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Play with a Professional

Matthews Golf Tours are delighted to offer the professional services of European Tour Winner Simon Thornton on your golfing vacation to Ireland. Different packages are available to cater for all your requirements

Services Available

  • Accompanying your group on your trip.
  • Playing & Coaching throughout.
  • Private tuition and golf clinics.
  • Expert knowledge and insight on each course
  • Corporate Golf Days

Simon lives in Newcastle, Co Down and trained in his earlier days as a PGA Professional at the world renowned Royal County Down Golf Club, now ranked No.1 course in the world by Golf Digest. He is married with two children. His interests include all sports, cars, travel and meeting new golfers. He has just started taking up cycling!! He is regarded as one of the most respected PGA Professionals by his peers.

His victory in the 2013 Najeti Hotels et Golfs Open completed a remarkable rise through the professional ranks. Born in Yorkshire but now an Irish passport holder after moving to Newcastle, in County Down, he was playing off a handicap of seven just a decade or so ago. “When I first went over to work as an assistant in the pro shop at Royal County Down, I could barely hit it out of my own shadow,” he admitted. But his hard work and perseverance paid off as he progressed firstly through the Irish PGA regional circuit, before moving onto the EuroPro Tour and then graduating to the Challenge Tour in 2009. Posted two top ten finishes en-route to 51st place in the Rankings, but later earned a European Tour card for the first time after successfully negotiating his way through the Second and Final Stages of the Qualifying School in 2009. Showed his determination and grit in a turbulent week at the 2011 Apulia San Domenico Grand Final, during which he learned of the birth of his second child back in Ireland and also battled illness and intense pressure of possibly missing out on a European Tour card before posting the best round of the final day, a -7 64, to clinch his spot. Lost his card in 2012 and was playing on the Challenge Tour again at the start of 2013, before victory in Saint-Omer gave him exemption for The Race to Dubai until the end of 2014. He played European and Challenge Tour during the next two years before he decided to concentrate on playing golf closer to home to spend more time with his young family.

A shortened list of playing record.

  • European Tour Winner 2013
  • European Tour member 2009 – present
  • Irish Championship winner 2011 (a then record score of -19)
  • PGA Europro Bovey Castle Open 2008
  • PGA North of Ireland Championship 2015 (-17 61,67,62)
  • Winner of over 25 Pro am on the Irish Region circuit including the Ulster Championship, Irish Club Professional Championship, Irish Region Order of Merit winner 2005 & 2006