The 2026 Dublin County Board John Smith Scratch Cup took place in the stunning sunshine on a true championship course in Lucan Pitch and Putt Club
The greens were beautifully prepared and the conditions certainly seemed to favour some of the early starters as a Dublin Team duo fired in two sumptuous rounds.
Lucans home hope, Gareth Walsh flew out of the gates with the help two holes in one leading the field with a brilliant -10 (44) in which he followed up with another superb round of -7 (47) to take the lead which would hold all day long.
Loughlinstown’s Gary Healy lamented his putting in a disappointing -3 (51) in his first round but Gary is an exceptional man with his back to the wall and produced a masterclass in round 2 which included a bogey 4 but that was well outdone by the 13 birdies! A -12 (42) would leave him right in the sights of Gareth Walshes rear view mirrors as the playoff began.
Ian Dillon of St.Bridget’s is a previous winner of this title and again he would have a part to play. Ian started with a fantastic -8(46) and followed that with a solid -6 (48) although he did let a couple of good chances slip by.The three men had cleared away from the field as the afternoon session found a swirling wind with the greens firming upa challenge too far with the first 11 all coming from the early session. As it was though, the cut line dropped to +3 as players had found themselves too far back to challenge the top trio!
The Junior Gents Winner was another early starter as Dublin Matchplay Runner Up Ken Butler from Loughlinstown took the top spot with his 58,57 and +7 total just holding on by the back 18 with Matthew Finlay just missing out on a local success.
In the Intermediate Gents, Old County Pitch & Putt Club member Derek Conway would put together two solid rounds of 52 & 51 for -5 total which again held up through the afternoon and was briefly threatened by James McLoughlin who had travelled from Mellows in Galway but would at least take solace in the Runner-up prize.
The Ladies Winner would be a victory for the hosts as Glenda Hoey took the spoils with 55,56 salvo with 4 shots to spare over Tracey Smith.
As we made our way to the play off, some players dusted off their clubs and again went out to take on the challenge of an ever toughening course.James McLoughlin would fire an early 49 but he would take the Intermediate Runner-up up prize and it was Michael Ahern who be the beneficiary as his 50 would take the final 18 prize.
Ian Dillon was trying as he might to catch the front two and his 51 left a total of -17 the target for the two Gar’s to catch! Healy opened up sublimely with birdies on the 1st & 3rd with the 4th hole being the pivotal point in the competition. The 4th as we know, is an extremely tough hole to hold and after a superb pitch Gary had his 3rd birdie in 4 holes and had stretched clear as Gareth dropped further behind and found himself +3 for his round.
Gareth to his credit though, fought back valiantly, recovering the 3 shots lost and signing for a 54 to finish beside Ian on -17 with Ian taking the runner-up spot by virtue of his final 18.
For Gary Healy though, he was cruising around a simply breathtaking pitch to the long 15th sealed the deal. A vindication for Gary who has come close to taking this title on more than one occasion and especially around this Lucan course.
It was definitely his day in the sun.
John Smith as always, greeted many of his friends from the Pitch and Putt scene at the first hole as he usually does. As always, the Dublin County Board is always proud to host the cup in his honour as he has given so much to the game throughout the years. We wish John and his sidekick Peg all the best as she took a rest today, one which we can say she deserves!
A huge thank you to all in Lucan Pitch and Putt for their hard work on and off the course as they produced a fantastic scratch cup as always and for Captain Michael Byrne for presenting the prizes. The DCB also were well represented today with Chairman Anthony Malone commending all the help received by Orla Creevey & JR Crangle in getting the timesheet done, the food by Tanya, Mick and the Lucan club as hosts and the DCB team for their continued support.
A final thank you must also go to our sponsors, Palmerstown House Estate and Golf Course for their continued support of our John Smith Scratch Cup
We wish all players next week in the National Matchplay Championships in Rocklodge, Bishopstown & Ranges the very best of luck