Sparta golf society

Mond Cup News - First Round
Semi Finals  The Final  The Draw

Doug Little vs Jerry Doyle

Doug Little, the 2009 Champion, got the defence of his Mond Cup title off to a winning start at the Addington with a comfortable 5&4 win against Jerry Doyle.

An eventful and close match saw a half on the first but on the second, a par 5, Jerry's ball disappeared into the undergrowth and with 3 off the tee he lost the hole.

Jerry regained his composure and was able to record a half on the next a difficult par-3. But Doug went two up at the SI 1 hole, the 4th. Stung into action, Jerry reduced the deficit at the 5th only for Doug to take the next two.

Again Jerry fought back and took the 8th only to see Doug take the 9th. Doug was now three up at the turn. Playing steadily, Doug then went 5 up after 11 and played out three consecutive halves to win 5&4.

It is no doubt that Doug is hard to beat at his home course, but, playing away in the next round, he may find the going a little tougher.

Geoff Dawe vs Peter Millard

Geoff Dawe and Peter Millard took the opportunity of playing together at President's Day at Woking Golf Club, to play their first round Mond Cup match.

However, it seems that Peter was able to cope with the conditions better than Geoff and took the match with a comfortable 4&3 win. Peter will now meet the winner of the match between Graham Hoy and Pete Frost.

Graham Hoy vs Pete Frost

A prompt 7.45 start to this first round match at Ashford Golf Club was necessary to avoid a club competition.

The early morning dew had not cleared when Pete found himself five down after six holes. A combination of steady play by Graham, using his shot allocation wisely, and some erratic play by Pete meant that this match was always going to be a one sided affair.

Pete did manage to win holes 8 and 9 with pars giving himself some hope but another reverse at the 12^th left him in dire trouble. Although Pete won the 13^th, Graham closed out the match after halves at the 14^th and 15^th, winning the match 3 & 2. Finishing early did

have one bonus for Pete as Graham treated him to an excellent full English in the 19^th.

Graham now faces a tough away fixture with Peter Millard at Puttenham. Pete went home and kicked the cat.

Ray Owen vs Vince Rossiter

Vince Rossiter travelled north of the river to Braintree GC to take on Ray Owen in his first round match. Ray had spent the morning with his greenkeepers hat on to ensure the course was looking its best, despite the overcast and windy conditions.

With the first tee occupied, Ray and Vince started from the 11th a 416 yard (off the whites) par-4. With the honour Vince hit his shot to the right and with the wind from the left it disappeared into the trees. However, a similar fate befell Ray but with his local knowledge he was able to recover the better and went on to take the hole.

The next, a dog-leg par-5, was similar for Vince with his ball disappearing sharp right but out of bounds this time. 2-nil to Ray.

Finally Vince got it together on the 13th (the 3rd in the match) and both he a Ray got pars to record a half. Vince was now on a roll and took the next two holes to square the match.

It was short lived however as Ray played the next hole superbly to record another par and go 1 up again. This started a run of good, steady play from Ray including a birdie at the 1st (the 9th of the match) to take him 4up at the turn.

Despite a birdie of his own at the 3rd (11th) to reduce the deficit, Vince never recovered. Ray soon got back to 4 up to lie dorme. However, he seemed to relax thinking it was done when Vince put his tee shot out of bounds at the 6th (14th) and played some indifferent shots to allow Vince a half and a glimmer of hope.

But it was just a glimmer. Three putts from Vince on the par-3 7th (15th) allowed Ray to record a half and take the match by 4 holes with three to play.

Ray ensured that, despite the loss, it was a pleasant round of golf for Vince imparting his knowledge of the flora and fauna they encountered during the game. At least Vince went home more knowledgeable than when he arrived. Well done Ray.