It was a victory with extra meaning for Moor Hall’s Dan Bardsley as the 34-year-old beat his little brother Rob to win the Warwickshire Men’s Matchplay at Kenilworth on Sunday.
FORMAT: 36-hole stroke play / 3 rounds of matchplay
The two “best friends” did battle over 36 holes with Dan holding his nerve on the final green to edge it. Both went into the match having never won the title before.
For former pro Rob it was another near miss but for his big brother it was another step forward in his “golfing revival” having not played for much of his 20s. Five years ago he picked up the golf clubs again and in the last two years, especially, has taken his game to another level.
“I think most people perceive me to be the better player,” said Rob.
“However Dan has really upped his game and has been playing the better golf this year. Because of that I went into the final with plenty of fire in my belly because, maybe had we played before, it would not quite have had the edge.
“And I definitely wanted to win but if there’s a person who I don’t mind losing to it’s him.”
Last month the duo paired up to win the illustrious Bainbridge Shield foursomes competition at Olton.
And they had identical scores in the county stroke play the previous week at Kenilworth, shooting 70 and 71 to qualify in fourth and fifth. Former pro Warren Bladon (Kenilworth) was the overall winner after a three-hole play-off. His only previous victory in the event came 35 years earlier.
Stratford-on-Avon’s Gareth Jenkins, who finished third, decided not to play in the match play which crucially kept the Bardsley brothers on either side of the quarter-final draw.
And in the final, watched by their parents, Dan was never headed although he was pegged back to all square at crucial times.
In the morning the would-be champion reached the turn four up, a run of three birdies in a row, starting at the sixth, helping him establish a commanding lead.
However by halfway it was all square. Rob won four holes in a row from the tenth – three of them with successive birdies – before he bogeyed 14 to fall behind again, regaining parity at 17 thanks to a birdie and then missed a 10 footer on 18 to go one up at lunch.
In the afternoon Dan went two up on the eighth but again he was pegged back as his opponent birdied three in a row on the back nine and with four to play it was all square.
Dan went back ahead at the par five 16th where he got up and down for a birdie, the next was halved in pars and then it all got very tense on the par three 18th as Dan explains.
“We were both similar distances away with our tee shots so had to get a measure and I think it ended up that I was 25 feet away and Rob was 26 feet away.
“So he went first and knocked it stone dead but I put mine three feet past. As I was walking up to my ball Rob gave me a look as if to say ‘what are you doing!’.
“But I just stood up there and thought it’s left edge and in it went.
“Rob has always been the better player and was really good as a junior but I have caught up. I really enjoy practising. Just hitting balls is like therapy for me and all the hard work is paying off at the moment.”