Tim Markwick won a battle royal with Hampshire team-mate David Porter for the Southampton Open Golf Championship on Saturday night.
South Winchester clubman Markwick shot rounds of 69 and 71 to oust Stoneham's Porter (70 & 71) by one shot.
For Hampshire champion Porter it was a farewell to amateur golf because today the England international starts out as a trainee at East Horton where he'll work for club professional Trevor Pearce.
The 20-year-old former Carris Trophy and McEvoy Trophy winner was hoping to go out in a blaze of glory at the city's Municipal course where he was a winner last year.
There was never much more than a shot in it as Markwick led by one after the first 18 holes then Porter pulled it back to all square 12 holes into the second round.
That's when Markwick really turned up the heat with a birdie at the 13th to go back to one up but he struck his biggest blow at the par four 14th where he holed out with a pitching wedge for an eagle two. Porter won the next two holes by a shot, but bogeyed the short 17th to hand to initiative back to Markwick, who had the luxury of being able to bogey the last and still get home by one shot.
Third place went to Southampton club champion Simon Bernard with rounds of 75 and 71. Bernard will soon by flying the flag for Southampton in the final of the Club Champion of Champions after winning the regional qualifier at Old Thorns.
South Winchester hope, scratch man Paul Neilson, who holds the record for the longest hole in one in the UK, was two adrift of Bernard with rounds of 73 and 75.
The handicap trophy went to Stoneham clubman Mike Welland, who recorded a nett 135 (69 and 66) off a handicap of nine. Second was Joe Dyer with 136 on countback from Phil Rogers.
Another Stoneham clubman Lewis Hutchings hit the best PM gross score with 70 after Markwick had chalked up the best of the morning rounds, a level par 69, although it was Andy Macey who took the prize with a 71. Best morning and afternoon nett scores went to nine-handicapper Phil Macey (66) and M Foggie (68) respectively.
Will Chamberlain struggled to over 100 in the first round but had the satisfaction of putting the ball nearest to the pin at the tenth hole in the second round. Nearest in the morning was Southampton Korean member Yeung Jai Cho.
There were 90 players in the field, 60 below seven handicap.
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