One of six counties that form Northern Ireland, Armagh has boundaries with Tyrone and Down in the UK and Louth and Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland. It’s a beautiful rural area – sometimes called the “Orchard County” – with excellent road connections to both Belfast and Dublin and the county town of Armagh is where St Patrick is said to have established his principal church in Ireland.

Of the 120 golf clubs affiliated to the Ulster Branch of the Golfing Union of Ireland, only eight are located in county Armagh but the relatively small number of golfers from these clubs have more than held their own when competing in Ulster competitions in recent times.

Stuart Paul from Tandragee Golf Club won the North of Ireland Amateur in 2001 (beating Rathmore’s Graeme McDowell 4&3 in the Final) and he was followed in 2005 and 2007 by Lurgan’s Gareth Shaw who held off Stuart Paul the first time and Shane Lowry on the second occasion.The Tandragee team also triumphed in the Ulster Finals of the Pierce Purcell Shield in 2006 and the Jimmy Bruen Shield in 2010 whilst Lurgan were proud winners of the Ulster section of the Senior Cup in 2010.