Scotland must now be Favourites to win the Jamboree

After yesterday's torrential rain, twelve pairings of willing golfers assembled bright and early this morning for their foursomes at a soggy Bath Golf Club - four pairings were 'resting' back in the hotel oblivious to everything and they were the lucky ones since no one went out in the morning at all. Someone had forgotten to pull the plug out in Bath with consequent overflowing all over the golf course . This must be the most unfortunate of annual competitions when it would seem almost unheard of if some part of the game were not cancelled due to rain, resulting in the inevitable frenetic calculation of a winner from games points. It was exactly the same thing last year at Southerness, and before then at Strathmore, Seaton Carew, Frilford Heath etc etc.

This morning the foursomes were cancelled due to flooding on the greens and it was decided to send out eight single matches in the afternoon only, all teams getting the ninth point to make up the deficit.


Scotland took on the Midlands who had won the previous day against the South. The games were not quite so close as yesterday but the result of the whole match was. It fell to the back-marker, Helen Faulds to produce the winning point for Scotland to chalk up yet another victory - the only team so far to have maximum points.


This last game was all the more exciting because, with the match sitting at 4/3 to Scotland, a win by the Midlands would have meant a drawn match. Helen didn't make it easy on herself (or her supporters) by driving out of bounds and over a dry stane dyke at the seventeenth, where her game was all square. Minor problem - three off the tee, mid-iron to the green and a 10 yard tramliner to halve the hole in five! Eighteenth hole and still all square, saw a nice par five for Helen and bunker trouble for Angela Dawson. Hole, game and match to Scotland.


Out of the eight matches, four were won, two were halved and two were lost. Fiona de Vries met a barrage of five birdies from Janet Collingham (a former English champion) and Heather Anderson lost very narrowly at the seventeenth to Paula Parker. Lorna Bennett was one down going into the eighteenth but won the hole to get a halved match and Mary Smith likewise got a drawn match after being two down with three to play. Moira Thomson played very well to win by 5 and 4 against Andrea Stockdale. Good wins by Fiona Hunter and Kathleen Sutherland brought the total to 5-3. Well done girls.

Results.
Fiona de Vries lost to Janet Collingham 4 and 3
Lorna Bennett halved with Jo Ashmore
Heather Anderson lost to Paula Parker 2 and 1
Kathleen Sutherland beat Pat West 5 and 3
Mary Smith halved with Julie Walter
Fiona Hunter beat Denise Parker 3 and 2
Moira Thomson beat Andrea Stockdale 5 and 4
Helen Faulds beat Angela Dawson 1 up


The South who lost to Midlands yesterday, maintained their losing streak with a 6 1/2 - 2 1/2 defeat by the North who now have two points. Scotland play the South tomorrow but can assume nothing.

Table
Scotland 4 points
Midlands 2 points
North 2 points
South nil points

Still all to play for.