A glorious day with the Gainsborough in great condition, especially the greens.

The Captain had a steady round with a few early pars, enough to build a deserved lead. Stubbsie belied his handicap to win the Index 1 with a fine par, and good dovetailing saw the pair home with a strong win 4 & 3.

Bill Kemter and Dick Lumsden similarly returned a win for SbN 4 & 3, having taken the lead on the first and never looked back. One up at the turn, they edged away and with good dovetailing shook hands on the 15th, happy to have been one of the teams getting round in under 5 hours!

Phil Hickley and Richard Middleton lost the first but came straight back and went 2 up, holding the lead for the next 12 holes. Eventually the bubble burst and although combining well, their opponents gradually gained the upper hand to give Felixstowe the win by 2 holes.

Tony Reeves and Mick Henry fought a close yo-yo match, eventually gaining a lead of 2 after 11th (helped by Mick taking nearest the pin honours there) but then falling to 1 down after the 14th. Mick getting pars on the 15th and 16thregained the lead by 1, held until the last which Tony ensured was retained on the 18th to clinch the 1 hole win for SbN.

Shikhar and Iain Gault also claimed a win by 1 hole. Reporting a very “strange” game with only 3 holes halved and their opponent Tony making the most of his 12 shots, they were 1 down at the turn and 2 down after the 10th. They thenfought back to get level after the 15th, holding that to the last tee. Both Shikhar and Iain managed to par the last (Shikhar claiming his went in first!) to seize the victory for SbN by 1 hole.

Eric Fisher and Ray Ludlam played another close match notable as a round of “chip-ins”, started on their first hole (the 18th) by Felixstowe’s Gary. The match flipped, the teams being all square after the 5th, but then came Eric’s turn to chip in for a birdie on the 6th. The match was back to all square after the 12th  and returned to a/s after the 15th, with Eric securing par on the 16th to keep it level going to the last (17th). There, Ray made par after his chip lipped out, to clinch the 1 hole victory for SbN.

Ian Mckay and Simon Merriam similarly had a close match from start to finish, getting to an early lead 2 up, that was never increased although dovetailing well SbN never fell behind, keeping a slim lead or on level terms, which was the position on the final tee (the 17th). Ian then secured a fine par with a pressure put, to seal a 1 hole win for SbN.

The final team of Del McWilliams and Neil Ashwell (as late stand-in!) then turned in a strong result, winning 4&3 for SbN. Felixstowe had difficulty adjusting to the greens but SbN had good teamwork with Del going out well followed by Neil making the most of his shots to help bring home the win 4&3, after a great match played in good spirit.  

Many thanks to Simon M for reporting on what was clearly an excellent win. Thanks Simon.

Team ………

     1st     Kevin Price (Captain) & Graham Stubbs

     2nd     Bill Kemter & Dick Lumsden

     3rd     Phil Hickley & Richard Middleton

     4th     Tony Reeves & Mick Henry

     5th    Shikhar Chatrath & Iain Gault

     6th     Eric Fisher & Ray Ludlam

     7th     Ian McKay & Simon Merriam (Reporter)

     8th     Del McWilliams & Neil,Ashwell