Of the seniors matches, Carmarthen always prove to be tough opposition and this year's encounter proved to be no exception. The course was in excellent condition, except for the rough, which engulfed both golfers and balls, and there was no excuse for poor golf. Of the 10 matches played, five were halved and others played out to the 18th. The biggest margin of the day was a four and three defeat for Ron Murphy and Allan Keating, but even in this game the result was in doubt until the last three holes, with no more than a one-hole advantage to either pair. Ron and Allan conceded that it was the excellent golf of their opponents, Kevin Owen and Dave Reay, that earned them the win in the end. Tenby's other loss was suffered by Newman Vincent and Derek Bath, who were facing two very competent low handicappers in Tony Hurd and Ken Edwards. The Carmarthen pair were two up as they crossed the railway line and Newman tried to recoup some vestige of hope by stating that no-one who was two up at that stage had won a seniors match. Philosopher, Derek, interjected with: "But there's always a first time". And so it was! It seems that ex-policeman, Ken, had laid down the law and they all obeyed. The three games in which Tenby were victorious were all by a margin of two and one. John Hancock played his usual immaculate game, partnered by Jim Martin, as he demonstrated his putting ability on Tenby's fast greens. Even so, the pair found themselves three down after 10 holes against Jim Green and Bill Kirke, despite Jim Martin's brilliant chip for a three on the third. They recovered to be one up after 16 and stormed home in style. This was John's swansong as he now prepares for his forthcoming knee operation. We all look forward to his speedy return to the seniors' fold. Vince Shaw and Maurice Lewis struck up a good partnership in their match against Colin Lewis and Terry James. When asked, Colin stated that he wanted to talk about the game - but not for long! He had spent the afternoon watching Maurice's drives disappear down each fairway as well as putting a 45-yard chip on the seventh which arced a 45 degree angle to end up within two inches of the flag. He was aided and abetted by Vince's two on the eighth and four on the 16th, despite being in the rough after his drive. By that stage, Colin and Terry realised that it was not going to be their day and had to concede on the 17th. Another close game was had by the experienced pair of Colin Griffiths and David Morgan. There was never more than one-hole advantage to either side in this game as they enjoyed the friendly competition. It was Colin's birdie putt on the 17th that finalised the proceedings and allowed them a stress free stroll down the 18th. All other games ended up as they started - all square, but with lots of good golf and interesting conversation in between. Owen Monaghan was the star of the four ball in his game as he used his free shots to good advantage against Howard Danes and Fred Robinson. Owen impressed the Carmarthen pair with all aspects of his game, particularly his driving, which, for most parts, was straight and long. He allowed his partner, Des Stone, to occasionally come in and halve a hole and between them they opened up a two-hole lead after 13 holes. However, the aberrant play of high handicap golfers showed itself on 15 and 16 as some indifferent play allowed the lead to be lost. Losing the 17th meant that they were a hole down going down the last, but it was Owen to the rescue again. He chipped from off the green to within a couple of inches of the hole and achieved a deserving half to end a very enjoyable experience. If Owen was playing well, by his own admission, Roy Gundry was playing, "like a lemon" (that is the politest of the words he used!). He claimed that Ken Gouldsbrough held them together as they struggled to retrieve a five-hole deficit after six played. Ray Sinden and Alan Evans must have thought that the game was theirs when Ken turned to shake their hands. Roy interjected to remind them (in his own inimitable way) that he still had a putt. His 10-foot roll up ended up at the bottom of the cup to salvage a half for the Tenby pair as well as bring a smile to Ken's face. It was a similar situation with Peter Woodhouse and Roy Morgan as Peter's long putt rolled in, but was nullified by John Evans's effort to halve the game. A birdie on the first gave the Carmarthen pair a great start, but they were unable to capitalise on it in yet anther tight game. Geoff Aston and John Williams were also engaged in a close encounter as they fought out a half against Alan Evans and Gerwyn Davies. Doug Havard reckons that Len Barlow, of Carmarthen, is the best 24 handicapper in the country - either that or he was just having one of those days! Whatever the reason, this game was another great contest played out on the Tenby course last week. Doug and Jack Hasdell found themselves three down after four and had to work hard to retrieve the situation. Jack's steady play, aided by Doug's improving form, brought them back into contention to finish off with a half. A measure of the day's play was Doug's drive on the eighth which ended up two inches from the pin - however, a long putt from Harry Taylor meant that they only had a half on that hole. I'm sure that Newman did not notice that Doug was not sporting his tie in the clubhouse and no-one noticed that he was "in the chair!" The return match in Carmarthen is eagerly awaited. Results: N. Vincent and D. Bath lost to T. Hurd and K. Edwards 4 and 3; D. Stone and O. Monaghan halved with F. Robinson and H. Danes; R. Gundry and K. Gouldsbrough halved with R. Sindon and A. Evans; J. Hancock and J. Martin beat J. Green and B. Kirke 2 and 1; V. Shaw and M. Lewis beat C. Lewis and T. James 2 and 1; G. Aston and J. D. R. Williams halved with A. B. Evans and G. Davie; P. Woodhouse and R. Morgan halved with G. John and J. Evans; D Morgan and C. Griffiths beat N. Richards and D. Goodman 2 and 1; R. Murphy and A. Keating lost to K. Owen and D. Reay 4 and 3; J. Hasdell and D. Havard halved with H. Taylor and L. Barlow.
Club report
Some great news, as this article is being written Tenby has progressed to the semi-finals of the Victory Shield, and last week we had a mid-week medal and we will report on the status of the knock-out cup competitions which are now at the quarter and semi-final stages.
Victory Shield
Following their dramatic win against Carmarthen two weeks ago, the Tenby Golf Club Victory Shield team were in quarter-final action against St. Pierre on Monday. The match was played at the Pyle and Kenfig Golf Club. The team organiser and stalwart John Morris was unable to play due to work commitments, and his place was taken by 18-year-old Dan Cope, playing in his first Victory Shield match. Dan was joined by regular team member Paul Haley. The Tenby team came out of the blocks quickly at the start and thanks to some excellent golf were three up after four holes. The St. Pierre team proved that you don't get to semi-finals by luck and by the ninth hole had squared the match. The back nine holes exploded, with some scintillating golf being played by both teams, and the holes were rapidly changing hands. The Tenby pair went one up at the 10th, only to be knocked back by an eagle three at the par five 11th hole. This was followed by Tenby birdies at the 12th and 13th, only for St. Pierre to hole their second shot at the par four 14th, and pull one hole back. Good fortune was not following the Tenby pair as St. Pierre won the par three 15th thanks to a fortuitous bounce short of the green and over a greenside bunker. Paul and Dan were in no mood to concede, however, as Dan sank a 15-foot putt on the 16th for a half. St. Pierre went ahead on the 17th for the first time after the Tenby boys had driven into the rough. Again the Tenby pair showed great character, winning the 18th with a par four and taking the match up the 19th. For an 18-year-old, Dan showed great composure on the tee as the pressure mounted. His drive was on the fairway and virtually won the match as St. Pierre drove into a difficult position behind a bush. They had three attempts to reach the green, before Paul hit the Tenby ball onto the green, and St. Pierre conceded, much to the joy of the whole Tenby contingent. The quality of golf during the match was shown by the fact that Paul only had three putts during the whole match. Well done to both of them. So it's the semi-final next. This and the final will be played on the same day at Prestatyn Golf Club on the North Wales coast on Tuesday, July 26, and club members are encouraged to support the team. Tenby will be playing Builth Wells and the other semi-final is between Pyle and Kenfig and Pont Newydd. We understand that it was 1986 when Tenby last reached this stage of the competition. Well done to Dan, John and Paul.
Mid-week medal
A mid-week medal was played on Wednesday, June 29. Winner was Paul Haley with an excellent gross and net 66, second was Stan Hudson with a net 68, third was Steven Lewis with a net 69 and fourth was Ron Johns with a net 70 and a better back nine. There were 33 competitors and of those two had 2s and there was a hole-in-one. Steven Amos and Roger Schooling had the twos and Steven Lewis had the ace.
Knock-Out Cups
These cups are at the quarter or semi-final stage. The Colwyn Williams, and the Davies Cup are at the quarter-final , with the due dates for completion being July 21 and 24, respectively. The rest are at the semi-final stage. The semi-finalists will be reported when they are all available.
Next week
The R & A Cup was played on Wednesday, July 13, after this article went to press. Tomorrow (Saturday), the club is playing Cardigan at home, and on Sunday the Rabbits play Newport, Pembs., also at home. It is a busy time of the year.
Junior Section
The yellow box stableford competition last Sunday was won by Jack Guerrreiro with 32 points, from David Webb with 31. I do not know who won the black box competition because I cannot find the cards, so the result will have to go in next week. Emma Guerreiro and Jack Hawkey have both been competing in their age group section of the Wee Wonders competition - again results next week. This Sunday is the monthly medal, tee-off at 10.26 am. Please sign in early and take advantage of Mark's group lesson starting at 9.30. I.P.W.D.
Super Six
Friday saw Tenby's Super Six team away to Haverfordwest, with the home team coming out 4-2 winners on the night, but all of the games were close. Dan Cope won his match, with Micky Barrett and Steve Amos getting very creditable halves in their respective games. This means Steve Amos remains unbeaten to date! Will he be able to continue this form until the end of the season? Paul Hoyland also had a very close game against Richard Scott (Haverfordwest's number one player). Once again I must say a big thank you to the boys from Tenby for travelling to represent their club. Next week we are away to Priskilly Forest.