Cusworth Conquers Sand Moor
Event Series #6 Sand Moor Golf Club
We returned to Sand Moor for another event blessed with glorious sunshine, strong winds and superb greens. The conditions proved a real challenge, making scoring difficult and setting up a tightly contested day.
With some makeable holes early in the round, the initial scoring was strong, with a number of the field under par in the early stages. However, it wasn’t long before the course began to bite back! Lightning-fast greens combined with the strong winds made controlling the ball incredibly difficult and resulted in plenty of dropped shots.
The first nearest the pin came at the 8th, where a huge crosswind made attacking the back pin particularly tricky. The ever-reliable Greg Robertson produced a fantastic tee shot to knock Jamie Tinsley off the board and take the honours.
The back nine played predominantly into the wind and scores began to tumble. Rob Jobbins, Neil Yeadon and Michael Goodare were all playing solid golf, but it was last year’s Champion, David Cusworth, who began to establish a lead over the field.
With the leaderboard still capable of changing dramatically, the 17th provided the final nearest the pin challenge of the day. Remarkably, it produced exactly the same result as the 8th, with Greg once again beating Jamie to claim his second nearest the pin win of the day.
As the early starters began to gather on the balcony for some well-deserved drinks, the event was still very much in the balance. Just one shot separated 2nd and 5th, with Neil Yeadon eventually securing second spot with 32 points.
But it was David Cusworth who took the honours, producing a superb 37 points in difficult conditions and putting himself firmly back in the running to retain his Order of Merit title.
An incredible course, sunshine, and very tricky greens at Sand Moor Golf Club!
Event Series #7: Sand Moor Golf Club
Our seventh event of the season brought us to North Leeds, where Sand Moor provided a fantastic test of golf. We had heard great feedback on the condition of the course and it lived up to expectations.
Once again, the weather was excellent and there was a real buzz amongst the Members as we tucked into our bacon sandwiches in the recently refurbished clubhouse.
The sun and early morning dew provided a magnificent backdrop as the first group teed off. Sand Moor provides some opportunities early on but accuracy is key. It was clear that to score well was going to be down to putting as the greens were true and fast, with them being ironed as we arrived! Any shot that finished above the pin left you nervous; illustrated when one 12 foot putt ended up 20 yards down the fairway!!
The leaderboard was very even over the front nine, with par being the benchmark to a good round. The first nearest the pin came on the tricky 8th hole and was won by the first tee shot of the day. Stuart Sharp was the par 3 specialist, yet again, and took the prize with a shot that finished around 6 foot away.
As the round progressed, Chris Hughes took a two shot lead from the chasing pack. The competition was heating up, with George Allott, Jamie Tinsley and debutant, Phil Parkinson all hot on his heels. Ben Westerby and another debutant, James Roach, were both still pushing for a result, just a couple of shots back.
It was nip and tuck as the second nearest the pin on the 17th loomed. Phil Parkinson set the early challenge to a pin that was difficult to find. He was knocked off the board by Jamie Kelly, only for Josh Watson to take the honours with a brilliant tee shot to 5 foot.
Chris Hughes was the early clubhouse leader with 37 points on the board, he tucked in to his post round pint to watch the drama unfold. Coming up the 18th, Jamie Tinsley and George Allott carried the biggest threat. George was ideally placed 110 yards out after his drive but saw his approach shot going flying through the green, he eventually walked off the last hole with no points. Chris gleefully drank his lager as the rest of the field came in, safe in the knowledge that his 37 points was a winning score.
George and Jamie both ended on 35 points, with George coming second on a count back. Just one shot behind was Phil Parkinson, with a great performance on his first outing.
Two events remain in our race to Portugal, with lots of work still required to catch Michael Goodare at the top of the leaderboard.
