Club Championship
A strong wind proved a tough challenge for all competitors in last weekend's Club Championship played on the West on Saturday and the East on Sunday. It was Danny Smith & Ainee O'Connor who were crowned champions on Sunday afternoon after 36 holes. Danny was going to take a lot of beating after he split from the field on Saturday with a superb 1 under on the West. And so it proved as the wind continued to blow a +4 and a total of 143 was good enough for a four stroke victory.
It was a closer affair in the Ladies competition as Ainee & Tita fought it out with the title in doubt right up until the 36th hole. A birdie four on the last sealed victory for the defending champion.
Ainee O'Connor also won the nett competition and Simon Athwal was the winner of the men's nett.
Mens
1st Danny Smith (1) 68 75 143 +3
2nd Richard Tomlin (2) 72 75 147 +7
3rd Paul Abbott (4) 74 76 150 +10
Ladies
1st Ainee O'Connor (2) 74 77 151 +8
2nd Tita Mccart (2) 76 77 153 +10
3rd Kim Morris (3) 76 84 160 +17
Lady Captain's Charity Day
Lady Captain's Charity Day was a colourful affair with a lot of money being raised for a great cause. The Lady Captain raised £6150 for her charity on the day.
The Liver Birds team of Tita McCart, Carole Clegg, Jane Skynner and Christine McGarry were the winners in a field of 19 teams.
If you would like to donate to the Lady Captain's charity direct please click here.
Royal Blackheath Trophy
Our team in the Royal Blackheath Trophy have progressed to the semi-final after an emphatic 7-1 win against Wildernesses in the 2nd round. The players played well and provided some very strong performances. However the result was not as one sided as the score suggests, as four of the matches were won on the last green.
Overall another strong performance from the team of Alez Yazdani, Peter Meehan, Phil Baines, James Horgan, Martin Gallagher, Gary Dulieu, David Parkin and Ralph Bull.
A tough semi-final away encounter awaits at either Mid Kent, the winners two years ago, or West Kent, the current holders.
117th US Open
The world's best golfers head for Wisconsin this week for the year's second Major championship. Dustin Johnson defends his title in the 117th US Open.
Dustin Johnson will defend his US Open crown at Erin Hills in Wisconsin this week. The big hitting American will face strong competition with almost all of the world's best gunning to prevent him becoming the first man to win back-to-back US Opens since Curtis Strange achieved that feat in 1988-89.
Rory McIlroy returns to action with a new putter and Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Hideki Matsuyama, Henrik Stenson and Sergio Garcia all start. In fact, it's expected that 58 of the world's top-60 players will tee it up. The only ones missing will be Phil Mickelson, attending his daughter's graduation and Ryan Moore who is injured. There will be 14 amateurs in the field this year, three more than last season.
Erin Hills opened for play in 2006. The track was designed by Michael Hurdzan, Dana Fry and Ron Whitten. They set the course through the rolling farmland to the north of Milwaukee. With nearly no trees the course has an open feel and the wind can be a factor. Measuring over 7,700 yards, it's one of the longest courses in US Open history, but power hitting will not be essential this week - accuracy will be to the fore as players aim for the running, rolling fairways protected by some pretty brutal rough - as you would expect in the US Open.
There are some exciting groups to watch out for in the first two rounds. Rory McIlroy will play with Justin Rose and Jason Day while defending champion Dustin Johnson will tee off with Martin Kaymer and Jordan Spieth.
Masters winner Sergio Garcia will be looking to make it back-to-back Major victories and he starts his campaign alongside Adam Scott and Bubba Watson.
For a long period in the latter part of the 20th century, the U.S. Open was dominated by home players but, since the turn of this century, the list of winners has a far more international feel: South Africa's Retief Goosen won twice in 2001 and 2004, Michael Campbell of New Zealand won in 2005, Australia's Geoff Ogilvy in 2006 followed by Angel Cabrera of Argentina in 2007. At Pebble Beach in 2010 Graeme McDowell became the first European since Tony Jacklin in 1970 to take the title. Since then, three have been three more European winners - Justin Rose, Martin Kaymer and Rory McIlroy.
Player Watch:
Jon Rahm - The young Spaniard has proven that he has the complete game necessary to win the very biggest events. This could be the week he becomes a Major Champion.
Justin Rose - The 2013 champion lost a playoff to Sergio at The Masters and has been on good form all year. He was tied 12th at Wentworth.
Alex Noren - The winner at of the BMW PGA at Wentworth, Noren has climbed to 8th place on the Official World Golf Ranking. He's earned his spot in the world's top-10 and now he could justify it with a Major title.
Click here to keep an eye on this week's leaderboard.
Limited Edition Titleist 69 Balls
It is always nice to have something a little different, so to celebrate 69 consecutive years as the #1 golf ball at the U.S Open Titleist have launched a limited edition golf ball with the number 69 for this years' U.S Open in June.
Stock is limited so click here and hurry to avoid disappointment.
