Ballaghaderreen's golfing poet makes it an epic against Carrick

Ballaghaderreen Golf Club

Daily Mail
17 May 2009

IF poet Geraldine Lavin is tempted to write about Ballaghaderreen’s victory over Carrick-on-Shannon, it’s likely to be an epic rather than a couple of verses.

With partner and sister Ogie Moran, the Ballaghaderreen pair’s 2&1 win over Carrick in the third round of the Irish Mail All-Ireland Fourball Trophy took 5 hrs 20 mins to play 17 holes, such was the tension and concentration involved.

Club secretary David Wright said: ‘It must go down in some record books as a marathon. But you see what can happen if you think over each shot.’

The two sisters are both school teachers who retired early. Geraldine is a poet, writer and mentor to several writing groups in Mayo, Sligo and Roscommon. Both have been captains of the club and according to Wright ‘get an enormous buzz at representing it in competitions like the Irish Mail Trophy.’ Both are excellent singers who often entertain the members of the club.

Ballaghaderreen is a gem of a nine-hole course on the Roscommon, Mayo and Sligo borders. Founded in 1936 it numbers in its early members, Ireland's first President Douglas Hyde whose hickory shafted clubs remained a treasured possession, framed and displayed on the clubhouse wall until stolen by vandals in 2006.

In the men’s competition, Edenmore became the first team through to the third round with a thrilling 20th hole sudden death victory over Portadown.

Andrew Ellis and David Reid were two down with three holes to play but staged a remarkable comeback to level the match against Bill Nixon and Geoff Vogan on the 18th green, then win the play-off.