National glory for Charles
GOLF MICHAEL Charles secured the title of the community’s top golfer after lifting the Donald Forster Trophy at the AJGCS National Scratch competition.
Charles, of Hartsbourne Golf Club, was the overall winner of the Open nett tournament following excellent rounds of 66 and 71 at the iconic Woodhall Spa Golf Club, the home of Golf England.
The final event of the AJGCS season was played on the Hotchkin Course, which is rated within the top 10 courses in the UK.
The firstround scores on Sunday reflected the challenge of the course, with Nicky Harris (Hartsbourne) returning the best round of 75, followed by his fellow club member Mark Gershinson on 78. Whilst Gershinson’s 79 the following day led him to be the only competitor to break 80 in both rounds, his achievement was eclipsed by Charles who produced a magnificent two-under par to win, beating Harris by two shots with Gershinson a further two shots behind in third place.
Alongside the Open event, the over 55s competed in the Masters division. The gross competition was won by Gary Perkins of Hartsbourne. He secured the Marshall Bellow Cup with an aggregate return of 161. There was also silverware for Richard Gold of Shirley. He won the stableford competition following an aggregate score of 64 points to earn him the DADD Trophy .