Lucan Pitch and Putt Club is appropriately located alongside the Grand Canal, and conveniently near Adamstown train station on the “country” line. It celebrates its 50th year in existence in 2013 and to cap off the celebrations it hosts this year’s National Ladies and Gents Matchplay Championships. This small outpost of West Dublin used to be far removed from the hustle and bustle of Suburbia. But Suburbia has encroached and then some; Adamstown has come (sort of) yet Lucan remains. The small garage across the road is now a convenience store in all but name (it’s no longer the small Esso!), yet Lucan is still the same. Sarsfields are now one of the biggest clubs in Dublin GAA, yet Lucan remains.
I say Lucan is located appropriately, because it’s one of the grand old dames of PPUI courses. It is convenient that they’re on the main railline, because there are going to be plenty of people making use of day return tickets back to where they arrived from. They will never want to see Lucan again. But I implore any early casualty, as Portia doth implore Shylock in the famous Shakespeare play, to ‘tarry a little’ in this grand old course and its environs; savour in the welcome that will be afforded to you by the locals. Thou shalt not be disappointed.
And that is the beauty of Lucan. Not only do they possess one of the greatest pitch and putt courses around, they have the facilities to compliment it. Their greens are the Irish equivalent of Augusta, Ga. They even have an Amen Corner. [Or as the great Mick Byrne of the Hammond Lane, Old County and of recent times Tullamore parish might say, ‘a Hail Mary corner’.]
You have it all in Lucan; short hits, long hits; easy hits, awkward hits. Blind shots and big bunker shots. The tranquil setting is enhanced by the pleasant surroundings of the course, they have utilised their space well and there are numerous good vantage points for spectators and officials alike.
Lucan is a tough course. You must pitch well, and good pitchers will be rewarded. A good putter will love Lucan; bad putters will be found out. I’ve always found Lucan to be an unforgiving course, and once behind it is very difficult to claw back a round. I wouldn’t quite say you need to attack the course, but confidence is a prerequisite (certainly for the Senior players) and will be key to whoever emerges victorious on Monday afternoon.
I drew ire recently by insinuating that certain courses tend to favour home players. I stand over that comment. Larkspur favours nobody; Ierne favours nobody; Castletown favours nobody. Lucan does not fall into that category. If you are playing a Lucan player this weekend, in the main you are already up against it. Like the aforementioned Shylock, the Lucan course demands it’s pound of flesh. The question is this: Will you be Antonio and ruefully thrust forward your bosom to accept your fate, or will you be Portia and spare some blood?
Congratulations to the finalists for making it this far. Congratulations to Lucan for all the hard work they have put in to get their venue for the big occasion. Work was still continuing when I arrived on Tuesday afternoon, and is bound to be in motion until the wee hours of Friday night.
On behalf of the NEC, may I wish all the players, spectators and club officials the best of luck on this great weekend, and hopefully the weather will be kind and we can all look forward to some excellent Pitch and Putt.
Can you feel it coming?