Black triumphs in dramatic Nuremore final after 'great battle' with Grehan

24/08/2021

Reece Black won a thrilling Irish PGA Assistants Championship at Nuremore Hotel and Country Club in a contest that ebbed and flowed before the Holywood Golf Club player finally triumphed.

He beat Liam Grehan of The K Club by one shot to take the 9,800 Euro title at the Co. Monaghan venue.

Black looked to have victory in his grasp only to drop back on the final day and almost hand it to his nearest rival. But in a contest that switched one way and then the other, Black rediscovered his form to win after finishing five over par.

"I was leading early on, but then I got a triple bogey at the ninth hole in round three in the morning," said Black, a second year PGA trainee who has recently passed his first year exams.

"But on the way in, I was two under par over the last eight holes, and that gave me my lead back.

"Then, going into the back nine on then in the final round, I had a three shot deficit. But Liam picked up a bogey and I hit one out of bounds but rescued it.

"That kept my in the running but we matched each other until the 10th hole when he did what I'd done the previous day, he lost his ball and collected a triple bogey. But then I birdied the 18th where Liam made par. In the end, I won by one shot, but it was quite dramatic."

Black admitted he thought he had missed out on the title.

"When I was three shots back on the final day, I thought that was it," he said. "But I kept my head and told myself that anything can happen, and it did at the 18th.

"I've won a few events but nothing like this, it went from one extreme to the other, first me winning, then Liam, and finally me. "It was great battle I have to say."

Black comes from a club with obvious pedigree as the home of Rory McIlroy. The 22-year-old former Ireland amateur international says that is a major positive for an up and coming player.

"Rory has a big influence here, he bought us the Trackmans we use here, and there are so many people who know him," said Black.

"When I won, so many people congratulated me on the victory."