Surrey Golf
Reggie Fear wins 2023 Boys' Scratch Knockout
The final of the 2023 Boys’ Scratch Knockout was played at Clandon Regis Golf Club on Sunday 12th November. The final was between Joshua Davies (Bramley) and Reggie Fear (Wentworth).
With Josh being our 2023 U17 & U18 Champion, and Reggie having recently won the London Amateur Foursomes, all the signs were pointing towards this being a fantastic final, and it certainly didn’t disappoint!
After a very close front 9, with neither player ever more than 1up in the match, the players teed off the 10th with the match all square. A very uncharacteristic 3 putt from Josh on the 10th green put Reggie 1up in the match. However, two holes later, Josh would hole a massive 30-foot birdie putt on the 12th to level things up once again.
Both players then made pars on 13 & 14, before sharing the 15th hole with birdie 4s. This meant that the match was still all square as the players made their way to the 16th tee.
After both splitting the middle of the 16th fairway off the tee, Josh came up just short of the green with his second shot, whilst Reggie knocked his second in to around 15 feet. Josh played a brilliant pitch shot to within gimme range, leaving Reggie with a very makeable birdie putt to go back to 1up in the match. However, it wasn’t to be, and the putt slid agonizingly past the hole. With the match remaining all square, the players moved on to the 17th tee.
Josh teed off first on the 17th (a 174-yard par 3), however he didn’t produce his finest iron shot of the day, going long of the green and into a tricky position. Reggie was up next and again stuck his iron shot into around 15 feet. Josh pitched up to 6 feet, providing Reggie with another chance to move to 1up in the match. However, this birdie attempt also slid by, meaning that Josh had a downhill 6 foot putt to keep things level. He duly knocked this in, and the players moved to the 18th tee all square.
As was the story of the day, both players striped their tee shots right down the middle of the 18th fairway. Reggie went first with his second, and hit another fantastic iron shot straight over the flag, coming to rest about 30 feet behind the pin. Josh then produced an even better second shot, leaving himself with a birdie putt of around 15 feet.
This meant that Reggie was to putt first, a big breaker from the back of the green. With all the pressure on his shoulders and all the spectators watching on, Reggie poured his birdie putt right in the middle of the hole for an excellent birdie 3! This meant that it was over to Josh, who had holed some great putts over the last few holes. He hit another good putt on the 18th, however it slid right past the edge of the hole, meaning that Reggie was the champion!
Very well done to both players for reaching the final, it was played in excellent spirits and was a pleasure to watch.
Massive congratulations to Reggie Fear, the Surrey Boys’ Scratch Knockout Champion 2023!
Many thanks also to Clandon Regis Golf Club for hosting the event.
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