A sunny Sunday competition sponsored by Haldane Fisher belied tricky conditions at Ramsey with the course playing long. The Alan Gott Cup open competition brought a large turn-out of players hoping to score well. Neil McGlinchey started well and an eagle sand save on the 4th from a front greenside bunker augured well for the rest of the round but a series of calamities turned the Aussies game to ashes. Sean Cunningham finished with a 69 after starting with a game killing 8 on the 1st. He then showed considerable improvement and certainly found the birdie touch on the 2nd, 12th and 13th in an attempt to get back on track. The luck of the Irish ran out in the end as a 4 on the last proved crucial in the overall result. Also posting one under par 69’s were Bob Griffiths, Kerry Hiblen and David Kinrade. Dave Kinrade’s 69 was in many ways the round of the day. He pared 16 holes with a dropped shot on the 9th and a disastrous triple on the 6th being the only glitches in an otherwise consistent round, his gross 74 being the best of the day.
The net prize was a close one and a count back separating the top 4 on a 3 under par 67. Pushing for a top 3 place was Dave Simpson who birdied the 4th and 11th but dropped shots on the 15th and 16th and caused him to lose out. Just ahead of him was Toto Mazzone who also birdied the 4th but lost the advantage immediately dropping two shots on the 5th and again on the 13th. A par-in finish from the 15th steadied the ship for Toto and his 68 got him a creditable 5th place. Someone has to lose out on a top three place and this week Bob Baggaley was the unlucky soul. He played a great round in parts and a 3 on the 8th is always pleasing but double bogeys on the 11th and 13th were frustrating. That 4 on the 17th lost Bob the top prize! Just getting 3rd place on a back 9 count-back was Lee Earnshaw who played some steady golf with a 3 on the 6th putting him in contention at the turn. Lee dropped two shots on both the 15th and 16th which was significant in the overall result and on back 9 scoring.
The top two to battle it out were Dr Tim Eyre and Dave Boswell. Dave started just perfectly with pars on the first 4 holes whereas Dr Eyre dropped shots on the first three holes. Despite a double bogey on the 5th Dave Boswell was ahead at the turn. Dr Eyre then started to produce some consistency with a birdie on the 4th. With just 9 holes of golf to go, Dave Boswell still had it in the bag, but a series of dropped shots from the 10th through to the 16th put the pressure on and opened the door for Dr Eyre, who was now leading by a shot. A birdie on the 16th gave him daylight, but not much! Dave Boswell fought well and a 2 on the 17th put him right back in contention. Another on the 18th and he would be the winner, but it was not to be. A par was not enough and Dr Eyre scrambled in to take the Alan Gott Cup with the slimmest of margins on count-back.
Next weekend there are two Open competitions at Ramsey. On Saturday there is the Gordon Bell, Mixed Texas and on Sunday the Powell Brown Open Trophy is up for grabs.
