Hanson Denied as Lilly storms to Tour Championship victory

Simon Lilly carded a fantastic final round of 65 to win the Tour Championship on the PGA EuroPro Tour at De Vere Slaley Hall, Northumberland by seven shots at eight under par – securing his Challenge Tour card in the process and denying Chris Hanson victory.

Lilly (Wellingborough) played with the duo he shared the overnight lead with – Chris Hanson (Woodsome Hall) and Paul Doherty (Vale Hotel) – but as they struggled to build on the platform they had set, Lilly stormed out of the blocks with four birdies in the first six holes to seize the initiative.

He then matched that birdie salvo on the back nine by picking up a shot at the tenth then three straight birdies from the 13th moved him to nine under for the tournament before a minor blemish in the shape of a bogey at the last saw him finish at eight under par, seven shots ahead of Steve Surry.

“Obviously with three of us tied for the lead I had winning in my mind and I thought that if I shot somewhere in the 60s I would be hard to beat, but to do that today was just unreal,” said Lilly, who moves into fifth on the final Order of Merit standings with the £15,000 winner’s cheque to take the final Challenge Tour card.

Hanson’s bid for the title was all over after dropping four shots in his first four holes, eventually finishing eight over for the day and in a tie for 18th spot, while Doherty went round in 75 to finish two over for the tournament and in a three-way tie for sixth with Colin Roope (wstore.co.uk) and Paul Maddy (Gog Magog), who shot a three under par 69 in his final round.

The respective slips from Hanson and Doherty opened the door for Surry (Cumberwell Park) to move through the field to take second spot with a two under par final round. Following rounds of 74 and 71, Surry made his move on the front nine with three birdies and just one bogey – consolidating his position with a level par back nine.

FINAL SCORES FROM DE VERE SLALEY HALL
1 Simon Lilly 208 -8 73, 70, 65 £15,000
2 Steve Surry 215 -1 74, 71, 70 £7,500
=3 Brian McElhinney 216 Lvl 75, 72, 69 £2,650
=3 Steven Parry 216 Lvl 73, 73, 70 £2,650
5 Matthew Ford 217 +1 76, 73, 68 £1,500
6 Paul Maddy 218 +2 73, 76, 69 £1,300
=7 James Gill 219 +3 79, 69, 71 £1,000
=7 Colin Roope 219 +3 73, 72, 74 £1,000
=7 Paul Doherty 219 +3 71, 72, 76 £1,000

TOP 15 ORDER OF MERIT
1 Scott Jamieson £23,492.25
2 Tom Haylock £22,972.41
3 Daniel Brooks £22,274.17
4 Steve Surry £20,922.50
5 Simon Lilly £20,407.02
6 Jack Doherty £17,218.79
7 Paul Dwyer £16,455.00
8 James Busby £15,935.00
9 Elliot Saltman £14,383.57
10 Paul Maddy £14,374.49
11 Graeme Clark £14,245.00
12 Sandeep Grewal £12,031.00
13 Nicky Harris £10,341.83
14 James Ruebotham £9,714.99
15 Matthew Ford £9,662.30

Hanson Tied for lead in Tour Championship ahead of final round

Chris Hanson, Simon Lilly and Paul Doherty lead by two strokes at one under in the Tour Championships at De Vere Slaley Hall ahead of Thursday’s final round of the 2009 PGA EuroPro Tour finale.

Hanson (Woodsome Hall) led by one stroke after his opening round 70 in the North East but he found his second round tougher going and a one over 73 saw him drop to one under. The 24 year-old began well with birdies at the fourth and sixth holes moving him to four under, but a double-bogey at seven was followed by bogeys at eight and nine to move to level par – with three birdies and two bogeys on the back nine taking him to 73 for the day and one under after two rounds.

Lilly (Wellingborough) produced a fine round of 70 to join Hanson at the top of the leaderboard, beginning on the back nine with two birdies before dropping his only shot of the round at the second but making that back at the fourth to leave the 2004 Order of Merit winner in a very strong position after an opening round 73.

Completing the triumvirate in pole position for the £15,000 winner’s cheque is Paul Doherty (Vale Hotel) who recorded a level par second round thanks to cancelling out a pair of bogeys on the front nine with birdies at 11 and 12.

Level par was also the score that sees Colin Roope (wstore.co.uk) sit two strokes behind the leading trio at one over par. Roope played in Hanson’s three-ball and endured an up-and-down day, recording his first birdie of the day at the fourth but then dropping three shots before the turn. The 29 year-old responded immediately though with back-to-back birdies from the tenth and picked up another birdie at 16 but a bogey at the last saw his deficit move from one stroke to two.

Roope will tee-off with Steve Surry (Cumberwell Park) in the final round after the Bath man carded a one under round of 71 to move to one over for the tournament. Surry – who won the opening event of the Tour back in May – began his second round on the back nine where he picked up three birdies and one bogey to move to level par after an opening round 74. A fourth birdie of the day moved him to one under for the tournament but he slipped to one over with bogeys at the fourth and seventh holes.

Sandeep Grewal (ISM) will join Roope and Surry in the final round after a three over round of 75 dropped him to two over for the tournament. Grewal is joined by Llewellyn Matthews (Southerndown GC) who also recorded a 75 and Steven Parry (Bolton) who recorded his second 73 of the tournament in eventful fashion with an eagle and three birdies spoiled by six bogeys, including a bogey-bogey finish.

At the end of the Tour Championships the top five in the Order of Merit progress onto the Challenge Tour for 2010, so with money list leader Scott Jamieson seven over for the tournament, the door is opened for his competitors to pounce. Currently lying in second spot is Tom Haylock (Ground Construction Ltd) who recorded a one over par round of 73 to sit in a three-way tie for 13th spot at four over. Daniel Brooks (Mill Hill) is in third spot on the money list but is struggling alongside Jamieson at seven over, so Jack Doherty (North Gailes) and Paul Dwyer (Clitheroe) will consider themselves in the best position to capitalise at three over par, alongside Phil Worthington (Donnington Grove).

The final round of the Tour Championship from De Vere Slaley Hall begins at 8.15am on Thursday (October 29), with the final three-ball of Paul Doherty and Hanson, Lilly teeing-off at 9.45am. Live scoring from what promises to be a nail-biting final round in Northumberland is available via the Score Updates link at www.europrotour.com, where you can find the full leaderboard after the opening two rounds.

BETTING LATEST
Chris Hanson is the 11/4 favourite with official bookmakers Sky Bet to win the Tour Championships.

Hanson led going into the second round but a one over 73 saw him drop to one under for the tournament and into a three-way tie for the lead with Simon Lilly (3/1) and Paul Doherty (10/3).

Steve Surry and Colin Roope are their closest challengers sitting two strokes behind and are 5/1 and 12/1 respectively, while the trio of Sandeep Grewal (16/1), Steven Parry (20/1) and Llewellyn Matthews (25/1) are one stroke further adrift at two over par.

To bet on the Tour Championships with Sky Bet, click the logo below and get a FREE £10 bet.

Hanson grabs Tour Championship lead after opening round

Patience is the key for Yorkshireman Hanson who leads by one at Slaley Hall.

Local tour pro Chris Hanson drew first blood at the 2009 Tour Championship on the PGA EuroPro Tour at De Vere Slaley Hall in Northumberland, holding a one stroke lead at two under with an opening round of 70.

Hanson (Woodsome Hall) began his round on the back nine and quickly moved to two under par after four holes. Bogeys at the 18th and second holes put him back to level par before birdies at the fourth and eighth holes saw him card one of just four rounds under par in tough conditions in the North East.

“I knew that a score around level would be good – so I’m pleased to have got in under par,” said Hanson. “I was a couple under early on but dropped those shots but getting an easy birdie at the fourth and another one at the eighth was pleasing and I hit a couple of good shots on the ninth to walk off at two under.”

Hanson has missed the cut in his last two events on the Tour but sits in a promising position at Slaley Hall and says he’s aware of what he needs to do to come out on top: “The key for me in the final two rounds will just be to be as patient as I can be,” said the 24 year-old.

Paul Doherty (North Gailes), Sandeep Grewal (ISM) and Llewellyn Matthews (Southerndown GC) all carded one under rounds of 71 to sit on Hanson’s shoulder after the opening exchanges. Doherty will feel aggrieved after bogey-bogey finish saw him slip from a leading position after recording five birdies in his round, while Grewal will be full of confidence after winning the PartyPoker.com International Open at Fairmont St. Andrews and he will look at an eagle on the par-five fourth hole as the key to his good start to the event. Matthews can claim the best comeback of the day after starting his round with an eight on the par-four tenth, recovering with five birdies to shoot a fine round of 71.

Adam Frayne (St Mellion) sits alone in fifth spot at level par after cancelling out four birdies, with three in his opening four holes, and he is one stroke ahead of a group of nine players at one over par – Phil Worthington (Donnington Grove), Colin Roope (wstore.co.uk), Ian Keenan (Royal Liverpool), Simon Lilly (Wellingborough), Graeme Clark (Doncaster), Paul Maddy (Gog Magog), Steven Parry (Bolton), Jack Doherty (North Gailes) and Paul Dwyer (Clitheroe) all carded rounds of 73.

With much of the focus at the Tour Championship is on the top of the Order of Merit, Jack Doherty and Dwyer know that victory and the £15,000 winner’s cheque that goes with it could secure top spot from their respective fourth and fifth positions with money list leader Scott Jamieson perhaps opening the door to his rivals after an opening round 76 left him at four over. Jamieson is playing with closest competitors Tom Haylock (Ground Construction Ltd – second) and Daniel Brooks (Mill Hill – third) but neither managed to capitalise with Brooks matching Jamieson’s score and Haylock going round in 75.

The second round of the Tour Championship from De Vere Slaley Hall in Northumberland begins at 8.15am on Wednesday (October 28), with live scoring available at www.europrotour.com.

SKY BET ODDS UPDATE:
Hanson’s first round lead has seen him installed as the new 7/1 favourite for the Tour Championship with official bookmakers Sky Bet.

The Yorkshireman’s one stroke lead at two under par is a slender one in the eyes of the oddsmakers, with Grewal (9/1), Paul Doherty (10/1) and Matthews (12/1) hot on his heels at one under par. Dwyer is an 11/1 shot at one over par, while Surry is four strokes behind Hanson but seen as a danger-man at 12/1.

To view the full prices after the opening round and back Hanson for Victory visit Sky Bet

West End Start Times

The start sheet for Thursday's Alliance at West End has now been published.

An excellent turn out of over 100 competitors at this new venue for the 2009/10 season means that the field is full with 12 professionals entered for the Pro-Am competition.

See the full start sheet.

Andy Burns it Up at Outlane

Andy Wilford burnt the Outlane course up with a gross 65 but could only finish in 4th place during the October Medal!

As the course is using two temporary holes it couldn't count as a course record but a round like this was quite amazing at this time of the year when the greens had been hollowtined for later work on them.

Paul Phillips won the first division with a nett 60 and junior player Mattew Alsop carried on his good form with his new handicap to come second. Bob Hazelden also produced his best round of the year with a 79 gross for a nett 64 to share fifth place.

In the second division Roger Holroyd won on the countback from Gary Bayley who also carried his form through with his new handicap.

1st Division:
Paul Phillips 70 gross (10) = 60 nett
Matthew Alsop 75 gross (15) = 60 nett
Steve Osborne 72 gross (10) = 62 nett
Andy Wilford 65 gross (3) = 62 nett
Mr.Captain 73 gross (9) = 64 nett
Bob Hazelden 79 gross (15) = 64 nett

2nd Division:
Roger Holroyd 83 gross (21) = 62 nett
Gary Bayley 81 gross (19) = 62 nett
Dale Brook 83 gross (20) = 63 nett
David Cromack81 gross (18) = 63 nett

Mowl Leads Team to Victory

Despite the very blustery conditions there was a great turnout for the first Lady Captain v Lady Vice Captain competition at Crow Nest Park.

A field of 36 golfers took part, with over £100 going to the Captains Charity, Overgate Hospice.

Lady Vice Captian Aamanda Mowl lead her team to victory, against Lady Captain Helen Pearson who despite fighting breast cancer took defeat with the the usual good grace.

Best Pair: Amanda Mowl & Rick Spurr
Best Gent: Glyn Owen
Best Lady: Ruth Wilson

Hanging Heaton Junior Presentation

Hanging Heaton Golf Club will hold their Junior Presentation 2009 on Friday 20th November 2009 at 7.30pm for 8.00pm.

Afterwards there will be a disco and members are urged to attend to give their support. Raffle Prizes are also required for the night so please donate if you can. All proceeds go towards the Junior Funds.

Prize winners include:
C Dawson
Joe Button
J Milnes
T Goodair
A Webster
S Hetherington
T Hill
Miss F Williams
S Wilcock
J Morton
D Hale
D Hey
T Hey
R Greenwood
M Parkinson
B Taylor
C Broome
J Pygott
B MacIver

Adamson Named Crow Nest Golfer of the Year

Crow Nest Park Golf Club hosted a Presentation Night to remember last Saturday as 150 members and guests flocked to Crow Nest Park and its Grand Marquee.

The night was an unreserved success as all the Clubs Major Competition winners were recognised and acknowledged.

The members were entertained by Janie Forth and by a Table Magician during the 3 course meal. The evening progressed into the small hours with a stand up Bingo round and the results of a Free Annual Golf Membership being announced and finally a disco.

The Clubs Fundraising team who had put together the evenings events were congratulated on their success. They now start the unenviable task of formatting an equally successful Presentation Night next year.

The winner of the Golfer of the year award was Ben Adamson and the Clubs Clubman of the year was Mark Campbell.

1st Photo shows L to R: Vice Capt Glyn Owen, Mr President John Turner, & Club Captain Martin Broadbent.

2nd Photo shows the "Fixby Ladies".

FREE Golf at Outlane

Outlane Golf Club are offering FREE GOLF at their golf club for the remainder of the Year!

Anybody who joins now for 2010 can play the rest of this year for free! Those interested should ring for more details and an application form - 01422 374762 / 311789.

Meanwhile, the results from the British Legion Appeal Medal played at Outlane on Saturday October 10th are shown below.

Steve Howlett produced a grandstand finish to claim a win in the first division whilst Matthew Alsop celebrated his last year as a junior to win the years last medal in the second division with 42 points to deny Mark Uttley and Robert Smith their first win in a competition.

Division 1:
Steve Howlett = 44 points
Trevor Mullins = 43 points
Paul Phillips = 42 points

Division 2:
Matthew Alsop = 42 points
Mark Uttley = 40 points
Richard Smith = 40 point

Holmes & Johnson Take Top Spot!

Chris Holmes and Roy Johnson from Meltham took the honours yesterday at Ogden in the fourth Alliance fixture of the 2009-10 season.

In what was a reversal of the result at Outlane, it was Holmes and Johnson who won the competition scoring a superb 43 points. However, it took an equally good back nine of 24, helped by a gross birdie and an eagle, to claim the title from Dewsbury pair Adam Crum and Rob Speight.

In the Pro-Am competition, Bradley Park professional Chris Foster (pictured above with David Peel & Richard Badrock) and his partner Oliver Barstow (6) took first place in a high scoring competition at Ogden.

With an excellent 42 points, Oliver used his shots well to contribute three 3 pointers and a 4 pointer to a solid performance from Chris. In second place, on a card play off, was home club professional Dave Delaney and Simon Wilson (3). They accumulated 41 points along with Chris Hanson and Rob Booth but thanks to 22 points on the back nine they picked up second spot.

Alliance organiser James Washington said, "The Alliance would like to thank Halifax Golf Club for their efforts in helping to organise the day and to all the competitors that took part. The course was in excellent condition with the greens worthy of particular praise. We were fortunate to have one of the stillest days that people could remember and had it not been for some persistent light rain the playing conditions would have been perfect." He added, "The service and hospitality was up to Halifax’s excellent standards with many compliments given on the meal offered afterwards. Overall, the day was an overwhelming success highlighted by the field being well over 100 for the first time this season."

The presentation was conducted by Mr. Barry Isles, Alliance President Mr. Richard Badrock and was ably assisted by Halifax Vice Captain Mr. David Peel. The next event is at Halifax West End on Thursday 29th October.

Full Scores.

Alliance trio bag Notts prizes

IN-FORM Chris Hanson showed the way as the 20-strong Halifax-Huddersfield Alliance contingent returned from the National Alliance event at Nottingham on Monday with three prizes.

The Woodsome Hall player won the professional's section at Cotgrave Place GC with 40 stableford points, shooting four under. He partnered four handicapper Andy Appleyard, a member at Bradley Hall and Fixby, to second place among the best pairs not in winning teams with 41 points.

West End's Darren Arber shared fourth prize among the professionals with 36 points.

Hanson is on a golden run of form after working hard on his game with John Eyre at Woodsome. In the last three months he has won the Manchester Open at Worsley Park, the Yorkshire PGA Classic at Malton and Norton, the Yorkshire PGA Masters at Sandburn (York) and the ESG Dubai Classic at Cottingham (Hull).

He made a great start at Cotgrave with birdies on the first two holes, reaching the green in two on the par five opener and then chipping in from 30 yards on the short second.

He bogeyed the fourth after a bad tee shot but birdied 11 thanks to a 25 foot putt and followed up on the long 13th and then the 16th, where he hit a nine iron to three feet.

Halifax-Huddersfield had set out their stall to do better than 12 months ago after the two 10-man teams they had sent last year failed to perform.

They maintained their chances by entering two teams and selection was a careful process, with the five professionals and 15 amateurs chosen on the basis of results in last winter's local Alliance fixtures.

Ten players went down a day early for a practice round, including Hanson and Appleyard, and the move paid off even though the teams finished out of the first three places from 12 entrants.

The best four scores from each team's five pairings counted and Nottingham II won with 165 points from Manchester and then Liverpool with Halifax-Huddersfield's pro-am team close behind on 153 points and the am-am team further back on 143 points.

Halifax-Huddersfield Alliance official James Washington, who partnered Arber, said: "We took the event a lot more seriously this year and we are very pleased with the outcome.”

"Conditions were perfect and the greens were as good as you will get at this time of the year."

Organiser Roy Fletcher of the Nottinghamshire Alliance said Hanson had played some superb golf.

"It is a tight course with water on the first eight holes but Chris Hanson played beautifully."

HALIFAX/HUDDS SCORES:
Team one: R.Booth (scr) and A.Hare (3) 34 pts, J.Ambler (scr) and J.Doherty (5) 40 pts, C.Hanson (scr) and A.Appleyard (4) 41 pts, D.Arber (scr) and J.Washington (7) 38 pts, D.Astin (scr0 and A.Cryer (9) 32 pts.

Team two: R.Badrock (14) and F.Leek (18) 35 pts, G.Broadbent (33) and S.Hobson (9) 33 pts, R.Binns (12) and J.Binns (4) 36 pts, D.Whitwam (5) and C.Holmes (5) 32 pts, M.Dempsey (12) and P.Newey (16) 39 pts.

Professional results: 1, Chris Hanson (H & H) 40 pts; 2, Mike Hollingworth (Man) 39 pts; 3, M. Wellband (Leic & Rutland) 38 pts; 4, D. Arber (H & H), C. Crowder (Liv), S. Grewal (Liv), P. Hetherington (Herts), G. Cox (Man), S. Andrew (E.Lancs) all 36 pts.

This article has been reproduced with kind permission. Original source: Ian Rushworth (Halifax Courier) & James Washington (HHDGA).

Union Thump St. Annes

The Halifax, Huddersfield and District Union of Golf Clubs scored a healthy win against St. Annes Old Links Golf Club on Sunday 4th October at Meltham Golf Club.

The home side ran out 11-1 winners in the foursomes then fourball 36-hole contest.

Foursomes:
Graham McLean & James Washington won 2 up V Paul Beverley & Dean Gillette
Richard Holt & Chris Ingham won 6/5 V Mike Hedges & Jake Watson
Chris Mear & Frank Greaves won 4/3 V Colin Greenall & Dave Laver
Neil Wilson & Iain Powell won 3/2 V Colin Brook & Stuart Peacock
Andy Whitworth & Paul Taylor won 2/1 V Alex Caldicott & Darren Woodbridge
Mark England & Stephen Bower won 5/4 V Guy Holland & Andrew Moore

Fourball:
Graham McLean & James Washington won 6/4 V Paul Beverley & Dean Gillette
Richard Holt & Chris Ingham won 5/4 V Mike Hedges & Jake Watson
Chris Mear & Frank Greaves won 3/2 V Colin Greenall & Dave Laver
Neil Wilson & Iain Powell won 7/5 V Colin Brook & Stuart Peacock
Andy Whitworth & Paul Taylor won 5/4 V Alex Caldicott & Darren Woodbridge
Mike England & Stephen Bower lost 1h V Guy Holland & Andrew Moore

Alliance Teams for Cotgrave

Cotgrave Place Golf Club will host the National Alliance Championships on Monday 12th October 2009 are the teams representing the HHDGA have now been finalised.

It is hoped that by selecting amateurs and professionals that featured highly on their respective 2008/09 order of merits that the teams will have an excellent chance of performing well.

Team 1:
11.00am: Mr. Rob Booth, Mr. Andy Hare
11.20am: Mr. John Ambler, Mr. John Doherty
12.00pm: Mr. Chris Hanson, Mr. Andy Appleyard
1.00pm: Mr. Darren Arber, Mr. J. Washington
1.20pm: Mr. Dave Astin, Mr. Andy Cryer

Team 2:
10.40am: Mr. Richard Badrock, Mr. Fred Leek
11.30am: Mr. Gary Broadbent, Mr. Steve Hobson
12.20pm: Mr. R. Binns, Mr. J. Binns
12.30pm: Mr. Dean Whitwam, Mr. Chris Holmes
1.10pm: Mr. Mike Dempsey, Mr. Peter Newey

Ex Crime Buster Turning to Golf Club Management

Retired Detective and former Secretary at Marsden Golf Club, Stephen Boustead, has recently graduated from a GCMA backed Golf Club Management course at a Buckinghamshire University and is now keen to get his teeth into a full time role.

Boustead took over the role of Hon. Secretary at Marsden in 2002 and explained, "At that time I had just moved from being a divisional detective at Oldham with Greater Manchester Police to being a member of the Major Incident Team, investigating all major and serious crime within the Greater Manchester area. This meant my life was pretty hectic, but I persevered and got more and more into the role at the club."

He soon decided that he wanted to make the move into full time club management. "I enrolled in the inaugural GCMA backed course in Golf Club Management based at Buckinghamshire New University. This entailed completing six modules, attending the University for two day seminars during each module and completing research and an assignment for each module."

Boustead found that juggling full time police work, part time club management and a return to academia was not easy, but earlier this year successfully completed the course and graduated last month.

He has now retired from both the Police and the part-time position at Marsden Golf Club and is actively seeking a full-time position in Golf Club Management. Boustead can be contacted through the Huddersfield Blog at info@huddersfieldgolf.co.uk

Alliance Geared Up for Ogden Test

The start times for next Thursdays Alliance meeting at Halifax Golf Club have now been released.

The turnout is excellent with the event only one pair from being full, anyone wishing to take this spot should contact Mr. Barry Isles on 07951 254 870 ASAP!!

The professionals are out in force now that many of their events are at season-end, 14 in total are playing with some new names among the usual supporters, which is very promising.

Full Start Sheet

Astin Second at Hollins Hall

Woodsome Hall's David Astin impressed at Marriott Hollins Hall when he finished as runner-up in the Thompson Davis PGA North Region Championship.

Astin fired rounds of 70 and 71 as he finished four strokes behind winner Neil Cheetham (Pictured). Cheetham, a 42-year-old professional, who has just completed his summer coaching stint at Dore and Totley, is now returning to South Africa to resume his playing career on the Sunshine Tour.

But he will be back in Britain in three weeks to compete in the Srixon PGA Play-offs at Little Aston after qualifying for topping the region’s Order of Merit for the second time since in nine years.

“It’s all a bit hectic because I’ve two tournaments over there but I’m used to travelling. I finished in the leading 60 last winter to keep my card and that will get me into a few European Tour events as well,” said Cheetham who signed off with a 67 at the Shipley club, five-under-par in total.

Westerhope professional George Cowan, who led by two shots overnight, stayed in the box seat until half-way through the final round but three bogeys in four holes from the 11th cost him dearly as Cheetham claimed pole position.

LEADING SCORES: 137 Neil Cheetham (Dore & Totley) 70 67; 141 David Astin (Woodsome Hall) 70 71; 142 Will Barnes (Garstang) 73 69, George Cowan (Westerhope) 68 74; 143 Gordon Brand (Marriott Hollins Hall) 77 66, John Wells (Cherry Burton) 75 68, Graham Cox (Davenport) 74 69, David Smith (Swinton Park) 72 71, Fraser Kelley (Malton & Norton) 72 71, Aran Wainwright (Mid Yorkshire) 70 73.