Wallis remains links king

Richard Wallis won the PGA Sandwich Links Championship for the third time running and for the fifth time in six years over the Himalayas and Shores nines at Prince’s Golf Club.

The Canterbury teaching professional scored 39 points at Royal St George’s last Tuesday to lead by three points overnight in a professionals’ field of 24.

He finished the job off with a blistering six-birdie back nine of 30 on Shore for 24 points to add to his Himalayas score of 19 for a seven-under par total of 43.

His total of 82 points saw him win by eight points.

Wallis and his team of Simon Nunney, Mark Bryant and Eastbourne’s Richard Canton also won the Pro-am team event by one point, from a field of 23 teams and 96 players.

He said: ‘’I shot six under for the back nine at Prince’s and it was as close to flawless as I can play for nine holes.

“It was great and the weather was absolutely perfect.’’

Josh Bristow missed out on a card for next season’s Europro Tour by two shots at the final Q School on Thursday, finishing with a one-over par two rounds total of 144.

Canterbury club champion Bristow shot a second-round two-under par 69 at Stoke by Nayland Golf and Spa complex, near Colchester.

That left him two shots outside the cut, with 74 players from a starting field of 192 qualifying for the Europro Tour.

Bristow said: ‘’My whole game was less than desirable. (It is) not how I wanted it to be but I’ll still get some starts next season on the Europro Tour.’’

Chris Sherwood and Connor Bundock teamed up for the first time, setting themselves a target of 45 Stableford points and were bang on target to win the first

round of the Canterbury men’s Hallet Cup winter league.

Sherwood scored two birdies and eight pars, and Bundock weighed in with a birdie and four pars.

Alan Holcroft and Hugh Burton dovetailed well to take second with 44 points.

Sherwood said: “This was the first time we’ve ever played together and, obviously, it was a good partnership.”

Anthony Dance was the latest Canterbury member to join the hole-in-one club when he holed a 6 iron at the eighth on Saturday morning.

Following on from Mark Ferrett’s pair of aces and another from his cousin Kevin Ashby at the 5th the previous Saturday, Dance made it three maiden aces at Canterbury in just over three weeks.

Canterbury’s East Kent Alliance team of Ken and Andy Williamson, Ian Cusselle, Colin Shaxted, Andrew Davies and Nigel Fluet finished sixth out of 18 teams and seven points behind winners St Augustine’s after the first match of the new East Kent Alliance season at Chestfield GC last Thursday.

Ali Ord scored a par at the 17th and a birdie at the last to win the last two holes and beat Val Binns, 1 up, in the final of the Ladies’ Ickham Bowl.

Fran Fearn scored 35 points to beat June Edney by one in Saturday’s ladies’ October Weekend Stableford. Clare Mills scored 33 points for third place, from a field of 14.

Phil Cheeseman was “buzzing” after his maiden win at Canterbury with his highest competition Stableford score of 38 points in Monday’s Seniors’ Stableford.

David Gregory and Keri Mathias-wlliams are the 2021 Seniors’ Coaker Foursomes champions, beating Bert Whyte and Dave Edmonds 1 up in the final on Friday.

Seniors captain Neil Parsonson’s side scored a season’s double over lady captain Alyson Wreford’s team, winning their “away” Ladies v Seniors match 4.5-3.5.

Richard Wallis