Having spent a summer embarrassing the elder statesmen of RGC, Paddy finally took the widely shared advice to pick on someone his own size this week. “It’s grand taking the money off Dara McNally every Saturday, but I felt it was really time to push myself”, the Loughshinny native told our reporter. Copeland caps off another fantastic year on the course, having dominated the club foursomes alongside Dad Aido and halved his WHS handicap.

While he won’t be able to drive a car for another couple of years, he had no trouble steering it around a tricky Lisheen Springs track that held up well despite recent deluges. Fionnan O’Connor was next best on the day but couldn’t match Paddy’s superb 71 ( the only child to break par on the day). There was no time needed to adapt to the parkland setup, with birdies coming easily on the front nine thanks to some aggressive iron play. A solid back 9 secured the win and closed out the season for Paddy, who looks forward to settling down for the winter and getting that Santa letter written.

His driver and agent Aidan Copeland could not be reached for comment but is understood to be in talks with local publicans for investment opportunities.

Irish Junior Open - Lisheen Springs Leaderboard