As the drama of Rory McIlroy’s march towards the Grand Slam was beginning to unfold at Augusta, what more consequential venue for this match could there be than Portrush, where, in the Summer, the young hero of Holywood will hope to right the wrongs of 2019?
The other man attempting to right a wrong on the fabled Antrim coastline, was Mike ‘Porky’ Kershaw. LUGS’ finest player (his words) came to the match 0-4 in his games so far this year. Let down by each of his opponents (his description), he teamed up with Ian Raisbeck in the morning, the Hadley Wood club champion who last missed a fairway in 2021. Unfortunately, Ian played poorly (Porky’s description) and, at lunch, Porky dined on the precipice of an historic 0-6 season.
Aside from the Kershaw psychodrama, the morning matches over the marvellous Dunluce (championship) course were well contested, with the firm conditions underfoot proving more challenging to the LUGS than the home team whose local knowledge and (let’s face it) superior play led to a convincing lead at lunch.
Emboldened by lunch however, LUGS mounted a spirited comeback in the afternoon on the Valley course. Rallying with grit and panache, the team clawed back four afternoon matches, with Porky being rescued from humiliation by Leo who played extremely well (not Porky’s words). The QUGS held firm though and edged the match.
In the spirit of the these matches, camaraderie and competition went hand in hand and what a joy it is to play at such a marvellous club. We thank Portrush and the QUGS for their hospitality and wish them a marvellous Open in the Summer. And here’s to Sandwich in 2026!
Morning Foursomes
| QUGS | LUGS | |||
| 1 | Peter Greene & James Millar | 4&2 | Mike Kershaw & Ian Raisbeck | |
| 2 | James Dowling & Ben Brennan | Joe Park & Leo Faganelli | 1up | |
| 3 | Alistair Dick & Paddy Deeney | 3&2 | Gorm Nielsen & Sean Dryden | |
| 4 | Danny Graham & Andrew Dick | 3&2 | Alex Modgill & Andrew Berryman | |
| 5 | Jonny McDowell & Dan McCrea | 2&1 | John Dennis & Sam Baker | |
| 6 | Peter Murray & Mike Graham | 3&2 | Scott Beattie & Kaihan Mobed | |
| 5 | 1 |
Afternoon Foursomes
| QUGS | LUGS | |||
| 1 | Alistair Dick & Andrew Dick | Leo Faganelli & Mike Kershaw | 1up | |
| 2 | Peter Murray & Ben Brennan | 3&2 | Gorm Nielsen & Kaihan Mobed | |
| 3 | Peter Greene & Jonny McDowell | Sam Baker & Andrew Berryman | 2&1 | |
| 4 | Paddy Deeney & Dan McCrea | 1up | John Dennis & Andrew Modgill | |
| 5 | James Dowling & Mike Graham | Scott Beattie & Sean Dryden | 1up | |
| 6 | Danny Graham & James Millar | Joe Park & Ian Raisbeck | 6&5 | |
| 2 | 4 |
Match Score
| QUGS | 7 | LUGS | 5 |
London University Golfing Society 