Veteran Farmer relishes freezing Burnham

Former Moor Park PGA Professional Lawrence Farmer showed his class to record his first win since relocating to Somerset and joining the Gloucester and Somerset PGA.

The Street-based player shared top spot with Giuseppe Licata (Bristol Golf Centre) and David Dixon (Enmore Park) on 34 stableford points over the frozen Burnham and Berrow links course.

The committee decided to change the scoring to a stableford format to eliminate complete disasters from unpredictable bounces in sub-zero temperatures on a thick white frosty course that greeted early starters. Conditions were no easier for the later players despite the slight thaw.

Farmer played in the second group and negotiated the downwind front nine in a level par for 18 points with two birdies and two bogeys. He dropped strokes coming home at the 12th and 13th to total 16 points, but he was one of only two players to score points on every hole. He also added the Over 40’s sweep to his winnings.

Dixon was next to post 34 points as he returned from a two-week stint in South Africa on the European Tour. He started slowly before reaching the turn in 15 points helped by an eagle three at the eighth.

He matched par until making birdies at 16th and 17th but a bogey at the home hole cost him the possibility of an outright victory.

Licata had even greater cause to curse the 18th as he dropped two shots and failed to score the one point he required to win on his own. He played the first 11 holes in a superb three-under-par but shed five strokes in the closing seven holes.

He did improve his Total Triumph Order of Merit position as the leading duo of Ross Langdon (Gloucester) and Louis Boston (Windmill Hill) suffered on the frozen course.

Home professional David Haines, despite feeling under the weather, and former European Tour player Mark Sanders (Stockwood Vale) shared fourth with 32 points.