
Golfing legend tees it up in Dublin before heading to Portrush
Clarke is back in Ireland for next week's Open Championship with the final major of the year returning to Irish soil.
The Dungannon man won the Claret Jug back in 2011 to cap off a stellar career and is getting plenty of links practice in before the big tournament.
Clarke shared a snap from Portmarnock, where he played a round of golf with his two sons and his close friend.
Portmarnock itself is in line to host the tournament, with the R&A seemingly eager to bring the tournament to Dublin in what would be a historic move. The major has only ever been held within England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
The club recently received the backing of Fingal County Council to host the event while a vote to change the links in order to host the event was voted through at the end of April.
The changes would involved a rejig of the course while the lay out would be slightly altered for the tournament week. The relevant bodies are currently engaged in talks with the R&A about the logistics in hosting the tournament at the venue and it is believed the Women's Open will first take place.
Portrush will host next week's Open Championship at the same venue where Shane Lowry won the Claret Jug in 2019.
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The Irish Sun
29 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
Douglas James-Taylor bags first Bohemians goal in cruise over Galway United – though concern over injured ace
BOHEMIANS climbed to second thanks to their biggest home win in 20 months. Douglas James-Taylor's first goal for the club - on Although they had twice won 3-0 on the road since, it was their largest margin of victory in Phibsborough since defeating Cork City 4-0 on the final day of the 2023 season. They are now eight points behind leaders Shamrock Rovers, with a game in hand, although Derry City can leapfrog them if they beat Sligo Rovers. The next league game for Alan Reynolds' side is away to the Candystripes on Friday week with both sides looking to establish their credentials as the Hoops' main challengers. For Galway, it is about trying to stop the rot. They have won just two of their last 12 games. Read More On Irish Football They had taken three points here in March but that was thanks to two goals by Moses Dyer who had since left. His effective replacement Malcom Shaw was handful here but is not as clinical. This was his fifth appearance and he has yet to score. He went close with a bicycle kick from Jeannot Esua's cross. And his physical presence did give Galway an outlet in the first half at least. Esua was involved in Galway's only real other opportunity of the first half when his path deflected nicely into the path of Ed McCarthy. Most read in Football Kacper Chorazka was alert to the danger and raced off his line to block. The ball came to David Hurley but his chipped effort went wide. But Bohs had the bulk of the ball and more chances. From Chorazka's goal kick following Hurley's shot, Greg Cunningham misdirected a defensive header. Inside Lamine Yamal's epic summer including holiday to Sicily with model 11 years his senior & meeting Neymar in Brazil That allowed James Clarke to nick the ball, he shifted the ball on to his left, and then back on to his right and tried to curl one into the far corner but Evan Watts made a good save. There was nothing he could do when James-Taylor stroked the ball across his goal but a deflection off Esua helped it onto the post and the danger passed. Earlier, Rob Slevin had headed behind when Dayle Rooney thumped the ball into the ground from Adam McDonnell's cross when he would have hoped to have made a cleaner connection. But perhaps a bigger concern than not getting a goal in the opening 45 minutes was the departure of Rob Cornwall - who missed the rest of last season after tearing his ACL on the opening night - through injury. 1 It was a comfortable 3-0 win for the home side His replacement Leigh Kavanagh was the unlikely source of an assist for the opening goal in the 47th minute. After Walsh had failed to trouble Chorazka, Kavanagh was allowed to carry the ball over the halfway line without anyone making an effort to dispossess him. The centre-half played it into James-Taylor who had his back to goal. Again, Galway stood off, giving the striker the time and space to swivel and rifle the ball into the bottom corner. He almost turned provider in the 55th minute when he won the ball ahead of Galway debutant Aaron Bolger. He prodded the ball forward with Clarke getting ahead of Cunningham whom he left trailing in his wake. The shot which followed was good but, again, Watts thwarted the Meath man. Clarke then teed up McDonnell in front of goal but, as he moved to pull the trigger, Slevin made a block. But Bohs doubled their advantage in the 62nd minute when it was a case of third time lucky for Clarke who scored with a tap-in after good work by McDonnell and Dawson Devoy. It was 3-0 10 minutes later. Devoy carried the ball forward before slipping in Clarke who cut inside one of the substitutes Garry Buckley before letting fly into the far corner. Cillian Tollett went close to a consolation goal after coming on but his header struck the bar. SUN STAR MAN: James Clarke (Bohs) BOHEMIANS: Chorazka 7; Byrne 7, Cornwall 6 (Kavanagh 39, 7), Flores 7; Rooney 7 (Mountney 85, 5), Devoy 8, Morahan 7; McDonnell 7 (Buckley 76, 6); Tierney 7 (Whelan 76, 6), Clarke 9; James-Taylor 8 (Parson 85, 5). GALWAY UNITED: Watts 7; Esua 7, Slevin 6, Cunningham 5 (Piesold 67, 5), Burns 5; Hurley 5 (Brouder 67, 4), Borden 5 (Buckley 67, 4), Bolger 5 (Thiam 77, 5), McCarthy 5 (Tollett 85, 5); Walsh 5; Shaw 7. REFEREE: R Harvey (Dublin) 6


Irish Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Katie Taylor retirement hint as she discusses what's next after trilogy win
Katie Taylor hinted that a fight at Croke Park would be the perfect way to end her career after beating Amanda Serrano for a third time. The Bray Bomber produced one of the best performances of her career as she beat the Puerto Rican by majority decision at Madison Square Garden to retain her super-lightweight world titles. Taylor's amateur skills and pedigree came to the fore in what was arguably her most dominant win over Serrano, despite one one judge scoring the bout a 95-95 draw. The other two had it 97-93 in her favour. There surely aren't many better ways to end a career than by having your hand raised in victory at a sold-out MSG, but Taylor, who turned 39 last week, says she will enjoy the win first before making a decision on retirement. "I'm just going to enjoy this victory right now and sit back, reflect, and then I'll make a decision about that soon," she said after the bout. "But I'm very, very happy with tonight's performance and just the amount of work that we put in over the last few months, myself and Ross [Enamait, coach] , it was a gruelling few months of preparation we did for these kind of fights and I'm so glad I was able to showcase what I could do tonight." Taylor was then asked if she could promise her fans back in Ireland that she would fight again on home soil. "Maybe in Croke Park," the 2012 Olympic gold medallist immediately said in response. "That would be unbelievable. I said it in the ring earlier on, just these people are spending their hard-earned money to go over and support me. It just means the world. Honestly, I can't believe that this is my life. "I'm headlining a show in Madison Square Garden, all-female card. Looking back on the whole journey, what an amazing life. "These are nights that I dreamed of as a kid and to be sitting here again as a winner, I'm so happy, so grateful." Unfortunately, the chances of a Croke Park fight realistically taking place are slim at best. Taylor's promoters Matchroom have explored the idea a number of times in recent years, but the cost of renting the stadium and the security costs that go with it have been massive stumbling blocks. Without some sort of financial help from the Irish government, it seems very unlikely that an event at GAA Headquarters will take place.

The Journal
an hour ago
- The Journal
Katie Taylor defeats Amanda Serrano for third time and ends their rivalry in New York
The 42 Reports from Madison Square Garden THE RIVALRY HAS been put to bed. 3-0. That's all she wrote. Katie Taylor rubber-stamped her superiority over career nemesis Amanda Serrano with a tense but deserved split-decision victory at Madison Square Garden, defending her undisputed light-welterweight title in the process. For the first time in their storied rivalry, Serrano accepted her defeat graciously for there was simply nothing left to complain about. Two judges' scored the bout 97-93 — or seven rounds to three — in the Irishwoman's favour, with a third seeing it even at five rounds apiece. But her and Serrano's most tactical battle was won cleanly by Taylor, sending the Irish contingent at MSG ballistic in scenes reminiscent of the night that began one of boxing's great modern sagas at the same venue three years ago. Asked in the ring afterwards if she intended to box again in future, the jubilant Taylor was for the very first time non-committal. This one might just do it. The final itch scratched. With her most worthy rival banished, it'll be difficult to recreate another night like Friday in New York, and it'll be difficult to get out of bed for any less. It could be days before Taylor's supporters see their own beds. The tricoloured celebrations will spread from Pennsylvania Plaza through wider Manhattan in the coming hours. Serrano's star has risen enough since 2022 that her supporters outnumbered the Irish in a subversion of the original classic. It will feel like a cruel twist of fate that her contribution to a great modern-day boxing saga has yielded only three defeats, but her eight-year entanglement with Taylor has changed her life and enhanced her reputation as an iconic fighter in her own right. Despite suggestions to the contrary all week, challenger Serrano walked first to the ring as is convention, one of her routine Spanish-language bangers immediately drowned out by her 12-or-13,000 supporters in attendance. Champion Taylor then emerged from the tunnel to Junkie XL's remix of Elvis Presley's 'A Little Less Conversation', an obvious allusion to Serrano's 'whingeing' following her narrow defeats in their previous two fights. From the ring, though, Taylor's name was called first, with Serrano receiving the last ear-splitting roar on the precipice of the first bell. MSG was as loud a Serrano house as it had been a Taylor house in 2022, but the Irish were still absolutely tearing into 'Olé Olé', adding to the cacophony which became feverish after the respective national anthems. The first round, however, was equally a first for Taylor and Serrano's trilogy: it passed almost entirely without incident. With 11 seconds remaining, Taylor tapped Serrano's chin with a speculative right-hand counter over the top, but neither boxer deserved to bank an opener in which they barely threw a punch, instead seeking to establish range and feel each other out. Serrano pulled out a tidy straight left early in the second, to which Taylor soon afterwards responded with a similar counter. The Irishwoman, who had been deducted a point by the referee and accused by Team Serrano of using her head intentionally during the second bout last November, had clearly decided to approach Friday's affair with a greater degree of caution, utilising her superior footwork to box from a safer distance. That said, the fight might as well have been 0-0 through the first two tentative rounds. Advertisement The bout then exploded to life halfway through round three, showing a hint of the magic from Taylor-Serrano 1 and 2. The Bray woman timed a picturesque three-punch counter and Serrano replied with something similar. The pair traded spiteful left hooks to punctuate a more engaging round, which was again difficult to score. As the Fields of Athenry reverberated around the arena in the fourth, Taylor began to enjoy her most effective round to that point. The champion boxed more off the front foot, launching a couple of two-punch raids and clipping Serrano with a neat right around the guard. Serrano landed little in return, and the Irish alone continued to make the noise into the next minute's break. Taylor again appeared to take the fifth, landing the cleaner work throughout and swallowing only a singular Serrano left hand for her troubles. The Puerto Rican was throwing more punches but missing routinely, with Taylor's defensive instincts nullifying the jab from which Serrano sets up so many of her meaningful attacks. Taylor caught the challenger with a rare, vicious flurry from a neutral corner early in the sixth entry, broadly controlling the round. At the bell, however, Serrano sparked life back into the Puerto Ricans with a clawing left hand that, combined with an entanglement of their legs, knocked Taylor fractionally off balance in the direction of her corner. Round 7, though, reverted to a non-event akin to the first three. The obvious danger in such quiet rounds is that they were conceivably keeping Serrano in the fight: the coin-flips would surely go the way of the promotional A-side who so many believe was unlucky not to win at least one of her first two bouts with Taylor. She and Taylor traded slick, single punches again after 35 seconds of the eighth, Serrano finding a home for her left before the champion almost instantaneously returned serve with a right. The Puerto Rican continued to push the action for the rest of the round, though, and almost certainly pocketed the 10-9. This was getting close. Taylor's trainer, Ross Enamait, tried to light a rocket under her ahead of the penultimate ninth, warning her to box more off the front foot and trust her hand speed against the more plodding Puerto Rican. It was an inspired shout: Taylor upped the ante and kicked for home, winning the last two rounds comprehensively. She outclassed Serrano down the stretch, just as she had three years prior. With the Puerto Ricans all but reserved to Serrano's fate, the Irish grew louder. Taylor, imbued by the sound of her name echoing around the arena, converted that confidence into a dominant final round — her finest of the bout. There were fewer Irish nerves this time as the judges handed in their tallies. Taylor had done a job on her. Game over, ball bursht. Taylor was elated as her hand was raised, while Serrano was again tearful in defeat — but they were more so tears of appreciation, though, for her involvement in three fights with a fistic soulmate that materially changed the face of her sport. The late, great Jerry Eisenberg, who was friends with both men, once said that Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier fought each other not to win the World heavyweight title but to win the Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier title. This equivalent is true of Taylor and Serrano, who on Friday night emulated The Greatest and Smokin' Joe by having contested two thirds of their legendary trilogy on the same sacred soil. Taylor's light-welterweight belts were merely weights at the end of the fishing line. The trilogy's titular characters were the hook. Transatlantic trailblazers who elevated their craft and each other, their names will mean something for as long as boxing exists. One will rarely be invoked without mentioning the other. They have become rich beyond their wildest dreams growing up in Bray and Brooklyn and their sport still owes them a more profound debt than the millions they each pocketed across three memorable contests. But the debate is over. And so too, perhaps, is Taylor's story in the ring. Written by Gavan Casey and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won't find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women's sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here .