Palairet Trophy heartbreak
Report by Neil Sear
East Devon’s men were narrowly beaten in the final of the Palairet Memorial Trophy yesterday at Stover.
After defeating Saunton Artisans 3 - 2 in the morning, where we had to give a total of 43 shots over the 5 matches, we narrowly lost by the same score in the afternoon to the team from The Warren, who were full of low handicapped players.
On a cool, slightly misty morning the squad gathered for an early breakfast at 7.00 followed by words of inspiration from our glorious leader Jason Wride, and presentations of an embroidered golf towel to mark the day, before the semi-finals teed off at 8.00. By the time the final pair teed off at 9.30, the day was warming up along with the golf. Supporters had started to arrive and they were invaluable
with their encouragement and updates from other matches
I
n the early exchanges, Saunton Artisans made good use of their shots and led in most of the matches at some point, but the experience and resilience of the East Devon men shone through and the first four matches were tied at 2 – 2, leaving the result to be determined by the final match, where the experienced brothers - Paul & Neil Sear – had a two hole lead with four to play, but giving shots on three of those four holes. Some solid play saw them get halves on 15 & 16 before winning 17 for a 3 & 1 victory.
A quick lunch was taken before the final teed off at 2.15 with our team experiencing the rarity of receiving shots in the first four matches where The Warren had one player in each group off scratch or a plus handicap. The final match was the only one giving shots (2).
By now the morning result had been published, and a good number of East Devon members made the trip down to Stover to support the team, which was much appreciated by all the players.
Once again, the early exchanges saw us up in two matches and behind in the other two. Birdies were abundant in the early matches and the quality of the golf was apposite for a final. These first four matches ended 2 – 2, leaving the destination of the trophy hanging in the balance, and once again dependent on the final pair.
After fighting back from 3 down early, they let three holes slip in the middle of the back nine, before an excellent par on 15 looked likely to win the hole until the Warren player holed a 30 foot putt for a half. This took them to the 16 th where they had to give a shot, and despite being given a lifeline when the Warren player found a ditch off the tee, were unable to take advantage and made mistakes which allowed The Warren pair to close out the match.
Ultimately it was one step too far for a group of players who have built up a great team spirit over the past few years under the management of our dynamic captain, Jason Wride, who is never lost for words of encouragement, and have built on the legacy of Bob Martin who took the team to the runners-up spot in 2019.
This is now the third final’s day the club has reached in the past 6 years and surely we will take the next step to become champions soon.
The team were grateful for the excellent support and would like to thank all those who travelled down, and the backing of the men’s section in providing financial support to fund match meals etc.
Special thanks go to ‘Heysie’ who has taken the role of water carrier and lead supporter at every match and yesterday took on the added responsibility of being Team Adviser and, after checking with DVLA and the police, was allowed to use a buggy.
The team picture with Jason holding the trophy, is shown above with the pairings being Lewis White & Neil Rice, Oli Smith (not pictured) & Rory Adams, Andy Procter & Jason Wride, Paul Mullerworth & Bob Dawson and Paul & Neil Sear.
After defeating Saunton Artisans 3 - 2 in the morning, where we had to give a total of 43 shots over the 5 matches, we narrowly lost by the same score in the afternoon to the team from The Warren, who were full of low handicapped players.
On a cool, slightly misty morning the squad gathered for an early breakfast at 7.00 followed by words of inspiration from our glorious leader Jason Wride, and presentations of an embroidered golf towel to mark the day, before the semi-finals teed off at 8.00. By the time the final pair teed off at 9.30, the day was warming up along with the golf. Supporters had started to arrive and they were invaluable
with their encouragement and updates from other matches
I
n the early exchanges, Saunton Artisans made good use of their shots and led in most of the matches at some point, but the experience and resilience of the East Devon men shone through and the first four matches were tied at 2 – 2, leaving the result to be determined by the final match, where the experienced brothers - Paul & Neil Sear – had a two hole lead with four to play, but giving shots on three of those four holes. Some solid play saw them get halves on 15 & 16 before winning 17 for a 3 & 1 victory.
A quick lunch was taken before the final teed off at 2.15 with our team experiencing the rarity of receiving shots in the first four matches where The Warren had one player in each group off scratch or a plus handicap. The final match was the only one giving shots (2).
By now the morning result had been published, and a good number of East Devon members made the trip down to Stover to support the team, which was much appreciated by all the players.
Once again, the early exchanges saw us up in two matches and behind in the other two. Birdies were abundant in the early matches and the quality of the golf was apposite for a final. These first four matches ended 2 – 2, leaving the destination of the trophy hanging in the balance, and once again dependent on the final pair.
After fighting back from 3 down early, they let three holes slip in the middle of the back nine, before an excellent par on 15 looked likely to win the hole until the Warren player holed a 30 foot putt for a half. This took them to the 16 th where they had to give a shot, and despite being given a lifeline when the Warren player found a ditch off the tee, were unable to take advantage and made mistakes which allowed The Warren pair to close out the match.
Ultimately it was one step too far for a group of players who have built up a great team spirit over the past few years under the management of our dynamic captain, Jason Wride, who is never lost for words of encouragement, and have built on the legacy of Bob Martin who took the team to the runners-up spot in 2019.
This is now the third final’s day the club has reached in the past 6 years and surely we will take the next step to become champions soon.
The team were grateful for the excellent support and would like to thank all those who travelled down, and the backing of the men’s section in providing financial support to fund match meals etc.
Special thanks go to ‘Heysie’ who has taken the role of water carrier and lead supporter at every match and yesterday took on the added responsibility of being Team Adviser and, after checking with DVLA and the police, was allowed to use a buggy.
The team picture with Jason holding the trophy, is shown above with the pairings being Lewis White & Neil Rice, Oli Smith (not pictured) & Rory Adams, Andy Procter & Jason Wride, Paul Mullerworth & Bob Dawson and Paul & Neil Sear.