Brilliant Burrows digs for victory!
IT WAS mission accomplished for Luke Burrows and Matt Peyton of Cosby after they won the Daily Mail Foursomes, putting behind them the disappointment of a near miss three years ago.
The Leicestershire pair were runners-up in 2015, beaten by Mendip, but yesterday they were at their unstoppable best, beating Keith Ellis and Nick Lewis from Hurlston Hall 4&3 to reign at Marriott St Pierre.
‘This was redemption for last time. We wanted to win it for the club and get the title back for the county,’ said Burrows, 26, who plays off plus two. Teammate Peyton, 38, added: ‘I’m still shaking. After getting so close, we didn’t know if we would get another chance.’
The pair had the lowest combined handicap of one in the men’s competition, which meant they were giving 11 shots to their Lancashire opponents.
Earlier in the day, Hurlston Hall took full advantage of their ten shots in a drama-filled semi-final, clawing their way back from four down after 11 to beat Petersfield’s Ross Lobacz and Henry Holland one up.
It looked like they could produce another shock after going one up after six, but Cosby’s experience came to the fore with a run of six pars. County player Burrows said: ‘We needed to get it finished, as we didn’t want to go down the last three holes as we would be giving shots. This caps off my year.’
Among those watching the duel was Burrows’ 87-year-old grandad Maurice, who still plays three times a week.
In the women’s competition, Marriott Forest of Arden’s Helen Orton and Julie Baker swept to a 6&5 victory over Hooton Ladies from Cheshire and went on to praise their secret weapon, caddie Derek Stafford.
The West Midlands duo met Stafford, a member at St Pierre, when they visited the course to prepare for the finals.
After they got chatting, the five-handicapper offered to caddie and the couple jumped at the chance. In the final they built momentum from the fifth, winning six consecutive holes, which proved impossible for Sharon Steadman and Donna Callaghan Swann to peg back.
A tearful Baker said: ‘Derek was brilliant at reading the greens and lining us on the tees. He was a calming influence.’
More than 120,000 golfers tried to qualify for the world’s largest golf competition and over 3,000 clubs took part, battling through 11 rounds. Our winners are true champions. MEN — Semi-finals: Hurlston Hall (K Ellis & N Lewis, 23) bt Petersfield (R Lobacz & H Holland, 3) 1 up; Cosby (L Burrows & M Peyton, 1) bt Letchworth (D Banbury & C Pearce, 13) 5&4. Final: Cosby bt Hurlston Hall 4&3. WOMEN — Semi-finals: Hooton Ladies (S Steadman & D Callaghan Swann, 23) bt Ipswich (A Symonds & L Whyman, 5) 2&1; Marriott Forest of Arden (H Orton & J Baker 24) bt Merrist Wood (J Baker & B Green, 48) 3&1. Final: Marriott Forest of Arden bt Hooton Ladies 6&5.