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Caolan admitted that he\u2019d never felt pressure like that which he experienced during the final round at Portstewart (Photo: INPHO\/Laszlo Geczo)<\/p>\nCaolan Rafferty has etched his name into Irish golfing history as the first amateur to conquer all four provincial championships, completing the coveted \u2018Compass of Ireland\u2019 with a dramatic North of Ireland win at Portstewart, writes Ronan MacNamara<\/p>\n
Move over Rory McIlroy, there\u2019s a new slam winner in town!<\/p>\n
And while the Career Grand Slam winners\u2019 club has six members \u2013 Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and now McIlroy \u2013 the Irish amateur provincial slam is an exclusive club with only one name on the list: Caolan Rafferty.<\/p>\n
In September, Rafferty won the North of Ireland Amateur Championship at Portstewart to complete the four points to the Irish golfing compass alongside his South, West and East of Ireland titles.<\/p>\n
Rafferty is as laid-back as they come; he doesn\u2019t indulge in his now legendary status, but he has all winter to figure out how to deal with it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s still a bit mad that no one had done it before,\u201d Rafferty says when asked if the feeling has sunk in yet. \u201cI actually spoke on the phone to someone recently, and we kind of still said the same thing, that I can\u2019t believe no one\u2019s done it yet. But again, to have that now after my name, is a nice feeling, even though I\u2019m still trying to figure it all out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rafferty\u2019s achievement is circumstantial while also showcasing his incredible longevity in the amateur game.<\/p>\n
While Raymie Burns (1989) and Jack Hume (2010) won the Boys Provincial Calendar Grand Slam, even completing the Career Slam in the men\u2019s provincial championships had proved mission impossible for Irish golf\u2019s historic figures.<\/p>\n
Of course, the likes of Darren Clarke and Hugh Foley, who needed the West and East respectively, turned professional before completing it, as did some of our other elite talents, but a career in the pro ranks wasn\u2019t for Rafferty. Still, at the North of Ireland, he would have his once-in-a-lifetime moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt had been mentioned to me a couple of times. I wasn\u2019t going to play the North, but it just happened that work and everything else worked out nicely for me to play it that week,\u201d Rafferty says, highlighting the balancing act that comes with being a working amateur.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt had been mentioned to me midway through the season that if I got to play the North, it\u2019d be a chance to do it. It wasn\u2019t the main reason I went, but it was definitely one of the reasons that I stuck with going to play it and trying to give myself a chance to do it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was nerve-racking \u2013 definitely more nerve-racking than I thought I would ever experience. I would be one for keeping calm and chilled most of the time, but I was bouncing around that golf course for those last 18 holes, different scenarios running through my head, and trying to focus on golf was nearly a secondary thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caolan admitted that he\u2019d never felt pressure like that which he experienced during the final round at Portstewart (Photo: INPHO\/Laszlo Geczo)<\/p>\n
The Dundalk man completed a wire-to-wire victory, leading from the front, literally. Out in the first group in round one so he could do an afternoon custom PING fitting up the road in Portrush, he fired an opening 68 to lead after day one, and he managed to hold on for the duration.<\/p>\n
And in some ways, the tough conditions he and the other competitors faced on the opening day helped.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hadn\u2019t played Portstewart in years,\u201d he said. \u201cThe first morning, with the weather being as bad as it was, might have been a godsend, because it was really just a case of keeping the ball in play and chipping it around, and I holed a few nice putts midway through. But it was a very unlike-me round of golf \u2013 a birdie, bogey, birdie, bogey, sort of scenario. But it definitely put me in position from the get-go, and I never really looked back then.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the final round, Rafferty had plenty of challengers snapping at his heels with Andrew Mulholland and Ben Willis leading in the clubhouse at two-under, leaving him needing a late birdie to get over the line.<\/p>\n
But he held his nerve with a clutch par save on 16 and a magnificent birdie on 17, before a par on 18 saw him secure his place in history and for his nine-month-old daughter, a place in the trophy for herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think probably the putt on 16 was the biggest one, because I hit an awful first putt that left me in that five- or six-foot range and I said to myself, \u2018if this doesn\u2019t go in, the likelihood of you winning this tournament is very, very slim\u2019. And even at the stage when I did hole it, it was still a case that a playoff could be on the cards, because 17 and 18 aren\u2019t that easy of a finish. But I saw out of the corner of my eye who was there, and my caddie \u2013 in fairness, Kyle, he\u2019s been good to me all through the years \u2013 he just kind of said, \u2018come on, win it now instead of letting it go on too much longer\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cI spoke about that a wee bit with Stuart [Grehan] recently \u2013 he won the Irish Amateur Open and had his child there \u2013 it\u2019s a class feeling to be able to do that because it\u2019s not something you ever had before, and obviously it changes your life a lot. So, to have these moments is going to be nice to look back in the future and see it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rafferty\u2019s loved ones followed him everywhere he went this year and their presence at championships has helped change his outlook on golf. The winning feeling is even more enjoyable, while the bitter sting of defeat at the South in July didn\u2019t leave as deep a scar as it might have.
\u201cI have to get out of the house a bit more. It\u2019s that or change nappies. So, I probably played a bit more golf than I should have,\u201d Rafferty laughs.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut no, even at that, it just changes your whole outlook on what a tournament is. It\u2019s a lot more relaxing, especially when they\u2019re with you. I had Haley [his wife] and Maisie [his daughter] down at the South this year and had a quite good run there as well. So, they might have to come to a few more tournaments next year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know, coming away from Lahinch it was a better pill to take, in one sense. But again, it\u2019s not easy to give yourself these opportunities. I actually rang Colm Campbell on the way home and said if someone said to me at the start of the week you\u2019d be in the final and you might be beaten on 18 where you have a chance, I would have taken it, hand and all.<\/p>\n
\u201cJohnny Keane played better golf that day, holed the putts when he needed to. I struggled at the start, but it was an opportunity, and who\u2019s to say if I won, would I have played the North and not be in the position I\u2019m in now.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey travelled all around the country this year to any tournaments I was in. They were in Lahinch. They\u2019ve been the ones keeping me where I am. Would I still be playing all these championships? Potentially not. Haley always eggs me on to play them and keep doing what I\u2019m doing. There might be days where she gives out that I\u2019m at a tournament, but at the same time, would be very much backing me in continuing on. I do owe a lot to them for what has happened to me over my career, but definitely even more so in the last number of years, probably just keeping me interested in playing.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Caolan Rafferty celebrates with his eight-month-old daughter (Photo: INPHO\/Laszlo Geczo)<\/p>\n
Rafferty won the first of his amateur titles at the 2018 South of Ireland, where he beat Rowan Lester on the 20th hole in Lahinch \u2013 a victory he credits as his hardest to date. He won a strokeplay edition of the West of Ireland in Rosses Point a year later, then came the Walker Cup call.
Then studying in Maynooth University, it seemed that he was destined to leap into the pro ranks. But as the likes of Conor Purcell and James Sugrue took the plunge during COVID, Rafferty dug his heels in biding his time as a greenkeeper at Dundalk Golf Club.<\/p>\n
That turned into a labour of love before he transitioned to PING. He parked any thoughts of turning professional and hasn\u2019t regretted his decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cCOVID was probably the biggest thing,\u201d he recalls. \u201cBack in 2019, after the Walker Cup, I had the choice to make and finishing my college degree was kind of what I said I was going to do. I wasn\u2019t going to waste two and a half years just to throw in the last few months of it. So that held me up, and then COVID came. We were locked down. There was no Q-School. There was no real reason to turn pro because there was nothing to play in.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving said that, I see the lads that did turn pro at that time doing quite well. James and Conor are obviously flying, which is great to see, but for me at the time, it was just a decision I made not to do it. And then, obviously it went so long that it went out of my head nearly completely, and amateur golf was just what I was going to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t working. I was just in college, living the dream, as I call it, playing golf in the summer, and heading back to college then for the winter. But it was a decision that I had to make because I was moving on in years. \u2018What am I going to do here when I have my college degree? Am I going to use it?\u2019 Well, it turned out that I didn\u2019t use it at all. I went greenkeeping \u2013 I fell into the greenkeeping really, I just got a phone call asking if I could help the lads out \u2013 and from that, I\u2019ve got to where I am now working with PING.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rafferty\u2019s East of Ireland victory last year was definitely the most dramatic of the four wins.
Having three-putted from the side of the 18th green at Baltray with victory seemingly at his mercy, he left a packed gallery stunned into silence. But as he gathered his thoughts and contemplated how he had managed to throw it away again after several near misses in his home event, Max Kennedy\u2019s failure to birdie the last in the group behind brought him out of his misery.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember sitting on the bank with Haley, and I just said I can\u2019t believe I\u2019m after doing it again,\u201d he explained. \u201cAnd obviously the word came up that Max didn\u2019t birdie 18. I still didn\u2019t want to believe it until it was confirmed in the scoring hut. Everyone was congratulating me, but I was like, \u2018let\u2019s wait for an announcement from officials, youse are all just lunatics running off the 18th green all excited\u2019. It still took a little while to sink in that it was actually done because the three-putt on 18 wasn\u2019t my finest moment \u2013 that 18th hole in Baltray definitely owes me one in the future. It\u2019s cost me a few times, and I get plenty of slagging and abuse over it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now aged 32 and with all four regional championships won, countless Ireland caps and a 2019 Walker Cup appearance under his belt, one might think Rafferty can bow out at the very top.
But his motivation is still there. Not known as a range rat, he has already begun his winter work with just one goal in mind, a second Walker Cup appearance, this time on home soil as Lahinch is set to play host next year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI made the decision that I\u2019m going to knuckle down with everything that\u2019s coming up next year,\u201d he enthused. \u201cLet\u2019s be real about it, Lahinch would be a nice one to sign off on an amateur career in one sense, if I stop playing or take more of a backseat after it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI absolutely want to give it a run next year. Give the best account of myself, give the best version of myself, and see if it is enough to potentially play a Walker Cup on a golf course that I absolutely love. I\u2019ve contacted my old coach Dougie who is back on board, and I\u2019ll get a few lessons and try to do a lot of work over the winter and hit the ground running in the New Year.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will be class; the golf club are so proud of what they are and what they can host. The people in Lahinch are unbelievable. They look after you from the minute you arrive so it\u2019s shaping up to be an absolutely amazing event.<\/p>\n
\u201cI reckon the South next year will be the biggest field it\u2019s been in a long time, which is only right. I know it was similar at the North one year. We hope it helps, because we all want the best fields possible to play in. Obviously, you don\u2019t want it too strong to give yourself the best chance, but as a field you do want to have the best players in it. So, fingers crossed a few more lads come over and get to play a bit more golf in Ireland.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not going to be the only Irishman busting a gut next year to try to make that team. I see Dean Robertson\u2019s been reappointed as captain, so he\u2019s going to have plenty of headaches no doubt with the number of Irish lads that are going to be hitting the ground running. That\u2019s partially why I\u2019m interested in actually doing a bit more than I normally would do over the winter to give myself the best chance to do it. So hopefully, fingers crossed this time next year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rafferty was one of three Irishmen on the GB&I Walker Cup team in the 2019 contest at Royal Liverpool alongside Conor Purcell and James Sugrue and it\u2019s fair to say that the first tee nerves are real.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the best week of your amateur career in one sense,\u201d he recalls. \u201cYou get to meet up with lads that you don\u2019t really know, because it\u2019s a team that\u2019s made up of four countries. So you get to experience that from a week out, and sort of start gelling with each other \u2013 there\u2019s a lot of fun involved in it too. It\u2019s obviously a very serious competition, but there\u2019s sort of the fun aspect to it and that really makes it an enjoyable week. We got to play really good golf courses around Hoylake that week as well, and getting to know your teammates, because we don\u2019t get to do that too often, is a big thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust getting to play team golf is always class. So, it\u2019s definitely memories I have forever and every now and then, the odd video pops up and I\u2019ll always watch back and just try and relive it a wee bit.<\/p>\n
\u201cTeam golf is nearly bigger now because we really are coming towards the end of potential chances to do it. So, every chance you do get, you want to take it with both hands and give the best account of yourself. I always say, once the call comes and you\u2019re asked to represent your country, you\u2019re never, ever going to say no, unless something drastic happens. I\u2019ll try and keep doing it for as long as I can.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Caolan Rafferty celebrates victory at Portstewart
(Photo: INPHO\/Laszlo Geczo)<\/p>\n
Next year will be a challenge though. Rafferty\u2019s role as a custom fitter for PING means he spends a lot of time on the road. The life of a working amateur is a difficult balancing act.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour time for holidays and time for downtime is quite limited, especially when you\u2019re working full-time as well,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt\u2019s annual leave to take you to these places, so they have to be very understanding that a day off for me is going to be on a golf course at a tournament.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just been a tricky one to balance in the sense that, when I was working on the course, there was a little bit more flexibility with the lads, because it was obviously for the golf club, and if my boss there didn\u2019t let me have a day off to play a tournament, he\u2019d have to listen to the members giving out to him!<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s something that is a challenge, but at the same time I\u2019m used to doing it now. All of a sudden, over the last two years, we\u2019re able to make it work quite easily. But don\u2019t get me wrong, the practice side of things suffers. My social nine holes in the evenings have definitely dwindled away because I\u2019m often feeling that when I come home, I just want to spend time with the child, or that I just don\u2019t have the time to do it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always played golf trying to learn how to get around the golf course in as few shots as possible. You do it for that long; the competitiveness just seems to be ingrained in you. It reminds me of another conversation I\u2019ve had with Colm Campbell recently; he\u2019s the most competitive man I know that just can\u2019t stop. You keep saying you\u2019re going to stop doing it, but once the tournament\u2019s on and you enter it and all of a sudden, you\u2019re there. You just get the juices flowing, and you want to give the best account of yourself, because you\u2019re not going to these places just for the sake of it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt drags you to keep coming back. When this game is good, it\u2019s good.\u201d<\/p>\n
The above feature appeared in the 2025-8 edition or Irish Golfer. To view the full edition click below<\/p>\n
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