BB & O County Matches

The first League match of the year, against Essex, took place at Burnham Beeches Golf Club on 25^th May. Essex are traditionally our strongest opponents in the League and they were looking for revenge after their heavy defeat at Orsett last year. They sent an almost full strength side which resulted in a high quality contest as the County side was also geared up for this encounter. The home side took the foursomes and led 2½-1½ at lunchtime despite our strongest pairing of David Addison (Parasampia) and Tom Lawson (Ellesborough) surprisingly losing their match but this was made up with wins from Clive Bowler (Oxford City) and Geoff Harris (Reading) and Luke Rusher (Burnham Beeches) who teamed up with Steve Barwick (East Berkshire).

Excellent golf from the top four singles saw the match safe after Kevin Freeman (Stoke Park) David Addison and Geoff Harris all won and Tom Lawson secured a good half. Once again it was left to Lee Gauthier (East Berkshire) to secure the victory with his win. It was good to see Luke Rusher (Burnham Beeches) back on the County scene after a short spell in the professional ranks and gaining maximum points on the day. Geoff Harris was also in fine form, just back after his graduation from University in America, his great experience enabled him to come back from being 3 down after 6 holes, despite being 2 under par, to register a great win. The singles were won 5½-2½ to leave the overall result 8-4 in favour of BB&O.

The Team at Burnham Beeches

Team at Burnham Beeches: David Addison (Parasampia), Steven Barwick (East Berkshire), Clive Bowler (Oxford City), Kevin Freeman (Stoke Park), Lee Gauthier (East Berkshire), Geoff Harris (Reading), Tom Lawson (Ellesborough), Luke Rusher (Burnham Beeches).

The second League match of the year, against Bedfordshire, took place at John O’Gaunt Golf Club on 13^th July. Missing 4 of our 1^st choice players did not appear to be a major problem given our strength in depth, especially as we had not lost to Bedfordshire since 1997 and we had not lost a League game since October 2000. However, John O’Gaunt is home to 5 of the Beds players and this local knowledge would prove decisive as the match progressed. We started well and were up in three of the four morning foursomes after 9 holes but this advantage was lost as crucial putts were missed. The home side took the foursomes and led 3-1 at lunchtime with our only win coming from Clive Bowler (Oxford City) and Mark Housego (Wycombe Heights).

Excellent golf from three of the top four singles saw the match score swing in our favour after Kevin Freeman (Stoke Park), Steve Barwick (East Berkshire) and Tom Lawson (Ellesborough) won comfortably. From then on we struggled to gain enough of a lead in the remaining games to feel confident of victory but as Clive Bowler secured his game and with David Addison (Parasampia) 1 up with two to play a halved match seemed a fair result. Unfortunately Addison’s opponent birdied the last two holes to snatch a win and the match was lost by the narrowest of margins. The League title is still within reach if we win our remaining two matches and hope Bedfordshire drop a point to either Middlesex or Essex. 

Team at John O’Gaunt: David Addison (Parasampia), Steven Barwick (East Berkshire), Clive Bowler (Oxford City), Matt Briggs (Parasampia), Craig Buttivant (Gerrards Cross), Kevin Freeman (Stoke Park), Mark Housego (Wycombe Heights), Tom Lawson (Ellesborough).

The Team at John O’Gaunt

Congratulations to Kevin Freeman (Stoke Park), pictured below, who has been called up to represent England in the annual Chiberta Grand Prix in France in late July. He joins Jamie Moul from Stoke by Nayland and Sam Osborne from Wentworth in the 72 holes event. Kevin has also been made team manager for the trip to Biarritz and this is his first representative honour. Kevin has been BB&O County champion and is a recent graduate from Brunel University and works as an Accountant for one of the major Accountancy Companies in the Country.

The County Team played Northamptonshire at Wellingborough Golf Club on 27th April. We lost the foursomes 3-1 and were unable to make any inroads into the deficit in the afternoon singles and lost the match 2-10

Team at Wellingborough: Wayne Dobbins (Bicester), Michael Forde (Calcot Park), Darren Gatward (Calcot Park), Spencer Hallam (Tadmarton Heath), Paul Lines (Windmill Hill), Robin Long (Buckingham), Ian Manning (Tadmarton Heath), Martyn Palmer (East Berkshire).

The County had a convincing win against Dorset on Sunday 4th May at Parasampia Golf & Country Club. Taking the morning foursomes 3-1 with some excellent play the team went on to win the match 10½-1½

Team at Parasampia: David Addison (Parasampia), Clive Bowler (Oxford City), Matthew Briggs (Parasampia), Craig Buttivant (Gerrards Cross), Kevin Freeman (Stoke Park), Lee Gauthier (East Berkshire), Tom Lawson (Ellesborough), Luke Rusher (Burnham Beeches).

The County Team played Stoke Poges in their annual match on Sunday 11^th May. A disappointing morning saw the County 3-1 down at lunch and the Club took control of the first four matches of the afternoon singles and eventually won 8-4

Team at Stoke Park: Wayne Dobbins (Bicester), Paul Donnelly (East Berkshire), David Fulcher (Woburn), Ben Harwood (Hazlemere), Michael Joy (Hazlemere), David Palmer (East Berkshire), Martyn Palmer (East Berkshire), Matt Parker (Woburn).

The County Team played a friendly match against Warwickshire on Sunday 25th May at Rye Hill. They fielded a very strong side - including their new County Champion - and we did well to be only 1 point down after the morning foursomes. The singles proved just as difficult as we only managed one win and we eventually lost the match 3-9

Team at Rye Hill: Stuart Allen (Chipping Norton), Paul Barrow (North Oxford), Andy Dixon (Rye Hill), Spencer Hallam (Tadmarton Heath), Ian Manning (Tadmarton Heath), Andrew Mason (Tadmarton Heath), David Summers (Oxford City), Bob Tustain (Tadmarton Heath).

The County Team took on the Club at Windmill Hill on Sunday 1st June. The Club took the morning foursomes by just one point but extended their lead in the afternoon and came out winning the match 7½-4½

Team at Windmill Hill: Paul Amess (Woburn), David Fulcher (Woburn), Mark Greenwood (Hadden Hill), Stewart Hamilton (Oxford City), Andy Hooker (Oxford City), Craig Taylor (Woburn), Chris Tellett (Woburn), Ashley Walton (Frilford Heath).

The County Team played the Club at Woburn Golf and Country Club on Sunday 29th June. Losing the foursomes around the exacting Duchess course in the morning proved decisive but in spite of a good performance in the singles the County were not able make any headway and lost the match 5-7

Team at Woburn: Paul Chana (Hadden Hill), Darren Gatward (Calcot Park), Paul Heselden (Harewood Downs), Alex James (Buckingham), Paul Lines (Windmill Hill), Martyn Palmer (East Berkshire), Darrell Robertson (Buckingham), Andy Vaughan (Windmill Hill).

The County Team had its best result of the year in the match against Sonning on Saturday 5^th July. After taking all the morning foursomes the side continued in the same rich vein and eventually won the match 11-1

Team at Sonning: Paul Chana (Hadden Hill), Robert Hart (Harewood Downs), Paul Heselden (Harewood Downs), Alex James (Buckingham), Paul Lines (Windmill Hill), Ben O’Dell (Henley), Matthew Rendell (Reading), Darrell Robertson (Buckingham).

BB & O Colts Matches

The Colts played their first League Match against Essex on Saturday 7th June. With five players making their debut we were always going to struggle against a strong Essex side over the very tricky Boyce Hill course. The foursomes were extremely close until we lost two games on the last green after being up in both. There was however a convincing win from Jack Bircham (Woburn) and Nick Drane (Woburn) both making their first appearances in the Team.

Jack Bircham and Nick Drane were again undefeated in the afternoon singles and there were also good wins from Adam Birdseye (Hazlemere) and Robert Christian (Beaconsfield). However the loss of the morning foursomes would prove costly and we could not recover from this and eventually lost the match 4½-7½. There were some very good performances and we will build on these throughout the season.

Team at Boyce Hill: Jack Bircham (Woburn), Adam Birdseye (Hazlemere), Robert Christian (Beaconsfield), Nick Drane (Woburn), Adam Goff (Aspect Park), Stewart Hamilton (Oxford City), Keith Leahy (Mill Ride), Andrew Sheffield (Brailes). 

The Team at Boyce Hill

The Colts played their second League Match against Bedfordshire on Saturday 28th June at Mentmore over the Rothschild course. Last year we had won this match by a huge margin and Bedfordshire were determined to avenge this defeat. Three of our players had just returned from College in America and their experience would prove vital as the day went on. We struggled in the morning foursomes and did well to be just 1 point adrift at lunchtime after a solitary win from Gregg Blainey (East Berkshire) and Kevin Tilbury (Stoke Park).

We seemed to be much more in control in the afternoon singles but the points from Robert Christian (Beaconsfield) and Stephen Lewton (Woburn) were quickly offset by two Bedfordshire wins. However we were well up in three of the remaining games and if we could hold on to these positions we were assured of victory. Despite one or two nervous moments the match was secured on the final green by Gregg Blainey who capped his return from College with maximum points on the day. Again there were some very good performances in the 6½-5½ win and we will continue to build on these throughout the season.

Team at Mentmore: Jack Bircham (Woburn), Gregg Blainey (East Berkshire), Robert Christian (Beaconsfield), Nick Drane (Woburn), Matthew Haddy (Bicester), Stephen Lewton (Woburn), Barry Mann (Frilford Heath), Kevin Tilbury (Stoke Park). 

The Team at Mentmore

BB & O Juniors Matches

The Under 16's played Hertfordshire in a 12 a side match at Chiltern Forest on Sunday 8th June. The morning foursomes were shared and the home team played well in the afternoon and eventually took the match 10-8

Team at Chiltern Forest: Adam Birdseye (Hazlemere), Craig Drew (Studley Wood), Laurance Eltham (Goring & Streatley), Lee Frame (Donnington Valley), Mark Hall (Oxford City), Robert Hart (Stoke Park), Adam Hinkins (Chiltern Forest), John McNally (Stoke Park), Chris Tellett (Woburn), Craig Taylor (Woburn), Lee Wanklyn (Sand Martins), Adam Wootton (Oxford City).

The Juniors had a very exciting match against Bedfordshire on Saturday 21st June at Aylesbury Park. Having lost 13-2 last year the boys were determined to turn this round in this match. Despite trailing in the foursomes 2-3 at lunchtime, they produced some excellent golf and the result depended on the last game. Gareth Woodward (Witney Lakes) holed a 20ft putt on the last green to take his game 1 up and give the Team a narrow win 8-7

Team at Aylesbury Park: Carl Corbin (Wokefield Park), Laurance Eltham (Goring & Streatley), Mark Hall (Oxford City), Andrew Mason (Tadmarton Heath), Joe Murphy (Stoke Park), Nick Scrutton (Maidenhead), Chris Tellett (Woburn), Craig Taylor (Woburn), Daniel Taylor (Woburn), Gareth Woodward (Witney Lakes). 

BB & O Seniors Matches

The Seniors played their first League match against Essex at Romford on Wednesday 10^th June. These matches are played as 10 singles with two of the players being over 65. A number of our regular selections were in France playing in the European Seniors so it was pleasing to see the ‘new boys’ winning their matches. The final match result was in our favour 6½-3½

Team at Romford: Brian Berney (Gerrards Cross), Bryan Claringbold (Frilford Heath), Tim Clutterbuck (Beaconsfield), Tony Finch (Flackwell Heath), Duncan Forbes (Sonning), Peter Franklin (Stoke Park), David Kelly (East Berkshire), Ken Procter (Burnham Beeches), David Shaw (Goring & Streatley), David Stevenson (Burnham Beeches).

The Seniors won their second League match against Bedfordshire on 25th June at Badgemore Park and now top the League in the North of the Thames section.

Team at Badgemore Park: Peter Batchelor (Woburn),  David Doodson (Temple), Duncan Forbes (Sonning), Peter Franklin (Stoke Park), Bob Gill (Gerrards Cross), David Kelly (East Berkshire), David Lane (Goring & Streatley), Anthony Parsons (Denham), David Shaw (Goring & Streatley), Jim Walkinshaw (Denham).

BB & O Championship & Trophy Meetings

Club Scratch Foursomes Championship

The Scratch Championship was contested by 39 teams and after the morning round there were 9 teams within three shots of the leaders – Burnham Beeches – represented by John Griggs and Ken Procter. The afternoon round saw some excellent golf with the best coming from Dean Yates and Simon Hopkins of Burford who scored 68 with birdies at two of the last four holes. A very exciting finish involving Frilford Heath and Woburn saw Barry Mann & Ashley Walton come home in 3 under par to set the target at 144 before the Woburn pair of Gary Mumford and Ian Lydon registered 9 straight pars to take the Title on countback.

Gary Mumford & Ian Lydon (Woburn)

Club Handicap Foursomes Championship

In the Handicap Championship there were 40 teams taking part and the morning scoring proved difficult as only 2 pairings managed to beat par. Buckingham – Mike Lightfoot and Paul Skinner had an excellent 67½ and the afternoon was set for a close finish as there were plenty of teams in with a chance. Royal Ascot had had a very good front nine and they hung on to record a very creditable net 68 to set the target at 138. Knowing they needed to birdie the last to tie, the Calcot Park team of Gary Staples and Jeff Turnball just missed out and had to settle for second place two shots ahead of the Buckingham duo.

Geoff Adamson & Tommy Goode (Royal Ascot)

Penfold Trophy

Played at Maidenhead Golf Club on Saturday 17^th May 2003. This event also serves as the qualifying round for the BB & O Amateur Championship and is restricted to players between 2.1 and 5.4 handicaps. There were 14 places available for the Amateur which will be played in June.

66 players contested the Trophy on a wonderfully prepared course playing its full length after very heavy overnight rain. Conditions continued to be difficult throughout the morning with heavy showers and a strong breeze. Despite this the scoring was very good and Shane Jackson (Richings Park) led the way at lunch with a level par 70. Close behind were Paul Heselden (Harewood Downs) and Wayne Dobbins (Bicester) with 71’s and then three players were on 72 and two on 73 all of whom had a chance in the afternoon. Unfortunately after three hours of play in the afternoon conditions continued to deteriorate to such an extent that many of the greens became unplayable. A decision was made to suspend play and wait for an improvement. It quickly became apparent that not all players would be able to complete the round as they had 9 holes to play and it was therefore abandoned and results calculated from round one only. This was a great shame as everyone was so impressed with the condition of the golf course after all the hard work put into staging this event by the staff at Maidenhead Golf Club and the pride that was evident from the members in hosting the County Union. The players themselves were most understanding of the decision to abandon play and were fully supportive of the presentation of prizes based on the first round.

The results were as follows:

Other players qualifying for the Amateur Championship, other than those named above were: Simon Hunt (Gerrards Cross), Ian Barnes (East Berkshire), Gavin Hutchinson (Chipping Norton), Chris Weller (Newbury & Crookham), Blair Dickinson (Beaconsfield) and Kevin Milne (Windmill Hill).

Shane Jackson (Richings Park) receives the Penfold Trophy from Tim Clutterbuck

Amateur Championship

Played at East Berkshire Golf Club on Friday 13^th & Saturday 14^th June. 66 players competed on the Friday for 16 places (and ties) for the final 36 holes on Saturday. In good conditions on Friday morning 6 players broke the par of 69 with Lee Gauthier (East Berkshire) leading the field by 3 shots after a fine 65. Another 16 players were 71 or better and it was difficult to predict what the cut would be. The afternoon saw another 5 scores come in under par and 5 more equal it. Geoff Harris (Reading) had a 65 that took him within two shots of the lead. Scores of 68 came from James Shield (The Oxfordshire), that left him joint second with Harris and from Luke Rusher (Burnham Beeches) and David Cowap, Club Captain of East Berkshire in their Centenary Year. Tom Lawson (Ellesborough) added a 69 to his morning 68, scores matched by Richard Clarke (Beaconsfield) for them to lie in joint 4^th place. None of the qualifiers from the Penfold Trophy were to make it to the second day as the cut fell at 142, one of the lowest in recent history and 18 players went forward for another 36 holes on Saturday.

Scores on the Saturday morning rose quite sharply as a tricky wind blew up. With nerves also playing a part for the leaders, the best scores came from further down the leader board with Luke Rusher (Burnham Beeches) making up 3 shots on the leader with an excellent 67. David Addison (Parasampia) added a par round but both looked to be too far back to be in contention for the fourth round as the last pair had steady 70’s and Lee Gauthier still enjoyed a two shot lead. The afternoon started in sensational fashion as David Addison went to the turn in 4 under par and was now 1 under overall. Geoff Harris was struggling with the putter and had dropped two shots after the front 9 to lie at level par. Meanwhile Tom Lawson had started to hole some putts and reached the turn in 31 - 3 under - and now seemed set to challenge for the lead as he lay just one shot back. The last 9 holes proved the more testing and both Tom Lawson and David Addison found birdies elusive as they tried to catch Lee Gauthier, who played inspired golf and made three birdies on the back nine, finishing in style with a 3 at the last, to come home in 32 and take the Championship by 3 shots from Tom Lawson with David Addison another two shots further back in third place. He will now go on to represent BB & O in the County Champions’ Tournament at Woodhall Spa at the end of September and we wish him well in this Tournament.

The results were as follows:

Lee Gauthier (East Berkshire) receives the Amateur Championship Trophy from Tim Clutterbuck

Courage Trophy

Played at Frilford Heath on Saturday 12^th July. This Event is for Club Champions from 2002 and those invited by the County Union Executive Committee to make up the field. 57 players competed on the demanding Blue Course and in glorious weather the scoring was very good as 17 players scored 75 or better. Leading the field at lunchtime was Daniel Taylor (Woburn) who had compiled a very good 69 to lead by 2 from local favourites Ashley Walton (Frilford Heath) and Barry Mann (Frilford Heath). Darren Drew (Studley Wood) was also in contention after his level par 72 and 10 more players on 74 or better all felt they would improve on their morning rounds and challenge the leaders. However, the splendid sunshine was taking its toll and many of the players weakened as the day went on and the temperatures rose. Unusually, scoring averages increased by one shot in the afternoon and Colin Lumley (Bird Hills) set the pace at 145 after a very good level par round. Ashley Walton was playing very steadily again and despite dropping a shot at both the 15^th & 16^th made a birdie at the 17^th and a par at the 18^th to take the lead at level par. On the other side of the course Barry Mann had got to 3 under par after 9 and looked set for victory before three errors in a row put him back to level par. He then made a good recovery and played the last 5 holes in level par to share the lead with Walton. Meanwhile Daniel Taylor (Woburn) had dropped just two shots after 17 holes and was just in the lead. He had had bad luck on the greens all afternoon and this would not change in his favour as he dropped a shot at the last to finish equal with Walton and Mann on level par. Barry Mann took the Trophy on countback and Colin Lumley took the handicap prize. Club Champions also compete for a separate prize and Michael Weaver (Burnham Beeches) showed steady form to just edge out Adam Hinkins (Chiltern Forest) by one shot.

The results were as follows:

Barry Mann (Frilford Heath) receives the Courage Trophy from Tim Clutterbuck

English Golf Union – South Eastern Events

Junior County Qualifying

Played at Cooden Beach Golf Club on Friday 30^th May our Team of 6 players were Adam Birdseye (Hazlemere), Haydn Brooks (Woburn), Carl Corbin (Wokefield Park), John Cronly (Frilford Heath), Andrew Mason [Captain] (Tadmarton Heath), Daniel Taylor (Woburn).

The format is 5 scores from 6 count from each round. Competition Scratch Score was 71 both morning and afternoon. Our players were lying equal 8^th (22 shots off the pace) after the morning round with the best score coming from Adam Birdseye (Hazlemere) with a 74. A much better effort in the afternoon - the best of all the other Counties - saw us climb up the ladder considerably, but the great golf from both Kent and Sussex in the morning left us with too big a deficit to make up. Congratulations to Andrew Mason who was just one off the course record with his 4 under par 68 in the afternoon. Our total of 733 left us in 3^rd position.

The Team at Cooden Beach

County Qualifying

Played at Ealing Golf Club on Saturday 5^th July. Our Team of 6 players were David Addison (Parasampia), Kevin Freeman (Stoke Park), Lee Gauthier (East Berkshire), Geoff Harris (Reading), Tom Lawson (Ellesborough), Stephen Lewton (Woburn).

The format is for all 6 scores to count from each round. Competition Scratch Score was 70 in both the morning and the afternoon. Our players were lying 3^rd after the morning just 2 shots behind Hertfordshire and 8 shots behind Surrey. We had played very steadily as the key to winning this competition is to ensure your worst score is still around level par. We hoped that we would be able to pick up the 8 shot deficit but this seemed unlikely as with two of the team finished we were still 8 adrift of Surrey whose players had matched the outstanding rounds of 64 from Tom Lawson and the 66 from Kevin Freeman. However our ability to minimise the effect of our worst scores was paying dividends, as the level par rounds from David Addison and Steve Lewton saw us reduce the Surrey lead to 6 and then Lee Gauthier’s 71 was matched by his Surrey counterpart. The news from the course was now very encouraging as Geoff Harris was 3 under with two to play and the Surrey player was having a bad afternoon and had just finished with 75. Harris birdied his 17^th hole and we suddenly had a 3 shot lead, he calmly made a par at the last and the title was secured. We now go on to meet the other three regional finalists at Formby at the end of September and hope to improve by one place on our last final at Burnham & Berrow in 2001.

The Team at Ealing