Two contrasting days of weather framed a weekend of outstanding competitive golf. Saturday’s 96 players faced grey and blustery conditions across The Garden & The Church, while Sunday’s 63 players were rewarded with sunshine and only occasional gusts across The Mill & The Garden, making for a much more pleasant day’s golf. The weekend produced drama in abundance, culminating in a three-hole play-off to determine the Autumn Scratch Medal champion.
A special thank you is also due to Jonathan Sheffield, who recently celebrated his 80th birthday and generously treated all of Saturday’s competitors to a glass of bubbly. A wonderful gesture and very much in the spirit of what makes this club such a special place. Many happy returns, Jonathan.
Autumn Scratch Medal
Round One
Neil Sharpe led the Autumn Scratch Medal after round one, carding an even par 72 to hold a two-shot advantage over Alistair Brown (74) and three over Alex Tonge (75). Nick J Taylor sat fourth on four over par (76), with Tim Green and Peter Harrison sharing fifth on six over (78).
Round Two
Sunday’s calmer conditions allowed scores to improve, and the leaderboard tightened dramatically. Alex Tonge carded a 74 to finish on five over par aggregate (149), matched exactly by Neil Sharpe whose 77 on the day left them level at the top. Nick J Taylor was third in outright third on nine over par (153).
The Play-Off
With the title unable to be separated on aggregate, Tonge and Sharpe headed back to the first tee on The Mill for a three-hole play-off.
The first hole was shared in par. Sharpe found the bunker off the tee but hit a composed approach, lagging his long putt to a foot and holing for par. Tonge went long and right with his approach, hit his putt five feet past the cup but held his nerve to hole the return.
The second hole proved decisive in Sharpe’s favour. Both players hit strong tee shots, Tonge with a mini driver finding the fairway around 150 yards out, Sharpe going left over the tree before finishing in the fairway around 140 yards in. Tonge’s approach tracked the flag throughout, finishing 15 feet short. Sharpe’s approach also tracked the flag, finishing just off the green by half a foot. Tonge missed his birdie putt on the low side and tapped in for par. Sharpe stepped up with his putter from the fringe and holed the birdie to take the lead going to the third.
The third and final hole of the play-off, with sudden death to follow if required. Sharpe hit a great drive to the left side of the fairway. Tonge pulled his drive left, heading between bunker and path finishing on the path. After taking relief, Tonge’s ball dropped into a bare lie, a tricky contact to navigate. He found the green’s edge, just three inches off the putting surface, and putted to within a foot of the hole. Par was the best he could make and it was not enough. Sharpe’s second shot finished 25 feet past the front left pin, he two-putted for par and claimed the Autumn Scratch Medal title.
President’s Putter
Round One
Alistair Brown took the net lead after round one on one under par (71), with five players level on even par (72) behind him: Kristian Smyth, Peter Harrison, Philip Donald, Nick J Taylor and Neil Sharpe.
Round Two
Matthew Pinnock produced the performance of the weekend in the net competition, carding a superb net 69, three under par, on Sunday to finish on a two-round aggregate of net 142, two under par overall, and claim the President’s Putter title. Sebastian Pearce finished in second place on an aggregate of net 144, level par for the two rounds, with Kristian Smyth third on net 145, one over par.
Sunday Net
Matthew Pinnock was equally dominant in the Sunday Net competition, his three under par net 69 claiming first place on the day. Roderick Lane and Sebastian Pearce tied on net 71, with countback required to separate them. Lane claimed second place on a back nine of 33.5 across The Garden, with Pearce taking third on 36.5.
Over 55 Scratch
Tim Green claimed the Over 55 Scratch title on a two-round aggregate of ten over par (154), carding rounds of 78 and 76 across the weekend. Alistair Brown finished second on twelve over par (156), with Peter Harrison third on twenty-one over (165).
Montgomerie Cup
The Montgomerie Cup, awarded to the player with the lowest aggregate gross score across the Spring and Autumn Scratch Medals, went to Alex Tonge on a combined total of 292, made up of 143 in the Spring and 149 in the Autumn. It was a fitting reward for a player who had pushed so hard for the Autumn Scratch title itself.
Alistair Brown finished in second place on 301, with Neil Sharpe third on 302. The Spring scores ultimately proved the difference, with Tonge’s 143 the strongest opening half of the competition across all three players.
Rank List
The Rank List has a new leader with just five counting events remaining in the season. Neil Sharpe moves to the top on 1,758 points from thirteen events, his weekend haul of 238 points lifting him above Darren Wills, who drops to second on 1,726.5 points having added 109 from the weekend. The gap between them is just 31.5 points, making for a thrilling finish to the season.
Daryl Cook remains third on 1,669.03 points after earning 129.75, with 88.97 points separating him from the lead. The biggest mover at the top of the leaderboard this weekend is Matthew Pinnock, whose President’s Putter victory was worth 650 points, lifting him from 19th to fourth on 1,573.31 points. Benjamin Roth rounds out the top five on 1,563.1 points after adding 89 from the weekend.
Elsewhere in the standings, Alistair Brown and Peter Gray are both guaranteed further points from the Concorde final still to be decided, along with the Arlington final which could yet shake up the top of the table further.
Three Rank List competitions remain to close out the 2026 season: the McKenzie Cup on Saturday 3rd October, the October Midweek Medal on Tuesday 6th October, and the Tournament of Champions and October Monthly Medal on Saturday 10th October. The season will then be celebrated in style at the End of Season Party on Saturday 17th October.