The former Irish amateur international (47) had finished third in 2022 and 2023, but he built on some new-found confidence in his swing to hold off three-time Irish PGA winner Niall Kearney and claim the season-long race.
Michael McGeady, Simon Thornton and Richard Kilpatrick rounded out the top five, but nobody was as consistent as Rice, who won outright at Malahide, Carne, Newlands, Delgany and Bellewstown and tied with Richard O’Donovan at Galway to take home six wins.
He also finished runner-up at Royal County Down, Mount Juliet, Rathfarnham and St Margaret’s with the first three of those close calls coming in his first four starts this year.
“It’s very pleasing,” said Rice, who was third another four times as he racked up 26,913 points to edge out Kearney by just 1,031 points, finishing outside the top ten in just five of his 27 starts.
“I found something in my swing at the start of the year, and I stuck with it, and that really helped me throughout the year.”
Rice set two course records this season, carding a bogey-free seven-under 64 at Newlands before making 11 birdies in a seven-under 65 at Bellewstown.
“The standard was so high this year,” he said. “Colm Moriarty set the tone in the first event in Lucan when he shot seven-under, so everyone else had to get up to speed pretty quickly.
“You couldn’t make a couple of birdies and stop; you had to keep going, and it made all of us lift up our games.
“It was a great schedule as well. We got some new courses, and I’d like to give a mention to Seamus McKibben for organising the Pro-Am in Royal County Down.
“A special thanks to the team at Elavon. Their enthusiasm and support all season were incredible. As sportspeople, we need support like that, and we thrive on it, and hopefully, it can continue to grow in the coming years.”
The first year of the Elavon sponsorship of the PGA in Ireland Order of Merit was memorable, featuring events in all four corners of the island with record participation.
Declan Lynch, Chief Executive Officer at Elavon, was thrilled with how the season unfolded and felt that Rice was a worthy winner.
“Elavon is delighted to sponsor the PGA Ireland Circuit; it’s great to see the level of support across the country at all the events, including the Pro-Ams,” he said.
“Huge congratulations to Tim Rice for his fantastic win, showing such consistency over the season, resulting in him being crowned Order of Merit champion. The season has been a great success for many, both professional and amateur who turn out to play our amazing courses around the country.”
PGA Ireland Regional Manager Conor Dillon also paid tribute to Elavon for their support and to Rice for his achievement.
“I’d like to thank Elavon for making this one of the most successful seasons in many years,” Dillon said.
“We’ve had record participation from both professionals and amateurs all over the country, and we visited some of the top courses in the country which meant that players got to experience top-class playing conditions and increased exposure for all of the golf courses involved.
“Tim was outstanding all season. His consistency was incredible, but the standard across the board was so high, and that’s great for the region and also great for the sponsors.
“Elavon have been amazing supporters, and we’re absolutely delighted to have them on board.”
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