It is a testament to the experience a student has at school when one reaches out to give something back to the establishment, he spent his formative years striving towards academic achievement. Newcastle may be his home, but Paul Murray spotted an opportunity to give something back to his alma mater- St. Louis Grammar School, Kilkeel.

The recently formed Golf Society at St. Louis, has been driven by the energy and enthusiasm of Mrs Sinead Gibney, who teaches Modern Languages at the school. Recently Mrs Gibney welcomed Mr Paul Murray, a past pupil of St. Louis, who reached out to offer support to St. Louis Golf Society.

Paul Murray’s career is probably the envy of most as he has forged out a living involving his greatest passion- golf. Paul is an employee with the Global Sports Company ‘GolfNow’. His firm is a prestigious world-renowned It/Golf company which allows golfers to easily book their tee-times online at the touch of a button. Founded in Orlando, Florida in 2001 GolfNow has set up their international headquarters in Belfast with approximately 70 staff and a further 80 staff in France, Germany, South Africa & Australia. GolfNow continues to grow and has become the most popular way to book online and offer golfers the opportunity to play at more than 1,500 golf clubs in the UK & Ireland. GolfNow is part of a family of companies including BRS Golf, GolfPass and GolfNow Compete and it also works in partnership with NBC Sports.

Paul maybe thinking global, but he has not forgotten his roots. Paul believes on reaching out to his old school that “this is the perfect opportunity to give back to the local community, help grow the game of golf and support a fantastic school. Hopefully this helps the pupils continue to play and love the game of golf”.

Golf at St. Louis Grammar School has experienced a tremendous surge in our first three months of the 2023-34 academic year. Thinking ahead, Mrs Gibney is busy planning events for 2024 culminating with St. Louis students attending the Horizon Irish Open, which will be returning to Royal County Down Golf Club.

Mrs Gibney expressed her profound gratitude for Paul Murray’s gesture and encouraged others to get involved. “We are very grateful to Paul for having reached out to us and we welcome any local schools who would be interested in joining us to compete in an interschools competition. We also welcome any local businesses or individuals who would also like to support our golf society in St. Louis Grammar School in any way you can.”

Gallery