The Kildare golfer hitting stride in the US - Eadestown's Jamie Butler
Daragh Nolan speaks to young golfer Jamie Butler who has taken his studies and his clubs from Eadestown to Toledo, Ohio in pursuit of golfing success
Where are champions made? The exploration of that question occupies thousands of column inches each year as fans and writers consider what forges someone into a champion.
Jamie Butler is striving to be a champion in his own right, Irish golf has seen a surge in contenders across the sport and the man from Eadestown is now honing his craft in the University of Toledo, Ohio in the US, and he wants to be the next emerging Irish prospect.
The anecdote of Jamie’s upbringing that will undoubtedly be reflected upon should he reach his desired golfing career destination will be his summer days spent at Naas Golf Club.
“I would spend all my summers there (Naas GC), you would be dropped off at 8am in the morning and collected at 6pm, and play as many holes as daylight would allow. There wasn’t much thought that went into it, you just wanted to play golf. I have great memories down there” Jamie recalled.
Naas Golf club members like Conor O’Rourke and Jonathan Yates have turned professional in the years since and the Eadestown man sees that as an inspiration as he gets experience under his belt while studying accounting in the US.
After his initial handicap of 40, a number he says he was unaware went that high when he was given it, Jamie has whittled away at that metric at a rapid rate over the years. However, the handicap was never a preoccupation of the young golfer when he entered tournament play. Especially when he began to notice that he could raise his level when there was a prize on offer.
He explained, “When I went to a tournament or championship I always found that I played better than I would usually play. I don’t know whether I was just able to get into the zone or what, but that just gave me a lot of confidence going into tournaments. Even if my handicap wasn’t as low as these guys I knew I could step up a little bit.”
The elevated performances in those events were no accident, the former Eadestown GAA player was meticulous in his planning for each event, and his off-course efforts did plenty to close the gap on opposition who were stronger on paper.
“I was always pretty good with playing a practice round, taking good notes and drawing out maps. That could take me an hour and half before tournament play, I was always good at doing those little things that I wouldn’t do on a normal day. I think those things brought me up to the level of the so-called better players in those events,” Jamie said
That attention to detail and subsequent tournament success put the young golfer in a strong position to be able to pitch himself to universities stateside. But before all that, Jamie had to consider all factors before travelling over 5,500kms to Toledo.
He said, “I started to do some research, watched a couple of webinars and I still wasn’t sure if going over there was for me. I like being at home, I love Eadestown and Kildare, being here. I like the GAA and I have a lot of friends here of course. I was unsure whether I would miss that too much going over there.
“I talked to Alan Murray, he is the head coach at the University of Washington, and he helped me along. I asked him questions and he put me in touch with a few coaches and pointed me in the right direction. It was April or May of my leaving cert year when I got an offer to the University of Toledo and coach (Jeff) Roope. It was a great offer and a couple of months later I was on the plane.”
Jamie entered an esteemed golfing programme and one that has only grown over the years due, in part due to the university’s historic home golf club, Inverness. Inverness has hosted four men’s US Opens, two men’s PGA Championships and most recently, the Solheim Cup.
“We are very fortunate to have it (Inverness), it is a big attraction to the programme, to practise there every day. The week I went over the Solheim Cup was on so we got to volunteer there, be inside the ropes and I got to meet Leona Maguire,” Jamie recalled.
The young Irish man was one of what he remembered as about 25 European fans that were at the course due to travel restrictions at the time. But those 25 or so fans got to see their heroes claim a dramatic Solheim Cup victory 15-13 away from home.
After settling in The States, Jamie would shift his attention to a clear goal in 2023, win something.
An obvious target but golf is a sport that could easily lend itself to playing well for an extended period of time without having any silverware to show for it.
When May of 2023 rolled around, Jamie had one of the more glamorous venues of the year marked in his calendar, as he headed to Cyprus for the Men’s Amateur Open.
“I went there with my mam and chilled out for the week, I got some practice in and entered the tournament. I shot a couple of good rounds to start off but perhaps didn’t feel I got the most out of them. I had a two-shot lead and getting to play in that final group was a first for me,” Jamie said.
“I played well that last day and won it by a few shots and it was great to get an international win. There were lads going over to play Division 1 golf in a year or two and some who were about to turn professional so it was a good mixed field. I hadn’t won something since U16. Winning is fun and it’s something in and of itself to learn how to do so that was a big goal of mine.”
The silverware earned in the Mediterranean was a huge boost for the Eadestown man and gave him great momentum as he earned top 10 finishes on home soil in the weeks and months following.
charity event
While back in Ireland, Jamie has undertaken an enormous challenge to give back to those who have supported his journey and raise money for charity. At around 6am on July 10, Jamie set off on a 100-hole golf marathon as he raised money for the Jack & Jill Foundation.
The young golfer smashed his initial €5,000 even before teeing off as he secured sponsorships from local businesses and donations from club members.
“It’s a long day, tiring. The PGA professional in Naas, Bernard Quigley and I came up with a ‘guess the score’ challenge so members are going to be able to guess how I finish. Which, unfortunately for me, meant I had to finish out and no matter how tired I was. I had to keep making good scores. But it was another nice way that we could generate money,” Jamie said.
“I have spoken to families who have worked with the Jack & Jill Foundation and have nothing but great things to say. It’s been a weird few years with Covid and I have been lucky enough to be where I am and I am fortunate enough to be able to give back to a great charity.”
You can donate through the JustGiving page ‘Jamie's fundraiser for The Jack & Jill Children's Foundation’