Glen Gorse clinch pro/am foursome title in a thriller
GLEN Gorse GC are county golf union inter-club pro/am foursomes champions for the first time since 1992.
The 2018 final was played at Stapleford Park Hotel and GC.
Michael Reed, assistant to his brother Richard, head pro at Glen Gorse, and amateur Charlie Hallam won the 2018 title when they beat Luffenham Heath B representatives Nick Cunnington, assistant pro, and amateur David Smith in a dramatic climax.
Reed and Hallam (3 handicap) were all square after round 1 with Cunnington and Smith (2). The pairs were still level after the second session. So the clash went into overtime.
They halved the first and second holes on the course, then action switched to the 17th as the third extra hole.
Reed and Hallam broke the deadlock there and were presented with the trophies by county GU president Kevin Whitfield-Green of the host club.
Glen Gorse GC were the inaugural winners of this title when the tournament was launched in 1949 and won again the following year, with further successes in 1965, 1968, 1972, 1979, and two years in succession, 1982 and 1983, before their two wins in the early 1990s.
This season, Glen Gorse also won the county GU seniors foursomes through their pair of Bob Blair and Alan Creighton. MICHAEL Reed (Glen Gorse) amassed 38 points to be the top professional in the latest county golf Alliance meeting at The Leicestershire GC.
He was two clear of his closest challenger – Craig Shave (Cosby) – with 36 points, and a tie for third on 33 points between Jon Williamson (Birstall) and Ian Gregory (Charnwood Golf Centre).
Glen Gorse amateurs dominated the overall leaderboard. Michael Parker and Tom Harrison, on 48 points, were first, one ahead of clubmates Spencer and Kevin Sheffield, 47, and runners-up, Paul Hyatt (Glen Gorse) and Nic Kirby (Scraptoft) 46 points third.
Reed and Rob Summers, also from Glen Gorse, 43 points, claimed the pro/am section award with another Glen Gorse pair – Neil Fallows and Carl Henson, 44 points, the am/am section prizewinners. ■■MATTHEW Cort (Beedles Lake) competed again in the PGA of European pro/am better-ball Invitational tournament over 54-holes in a powerful field on three different courses in Portugal.
Cort was the defending pro champion. He ended with a 2-under214 aggregate to finish 15th on the final leaderboard after rounds of 74 at Quinta North, 3-under-69 at Laranjal, and 1-under-71 at Quinta South as the event reached a climax.