Inter Unit Championship

INTER UNIT

championship

07 - 09 June 2022 Army Golf Club

The Inter Unit Championship returned to its spiritual home for the first time in eight years and the competition was played in full for the first time since 2018.

The 2019 Championship was rained off and the following two events cancelled owing to the COVID pandemic, so it was a great relief that the weather played its part in making the 2022 event the success that it turned out to be.

The Inter Unit event dates back to 1904 and this year it was attended by 36 players, forming 12 teams; unfortunately, slightly down on recent years, although this may result from the missed years and the many commitments the Army is currently involved in. We would like to thank the all the units who participated and, in some cases, travelled great distances to enter this year. Particularly QDG from Dereham and 6 Regt RLC from Thirsk.

The format of this year’s event was amended slightly on account of the number of teams entered. The opening day remained a 36-hole Stableford Qualifier off handicap adjusted to 95%.

Teams comprised 3 players (plus one reserve). The team Stableford scores from day one resulted in teams being seeded 1 to 12 with all teams switching to the Matchplay format on day two. The top four teams competed for the main championship (Balfour Trophy), the next four teams qualified for the plate competition (India Cup) and the final four teams competed for the reserve trophy.

Cpl Darren Smee 3 Regt RLC

Cpl Rishikesh Sen Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn

The weather on day one was forecast to be overcast with a chance of rain, however, to the delight of all players and officials the result was the complete opposite. The sun shone through by midday to dry off the overnight rain, firm up the course and speed up the greens.

Our thanks must go to the Army Golf Club as the course was presented in excellent condition with greens that were quick, but true.

With a wide-ranging standard of player and handicaps, and the golf course providing its usual stern test for any player, scoring well was always going to be a challenge. This proved to be the case with many players carding less than average points. That said, the damp early morning conditions provided an opportunity for some players to be more aggressive and take on some of the more accessible pins. Leading the way at lunchtime with an impressive 41 pts was Cpl Darren Smee 3 Regt RLC, followed closely by Sgt Suresh Ale Magar Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn and WO2 Nabin Subba 9 Regt RLC both on 40 pts, two pts back on

38 pts was Cpl Dhanraj Limbu 9 Regt RLC and then Sgt Tolok Gurung 11 (RSS) Sig Regt on 37 pts and finally the last player to score to handicap was WO2 Thamesh Rai RMAS on 36pts.

Following a fast turnaround and with the breeze stiffening, the second 18-holes would be a further test of everyone’s fortitude. This proved to be the case as the morning round had seen 20 players break 30 pts, whereas only 13 managed the same in the afternoon. The notable scores were: Smee backing up his first round 41 pts with an even more impressive 43 pts. Given this was a tworound qualifier, his 12 handicap was likely to be cut by the time he hit the tee on day two. On 38 pts were T Rai and SSgt Bipendra Rai Lingkha 9 Regt RLC, followed by SSgt Rohit Gurung RMAS and WO1 Ray Conway 3 Regt RLC on 37 pts.

The overall individual standings from day one were:

D Smee on 84 pts – 3 Regt RLC S Ale Magar 75 pts – Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn T Rai 74 pts – RMAS N Subba 74 pts – 9 Regt RLC T Gurung 72 pts – 11 (RSS) Sig Regt Team scores competition:

from

the

RMAS

213

3 Regt RLC

210

Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn

201

9 Regt RLC

200

Inf Battle School

174

Sp Branch RC

171

170 Infr Sp Engr Gp

169

3 PWRR

164

6 Regt RLC

159

11 (RSS) Sig Regt

157

QDG

155

32 Regt RA

114

qualifying

The draw for day two semi-finals in the three competitions saw:

Main Championship: RMAS vs 9 Regt RLC 3 Regt RLC vs Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn Plate Competition: Inf Battle School vs 3 PWRR Sp Branch RC vs 170 Infr Sp Engr Gp Reserve Competition: 11 (RSS) Sig Regt vs QDG 6 Regt RLC vs 32 Regt RA With the teams drawn and in a bid to ensure everyone could get away at a reasonable time, an early start beckoned for day two. The course was a hive of activity as we arrived at the start of the day with greenkeepers cutting and rolling the greens, preparing the bunkers, and blowing overnight debris from the course following the windy close the previous day.

Day two would see us revert to a two tee start with the teams playing head-tohead Matchplay going out in twos on a 0715 first tee. With the course bathed in warm, early morning sunshine and with little by way of a breeze, all looked good for the second day of play.

In the first reserve semi-final 11 (RSS) Sig Regt stormed to an early lead in their match against the QDG, with T Gurung convincingly completing a 7&6 win over his opponent. The third match then gave a point to the QDG after Tpr Joe Shaw beat Cpl Shane Addison 4&3. So one all and with the second match still on the course and very close, it was nail biting for both teams. Eventually though 11 Sig Regt took the deciding point when WO2 Bishnu Gurung beat LCpl Nathan Sell.

The second reserve semi-final saw Cpl James Boyd from 6 Regt RLC win 7&6 against his opponent from 32 Regt RA, even though he was giving away 15 shots.

This was despite sending his first tee shot into the rough on the first which, as it turns out, was to be the only fairway he missed on his way to victory. The second

match saw two 24 handicap players battle it out with Sgt Dale Birch from 32 Regt RA winning through 3&2 to even things up. With the final pairing halving their match the result ended 1½-1½ with the spoils going to 6 Regt RLC OCB. The first plate semi-final headed off from the 10th tee and saw Sp Branch RC against 170 Engr Gp. With all players evenly matched in regard to handicap, we anticipated a tight match. But this was not to be as Sp Branch RC stormed to a 2-0 lead with opening wins of 5&3 from WO1 Chris Topping and WO1 Kirk Ross, although both had to come from behind to achieve their wins. Sadly, Maj Justin Revell could not complete the whitewash, narrowly losing on the 18th.

In the second plate semi-final, Inf Battle School had a close contest with 3 PWRR before winning through 2-1, although all three matches were close run ties.

Finally, on to the championship semifinals, first up 3 Regt RLC against Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn, which on paper looked to be a close affair as all players had similar handicaps, however on the day the Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn appeared to hit a purple patch mid round with CSgt Bikash Gurung coming through with a 4&2 win in the first match. But then Smee, the

day one top scorer, levelled the match with a solid 3&2 win, before Ale Magar completed the win for the Gurkhas, winning with a conclusive 6&5.

The second championship semi-final saw RMAS take on 9 Regt RLC (the third RLC unit in the competition). Again, all handicaps were even in each match, but it was RMAS who played the better golf throughout, winning 3-0 with 4&3, 6&4 and 5&4 wins.

With the weather on the turn and now threatening rain and the wind picking up slightly, the three finals all started off the first tee.

First up in the reserve final was 11 (RSS) Sp Bn vs 6 Regt RLC, with the two low handicaps out first – T Gurung and Boyd.

This was a nip and tuck match, but with Gurung playing his best ever round of 1 over gross, he finished with a 3&2 victory.

The second match saw a relative newcomer in SSgt David Whitwham against a strong handicapper WO2 Bishnu Gurung. This match finished with Gurung coming though with a 6&5 win.

The final match between finished with 6 Regt RLC clawing one match back with a 3&2 win for LCpl Liam Whitbread, but lost 2-1 on the day, leaving 11 (RSS) Sig Regt to collect the Reserve Trophy.

The plate final between Sp Branch RC and the Inf Battle School looked to be another tight affair judging by the handicaps, but then as Topping posted a resounding 6&5 win in the first match, that was followed by a 4&3 win for the Infantry in the third match to level the overall match at 1-1. The middle pair played a match that was eventually won on the last hole by Ross to give the Sp Branch RC to 2-1 victory to win the India Cup.

Sgt Tolok Gurung 11 (RSS) Sig Regt

In the main championship competition Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn took on RMAS. On paper there was little to choose between the two teams so it was down to who

RESERVE WINNERS 11 (RSS) Sig Regt WO2 B Gurung, Sgt T Gurung, Cpl S Addison

PLATE WINNERS HQ RC Sp Branch WO1 C Topping, WO1 K Ross, Maj J Revell

could produce the best golf on the day. In the first match, SSgt Nilkumar Thapa on his home course could not hold off the charge from B Gurung losing 3&2. The second match ended with a half between Cpl Rishikesh Sen and T Rai leaving the score 1½-½, meaning RMAS needed to win the last match to take it to a play off.

Unfortunately. this was not to be as the consistent Ale Magar, produced another fine performance to close the match with a 5&4 win to give the Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn the Balfour Trophy.

welcome entries from all units able to field a team of 3; male, female or mixed.

Huge congratulations go to all the players who fought hard over the two days for their units. The AGA will endeavour to grow this event to capacity over the next couple of years and

RESULTS

CHAMPIONS Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn CSgt B Gurung, Sgt S Ale Magar, Cpl R Sen

As always, we convey our most sincere thanks to our sponsors, without whom we would be unable to run these events so to Thales, our headline sponsor, Comms Spec (comms supplier) and BT (IT support), thank you!

Results and photos & videos can be found on our website under Majors > Inter Unit Championship.

Winners

Gurkha ARRC Sp Bn CSgt Bikash Gurung Sgt Suresh Ale Magar Cpl Rishikesh Sen

Runners-Up

RMAS WO2 Thamesh Rai SSgt Rohit Gurung SSgt Nilkumar Thapa

Plate Winners

Sp Branch HQ RC Maj Justin Revell WO1 Chris Topping WO1 Kirk Ross

Plate Runners Up

Inf Battle School Capt Madan Kumar Jimi CSgt Pralon Kulung-Rai Cpl Gopal Rai

Reserve Winners

11 (RSS) Sig Regt WO2 Bishnu Gurung Sgt Tolok Gurung Cpl Shane Addison

Reserve Runners Up

6 Regt RLC SSgt David Whitwham Cpl James Boyd LCpl Liam Whitbread