‘Speedy’ Murdock tops Florida Open
JAMAICA’S LESGAR ‘Speedy’ Murdock was crowned overall Open Division champion at the recent Florida Open pistol tournament, held at Universal Shooting Academy, Frostproof.
Murdock’s victory, the highlight of what turned out to be a Jamaican affair, marked the first major match win for him against world-rated Max Michel and Chris Tilley.
The 11-stage, 300-round match took on a Jamaican flair as the stages were named for iconic Jamaican phrases and locations. The tournament mascot also depicted a Rastafarian.
The tournament brought together 384 top shooters from the United States, Europe, the Caribbean as well as Central and South America.
Jamaica had six entrants in the Open Division, 10 in Limited and four in Production.
Murdock topped 100 rivals in the hot Open Division, tallying 1,538 points, 15 ahead of his closest rival. A total 38 points separated the top five. Though not the fastest, he was certainly the most accurate.
MINOR ADJUSTMENTS
The Jamaican credited his victory to minor adjustments to his training routine. He has his eyes squarely set on a podium finish at the International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC) World Shoot in France, scheduled for August.
Lennie Moulton, 34; Ryan Gourzong, 43; Errol Lawson, 51; Odane McDowell, 85, and Bernard Lawrence 90, completed Jamaica’s placing in the Open Division.
Of the 100 shooters who lined in Limited, Jamaica’s Ron Brown Jr continued his winning form, placing eighth overall, third as Master, with 1,263 points, shooting 85 per cent of the division winner.
Greg Henry won first-place honours in C Class, placing 35th overall. Sue-Ann Henriques, Jamaica’s most decorated female shooter, was second in the Ladies Division, 53rd overall.
Andrew Yap, though disappointed with his performance, placed 12th; Manchester Rifle and Pistol Club’s Orville Henriques was 30th overall, Ellsworth Dixon 41st, Paul Dixon 47th, Thomas Jones 61st, Owen Campbell 67th and Andrew Nish 84th.
Production division hosted 89 competitors from which Jamaica’s Ryan Bramwell emerged first in A Class, 12th overall, with 1202 points at 76 per cent. Bramwell’s performance followed his Florida State Championship A class win.
Sanjay Welsh topped D Class with 620 points, placing 66th. Darin Richards placed third in C Class with 783 points, finishing 53rd. Veteran Anthony Johnson was 38th with 904 points.
Jamaica’s team to the IPSC World Shoot XVIII comprises: Murdock, Rory Wilson and Moulton in Open Division; Brown Jr, Yap, Evelyn, Henry and Paul Dixon in the Standard Division. Anthony Johnson will compete in Production Division.
The team members are highly motivated and optimistic about their chances and continue to train prior to their departure.