Portmarnock Golf Club wins World Club Championship

12/9/2016 | by AmateurGolf.com Staff

Portmarnock team members Geoff Lenehan and Jack Pierse <br>along with Ayodhya Links Founder and Chairman Pitak Intrawityanunt <br>(WCC Photo)

Royal St. George's defeated Los Angeles Country Club in the consolation match

AYUTTHAYA, Thailand (December 9, 2016) -- It took one extra hole but after a day full of tense golf Ireland's Portmarnock Golf Club was able to outlast Royal Melbourne Golf Club and win the 12th World Club Championship at Ayodhya Links. The battle between the top two-seeds lived up to the billing as the match swung back and forth all throughout the day. The Irish duo of Geoff Lenehan and Jack Pierse broke the ice and took an early 1 up lead with a 3rd hole birdie before giving it back with a bogey three holes later that squared the match. Heading to the backside the match was still all-square, however that changed quickly as Matias Sanchez and Will Heffernan of top- seeded Royal Melbourne won the 10th and 11th holes to open a 2 up lead. Forced to play from behind and with holes running out two-seed Portmarnock received a gift win on the 14th and then birdied the 15th to return the match to all-square with three holes to play. An eagle on the par-5 17th appeared to have pushed Portmarnock over the top but a lost ball on the closing hole cost them and it allowed Royal Melbourne to square the match once more. The Portmarnock duo refused to hang their heads and minutes later, playing the 18th hole again, they sealed the deal on the first playoff hole.

Closing ceremony...@WCCGolf #WCCThailand #GolfBox pic.twitter.com/RBR F3m6CmM
— Martin Grøn (@greensworldDK) December 9, 2016

In the semifinals Portmarnock cruised by three-seed Los Angeles Country Club 4&3. The 2017 Walker Cup site team of John Callaghan and Sandy Horacek led 1 up following an eagle on No. 3 but the match was squared one hole later and Lenehan and Pierse never looked back from their. The trip to the finals was a bit more difficult for Royal Melbourne as they held on 1 up against No. 4 Royal St. George's. Karl Gilbert and Richard Osterdahl of Royal St. George's found themselves 3 down with four holes to play and they made a valiant comeback attempt thanks to 16th and 17th hole birdies before ultimately falling to Royal Melbourne 1 up. After falling in the semifinals Royal St. George's defeated Los Angeles 4&3 in the consolation match. Gilbert and Osterdahl won the first hole and led for the duration of the match.

About the World Club Championship

The club champion and a partner from GOLF Magazine’s Top 100 World Courses List compete at another Top 100 golf course over the course of three days. The first two days feature 18 holes of stroke play qualifying after which the top 4 teams advance to...

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