Hobson Cup 2019

Ten pairs were divided into two boxes in pursuit of the Hobson Cup. Runaway winners of Box 1 were the deadly duo of Keith Beechener and his young gazelle Jon Lambdon (combined handicap 42) who won all four sets, followed as runners up bv father and son combo of Steve and Harry Walsh whose only loss was to the deadly duo. Alan Moug and bobble-hatted James Richardson (38) and Craig Swallow and Mat Fattorini (41) managed two wins each and the Box’s door stops were winless Tony Branfield and Bernie Spratt.

Box 2 was a closer affair – however the Cup was not endangered in any way by Julian Rawstorne and Chris Creighton-Thomas (57) whose tally of games was not dissimilar to the runs total of the England openers in the Caribbean. George K. and Professor of Angles Stewart Hodges were unfortunate to be squeezed out of a Sunday appearance by a game or two by Mark Savage and John Franklin (64) as were  the Chairman and John Lillie (35) who found an afternoon of playing against an average handicap of 58 in the arctic conditions, an Everest-type challenge but deserved winners of the Box were Bruce Paxton and David Phillips (55) who triumphed in all four of their games, the latter failing in any way to hide his glee at defeating the Chairman.

In the first of Sunday’s semi-finals, Lambdon and Beechener found giving an arm if not a leg to Savage and Franklin an unforced error too far and in the other semi, Walsh the younger directed his father in a successful dowsing of Paxton and Phillips’s expectations. Flicker of reaction from the Chairman was there none …

In the Final, Franklin and Savage looked as though they had imbibed a skinful of Vin Sauvage overnight, failing to fire on even one cylinder. The Walsh’s triumphant progress was briefly challenged at 0-4 down. The Franklin’s Tale was a sad one of an unsuccessful battle with Senior Walsh’s semi-railroad serve, carrying out to the letter Walsh Junior’s helpful order of ‘Serve him an ace.’ Father and Son were scarcely troubled in their quest to hoist the glistening Hobson Cup aloft.