Carmarthen Seniors captain, Tony Hurd, congratulated Newman Vincent and Martin Neilan on winning their match against him and his partner, John Williams. In his welcoming address he indicated that he had played against Newman many times, but this was one of the rare occasions when he had to concede to a superior display on the day.
The Tenby Seniors' captain had found a purple patch and made the most of the shots he was allowed. He was ably supported by Martin who drove the green on the par four third hole, ending up with a birdie. He also provided the turning point on the 14th when he drove into the rough, found the bunker, chipped out and putted out for a par four.
Because he couldn't find the course at the first attempt, Peter Woodhouse was moved down the order of play and joined Stan Hudson to play against Allan Evans and C. Green. Allan thought that Stan was a bandit playing off a 10-handicap, such was his form on the away course. He had a cracking front nine, scoring only three over gross to provide a solid platform for their victory.
Peter contributed on the back nine with a birdie on the 11th and a par on the 16th to conclude the result. Through gritted teeth, Allan and his partner admitted it was a "Good show."
Following them around the course, and also in a victory, were David Evans and Tony Ranoe. They lost the first hole to a six and realised that they had to perform much better. David intimated that he did not have to say anything - Tony knew what he had to do!
And so they enjoyed a very close match against Harry Taylor and Howard Davies, with most holes being decided on the last putt. Tony's putter was in good form as between them he and David concluded the match on the 16th. "The young man played very well, his putting was exemplary", said David.
Everyone hopes that Tony can carry this form into the regional stage of the Hall of Fame on Tuesday at Southerndown Golf Club in the Vale of Glamorgan.
Bob Howse's love affair with the Srixon driver continues. This week he was trying out the improved version and claimed that it gave him an extra 10 yards in distance. He was disappointed that he could not use it on the par three holes. He still claims to searching for a decent putter, although his, and Ken Gouldsbrough's, opponents, Ken Edwards and Tom Jones claimed that he wasn't doing so badly in their contest. They were so far ahead in their match that they almost panicked when they lost a hole on the 14th. Ken and Tom were so surprised themselves that they couldn't continue the run.
Ken was seen wearing a seniors' club tie for the after-match meal, but it wasn't his. The ever- gracious David Evans had loaned him his while he sported an open-necked shirt.
Meanwhile, the refrain emitting from the other corner of the locker room was - "Where's me shirt? I can't find me shirt anywhere!" J. D. R. was bemoaning the fact that Mary had not packed his shirt for him and he had to sit down for the meal in his canary yellow golf polo shirt. Fair do's he did wear his tie, even though his fellow players had to sit downwind of him.
He and his playing partner, Geoff Aston, had played out a hard fought match against Graham John and Kevin Owen, a game in which Geoff scored an eagle and three birdies. It was not enough, however, to give them a win, though they did not lose either. Theirs was the only half of the day, as Graham and John showed that they knew how to play their own course.
Doug Havard must have wondered why he agreed to play as his partner, Des Stone, couldn't hit a ball straight for the first four or five holes and was no support to him as the pair went four down after five holes. Bill Kirke and Neville Richards were on top form in the early stages as they found the greens and sunk some long putts to demoralise the Tenby duo.
Des's par on the eighth and Doug's birdie two on the ninth brought a ray of hope and they were first off the tee for the next five holes. However, they only won one of them and suffered again on the 15th as Bill found the hole for his par. Doug and Des got quite excited when a ball was rolled in for a birdie on the 16th, only to be deflated again when Neville did exactly the same to claim the match.
Jack Hasdell and Tony Morgan also suffered at the hands of the Carmarthen pair. They were all-square after nine holes and hopeful of a result. Ray Sinden and Dave Goodman had other ideas and claimed that they eased away after the 11th hole was halved. Dave Goodman had indicated his intent on the ninth when his ball ended up six inches away from a hole in one. So near - yet so far.
The Morgan boys shared a buggy in an effort to conserve energy, but it did not help as they were subjected to Gerwyn Davies's mastery of the course. His supporting act came from Bill Ross as Roy claimed that they did remarkably well to lose by two and one. This was a close match which was won by an in-form low handicapper supported by a 22 handicapper who scored when it mattered. The excitement of riding in a buggy for the first time did not help Brian Morgan, still suffering from a summer cold, as he and Hywel Probert went two up early on and then lost three holes on the trot. Such was the excellence of this match that, "If you didn't par it, you didn't win it!" claimed Hywel.
Both pairs played well and they all came in smiling having enjoyed one of those close encounters. Another good contest was played out by the 'Scouse' pairing of Allan Keating and Owen Monaghan. Dai Morris and Mick Finney provided great opposition for the Liverpudlians and were able to edge them out in the final few holes of the course.
Once they had finished their game, Brian Waters and Jim Martin claimed that they had been playing for Carmarthen in their encounter against Derek Bath and Clifton John, who claimed a win for Tenby. That would have given an extra match to the away team and resulted in an honourable half.
The home team captain declared that he could not allow that result to stand as it affected the outcome of the whole match. Newman was disappointed! Results: N. Vincent and M. Neilan bt T. Hurd and J. Williams 3 and 2; J. Hasdell and T. Morgan lost to R. Sinden and D. Goodman 3 and 2; S. Hudson and P. Woodhouse bt A. Evans and C. Green 3 and 2; D. Evans and T. Ranoe bt H. Taylor and H. Davies 4 and 2; D. Stone and D. Havard lost to N. Richards and B. Kirke 3 and 2; B. Howse and K.
Gouldsbrough bt K. Edwards and T. Jones 4 and 2; G. Aston and J. Williams halved with G. John and K. Owen halved with R. Morgan and D. Morgan lost to G. Davies and B. Ross 2 and 1; B.
Morgan and H. Probert lost to M. Ashley-Jones and G. Jeremy by 2 and 1; A. Keating and O. Monaghan lost to D. Morris and M. Finney 5 and 3; D. Bath and C. John bt B. Waters and J. Martin 2 holes.