Clubhouse Leaders’ Order of Merit Winner: Showdown at an immaculate Moortown Golf Club
Event Series #9: Moortown Golf Club
Moortown is famous for hosting exciting events, being the venue for the first Ryder Cup to take place on European soil in 1929. Such a venue provided the perfect backdrop for the culmination of Clubhouse Leaders’ second season.
The clubhouse pre-round was buzzing with excitement. Michael Goodare and David Cusworth were going head to head for the Order of Merit crown but there was lots of personal pride at stake as everyone looked to finish as high up the leaderboard as possible.
As with every event this year, we had perfect conditions and the immaculate course inspired the field.
There was tension in the air on the first tee but everyone soon settled in and the points began to flow. The tough 2nd and 3rd tempered the field but the 4th provided everyone with the opportunity to win our first nearest the pin prize. Stuart Sharp has made a habit of winning these and he provided a superb benchmark into a tough pin. He looked set to win until James Pierechod produced a great shot that needed close measuring but gave him the glory.
The par 5s on the front nine were being obliterated by the powerful driving of Hamish and Charlie, both of whom made impressive under par returns, after the front nine the competition couldn’t have been much tighter.
At the turn, we had a five way tie at -3, with David and Michael tied in 6th on -1. Game on!!
The signature hole 10th provided the backdrop for our confident co-founder, Stephen Foster, to challenge the field to a nearest the pin competition. His confidence was unfounded and it ended up costing us 7 sleeves of Titleist golf balls as the members mopped up!
Back to the main competition and it hotted up quickly, with Joshua Watson on form, hitting -6 through 13. He was closely followed by Charlie and David, who were looking strong at -5.
With David needing to win the round outright it was Game On.
The 17th was our second nearest the pin prize. As ever, Stuart got his name on the board, only to be knocked off by Neil Yeadon and then Rehan Ahmed. Rehan took the honour and it spurred him to a strong finish, posting the target of -5.
As the final group came to the 18th tee, Joshua held a one shot lead over Rehan and David. With Michael posting a solid even par round, he could only watch the drama unfold, hoping that David didn’t secure the win.
After nine events over seven months it all came down to the last hole. David need to overturn Joshua’s one shot lead and get a net birdie to finish above Rehan.
Having played an amazing round, Joshua found himself in a greenside bunker and the pressure of the big crowd watching the drama unfold was too much. A couple of shots later, he gave David his opportunity. With 2 putts to win, David held his nerve and he took the honour of Order of Merit Winner. Clubhouse Leaders has a new season winner.
Michael was devastated after an amazing year of golf. It was a bitter blow, but David showed amazing resilience under pressure and he can now start planning his trip to Portugal, courtesy of ourselves and our sponsors, Golf Breaks.
Another hugely successful season of golf, with great business relationships formed and a tight competition.
We look forward to our end of season event and will now start planning for an even bigger and better season next year, beginning in April 2026.
The race to Portugal concludes at Moortown
Clubhouse Leaders
Event Series #9: Moortown Golf Club
Tensions were high against the magnificent backdrop of Moortown. A tight finish to the season meant that 8 members were still in with a chance of winning the trip to Portugal.
With the players going out based on their standings in the Order of Merit there was real pressure on those at the top of the table to perform.
Moortown was the host course of the first British hosted Ryder Cup, and it provides a testing challenge over the first few holes. This provided a tentative start on the leaderboard.
It remained close throughout the front nine until a stunning spell of golf from second place, Hugh Spillane, which saw him score 13 points in 3 holes. This propelled him into a 4 shot lead and left the pack needing to produce something special to get back in contention.
The first nearest the pin competition came on the signature hole, Gibraltar. Known for it’s sloping green and intimidating bunkers, it failed to test Ashley Jacques, who found the centre of the green to set a challenging marker. As the other groups played through the hole no-one could get close.
Pressure didn’t effect Hugh on the back nine and he managed to keep the chasing pack at arms length. It became clear that he was on his way to Portugal. Hugh was last out, playing with Allan Underwood, who had led the leaderboard from the first competition of the year. Allan handled the disappointment magnanimously and they both had a great round with lots of support for each other. Allan very deservedly hit a brilliant shot into the 17th to get a consolation prize on our second nearest the pin.
As the final group played down the 18th, other Clubhouse Leaders members gathered to watch Hugh and Allan come in. Our Golf Genius software meant that everyone knew what was happening as they approached the green, and Hugh was applauded to victory in our final round of the season. The first Clubhouse Leaders Champion Golfer of the Year has been crowned.
It was a superb way to conclude our first season, one that has been full of drama, laughter and fun. We can’t wait to do it all again in 2025!
