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Battye went down 5&4 to Howley Hall and Leeds Union player Scott Hartley whilst Broadley lost to Hartley's fellow Leeds Union teammate and Moortown member Duncan McCarthy by a 4&3 margin.
Despite four birdies on his front nine Hanson was unable to keep the momentum going during the second half of his round. However, the sub-par round gave Hanson a top 30 finishing position.
In a tournament that had been reduced to just 18 holes after a wash-out on Tuesday Battye shot a two over par 73 to qualify in 12th place at a Moortown course which was playing particularly difficult with strong winds and rain present for most of the day. Broadley was a shot further back after a round of 74 which meant he finished in 20th position. Meltham's James Thompson was the next best local finisher with a round of 77 missing the qualifying score by just one stroke.
In the first round of the matchplay stages Battye will face Howley Hall's Scott Hartley whilst Broadley will have a tough assignment against home club member Duncan McCarthy. Should both players progress through their first two rounds they would be due to meet in the quarter-final stage.
His round consisted of three bogeys and a solitary birdie which leaves him eight shots of the pace set by Michael McDermott from Ireland.
Cowie won by three shots from local member N Shute with a total score of 131. Steve Martin landed the best gross score with a 138 total.
A round of 73 (1 over par) left the Crosland Heath professional in a tie for 27th place and four shots of the pace. His round did include and eagle three but also a double bogey six.
The six handicapper beat fellow club teammate N Leader by just one shot and fought off a host of other local challengers to land the title.
At the half way stage the contest was finely balanced with youngster Toby Garrett leading a trio of players by two strokes after a splendid nett 67. That trio included HHDUGC Senior Team captain Chris Mear, Pineridge's J Styring and Kaye himself.
It was Kaye however who held his nerve to add a nett 70 in the afternoon whilst others crumbled around him. Garrett withdrew during his second round through illness, whilst Mear by his own admission "blew it" shooting a 76 off his four handicap. Styring faired even worse though scoring a nett 77.
Dewsbury's Ben Crowther won the best gross score of the day, virtue of a countback, with rounds of 78 and 73 for a 9 over par total. He tied with Roger Hunt (Meltham) and his own club mate Adam Crum but won because of a better second round.
Leading Scores:
A Kaye (6) - [69, 70; 139]
N Leader (8) - [71, 69; 140]
D Jackson (6) - [73, 70; 143]
A Battye (4) - [72, 73; 145]
M Johnstone (12) - [73, 72; 145]
C Mear (4) - [69, 76; 145]
The knock-out matches will now take place on Monday 2nd July at the same venues and times.
However, the quarter final of the Junior foursomes were played last Friday where it was decided that Meltham (1) will play Meltham (2) in the first semi-final whilst Huddersfield take on Longley Park in the other tie. The teams will play on Monday 6th August for a place in the final to be held on Sunday 23rd September at Willow Valley Golf Club.
Nicholas claimed the main prize with two extremely solid rounds of 80 off his 11 handicap for a 138 combined total. He pipped Richard Holt, a two handicapper, to the prize by just one shot.
Dyson won the Jubilee Trophy for the best gross score with two rounds of 71 for a 142 aggregate. Dyson, a scratch golfer, finished seventh overall on a weekend where after the first round it looked set to have a runaway winner when J J Leeman fired a blistering nett 63 on the Saturday, however, things turned sour for the eight handicapper on Sunday and he had to settle for eighth place after a second round 80.
Leading Scores:
I Nicholas (11) - [69, 69; 138]
R Holt (2) - [67, 72; 139]
R Carter (8) - [69, 71; 140]
B France-Smith (9) - [69, 72; 141]
Pictured below on the left is the gross winner Chris Dyson alongside The Captain, Mr Richard Williams.
Heavy rain in the north-east caused the abandonment with each team taking a share of the points 18-18. It is a disappointment that the match was called off as Teesside were the bottom club and a healthy victory was expected for the Halifax-Huddersfield side.
York head the table after also halving their match against East Riding 18-18 whilst previous leaders Sheffield drop to second after losing at Bradford. Leeds beat Harrogate comfortably in the only other match.
Take a look at the picture and if you know which golf course has been snapped simply send your guess along with your email address and you could win a prize.
This month we have tried to make it even harder so if you think you know which one it is then you are in with a great chance of winning!
The event will now be played on 11th July and will be held at Woodsome Hall Golf Club.
The tournament will be played at Longley Park Golf Club on Sunday 1st July and home club member Matthew Colcombe will start as one of the favourites around his home course where local knowledge will play a big part.
Amongst those who will look to snatch the title away from Colcombe will be Meltham's James Thompson and Alex Battye with inform Sam Bridges from West End also likely to figure. It is one of the most open events for a number of years with a number of contenders with Daniel Crisp, Sam Town, Ben Ellis, Lloyd Cramp and Ryan Greenwood all likely to figure in the shake-up.
The event is to be played at Dewsbury District Golf Club.
After a blistering opening round 64 that set the early pace in the first round Hanson added two rounds of 70 to finish on a six under par total finishing four strokes behind the eventual winner Matthew Woods.
Leading the tournament going into the final round Hanson earned £2,500 for his third place and consolidated his position in the top ten on the Order of Merit.
The team of Steve Martin (73,76; 149), Chris Ingham (76, 77; 153), Ian Marsland (80, 78; 158) and Frank Greaves (78, 75; 153) only finished 9 strokes behind winners Cookridge Hall at Easingwold Golf Club.
They now go on to play in the third division at Hillsborough on 11th July. There were mixed fortunes for other clubs in the tournament as Meltham finished 8th on a 618 total and remain in the division for next year whilst Crosland Heath were relegated after scoring 646.
A last minute call up as he was about to tee off at Fixby lead to a change of plan and a trip to Dusseldorf, Germany, for the Crosland Heath professional.
Hanson explains, "It was Tuesday afternoon and I was on the range at Fixby ready to tee it up with a few guys and my phone rang. "Chris, we would like to offer you a place in the Vodafone Challenge in Dusseldorf, it starts Thursday, would you like to accept?"" He further adds, "At 6 that evening I was flying out of Leeds/Bradford and landing in Germany two hours later! An early night and a practice round early the next day and I felt ready."
Hanson went on to score rounds of 71, 72, 73 and closed with a 69 for a 285 (3 under par) total and a tie for 35th place, earning him 897 Euro's.
Apart from that change Mear will name an unchanged side to the one that was narrowly beaten by Leeds at Fixby last week.
The full team is; Richard Broadley, Danny Stocchero (both Huddersfield), Iain Powell (Hebden Bridge), Frank Greaves (Halifax West End), Andy Shaw, Jim Fairhurst, (both Halifax Bradley Hall), Toby Garrett, Graham McLean, James Thompson (all Meltham), Ben Crowther, Daniel Hartley, Adam Crum (all Dewsbury District).
Brendon Barratt, a nine handicapper from Meltham, won the Wednesday Society at Dewsbury District Golf Club virtue of a countback after tying on 39 points with club mate Chris Holmes.
Outlane Golf Club host their Ladies Am-Am today, start times are from 11.40am until 1.40pm.
Huddersfield beat Bradford 5-3 in the Yorkshire Ladies Team Championship, Melanie Ludi impressing with a 8&6 victory. Helen Searle also won her match 3&2.
R Shaw won the Woodsome Hall June Medal Division 1 with a nett 65 off his six handicap. R Davies claimed the second division with a nett 66 and R Allen scored a nett 64 to win the third division.
Lee Shepherd (Willow valley) fired seven birdies and an eagle in winning the Yorkshire PGA pro-am at his former Cleckheaton golf club with a seven under par 64. He won by four shots.
Woodsome Hall pair Garry Blakeley and Keith Beaumonth won the Elysian Trophy in the recent Yorkshire Seniors meeting at Brough with 42 points.
McLean has been drawn to tee off at 7.30am in the first grouping of this years championship and the Meltham and HHDUGC team player will hope to also be leading the way at the end of the first two qualifying rounds after which a matchplay format is then introduced.
There are 16 golfers from the region competing in the county's premier scratch event held on the 26th and 27th of June, with the matchplay stages progressing through to the weekend. McLean is joined by fellow club team mates Simon Davies, Roger Hunt, Toby Garrett and James Thompson whilst West End youngsters Sam Bridges and Sam Preistley have also entered. Fixby trio Danny Stocchero, Brad Tupman and Richard Broadley will all be confident of making the last 32, the latter two making the cut last year. Union Senior Team members Fraser Scholefield from Lightcliffe and Dewsbury's Edward Battye are also amongst the starting line up.
At this early stage it is difficult to pick a winner although Bradley Hall and West End lead the respective leagues whilst Castlefields and Crow Nest Park have both got off to poor starts and will need to improve if they are to avoid relegation from the top divisions.
The morning foursomes matches were shared equally with wins from Iain Powell & Steve Martin and Ben Crowther & Danny Stocchero who was making his debut for the senior team after standing in at the last minute for Martin Cockroft. Battling halved matches from Richard Broadley & Andy Shaw and Frank Greaves & James Thompson ensured a score of 6 – 6 at the halfway stage.
The singles started brightly with Broadley getting off to a good start and eventually winning his match 5 & 4, Shaw halved his match with both players making Eagle down the par 5 eighteenth hole, Powell fought back to halve his match with a hole winning birdie on the eighteenth, Fairhurst was 2 down with 3 to play then won every hole to win 1 up, Crowther always seemed in control of his match despite losing the 16th hole he won 3 & 1 and Greaves also turned his game around from 1 down with 3 to play winning holes 17 and 18 to win 1 up.
At this stage the game was very much in the melting pot when the HHDUGC team suffered a real body blow, Stocchero was all square playing the last when both players just missed the 18th green with their second shots, both lying just off the putting surface, the Leeds player Andy Jones rolled in his putt for Eagle from 45 feet and ended the home teams hopes of a win, Stocchero’s putt from 30 feet lipped out of the hole and Leeds were home and dry. Adam Crum finished off the HHDUGC scoring with a birdie on the last to square his match and leave the final score HHDUGC 17 Leeds & District Union 19. The team were left to reflect on gaining just one point out of the last four singles matches.
However, both leagues are extremely tight at the top after just four rounds of matches and teams do have games in hand.
See Latest Results
The winner of the free prize draw competition for a round of golf for four on the new Pine Valley course at Willow Valley has been drawn and 39 year old Paul Richardson from Hebden Bridge Golf Club is the lucky winner.
Richardson, a two handicapper, has been playing golf for 25 years after starting out as a 14 year old junior and now has the opportunity to take three of his golfing buddies to play the new layout which you can find out more about by reading our Willow Valley feature.
Starting eight shots behind overnight leaders Wallace new he would need to shoot a sub-seventy round to be in with a shout. However, the ex-professional footballer closed with a 76 for a 227 total after opening rounds of 72 and 79.
After recently voicing her opinion that our website did not cater enough for ladies golf in the area we are delighted to welcome 2007 Crosland Heath Lady Captain, Sue Kaye, as a regular columnist to our website!
Sue is an avid golfer and we are sure that both gentlemen and ladies alike will find her column both interesting and informative, as well as providing a little humour at times along the way.
Sue is also part of the very successful Rules of Golf Quiz Team at Crosland Heath and has passed a PGA Rules and Referring Exam. As a result she will also be penning a column about some of the more unusual rules of golf that we may have fallen foul of without even knowing.
You can read the first installment from Sue's column Over The Partition (aka View from the Ladies) and also her Rules of Golf feature.
John Oxley tees off at 1.39pm whilst 1993, 1995 and 2005 champion John Cocking pegs it up at 12.27pm alongside 1986 and 1998 winner Peter Cockcroft.
Tied for the lead after his opening 72 Wallace will now have to go low if he is to catch runaway leaders Chris Reynolds and Alan Squires who are eight shots ahead of ninth placed Wallace.
The Scratch draw looks extremely open after a number of division one clubs exited. Bradley Hall and Woodsome Hall are the only teams from the top flight left in the last eight after both progressing in tight matches against West End and Huddersfield respectively.
In the Handicap Section both Willow Valley teams progressed as did the only other first division team still left in the competition, Halifax.
After an opening round of 72 the former professional footballer was in a share of the lead with Birmingham's Thomas Coughlan.
After initially naming virtually an unchanged side Mear has now had to call in Meltham youngster James Thompson and Dewsbury's Adam Crum due to illness and unavailability.
Toby Garrett is now unable to play this week and Fraser Scholefield has gone down with bronchitis and withdrew himself.
Most competitors failed to cope with the 6,400 championship course, many falling foul of the many water and sand hazards. That paved the way for Bradley Hall to pounce and reclaim a trophy which since their breakthrough victory in 1994 has been sat in the trophy cabinet at the Holywell Green club more often than it has been away.
The team of Jim Fairhurst, Andrew Shaw, Martin Cockcroft and David Whitaker saw off the challenge of Huddersfield, West End, Meltham and Woodsome Hall with relative ease, Fairhurst leading the way with creditable rounds of 73 and 76 which gave him the best individual prize. Indeed 73 was the lowest score of the day matched only Chris Dyson of Woodsome Hall, who tagged a 79 to his for a 152 total.
Leading by two strokes from Fixby on 315 after the morning round Bradley Hall never looked in any danger as most teams posted higher scores in the strengthening afternoon wind. The par 72 course played very difficult which was reflected in the CSS of 75 for both rounds, reductions only in the afternoon. The teams relegated from the premier division were Crosland Heath, Crow Nest Park, Longley Park and Queensbury.
Leading Scores:
634 Bradley Hall: J Fairhurst 73/76, A Shaw 76/77, M Cockcroft 83/81, D Whitaker 83/85.
647 Huddersfield: N Williams 75/78, R Broadley 78/81, J Ellison 78/82, B Tupman 86/89.
648 West End: I Marsland 76/79, S Martin 81/79, F Greaves 84/77, C Ingham 84/88.
650 Woodsome Hall: C Dyson 79/73, M Broadbent 84/77, I Lawson 86/81, J Hirst 86/88.
650 Meltham: J Thompson 77/80, T Barrett 84/75, G McLean 79/81, C Mear 89/86.
The only change for the second match of the season is Dewsbury's Daniel Hartley who comes in for fellow club teammate Edward Battye who is unavailable due to getting married. Mear said of Hartley, "Daniel is making his debut for the Union senior team, and having played golf with him recently I am certain that he will acquit himself well and become a valuable member of the team."
Before the match there will be a team photograph with the team sponsors, where Mear said, "It will be a great opportunity for all the team to meet our sponsors David Gallagher (Primetime Recruitment) and Rodney Taylor (Stromberg Menswear)."
Mear went on to say, "Both the team and myself are relishing the prospect of entertaining one of the strongest district union teams in the Yorkshire Inter District Union, and with the match being on our own soil, we are looking for a victory much in the same way as we beat the Sheffield Union last season at Huddersfield.
The full team is; Richard Broadley (Huddersfield), Iain Powell (Hebden Bridge), Steve Martin, Frank Greaves (both Halifax West End), Andy Shaw, Jim Fairhurst, Martin Cockroft (all Halifax Bradley Hall), Toby Garrett, Graham McLean (both Meltham), Ben Crowther, Daniel Hartley (both Dewsbury District), Fraser Scholefield (Lightcliffe).
Currently sat alongside Harrogate, the team they beat on the opening day, they may drop down the league should teams win their games in hand during the next round of matches during the last week in July.
Full League Table.
Battye scored rounds of 77 and 74 to finish in a tie for 23rd position and seven shots behind winner Adam Best from Cleveland Golf Club.
Other youngsters from the region who played were Halifax West End's Lloyd Cramp (77, 75; 152), James Thompson from Meltham (77, 79; 156), Matthew Colcombe a member of Longley Park (80, 77; 157) and Queensbury's Sam Town (84, 74; 154).
After a solid one under par 69 yesterday Hanson got off to the best possible start in his second round with birdies on the opening two holes and despite bogeys at holes eight and ten he responded immediately with further birdies to keep his challenge on track. With seven holes to play Hanson was three under for the tournament and cruising to make the two under par cut where the top 50 and ties progress to the weekend rounds.
Disaster then struck with a bogey on the twelfth, followed by a double-bogey on the par five next and another bogey on the following hole. That effectively put Hanson out of the tournament and despite steadying the ship with three pars a last hole bogey meant the Crosland Heath talent finished the tournament on two over par and missed the cut by four strokes, finishing in a tie for 97th.
Hanson will now have the weekend to reflect on what could have been and despite the initial disappointment of missing the cut the event is likely to have whetted his appetite to play at this higher level than usual on a regular basis.
Won in style at Crosland Heath last year the League One champions will look to confirm their status as the Unions elite where the Clifton course will prove a unique and challenging test for most of the field in a four man, all scores to count format.
Head Professional at Willow Valley, Julian Haworth, hopes everybody enjoys the experience and the weather is kind but warned, "Trying to overpower the course often leads to trouble with tree lined, dry, running fairways a long drive can often run away into the trees leaving no line to the green." He added, "Being a long championship course the players will be out there for longer than they are used to, so they need to take plenty of water and energy food, if you lose concentration for a second around Willow Valley it will cost you at least a double bogey. To score well around course you need to keep the ball in play, sometimes leaving a longer 2nd shot into the green is the safest option."
On a brighter note for competitors Haworth added, "I would expect the scoring to be good, as most low handicap amateurs often play more golf than their professional counterparts. Playing from the forward members competitions tees makes the course around 4 shots easier per round compared to the Blue Tees set up for the Yorkshire PGA Championship."
Meltham will start as hot favourites but must take nothing for granted as Halifax Bradley Hall, Halifax West End, Woodsome Hall, Huddersfield and Dewsbury District are all likely to field strong sides.
Jonathan Heyes, beaten last year by Richard Broadley in the grand final, coasted through by beating Eddie Doherty (Longley Park) 4&3 but Broadley was taken all the way to the 21st hole where he finally disposed of John Belfield of Crosland Heath.
Steve Bell, Lee Stephenson and Ian Price will play four rounds of golf at the Pinnacle club as they aim to raise £1,000 for the cause. The event has special meaning to Bell, a 15 handicapper who said, "Ian had read about the MacMillan Cancer Longest Day Golf Challenge and he suggested we might like to take part. As I had personally lost two relatives, at far too young an age, to this terrible disease I was only too happy to put something back – and Lee agreed as well."
There will be collecting tins and buckets out on the day, however, anybody who would like to sponsor or donate prior to the event should contact this website by email at info@huddersfieldgolf.co.uk and we will pass on further details how to contribute.
Hanson, from Crosland Heath Golf Club, carded four birdies to three bogeys to remain in the hunt and is only five shots off second place. The top 50 progress to the weekend and Hanson, who started on the tenth late in the day, is still very much in the mix but knows he must likely match or better his opening round to make the cut as the scoring is very tightly bunched.
It is two wins out of three now for the HHDUGC Junior team after a narrow victory (19-17) against Bradford and they now currently sit top of the league although Sheffield have games in hand.
The morning foursomes were shared thanks largely to an impressive performance from James Thompson & Ryan Greenwood who after being 5 down after 7 holes eventually won 2 up. Alex Battye and Sam Town won 5&3, Daniel Crisp and Joe Hill controlled their game to win 4&3 although the pairings of Mark Hepworth & Matthew Colcombe, Ryan Higginbottom & Tom Jenkinson and Adam Cryer & George Bamford all lost their matches, the latter two both from winning positions with only a few holes to go.
Team selector Frank Greaves admitted the morning result changed his playing order for the afternoon singles, "We had to get some points out of the first four singles which wouldn’t be easy as their first four players had handicaps of 2." However, he wasn't let down with Greenwood and Battye racing to victories and although Crisp lost his match Thompson triumphed easily by 6&4. Including his foursomes match Thompson won 13 of the last 25 holes he played! However, with Hepworth and Higginbottom both losing the match was again in the balance.
With only seven holes to go it looked like a defeat for the HHDUGC side as they were down in three matches and only up in two. Despite Cryer and Town losing it was Matthew Colcombe who came to the rescue winning the last three holes to beat his opponent 2up. Then Hill, who was all square after eleven, eased to victory around his home course 3&2 and with Bamford adding more points to the board a fight back was on. When Jenkinson got the half point needed for victory it was celebrations all round. Fantastic!
Due to the forthcoming Yorkshire Under 18 Championships and a Nick Faldo qualifier both sides rested key players but Greaves is now posed with a selection conundrum, he said "The way those in the team and those on the bench are playing they pose questions over selection."
Ryan Greenwood now leads the Order of Merit after his two victories at Bradley Park but nine other players are within 7 points of him.
There were three debutants for the victorious team; George Bamford (Hebden Bridge), Joe Hill (Bradley Park) and Sam Town (Queensbury). All three performed impressively and are pictured below from left to right.
The winning team of Andrew Steel, Dave Buckley, Steven Whitley and Martin Butterworth did so by the narrowest of margins - just two shots after 342 and 344 respective totals in difficult conditions. The CSS for the day was 72 but was classified as a 'reductions only' competition. Outlane GC finished third, tied with Castlefields but losing out on a card play-off.
The Thick Hollins Hall club's trophy cabinet will now be bursting as this piece of silverware will sit next to the Scratch Team Championship they won last year at Crosland Heath. It will also be in the company of The Junior Foursomes Trophy and both the Scratch and Junior League shields.
Andrew Steel also took the best individual score and is pictured below receiving The Jack Sykes Trophy from HHDUGC President Allan Woodhead and with Bernard Joyce from Castlefields Golf Club.
Take a look at the photograph below. Do you recognise the holes? Well it is a course within the Huddersfield and Halifax area!
If you think you know which golf course is pictured below email us at info@huddersfieldgolf.co.uk and you could win a prize!
Many clubs have commented on how pleased they have been with the number of entries received from our website and are already starting to provide us with details for next years events!
Word of mouth has also spread very quickly as we are getting record visitors to our website searching for open golf events to play in at courses within the region. Visit our Open Competition section.
Hanson applauded the work of his caddy for last weeks event, Meltham youngster Toby Garrett. Hanson commented, "Having Toby on the bag was such a help this week, together we went through every shot before I hit it, all lines on the greens, he helped me commit to all my shots and kept me upbeat when the times were rough. I can't thank him enough and he was worth his weight in gold!!
Garrett is again on the bag this week where Hanson will play Thursday and Friday and if in the top 50 will progress to the weekend. There is a total prize fund of £100,000 and Hanson will be confident that his game will be able to step up a level after competing for victories the past few weeks on the EuroPro Tour.
The closing date is midnight on the 31st May so hurry if you want to be in with a chance of winning this great prize.
Paired in the final group, and lying just one shot back from playing partner Neil Walker, Hanson enjoyed a thrilling tussle with the talented Rotherham man. At one point Hanson, from Crosland Heath GC, led the tournament by three shots but a mixture of birdies and bogeys from both players resulted in both shooting rounds of 71 and Walker therefore winning by one shot.
A double bogey on the 13th by Walker looked like it had gifted Hanson the title but a string of birdies over the closing holes, including the final hole where Hanson was only able to par, resulted in victory for Walker and the £10,000 winners cheque. Although disappointed not to have won Hanson, who moves to fifth in the order of merit, will be please with his performance this week.
The team of Adam Crum (78, 78; 156), Daniel Hartley (73, 87; 160), Ryan Rawson (82, 82; 164) and Jason Smith (84, 89; 173) totaled 653 to finish in 13th position and will now start in the 6th division in 2008. Oakdale won the title with a total of 619 by three shots from Bradford Moor GC. Malton & Norton and Cookridge Hall both continued to climb the ranks after coming through the 7th Division qualifiers and will now play at Easingwold on the 20th June where local clubs Meltham, West End and Crosland Heath will all compete.
At 10 under par Hanson is just one shot behind leader Neil Walker with third place back on 6 under. It puts Hanson in great shape to claim his second EuroPro Tour event title and the first of the season.
Hanson, who lives in Huddersfield and represents Crosland Heath Golf Club scored a magnificent six under par total to lead by two shots from Neil Walker in the EuroPro Tour event sponsored by MatchroomPoker.com.
His round contained seven birdies and just the solitary bogey on the 494 yard par four 12th. To the turn in 33 (three-under) Hanson closed strongly with birdies on the 13th, 15th, 16th and 18th holes and will now be looking to extend his lead at the top of the leaderboard in the second round as he aims for the £10,000 first prize.
View both the Handicap and Scratch results. The second round matches take place at Saddleworth, Outlane and Hanging Heaton.
Commenting on the game team captain Chris Mear said, "I probably had got together the strongest possible union side for this first match and went into the game with high hopes, and after the morning foursomes I was not disappointed." That was because his team had rocked one of the strongest sides in the league by taking an 8-4 lead. Wins coming from the partnerships of Steve Martin & Iain Powell, Jim Fairhurst & Graham McLean, Edward Battye & Ben Crowther and Frank Greaves & Fraser Scholefield. Andy Shaw & Richard Broadley lost on the last green after a poor pitch and subsequent three-putt. Martin Cockcroft & Toby Garrett also narrowly lost on the final hole.
A strong start was required in the afternoon singles but the top three matches were all won by Bradford with Broadley losing heavily whilst Martin, who had an up and down game, eventually lost out on the last hole where his opponent drove to within 2 feet of the hole for a tap-in eagle on the 253 yard uphill par four. Powell's match was also a close one but ended on the 17th green losing 2&1.
Losing the top three matches tipped the game in the favour of the home side however with wins for Shaw, Battye, Crowther and Greaves the tie was again in the balance. When Jim Fairhurst birdied the last for a half a comeback looked on the cards but defeats for McLean, Cockcroft, Garrett and Scholefield ensured that it was Bradford who got the season off to a winning start.
The next match is at home against the Leeds union at Huddersfield Golf Club. See also the Order of Merit after one event.
A double-bogey, a triple bogey and five single bogeys cost the talented Crosland Heath golfer his third top ten finish of the season.
Starting six strokes back and needing to be aggressive to catch overnight leader, and eventual winner Graeme Clark from Doncaster, Hanson went for broke. However, after failing to birdie the short opening par four, like he had in his previous two rounds, and then the par five second hole it was always going to be an uphill struggle. A double bogey at the third followed by four consecutive single bogeys took Hanson out of contention and despite rallying with a birdie on the tenth the triple-bogey on the 17th and a closing bogey slumped Hanson well down the field, taking home just £180 in prize money.
Crosland Heath's Chris Hanson kept his hopes alive of a first tour win of the season with a three under par 69 which included four birdies and just one bogey. He lies in a tie for 14th and is six shots back from leader Graeme Clark.
It wasn't such good news for Astin however as a second round 75 and two over par total meant he missed the cut by two strokes. Despite a birdie-birdie start, and an eagle on the tenth, two double-bogeys on the front nine and four other bogeys in his round cost the Hebden Bridge player dearly.
Hanson carded four birdies on his way to a two under par score of 70 whilst Astin, who also carded four birdies, shot a 71.
Hanson lies in a tie for 19th and Astin is amongst a group of 14 players in joint 27th, both will be looking to improve in the second round and play their way in to contention.
They both trail leader Mark Laskey after he scored a superb 66 which included an eagle two on the par four 17th. He leads by one shot.
Mear has predominantly opted for experience over youth although admitted, "The team has certainly taken some selection for the first match as all the top players are available, and I feel for the players I have had to leave out."
Although very much part of his plans for the season amongst those who will sit out the opening match are; Adam Crum and Daniel Hartley (both Dewsbury), James Thompson (Meltham) and Paul Taylor (Bradley Hall).
A big bonus for Mear is that Steve Martin is back in the fray after only one match last season and also that Richard Broadley is available for selection. PS Cockcroft champion Fraser Scholefield makes the team plus Martin Cockroft and Jim Fairhurst are both back in favour after limited appearances last term.
The omission of Thompson is a surprise after he played every match last season in finishing third in the Order of Merit. Andy Appleyard is also absent after impressive performances towards the end of last years campaign.
Mear added, "Whilst it will be a difficult match on a tricky course I feel we have the players capable of getting the result we want." The team will again be sponsored by Primetime Recruitment and wear Stromberg trousers.
The full team is; Richard Broadley (Huddersfield), Iain Powell (Hebden Bridge), Steve Martin, Frank Greaves (both West End), Andy Shaw, Jim Fairhurst, Martin Cockroft (all Bradley Hall), Toby Garrett, Graham McLean (both Meltham), Edward Battye, Ben Crowther (both Dewsbury), Fraser Scholefield (Lightcliffe).
The Halifax based club coasted to victory leaving defending champions Meltham in their wake and at the same time denying them a third consecutive victory in the event. Sam Bridges was the star of the show with a fantastic round of 67. His team mates; Ryan Greenwood, Matthew Davis and Lloyd Cramp all provided solid rounds of 71, 72 and 77 respectively, however Cramps' score was not required as the format demands that only the best three scores count. This gave West End a total of 210 which never looked like being beaten in the testing conditions.
Meltham were always going to struggle to defend their title without Toby Garrett, who has joined the senior ranks, and although Jamie Bower, James Thompson, Ben Ellis and Alex Battye all contributed with rounds in the low to mid 70's nobody was able to produce a round as good as Bridges' and that ultimately cost them a chance as they finished on 219. Willow Valley finished third on 221.
West End will now go forwards to play in the Yorkshire qualifying round for the English Junior Champion Club tournament at Woodhall Spa later this summer.
Four-handicapper Bridges took the best score of the day prize although he was pushed all the way by Luke Mudd from Halifax Ogden who fired a superb 69, playing off a seven handicap he was the only other player in the field to break 70.
On her home course and playing with Christine Smith the pair carded 75.5 to win on a card play-off from fellow Fixby golfers Sue Johnson and Shirley Guest.
Carmen carded 38 points to lie alongside Stuart Cage, Warren Lockett and Adrian Ambler. Top Position was also tied with Robert Wragg, Alex Belt and John Wells sharing the prize money.
In return Simpson, 31 and a Cleckheaton Golf Club graduate, will be allowed use of the superb practise facilities and well draining course at Fixby.
Simpson, who has a BA honours degree in Advertising at San Jose State University, recognised the need for better conditions to play on throughout the winter and Fixby, as well as being the ideal solution were happy to oblige.
Tied for the lead overnight Hanson got off to the perfect start with a birdie on the opening hole. He then recovered well with back-to-back birdies on the 4th and 5th after a double bogey on the 3rd hole. However, a triple bogey on the 7th hole effectively killed off his hopes of a first title of the year despite three birdies on the homeward nine, which also contained four bogeys.
Hanson finished the tournament on level par just two shots behind Brian McElhinney who carded a 68 to claim the £10,000 first prize. Hanson walked away with £1,125 for his tied fifth position.
A stunning opening 66 gave him a share of the lead after the first round which was then backed up with a 72 the following day which again left him in a tie for the lead on 4 under par with Robert Steele, Kenilworth Golf Club. They are just one shot ahead of two players on 3 under. David Astin failed to make the cut after rounds of 77 and 79 as did John Cheetham.
Hanson would have led outright if it had not been for a double bogey five on the 9th and a dropped shot on the final hole. He is however poised to capture his first victory of the season and is already achieving his goal of competing every week for titles.
The ten buggies, supplied by MTS Club Car of Wakefield were officially handed over by their Sales Executive, and former Leeds and England footballer, Allan Clarke.
The 14 year old talent lost 5&3 to Helen Barugh of Pannal Golf Club. Barugh was two up at the turn and never looked back with some superb golf on the back nine to finish the match on the 15th green.
Barugh then progressed through the second round with a 5&4 victory over Richmond's Laura Harvey. However, she was outplayed in the semi-final where she lost to eventual runner-up and defending champion Rachel Bell, of Ganton, by 3&2. In the other semi-final Emma Duggleby (Malton & Norton) lost to former England player Sara Garbutt (Ganton) 2&1. In the all Ganton final Garbutt beat Bell 6&4 to claim the title.
The tournament will no doubt have provided much experience for Searle who is tipped for a bright future within the game.
-More Information from the Yorkshire Ladies Association website.
-More Information from Huddersfield Golf Club website.
The Mirfield based club secured their place in the 5th Division, to be played at Headingley on the 23rd May, by claiming the sixth and final qualifying place, exactly the same way they did in their previous two advancements!
Edward Battye led from the front with fine rounds of 73 and 74 for a 1 over par total of 147 on the 7,000 yard, par 73 layout - this also gave him the prize for the lowest individual score of the day. Daniel Hartley added an afternoon round of 85 to his opening 78 for a 163 total whilst Adam Crum scored 77 and 84 for 161. James Murch added a brace of 85's for a 170 total.
Cookridge Hall, who ran away with the 7th Division two weeks earlier, also continued their climb through the ranks as they won the Championship on a total of 623 by six shots from Hessle Golf Club.
Hanson was pleased with how smoothly the day went, especially with better weather than last year at Crosland Heath Golf Club. He commented, "I can't thank anyone enough who was involved in the day. After the success of last year's event I never thought it could go better and I was a little worried. But the day went fantastic!!"
Karl Smith led the charge with a 71, in the testing conditions. Duncan Scott added a solid 75 and a pair of 78's from Andy Earnshaw and Sam Town gave the Bradford post-coded club a six shot winning margin.
Queensbury's 'reward' is promotion to the main Team Championship at Willow Valley on the 3rd June where they will be joined by runners-up Castlefields (308) who also return to the first division at the first time of asking plus Outlane and Longley Park who both finished on 310.
Willow Valley and Todmorden who were both relegated last year failed to bounce straight back finishing on 316 and 321 respectively.
Funds are raised by the membership in various events throughout the year. Club Captain Darren Bentley who nominated Cancer Research UK as his Captains Charity is shown below handing the cheque to Salley Hutton, a Volunteer Manager of the Charity.
Asked for a comment Darren added, "I chose cancer research because my father died from cancer and I support every effort made to advance the treatments available to cancer sufferers today. The members have been very generous and supportive this year and they should be proud of the amount they have raised."
Huddersfield Golf have teamed up with Willow Valley Golf Club to give one lucky visitor (and 3 of their golfing friends) the chance to win a round of golf on their fantastic new Pine Valley course.
Anybody who is interested in joining should contact Rudi Winterbottom on 01422 373505 or Head Professional Nick Kryzwicki on 01422 364886.
Times are also still times available for their Rabbits Open on Sunday 13th May. More Information about Elland Golf Club.
Hanson finished 7 shots behind winner Colm Moriarty but still claimed £800 for his weeks work.
Bogeys on 15 and 16 looked set to place him well down the leaderboard but a last hole birdie gave him the top ten finish.
Carmen finished two back from a trio of golfers who shot 68, including Darren Leng from Far Grange Golf Club.
A Cook lost to P Mallinson 2&1, however S Jones, L Senior, B Heald, K Johnson and L Mallinson all scored fine victories. G Stocchero halved with N Beighton. Johnson was very impressive beating K Noble by 8&7 as was Heald triumphing by 6&5 over S Edel.
Broadley lies 7th in the overall standings on 170 points after collecting points at both Selby and Cleveland. He did however miss out on points at Bradford, a tournament he won last year.
The next event is the York Rose Bowl on Sunday 6th May where Broadley will look to close the gap on Order of Merit leader Adam Best (Cleveland) who has accumulated 350 points so far.
Steady rounds of 72 and 70, off his 7 handicap, gave the Crosland Heath member the title virtue of a better last 18 holes over host club player, Simon Wilson. John Shaw (Willow Valley) came third scoring 72, 71 off his 9 handicap.
Thomson learnt his golf at King James GC in Perth, Scotland and therefore handled the wind better than any other player in the field. The 52 year old who works for a Wakefield firm of shop fitters is accustomed to success after winning numerous trophies up at The Heath, including their Scratch Cup and is also a previous winner of the Geoff Cockin Trophy, an Alliance pairs event. Thomson, who is a director at Crosland Heath lives in Thongsbridge, couldn't believe he had won after suspecting his morning round had put him well out of contention considering the strength of the field.
The leading professional was Willow Valley assistant Lee Shepherd who scored 71, 75 for a 146 total. Outlane claimed the team price with a total of 453. The team consisted of S. Beaumont, A McLaughlin and A Mountain.
The two over par round consisted of 4 birdies and 6 bogeys and despite being six shots behind the leader Hanson is only 1 stroke behind second place.
David Astin, Hebden Bridge, carded a 75 to miss the cut by just 2 shots, a double bogey on the par four 8th proving costly.
A professional golfer for 40 years Parnell Reilly exudes professionalism and is recognised as one of the finest ambassadors for the game of golf in this country. These are inevitably amongst the main reasons why he was invited by Sandy Jones to be Captain of the PGA, the pinnacle of any professional golfers career.
In this exclusive Q&A interview we talk to Parnell about his election to the honourary position, what he feels he will add to the role and his experiences at The Ryder Cup in 2006 and the recent Masters tournament. He also discusses teaching Colin Montgomerie as a boy and how Bradley Park has changed since his appointment there in 1981.
Read the Parnell Reilly Interview.
Hanson, from Crosland Heath Golf Club, scored a bogey free round of 2 under par (70) to lie jointly second alongside Graeme Clark and Patrick Devine.
Birdies at the 2nd and 5th holes got Hanson off to a great start and pars all the way home gave him the position near the top of the leaderboard. Fellow Huddersfield Golf columnist David Astin is tied in 65th position after an opening 76.
Lying in 11th position after the morning rounds the team of Edward Battye, Daniel Hartley, Adam Crum and James Murch improved by 11 shots on their morning effort to claim the 6th and final promotion place.
In blustery conditions Battye (80+74, 154), Hartley (80+78, 158), Crum (81+82, 163) and Murch (80+78, 158) totaled 635 to gain promotion despite finishing 32 shots behind winners and hosts Cookridge Hall. Cookridge used local knowledge to win by a massive 21 shots from Malton and Norton GC whilst the leading individual was Managing Director of Cookridge Hall, Adam Frontal-Gay, with two superb rounds of 71 for a 142 total. Gary Day, General Manager of the club commented, "The golf course was in great condition given the time of year and will prove to be no walkover for the forthcoming Scratch Salver." He added, "Using the white tee's today made it a much shorter course than the Blue Tips, but the golf course proved too stern a test for many."
The day is designed to raise money for the rising golf stars career as a professional golfer and after the success of the 2006 event this years event will hopefully top that. In the 1pm shotgun start there are some great prizes to be won
Anyone not playing on the day is more than welcome to come up for the day and take part in the raffle and auction where there are many signed sporting goods up for offer.
Huddersfield Golf have teamed up with Willow Valley Golf Club to give one lucky visitor (and 3 of their golfing friends) the chance to win a round of golf on the fantastic new Pine Valley course at the Willow Valley Golf & Country Estate, Brighouse near Huddersfield.
A round of 4 over par (75) gave the Crosland Heath professional a position of 6th place in the Catterick GC Pro-Am.
Read our Q&A Interview with Chris Hanson.
Wrightson, an England International, first won the County Championship 31 years ago and had earlier in the day beaten Olivia Ellerington from Brough by 5&4 in the semi-final.
Wrightson was the pre-tournament favourite and certainly lived up to her billing although wasn't quite able to land the Barrett Trophy for the third consecutive year by leading the strokeplay qualifying event. That honour went to Julia Smith from Rotherham who was then seeded number 1 in the matchplay stage but was beaten by Hague in the other semi-final.
Defending champions Meltham will play their first round match against Crow Nest Park at Dewsbury Golf Club and despite Toby Garrett moving to the senior ranks will again be amongst the favourites to lift the title with James Thompson expected to figure.
However, West End will fancy their chances this year with the option of fielding a number of single figure golfers as will Woodsome Hall and Crosland Heath.
Hanson finished on a 9 over par total, 147, to finish outside the prizes on the testing Welsh links course.
They were the only team from eight local clubs attempting to qualify who progressed. Rounds of 79 by both Edward Battye and Adam Crum complimented with an 82 from Craig Darbyshire and an 84 from Mark Colley gave the team a 324 total and allowed the Mirfield based club to tip-toe into the next round, to be held at Cookridge Hall on April 25th.
In tricky conditions Barnsley GC won the event on 308 followed by Tankersley Park on 312 whilst Steve Butcher from Barnsley scored the best round of the day shooting a 74 which was also matched by Dan Hall of Calverley Golf Club.
Halifax Ogden and Halifax Bradley Hall Golf Clubs came the closest to joining Dewsbury in the next stage but their 330 totals were eventually 6 shots off the pace. Hanging Heaton were a shot further back on 331, Queensbury finished on 335, Elland totaled 339, Crow Nest Park scored 340 whilst Longley Park came in with 341."
The impressive 18 hole layout built with U.S.G.A specification greens covers a little over 5,100 yards and requires the golfer to use their imagination and a wide variety of shots to play the course successfully. Opened in 2006 there is much less emphasis on getting the ball airborne over long distances as the design allows the golfer to run the ball onto the large undulating greens.
Although the course is primarily geared to have more margin for error than the famous Willow Valley course don't be fooled as there are bunkers and water hazards to catch errant shots. With very competitive green fees a round at the Pine Valley course represents excellent value for money.
The 6th hole is the courses' signature hole with no less than three options of playing towards the green. It is a "risk and reward" par 4 with a green which can be driven from the tee, though water lurks to catch the ball which doesn't carry the full distance. You can also play around the water to the green, with a long iron or wood leaving a short pitch to the flag without having to play over the lake. The third option is to hit a mid iron towards and short of the water and leave yourself a fuller shot over the lake into the flag.
Commenting on the Pine Valley course Club Professional Julian Haworth commented, "Now the course is fully open it is proving extremely popular, hopefully it will introduce even more people in our area to golf, which ultimately benefits all the local courses and golf related businesses."
Willow Valley Golf & Country Club offers four golf courses in total with some other fabulous facilities and is located close to the M62 at Clifton, Brighouse. To find out more information read our Willow Valley Feature or visit www.wvgc.co.uk.
An opposition sporting 5 Yorkshire Under 16 players was always going to be a tough match although Greaves admitted, "Having beaten last years champions in our opening match we though we could do it."
The match went down to the last 2 games where HHDUGC could have still forced a draw but Greaves said, "It seemed to be an uphill struggle all day. In the matches we were up in it was a slender advantage and when we were down, we well down."
Woodsome Hall have a reciprocal playing agreement with the South African club who celebrate their centenary this year.
The picture below shows from the left, Guest presenting the President Mr Mike Rushmere and Captain Mr Noel Stotter with a framed photograph of the Woodsome Hall Club house and also a mounted crest of the club - both inscribed to reflect the centenary.
The President thanked all at Woodsome for their gifts which will be included in their centenary display. He said that his club values the reciprocal agreements they have with clubs especially with Woodsome, a club with much history.
The main centenary celebration was in February when a dinner was held and attended by all captains of world wide royal clubs. The main speaker was Mr Michael Lunt, Captain of the R & A. Details and history of Royal Port Alfred can be found on www.rpagc.co.za.
Bridges, who plays out of Halifax West End Golf Club has accumulated an impressive 14 points after just two matches. Points are accumulated for performances, wins and draws in both the foursomes and singles formats.
Club stable-mate Lloyd Cramp is however hot on Bridges' heels and is amongst one of four players on 11 points, from a maximum of 16.
See the full HHDUGC Junior Order of Merit.
Broadley scored rounds of 72 and 71 for a 143 total finishing just 4 shots back from winner Duncan McCarthy from Moortown Golf Club.
Meltham duo Graham McLean and Toby Garrett scored 151 (74+77) and 157 (77+80) respectively to finish outside the top 20 and the points.
More Yorkshire Order of Merit News.
In this one-off Q&A interview Astin talks about life being your own boss, what equipment he uses and how he overcame the yips!.
Read the David Astin Interview.
After their thrilling win against Harrogate last week everybody was expecting a victory against un-fancied East Riding, however, it wasn't to be at a sunny West End Golf Club (Halifax).
Halifax, Huddersfield trailed 7-5 after the morning foursomes despite victories for James Thompson & Sam Bridges in the opening match and Ryan Higginbottom and Tom Jenkinson in the final grouping.
Another fight-back looked on the cards in the afternoon singles as Sam Bridges, Ryan Greenwood and Daniel Crisp all won their matches with convincing victories at the top of the order. However, with only Alex Battye winning out of the remaining seven ties East Riding won the singles 13-11 and the match 20-16. Full Scoresheet.
The morning foursomes were shared six all with the top two games being halved; James Thompson & Sam Bridges and Ryan Greenwood & Tom Hill. In the third game the experienced pairing of Daniel Crisp & Tom Jenkinson were behind early on and never recovered eventually losing 4 and 3. The next two foursomes went the way of the HHDUGC with the exciting pairings of Mark Hepworth & Matthew Colcombe and Lloyd Cramp & Adam Cryer both winning their matches. In the last match the debutants Gary Floyd & Ryan Higginbottom never got going, were always behind and seemingly out of sorts losing 3 and 1. This left the tie finely balanced going into the afternoon singles.
Junior Team Selector Frank Greaves explained, "The plan in the afternoon was to have those golfers with Woodsome Hall experience in the second half and I left two experienced guys at 11 and 12 in Lloyd Cramp and Tom Jenkinson just in case."
After watching all the matches through 7 holes it wasn't looking good for Greaves' talented team being down in 8 out of the 12 matches. Greaves added, "For the tail to have any effect some games had to turn our way. As well as talent I want us to show some fight and boy did some of the guys do that."
The game changed as Matthew Colcombe 3 down, Daniel Crisp 2 down and Adam Cryer 2 down all turned their games round to pick up points. With James Thompson losing the lead singles to his Yorkshire Boys foursomes partner Bryan Wood 2 and 1 and Tom Hill losing the second match by 1 hole it was going to be an extremely tight result. Greaves described, "Even on the 14th tee the last 4 games were against us, Gary Floyd was 2 down, Ryan Higginbottom 3 down, Lloyd Cramp 1 up and Tom Jenkinson 1 down it looked like we needed Tom to win his match to secure an 18 a-piece result." However, Ryan Higginbottom won 3 in a row winning the 16th with a 15 foot birdie putt and the last to secure a magnificent 1 up victory. Tom Jenkinson won 14 and 15 to be one up and stayed that way, unfortunately Gary couldn’t turn his game round but Lloyd stayed 1 up halving the 16th with a birdie without visiting the fairway! This gave the HHDUGC Juniors the narrowest of victories and boosts the team spirit going into their next match against East Riding at West End this coming Sunday where Meltham duo Ben Ellis and Alex Battye come into the reckoning. Full Scoresheet.
Read the full story on the Brighouse Today website.
Read the full story on the Halifax Evening Courier website.
Read the full story on the Halifax Evening Courier website.
The Yorkshire Inter District Union Junior League kicks off on Sunday 8th April at Woodsome Hall Golf Club where the local Union team take on last years Champions Harrogate & District.
Greaves' youngsters were one of only two teams to beat Harrogate last term so belief will be high especially with home advantage and a team that boasts four players with a lot of Woodsome Hall experience. James Thompson will lead the team after having represented Yorkshire Boys against Derbyshire on his debut and will be bristling with confidence.
Greaves commented on how vital coaching has been over the winter, "Squad sessions with Union Coach John Eyre have really helped and the depth of talent coupled with enthusiasm gives me quiet encouragement for the forthcoming year." He added, "Competition for places will also be intense as I’ve had to leave out some guys that played several times for the team last year.”
A second home match a week later at Dewsbury against East Riding, where a number of the players left out of the season opener will come back into the reckoning, will give some indication on how the season is likely to progress. Further coaching sessions are then planned before a match against Bradford on the 29th May.
The full team to play Harrogate is: James Thompson (Meltham), Matthew Colcombe (Longley Park), Lloyd Cramp and Sam Bridges (West End), Ryan Greenwood (Elland), Gary Floyd and Ryan Higginbottom (Crosland Heath), Tom Jenkinson and Mark Hepworth (Woodsome Hall), Adam Cryer (Hebden Bridge), Tom Hill (Hanging Heaton) and Daniel Crisp (Huddersfield).
The Union season started with the annual pre-season opening fixture with a pressurised Stableford competition, designed to introduce regular, fringe, and junior players into a pressure situation over the last 6 holes of competition, which is usually where a matchplay contest is either won or lost.
The competition format was the best 2 scores to count on the first 6 holes, the best 3 scores to count on the next 6 holes, and all 4 scores to count on the last 6 holes, all players playing off scratch.
The competition was played in sunny but cold conditions, with about a 26mph east wind blowing directly up the first hole. This turned a normally easy opening hole into one of several testing holes throughout the round, an easterly wind is not the prevailing wind at Outlane, and it made club selection and shot selection crucial.
With the par score for the competition being 108 Stableford points, it was hard to see this score being troubled let alone being beaten, however the winning team of Iain Powell (Hebden Bridge), Jim Fairhurst (Bradley Hall), Adam Crum (Dewsbury District) and junior Ryan Greenwood (Elland) turned in a very creditable score of 106 points, equating to 2 over par, in very difficult conditions.
Mear was happy with how all the players acquitted themselves in the extreme circumstances, and although the seasons opening match against the Bradford Union at Skipton is just under 6 weeks away, he commented, "I saw enough on Sunday to tell me that all the players selected will perform their best for the Union team, the competition for places will be fierce this year and the team spirit a fixture like this provokes will stand the team in good stead for the forthcoming season."
Hanson was just edged out by back to back tour winner Paul Wesselingh (Kedlestone Park) after consecutive rounds of 70 for a two-under par 140 total with Peter Baker third on 142. Hanson had to settle for a cheque for £1,300 rather than the £2,000 winners purse.
Despite not quite capturing his second title since turning professional Hanson will be pleased with the result and confirms some of the early season form he has had on the practice ground with coach John Eyre and is sure to act as a catalyst for the rest of the season.
The runners-up spot is also satisfying for Hanson after a weeks warm weather training in Portugal and puts him in good stead going into his next event, The Page Trophy, at Ogden on 17th April.
Fellow Huddersfield Golf columnist John Cheetham also impressed with rounds of 71 and 73 for a share of fifth position. See the full results here.
