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REECE Hodson claimed his fourth Bathurst Golf Club men’s A grade Club Championship on Saturday with an 11-stroke win over Paul Bright.
A final round of 79 from Hodson on Saturday was his worst of the tournament, but it would have taken a slip-up of monumental proportions to surrender the 15-stroke lead he held over Bright and Adam Hodges heading into the final 18 holes.
Hodson finished on 297 from his four rounds, seeing off Bright (308) who won the battle for third by three strokes over Hodges.
Thanks to a two-under round of 69 a week earlier, Hodson was the only player to shoot under par all tournament.
His victory adds to his 2010, 2011 and 2014 Don O’Malley Cup successes, and was a welcome return to the top following his disqualification last year for signing an incorrect scorecard.
Although Hodson is now based in Sydney, a win at his old home club is one that he said always feels special.
“Winning the Club Championship at Bathurst is prestigious every year. It doesn’t matter if it’s the first or the 10th, it’s a great thing to add to the buckle,” he said.
“I started my golf with Bathurst as my home club and although I’m currently a member at The Australian, it still feels like a home club to me, so it’s always a great feeling to win there.”
Hodson said going into the final round with a big lead helped put him at ease.
“I had a 15-shot lead going into the last round. It’s good to have a bit of space to walk around on the golf course. Unfortunately for the day my golf didn’t go well. I couldn’t get on the fairways or get my up and down game going. I had my worst round of the tournament, but it was nice to have that buffer,” he said.
“It was good to watch Paul Bright and Adam Hodges fight it out for second. Adam played really well over the first nine holes and put up a good fight, but lost a couple of strokes towards the end which was disappointing.
“The conditions turned out really good considering everyone thought it was going to pour down rain. I probably went in there with the mindset that it was going to rain all day, which probably didn’t help. The greens were really soft, as they had been all tournament ... [but] the rain had also kept the course in good condition.”
Hodson will now prepare for the Bathurst Golf Club’s Matchplay Championships starting May 15, along with the remainder of the top eight Club Championship finishers.
The remaining spots will be filled by Bright, Hodges, Ray Stapley, Brett Howard, Mick Locke, David Lilly and Simon Stuart.
“I hadn’t been playing in any big tournaments for a while before this. I had been busy practicing for a while, but with no tournament action. I was a bit rusty back in playing conditions, but I got my ball striking going good,” Hodson said.
“I’m happy with my form at the moment going into the matchplay.
“Matchplay is a completely different game, but good fun. I probably enjoy it as much as strokeplay, though I’m probably stronger in matchplay. It will be a different experience for a lot of those guys in the top eight.”
Hodges’ performance against a player with a handicap seven strokes lower than him – he is an eight marker compared to Bright on one – was not without reward as he took out the Presidents Trophy Handicap for best nett score (279).
In the lower divisions, Adam Lavelle survived a shaky final round to take out the B grade title on 329, finishing just one stroke clear of James Chapple.
John Perfect (345) matched the winning effort in the women’s championship by his wife Cindy as he claimed the B1 grade honours. There was a three-way tie for second on 353 between David Clyburn, Josh Toole and Peter Trevor-Jones.
Stephen Finnerty won C grade as his total of 372 was five better than Brian Morgan.