Delay doesn't dampen debut for Waterlooville duo

It wouldn’t feel like a British summer without torrential rain, gusting winds and the odd bit of sunshine all in one day. But John Hay and amateur Rob Dennett dealt with the ever-changing conditions to top the leaderboard at their first ever appearance in the PGA Super 60s event.

Heavy downpours throughout the morning made conditions unplayable at Wollaton Park Golf Club on Tuesday.

The players took shelter in the clubhouse for almost four hours before play was resumed. By that time Hay and Dennett hadn’t hit a ball.

But they completed their eight-under par round in the evening and sit top of the pack heading into the final day of action on Thursday.

“At the moment it looks like a good decision to enter. We’ve played a lot of gold together.

“We kept going, playing well we held a putt on the last. It was a good day for us.

“We’ll wait and see what happens tomorrow. It’s been a great day, let’s see what happens tomorrow.”

Amateur Dennett added: “We gelled well really and kept calm. It’s a lovely course and it was a good decision to delay the round. We were sitting round for quite a while but it was worth it.”

The delay in play didn’t affect the performance of Didsbury Golf Club duo Peter Barber and his partner Paul Dalby, who sit one shot behind after finishing on seven-under par.

“We weren’t affected by the break because it’s the same for everyone,” said a confident Barber.

“Just before the hooter went I managed to birdie the par five fourth which put us to two-under par at the break which was a nice feeling of course.”

Both Barber and Dalby got off to a very solid start after the delay in some very inclement weather.

Three birdies in four holes at the turn was followed by what proved to be an eagle three at the 12^th by amateur Dalby. It was then a case of clinging on to what they had.

“That eagle was massive because we could see the board and five-under par was leading.  

“We’ve absolutely got a chance. If we are leading at the end of the day, it will be very nice to do so, but we won’t be out in order of play which will be a slightly different scenario but that’s just unfortunate.  

“There’s a long way to go but hopefully my partner and I perform well and what will be, will be.”

While others remained focussed on the job in hand at the break, one player who used the time to grab a few extra winks is two-time winner Graham Burroughs.

The break in play was no concern for Burroughs and his playing partner Rob Hubbard who are seeking an unprecedented hat-trick of Super 60s Championship wins.

Burroughs and Hubbard, old school friends for almost 60 years, battled the elements to finish on 65, just one shot behind the leaders.

“I fell asleep during the delay,” said Burroughs, a player who finished just 12 strokes behind Tom Watson at the 1983 Open Championship.

“It’s a long day but you can’t help that it’s the weather. One moment it was steaming hot out there, the next moment it was pouring with rain! But that’s English weather for you.”

The Boyce Hill Golf Club duo were two-under par past the front nine before going on to make 31 through the back.

“It was a team effort and we were very pleased,” Burroughs added. “You never know. We’ve won it a couple of times down the years.”

Knowing your way around the course given the conditions came as benefit to home PGA Professional John Lower.

The Wollaton Park pro and his partner Stuart Belcher won this event nine years ago, and tonight they will be dreaming of success again as they sit just one shot behind the leaders.

“It’s not been easy out there,” said Lower. “It was very blustery and there’s a bit of surface water on the greens on places that you couldn’t see.

“We had a good finish. We picked up four shots in our last five holes. Stuart kept it together today, he’s played well.

“I’ve been here 26 years. It would be a big boost for the club if we were to win.”

There were plenty of positive performances throughout the field with Graham Laing and Peter Davis (a), both of North Wilts Golf Club, scoring a five-under par 66.

One shot behind is former PGA Cup captain Jim Farmer and his partner Stuart Farmer.

They were the clubhouse leaders on four-under par and Jim admits it was an enjoyable round.

“I’ve had an enjoyable chat with all of my buddies that I’ve known for about 50 years on tour – it’s wonderful,” said Jim Farmer.

“There’s people here that want to play and compete, you’ll never get rid of that even at 60s years of age.

As for their round, Jim added: “If we can do the same tomorrow we’ll be happy.”

For a full list of results from the opening day of the 2017 PGA Super 60s Championship click here.