Team Mulcahy share in Mary Kelly’s and the U.S. team’s success at Lahinch Golf Club in County Clare, Ireland, on July 7, left to right, Bridget, Lyn, Erin, Mary Kelly, Meghan and Steve.
John Grindrod/The Lima News
While University of Findlay seniors Mary Kelly and Erin Mulcahy are a bit too old to be asked to produce a composition on what they did on their summer vacation during this school year’s start, should any English teacher ask for such an effort, would they ever have a story to tell. Mary Kelly was selected to play in the prestigious Palmer Cup, an annual tournament that was held July 5-7 which pitted the top amateur golfers in the United States against a team of top international amateurs, this year, played at Lahinch Golf Course in County Clare, Ireland. Mary Kelly also qualified for the British Ladies Amateur, played the week before at a course just outside of Dublin, Portmarnock, where Erin caddied for her sister. Mary Kelly used the tournament to ready herself for the Palmer Cup.
Both Portmarnock and Lahinch are links courses, common in Ireland, where over 60 of the country’s 450-plus courses are links courses. Links courses resemble the courses in the sport’s earliest days. The holes naturally follow the lay of the land and feature deep heathery rough, steep pothole bunkers and plenty of undulations. Additionally links course are coastal, with many holes right beside the ocean, meaning golfers must contend with very strong winds.
The identical twins of Lyn and Steve Mulcahy are part of the third generation of what you might call the family business. And, for the benefit of those who don’t pay much attention to area golf, let’s just say that business has been very good for quite a while now. The twins’ father, Steve, is the director of golf at Shawnee Country Club and is the longest tenured PGA professional at a course that is one of the state’s oldest, established in 1904. In addition, Steve is a swing coach working with the Findlay Oiler golf teams as well.
Taking it back a generation earlier, the Mulcahy twins’ maternal grandfather, John Fisher, was an accomplished golfer who, noted local sports historian Mike Schepp opined, just may have logged more rounds of golf at Shawnee than anyone in club history. Paternal grandfather John Mulcahy was also an excellent golfer as well as someone in the conversation when it comes to his era’s best athletes, both before and after his graduation from St. Rose High School in 1948.
Lima golf enthusiasts got an early indication as to just how good golfing would be for the latest Mulcahy generation. During their time at Lima Central Catholic, Mary Kelly and Erin played on back-to-back-to-back state title teams. Older sister Meghan and younger sister Bridget also can call themselves state champions, bookending that state-title three-peat.
Following what can only be described as a transcendent junior year, as her 71.2 scoring average were both a school and Great Midwest Athletic Conference record. Erin, whose scoring average of 75.20 dropped for the third straight year and was tenth best in school history in her junior year.
The Palmer Cup was co-founded by golf legend Arnold Palmer along with the Golf Coaches Association of America in 1997 and is comprised of the 24 best men’s and women’s amateurs in the country competing over three days and 72 holes. One slot for both the men’s and women’s teams is left open to the Division II player deemed the best to join the 11 other Division I selectees. Lahinch has been ranked by Golf Digest in the top one hundred courses in the world.
Fortunately, to gain some experience playing the kind of golf neither had ever played, Mary Kelly was able to play in the British Ladies Amateur with Erin right beside her every step of the way. While Mary Kelly shot 81 and 79, scores higher than she’s accustomed, the experience of playing links golf for the first time was invaluable as a tune up for the Palmer Cup as the twins worked on new golf strategies.
With Erin and Mary Kelly’s parents and also older and younger sister, Meghan and Bridget, all there in the gallery for both tournaments, Mary Kelly, using an assigned course caddy, came out strong on Day 1 in mixed match play, winning her first match. Part of the uniqueness of the Palmer Cup is it’s one of the few tournaments where male and female golfers team up for 18 holes of the competition. Day 2 saw Mary Kelly win her match both in the morning and, in a grueling 36-hole day, won again in the afternoon. Little did she know after Day 2 that she was on the doorstep of Palmer Cup history. On the final day, Mary Kelly indeed made history, becoming the first non-Division I golfer in this tournament’s history to win all four matches, defeating Ireland’s Kate Lanigan, 2 to 1. The four wins without a doubt contributed significantly to a United Sates victory over the international team, 32.5-27.5.
Next week, I’ll let the twins take over and in their own words give their own unique perspective on their Irish adventure, ranging from the lessons they learned to their most enjoyable moments.
John Grindrod is a regular columnist for The Lima News, a freelance writer and editor and the author of two books. Reach him at [email protected].
