Golf at Coollattin - muddy underfoot but no rain

I had an opportunity not to be missed - a game of golf at Coollattin with three people that I didn't know but everyone told me were lovely folks. And they were absolutely right. Especially to put up with my horrible game. Maria had graciously lent me her clubs, bought with the idea of learning the game but as yet never used by her. 

The clubs were not at all like my own but the fault certainly didn't lie with the clubs. I did lack accessories so had to buy a hat, ball marker, divot repair tool and, oh yes, some golf balls. Mary E. lent me a glove. The good news is I still have all five balls that I bought. They were "previously loved" balls, in pristine condition. And I played with the same brand as I play with at home. None of this helped my game. But I had a great time. And yes, I returned the glove.

The course was rather muddy due to the heavy rain overnight and I didn't have a towel to clean the clubs or the ball. Was the accumulated mud sufficient to jinx my shots? I think not. One bonus was that when I finally sank a putt, the ball got washed in the base of the cup. 

Perhaps I was just distracted by the beautiful surroundings. More likely it was just one of those games. 

Hugh preparing to tee off - Coollattin House in the background

Don't be fooled into thinking this was flat - hills to the left and right of the photo
In this case the green was downhill all the way from the tee.
This was the flat part between hills

Kathleen and Anne - who could both drive the ball a mile

We followed the game with lunch in the clubhouse and interesting conversation. I settled for soup and brown bread because it was after 2 and I was going to Coolruss for dinner. The dinner was excellent. And a bonus was that Maria showed me where I was going wrong in making new Whatsapp connections.

Genealogy alert:

All sorts of good news awaited me in email and messages when I got "home." John O and I discussed potential Kehoe family members last night and after he did some online investigation on my behalf today, we are now pretty sure that we know that Eliza's brothers were Owen and Martin. And I'm pretty certain, given where they lived, that the Kehoe family now living in Corragh is the same family. Alas, despite having previously compared DNA results with this family, we seemed to have no match. But the common ancestor is too far back to show up in such a comparison anyway. More research and documentation will be applied in this direction.

And after an exchange of comments on FB and later in Messenger, with some helpful folks from Co. Kilkenny, I'm going to Castlecomer tomorrow to meet with a woman who might be able to shed some light on my McGrath, Maher, Brennan and Walsh ancestors. It will be fun anyway. And now to bed.