My Journey through the wonderful game of golf (part 3)

The third part in a series of articles from golfshake.com's very own John Pettitt . This part continues the story through the 70s.  For the first part see here, second part here .

My Journey through the wonderful game of golf (part 3)

I won our own Hawkins Trophy in 1971 as well as the club championship three years in a row, 1967, 1968 and 1969, but work did not always allow me to play these every year. Isn’t work a pain in the backside when one wishes to play golf?

Strange as though it may seem I feel that I played my best golf when I was a 1 handicapper perhaps that was because I started to play more open competitions.

Hawkins Trophy winners 36 hole scratch event at”Clevedon Golf Club”. 1971 was kind to me.

Club Champion 3 years in a row at “Clevedon Golf Club”, Somerset. 1967/68/69

I possibly could have won more but work was taking its toll on the competitive golf I’m afraid and I was not always home when these competitions were taking place.

I played in the “Brabazon “, which is the English Open Amateur strokeplay in 1970 at Little Aston Golf Club where the entry is restricted  to those with a handicap no higher than 1.This was a  tournament played over 72 holes, with a cut made for the leading 25 players after two rounds. I scraped into this and was happy to complete the four rounds and even though I did not disgrace myself I felt that I did not play of my best. This was a learning curve that was to take some time to get used to and it was not until I finished in front of Gordon Brand (Gordon Brand Jnr’s father) in a tournament that I discovered that, on my day, I had the ability to win. My approach to the game after that was completely different, as I knew that I had the game necessary for victory in this class of competition.

I also managed to get into the ballot one year for the Golf Illustrated Gold Vase which was a prestigious amateur tournament at that time held at “Sunningdale Golf Club”.

Other well known and top rated amateur tournaments that I played in included The “Lytham Trophy” held at  Royal Lytham Golf Club, The “West of England” Open amateur strokeplay over 72 holes held alternately at Royal North Devon (Westward Ho) and Saunton. I played this tournament at least four times, as it was expected of me to enter, being a county player for Somerset. It was always held end of March beginning of April and usually the weather was foul and after playing it in those conditions one ended up with a stance three foot wide and a backswing of about two feet, just in an effort to keep oneself on the ground and the ball under the wind. Not happy memories I’m afraid, but had to be done. Playing the majors when compared to other 36 hole scratch events meant of course a lot of time and expense and as I had to work it was not always possible to get to play when one wanted to. The bread and butter amateur circuit was well alive and kicking in the West Country. Every club held its own 36 hole scratch open and I usually played in as many as I could each year if I was not driving the truck to Baghdad.

One year I played in the regional qualifying for Gloucester, Somerset and Wiltshire players for the national “John Courage Trophy” at “Swindon Golf Club”, Ogbourne St. George and was fortunate to come in the first three.

This meant our team for the final would be Peter Berry (Cotswold Hills. G.C. Later turned Pro) and Lachlan Miller (Scratch green keeper at Burnham and Berrow golf club) and myself. The final was held at “Calcot Pak Golf Club” in Reading and we won the team event and I was fortunate enough to win the individual with a most unusual day’s golf. I opened up with a 72 and found four players in front of me after the first round, one of them my old adversary from Suffolk, David Whinney. My afternoon round was pretty much a disaster as I recorded six over par for the par threes in that round, but still managed to turn in a gross score of 69 which coupled with the 72 was good enough to win and I was presented with my prize, a Ronson Table lighter by Dai Rees, the Welsh Ryder Cup player.

Perhaps now would be a good time to say that it would be impossible to win a scratch amateur tournament in those days without breaking par. There were far too many good players around.

The local circuit including tournaments like The “Long Ashton Vase”, The “Knowle Gold Medal”, the “Mendip Vase”, The “Whitchurch Silver Dragon”, The “Failand Plate” at Bristol and Clifton G.C. and the “Henbury Gold Medal”, a tournament in which I never won but did bring in two winners, one of whom was Ted Jackson a Gloucester County player, but it was interesting that in the write up for this event by John Reece of the Western Daily Press (Husband of Peggy Reece Curtis Cup player) he very kindly said that anyone wishing to learn how to swing a golf club should go and watch John Pettitt, it is hard to imagine him ever taking more than par. Embarrassed I may have been at the time but it was satisfying nevertheless.

I am also pleased with the fact that when I lived in Portishead my two young neighbours, George Ryall and Richard Svendson showed a keen interest when I used to practice on the open space in front of our houses overlooking the Bristol Channel. I showed them how to hold the club and the basic mechanics of the golf swing and they both became members of “Clevedon Golf Club”. George also won the Hawkins Trophy in 1982 and 1984.

George became a Professional and I believe is now playing on the Professional Senior’s tour. Richard ended up as a scratch golfer at “Ham Manor Golf Club” and I only found this out when I played in a match there when I was a member at “Sweetwoods Park G.C”. Sussex. He was a full county player for Sussex.

I won the Hawkins Trophy at my home club, as well as foursomes competitions like the “Somerset County Scratch foursomes” held at Saltford G.C which myself and my partner Barry Reeves won in 1972 with a score of 69=68 for 137 (http://www.somersetgolfunion.co.uk/foursomes-past-winners/ ).

The City and County of Bristol Scratch foursome at “Shirehampton G.C” was another competition with a very high quality field and we managed to win with an incredible two rounds of golf. We started both rounds 6,6,5 against a par of 5,5,3, hardly made a par all day but shot so many birdies we managed to win with 69=68 for 137, a total that was completely unexpected after our disastrous starts to both rounds.

Winners 1972 – City and County of Bristol Scratch Foursomes

You will notice that Gordon Brand won this event a few times before me and his son Gordon Brand Jnr. a couple of times after me, which shows the quality of the fields that were around on those days. Makes the winning all the more enjoyable when finishing at the top of a class field.

137 seemed to become a regular score for me at the many different tournaments I was entering at the time. The Great Oaks foursome was one we never managed to win. This was held at Rogerstone G.C. just north of Newport, Wales and the field was always very strong with many Welsh Internationals always in the field.

Being an established club, competitions were every week-end for some cup or another, all off handicap of course and, yes, we had bandits in those days. I can remember going round in 69 in being well stuffed by a 22 handicap player and this happened on more than one occasion.

My interest lay in my open events and the club team which played in the Western Daily Press golf league. We had a very good side as by that time, with all my effort in helping fellow club members to improve we had at least forty players in single figures. Knowle G.C. could also field a good side as they had a few Gloucester county players in their side, but I will say that myself and Barry never lost a home match in 16 years at Clevedon, even beating Gordon Brand Jnr. a couple of times.

As can be seen by the medal “Clevedon Golf Club” won the Western Daily Press Golf League and each member of the team received one of these small medals.

Even though I was 1 handicap player the county side was always picked from players who played at either, “Burnham and Berrow” or “Weston Super Mare” golf clubs. You know, the old school still thinking that players other than links players were not real players. Then one year the new County Captain ‘George Irlam’ from Weston-Super-Mare Golf Club decided to bring the County side to all the clubs in the County, for what reason I have not got a clue, but when he turned up at my club we thrashed the County side five matches to nil and it was then that he realised that there was other golfing talent elsewhere in the County.

He picked me for my first County match away to Monmouth at “Rogerstone G.C.” and after partnering him to a win in the morning foursomes I drew a chap by the name of Ken Fitzgerald, who on the day before had won the 36 hole Tredegar Park open scratch event. We had a great game, all square playing the par five last. He made birdie to my par so I lost 1 down. As I approached the clubhouse, George (The Captain) came out and put his thumbs up but I had to put mine down and he just turned on his heels and went back in to the clubhouse. I then realized that winning was everything? I expect that I would have beaten any other player that day but came up against one who hung on better than me. This point came up again a couple of years later when I beat a Cornwall player 7 & 6 at Burnham and Berrow Golf Club. I was four under when it finished on the 12th.

I did some research at the Bristol Central library over the Christmas period but it was very hard work, but managed to get a few press cuttings to substantiate some of what I have said.

I handed out another heavy beating to one of the Monmouth players when we played them at home, pleased to get a half with my conqueror Ken Fitzgerald in the foursomes after losing to him at Rogerstone on the last.

Work commitments kept me from playing in the EGU finals more than I did, but I did play in two. The first time was at Royal North Devon Golf Club, Devon and the second time at St. Enedoc Golf Club, Cornwall. These are great events as the six western counties play each other every day for a week and the winning team goes forward to represent the West Region in the EGU finals.  I can remember playing Ken Graveney (Gloucester cricket player) at Westward Ho and we had a great game for a half. I never missed a putt from six foot and in, all week. Against Wiltshire I played Peter Edgington and I holed three monsters on the first three greens to go three up and he came up to me and said, John, are you going to keep this up all day, suffice to say, I didn't and we ended up halving the match. I was more than satisfied as he was one of the better scratch players around at the time.


It is only by being selected for the EGU week that one gets ones county blazer badge and tie, so I do feel honoured that I managed that, even though I must have played probably more than fifty times for the County.

We also played an annual match, the South Western Counties versus the Midland Counties and each county would nominate two players each for the South West team. This was not based on the 12 best players but when it was your turn you played in it and also were awarded a South Western Counties tie. I have long since lost mine I’m afraid.

By this time I had a confidence that was so high that I felt that I could win everything but we all know that never happens, but I won a few, finished runner up numerous times and generally managed to score well enough to maintain my 1 handicap. I suffered no nerves whatsoever and possibly I became cocky and arrogant with a great belief in my ability to play this game under pressure.

I usually played these events every year plus of course my own club championship and our very own open for the Hawkins Trophy.

I was also selected for the Somerset side to play the annual match against the Gloucester & Somerset professionals whom we beat last year. Gordon Brand had taken the Professionals job at “Knowle Golf Club” but could not play on the tour as he had not served his time, so he was restricted to the local and alliance events, but I think in reality he wanted to support his son in his quest to be a professional golfer. We all know that he accomplished this with great performances over the years and over £3,000,000 in earnings.

The only Open handicap competition I entered was the “Grand Atlantic Trophy at Weston-Super-Mare G.C. this is a 36 hole tournament off handicap but usually balloted out at somewhere around 12 due to the high interest in this tournament. I won the scratch three times, twice with 139 and once with 137 and the year I had the 137 I won the handicap as well. 1979 a fantastic moment for me as this trophy I had tried to win for ten years because it is the biggest I have ever seen. I won about £200 that day, what with sweeps etc, but after taking my fellow competitors to the Chinese restaurant in Weston and my wife filling the cup with Champagne we actually left Weston without a halfpenny left in our pockets. My name is on the boards there.

For the first part see here, second part here .