A brief history of the club:

St. Mary's Pitch & Putt Club, Collinstown, Co. Westmeath was formed in 1971 and registered with the Pitch & Putt Union of Ireland in 1975 and is now one of the most renowned and popular courses in the country.  The introduction of the game to Collinstown was the brainchild of local curate at the time - Fr. John Kiernan and in May 1970 with the help of a lot of willing locals work commenced on the construction of the course.  Fr. Kiernan was the architect of same and what a fine job he did with the area provided, in ensuring that safety prevailed.  The fact that the terrain was very flat made things that much more difficult and the greens had to be highlighted in some way so elevated greens were built.

The first Committee for 1975 was as follows:

Chairman -                  Rev. Fr. T. Mullen (R.I.P.)

President -                  James Lynch

Vice-Chairman -         Donnie Weldon

Treasurers -               James Daly (R.I.P.)   Miko Fay (R.I.P.)

Secretary -                  Val Healy

Comp. Secretary -      Pat Morgan (R.I.P.)

Captain -                     James Daly

Other Committee members - Patsy McDonnell, George Correll, Billy Buckley(R.I.P.), Thomas Healy (R.I.P.), Aidan Garry (R.I.P.), Feichin Morgan, Dr. J.J. Cox, Tommy Timmons, M. Bergin.

The club was recognized as being one of the finest in the country in 1977 when it was honoured with the staging of the Ladies National Matchplay Championships.  In 1978 an automatic sprinkling system was installed at considerable expense which has proved absolutely invaluable in the management and maintenance of the greens to championship standard.  In 1981 the club was again honoured when we were awarded the hosting of the Gents National Strokeplay Championship Finals.

In 1986/87 work commenced on our new clubhouse and our dreams were realized when the official opening took place on the 20^th May 1990.  The cost of same was in the region of £5,500 and this was completely paid for from various forms of fund-raising by a very hardworking and dedicated committee of the day.

We had our fair share of champions down through the years.  In 1978 two of our members Feichin Morgan and his brother Pat (R.I.P.) were part of the Westmeath team which won Inter-County honours that year.  In 1978 Pat was also Leinster Strokeplay Champion a fete which was emulated by his brother Feichin on two occasions afterwards.  Paul Bray was Leinster Matchplay Champion in 1993 and Ann Kelly was Junior Leinster Strokeplay Champion in 1994.  Raymond Coleman and Liam Buckley were also Leinster Champions.  In 1995 we extended our clubhouse to incorporate the toilet block which had previously been separate and we also added a new modern kitchen.

1996 had to have been our biggest year with the daunting task of hosting the National Inter-County Championships in September of that year. Our hard working committee succeeded in making it a championship to be proud of. We also successfully hosted the Leinster Inter-Counties in 2001.

In recent years the success has continued in the club with several of our members achieving honours to be proud of. Alan Hanlon, a former Leinster Champion when he was a member of his previous club Campions, and Paddy Browne were proud members of the Irish team who won the European Championships in Holland in 2005. Paul Bray and Liz Quinn won the National Mixed Foursomes in the early part of this century. Paddy Browne and Moira Nugent were also victorious in the Leinster Mixed Foursomes. John McDonald and Brian Caffrey also achieved champion status on the Leinster stage.

Our current committee and set-up in Collinstown is as strong as ever and the foundations and ambitions of the club and its members will secure an exciting and promising future for the club.

Preview for the Championships:

Paul Byrne (Collinstown): Paul moved to Collinstown a few years ago from his native Dublin and on seeing the beautiful championship course in the village, it immediately re-kindled his love for the game. His greatest achievement in the game came last year with his County Matchplay championship win. Paul's ability around the green makes him a dangerous opponent and he could well cause a shock or two this weekend. His opening match is a tough one though - he has to face former National Strokeplay champion Liam O'Donovan from Bruff in Limerick. Liam is no stranger to Collinstown as he won the scratch cup there 2 years ago so Paul will have to bring his 'A' game to get through this opening match.

Michael Buckley (Collinstown): Michael grew up on Collinstown Pitch & Putt course. There will be no one there this weekend that knows the course better. Michael is also a past County Champion and has had the honour of captaining the county team on more than one occasion including leading them to runners-up spot in the 2005 Leinster Inter-Counties. Michael will be a match for anyone this weekend and will be hoping that the wind blows and the course is firm. His ability to play in tough conditions is renowned. His opening match is against the young gun, Graham Newman from Offaly. Graham is a brilliant prospect and will prove to be a tough opponent for Michael. It will be a very tight match with Michael perhaps edging it with home advantage.

Peter Dolan (Collinstown): Although Peter has been a member of Collinstown for many years, this is the first year he is a full member in that he is now registered with the Westmeath Club. Peter has won most of the major club competitions within Collinstown and has become a bit of a course specialist there in recent years. His strength is definitely in his pitching and if he gets his pitching game going then he will be a match for anyone. He got an unfortunate first round draw though in that he meets one of the all time greats of the game, Sean Downes from Stackallen in Meath. Sean is just after retaining his Leinster Matchplay title, a title that he won in Collinstown last year. On paper you would have to back Sean to go through in this match but Peter may create a shock if he pitches as well as he is capable of around this tricky course.

Alan Hanlon (Collinstown): Alan Hanlon needs no introduction. His name is renowned throughout the country as one of the true top players in the game. Alan a former Leinster Champion and European team champion will relish the chance to once again appear on this stage. Although his form in recent years hasn't been what it was, he still possesses a unique ability to win a game from any position. His opening match sees him meet Michael Hogan from Tullamore. Michael himself is a quality player and will know the Collinstown course very well. This will be an interesting match and very hard to call but once again, home advantage should see Alan come through.

Stephen Bray (Collinstown): Stephen has made qualification for these championships look easy over the past number of years as this is his fifth year in succession to make the finals. Stephen is in excellent form at the moment and a runners-up finish in the recent County Strokeplay was proof of that. Stephen would always consider matchplay his strongest game and has indeed a county matchplay title under his belt. Stephen has perhaps the toughest draw of all the local players though in that he has drawn the current number one ranked player in the country, John Walsh. John is a superb player that has won every honour in the game, his most recent being the Munster Matchplay title last weekend. It's hard to see Stephen finding a way through this match even on home territory but if anyone can then it would be Stephen.

Jonathon Daly (Rochfortbridge): Jonathon has hit the Westmeath Pitch & Putt scene by storm this year in his first year out of Juvenile. He has qualified for the Nationals in his very first attempt and is in the running for claiming a county team place in his first year playing adult competition. His youth and enthusiasm is a breath of fresh air to Westmeath and who knows what this man can achieve this weekend. His first match is against the experienced Eamonn Kidney from Offaly. It will be a tough prospect for the young man but he seems to be fearless and will not be afraid to win if the opportunity presents itself.

Ronan Whelan (Kilbeggan): Ronan may well be Westmeath's best prospect of going far in this weekend's championships. Ronan is just coming off an unprecedented 3^rd successive County Strokeplay win. He has been a corner stone on the county team for the last number of years and the openess of the Collinstown course suits his game down to the ground. Ronan has a tough opener against Cork man David Ahern but I think Ronan's experience and local knowledge will see him through this one alright.

Liz Quinn (Collinstown): In the Ladies Championship, our own Liz Quinn must have a great chance of her first honours on this stage. Liz is unquestionably the best player in Westmeath over the past decade and has now broken into the top ten in the National rankings. Playing on her home course will be a huge advantage and if she can find top form at the weekend, she will be a match for anyone. Liz has a tough opener as she faces Dublin's Phil Condron but I fancy her to come through this.

Moira Nugent (Collinstown): Moira is one of the great competitors in Westmeath Pitch and Putt. And the bigger the stage, the more Moira excels. She is a past Leinster Mixed Foursomes champion so she knows what it takes to win. Unfortunately she comes up against one of the all-time greats in the first round, Chrissie Byrne. Chrissie won the Leinster Matchplay in Collinstown last year, a title she retained last weekend and has publicly declared her love for the Collinstown course on many occasion. I'm afraid it may be an early exit for Moira but she won't go down without a fight.

Outside of the Westmeath qualifiers, the field is littered with biggest names in the game. When mentioning potential winners, you would have to look at the likes of John Walsh, Ray Murphy and Sean Downes being the favourites. Other names that will challenge are defending champion Chris Scannell, Liam O'Donovan, William Buckley (jnr), Darren Collins, Frank Dineen, John Crangle, Derek Courtney, Paul O'Brien...........the list goes on and on. In the Ladies, the names that jump out are Chrissie and Marian Byrne, Margaret Hogan, Ger Ward,  Tara Dillon and Tracey McGrath. There is so much quality in both championships though it is impossible to pick winners, but one thing is for sure - the weekend will be a feast of Pitch and Putt never before seen in Westmeath. Events kick off at 10.00am Saturday 4^th June and run until Monday evening the 6^th of June when we will know our new champions for 2011. Admission is free all weekend so pop out to Collinstown and treat yourself to an exhibition on how to play the game.