Kenmore Prevail In The War At Wokefield

BB16 saw the introduction of The Rider Cup for the first time, replacing the usual Friday Texas Scramble team event. Team Captains John Bruce and Steven Roberts welcomed the two teams of 10 to the Wokefield venue and announced their opening pairings for the Friday Foursomes with both men selecting themselves to lead their respective teams off:

Match 1: John Bruce/Dave Cook vs. Steven Roberts/Paul Matuszczyk

Match 2: Ali Brookes/James Cornelius vs. Eddie Roberts/Baz Ramsay

Match 3: Marc Barret/Steven Rodgers vs. John McLuckie/Andrew Blackhurst

Match 4: Iain Murray/Gary Cornelius vs. Darren Petersen/Craig Roberts

Match 5: Adam Duncan/Miles Shaw vs. Anton Mowatt/Stephen MacKinnon

Team Kenmore (from l-r): Ali Brookes, Iain Murray, Adam Duncan, John Bruce, Dave Cook, Miles Shaw, Gary Cornelius, Steven Rodgers, James Cornelius, Marc Barret.

Team Taymouth (from l-r): Anton Mowatt, Eddie Roberts, Darren Petersen, Stephen MacKinnon, Craig Roberts, Steven Roberts, Andrew Blackhurst, Paul Matuszczyk, Baz Ramsay, John McLuckie.

The opening match would prove to be the closest fought. Bruce/Cook got blue on the board early by winning the 1st hole but were quickly pegged back at the 2nd by an excellent par from Roberts/Matuszczyk and then found themselves 1 down after the par 3, 3rd hole. The game continued to swing back and forth but the defining moment of the match came on the 7th with both sides having short putts for a 5. Roberts and Bruce appeared happy to halve the hole but Matuszczyk wanted to see the putts out. Almost inevitably, Bruce rolled in Kenmore's effort, leaving Matuszczyk to miss for Taymouth and put Kenmore 2up. The Taymouth pair fought hard on the back 9 but were conceding strokes to the Kenmore side and found themselves 3down with 3 to play. Hope remained after winning the 16th when an errant Cook tee shot left Kenmore with too much to do. However, at the par 3, 17th hole, Matuszczyk failed to find the green and Bruce did; allowing Kenmore to secure a 2&1 victory.

The second match up saw Brookes/Cornelius also win the 1st hole for Kenmore but Roberts/Ramsay came roaring back to take the next 4 holes in a row and go 3up through 5. After exchanging a couple of holes, the Taymouth team were still 3up on the 8th tee but would be level by the time they reached the 11th, losing 3 holes in a row. That run included a superb birdie 3 from Brookes/Cornelius at the difficult 9th hole where Cornelius took on the water by cutting the corner. The match was still all square as they reached the par 5, 14th hole, with the Taymouth team having a stroke. However, the Kenmore pairing produced a birdie 4 to win the hole and followed that up with two solid pars at the 15th and 16th, which proved too good for Roberts/Ramsay as the match finished 3&2.

Match 3 didn't turn out to be the close matchup that was anticipated on paper as the Taymouth pair of McLuckie/Blackhurst won the 1st hole and never relinquished the lead over Barret/Rodgers from Kenmore. In fact, the Kenmore team got off to a woeful start in the first 3 holes, scoring triple bogey, quadruple bogey, triple bogey to find themselves 3down. McLuckie/Blackhurst never took the foot off the gas as they continued to win holes regularly and after securing a par at the 8th to go 4up; Kenmore's Barret decided to try and drive the water on the 9th to get the pair back into the match. However, his drive found the drink and handed another hole to Taymouth as they went 5up at the turn. From then on, it was only a matter of time and a par at the 12th took Taymouth to 6up with 6 to play, leaving Kenmore needing a miracle to take anything. Taymouth's first point was secured on the 13th, as McLuckie/Blackhurst sealed it with another par, winning 7&5.

In match 4, Murray/Cornelius took the 1st hole against Roberts/Petersen but the Taymouth pair came back with a par at the 2nd to level. Another couple of holes were exchanged as they reached the par 5, 6th hole all square. However, Roberts/Petersen ran up a 9 and handed the hole to Kenmore and this seemed to affect their game as they lost 5 holes in a row to find themselves 5down after 10. Despite having a stroke to use at the 11th, Murray/Cornelius then handed a hole back to Taymouth and lost the next two holes to go back to just 2up with 5 to play. That sequence included an excellent birdie 2 from Roberts/Petersen at the short par 3, 12th hole. Kenmore regained the upper hand by winning the 14th and then sealed the match on the 15th to run out 4&3 winners.

The final match up in the foursomes saw the Kenmore team of Duncan/Shaw giving up a massive 15 strokes to the Taymouth pairing of Mowatt/MacKinnon. In keeping with most of the other matches, Kenmore started quickly and took the 1st hole; this time following up by winning the 2nd too as Taymouth got off to a slow start. A par 3 at the 3rd hole gave Taymouth a foot-hold in the match as they halved the deficit but they then lost 5 holes in a row to find themselves 6down after 8. Taymouth briefly rallied by taking both the 9th and 10th holes to bring it back to 4down with 8 to play, but Duncan/Shaw came back strongly by taking the 11th and 12th to go 6up with only 6 holes left. The 12th hole was won with a birdie 2 as Duncan found the green and Shaw finished it off with the putt. A half on the 13th was enough to finish the match, as the Kenmore pair finished 6&5 winners; completing what was a bruising opening session for Captain Roberts and the Taymouth team:

Following the round, the Captain's had some time to finalise their pairings for the upcoming Saturday fourballs and Captain Roberts held an emergency summit with vice-captain McLuckie to come up with a strategy for how Taymouth could get back into the match. For Kenmore's Captain, the decision was whether to stick with the winning pairings from Friday or rotate the team for the different format. The pairings were announced on the Friday night, as follows:

Match 1: Ali Brookes/Miles Shaw vs. John McLuckie/Eddie Roberts

Match 2: Marc Barret/James Cornelius vs. Craig Roberts/Darren Petersen

Match 3: John Bruce/Gary Cornelius vs. Steven Roberts/Baz Ramsay

Match 4: Iain Murray/Steven Rodgers vs. Paul Matuszczyk/Stephen MacKinnon

Match 5: Adam Duncan/Dave Cook vs. Anton Mowatt/Andrew Blackhurst

Captain Roberts had gambled on going big early with the strong pairing of McLuckie/Roberts, whilst also keeping faith with the Roberts/Petersen partnership after both men had 'guaranteed' a point for their side if paired together again in the fourballs. For Kenmore, Captain Bruce decided to switch up the side and give both Marc Barret and Steven Rodgers solid partners to help them get on the scoreboard.

As with the foursomes, the opening tie proved to be the closest with the match going up the 18th. Unlike the previous day, Taymouth got off to a fast start by taking the opening hole through Eddie Roberts' net par. The lead lasted until the 4th hole when Kenmore levelled and then went on to lead after winning the 5th. Taymouth responded on the short par 4, 7th hole to bring the match level again, before making use of Roberts' additional stroke at the 9th to reach the turn 1up. Kenmore responded immediately on the back 9 by winning the 10th and 11th holes to regain the lead, the 11th hole seeing them make use of Brookes having a stroke on McLuckie. However, the pendulum swung again immediately as McLuckie produced a birdie 2 on the 12th and the match would remain all square until the 15th. Taymouth edged ahead by taking that hole and followed it up with another win at the 16th to go 2up with 2 to play as the match seemed to have slipped away from Kenmore. On the par 3, 17th Brookes produced a par to give Kenmore hope of half a point going up the par 5, 18th. However, Roberts had a stroke to use at the final hole and was able to record a par, net birdie to secure a much needed 2up win for Taymouth as the Captain's decision to send out the strong pairing was justified. It was a big win for Eddie Roberts as he contributed his first Rider Cup point and John McLuckie made it 2 from 2 for him.

Match 2 saw the pressure on Roberts/Petersen to deliver the point they had promised Captain Roberts and they got off to a fast start, winning the opening hole of the match. However, the pair wouldn't win another hole on the front 9 as Barret/Cornelius levelled on the 4th hole before winning the 5th, 6th and 7th holes to go 3up. After halving the 8th, Kenmore won the 9th to extend the lead to 4 at the turn, making it a long way back for the Taymouth pair. They managed to stem the blue tide by winning the 10th hole and halving the 11th and 12th to stay within striking distance, however, Cornelius had a stroke on the rest at the par 4, 13th which he took full advantage of to put Kenmore back at 4up with just 5 to play. The match was over at the very next hole as Taymouth could only manage a 9 at the par 5, 14th and Kenmore sealed the 5&4 victory in style with a par, net birdie. For Marc Barret, it was his first point in the Rider Cup after the heavy defeat of the day before whilst James Cornelius picked up his second point contribution of the weekend. On the Taymouth side, it was a sore defeat for the self-proclaimed 'dream team' of Craig Roberts and Darren Petersen; with both men left looking for their first points.

The third match once again saw the two Captains facing off against each other as they had in the Friday games. As had been the case the previous day, Kenmore took the first hole as Captain Bruce holed an outrageous putt from just off the green for a par, net birdie. However, that was to be a false dawn with it being the only time Kenmore would lead in this match-up. By the 4th hole, Taymouth were 1up after an excellent par from Roberts and a further birdie at the par 5, 6th put Taymouth 2up. Bruce/Cornelius both found trouble at the 7th, allowing Taymouth to further increase that advantage before Cornelius took advantage of a stroke on the par 3, 8th to pull one back. Up until then, Captain Roberts had been in inspired form but this dipped slightly over the next few holes as Bruce/Cornelius were able to win both the 9th and 10th holes to bring the match all square. However, Baz Ramsay started to produce some fine play on the back 9; immediately winning the 11th with a bogey, net birdie after Captain Bruce had rolled in a par for Kenmore. Both Bruce/Cornelius made a mess of the par 3, 12th hole to lose another, although they immediately struck back at the 13th. The par 5, 14th should have been an opportunity for Bruce/Cornelius with Bruce having a stroke to use and Cornelius having 2 strokes in play, however, both got in to trouble off the tee and the best they could managed was a 7; Ramsay taking the hole for Taymouth with another net birdie to put the pair 2up. The match was over on the 16th as Roberts made a birdie 3 to secure a 3&2 victory in what was sweet revenge for the previous day's defeat in the opening match. The point was also ample reward for Baz Ramsay, who had shown great form in the second part of the round.

The 4th match out saw the only other member of the Kenmore team without a point, Steven Rodgers, teeing up with the dependable Iain Murray; against the wildcard pairing of Paul Matuszczyk and Stephen MacKinnon for Taymouth. The latter pair got off to a dream start as both Matuszczyk and MacKinnon secured net birdies to go 1up immediately and send shockwaves through the field. However, Murray/Rodgers hit back winning the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th to go 3up. The tricky par 5, 6th hole saw Matuszczyk pull one back for Taymouth and the 7th was halved as the match headed to the par 3, 8th hole with Kenmore just 2up. At this point, Rodgers took control of the game scoring net birdie, par, par, birdie on the next 4 holes to put himself and Murray 6up after 11. Taymouth responded with a net birdie from Matuszczyk at the 12th but the match was over at the next hole as the inspired Rodgers recorded another net birdie to seal a 6&5 victory for Kenmore. The result meant that everyone in Captain Bruce's side had now contributed at least a point over the weekend. For Matuszczyk/MacKinnon, it left both with 0 points from the foursomes and fourballs with just the singles remaining.

The final match of the Saturday brought together Kenmore's staunchest members in Adam Duncan and Dave Cook; against one of Taymouth's point scorers from day 1, Andrew Blackhurst, and Anton Mowatt. Duncan/Cook were strongly fancied to bring a point back for Kenmore but Taymouth again threatened to upset the odds by winning the first hole with a net birdie from Mowatt. The lead was short lived though, as Duncan produced a birdie at the 2nd hole and then he and Cook combined to win the next 4 holes to go 4up after 6. Kenmore would then take the 8th hole after a par from Duncan and a further birdie at the 10th from the same player made it 6up with 8 to play. At the par 4, 11th hole; Duncan drove into trouble but Cook produced a net eagle to beat Blackhurst's net birdie and put the match dormie with 7 holes remaining. Both Mowatt and Blackhurst did all they could with net birdies at the 12th but Cook matched the score to secure the point for Kenmore with a 7&6 victory. It meant both Duncan and Cook had 2 wins from 2 for Kenmore, whilst Mowatt was left looking for his first point and Blackhurst tasted defeat for the first time after being part of the big foursomes win the day before. All in all, it was another tough session for Taymouth, going down 3-2:

With his team trailing 7-3 heading in to the Sunday Singles, Captain Roberts needed a miracle to turn things around. Saturday night's chat centred around whether Taymouth could pull off the 'Wonder of Wokefield' on the Sunday, but it looked a big ask. Again, the Captain's had time to finalise their order for the singles ties with Captain Roberts throwing the dice for the final time by naming his in-form players through the middle of the pack. Captain Bruce, keen to secure the 3.5 points required to win the Rider Cup for Kenmore, put his big hitters out early with some insurance towards the end:

Match 1: Adam Duncan vs. Stephen MacKinnon

Match 2: Iain Murray vs. Paul Matuszczyk

Match 3: James Cornelius vs. Anton Mowatt

Match 4: Steven Rodgers vs. Steven Roberts

Match 5: Gary Cornelius vs. John McLuckie

Match 6: Dave Cook vs. Baz Ramsay

Match 7: Miles Shaw vs. Darren Petersen

Match 8: John Bruce vs. Eddie Roberts

Match 9: Ali Brookes vs. Craig Roberts

Match 10: Marc Barret vs. Andrew Blackhurst

The out of form trio of MacKinnon, Matuszczyk and Mowatt were always going to be up against it being paired against three of Kenmore's squad with an 100% record going into the singles; and so it proved. The impressive Duncan raced into a 4up lead by the turn before securing the point for Kenmore at the 14th to win 5&4.

Iain Murray took the 1st hole against Paul Matuszczyk and never relinquished the lead until the match was finished on the 15th with Kenmore winning 4&3.

Cornelius too looked imperious as he won the first 7 holes in a row, finding himself 8 up at the turn, however, Mowatt sobered up on the back 9, winning 6 holes on the bounce to find himself just 2 down with 3 to play in what looked like it could be the comeback of all comebacks. Cornelius held his nerve though to win the 16th and finish the match 3&2 as Kenmore needed just a 0.5 point from the remaining 7 ties to secure The Rider Cup. The question now was, who would get that winning point?

The next match looked like it was stacked in Taymouth's favour with Captain Steven Roberts up against Kenmore's Steven Rodgers. However, Rodgers won the first 3 holes as he looked to cause an upset. Captain Roberts showed that he was up for the fight by winning the 6th, 7th and 8th to pull the match back to all square. Showing tremendous composure in the face of a two-time Breadalbane champion on the charge, Rodgers won the 9th and 10th to restore a 2up lead. A few holes were traded on the back 9 but they arrived at the 16th with Rodgers still 2up and looking to close out the Rider Cup for Kenmore. Needing just a half at the short par 4, Rodgers went one better and won the hole to seal a 3&2 victory and take Kenmore into an unassailable 11-3 lead. In keeping with the rest of the weekend, it was a typically tragic end to the Rider Cup competition for Captain Roberts, who had endured a tough time of it leading his beleaguered Taymouth team.

Ironically, the points then started to arrive for Taymouth, although in keeping with Captain Roberts' strategy for the middle of the order. The reliable John McLuckie kept up his 100% record by seeing off a plucky challenge from Gary Cornelius to win 3&2 after being behind for most of the front 9.

Baz Ramsay continued his solid form with a 2&1 win over Dave Cook; who couldn't repeat the form of the previous two days.

After having dispensed with Craig Roberts, Darren Petersen put in a dominant performance against an off-colour Miles Shaw to win 6&5; the Welshman winning the first hole and being competitive on the front 9 before collapsing on the way home.

Former Breadalbane Champions, Eddie Roberts and Kenmore Captain John Bruce enjoyed a close battle which went all the way to the 18th. Captain Bruce raced into a 2 hole lead and was 3up by the turn but Roberts chipped away at the lead and had it back to 1 by the 16th. Bruce thought he'd done enough with a par at the 16th but Roberts matched the score and followed up with another par at 17 to make it all square. He then rolled back the years with yet another par on the 18th to take the lead for the first time in the match and win by 1up.

In the penultimate tie, Craig Roberts was looking to get his first point on the board for Taymouth and it looked like he was on-track after taking the lead at the 14th hole and then winning the 15th to go 2up. A half at 16 left him 2up with 2 to play, before the usual bottle crash allowed Brookes to win the 17th and 18th and halve the match; incredibly the only match to be tied all weekend.

The final game was something of a whitewash as Marc Barret found himself 7up after 9 against Andrew Blackhurst. Further wins at the 10th and 11th meant that the match finished 9&7, the biggest win of the weekend and a far cry from Barret's form on the opening Friday when him and Steven Rodgers had been convincingly beaten. The final results looked as follows:

It was an impressive performance from team Kenmore in the first ever Rider Cup, winning each session on the way to victory. However, the Friday foursomes really set the tone with Taymouth never recovering from the early setback.

The individual performance table shows that everyone contributed to Kenmore's success:

Kenmore	Friday Foursomes	Saturday Fourball	Sunday Singles	Total
Marc Barret	0	1	1	2
Ali Brookes	1	0	0.5	1.5
John Bruce (c)	1	0	0	1
Dave Cook	1	1	0	2
Gary Cornelius	1	0	0	1
James Cornelius	1	1	1	3
Adam Duncan	1	1	1	3
Iain Murray	1	1	1	3
Steven Rodgers	0	1	1	2
Miles Shaw	1	0	0	1

Captain Bruce will no doubt be delighted with the contribution of James Cornelius, Adam Duncan and Iain Murray; who all took maximum points on offer for Kenmore.

On the other hand, the Taymouth table makes uncomfortable reading for some:

Taymouth	Friday Foursomes	Saturday Fourballs	Sunday Singles	Total
Andrew Blackhurst	1	0	0	1
Stephen MacKinnon	0	0	0	0
Paul Matuszczyk	0	0	0	0
John McLuckie	1	1	1	3
Anton Mowatt	0	0	0	0
Darren Petersen	0	0	1	1
Baz Ramsay	0	1	1	2
Craig Roberts	0	0	0.5	0.5
Eddie Roberts	0	1	1	2
Steven Roberts (c)	0	1	0	1

Captain Roberts decision to pick Anton Mowatt as a wildcard early on now looks questionable, whilst he would have expected more from Craig Roberts than just the 0.5 point over the weekend. On the other hand, the performances of John McLuckie, Baz Ramsay and Eddie Roberts should be acknowledged in a struggling Taymouth team.

No doubt the inquest will have began in earnest on the Taymouth side as they will look to fight back next year and take The Rider Cup from Kenmore.

Team Kenmore, led by Captain John Bruce, celebrate winning the first ever Rider Cup at Wokefield Park.