PRENTON completed a hat-trick of victories at the finals day of the Liverpool and District Colts competition after a thrilling victory over Hesketh.
The Wirral club edged out their opponents from the Sefton coast with a 3-2 success to take the trophy for the sixth time since the event started in 1934.
The finals day brings together the leading finishers in the four mini leagues of clubs that compete against each other throughout the summer months.
In the afternoon final Kyle Evans and Joe Sephton recorded convincing wins for Prenton before Andrew Marsh and Luke Rimmer levelled matters, which left the match between Craig Lewis (Prenton) and Chris Higham (Hesketh) to decide the destination of the famous trophy.
Craig manoeuvred himself to a promising position of dormie two up before hooking wildly off the 17th tee to lose that hole.
Chris then drove straight down the middle at the 18th as Craig again hooked into a left-hand bunker.
The Wirral man escaped the sand as Chris played his second just through the green. Craig’s pitch to six feet effectively sealed the outcome as Chris took three more to get down.
Formby stepped in to host the finale after Caldy was included as a final qualifying venue for the Ricoh Women’s British Open with Lee Park and Southport Old Links also contesting the semi-finals.
In the first encounter Hesketh proved too strong for Lee Park in a 4-1 win.
But Prenton had to battle hard to overcome Southport Old Links.
Tied at two games each, the team number twos – Freddie Williams for Prenton and Brad Iddon for Southport Old Links – played on into extra holes.
The 19th was halved but Freddie eventually won at the 20th leaving his teammates to make a quick dash for the stating time for the final.
Next year’s finals day will take place at Caldy in September with the Bill Renison Trophy to be contested at Prenton on a date to be agreed in May.
RESULTS
SEMI-FINALS
Lee Park 1 Hesketh 4 (Glen Senior lst to James Garthwaite 4&3; Matt Frail bt Andrew Marsh 1hole; Garth Fenney lst to Luke Rimmer 5&3; Chris Brown lst to Chris Higham 2&1; Andrew Evans lst to Michael McCormack 6&5)
Prenton 3 Southport Old Links 2(Kyle Evans bt Ben Minshull 4&2; Freddie Williams bt Brad Iddon 20th; Ian Schless lst to Chris Reid 2holes; Craig Lewis lst to Gary Rosenthal 6&5; Joe Sephton bt Elliot Simms 3&2).
FINAL
Prenton 3 Hesketh 2 (Kyle Evans bt James Garthwaite 7&5; Freddie Williams lst to Andrew Marsh 2holes; Ian Schless lst to Luke Rimmer 3&2; Craig Lewis bt Chris Higham 1hole; Joe Sephton bt Michael McCormack 6&5).
