Rice and McElroy challenging on Europro Tour

SUTTON COLDFIELD, ENGLAND - AUGUST 04:  Tim Rice of Limerick GC tees off on the 17th during day two of the PGA Assistants Championships at Little Aston Golf Club on August 4, 2016 in Sutton Coldfield, England.  (Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images)

PGA Europro Tour — Limerick’s Tim Rice and Ballymena’s Dermot McElroy are just four shots behind Welshman James Frazer heading into Friday’s final round of The Jessie May Trust World Snooker Golf Championship at Collingtree Park in Northampton.

Despite a double bogey six at the 17th, Rice carded a three-under par 69 to get to eight-under par and share fourth place with McElroy, who shot a bogey-free, five-under 67.

Royal Dublin's Niall Kearney (70), beaten in a playoff for last week's "FORE" Business Championship at East Sussex National, is a shot behind Rice and McElroy in a tie for eighth on seven-under.

Clandeboye's Jonny Caldwell, fourth in the Race To Amendoeira standings with the top five earning promotion to the Challenge Tour at the end of the season, is tied 20th on five-under par.

The cut fell at three-under par 141 which meant that Brendan McCarroll (142), David Carey (144), Declan Loftus (147), Joe Dillon (148), Stephen Grant (151) and Brian Casey (153) missed out.

The Jessie May Trust World Snooker Golf Championship at  Collingtree Park

Detailed scores

1 James Frazer (Wal) 66 66 132    
2 Lee Clarke (Eng) 66 68 134    
3 Robert Burlison (Eng) 65 70 135
T4 Tim Rice (Limerick Golf Club) 67 69 136
T4 Dermot McElroy (Ballymena Golf Club) 69 67 136
T8 Niall Kearney (The Royal Dublin) 67 70 137
T20 Jonathan Caldwell (Clandeboye Golf Club) 69 70 139
MC Brendan McCarroll (Narin & Portnoo Golf Club) 73 69 142
MC David Carey (Unattached) 72 72 144
MC Declan Loftus (Unattached) 70 77 147
MC Joe Dillon (Headfort Golf Club) 75 73 148
MC Stephen Grant (Mount Juliet) 74 77 151
MC Brian Casey (BLACKSTAR) 74 79 153

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Fahy and Doyle in command in Irish Students Championship

Alan Fahy (Dun Laoghaire) driving at the sixth tee during the AIG 2017 Irish Amateur Close Championship at Galway Golf Club (22/08/2017). Picture by Pat Cashman

Maynooth University's Alan Fahy and Mary Doyle are in command heading into Friday's final round of the Irish Students Amateur Open Championship at Bray Golf Club.

Fahy made an eagle, two birdies and three bogeys in a one-under par 69 to lead the men's event by two strokes from Ulster's Stefan Greenberg (69) with South of Ireland Champion James Sugrue (67) from Mallow, Maynooth's Jordan Hood (68), Royal Portrush's Peter Kerr and Galway and Maynooth's Ronan Mullarney just three strokes off the pace on two-under. 

Sugrue shot a joint best-of-the-day 67 to move up 16 places to joint third - a score matched by Tramore's Jack Hearn, who is now just five shots off the lead in tenth spot on level par 140.

In the women's event former Irish Women's Close champion Doyle added a best-of-the-day, level par 72 to her opening 74 to lead by four strokes from Maynooth debutant Ciara Casey (73-77) from Hermitage on two-over par.

Shannon Burke is alone in third, five behind Doyle, on seven-over par.

In the team standings,  the Maynooth University Scholars B squad of Fahy, Eanna Griffin and Kyle McCarron lead by three strokes on seven-under par from Maynooth University Scholars A side of Hood, Mullarney and Cathal Butler.

Irish Students Amateur Open Championship. Bray Golf Club

(Par 70 Men, 72 Women)

Men — Women — Team

Men's Standings

135 A Fahy (MU Scholars B) 66 69

137 S Greenberg (Ulster (b)) 68 69

138 J Sugrue (Mallow) 71 67; J Hood (MU Scholars A) 70 68; P Kerr (Royal Portrush/St Andrews Un.) 69 69; R Mullarney (MU Scholars A) 68 70; A McDaid (Palmerstown Stud/DBS) 68 70; E Griffin (MU Scholars B) 68 70; D Smith (Castle) 65 73

140 J Hearn (Tramore) 73 67; J Mc Donnell (MU Club A) 71 69

141 B Murray (UCC (a)) 73 68; A Ryan (Thurles) 72 69; J Hapgood (Wales) 72 69; K McCarron (MU Scholars B) 68 73

142 J McVicker (Ulster A) 71 71; S Mc Dermott (NUIG (a)) 70 72; T Beaumont (Bangor) 70 72; H Duggan (Kilkenny) 70 72; C Woodroofe (MU Club A) 69 73

143 W Small (Tandragee) 74 69; M Healy (Kinsale) 74 69; M Mc Gurk (Warrenpoint) 72 71; G Carr (MU Club B) 72 71; J Quinn (DCU) 71 72; M McKenna (Dun Laoghaire) 71 72; A Lennie (Clandeboye) 69 74

144 T Ford (MU Club B) 72 72

145 Z Glynn (Bray) 74 71; R Williamson (Holywood) 74 71; M Kennelly (NUIG (a)) 72 73; C Butler (MU Scholars A) 70 75

146 L Flynn (Dun Laoghaire) 74 72; H Foley (The Royal Dublin) 72 74; R O'Doherty (NUIG (b)) 72 74; D Hourihan (UCC (b)) 70 76

147 M Fitzsimons (Ardglass) 76 71; J Bolger (Jnr) (Courtown) 76 71; O Crooks (Bushfoot) 74 73; R Moran (Castle) 74 73; E Collins (DCU) 71 76; S Desmond (UCC (a)) 69 78

148 E O'Brien (MU Club A) 77 71; L Donnelly (Kilkenny) 76 72; M Shiel (NUIG (b)) 75 73; C Ryan (Dun Laoghaire) 74 74; M Nolan (Delgany) 73 75; A McSweeney (Douglas) 71 77

149 J McCarthy (UCD B) 77 72; I Witherspoon (Ballyclare) 77 72; J McGrath (Dun Laoghaire/DIT) 76 73; C Melvin (MU Club C) 72 77

150 G Mann (UCD C) 79 71; R Brazill (Naas) 77 73

151 M Looby (Greystones) 82 69; J Hickey (Cork) 79 72; S McParland (Greystones) 77 74; R Nelson (Belvoir Park) 76 75; C McGoldrick (Enniscrone) 75 76; C Hughes (NUIG (a)) 74 77

152 J Temple (Portmarnock) 76 76; G Fitzmaurice (UCD A) 76 76; K McDermott (Knockanally) 75 77; W Eickholt (Portmarnock) 75 77; C Feeney (Co. Sligo) 74 78; C Henry (Strandhill) 70 82

153 R Browne (Castle) 79 74; J Mc Carthy (Killorglin) 77 76; C Hastings (Castlebar) 75 78; J Hayden (The Royal Dublin) 73 80

154 R McCullough (Ulster B) 83 71; D Brady (MU Club C) 80 74; R Murphy (Powerscourt) 79 75

155 C Kennedy (Roganstown ) 82 73; B Smyth (Howth) 80 75; P Tobin (UCC (a)) 79 76; N McKinstry (Ulster A) 79 76; L O'Connor (Edmondstown) 78 77; D Curry (Coolattin) 78 77

156 L Foley (Cork) 82 74; J Lawlor (Naas) 78 78; E Campbell (Cairndhu) 78 78; M Morgan (Mourne) 77 79

157 C Byrne (Woodbrook) 81 76; P Kelly (Glasson) 81 76; D Flynn (MU Club C) 81 76; C Harte (UCD C) 80 77; M Looby (Greystones) 79 78; C Patterson (Lurgan) 75 82 

158 C Guiller (Cairndhu) 84 74; T Collins (UCD A) 84 74; R Steedman (Courtown) 77 81
159 A Price (Charlesland) 78 81

160 E Ruane (Mullingar) 81 79; D McAleenon (Lisburn) 74 86

161 S Nelson (Banbridge) 82 79

162 D Lambe (Trinity College) 82 80

163 W Byrne (Baltinglass) 85 78; C Friel (Galway Bay) 82 81; J Smyth (Howth) 81 82; R Devitt (Trinity College) 77 86

165 L Branagan (Hollystown) 86 79

NR S O'Connor (Castlebar)

DQ N Hearns (Mountrath)

RTD J Fletcher (Warrenpoint)

NR A Mc Quillan (Ulster B)

NS R O'Callaghan (Mannan Castle)

DQ R Hannon (Bray)

NS B Lawlor (Ardee)

Women’s Standings

146 M Doyle (MU Club B) 74 72

150 C Casey (MU Women A) 73 77

151 S Burke (MU Women A) 72 79

154 R Mc Donnell (UCD B) 80 74; E Metcalfe (MU Women B) 77 77

156 A Ni Thuama (UCC (b)) 79 77

157 M Doyle (MU Women A) 81 76

158 C Walsh (MU Women B) 83 75; G McCarthy (Clonmel) 81 77; M Dowling (MU Women B) 72 86

Teams Standings

1. 273 MU Scholars B 134 139
2. 276 MU Scholars A 138 138
3. 280 MU Club A 140 140
4. 284 Ulster B 144 140
5. 287 MU Club B 144 143
6. 286 UCC A 142 144
7. 287 NUIG A 142 145
8. 290 DCU 142 148
9. 298 MU Women A 145 153
10. 301 MU Women B 149 152
11. 294 NUIG B 147 147
12. 297 Ulster A 150 147
13. 302 UCC B 149 153
14. 299 UCD A 153 146
15. 304 UCD C 159 145
16. 302 MU Club C 152 150
17. 303 TCD 151 152

Round 3 Draw

• 08:00 (1) Michael Mc Gurk (Warrenpoint), Mark Healy (Kinsale), Gareth Andrew Carr (MU Club B)
• 08:10 (1) William Small (Tandragee), Colin Woodroofe (MU Club A), Harry Duggan (Kilkenny)
• 08:20 (1) Thomas Beaumont (Bangor), Shane Mc Dermott (NUIG (a)) James McVicker (Ulster A)
• 08:30 (1) Kyle McCarron (MU Scholars B), Jake Hapgood (Wales) Aaron Ryan (Thurles)
• 08:40 (1) Ben Murray (UCC (a)) Jack Mc Donnell (MU Club A) Jack Hearn (Tramore)
• 08:50 (1) Darragh Smith (Castle), Eanna Griffin (MU Scholars B) Anthony McDaid (Palmerstown Stud/DBS)
• 09:00 (1) Ronan Mullarney (MU Scholars A), Peter Kerr (Royal Portrush/St Andrews Un.) Jordan Hood (MU Scholars A)
• 09:10 (1) Aoife Ni Thuama (UCC (b)), Eleanor Metcalfe (MU Women B), Rachel Mc Donnell (UCD B)
• 09:20 (1) Shannon Burke (MU Women A), Ciara Casey (MU Women A) Mary Doyle (MU Club B)
• 09:30 (1) Alan Fahy (MU Scholars B), Stefan Greenberg (Ulster (b)) James Sugrue (Mallow)
• 08:00 (10) Eoin O'Brien (MU Club A), Ali McQuillan (Ulster) -
• 08:10 (10) Ryan McCullough (Ulster B), Molly Dowling (MU Women B) -
• 08:20 (10) Gemma McCarthy (Clonmel), Clodagh Walsh (MU Women B), Meadhbh Doyle (MU Women A)
• 08:30 (10) Sean Desmond (UCC (a)), Eoghan Collins (DCU) Robert Moran (Castle)
• 08:40 (10) Owen Crooks (Bushfoot), John Bolger (Jnr) (Courtown) Matthew Fitzsimons (Ardglass)
• 08:50 (10) Darren Hourihan (UCC (b)), Ryan O'Doherty (NUIG (b)), Hugh Foley (The Royal Dublin)
• 09:00 (10) Luke Flynn (Dun Laoghaire), Cathal Butler (MU Scholars A) Michael Joseph Kennelly (NUIG (a))
• 09:10 (10) Rory Williamson (Holywood) Zach Glynn (Bray), T J Ford (MU Club B)
• 09:20 (10) Aaron Lennie (Clandeboye), Mark McKenna (Dun Laoghaire), Jonathan Quinn (DCU).

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BMW M5 Convertible, Race Car and Cop Car Rendered

It’s fun to imagine what certain cars would be like if automakers had the courage to make strange concoctions. For instance, what about a convertible variant of the BMW M5. It would be madness, sure, but hilarious and interesting. It probably wouldn’t work in practice, either, thanks to having such a massive roof that would need to retract and the torsional rigidity would be abysmal at best. Yet, it’s still fun to dream. That’s exactly what these new M5 renders are all about.

The first is a BMW M5 Convertible in a cool green paint. It’s absurd and ridiculous but I kind of want someone to chop the top off of an M5 and let me drive it. At their expense, of course. Imagine a massive performance luxury convertible that you can shuttle three other friends with, in supreme luxury, at blistering speeds, with the top down? That would be a riot. For about 10 minutes, as the lack of structure strength would then likely vibrate all your spines to dust. Which sounds uncomfortable.

The next render is much more possible, though. It’s essentially a BMW M5 race car, with a massive fixed rear wing and an M Division livery that looks ace. The livery looks awesome and makes me think BMW should offer something similar on the M5 in future. The wing is a bit over the top but that’s kinda the point and the extra aero looks cool. If BMW races something like this in the future, I will be a very happy person.

Lastly, a BMW M5 cop car is rendered and I would join the German police force is I could drive that everyday. Also, it would terrify baddies. Who would rob a bank knowing they’d be chased down by a 600 hp BMW M5? Literally no one.

These renders are silly, nearly impossible and absurd but fun. And isn’t fun the entire point of being a car enthusiast?

[Source: Aksyonov Nikita]

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SPIED: Rolls Royce Cullinan and BMW 8 Series caught getting gas

A little while back, we saw a spy video that caught a fleet of upcoming BMW products testing in Death Valley. Among them were the Rolls Royce Cullinan, BMW 8 Series, BMW M2 CS and the new i3S. It seems as if the same fleet of cars is still doing some testing, as two of them were recently caught in Death Valley again, this time quenching their thirst at a gas station. Autoblog’s photographers were able to capture some spy photos of these cars and there quite close up, so we can learn a good bit from them.

From the front of the Cullinan, it’s clear that it borrows the same face as the new Phantom. Its horizontal headlights and little vents underneath them are all Phantom. The massive Pantheon Grille is also of the new Phantom style. Out back, there are rectangular exhaust pipes, reminiscent of many BMW products. To be honest, this seems a bit vulgar for a Rolls Royce. Other than that, though, it’s exactly as you’d expect a Rolls Royce SUV to look like.

Behind it, filling up, it the BMW 8 Series Coupe. What a pretty car this is going to be when it finally debuts. That svelte roofline, long hood, short deck and muscular hips all make it look very sporty, very seductive. This may be a bit premature but the 8 Series could be BMW’s prettiest car in decades. Just look at the creases in its hood and the way the nose slopes so low. This will be a stunning car.

Both of these cars are highly anticipated and both seem near production-ready, so it can’t be long until they’re both finally debuted. There are many auto shows in the coming months, so it’s possible we’ll see one of them then. Until now, check out these spy photos and imagine what both will look like. I’m assuming good things.

[Source: Autoblog]

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VIDEO: Worth It: Toyota Prius vs BMW M4 vs Lamborghini Aventador?

BuzzFeed’s new “Worth It” series asks whether certain products or services are worth the money, in a nutshell. Whether it be cars, watches, tattoos or suits, they find out which products are really worth spending money on. In this new video from Worth It, they ask which car is the most “worth it” — the Toyota Prius for $25,000, the BMW M4 Competition Package for $100,000 or the Lamborghini Aventador for $500,000.

First up is the Prius, which is a car whose name can make car enthusiasts nauseous. For around $25,000, you can get a decently equipped Prius, with its weird looks, hybrid powertrain and impressive efficiency. It has all of the modern tech anyone could ask for, gets over 50 mpg regularly, has impressive passenger space and is even decently quick for a hybrid. The downside? It’s a Prius.

Next up, they go to our friends at Century West BMW to take a look at a Daytona Violent BMW M4 Competition Package kitted out with M Performance parts. This specific M4 wears a sticker price of $100,000 but they can be had for about a 3 Series cheaper than that. The folks at Century West really like to spec some wild M cars. For that money, you get 444 hp from a 3.0 liter twin-turbocharged I6 engine, a carbon fiber roof and a 0-60 mph time of under four seconds. If you’re into performance cars, the M4 Comp Pack is an good value, as it combines impressive performance, great everyday usability and the ability to take track abuse on the weekends. It’s a very versatile performance car.

Lastly, they test a Lamborghini Aventador at a shocking $503,000. They weren’t allowed to drive it, for obvious reason, but they did take rides in it and were really impressive with its performance, style, presence and aspirational qualities. They do end up driving a Lamborghini Huracan on a track at a performance driving program, though, and find it thrilling.

In the end, they ask which car is most worth it and the two hosts both end up choosing the Prius. It’s so much cheaper than the other two and still offers a ton of car. Though, if you’re into performance cars, there’s no way you’d buy a Prius. I’ll throw a fourth option into the mix that beats everything, BuzzFeed — Mazda MX-5.

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Does the new Porsche Cayenne set the luxury SUV bar?

Porsche has just revealed the new Cayenne, a replacement to what was already a great SUV. However, now that we’ve seen the new Porsche Cayenne, does it set the luxury SUV bar to a new height? It seems like it might and that the new Cayenne will be the SUV to beat in the segment.

This new Porsche Cayenne will be built on the new MLB-Evo platform that underpins the Audi Q7 and Bentley Bentayga. So despite having more technology and luxury, the new Cayenne is almost 150 lbs lighter than the outgoing car.

At the moment, there are only two Cayenne variants that Porsche has unveiled, the base Cayenne and the Cayenne S. The former will pack a turbocharged 3.0 liter V6 engine, the very same one that’s seen in the Audi S4. In Cayenne-spec, it makes 340 hp and has a claimed 0-60 mph time of 5.8 seconds. In the latter Cayenne S, you get a 2.9 liter twin-turbocharged V6, the same in the brand-new Audi RS5. That makes 440 hp and can get the big Porsche from 0-60 mph in 4.9 seconds. There will be a twin-turbo V8 model variant in the future, as well as a V6 plug-in hybrid variant.

All engine variants will be equipped with an eight-speed automatic and power all-wheel drive. The new Cayenne will also get a new four-wheel steering system, similar to the one used on the Porsche 911. It also gets a 48-volt electrical subsystem that helps power electrically-controlled anti-roll bars, similar to the Audi SQ7, and adjustable air suspension. What’s new and interesting is something Porsche calls Surface Coated Brakes. A tungsten-carbide surface layer is applied to the typical cast-iron brake rotors, which is supposed to increase durability, longevity and performance, as well as reduce brake dust.

On the outside, the new Cayenne really doesn’t look much different from the old car. It seems that after sharing platforms and engines with Audi, Porsche caught its bland styling increases as well. However, the new car does look better than the car it replaces. It looks sharper and more modern, if a bit boring. The inside is quite dramatically changed, though.

The new infotainment system features a massive touchscreen that dominates the dash and looks slick. The center stack features touch buttons built into a piano black finish that looks good but will surely be a fingerprint magnet. Overall, the cabin looks good but very typically German and a bit cold.

While it doesn’t look quite that different, the new Cayenne features all new, very good engines, a new chassis that’s probably the best SUV chassis on the market, new technology and some performance bits pulled from the 911. Is it possible that the new Cayenne is the SUV to beat in the segment?

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BMW M5 UK pricing announced, starts at £87,160

Pricing for the new F90-Generation BMW M5 in the UK has been announced and it’s a bit more expensive than the previous-gen car. Starting at £87,160 (about $112,000 USD) in the UK, the BMW M5 isn’t cheap. However, it comes with more performance, more technology and all-wheel drive as-standard, which makes it a better deal than the previous F10-generation car.

Under the hood of the new BMW M5 lies a heavily revised 4.4 liter twin-turbocharged V8, making 600 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque. That makes it considerably more powerful than the car it replaces. In turn, it’s considerably faster than the car it replaces, doing 0-60 mph in 3.2 seconds. That also makes it the fastest production BMW ever made. So the icnrease in price seems warranted in performance alone.

Still, the deal gets sweeter. As-standard, the BMW M5 comes with an all-wheel drive system that can switch to rear-wheel drive at the flip of a switch. The previous-gen M5 didn’t even have all-wheel drive as an option. So in drivetrain alone, the new M5 is more back-for-your-buck.

Then, there’s the technology. Active Kidney Grilles, four-zone automatic climate control and a massive suite of assisted-driving technologies make the new M5 far more high-tech than the last-gen car. It also gets new infotainment tech, such as a touchscreen iDrive system with Gesture Control. While some enthusiasts find the last bit gimmicky, it’s still a new technology that wasn’t even available before.

The new BMW M5 is lighter, stiffer, built on an entirely new chassis, is the first ever M5 to have all-wheel drive and is the fastest BMW to ever be made. So it seems that it’s worth whatever extra premium it costs over the last-gen car.

[Source: Auto Evolution]

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