In one of the most keenly contested matches in Leighton Buzzard’s annual golfing calendar, Club Captain Robbie John secured a convincing victory over All the Presidents Men corralled mainly from the bone-creaking ranks of former senior officials of the Plantation Road club, just 24 hours after beating rivals Aspley Guise in a local inter-club derby.

With a dozen former Captains and ex-Presidents in his ranks, Brian teamed up with John Preston to get off to a winning start against Robbie and his Vice Captain Simon Rossiter.

Then the wheels came off as Robbies’ younger Army notched seven consecutive wins by Manny Barker and Andy McDonald, Graham Freer and Darran Valentine, Denis Leitch and Keith Edmunds, Chris Figg and Nick Tingey, John Latimer and Ian Rimmer, Will Sampson and Andres Valentine and George Stephenson and Sam Messenger.

It was a weekend of double celebration for skipper Robbie, who only the previous day had beaten local rivals Aspley Guise 5-1. Robbie got Leighton off to a comfortable win with Andy McDonald and were followed into the club house with wins by Mark Reynolds and David Hawkins, Simon Enright and David Womack, Lee Sanders and Nick King and Graham Freer and Simon Rossiter.

With the first four pairings suffering defeats, the result was a formality before Ian Rimmer and Peter Myrants carded Leighton’s first win at St. Neots, with David Hawkins and Simon Rossiter halving the last match in a 4-1 loss.

Former works boss John Tarbox is the only player to have hit birdies on all four Par 3 holes in a competition at the Leighton…but that record almost fell when club champion Ed Stephenson got birdies on three of the holes on his way to winning the Club Stableford.  Ed bagged 43 points to beat Stephen Boud by a shot, with Chris Newnham taking third place with 41 points.  But at the age of 17 and playing off a handicap of two, Ed has years on his side to equal 71-year-old Tarby’s unique feat.

Leighton’s Mixed team secured an impressive 3-2 win at Dunstable Downs, with three matches halved. Club Captain Robbie John and Ladies Captain Carmen White Lawes got Leighton off to a flying start, followed by a win by Howard Till and Sandra Carter. Ties by John Tarbox and Marilyn Myatt, Peter Sheridan and Leslie Bednarek and Ian Rimmer and Barbara Rickard followed with Robin Lawes and Stephanie Howlett winning the last match to secure victory for Leighton.

Leighton’s Mid-Handicap league team has reached the final of the Bedfordshire knockout, facing The Bedford at Beds & County on Sunday (October 20).

Andy McDonald won Seniors Captain Peter Myrants’ match at Studley Wood with 38 points, Izzy Ramdeen finishing runner-up with 36pts, a shot clear of Paul Johnson. Graham Robinson won the longest drive and Ian Alexander the nearest-the-pin award.

Leighton’s Derek Richards won the Coleford Classic competition at Greetham Valley, beating club colleagues Will Koch and Chris O’Mahony. Nearest-the-pin prizes were won by David Vaughan, Mick Francis, Chris O’Mahony, Chris Read, Brian Newman and Chris Jones; Will Koch won the longest drive; Steve Baines the Charlie Woods trophy for putting and Chris Jones the GD Trophy.