Irishmen Paul Dunne and Gavin Moynihan, who knocked out Englishwomen Charley Hull and Georgia Hall in the quarter finals, progressed through their semi-final against South Korea and then the final against France to win the 2018 GolfSixes.
The pair lost just one of their six matches over the two glorious days at Centurion Club in St Albans – against Frenchmen Mike Lorenzo Vera and Romain Wattel – and they were birdie or better on 12 of the 17 holes they played on Sunday.
The winners each took home €100,000, with €75,000 each for the runners-up. The quarter-final losers, including the England and European Women’s teams, each took home €25,000.
Dunne and Moynihan, who played together on the successful 2015 Walker Cup team, were the fourth wildcard pair to enter the GolfSixes, but they felt confident in the six-hole greensomes competition from the start.
“We just felt like we could birdie every hole in this format. With two chances at tee shots, the rest of the game felt so solid that that was the most important part for us, to get a ball in play and then the rest of it, we felt like we were better than everyone else this week,” said Dunne, the 2017 British Masters champion.
Moynihan, who chipped in for birdie in the play-off against South Korea, said: “We know each other’s games so well and we’re comfortable with each other. So, coming in, we had kind of had a game plan coming in and the course set up well for us, I think. We had fun. Honestly it was the best fun I’ve had on the golf course since I’ve turned pro. It was honestly a great few days.”
Dunne hit the longest drive of the week in the final of 330 yards and Moynihan said: “He went after that one big time.”
Dunne added: “Yeah, it’s the final, you get a bit pumped up, everything moves a bit quicker. My swing speed might have gotten a bit up on that tee shot but it was the second shot that did it, you know what I mean.
“Getting the ball in play off the tee is one thing, but hitting the second shot on a par 5 to ten feet after the opponents have hit a rough one a little out to the right, we didn’t know where it was at the time. That’s key, especially when we’re one hole up. We had the thinking all week, we wanted to get off to a quick start and not let anyone back into it and just keep the foot down, because it’s only six holes. Anything can happen.”
Moynihan had not made a cut on the European Tour this year, but like Dunne, can now add the GolfSixes victory to his CV.
