It is with great excitement that we announce the 2018 Newark Cup on 28th and 29 April. Once again the captains have chosen Hampshire’s iconic Tylney Park Golf Club as the venue for this premier match play tournament between two of the golfing worlds leading teams. As the first tee time fast approaches preparations have begun for this titanic battle delivering drama, tension and incredible golf.

After the 2017 event saw an exciting final day showdown where the Gloucestershire team clawed back their doubles losses to edge past the Hampshire team in the singles both teams have something to prove. The Gloucestershire team, keeping faith with the same 8, despite some pointless team members, have made this event a priority in their schedules and are tailoring their training to peak for the weekend. The Hampshire team make 2 changes to last years team including a return to action for their captain, Dave Smith, and he’s drafted in Tony as a replacement for Richard who unfortunately is cup-tied due to his responsibilities as Captain of Tylney Park this year. Tony brings style, panache and much needed charisma to the Hampshire hopefuls as well as experience of these high pressure events. The two Newark debutants will be looking to make winning starts to the careers.

The format remains the same and the cup will be fought for over 2 days and be played using traditional matchplay rules. Day 1 , Saturday 28th April, will see players arrive at the venue for 12.30pm for bacon butties and to rekindle their competiveness with the opposition followed by a debriefing on the rules. The first afternoon of competition will commence at 1.30pm in the format of 18 hole Fourball better ball taking 90% of the difference, as per 2016 R&A rules, off the best player in the group. Both teams will select 4 pairs of golfers to compete for the pride of their teams and try to win their point.

Sunday will see the finale of the Newark Cup and be the singles day. First tee off at 11.30am  and will see 2 pairs of golfers from each team going out as 4 ball but competing in singles. Full difference between the handicaps will be taken off the best golfer from the two teams to dictate the handicapping for the final 18 holes. On completion of the singles there will be sandwiches and a presentation before everyone heads home.

There are 12 points on offer for both teams in total (4 for the doubles and 8 for the singles). A win will score 1 point whilst a halved game will share the point between the teams. The winning team will be the first to score 6.5 points.

The Home Team                                     The Away Team

Dave Smith                                               Ben
Ian G                                                          Rob
Steve                                                          Nick
Brian                                                          Mark
Tony                                                           Ian
Costas                                                        Andy
Dave E                                                       Richie
Derek                                                         Adrian

The above is not indicative of the pairings which will be picked closer to the event.

The Hampshire Newarks 2017

The Gloucestershire Newarks 2017

The Pairings

The following pairings have been selected to battle it out for the Newark Cup 2018. The Captains could change the pairings dependent on day 1 performances but there would have to be some pretty bad performances to force a change. Hcps are now fixed for the event so any changes to the below will make somebody happy.

Day 1:

Day 2:

Dinner and Digs

Dinner Saturday night will be at the New Inn, Heckfield, which will also provide the overnight accommodation for the away team. Both the home and away teams will be attending to regale the table with tales of the day. The pub is situated 10 minutes away from the golf course but unfortunately Tim and June have moved on, however we still expect the evening to be entertaining and full of food and beverages as well as guaranteed banter. Please provide your menu choices to your captain before 22nd April.

The Damage

The Away team will need to fork out £120 for the weekend encompassing two rounds of golf, bacon butties, sandwiches at the course and B&B at the pub. Dinner and drinks are NOT included in the £120.