Scorching HOT sunshine and a very fast playing surface welcomed players to Bury Croquet Club for this inaugural ‘C’ level Golf Tournament. The majority of the players present were playing in their first ever CA scheduled Tournament and it soon became evident that each one of them had arrived with every intention of winning and attaining automatic entry into the National final which is to be held in Nottingham during September.
David Cornes from Crake Valley, celebrated his recent appointment as a qualified Tournament Referee by overseeing play throughout the day. His presence proved invaluable to the players and Tournament Managers alike with his helpful and constant attention whenever required.
The fast lawns enabled long clearances and hoop shots. It soon became apparent that Izzy Poyntz from Bishop Monkton was using her prowess and strong hitting to successfully remove her opponents balls to the side lines whilst she herself scored a succession of good hoops. Meanwhile steady, but slower, progress was being made by Richard Leach, Gill Freely and Roger Harper from Bury, as they each tried to challenge the high number of wins being achieved by Izzy.
When all the rounds had finished, however it became abundantly clear that Izzy had won all her games, including beating her nearest challengers and she therefore stormed into the Semi-Finals. At this point, the extreme heat of the day must have had a different effect on the four semi- finalists because two players improved their concentration immensely and also improved their play, whilst the other two wilted in the sun.
The number of wins had brought Izzy against Gil and Richard against Roger for the semi’s. From these games , it was Gil and Richard who then progressed into the Final. The final itself proved to be an extremely hard fought match with lots of excitement for the spectators with several wonderful shots that brought cheers from the crowd. In the end it was won by Richard Leach 7-4.