Heroics by Offaly man puts Great Britain and Ireland in pole position in Walker Cup
It has been an eventful tournament for Stuart Grehan with the death of a much loved family member and a US commentator making comments about his former professional status
A TRULY heroic performance by Offaly golfer, Stuart Grehan has put the Great Britain and Ireland team in pole position in the Walker Cup at Lahinch on Saturday.
The Tullamore man came back from the brink of defeat to get the home side on the board in the afternoon singles as they took a 6.5 to 5.5 lead into Sunday's action.
Great Britain and Ireland are aiming for their first Walker Cup win since 2015 and Grehan paired with Elliot Baker to claim a crucial half with Preston Stout and Ethan Fang in the morning.
He kept the best wine for the afternoon singles against the number one amateur in the world, Prston Stout.
Three down after losing the first three holes and still two down, Grehan displayed fantastic nerves to take the closing three holes for a sensational win, getting 20 and 14 foot birdie putts on 17 and 18.
His win was absolutely crucial as Great Britain and Ireland were beaten in the following four matches before winning the final three to grab that point lead.
It has been an emotionally testing week for Grehan as a much loved family member was buried on Saturday morning and the Walker Cup star couldn't attend for very obvious reasons.
Willie Egan, husband of Grehan's aunt, Theresa was given a terrific send off at his removal on Friday and funeral on Saturday – nee Brophy, Theresa is a sister of Stuart's mother, Helen and the golfer spoke eloquently afterwards about how his memories of Willie hung over him on Saturday. A gregarious, larger than life, much loved character, Tullamore man Willie Egan was a passionate golfer himself and a former mens' club secretary at Tullamore Golf Club.
He was in that role as Grehan made great progress in golf in Tullamore Golf Club in the mid 2000s, before turning professional after some big wins.
His heroics in Clare prompted renowned USA commentator Dan Rapaport to have a go at Grehan's former professional status, posting on Twitter: “An awesome comeback. From a man who played professional golf for seven years.”
It was a cheap shot by Rapaport as Grehan competed in subsidiary tours and a big breakthrough eluded him. While the rights and wrongs of professionals returning to the amateur game are being debated by some and it is a source of conversation, several of the US team would be competing at a full time level and come from wealthy backgrounds – even if they aren't playing for cash prizes in big tournaments.
Now a member of County Louth Golf Club in Baltray, where he lives with his wife and son, Grehan has made a sensational return to amateur ranks after giving up on his professional dream last year. He won the British Amateur Championship this year and is now playing a huge role on the Walker Cup team.