| Date: | 17th June 2008 |
| Venue: | Woking G.C. |
Senior Darwin - Woking 17/18 June 2008
Report from Martin Yates
The OTGS team under new Captain Martin Yates beat successively
Marlborough 2.5 - 0.5, Clifton 2.5 - 0.5, Malvern 2 - 1 and Rugby 2.5 - 0.5 to win this 65 and
over event for the first time ever. It is worth noting that Martin was also the
Captain of the Halford Hewitt team on the occasion of their first win in 1990.
Let us hope that a similar pattern of success has been set.
The eventual team after various drop-outs (other commitments and injuries seem
to be an occupational hazard at this level) was Geoff Clay & Richard Gracey,
David Evans & Martin Yates and John Crates & Neil Williamson.
On the first day four relatively comfortable victories by the first two pairs enabled the third
pair to concede magnanimous halves to their nearly-vanquished opponents.
Unfortunately John Crates awoke the next day to find his shoulder sufficiently
frozen to prevent further participation. Showing commendable initiative, he
managed to rouse Ian Mackintosh from his slumbers in deepest Hampshire and
persuade him to set off for Woking post haste. Because of traffic problems he
was inevitably late, joining Neil Williamson on the 5th tee, where under the
rules of the competition Tonbridge started the match 4 down. To lose 3/2
thereafter was some achievement. Meanwhile, with Clay & Gracey sailing
serenely on, the spotlight duly fell on the second pair who, having been 3up
after 8 were now back to A/S with two to go. After sundry excursions by both sides Evans
holed from 12 feet, only to be matched by a 6 footer from Malvern. At the last
Malvern's drive was just in the heather on the right, with Yates well down on
the left side of the fairway. Malvern tugged their second short left, leaving
them behind a bunker with the flag just beyond. A sensible chip and run by
Evans to the front of the green meant that Tonbridge could do no worse than a
5, which proved enough to put us into the final. Normal service was then
resumed, with the first two pairs playing nicely to defeat their Rugbeian
opposition and the third pair securing a half.
Clay now has the distinction of simultaneously holding winners' medals in the
Halford Hewitt, the Senior Darwin and (until 3 July at least) the Darwin. What
price the Grafton Morrish? However, special mention should be made of Neil
Williamson (ably assisted by his two partners) who, on his debut appearance,
reckons he was respectively 2up, 3up, 1up (if you ignore the 4 hole penalty)
and A/S and yet failed to record a single point!