RAF Championships 2011
Champion decided via Sudden-Death Play-Off
The 2011 RAF Individual Golf Championships, kindly sponsored by Chemring Countermeasures, Thales and Cassidian, were held in Lincolnshire between 29 June and 1 July. Seacroft GC, just south of Skegness, a classic ‘out and back’ links course, was the venue for this year’s Championships. Over the years, it has held a number of prestigious amateur events and was recently voted 51st in Golf World’s Top 100 English Golf Courses so was an ideal location to test the best RAF Golfers and it was pleasing to see that this year’s entry once again totalled 72 men and 12 women.
Many players took advantage of playing a practice round on the Tuesday and with strong winds and driving rain and with many of the entrants not used to links golf a replication of the conditions over the next 3 days would mean that it would be a tough slog for many.
The first day of the Championship greeted the players with warm sunshine and a slight breeze, totally the opposite from the day before and with the men needing to complete 36 holes in the first day to determine who would make the cut (top 30 and ties), Ben Spoor got the competition underway at 0730. By the time the first round had been completed the returned scores indicated that the 36 hole cut mark could be very low in comparison with previous years with over half the field breaking 80. However, it was Si Ackland, Liam Pucill and Patrick Mournian that broke through the pack to return 2 under par scores of 69 to lead by 2 going into the second round. Round 1 scores....
Prior to the start of the men’s second round, the Ladies started their first round. This year in an effort to encourage more participation, as well as the Scratch Champion, a handicap stableford competition was introduced. Reigning Ladies’ Champion Rachel McAlpine and Sarah Purdy led the field after the first round each returning scores of 80 to lead by 5, whilst Alex Mournian scored 41 points to lead the stableford competition by 4.
Conditions remained relatively calm in the afternoon and again good scores were being returned by the early starters and it was previous winners Steve Davies, Dean Lewis and Daz Gould who shot the lowest rounds of the afternoon of 70. In addition, John Duke also matched their scores and whilst his one under par round did not elevate him to the top of the leader board like the other 3, his 10 shot improvement saw him safely make the cut which as predicted was a very low 156. Round 2 scores....
On the morning of the second day, those who did not make the cut took part in a scratch stableford competition and after the painful experience of missing the cut by just a single shot, Finlay McLean returned 32 points to win the event by 2 from Alex Fleming. Prior to the 3rd round of the men’s competition, the Ladies played their 2nd round and Rachel McAlpine broke away from the field by once again returning the best round of the day (83) to lead by 10 over Michelle Burgess. It was a similar story in the stableford competition with Alex Mournian once again returning the best score of the day by 3 points to extend her lead in the competition to 9. Men's Stableford scores....
The start of the men’s 3rd round was greeted with overcast conditions, a significant deterioration compared to the morning, and it was not long before the wind increased and rain began to fall. Fortunately, these conditions only prevailed for about an hour and a half and as the rounds were completed late into the afternoon once again the sun shone. Steve Davies returned a 1 under par round of 70 to remain on his own at the top of the leader board but a second 2 under 69 from Liam Pucill saw him move into second place on his own, 3 behind Steve but 2 in front of last year’s champion Dean Lewis. Day 2 scores....
On the final day, conditions were the same as the first day with warm sunshine and a slight breeze greeting both the Ladies and Men for their final rounds. In the Ladies competition Rachel McAlpine again scored the best round of the day and posted her second round of 80 for a total score of 243 and therefore, once again win the Ladies Championship for the fourth time in succession. It was a closer call in the fight for 2nd place and Sarah Purdy managed to overhaul Michelle Burgess to finish on 260. The Ladies stableford competition was won by Alex Mournian, who whilst not recording the best score of the day, which went to Michelle Bligh with 39 points, did enough with her score of 34 points to win by 6 from Nicola Gardner.
Such a clear cut winner was not how the men’s competition was to finish. Eager to hold on to the title after last year’s success at Woodhall Spa, Dean Lewis shot a low round of the week 3 under par 68 to post the Clubhouse lead of 284. Staring the day 5 ahead of Dean, Steve Davies only needed a par at the last to win back the title he won at Trevose in 2009. Unfortunately, for him having missed the green with his approach he failed to get ‘up and down’ signing for a final round 73, and for the first time in a number of years the Men’s championship would be decided by a sudden death playoff.
Heading back down the first both Dean and Steve missed the fairway, but unfortunately for Dean he found an terrible lie and his second to the green was short finding trouble next to a bush. Seeing an opportunity Steve’s approach found the green but the ball rolled on to leave him a tricky putt from the back to the front of the green and in definite 3 putt territory. Unfortunately for Dean, his pitch to the green would be impeded by the bush and his only option was to play out sideways back onto the fairway and hope to get ‘up and down’ for a 5 whilst hoping that Steve would indeed 3 putt. It was not to be and after making a 6, Steve did indeed have the luxury of being able to 3 putt and still win which he duly did to become the Mens Champion once again.
It was a pleasure that Mr Mike Horne and Mr Mick Adamson of joint Championship sponsors, Chemring, were able to present trophies to the deserving winners at the prizegiving ceremony.
2011 Champions: Steve Davies and Rachel McAlpine
Words: Paul Mardon