SOCIABLE SISTERS TO SWING INTO KENMARE
Camaraderie is key in the Kingdom.
EXCUSES are never needed to visit the jewel in the Ring of Kerry but if you play golf and you’ve got a sister you might be heading for the Kingdom in July. The 8th Annual 2 Sisters’ Classic will take place at Kenmare Golf Club from July 13-14 and just like the club’s famous 3 Brothers Tournament, which is celebrating its 41st edition in September, the sisters’ event is proving to be a huge social hit.
“Yes it’s a competition, but it is much more than that,” said London-based pharmacist Grace Foley, who won the title with sister Christina last year.
“It is all about the camaraderie and sisters catching up a year later. That’s what it’s all about.
“The Brothers Tournament has been played in Kenmare for years so when it was announced that they were going to have a sisters event, we just had to play.
“I’d only started playing golf some 16 months before and while I’m playing off 33 and not very good, it’s a great excuse to come home and catch up with family and friends – and my sister.”
Sponsored by Pure Results with Kathryn Thomas, the event is open to all golfing sisters with an official handicap.
The week begins on Thursday, July 12 with a fun, 8-hole scramble that’s open to all sisters, family and friends and is followed by a barbecue.
The sisters then team up for scotch foursomes play on Friday before splitting up to play singles on Saturday with the better of the two sisters’ cards counting towards the overall team score.
“I think Christina is off 14, so she’s a far better golfer than I am, but we just play to meet up,” Grace added.
“I left Ireland after my Leaving Cert and studied over in England so I played very little golf growing up. It was only when I moved that I took it up and joined a club.
“Now that I am a golfer, the Sisters Tournament is in my calendar every year and it’s a great way to catch up with Christina and have ‘our time’, as it were. It just brings me back home every year.”
Grace is not too concerned about defending the title and like most of the other entrants, she sees the event as an annual ritual.
“To win it last year was great and I’ve come to see that a lot of the sisters that play every year just come back to meet up,” she said.
“They get a big entry every year, and there is sometimes a waiting list because it’s very sociable.
“I guess people come for everything Kenmare has to offer, and they bring their families too and make a holiday out of it.
“It’s a competition, but it is more than that. It is all about the camaraderie, it’s wonderful.”
The closing date is June 15 and golfers interested in taking part can contact the club on +353 (0) 64 664 1291 for more information.
It costs €130 to enter and forms can be downloaded at www. kenmaregolfclub.com.