Warwickshire Golf
A STROLL IN THE PARK
Match: Warwickshire v Derbyshire
Date: 5th June 2016
Venue: Sutton Coldfield Golf Club
Captain: Stuart Bloxham
Our second league game of the year was against Derbyshire.
Sutton Coldfield Golf Club was our venue which was presented in great condition, with slick greens and fast fairways meant ball control was essential.
It was a cool start to the morning but as the golf warmed up the sun came out and sun cream was the order of the day.
Team:
Adam Lumley, Dave Atkins, Finlay Mason, Ian Winstanley, Liam Phipps, Louie Pett, Matt Cryer, Max Martin, Patrick Ruff, Sam Broadhurst
Foursomes:
Returning to County golf from playing excellent in National Events, Patrick Ruff was partnering Max Martin. Although it wasn’t the home coming he/we were expecting as Derbyshire duo Tom Hanson & Sam Claypole played some superb golf and got the hang of the greens early with plenty of single putts. Resulting in a 4&3 defeat for Warwickshire.
Second out was the exciting pairing of Finlay Mason & Sam Broadhurst, both fresh from coming back from the states. Having found themselves 1 down early on they quickly stepped up a gear and went on to win 3&2 with some great golf.
Matt Cryer & Ian Winstanley were out next. It was a pleasure to watch with both splitting fairways, followed by constant flag seeking, followed by holing putts. They made the game look easy and went on to win 4&3.
The new pairing of Dave Atkins and Liam Phipps found tough opposition in Paul Tatlow & Chris Drabble, Derbyshire’s captain. The game was close all the way round but the Warwickshire duo dug deep to win the match 1up.
Last out was Adam Lumley & Louie Pett who continued to extend their winning record with a great 5&4 victory. A captains dream pairing.
Foursomes Result
Warwickshire 4 – 1 Derbyshire
Singles:
After a great morning foursome results it was important that we didn’t get complacent. Words of encouragement from the captain worked very well as what was about to happen was frightening.
First out was Sutton Coldfield’s Patrick Ruff against Tom Hanson. This was possibly one of the most astonishing games I have witnessed. Patrick Ruff was six under par and 1 down playing the 17th hole. Derbyshire’s Tom Hanson eight under par wasn’t enough to see off Patrick who was determined to turn the game around with two holes to go. Patrick won the 17th and went on to also win the 18th hole to win the match 1up. A fantastic match played by both players.
Second out was Max Martin who went 5up early in his match but with some great play from his opponent meant Max was only 1up with one to play. With the momentum in favour of the Derbyshire player Max had to dig deep and he did that with a great 1up win.
Finlay Mason who has had some great wins in the states was out third. He continued his excellent form and played some great golf from start to finish to triumph with a superb 5&4 win.
This meant we had seven points in the bag and only needed one more point to secure victory. This came down to Matt Cryer who played some tremendous golf all day winning his singles match 4&3.
With the game won and six players still out on the course, gave us an opportunity to increase our goal difference and we did just that.
Debutant Sam Broadhurst who just won the Warwickshire Amateur Championships a few weeks earlier continued his domination. Playing some excellent golf he won his match early with a 5&4 victory. A victory match by Ian Winstanley who was impressively in control of his ball flight and played sublime golf. A pleasure to watch.
Then we have Liam Phipps who along with Louie Pett both got back to winning ways with fantastic 4&3 wins. Liam who was 5up at one stage had to push on again when his opponent dragged him back to 2up. Liam managed to do this and produced a great win.
This left Adam Lumley and debutant Dave Atkins on the course, however they couldn’t complete the white wash as Adam lost 4&3 and Dave who was 2up and going well was hit by a barrage of 6 birdies on the spin and finally lost 3&2.
Singles Result
Warwickshire 8 – 2 Derbyshire
Overall Result
Warwickshire 12 – 3 Derbyshire
I would like to wish Chris Drabble and his team all the best for the season. I would also like to thank Sutton Coldfield for their hospitality throughout the day and presenting a golf course in excellent condition.
Finally thanks to Bob Harrison, President of Warwickshire, Matt Nixon and Pete Clarke for their support on the day.
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