Short putts

Athlone

Maeve Davis won the Women’s 12-hole Stableford on January 24th with 28 points while Nora St John finished in first place on February 7th with 27.

Evelyn Wright was the winner of the 97 Club competition on February 9th with 24 points.

Boyle

Boyle’s revamped Spring League has generated great interest this year. Bernie Kemple and Mary Queenan top the league after round one with Liz Dwyer and Moira Egan and Lochlainn Conboy and Michael McHale in second and third places respectively. The golf club is hoping to restart junior golf this year, most likely on Saturday mornings from Easter on. This is for children aged 8 to 12 and there will be a meeting on Wednesday, February 22nd at 8 pm in the clubhouse for all members interested in getting this started.

Carrick

Round two of the Flynn’s Bar Spring League saw Dympna Butler and Cathal Dowd hit 22 and 23 points respectively. Team 13, led by Patricia O’Hara were the top team scorers with 187 points while Anne Cox’s Team 4 weren’t too far behind on 183.

Thursday’s Senior competition was won by Anthony Noone with 40 points while Michael Gallagher finished runner-up with 39. PJ Sharkey was in third place with 37 while Albert Hogg (20) took the front nine and John O’Mahoney (20) the back nine.

Roscommon

Last Thursday’s Senior Men’s competition was won by W Doyle with 34 points while the Ladies’ competition went to Marian Kilroy. This year’s Drive-in will take place on Sunday, February 26th at 2 pm and the timesheet for the three-person scramble is now available at the clubhouse. The club sends good wishes to President Mary, Captain PJ and Lady Captain Paula for 2023.

The Ladies’ ‘Get into Golf’ programme will restart in March. For more information, please contact Ruth on 086-1509300.

by Tom Red

Tomorrow evening, racing is under lights on the allweather at Dundalk, first race at 3.55 pm.

On Saturday the action is at Gowran Park with Red Mills sponsoring the Grade 2 Chase and the Grade 3 Trial Hurdle, away at 1.42 pm and on Sunday at Punchestown, with the featured Grade B Grand National Trial Chase off at 1.10 pm.

On Saturday, ITV racing is covering seven races, four of them from Ascot, including the Grade 1 Ascot Chase and Grade 2 Reynoldstown Novice Chase, with two races from Haydock including the Grade 2 Rendlesham Novice Chase and the Grade 2 Kingwell Hurdle from Wincanton.

Red Mills Day in Gowran

There are seven entries in both the Red Mills Hurdle and Red Mills Chase on Saturday. The hurdle is headed by champion trainers, Willie Mullins with his only entry Sharjad, and the Gordon Elliott pair Fil Dor and Dr Bravo taking him on. Also in the field is Joseph O’Brien’s Darasso who is not out of it and Tom Mullins’ Takarengo has an outside chance. The champion trainer is three handed in the chase with Coppadano appearing the best of them. English raider, David Pipe’s Minella Drama and Mouse Morris’ French Dynamite should fill the minor placings. O’Brien has Darasso, winner on his last run over fences, also entered in this race.

Cheltenham Corner

Willie Mullins’ Alloha, an easy winner of the last two Ryanair Chases at the Festival, is out of this year’s race due to illness. He was odds-on favourite for the race and was last seen winning the Punchestown Gold Cup in April. Mullins has ample back-up with Blue Lord who now shares favouritism with de Bromhead’s Fakir D’oudaries at 5/2.

News from Gavin Cromwell’s yard is Flooring Porter should be fit for a bid for a third victory in the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle at Cheltenham. The 8-Y-O was a brilliant all-the-way winner of the race in 2021 and was impressive when successfully defending his crown last season. He has been beaten in both the Lis-