Final Day Report

FINAL DAY

What a final day – after a very successful morning with all foursomes pairings winning, it was still important for Team Glos to remain focussed and bring in the necessary 2 points to ensure the win was ours and that’s exactly what they did and a bit more!

Result: Gloucestershire won 7:2 

Full report to follow (may not be until Sat as need to allocate some time to celebrate and travel back!!!)

Day 5  Gloucestershire versus Wiltshire

The day started buoyantly for Team Glos knowing that they needed to focus on a win and with the foursomes pairings announced, it was time for them to go out and ‘do the business’.

 Ffion and Caley had a bit of an early morning wobble, going 2 down after 2, but we all knew they would fight back and by the 6th hole they were back to A/S and by the 14th tee they had increased their lead by 4 and they closed out their match on the 15th winning 4&3. 

Rachael and Sam, the ‘more mature’ pairing of Team Glos plotted their way around the course and were soon 2 up through 4 holes.  However, their opponents weren’t going to give up and Rachael and Sam soon found themselves A/S through 8.  Time to dig deep and that’s what R & S did, they pulled back to 2 up, lost a hole arriving at the 17th 1 up and then won the 18th, to win their match 2 up.

Ebonie and Charlie, a pairing that always seems to bring home a point went out in anchor position – they soon found themselves 2 up through 3 holes and were never down in their match – quietly moving through the golf course, they eventually won on the 15th, 5&3.

Lunch tasted good knowing that Team Glos had 3 points in the bag and the win was in touching distance with only 2 points needed from the afternoon singles.  Ffion had to leave at lunchtime as she needed to travel with the Welsh Squad to the European Team Champs so the afternoon’s team were Gilo, Caley, Grace, Claude, Sam and Granny Saunders.

Gilo led the team out, playing against a very in form Sarah Gee.  Alex played solidly but found herself 1dn through 7.  This match was always going to be a tough one and by the 15th, Gilo was 2 down eventually losing on the 17th 3&1.

Caley was never down in her match and by the 10th she found herself 4 up. Caley with her quiet demeanour plotted her way around the course and soon closed her match out on the 13th winning 6&5 and another point was secured. 

Grace had a bit of a roller coaster match – she fought hard to get to 2 up and then her opponent would come back and peg her back but Grace was 2 up going through the 9th but then found herself A/S after the 11th– anyone knowing Grace would realise that she had the bit between her teeth and she was not going to give this match up – she went 1 dn after the 12th and found herself 2dn through 15.  What happened next was awesome – with 3 holes to play Grace knew she had to muster every ounce of determination to turn this match around – and that’s exactly what she did. She won the next three holes, winning her match 1up – what a phenomenal turnaround!

Both Claudia and Sam had challenges on their hands and they both had to battle right to the very end. By the time they had closed their matches out on the 18th, both securing welcome halves, Team Glos had already secured the necessary points as Alex S had also beaten her opponent on the 13th to win her match 6&5 and bring home the winning point for the overall match.  

Friday was an incredible day with tired golfers who were never, ever going to give up – they wanted that final win and prove that they were worthy of their title as South West County Champions.  They did it and with style and great resilience – it was great to witness the team spirit throughout the week – they are great ambassadors for our amazing County and now they look forward to the County Finals to be played at Royal North Devon w/c 17th September.

Team Glos supporters are fantastic and very welcome – the girls recognise how much support they get and they are hoping to see some of you at Westward Ho! in September.  It will be a great tournament and the quality of the golf will be exceptional, so if you have some time available during that week, then hop on down the M5 to Westward Ho!

Day 4 – Gloucestershire versus Devon

Wow that was a battle and a half and yes it was very hot and for supporters pretty stressful but oh so satisfying at the end of the match!

We always knew that Devon were going to be a tough team to beat and it was necessary for us to put out the strongest team and so in the foursomes the pairings were:  Caley and Ffion, Ebz and Granny Saunders, Claude and Gilo.  

Caley and Ffion started off steadily and were 2 up through 11 but soon found themselves A/S through 13 with the strong Devon pairing making a comeback.  They then went 1 up on the 14th and maintained this until the 17th when Devon won the hole, Glos found themselves going down the 18th A/S.  With great drives and approach shots from both teams, it was all down to the putting and neither was prepared to lose both successfully putting out which meant a halved match.

In the back pairing Claude and Gilo were motoring and were 4 up through 13 but were soon pegged back to 2 up by the time they got to 16, but they won the 16th, to win their match 3&2.

The middle pairing of Ebonie and Granny Saunders were having a real tussle with the Devon pairing.  By the 9th, they were 2 down and needed to dig deep to get it back which they did by the 16th.  They lost the 17th and were dormie 1 down going down the 18th which meant that they needed to win the hole to get the half.  Ebonie took a stunning drive splitting the fairway and Alex hit a lovely 8 iron into the green to within 12 feet of the hole to rapturous applause.  Ebonie lagged the putt up to the hole and Devon conceded the hole, which meant another half in the bag!  

The result going into lunch was a fantastic 2:1 but the harder battle was about to start following the lunch break!

Thinking about the form that Devon have shown in their previous matches, it was evident that Glos needed to field the strongest team that they could, to ensure us of the win. The six morning players were selected to play in the afternoon and after careful planning, the order was agreed, and it was all set for a nail biting finish.

Ebonie led the field out once again and was soon confidently scoring well and finished her match on the 14th winning 6&4.

Gilo had a tough match against one of her ex college students and unfortunately lost on the 13th.

The next Glos player, Ffion was bouncing along the fairways and was always up although her Devon opponent did come back, but as ever resilient, this made Ffion even more determined to get her point and won on the 17th with a 3&1 score.

Further down the field, Caley just plotted her way around the course in her ‘cool as a cucumber’ way, securing a well-deserved 6&4 win on the 14th.

Claudia was also up most of her match, but the Devon girl kept pegging her back and after the 14th Claude found herself 3 up but Lauren her opponent hit a fantastic shot into the 15th and Claude found herself in the greenside bunker. Although she hit a phenomenal shot out of the bunker to within 2 feet, Lauren sunk her putt, so they proceeded to the 16th with Claude 2 up.  Claude eventually won on the 18th, 2up.

Granny Saunders struggled against a very in-form Lexi Dart and was 4 down through 14.  Lexi was sinking putts from all over the place and when Alex reviewed her match she worked out that Lexi was 5 under gross by the time she closed out the match on the 15th– a tough day but the overall win had already been secured.

Devon were a tough team to beat and all the girls needed to be on the ball – they were resilient and never gave up, which demonstrates their commitment to winning – everyone who finished early, walked in with the team and supported them.  The burgundy brigade were evident out on the course in good numbers today – they may not have had their burgundy jumpers on in 26oC heat but the girls recognise lots of them and are truly grateful for all their support.

With 4 of the single matches won, the final match score was 6:3 to Gloucestershire – another grand day out in sunny Rock!  Tomorrow we meet our buddies Wiltshire – we need to remain focussed as we need as many points as we can get to ensure an overall win – we cannot relax until after the last putt is sunk – we’ll do our best to bring the trophy back to Gloucestershire so keep your eyes peeled on Facebook, Twitter and the website.  We’ll try to ensure updates are regularly sent throughout the day to ensure you share the last day’s golf with us if you can't be here in sunny Cornwall with us.  Fingers crossed we’ll have some good news tomorrow!

Who needs shoes when you've played 2 rounds of golf?

Team Glos huddle after a long gruelling day!

Day 3 – Gloucestershire versus Somerset

Hump day arrived, and it was cloudy and cool which after a couple of very humid days was a welcome change! Somerset were our opponents and the morning foursomes pairings were Alex Squared (Alex Giles and Alex Saunders), the two lefties Grace Connelly and Charlie Hiatt and the final pairing was Ffion Tynan and Caley McGinty and so the battle began.

Alex Squared soon found themselves 3 down through 4 but they weren’t going to give up and by the time they came through the 6th they had pulled one hole back and then another on the 7th and another on the 8th, so they went down the 9th A/S.  However, it was always going to be a tough match and they dropped a couple of shots for a few holes but their comeback was awesome with them securing a half on the 18th following a fantastic up and down by the pair of them.

The middle pairing of Charlie and Grace found themselves 1 down after 9 after being A/S for the early holes.  Their opponents put pressure on them over the back 9 but they were soon 2 up through 15 and it looked as though we could secure a point from this match. Unfortunately Somerset came back strong and we found ourselves A/S going down the 18th– a win was not to be and we lost on the 18th.

Ffion and Caley were always up in their match and could be heard all over the course with their chattering and laughter.  Ebonie was on Caley’s bag and was a top caddy giving them great advice and their win on the 14th would in Ebonie’s words was “down to the great caddying”.  

So, we went into lunch halving the morning foursomes which meant we needed to ensure a strong team for the afternoon singles.

First out was Gilo against Jade Cope.  Gilo found herself 3 down going through the 6th but she was determined to come back and that’s exactly what she did winning the next 7 holes to win 5&4 – what a phenomenal come back! 1 point in the bag!

Ebonie also had a tough game against one of Somerset’s rising stars, Davina Xanh but she played solidly but still had to fight hard for her 3&1 win on the 17th.

Sam who went out in third position, played some fantastic golf – “the best he has ever seen her play” as far as her dad was concerned.  Sam was always up in her game and closed it out on the 15th with a well deserved 4&3 win.

Granny Saunders was playing another of Somerset’s rising stars, in 13 year old Harriet Lockley. Harriet tested Alex on every hole and it came down to the 18th again when Alex with her calm demeanour making the green in 3 when Harriet was there for 4.  As seems to be the norm with Alex, who doesn’t make it easy for herself (!) it was down to her putting skills and she successfully putted out, bringing home another point.  

With 4 points from the afternoon singles, Gloucestershire had the necessary points that we needed for an overall win.

Still out on the course were Caley and Claude who were having real up and down rounds.  Caley went through the 16th 2 down but won the 17th, meaning that they had to go down the 18th. Unfortunately Caley lost the 18th for Somerset to win the match 2 up.

The last match on the course was Claudia who had been down for most of her match.  Playing against an in-form Aimee Sawyer, she soon found herself 4 down going through 9 but as resilient as Claude can be, she fought back and won the 14th and 15th and just lipped out for a half on the 16th.  So she found herself dormie 2 going up to the 17th tee.  She hit a great shot into the green on the Par 4 17th but Aimee, although short only needed a half to win the match and that’s what she got, so Claudia lost 2&1 but it was an incredible fightback in a great match.

With the singles matches going in Gloucestershire’s favour, we knew we had won but we also had heard that Cornwall had been beaten by Devon, who were top of the leaderboard with 3 points.  Without any doubt this course has challenged every single one of the players from all the counties and tomorrow in our match against Devon we will have to dig deep – we know we can do it, we need to believe in ourselves and every one of the team will go out and do their best for Gloucestershire –– C’mon Gloucestershire we can do this!

Gilo and Andy reading the putt on the 9th (one of the greener parts of the course!)

Rachael and Claudia walking down one of the sun-baked fairways.

At the end of another tough and challenging day - but still smiling!

Day 2 - Gloucestershire versus Cornwall

A big day for us which in quite a few previous years seems to have always fallen at the end of Match Week – but not put off by it falling on the Tuesday, we knew we had to field the strongest team to ensure we stood a chance against the hosts Cornwall.  The weather was warm even at 0830 in the morning and the temperatures rose as the games progressed.

Ebonie and Becky were up against Cornwall’s No 1 pairing of International player Georgia Price and Megan Giles.  With Ebonie holing out from the bunker on hole 2, it looked like their match was going the right way.  However, it was always going to be a real battle against girls who had practiced on the course many times prior to County Week, and unfortunately Ebonie and Becky lost 5&4.

In the middle was Saunders and Pocket Rocket Ffion who were paired against seasoned player Wendy Briggs and Liv Trewhela – this was a really friendly match with lots of really friendly banter, support for one another and played in the spirit of the game of golf – the golf was excellent, and acknowledgement of shots was evident on most holes.  The outcome of this match was in Gloucestershire’s favour with Saunders and Ffion winning 4&3.

The third pairing of Gilo and Claudia were also facing a strong pairing of Emily Toy and Danni Price. Gloucestershire were 1 down going through 9 but the girls were still confident that they could turn this small deficit around.  They fought hard but unfortunately the Cornish pairing beat them on the 15th 4&3.

Whilst 2:1 to Cornwall wasn’t necessarily the result we wanted going into lunch, we’d been here before and knew we could turn the match around.  

The lunchtime selectors certainly needed to carefully plan their singles players and the order, so we were all waiting to see who Glos would be playing against and it didn’t disappoint us.  Cornwall had front loaded their pairings. 

In the first match Ebonie was paired against fellow England player, Georgia Price – this match was a right tussle with both players battling it out, going all the way to the 18th before halving their match.

Ffion faced Emily Toy and was A/S going through the 9th.  A slightly wayward shot off the 10th saw Ffion lose this hole which seemed to dent her confidence for a bit and saw her lose the next couple of holes.  Ffion is a fighter though and she came back from being 4 down through 14 by winning the next hole and her game went onto the 16th.  Unfortunately, she lost 3&2 but in her usual manner was still smiling and chatting – tomorrow’s another day Fi!

Becky was matched against Megan Giles and soon found herself overwhelmed by Megan’s game which has improved unmeasurably since last year’s County Week.  Megan continued her successful putting from the morning, putting like a demon and Becky soon found herself 6 down going through the 9th. Her game finished on the 11th.  It must be said that whoever would have played an on-form Megan was likely to have had a very tough match.

Claudia followed Becky and she was paired with Danni Price – Claudia was never down in her match, playing solidly.  On the back 9 Danni made a bit of a comeback but Claudia was quite a way ahead and eventually finished her match on the 16th winning 3&2,.

Caley’s match against Liv Trewhela was a bit of an up and downer, with Caley going through the turn 1 up. By the 13th she was 1 down and she was determined to claw back a win and that’s exactly what she did, by slowly plotting her way around the last few holes and by winning the 17th to go down the 18th 1up.  Whilst waiting on the 16th for Saunders to come through we heard a great roar and we anxiously waited to see her score on the Whatsapp messaging group that we’ve got set up to confirm that Caley had won her match 1 up -phew that was a relief!

We now knew that we needed our final player to come in with a win to ensure we halved the match overall. So it was down to Saunders to bring home the bacon.  Alex was matched against Cornwall’s Junior Captain, Laura Andrew. Alex wasn’t ever down in her match but on the final couple of holes Laura came back and Alex found herself only 1 up going down the 18th.  After great drives and approach shots it was down to the putting and with her calm demeanour Alex did it and Gloucestershire had achieved the win in the last match to give us a halved match against the hosts Cornwall.

What a fantastic day of golf – it was nail biting, it was stressful, but it was glorious, and we still have all to play for over the next couple of days.  Well done Team Glos!! 

Waiting for Saunders on the 18th

Winning hug from Laura

Congratulations Saunders from Sue Rowarth, Cornwall's Captain and Glos team mates

Day 1 - Gloucestershire versus Dorset

There’s definitely going to be a common thread in all the daily reports – PHEW IT’S HOT and the GOLF IS EXCITING!

Monday was the day that we faced Dorset and the foursomes pairings of Ebonie and Caley, Gilo and Claudia, and Saunders and Ffion were ready to bring home some points.

The first two pairings both won 3&2 and it was down to Saunders and Ffion to try and make it a clean sweep but unfortunately their opponents in seasoned amateur Mel McMahon and Harriet Teversham stopped them on the 17th.

With a big match day on Tuesday against Cornwall, the afternoon singles saw some fresh legs, so that four of our team could be rested ready for tomorrow.

Gilo lost on the 18th unfortunately but Charlie brought home our first point by winning 3&2 followed closely by Becky Dean who won her match on the 18th1up.  This left us needing 1 point which Sam Round duly provided winning her match 3&2. At the back of the field both Grace Connelly and Caley McGinty battled hard but to no avail with Caley losing to Mel McMahon 4&3 and Grace losing to Harriet Teversham 3&1.

The first day is over and the girls were really upbeat – without a doubt the weather and the course conditions played a very big part in the results today and with the forecast hot and sunny for the rest of the week will only make it more challenging as the course gets harder and harder.

With everyone of the Glos girls playing on Day 1 it has to be said that some of the golf from all the girls was exceptional and should be applauded. 

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