It was about trust, in his swing and in the positive mindset that he had enjoyed all week. Standing over his second shot to the par-five 18th, Colm Moriarty opted for the three wood and knocked it to about 25 feet. It set up a two-putt birdie, a 70, a three-under total for the tournament and a cheque for €31,000.
Satisfaction though was not measured in euro and cent but in producing a decent representation of the ability that made him a top amateur.
In 10 Challenge Tour events this season that have taken him to Costa Rica, Kenya, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Guatemala, Spain, Wales and Italy, the Athlone man has earned €6,322 and lies 60th in the Order of Merit.
This week's sabbatical to test his game amongst the elite has confirmed his talent. He would contend that his form has been better than his position on the Challenge Tour might suggest and that last week provided an inkling of what this week might hold.
"This year I have been hitting the ball well and did so last week. This week that gave me that extra bit of belief and confidence. I drive the ball well and this is a driver's course. Maybe it's a bit of the Irish Open and everything that goes with it. My results haven't been as good but it's only a matter of time before I do break through there."
He knows the golf course is the only proving ground that matters for those assertions. Today he grabs a plane for Morocco and a return to less rarefied surroundings. It's important that the form he showed this week is a starting point rather than a peak. He will reflect on the work accomplished in conjunction with coach Brendan McDaid, sports psychologist Liam Moggan and caddie Damien Kelly. None of the three travels to Morocco.
"I wasn't trying to prove anything this week, just worried about myself really. I've said from the start of the week that I have been swinging the club well but just haven't been getting the results I deserve maybe. Brendan McDaid and Liam Moggan gave me extra confidence; Damien Kelly did a great job - it was a real team effort."
As a Walker Cup player, Moriarty would have had external expectations attached to his graduation to the professional ranks. He refused to buckle.
"It's difficult if you let it be difficult. There are very few that come out (of the amateur game) and do well (immediately). Most have it grind it out for a few years to find their feet and that's what I'm doing."
Moriarty started quickly, grabbing birdies at the third and fifth, but that momentum was stopped when the players were called in for about 90 minutes as thunderstorms enveloped Carton House.
On the resumption of play he struggled: "We had that delay, which threatened to unbalance me because I came out and bogeyed seven."
He fought tenaciously, saved pars on nine and 10, missed chances on 11 and 13, birdied 12, 15 and 18 and frittered away a couple of shots on the 14th and 16th; it certainly wasn't a dull back nine.
A top-10 finish would have given him a start at the Wales Open at Celtic Manor but that now isn't a choice he has to make.
He's hoping for an invite to the Smurfit European Open but other than that his sights remain firmly on the Challenge Tour.
