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9 Hole Challenge
Irish pair win The R&A 9 Hole Challenge at Royal Portrush
11 Jul 25
4 mins
Irish duo Sharon Conway and Michael Wynne secured an emotional win in The R&A 9 Hole Challenge Final at Royal Portrush.
Golfers from all over the world played more than 711,000 nine-hole qualifying rounds in the hope of securing the opportunity to play the Championship course just days before the world’s best male golfers compete in The 153rd Open.
First staged in 2016, The R&A 9 Hole Challenge encourages people to compete in a shorter format of the sport, with players from Argentina, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand and South Africa all participating to be one of the 40 finalists competing over the iconic Dunluce Links.
Conway and Wynne, from Rathcore Golf Club in Country Meath, won the Stableford competition with a nett aggregate score of 37 points to take the 2025 title over holes 1, 2 and 12-18.
This is the third consecutive year that an Irish pairing has triumphed in the Final.
Conway said, “I am speechless at the minute which is a first for me. It was such an amazing event, to get to play Portrush is so special and the views from 12-18 are spectacular.”
She dedicated the win to her mother and father-in-law who recently passed away within days of each other, “It’s been a hard two weeks, I don’t know what strings they were pulling up there for us, but they helped get us across the line," Conway added.
“My dad texted me to say there were two special people looking down on me today, which got me a bit emotional on hole one, and I didn’t have a great start. But I pulled myself together and just didn’t stop until the ball was in the hole. I just tried my best.”
Her playing partner, Wynne, remarked, “We’re absolutely thrilled to be involved and to win. Our prize was getting to play Portrush and soaking up the atmosphere. The course is in fabulous condition. It going to be a tough test next week especially if the wind is up.”
14-year-old Harry Blood and Andrew McWhirter from Brighton & Hove claimed the runner-up spot on 36 points. Following a card countback, the South African pair of Barend Botha and Daryn Shepherd, claimed third place on 34 points.
Blood wasn’t the only teenager in the field, as Jack West, 14, of Auchenblae in Scotland teamed up with his father, Neil, for the Final.
The R&A 9 Hole Challenge continues to help grow the popularity of the shorter format across the world.
The number of nine-hole rounds played in Argentina this year increased by 42% on 2024 while Golf Australia noticed a significant reduction in the average age of golfers playing nine holes thanks to the integration of the 9 Hole Challenge with their new junior programme, TeeMates. They have also noted an increase in young people obtaining a Handicap Index®.
Nine-hole rounds in South Africa increased for the second year with 4% more rounds played and more women participating in 2025.
The R&A 9 Hole Challenge is central to the organisation’s wider drive to promote this form of golf as an ideal way to enjoy playing the sport in less time, either recreationally or competitively for handicap purposes, and experience the physical and mental health benefits golf provides.
There has been an impressive growth of nine-hole golf in recent years, aided by the ease of the new World Handicap System™ (WHS™) to submit scores.