Warwickshire Golf
2nd Team Friendly versus Northamptonshire
The final friendly of the year was played out at Rushden Golf Club Northampton. A reduced number of players meaning 8 per side selected.
Team selected
Paul Walker (Maxstoke Park)
Rhys Wallace (Handsworth)
Rob Tovey (Olton)
Niall Collins (Robin Hood)
Ste Keay (Harborne)
Lee Podmore (Harborne)
Richard Bush (Coventry)
Charlie Lamb (Coventry Hearsall)
The final friendly gave us one last chance to dust off the cob webs and start gearing up for the season. With the course looking extremely tricky and the wind gusting up to 40mph conditions were extremely tough. It was one of those days when grinding out a score was essential
First off in the morning foursomes was Paul and Rhys. A great start a birdie on the 1st for the bears. Level through 4 after a cracking chip from Rhys meant the pair was set up for a close game goin into the back 9. With the wind kicking up it was tough to make any birdies. A couple of lost balls in quick succession left the pair with an impossible task to recover eventually succumbing to a 5/3 loss.
Second off was Rob and Niall, paired together for the first time. Out the block quickly appearing to be able to manage the conditions well the pair saw themselves 3 up through 8. They never took their foot off the gas playing superb regulation golf gave them a 5 up lead through 12 holes. The writing was on the wall for the Northampton pair as the duo pushed on to a 7/5 victory. Well done boys.
3rd out was the age old Harborne combo on Steve and Lee. This would be a game of 2 halves. After being 1 up through 4 the pair increased their lead to 4up through 9 and another point seemed to be coming. But in typical match play fashion and with some serious bad luck the Northampton pair manage to get the game back to one down. A run of 3 wins in 4 holes. Luckily this isn’t the bears first rodeo and they buckled down to complete a fantastic 2/1 victory.
4th was the boys from Coventry Richard and Charlie. Having started solidly and only 1 down through 7. The conditions, course and a bit of bad luck got the better of the pair. 5 down through 12 would be a task to far and it was another point to Northampton after a 5/3 victory.
So with the score at 2-2 it’s was lucky we had a good lunch break before starting the singles. With the conditions only getting worse it was going to be a tough afternoon.
No 1 was Paul and Mr Reliable didn’t let the county down. With a slow start he was 1 down through 2 but a win on the 3rd squared the match. Both players played solid golf but Paul was able to swing the match in his favour and was 2 up through 7. We all know how tough it is to turn a match around when down against Paul so I knew the Northamptonshire player was in trouble. In typical no fuss fashion he closed the match out 3/1.
No 2 was Rhys who like Paul started a little slow and was 2 down through 2. The conditions need mental strength and Rhys showed his metal to make a par on 3 to get back to 1 down. More battling and a win on the 7th got the match all square. This is where Rhys moved up a gear and his opponent didn’t have an answer. A run of 1 and two birdies in 5 holes gave Rhys a 4 up lead through 11. He then closed the match out for a 5/4 victory.
No 3 was Rob 7 iron off the first tee left him 60 yard in and solid golf for the next 6 holes meant he was 2 up through 7. A eagle on 10 put him 3 up and he was making the conditions look easy. From this position he made it look very simple for a 6/4 victory.
No 4 was Niall making mens golf look a breeze (unbeaten in mens golf). He was not going to let that record change and made 3 birdies in the first 7 to be 4up. Another birdie on the tough 12th put him four up. This put him in a great position and he closed the match out for a 4/3 victory.
No 5 was Ste, having struggled with injury over the last 18 months it was great to see Ste back in full flow and injury free. A tight match through the first 4 holes and the match was all square. 1 up through 6 but a loss on 7 squared the match up once more. Not letting the conditions get the better of him he push forward to be 2 up through 11. He never let his opposition back into the game and won 3/2.
No 6 was Lee, a tough start out Lee on the back foot early and 2 down through 4. Two wins on the bounce and the match was all square through 6 only to give a hole straight back on 7. With the conditions getting difficult it was becoming hard to score and any shot not struck well would be punished. It was a task too for but Lee battled to the end but was unable to turn the match around and it was a 3/2 victory for Northampton.
No 7 was Richard and he revelled in the conditions presented to him. All square through 3. A great shot into the tonight 4th set up a easy par and it was enough to win the hole. Birdies on 8 & 9 gave him a 3 up lead through 10. Another win on 11 put him 4 up and a 6/5 victory. Obviously the course and conditions suited his game 😬. (I won’t mention the chippy driver he hit into a par 3)
No 8 was Charlie by the time he teed off he would be playing in the worst conditions of the day. The wind was gusting and the temperature dropping. It was not nice to play in. With his opponent driving the green on the 1st making a 2 this unfortunately set the tone for Charlies day. A great shot into the 4th got him back to 1 down but he gave one on the 7th to go 2 down. Unable to make the required birdies in the condition Charlie did his best but it was a point to Northampton with a 6/5 victory.
Match result a 8/4 bears victory.
Being the final friendly of the season I’m delighted to get another win. Our pre season has set us you for a fantastic season. It goes without saying thank you to my team for all your efforts over the past few games. An as always a big thank you to Neville for his continued support.
Let’s hope we go one better this year.
Regards
Chris Staite (staitey)
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