A birdie-birdie finish secured Bradford’s Richard Wheatley a stunning one-shot victory in the Yorkshire County Championship at Fulford.
FORMAT: 72-hole stroke play
Last night the former pro, who now works as a pilot, discovered he was one behind with five holes to go and held his nerve superbly despite a slight mishap with his eagle putt on the par five last.
The 42-year-old, thought to be one of the oldest winners of the event a year after Josh Berry became the youngest, left himself 15 feet away in two but then knocked it five feet past before holing the one coming back to edge out Ganton junior Jack Northgraves, who won the Alvin Trophy for being the leading U-18s player.
On a dramatic final day – with 36 holes being played – a host of players had their chances but Wheatley finished with a 67 (-5) having lost the lead in the morning on the back of a third round 76.
“On the the 14th tee I had a quick look and thought, with 18 playing downwind, if I could get there without dropping any other shots I should be able to force a play-off.
“But in the first and second rounds I finished birdie-birdie and that birdie on 17 was just about the perfect birdie.”
Wheatley almost holed his wedge shot at the penultimate hole and tapped in for a three before finding the centre of the fairway at the last with a three wood and then the middle of the green with his approach.
“After hitting that eagle putt on 18 I started laughing because it took me 71 holes to knock one past the hole but it didn’t phase me. I knew it was dead straight putt coming back.
“In fact all week my plan had been to try and find the middle of every green because if you get it pin high you are never going to be more than 15 feet away and more or less every putt is straight at Fulford.
“And they did a good job of putting the pins out.”
Wheatley, who this year retained his Bradford Open and Hawksworth Trophy titles, started the final day leading my one from Adam Walker (Hudersfield) and Richard Fawcett (Thirsk and Northallerton) thanks to rounds of 71 and 70. Hs effort, alongside South Bradford’s Ollie Tasker, helped the Bradford Union win the Inter District Plate for the first time.
However a switch of wind caused the halfway leader, and a number of other players, a few issues in round three. A four-over effort from Wheatley opened things up, not least for East Riding junior champion Northgraves and Fairhaven Trophy champion Ben Brown. The former started the final round as the leader by one thanks to a superb 69 while the Romanby player was a shot further back thanks to a two-under-par effort.
But Wheatley was not phased by the setback.
He added: “In the morning I was making notes, re my shots, all the way around, so I just took the same club off every tee, and if a 7 iron had come up short in the morning, I knew a 6 iron was going to get the job done.
“It was almost as if the third round was a practice round for the final round.”
Wheatley made a dream start to his fourth round by almost holing his 9 iron approach at the first. He then sunker a 20-footer at the third to draw level with Northgraves, who was five groups ahead and also making ground. The teenager reached the turn in three under as the top two drew away from the rest of the field. Hessle’s Aaron Brettell would eventually finish third on level par.
After a bogey on five, Wheatley got it straight back at the par five next and then also got to three under for his round at eight where his 80-yard approach shot finished two feet behind the pin.
He then parred the next eight holes in a row although came close to further birdies at 10 and 16 before saving his best stuff until the very last, becoming the first Bradford GC player to win the title since Roger Mitchell in 1975.