We arrived at Dartford GC on a sunny but fresh spring morning ready for our match against Kent. We knew we were in for a very competitive game against the team that won the South region 6man qualifier in 2023 and boasted a number of top national performers in their ranks. Zach Chegwidden & Henry Styles led the team off and produced some excellent foursomes golf to gain a comfortable win. Next out were Ollie Allison, making his debut & Shay McQueen who were beaten 3&2. Harley Smith & Charlie Rusbridge halved with Kent's county captain and his partner and would have won if a number of putts had not sat on the lip of hole on too many occasions to count. Captain Ben Humphrey & the returning Mitch Sarling had a very good win in match 4 and Ollie Baker, also making his debut & Charlie Croker could not overcome a slow start and eventually went down to defeat on the 16th green. The match was nicely poised at 2.5-2.5 as we sat down for lunch. The team were confident heading out for the singles, all the players had now seen the golf course, with many having never played it and the wind had died down a touch.
There was some superb golf played all afternoon by both teams and it was played in fantastic spirit throughout. Kent took the top two matches leaving us in a bit of a hole and with Harley's opponent birdieing the last for a half we needed a strong middle and back of the team performance. Match 4 also went to Kent on the final hole so we owed a lot to Henry, Mitch and Charlie who all won to level proceedings again, we now need 2 out of the final 3 matches, with Charlie holding a good advantage all the way to a strong 5&3 victory we were in sight of the finishing line. It was down to County captain Ben Humphrey to bring home the bacon and secure the winning point on the 16th green and an 8-7 victory.
I would like to thank Kent Golf Union and Dartford GC for hosting us and to Captain Tony who was so magnanimous in defeat and complimented our squad on their excellent camaraderie and noted how well we conducted ourselves on nd off the course. This means a lot to hear from a defeated captain and shows how far we can go to achieving our targets for the season ahead.
Our next match is with The Essex Pros which we look forward to.
Paul Prebble
County Team Manager