04/10/2019
We've made it to the paper! Check the Dutch text here: https://wtc.koudum.nl/2019/10/02/nationale-toppers-en-veel-ierse-deelnemers-op-eerste-frisian-open/ or the english text just below here:
NATIONAL TOP RANKING PLAYERS AND IRISH CONTESTANTS AT THE FIRST FRISIAN OPEN
KOUDUM - The Frisian Open was held for the first time last weekend at the Pitch and Putt course in Koudum. A three-day pitch & putt golf event with a strong field of participants. Jeroen Adema, chairman of the Competition and Tournament Committee, looks back.
The final day - Sunday - was accompanied by heavy rain showers. ,, That was a shame, but on Friday and Saturday the atmosphere was good. The participants were very pleased with the club, the course and the welcome they received. "
Some 70 participants came to Koudum. They played in four categories: men, women, seniors and juniors. Rolf Kwant, former world champion, won the men's category. He scored a score of fifteen strokes under par. ,, He finds it super fun to play in Koudum. He was perhaps the first to register ”, Adema says laughing. European champion Esther de Schiffart was the best among the ladies.
Perhaps more striking is the name of the men's runner-up: Declan McCarron from Ireland. The Dutch Open has been played at the club in Koudum for the past three years, a tournament where players can get points for the international ranking. McCarron won in 2017 and was so impressed by the entourage in Koudum and Friesland that he decided to emigrate to the Netherlands.
The Irishman has been living in Sint Nyk ever since and has ensured that this year about ten compatriots made the crossing to participate in Koudum. "The game as we know it now originated in Ireland," Adema knows. ,, It is the biggest sport there after football. Where we play kaatsen here in Friesland, for example, they play pitch and put. "
The podium with the juniors therefore consisted entirely of Irish lads, Declan's nephew Bobby was second. Because a separate competition was also organized for the youngsters. "We are the first tournament in the Netherlands to have a junior category, to promote the sport among the young pitch & putters of the Netherlands," said Adema. The number of participants, however, was not very large, but there were still five youth players on the course. "Young people have so many other sports to choose from, it's difficult to get them to pitch & putt," the chairman explains.
It is partly the reason for organizing the Frisian Open. Where the Dutch Open is played on a different course every year - due to circumstances in Koudum for the last three years - the organizers wanted to fill this gap with the Frisian variant. Difference: there are no points to earn for the worldranking, but they play for cash prizes.
"It is our mission to professionalize the sport," Adema continues. ,, Pitch and Putt is for everyone. By organizing a professional tournament, we want to make this beautiful sport known to a wider audience. ”
The successful first edition of the Frisian Open tastes like more. "This is a great start for next year," Adema is already looking ahead. ,, The Irish were also super enthusiastic. They have seen nice things. Maybe they can spread the word in Ireland so that more will come next year. ”
