Grim's Dyke Golf Club
Bullivant Bowl V Finchley
On Saturday the Tigers welcomed Finchley to a beautifully hot and sunny Grims Dyke, looking to overturn a 2-1 deficit in the the 2nd leg of our Last 16 Bullivant Bowl clash.
This was probably the match of the round, with the last two winners of the Bullivant Bowl going head-to-head to see who would advance to the Quarter Final.
The Tigers were looking for a strong, fast start, and this was duly delivered by the pairing of James Beekman and Dan Cowley storming into a big, early lead in the 2nd match out on the course.
James and Dan were relentless, giving their opponents no chance to get back into the match with some prodigious hitting, eventually running out 7&6 winners.
This brought the Tigers level in the overall match, 2-2.
The remaining two matches were much closer affairs.
In the top match, Tom Davis and Paul Little exchanged early birdies with their Finchley opponents, and went into the back 9, 1up.
In a high-quality match, Finchley fought back, and were 2up after 13. The match swung yet again over the next 4 holes, with Tom and Paul taking a 1 hole lead up the 18th, halving the last to win 1up.
With the overall match score now 3-2 in Grim's Dyke's favour, everything depended on the 3rd match and the McCormack brothers, Jack and Paul.
Paul had already enjoyed an eventful morning, starting the day in Spain before making his way back from holiday, only arriving at the 1st tee as Jack was teeing off! (Tigers Captain Lorenzo was ready to step up if Paul hadn't made it!)
Fortunately he was able to take his time tying up his shoe laces as it was Jack who made a 'flying' start, with 2 birdies in their opening four holes, then easing into an early 3up lead.
In another high quality match, Finchley - as befitting previous winners and a team of their quality - fought back, reducing the deficit to just 1 hole down and seeking the win that would take the overall match into a play-off.
With only half a point required to send Grim's Dyke through to the next round, Jack and Paul kept their composure, showing their class to keep their opponents at bay and securing a 2up win.
Final match score Grim's Dyke 4 - 2 Finchley.
With the sun setting on a glorious day, both teams retired to the veranda for some cold refreshments and to reflect on two excellent, hard-fought, high-quality golf over the two legs.
In keeping with the spirit of golf, there's a lot of respect between the two teams. We wish Finchley all the best for the rest of their season, and look forward to many good battles in the future.
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