Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Teenager Aston wins first title
Aston Moy became the 15th first time men’s solo winner at Canterbury Golf Club since the first lockdown - in the last competition before the second one.
Moy (h15) made light of the heavy course to score 41 points and win Wednesday’s Men’s Stableford by two from Colin Shaxted (h14) and three from third placed Anthony Back (h6). It was a sweet moment for the 19-year-old, who was second by a single point in his previous two
Stableford competitions. And he was savouring a 280yard three wood second shot onto the green for his third birdie of the round at the parfive 9th as his champagne moment.
Moy also had birdies at the 1st and 8th plus two pars and four bogeys in a fine one-over-par outward half of gross 37 for 24 points. A run of bogeys on the back nine took him to 40 points after 17 before he came close to undoing all the good work with a double at the 18th.
He said: “I was told on the 18th how many points I was on and I was quite surprised to be honest. “I then struck my drive right into the rough, duffed a couple and finally three putted for a seven, it was probably just a bit of ‘I’m on for a really good score here’.
“I’m ecstatic for the victory having come very close the last two times so it was very nice that I’ve won for once.
“It’s always good to start off with a birdie but my hole of the day was the ninth, because I had 280 into the pin with my second shot and somehow found the green with a three wood, which I was very surprised with. “I was having a bit of a near miss day with my driver so I decided to take a four iron off the tee on that hole which is why I had a lot left into the green.” Moy, who is studying for a maths and statistic degree at university in Canterbury and who hails from Hertford, only joined Canterbury last year and was also amazed at the number of first time winners since competitions resumed in early July.
“It is so nice to get my first competition win but that’s a lot of other first time winners, they must have been tuning their skills during lockdown,” he said. Shaxted scored 20 points on the front nine and 19 on the back to take second place by a point from Back, who had three birdies on the back nine. Tony Wenham said he was amazed to see his name at the top of the leader board of 65 starters after winning Monday’s Seniors Stableford with a level par 36 points. Wenham (h13) made a rock steady 19 points on the front nine with four pars and five bogeys and 17 on the back despite a NR at the 14th and a double for one point at the 15th. He won by a point from Paul Newbury (h21) with Bruce Maguire (h15) another one point back on 34 to take third place on countback ahead of Bert Whyte (h13), Vince Stribling (h23), Ray
Marks (h19) and seventh-placed Ian Cooper (h18).
“I am amazed actually but I thought it was a tough day to play golf, with so little run,” said Wenham. “I was the first guy to hit the ball off the first tee and you wouldn’t think that 36 points would win but it has and I was very pleased to do that.”