aIt was a 12 o'clock start at Haverfordwest last Thursday for Tenby Seniors and it was just as well that the sun shone all afternoon since the elder statesmen were on the golf course for at least five hours. The hard ground and warm weather meant that there were a few weary souls who dragged themselves into the locker room for a welcome shower. There were a few members who managed to cut out the last two holes, those whose match was over early and who didn't fancy the long walk down the 17th only to climb back up the 18th. Two such players were Brian Morgan and Richard Davies, playing partners for the second time in the same week. The two lefties have obviously learnt to complement each other's game as they established an early lead against Tony Derrick and Julian Davies. Tony reckoned that the Tenby pair should be referred to the handicap committee, such was their dominance on the day. With the match over after 12 holes, Richard relaxed and showed his fallibility as he went close to out of bounds area on the 13th and proceeded to clobber some trees with his second shot landing in the ditch. Up to that point he had received no stick from Brian! We haven't heard what Brian's comment was. Another match to finish early was the one between Brian Waters and Jack Hasdell against Roger Greenwood and Wally Barnes. This time the Tenby pair were on the receiving end, as Roger demonstrated why he is a 14-handicapper, scoring a three on the first and also winning the second. Although Brian and Jack played well, they found themselves somewhat short on most of their putts and lost or halved many holes as a result. They were pleased to report that they did at least win one hole. Well done! Joining them in an early shower were Dave Morgan and John Williams. Following match instructions, they started off well against Rob Box and Alan McDonald, taking a two-hole lead after four holes. However, fatigue set in after five/six holes, despite the fact they were in a buggy, and their game deteriorated from that point on. Well, let's be fair, Rob and Alan did play well on their own course and showed the Tenby duo where to hit the ball. They all came in with smiles on their faces having enjoyed an afternoon's golf in great company. Owen Monaghan, alongside Malcolm Arlott, were also able to avail themselves of an early shower as Scarlets fan, Ritchie, helped Sylvan Thomas to an early lead. Sylvan proclaimed Ritchie as the star as he putted for pars, net birdies, to demoralise the Tenby effort. Malcolm and Owen could not keep up with his excellence as he even claimed a shot off Owen and played 'out of his skin!' He was also anticipating a win for Llanelli against Leicester - well you can't win them all! Jim Martin, returning after convalescence, claimed that he ran out of stories, not steam, as he and Derek Bath had time to spare in their encounter against Mike Williams and Mal Phillips. They attributed their defeat to Mike's superb putting technique and Mal's excellent chipping. Whatever the reason, they returned to the clubhouse without attempting the last two holes. There were some close matches out on a well manicured course, three of which were lost by one and one won by one, with the last being halved. Ken Gouldsbrough and Des Stone must have succumbed to fatigue since they started well, winning the first two holes, and maintained a lead up until the 14th. Terry Gwilliam and David Grigg were surprised when both Ken and Des miss-hit their drives on the 13th and literally threw the hole. This proved to be the turning point. Fifteen and 16 were halved and 17 was lost to a great birdie from Terry. There was still a chance as Terry drove wide right on the 18th and David fired his second shot into the hedge. However, Ken's drive ended up in the ditch and Des's drive, although long, was directly behind the water container. Terry and Des ended up on the green and both putted out for five, to halve the hole. Martin Neilan had Tony Ranoe for company and, as these two took first and second place in Tuesday's Hall of Fame, were considered a safe bet. Alan Lloyd and Gerry Ticehurst, however, were not aware of their reputation and proceeded to lead the way in a very close match. Martin declared that they were one up at one stage early on, but were mostly down. They scrambled and hung in there, playing through in spite of a number of short putts. They lined up on the 16th tee two holes adrift and with great resolve halved one and then won one to give themselves a chance on the last. While they were on the green with a chance of the hole, Gerry had left himself a three-foot putt to halve the hole, giving Haverfordwest the final say. 'Incredible match!' was Goff Jellicoe's comment after a tremendous encounter against Stan Hudson and Bart Youll. This was a sentiment echoed by Geoff Flood as they regaled the locker room with words of praise indicating how much everyone had enjoyed the afternoon in another match played out to the end. The 15th hole epitomised this match. Bart was pleased with his par four, Stan and Goff were pleased with their birdie three's. Geoff, however, was elated with his eagle two, which set up the grand finale. Stan and Bart were two-up after six holes and all-square after nine. Geoff and Goff then took the lead, only to have it pegged back again. They were one up after 15 and halved the next two to set up a final rally. Stan and Bart thought they had done it, only to see a 12-foot putt from Goff drop in to halve the hole and clinch the match. Meanwhile, out on the course were the two Johns, Cook and Hall, who found themselves up against two big hitters in Rick Coulson and Ray Woodason. Although they were outdriven all afternoon, they made up for it with consistently straight balls and, in John Hall's case, excellent chipping. They even started the back nine three holes to the better. Two four-foot putts, which were missed, allowed Rick and Ray to catch up and start the last hole all- square. Neither pair could capitalise on the last, so they shook hands on an honourable half. The last pair in for their meal was that of Geoff Aston and Bob Howse and they had to earn their crust on the course as they battled against Glyn Miles and Les Hastings. They were down early on in this tight match and had to dig in to claw their way back. They then established a lead and were dormie three after 15. Bob three-putted the 16th and Geoff three-putted the 17th to lose those two holes which left them in danger of throwing away a good lead. They managed to close out the match with a half and provide Tenby with one of only two wins on this fine afternoon. As well as winning his match, Richard Davies also won the main prize in the raffle - a large bottle of Martini. Results: D. Stone and K. Gouldsbrough lost to T. Gwilliam and D. Grigg 1 down; B. Waters and J. Hasdell lost to R. Greenwood and W. Barnes 6 and 5; J. Hall and J. Cook halved with R. Coulson and R. Woodason; M. Neilan and T. Ranoe lost to A. Lloyd and G. Ticehurst 1 down; J. D. R. Williams and D. Morgan lost to R. Box and A. McDonald 5 and 4; S. Hudson and B. Youll lost to G. Flood and G. Jellicoe 1 down; O. Monaghan and M. Arlott lost to R. Williams and S. Thomas 7 and 6; R. Davies and B. Morgan beat T. Derrick and J. Davis 7 and 6; G. Aston and B. Howse beat G. Miles and L. Hastings 1 up; D. Bath and J. Martin lost to M. Williams and M. Phillips 5 and 4.
