Galway greenkeeper is Rio-bound for Olympics

Golf makes a return to the 2016 Olympics in Brazil next month after a 112-year absence, and while some of the world’s top players have withdrawn due to health concerns, it won’t stop a Galway man from attending after he was selected as one of three representatives of Europe’s governing body to work at the competition.

Damien Coleman, the course superintendent at the Galway Bay Golf Resort in Rinville, Oranmore, is one of three greenkeepers who have been selected by Europe’s governing body, the Royal & Ancient (R&A) to work at the games this year.

The other two R&A selections are from Spain and England, while he will also be joined by Cork native Eamonn McCarthy, who lives and works in Bali, and was selected to travel by the Asian governing body.

The Clare native, who has been working at the golf course outside Oranmore since 2008, will be one of 46 volunteers from all over the world to work at the golf in this year’s Olympics, and he admits that while he can understand people being concerned about contracting the Zika virus, it hasn’t put him off a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“I did an interview with Golf Digest, and obviously the Zika issue came up. I explained it very simply – you don’t cross the road without taking precautions, you look left and right and continue to pay attention as you cross the road.

“This is the same thing: you can’t get a vaccination for Zika, but there are sprays involved and you are advised to wear long sleeves and full-length trousers, so those are the precautions you take,” he said.

He obviously discussed the trip, and possible dangers, with his wife Mary, but says she has given him his full backing to make the trip to Brazil.

“She understands what it could mean for my career, and what it means to me. This is a wonderful opportunity, it is more than 100 years since golf was last in the Olympics, and while it is also to be included in Tokyo in 2020, it might be dropped again after that.”

Contracting the Zika virus is more serious for women than for men, yet it is the men who have been withdrawing from the tournament in their droves: Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell, Shane Lowry, Jason Day, Adam Scott, Charl Schwartzl, Louis Oosthuizen, Dustin Johnson, and Jordan Spieth have all claimed concerns over the virus means they will not too it up in Rio.,

At least Zimbabwe’s Brendon De Jonge has given what many feel is a more honest reason for not competing – he says it is “truly a business decision” as he needs to compete in tournaments in America to retain his tour card for next year.

Damien went to college in Preston, which is about 27 miles north of Manchester and Liverpool, where he studied Turf Grass Science. He sat his final exam on a Friday, flew back to Ireland, and began work at Galway Bay Golf Resort the following Monday.

“I have been here all of my career, and it is a great place to work. I have to say the members have been hugely supportive of me since the news broke that I was travelling to the Olympics, and I have promised them that I will write a daily blog about the experience.

“A special mention has to go to club director, Ronan Killeen. When the application process opened in January, I first had to check with Ronan about applying as it would mean taking three weeks off in August, one of the busiest times for golf courses in Ireland.

“He was hugely supportive, he didn’t hesitate to say to go for it. Ronan has poured his soul into building up the club, so for him to allow his course superintendent to miss three weeks at the height of the season says a lot about the man,” Damien explains.

When Damien was in college, he received a scholarship from the R&A, and as a result he was automatically included on their mailing list, with about 215 other greenkeepers.

He regularly gets invites to apply to work at various events, but as most of them are during the summer months, he never applied before. The Olympics was different.

“You can apply to work at tournaments like the Ryder Cup, and The Open this weekend, but we are just too busy at the course. I couldn’t pass up the chance for the Olympics, though, and when Ronan gave me his blessing, I sent in my application and got word back that I was successful,” says Damien, who is the vice-president of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of Ireland, and heads a staff of seven at Galway Bay Golf Resort.

Damien lives in Ennis, and makes the daily 40-minute commute to be at the course at 5.45am every day, finishing up at 2.30pm, but he won’t be escaping an early start at the Olympics.

“We meet for breakfast at 4.30am, and start work at 6am, straight through until 6pm – for 18 consecutive days! We arrive on Thursday, August 4, and are straight into work the following day to prepare for the following Monday, which will be the first practice day for the men

“The competition is being played as a 72-hole tournament, rather than a match-play, with the men playing from Thursday August 11 to Sunday August 14.

“The next day, the ladies have their first practice day, and their competition is from Wednesday August 17 to Saturday August 20, and we fly back home two days later on the Monday,” he explains.

His travel and living costs will be covered, but he won’t be paid for the experience, while he will also be using up three weeks holidays to make the trip, but for someone who loves playing the game as much as working to give others the same enjoyment, it was an opportunity not to be missed.

He plays off a handicap of seven, having recently been cut a shot after his performance in Jacinta Quinn’s Lady Captain’s day at the club, and he is looking forward to seeing some of the world’s top golfers like Bubba Watson and Rickie Fowler up close, while he also plans to try and attend some of the boxing.

“We are staying at Barra, around ten miles from the golf course, but the boxing arena is right beside it – so hopefully I’ll get to watch the likes of Katie Taylor and Paddy Barnes,” he says.