GOLF/Irish Women's Close Championship: Karen Delaney and Heather Nolan, two of Irish golf's prodigies, are set to serve up a mighty battle this morning in the second matchplay round in the Lancome Irish Women's Close Championship at Donegal Golf Club.
It will be a repeat of last year's Irish Girls' decider which Delaney won, and the 18-year-old Carlow player is determined to repeat the result at Murvagh.
"No doubt Heather will want to prove herself against me this time and I am equally determined to repeat the last result. It should be a very tight match and I'm looking forward to it," said Delaney after whizzing past Massereene's Selina Smyth by 7 and 6 yesterday.
The Carlow two-handicapper, who hits the ball a long way, rattled off five birdie fours in her gallop to this morning's action.
The first and third holes were swapped - Smyth winning the third with a birdie two - before Delaney slipped into gear. She was on in two blows for birdie four at the fourth, won the fifth in regulation, again reached the green on the long sixth with two approaches, holed a 12-footer for birdie three at the into-the-wind seventh and then polished off her opponent with further birdies at the 11th and 12th holes.
"The 11th was downwind and I reached the green with a sand-wedge," she enthused.
Nolan had a much tighter game with Holywood's Vikki McWilliams, squeezing into the second round by just one hole.
It was a double Delaney victory yesterday, as Tara joins sister Karen in the second round. The younger Carlow girl had a sweeping, 5 and 4 win over Deirdre Smith from Co Louth, and now clashes with Woodbrook member Sue Phillips.
Leading qualifier Claire Coughlan steered a steady course to win by 5 and 4 against former ILGU official Jenny O'Byrne. She now meets Sinead Keane this morning after the former Ulster champion overcame the experienced Mary McKenna, who was looking for her ninth win in the competition. Keane, from the Curragh, posted a 4 and 3 victory.
Coughlan won the third, fourth, sixth and seventh holes in par-birdie-birdie-par to be four up, but McKenna halted the gallop of her opponent with winning pars at the eight and ninth, where Coughlan was short both times.
However, the plus-two handicapper hit back with another birdie at the 11th and wrapped up the argument with a winning par at the 13th and a half at the 14th.
"I'm hitting the ball well but I just wasn't as solid today as I was in the two qualifying rounds," reflected the 1999 winner. "I was about level par today, but it's early days yet."
Helen Jones sailed sweetly to a 7 and 6 win over Limerick's Catherine Tucker, while Tricia Mangan carved out a 4 and 3 win over local Eileen McMullen. It was all square at the turn, but Mangan hit her opponent with birdies at 10 and 12 and also won the 11th hole in par. Pars were also good enough at the 13th and 15th for victory.
Ballyconnell-based Bronagh Lunney, playing out of Belvoir Park, a semi-finalist in 1999, was three down after three holes to Downpatrick-born Amy Duggan and still two down to the Killarney member at the turn. After the 11th was halved in birdies, Lunney cashed in on Duggan lapses to win the 12th, 15th, 16th and 17th holes for a 2 and 1 victory.
Former triple champion Eileen Rose Power is on course to add to her honours list. She powered her way to a 6 and 4 win over Suzanne Corcoran and next faces Vagliano Trophy team reserve Martina Gillen. Gillen brushed past Ann Marie Conaty by 2 and 1.
It was another day of sunshine and fresh winds at Murvagh, but rain descended as the last match was ending.
