Army golfers shoot down Lee’s county title bid

Hampshire Senior player Dave Edmunds was left as the last man standing after the teams were left tied at 3-3 in the final at Petersfield GC – only to lose at the second extra hole in sudden-death.

The veteran one-handicapper, out in the fourth match, was giving up four shots to Army GC’s Henry Lloyd.

The latter was playing in his third finals day since Lee-on-the-Solent hosted the Sevens shootout in 2014.

Having been on the winning side two years ago, Lloyd was not fazed when he found himself four down after five holes, and was all–square with five to play.

As they played the last in regulation watched by their team-mates, who had all finished their games, the nerves grew – leading to the hole being halved in bogey fives.

Edmunds then produced a miraculous recovery shot from the bunker having been just short of the green on the par five first.

A half in par was the best the Lee man could hope for despite Lloyd going through the green with his third.

But Edmunds’ drive into trouble on the second – another par five – left him playing his fourth which came up on the false front of the green.

While Lloyd would struggle to get down in three, bogey was still enough to give Army the trophy for a second time in three years and to equal Rowlands’ record of six wins after

their triumph at Barton-on-Sea last October.

Lee were hoping to make it win number two under the captaincy of Kev Smith, who was in charge of the club’s Sevens side for the third year in a row.

Three-handicapper Kev Burnop was edged out on the last by wily Chris Taylor in the top match but Lee were already in front courtesy of Hampshire U16 player Will Green beating

Talor Reay 3&2.

Smith was beaten 2&1 by fellow five-handicapper Tom Ballard before his opposite number James West used every one of his four strokes to beat Lee’s Rory Ainsworth, playing

off one, 3&2.

Losing 3-1, Smith was relieved to see Lewis Scott winning 4&3 to put Lee within a point.

And three-handicapper Nick Mitchell levelled by beating Paul Kelly 2&1, despite giving up a shot.