FIXBY’S Pat Wrightson, a member of England’s winning team in last year’s Senior Home Internationals, is in a top quality field of internationals to contest the Senior Women’s English Close championship at Stoneham, Hampshire April 15-18.
Defending champion Sue Ellis, from Ferndown, Dorset, leads a field of 86 with handicaps as low as scratch.
One of eight from host county Hampshire is Chris Quinn, the 2004 and 2005 champion and the British Seniors’ champion in 2006.
Players will play two strokeplay qualifying rounds on the first two days over the 5,506 yards par 72 course.
The top 16 in each of two divisions then go into the matchplay stages.
The West Yorkshire Allliance Assistants’ championship was claimed for the second year running by Howley Hall’s Chris Green, who shot an outstanding 74 in wild and wet conditions at Headley, Bradford.
The former Cleckheaton assistant finished seven strokes ahead of Willow Valley’s Alan Cranston with Willow Valley’s Lee Shepherd three strokes further back as a number of players were beaten by the conditions and failed to finish the course.
The severity of the weather was emphasised by Green requiring a driver and 2-iron to get near the first hole, a par four of 350 yards playing into the gale, then going through the green with his tee shot at the next, also a 350 yards par four that played downwind.
