WEST Cork golf club Berehaven will meet Baltinglass in the 2020 AIG Jimmy Bruen Shield Final this Thursday afternoon (starts at 1pm), after both clubs won their respective semi-finals on day one (Wednesday) of the AIG Cups and Shields at Donegal GC.
Berehaven Golf Club, situated in Castletownbere, were the first team to book their place in Thursday’s decider after a 3.5-1.5 win over Ballinasloe. Baltinglass defeated hosts Donegal 3.5-1.5 in the day’s second match.
Declan Dunne and Luke O’Sullivan were the day’s biggest winners after a 5&4 win over Padraic Ryan and Charlie Mooney in the day’s second tie.
‘We’re absolutely delighted. We’re over the moon. It couldn’t have gone much better for myself and Luke,’ Dunne said after the match.
‘We were hanging in until the seventh hole, and we opened up after that. A few birdies got us motoring.’
Reaching the AIG Jimmy Bruen Shield Final will be huge for the growth of the sport in the area, O’Sullivan added.
‘It’s hard to describe. We’re a small club, and to be in a national final is indescribable. It’s crazy. We’re getting calls from people who have never played the game in the area. It’s massive for the area.’
Thursday’s AIG Jimmy Bruen Shield Final is the culmination of a busy day that begins with the Semi-Finals of the AIG Senior Cup, AIG Junior Cup and AIG Pierce Purcell Shield.
AIG Jimmy Bruen Shield Semi-Finals – Berehaven 3.5-1.5 Ballinasloe
S Spencer and B O’Driscoll beat J Corbett and M Corbett 1hole
D Dunne and L O’Sullivan beat P Ryan and C Mooney 5&4
C Downey and D Kelly halved with C Smyth and C Murphy
L Hanley and G Power beat F Finneran and D Flannery 4&3
L Harrington and D Hegarty lost to T Cafferky and M Conneely 6&4