Winner - Nigel Harris (right)
The Trilby Tour arrived at The Astbury formally Astbury Hall by way of the Caribbean Golf Society. This was the CGS first visit to The Astbury, a venue created by former Judas Priest guitarist and songwriter K.K. Downing. The venue was further improved with the introduction of former Open Champion Darren Clarke as course ambassador. The course has held several EuroPro tour events and is well on the way to becoming one of the premier venues in the region.

This was a day on the CGS calendar that was not to be missed so it was well attended with 31 members and guests travelling as far afield as Bolton and Bristol to play the course and sample the growing reputation of the course and venue.

Driving through the gates of The Astbury located in the heart of the Shropshire countryside we knew that we were in for a treat and at the end of the drive was the lovely Manor House awaiting the golfers.

We arrived at the course to sunshine, strong winds and the odd shower but we were all looking forward to the challenge. This event was for the Chairman’s trophy so the Chairman decided to make the challenge that little bit harder by arranging for us to play from the gold tees (aka white tees). So with the blustery conditions it would surely impact scoring on the day.

For this day only all members donned trilby hats, it was a site to be seen, the movie Bugsy Malone comes to mind or maybe the Godfather, there was one Telly Savalas lookalike no names mentioned he knows who he is!

The first tee is elevated with a narrow target requiring a drive between two bunkers with a hazard running alongside the left of the fairway. With the wind blowing across and in it was a difficult shot to start the round. It seemed like a long way to the green and with this in mind some were forced to have a real crack at the driver but many pulled or hooked the shot into the hazard, not a great start for some.

A view was shared by many that the days winning score would be around the 34 to 35 point mark and they weren’t wrong. Coming in with a solid score of 35 points all the way from Bolton was Nigel Harris. With some solid ball striking, Nigel was able to elevate himself above the rest and make the journey down all the more rewarding.

In the runner up spot was Mr Consistent Trevor Lammy whose play this season as kept him ahead in the Order of Merit from the start of the year, it’s going to take a push from someone in the top 5 to make the leap and jump ahead.

Picking up the 3rd spot prize was Charley McCook, playing steady golf by keeping the ball on the short stuff Charley would eventually come in with 32 points to pick his prize.

Longest drive winner was Dave Brown on the difficult 11th hole which isn’t very long but accuracy was the name of the day.

The nearest the pin challenge was held early in the round on the 3rd hole, a short distance but into the wind made the hole the more difficult and it was Barry Smith who managed to get it the closes.

The 6th hole provided the nearest the pin in two challenge. Again this wasn’t a long hole but with the wind and an undulating green it wasn’t a simple challenge. The whole was driveable and many tried, Ian Higgins was the closest from the tee but the greens tripped him up, so with putter in hand and about two inches from being on the green he wasn’t able to get it closer than the eventual winner Trevor Lammy.

It was a challenging day with the real winner being the wind. Only a handful of players managed to break the 30 point mark and with some of the lowest points scoring this season I’m sure many would like to give it another go next season.

A big thank you to all the staff at The Astbury for their warm welcome and hospitality!