When Pat Foley, who has died aged 83, assumed the presidency of the European Golfing Association in the late 1990s, he became one of the most powerful figures in golf and the only Irish man to hold that prestigious post.
Marking his long association with the game, the Golfing Union of Ireland, of which he was also a former president, stated last week in tribute to his achievements that as a keen player and administrator at club, provincial, national and European level, he had left "an indelible mark on the game". A self-made man, he also made his mark in business, creating a highly successful insurance company.
Involving a two-year term of office in 1998 and 1999, his presidency of the Lausanne-based EGA, the umbrella organisation for the continent’s 29 affiliated golfing federations, included responsibility for all European men’s and women’s teams and individual championships, plus the matches between Great Britain and Ireland and the continent of Europe.
Born in the village of Passage West on Cork Harbour, he went to the local school before qualifying in a business course at the College of Commerce. He then joined Woollams Garage where he managed a Lloyd’s car insurance book which he later bought out and set up the Woollams Foley insurance company which he sold in 1976 and is now part of AON, the world’s biggest insurers.
Ever since his student days, he has been a member of Muskerry Golf Club, a lovely course a few miles west of Cork city, serving both as captain (1967 and 1968) and president (1973).
Nicknamed ‘God’
Having cut his teeth in smoke-filled committee rooms at local and regional level, including as chairman of the Munster branch of the GUI, Foley was an able and shrewd administrator.
With a reputation for getting things done, his nickname among the club members was “God”. No doubt, his reputation as a doer was an influential factor when he became the youngest president of the Golfing Union of Ireland in 1977.
A highly competitive golfer playing off 8, Foley liked nothing better than a weekend four-ball in the company of Mick Power, Larry McCarthy, and Garrett Tobin. The fact that both Power and McCarthy were former Irish internationals, gives a flavour of the cut-throat atmosphere of that four-ball. He was also a friend of the late Taoiseach, Jack Lynch, who was club president in 1970.
Through his father-in-law Dan Mulcahy, he got to know his brother, the wealthy industrialist, John A Mulcahy, who wanted to invest money in Ireland and, on the advice of his brother, a keen fisherman, selected the rundown nine hole links course at Waterville where Mulcahy also built an hotel.
Instrumental
To get the fairways and greens in shape, Foley sought the expert advice of the Muskerry professional, Timmy McElligot, who visited the course once a week, thus enabling the touring Irish professional, Liam Higgins, to become club professional on a technicality, by working as McElligot’s assistant.
Conscious of the need to popularise the game of golf, he was instrumental in creating Ireland’s first municipal course at Mahon on the eastern fringe of the city. Co-operating closely with the late Joe McHugh, a progressive city manager who went to France to see how public courses were managed there, Foley gave unstinting support to the 18-hole project which opened in 1980 and is still flourishing.
Hockey was his other passion. For many years, he was both secretary of and player with Belvedere club. He was also an active fundraiser for the Edel House charity run by the Good Shepherd sisters to provide a refuge for homeless women.
Predeceased by his daughter Diane, he is survived by his widow, Deirdre, son, Hugh, and daughters Vivienne, Jean, and Patricia.