Irish Sporting Eye

Ireland’s Leona Maguire carded a 1 over par round of 73 the opening round of the Pacific Bay Resort Australian Ladies Classic, the second tournament of the 2019 Ladies European Tour. Maguire 24, had one birdie and two bogeys in her round, however she will be rueing a 6 on her final hole.  New South Wales amateur star Doey Choi holds a two stroke lead after the opening round, after she fired a brilliant six-under-par 66 to sit two clear of Swedish duo Madelene Sagstrom and Daniela Holmqvist. Choi, 18, from Concord Golf Club in Sydney, reeled off an impressive eight birdies against two bogeys in her first round. She made six birdies against a solitary bogey in her first 11 holes, with her only blemish on the difficult 17th played over water, where she failed to get up and down from over the green. She bounced back immediately with back-to-back birdies, sinking a solid putt on the long 18th followed by a chip-in on the par-4 first and made further gains at the fifth and sixth ...

In hugely disappointing news for for Irish golf fans, World Number 8 Rory McIlroy has today confirmed that he won’t be playing in this year’s Irish Open at Lahinch Golf Club. The 29 year-old from Hollywood in County Down wants to concentrate fully on the Major Championships, and in particular the Open Championship which takes place in Portrush in July. "If there is ever a year when I feel I can miss this Irish Open, it's this year," McIlroy told BBC Sport Northern Ireland. "If I was to play the Irish Open, The Open Championship would be my third event in a row.” "For me, that's not the best way to prepare for what could be the biggest event of my life.” "I love the Irish Open. I've supported it in my whole career. The people of Ireland are still going to see me playing golf because I'm going to play The Open Championship and I'm sure a lot of people will travel from down south." He’s decided to play more on the US PGA Tour t...

In an historic announcement at the launch of Cricket Leinster’s 2019 season at Clontarf Castle last night, it was revealed that for the first time ever an English County side, Middlesex, will play a T20 game against Leinster Lightening in Dublin.  The game is set to take place on Friday the 21st of June in Sydney Parade, the home of Pembroke Cricket Club, on the longest day of the year.  The CEO of Cricket Leinster Philip Smith is delighted with the news, “ There’s no doubt that Middlesex are not only one of the premier counties in English cricket but an iconic side in global cricket, so for Cricket Leinster to be able to bring Middlesex to Dublin for their first ever match against Leinster Lightning is a fitting way to mark the Cricket Leinster Centenary year. I am certain that this will be a marquee occasion at Pembroke Cricket Club with a large crowd on a Friday evening being the perfect event for the longest day of the summer. We would like to thank Middlesex for accep...