johnston Gilpin & Co Ltd of Lisburn, County Down – won the John DeereTeam Championship crystal trophy for the club to keep for a year.
“We thought we had to be in with a good chance when we came off the 18th, as the team stormed the back nine, scoring 7 under par,” said Jim Cullen on his return to Donaghadee. “When we found out later that there were other teams on the same net score, that definitely helped us out when it came to the countback.
“It was an absolutely superb event, everything was very well organised and both the course and the whole day were just fabulous. Even talking about it now brings back very happy memories!”
Altogether 24 John Deeredealerships organised regional qualifiers for this year’s tournament, the fifth held in Great Britain and Ireland, with a total of 362 teams competing across both countries.
As a result, based on the number of teams entered, John DeereLimited has contributed this year a total of £9080 to support the educational activities of BIGGA (£7380 to the British & International Golf Greenkeepers’ Association) and GCSAI (£1700 to the Golf Course Superintendents’ Association of Ireland). Donations now total £41,855 to BIGGA and £9400 to GCSAI since the Team Championship started in Great Britain and Ireland in 2002.
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