British Boys: Séamus Power (West Waterford), who had won his opening three matches by big margins, was brought to a halt by fellow Irish boys international Shane Lowry (Esker Hills), losing 2 and 1 in the fourth round of the British Boys Championship at Hunstanton.
Lowry went on to win a place in the quarter-finals, squaring his match against Mariius Throp of Norway 16th. He won the 17th as well, but he missed from six feet for victory at the last. At the first extra hole he was always in command with a powerful three-iron from the tee and a seven-iron to 20 feet at the 345-yard par four.
MEN'S AMATEUR: Leinster, holders of the Golfsure Interprovincial Championship, halved with Munster at Co Sligo yesterday to set up a final-day showdown with Ulster, who overcame Connacht by 7½-5½.
Leading 3-1 from the morning foursomes, Leinster weathered an early singles onslaught when Pat Murray fired four birdies and 10 pars to record a 5 and 4 win over Mark Campbell before Mervyn Owens, Mark Collins, Peter O'Keeffe and Keith Crowley added four more points to the Munster total.
A half from former South of Ireland Champion Cian McNamara left the Southern province requiring just a half match from the remaining two singles. Both matches went to the final hole all square and both were decided in Leinster's favour. Robert Cannon almost drove the final hole and the match was conceded when Stephen Loftus failed to reach the green in four shots.
David Houlihan saved Leinster's title hopes with an up and down birdie from a seemingly impossible lie on the final hole.
Buried in deep rough 35 yards from the green Houlihan extricated the ball with a touch of genius and holed the remaining 15 footer.
WOMEN'S AMATEUR: Tara Delaney grabbed a golden eagle at the 15th at Royal Belfast to complete a crucial 5 and 3 win for Leinster against Connacht's Sarah Gallagher and help the holders squeeze a tense 7-4 result from the second round of the Ladies' Inter Provincial championship.
Leinster's win sets up a final day showdown with Munster, who easily accounted for Ulster 8-3 when they took six of the eight afternoon singles.
EUROPEAN TOUR: Tom Whitehouse fired a six-under-par 66 to take a one-shot lead in the Russian Open first round yesterday as former tennis world number one Yevgeny Kafelnikov toiled on his European Tour debut.
Whitehouse overcame pain in his right wrist to rack up seven birdies and a solitary bogey at the par-four sixth, ending the day one stroke clear of a group of five players including fellow Englishman Iain Pyman.
Swedes Mikael Lundberg and Fredrik Widmark, England's David Drysdale and Spaniard Jesus Maria Arruti also returned 67s to share second place at Moscow Country Club in suburban Nakhabino.
Stephen Browne, with a three under par 69, is best of the Irish with Michael Hoey next on one under par 71.
LET TOUR: England's Kirsty Taylor carded an 11-under-par 61 and set the lowest ever 18-hole score on the Ladies European Tour in the opening round of the Wales Ladies Championship of Europe by one stroke at the third richest event on the 2005 LET calendar.
Taylor leads by two shots from Nadina Taylor, of Australia, who carded an error-free nine under par 63.
PGA ASSISTANTS: Newlands professional David Mortimer and Gary Wardlow from Knockbracken Golf Academy, Belfast, lead the Irish challenge going into today's final round of the Powerade PGA Assistants' Championship at The London Club, Kent.
Mortimer added a one-under 71 to his opening 70, and lies just four shots off the lead, held by defending champion, Matt Ford.
Ford added a 67, the best of the championship, to his first-round 70, three clear of England's Matt Freeland and Ian Brown. The cut came at 152.
