TONY Holt lifted the Lancashire Evening Telegraph Harold Ryden Trophy at the third attempt - but nearly injured his mother-in-law in the process!
Holt, a member at Wilpshire, won ELGA's showpiece event after a sensational 3 and 2 victory over Darwen's Gary Phillipson in the rain at Pleasington last night.
But his celebrations were very nearly marred when he hooked a tee shot on the 15th and his ball flew towards the crowd, narrowly missing his mother-in-law before bouncing off a tree and back into play. "I could have won the Harold Ryden and killed my mother-in-law all in one swoop!" Holt joked.
"It means everything to me to win this," said the delighted ELGA captain.
"I'm chuffed to bits. I feel like I could do hula-hoops. It's the pinnacle of my career without a doubt."
It was the 39-year-old's third appearance in the final after twice finishing runner up in 1990 and 1991.
"I thought my chance had gone after losing out twice before.
"To get back into the final after seven years I just felt I had to give it my best shot."
Previous sport story
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article