Adcock stages fightback to win English crown

• Monday, 4 August 2008
• Paula Benn
• 0 Comments

• Print
• Comment
• Mail
• RSS Feed

In a final that see-sawed throughout, the Sussex man deserved his success and now knows he has written his name in English amateur folklore.

“I’m amazed,” was his first reaction. “I just can’t believe it. But I’ve taken each match and each round at a time and it’s been a long week.”

For Paisley, who teed off as favourite after his exploits at college in the United States, looked shell-shocked as he was 2-up with six to play. But, in stark contrast to his play throughout the week, he lost four holes in a row from the 13th, two with errant drives and the game was up.

“I’m bitterly disappointed,” he said. “It’s a shame to come all this way and not to finish it off but Todd deserved it. He played great and didn’t give me a lot. When I hit some loose shots he capitalised on it.

“The two loose drives cost me but if you make a mistake around the Hotchkin course you get punished.”

Yet it might have been a completely different story. Although he went into lunch 1-up. Adcock had a disastrous start to the afternoon round, which looked as if was going to be a serious handicap.

He drove out of bounds at the first to lose his lead then another poor drive at the second when he had to hack out of the trees, allowed Paisley to get his nose in front for the first time. Paisley then won the third with a birdie-three while Adcock conceded the fourth after visiting two greenside bunkers.

Three down at that early stage would have shattered most golfers. But Adcock steadied the ship and a conceded three at the long sixth got him back on track.

However, it wasn’t until he holed a crucial putt for a half at the ninth, then drained another for birdie at the tenth that he fancied his chances. Although Paisley took the short 12th with a par to restore his two hole lead, the Northumberland lad began to lose his swing.

He pulled his drive into trees at 13 and lost the hole. At the long 14th he failed to get up-and-down from a bunker and was back to all square. Adcock turned the screw by firing his approach to a foot at the par four 15th for another winning birdie and when Paisley found the trees again off the 16th tee to go 2-down the end was neigh.

It came at the 336-yard 17th where Paisley’s long putt finished eight feet past and when Adcock’s putt hit the hole, they shook hands.

“This win means a hell of a lot to me,” added Adcock. “A few months ago I wasn’t playing well. My handicap had gone back to scratch but I’ve been working hard and this tops it off.”

The English Amateur Championship is sponsored by Your Golf Holidays. More information, news and daily scores can be found on the Championships section of the EGU website www.englishgolfunion.org.