Rotherham Golf Club Wins 2008 Team Championship.

(left to right): Peter Daughtrey, Andy Unwin, Adrian Holroyde and Peter Smallman.

Rotherham Golf Club from South Yorkshire has won the national finals of the 2008 John Deere Team Championship golf tournament. This was held in August on the stunning Ailsa Course at The Westin Turnberry Resort in Scotland, venue for the 2009 Open Championship.

Rotherham’s net score of 54 (15 under par) in the modified scramble event was just one shot ahead of Kemnay Golf Club from Aberdeenshire, making Rotherham the overall GB & Ireland Team Champions for 2008.

One shot further back in third place were Donaghadee Golf Club from County Down, Northern Ireland, making them the top placed Irish team on countback, after tying on 56 with Bandon Golf Club from County Cork, Ireland. Other GB teams with a net score of 56 were The Royal St Georges Golf Club from Sandwich, Kent, and Cavendish Golf Club from Buxton in Derbyshire.

The winning team from Rotherham – made up of greens chairman Peter Daughtrey, club captain Peter Smallman, deputy head greenkeeper Andy Unwin and John Deere dealer salesman Adrian Holroyde from Bob Wild Grass Machinery Ltd of Mytholmroyd, Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire – won the John Deere Team Championship crystal trophy for the club to keep for a year. In addition, each team member took away a large pewter replica of the famous Open Claret Jug trophy, in addition to a voucher for a complimentary fourball on the Kintyre course at Turnberry.

“We knew we’d made a good score, but we didn’t know it would be good enough to win the tournament,” said club captain Peter Smallman. “We managed an eagle at one par 5 which was probably the clincher. We didn’t realise we’d won until just before the announcement was made at the presentations, so it came as quite a shock to hear Rotherham’s name read out.

“I’ve never been treated so well at a golf event as we were at Turnberry – congratulations have to go to John Deere for their organisation. The tournament, the course and the hotel, everything was just spot on, I can’t think I’ve ever done anything in golf that betters it.

“Winning was the icing on the cake really. Just going to play at Turnberry was an event in itself, so to win the tournament overall was absolutely amazing, a really wonderful feeling.”

Altogether 24 John Deere dealerships organised regional qualifiers for this year’s tournament, the fifth held in Great Britain and Ireland, with a total of 362 teams competing across both countries.

As a result, based on the number of teams entered, John Deere Limited has contributed this year a total of £9080 to support the educational activities of BIGGA (£7380 to the British & International Golf Greenkeepers’ Association) and GCSAI (£1700 to the Golf Course Superintendents’ Association of Ireland). Donations now total £41,855 to BIGGA and £9400 to GCSAI since the Team Championship started in Great Britain and Ireland in 2002.