Less George Orwell; More John O'Leary

The novel's dystopian prediction didn't bother John O'Leary who was riding the crest of a Pitch and Putt wave back then.  "I remember the international with England in 1984 very well. I won the Irish Matchplay in 1983 and through this I was selected for the Irish team."

John O'Leary was barely 18 years old when he took that bow on the international Pitch and Putt stage. "I was by far the youngest on the team and all my fellow teammates took me under their wings and 'minded' me," laughs John.

"On the team were household names like Mick Forrest, Gus Carolan, Donal Long, Andy Dempsey." The octet was completed by Tommy Rusk, Sean Breen and Jack McCormack.

There was no jet travel for international Pitch and Putt players in the recession-hit Ireland of the mid-1980s. "We travelled from Dublin to England by ferry. It wasn't the calmest of crossings either, but we arrived safely!" recalls John.

The double 1983 Cork champion describes Coventry's War Memorial Park, which was the venue for the fourth England v. Ireland international of the era. "The course was a municipal one, in good condition, however there were no teeboxes, so we played off the ground."

"The team was full of great players and we won comfortably. However on a personal note I didn't play great and halved both my matches." John would go on to contest the next two Irish Matchplay finals and later win multiple provincial individual championships and clinch a number of Inter-County titles (provincially and nationally) with Cork.

One of the team from that memorable weekend 36 years ago was honoured by Pitch and Putt Ireland in February. "I was thrilled to see Andy Dempsey being inducted into the Hall of Fame this year," beams John of his 1984 international colleague.

"For a long time now people in Pitch and putt regard Andy as one of the all time greats and this honour is well deserved. He was a great player in his day and funnily enough, it was he who I paired up with in the 1984 international." O'Leary and Dempsey halved with John Roche and Peter Skerritt.

As one of the original international Pitch and Putt pioneers, John is delighted to see how the sport has evolved since the eighties. "The game of Pitch and Putt has moved on a lot since those 1984 days. The game has gone global, with people playing world wide. My own son (David) played in the Australian Open two years ago and loved it. Personally, I went to Lleida in Spain last year and played in the Pairs."

John O'Leary was away from Pitch and Putt for 17 years to pursue his other great sporting love - soccer - but his love affair with our sport has endured. "It is great to meet new people and it's amazing wherever you go to play our great game, whether its to your local course or as far as Australia, the people are wonderful and we should be very proud of that fact." 

John's Pitch and Putt aspirations are challenging yet realistic. "My ambitions for the coming years domestically is to try and compete with the top players, and try and qualify for an Irish Strokeplay. I don't think the Irish Matchplay is achievable as I'm not a young fellow anymore and three 36 hole matches on a Sunday would be difficult! Internationally, I would like to play in the Dutch Open and go back and play in the Pairs next year."