1964 marked the second year in the National President’s role of a serving Irish Army Captain. Larry Furlong (Lumville/Curragh) was Kildare County Board Chairman in the late '50s and early '60s. He was a natural chief of the Leinster contingent (N.P.P.A.) involved in the unification talks, which led to the formation of the Pitch and Putt Union of Ireland, just as P.A. Murphy was a natural leader of the I.A.P.P.U. (Munster) group. Larry Furlong served on the six man Working Party (comprised of three from each side), which did the groundwork for unification. Private discussions between P.A. and Larry settled the thorny problem of who would be the first President of the Union and the solution set an atmosphere in which the fledgling Union was to prosper in the early years.
Captain Furlong was the second President of the P.P.U.I, in 1963 and 1964 and continued to serve as an Executive Officer until 1965. He was a Patron of the Union for over thirty years, having been confirmed in that role at 1970 National Convention.
An avid beekeeper and angler, Captain Furlong presented a Cup to be contested by the Pitch and Putt teams of the Army and the Guards in a representative match that was played regularly in the 1960s.
Captain Furlong regularly advised on course design and construction, travelling as far afield as Croom, Co. Limerick for that purpose.
Thanks to John Manning for contributing this piece of Pitch and Putt history
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