Golfing friends hit best ever scores to win Leighton competitions

Two former school mates have hit best-ever scores to each win competitions at Leighton Buzzard’s Plantation Road golf club within the space of a week, writes Stuart Oliver.
George Mills and Ryan ConnewGeorge Mills and Ryan Connew
George Mills and Ryan Connew

Quantity surveyor Ryan Connew won the club’s May medal with a 45 point haul and former Vandyke student George Mills carded an impressive nett 61 to win the May Medal.

Twenty-one year old Ryan, in his second year as a member of the Plantation Road club had four birdies in his round – and rued not entering the voluntary “2’s” competition which would have given him two shares of the prize pot.

Playing off a handicap of 19 to win the stableford event, Ryan beat 130 other Leighton golfers, including brother Callum who carded 30 points playing off a handicap of 15, just a tenth of a shot off Ryan’s new handicap of 15.2.

George, 21, now completing his degree studies at London University, won the May Medal with a four shot margin, despite dropping six shots to boggies on the last three holes. Playing off a handicap of 27. George beat 118 club rivals for the top spot. Both players are now playing off reduced handicaps.

Leading scores in the two competitions were:

May Stablelord (points): 45 – Ryan Connew; 41 – Derek Shaw and Simon Thornton; 40 – Anton Bednarek, John Clavey, Adam Waite; 39 – David Godfrey, David Buckingham, Darren Alexander.

May Medal (nett score): 61 – George Mills; 65 – Matthew Lowe; 66 – Alex Smith, Julian Scarr; 67 - Cory Kearsey, Mark Reynolds, Ashley Garner; 68 – John Brawn, Sean McBroom; 69 – Graham Freer, Tony Brinded, Darren Alexander, Colin McLeod, Chris Yirrell, Kamil Shah.

Leighton club Captain Graham Freer launched his inter-club team programme with a 4-2 win over Buckingham. After carding an opening two hole with Gary Bennett, Graham was followed into the club house with wins by Tony Hundall and Dave Evans, Billy O’Neill and Jon Dymock and John Latimer and Phillip Spratt-Callaghan.

But the impressive start was followed by successive defeats against Bedfordshire Police, John O’Gaunt and Ellesborough. Only Ian Rimmer and Chris Figg and John Clavey Simon Rossiter wwon for Leighton against the Police, Manny Barker and Ben Irvine and Adrian Stephenson and Mark Leng won for Leighton in a 4-2 defeat against John O’ Gaunt and drawn matches by John Latimer and Stephen Boud, Mike Smith and Keith Edmunds and Phil Coumbe and Gary Bennett resulted in Leighton losing against Ellesborough.

Alex and Mike J Smith won Leighton’s Dennis Jordan foursomes qualifier with 40 points, a shot clear of Jon Dymock and Neil Laming with Steve Giles and Mark Vincent third with 38 points. Shane Bentley and John Latimer, Russell Cohen and Ben Willis and Jason Brooks and Julian Scarr headed a chasing pack with 36 points.

Rushmere Society Captain John Snith won the ‘Crick Trophy’ after bagging 39 points at Burnham Beeches, beating David Hack by a shot, while Phil Rickard carded 40 points to win the Leighton Sandhouse Resurrection trophy at Wellingborough, two shots clear of Ian Rimmer.

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