The former Republic of Ireland striker carded a round of 67 (nett 61) and 41 Stableford points, to take the honoursd by a single point ahead of former Irish Olympian John Treacy and two clear of ex-Ireland rugby international Keith Wood.
Quinn had enjoyed a great day of golf, in the winning team also, led by former Masters champion Ian Woosnam, and was thrilled to have won the individual title too – not least for the impact it will have for a cause which he supports: “I’ve played a good bit of golf over the years and I’ve met a lot of great pros, but Ian Woosnam was just a superstar today – he carried us. He was behind everything we did.
“To find out that I won and that the Dillon Quirke Foundation gets £10,000 – that’s just brilliant, makes it a brilliant day. Dillon Quirk was a very famous Tipperary hurler, he was only in his early twenties and was already about to be captain of the team, and he died of sudden adult death syndrome (SADS) on the pitch playing a hurling match.
“I knew his family very well. I knew Dylan and they didn’t want to see any more young sportspeople, die from this. Sadly, so many have died from it in both Ireland and the UK, that they wanted to get something together. So to get all young people who are entering into sport checked for their hearts to see if there’s any issues.
“It’s done very, very well and it’s on target to have tested 10,000 young sports kids by the end of this season. So it’s something that’s very close to me, Dillon was a brilliant player. If you look him up, he was a top player and taken away way too young, a simple test might have changed everything.
“The Quirke family have been great, saying they want to leave a legacy and see all sort of sportspeople and young people who are getting into sport make sure that their hearts are good.
“It’s a wonderful charity to be a part of and I’m delighted I can go back to them now and tell them about this. This is this is just brilliant. Thank you.”
Former Irish Olympian John Treacy, who won a silver medal in the marathon at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, claimed his second place with a score of 86 (nett 68) and 40 Stableford points, winning £7,500 for his nominated charity Concern Worldwide. Third place went to ex-Irish rugby international Keith Wood along with £2,500 for the W2 Foundation after a round of 75 (nett 69) and 39 Stableford points.
Other celebrities taking part in the event included former Tottenham and Manchester United striker Teddy Sheringham, the former Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler and England’s leading Test wicket-taker of all-time – Jimmy Anderson.
The professionals are in tournament action from tomorrow in Legends Tour’s fifth event of the 2024 season, the OFX Irish Legends. Seapoint Golf Links sees Peter Baker return to defend the title he won here last year, while the field also includes Major champions: Ian Woosnam, Paul Lawrie, Michael Campbell and Angel Cabrera.
