Cornwall Golf Union
Cornwall Blow Gwent Away at Bude
Cornwall Seniors opening match in the Seniors Channel League took place yesterday at Bude and there was an emphatic win for the Duchy as they rather trounced their Welsh opponents 13- 2.
[County Seniors Vice-Captain elect Richard Jones, pictured above and a Welshman himself, reports]
The forecast was set for tough conditions at the Bude Links with 30mph winds and rain due in the afternoon.
Local specialist Lawrie Bridges, stepped into the team for Simon Knowles with the team under pressure to get the season off to a roaring start after 2023 and the success of reaching the National Seniors Finals.
The morning foursomes, played over holes 3-11, delivered a great start with Cornwall leading 3.5 - 1.5. A notable half point was captured by Mark Blaber & debutant Mark Johnson by holing 2 long birdie putts on the final 2 holes. There were wins for the in form Guy Norris with Gary Stone, Gary Hawking and Jones and Andy Rowe who partnered the returning David Kneebone.
At this point a note of mention to the condition of the green complexes at Bude must be made, as they were in outstanding condition making putting true but difficult in the blustery conditions.
The afternoon ten singles were led off by Ian Veale who got an early lead and never let it slip. Others followed suit down the order where all but 1 of the matches were showing the 'Kernow Crew' in the lead.
When the only negative position was reversed on the back nine, a resounding 9.5 - 0.5 singles victory was registered to add to the morning scores.
Gwent were well and truly beaten away from home. Admittedly they had a couple of players missing in action, but the final scoreline of 13 - 2 to Cornwall has set the standard for the rest of the season.
Many thanks to the team at Bude for hosting the fixture - not just for the good service, the general condition of the course and the truly excellent putting surfaces - but also the work done to the 1st, 2nd, & 5th fairways over the winter has to be commended.
Richard Jones - Captain de Jour
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