Team Ireland Triumph Again to Retain the Four Nations at The Oxfordshire Golf Clubrophy

RESULTS REVELED - IRELAND TRIUMPH AGAIN TO RETAIN FOUR NATIONS TROPHY AT
THE OXFORDSHIRE GOLF CLUB

What excitement and drama unfolded at The Oxfordshire Golf Club in Thame (www.theoxfordshire.com) as Team Ireland retained the trophy and title of ‘Champion Nation of the Year’ with a shared point in the last match on the eighteenth green in the  2012 FOUR NATIONS GOLF CHALLENGE – sponsored by GOLF PLUS DIRECT – ‘Golf Fees Made Easy’

The Grand Final commenced with two semi-finals on Monday, 24th September with some sparkling golf in atrocious weather conditions. Following a three hour suspension of play, Ireland defeated Scotland by 4 matches to 2 in the first semi before England and Wales played out a nail-biting draw, completed in near darkness.  So a ‘sudden-death’ play off at 7:30am the following morning was required to determine Ireland’s opponents in the Final itself. On the difficult 418 yard par 4 first hole, England’s Bertie Chambers’ par putt lipped out to give Wales the victory and create a repeat of last year’s final.

In the top match, Welsh captain Kash Shabir and his partner David Bailey from St. Pierre got Wales off to a great start, defeating the Irish pair of Eddie Kelly and Antoinette Russell of Rathdowney, 3 & 2. Ireland came storming back, taking the next 3 points but it was looking like a play off when Wales closed the gap to 1 point and in the bottom match, the Welsh pair of Paul Davies and Richard Thomas from Carmarthen were 3 up with 4 to play! However, that picture soon changed when Jonathan McKnight and Derick Hynes from Loughall won the 15th, 16th, & 17th,  bringing the match to All-Square on the 18th and then secured a magnificent fighting half at the last to secure victory for Ireland.  

Ian Dallas, Captain of the victorious Team Ireland, for the second time, said; “On behalf of all the competitors, I wish to thank the FOUR NATIONS GOLF CHALLENGE for such a fantastic event. We didn’t want for anything and we all felt like Ryder Cup players! I cannot believe that as club golfers, we have all received an ‘International Cap’ and to have captained my nation to victory again will be a memory forever”

Ryan Bezuidenhout, Director of Sales at The Oxfordshire, comments: “We were extremely pleased to be chosen as the host venue for the FNGC Grand Final for 2012. The teams performed excellent play, and we hope that they enjoyed their stay at The Oxfordshire.”

Grand Final Results:
First Semi-Final: Ireland (4 points) beat Scotland (2 points)
Second Semi-Final: England (3 points) tied with Wales (3 points). Wales won Sudden-Death Play-Off.
Third Place Play-Off: England (4 points) beat Scotland (2 points)
Grand Final: Ireland (3.5 points) beat Wales (2.5 points) 

For full details of the Four Nations Golf Challenge go to: www.fournationsgolfchallenge.co.uk

All the excitement was captured for Sky Sports and can be seen at the following times:
15th October - 18:00 on Sky Sports 4
16th October - 02:00 on Sky Sports 4
16th October – 08:00 on Sky Sports 3
16th October - 15:30 on Sky Sports 2

About The Four Nations Golf Challenge

The Four Nations Golf Challenge (‘FNGC’) is organised by Concierge Golf Limited. Concierge Golf has set out to establish an attractive and stimulating annual amateur golf tournament, which gives competitive members of all UK golf clubs the rare opportunity to represent their country. This competition is potentially the most exciting team competition for amateur golfers in the UK! The contest is open to golf club members of all standards, who enter in ‘Pairs’. For tournament registration and other information visit www.fournationsgolfchallenge.co.uk or call the Tournament Office on 01276 35505.

The Oxfordshire, Rycote Lane, Milton Common, Thame, OX9 2PU – www.theoxfordshire.com

For more information on The Four Nations at The Oxfordshire Golf Club please contact Emma Sundin at
Deliberate PR: emma@deliberate-pr.com / 020 7792 9073 / 07792 072 453