Jon Samuel (Hull) bt Jonnie Fisher (Hornsea) 7&6
The final of the East Riding Union of Golf Clubs’ Matchplay Championship was played at Ganton Golf Club on Sunday 15th September.
The match was between Hornsea’s Jonny Fisher Ulliott and long established East Riding player and twice previous winner of the Match play Championship, Jon Samuel of the Hull Golf Club.
When the match teed off the early morning weather was kind with a gentle westerly breeze and blue skies, but these conditions changed rapidly when the temperature dropped, the wind strengthened and the rain moved in to provide testy conditions for both players.
The early holes set the tone of the match to come. Fisher Ulliott’s drives from the tee were considerably further than Samuel’s fairway splitting drives, but the story on the greens was the critical factor in this match. Samuel quickly got to grips with the tricky Ganton greens, whereas Fisher Ulliott struggled with the pace and lost the 1st and 3rd holes by 3 putting and, with Samuel sinking a birdie putt on the second from 8 feet, Fisher Ulliott was three down after 3 holes.
Following pars by both players on the 4th Samuel made a rare mistake by 3 putting the 5th from some 8 yards, leaving Fisher Ulliott 2 down. Samuel regained his 3-hole advantage when Fisher Ulliott bunkered himself on the long par 6th hole. Over the next three holes the players matched each other leaving Samuel with a three hole advantage after 9 holes.
Fisher Ulliott bunkered himself greenside on the short par 3 10th hole allowing Samuel to take a four hole lead. The 11th hole was birdied by both players and the 12th was parred but the 13th was gifted to Samuel when Fisher Ulliott’s putting woes came back to haunt him and his 3 putt gave Samuel a 5 hole advantage. The short par four 14th saw Fisher Ulliott drive into one of Ganton’s deep cavernous bunkers at which he needed three attempts to get out and so gifted another hole to Samuel who was now 6 up.
Both players failed to get onto the long par 4 15th hole and the two bogey 5s meant hole halved. The 16th was won by Fisher Ulliott following a prodigious fairway splitting drive and short iron in to within 8 feet which he then holed for birdie and reducing the deficit to 5 holes. The 17th saw the putting woes return and when he three putted he dropped back to 6 down. The problems continued for Fisher Ulliott down the 18th when his second shot to the green was lost in deep gorse leaving the match after 18 holes in Samuels favour by a margin of 7.
The second round began with Fisher Ulliott needing a big change in fortune, but this was not to be. After halving the 1st in par, Samuel went further ahead when he holed out from 8 foot for a birdie three on the second hole. The 3rd and 4th holes were halved in pars, but when Fisher Ulliott bunkered himself at the short par 3 5th, Samuel's par 3 was good enough to take his advantage to 9 holes with only 12 to play. The 10th and 11th holes saw two poor tee shots from Samuel and when he failed to make par at either hole Fisher Ulliott had managed to reduce the deficit to 7 holes with 7 to play. The dogleg 12th hole was halved with par 4s so this left Jon Samuel the ERUGC Matchplay Champion for 2024 winning by a margin of 7&6.
Jon won his first Matchplay title in 2003 and followed it up the following year when he completed the rare Strokeplay and Matchplay double. Noone had managed it since until today!
Pictured below: Jonny congratulates Jon (grey top) on the 12th green
Jonty Hall, President of the East Riding Union of Golf Clubs presented Jon Samuel with the Championship Trophy after the meal in the Ganton Clubhouse.
Geoff Drewery
ERUGC Matchplay Secretary
