Honours even after golf marathon

Two Suffolk professionals have had administrators rushing for the record books after a mammoth 10-hole sudden-death play-off failed to result in an outright winner for the Suffolk PGA Stroke-Play Championship.

Bungay and Waveney Valley pro Andrew Collison and Richard Beadles of Royal Worlington agreed to share the title after neither could be separated, despite a marathon 46 holes in a day.

Both players, who remarkably carded 10 straight pars apiece in the shootout which took in seven different holes at Woodbridge Golf Club, admitted it was a fair result in the end after they had both finished at four-under-par following the regulation 36 holes.

Play was eventually halted in moonlight at 6.40pm - with both players having teed off their bid for glory more than TEN hours earlier.

“I was absolutely shattered by the end of it,” admitted Beadles, who shot a second round 64 to force the play-off.

“My battery had run out on my trolley, my electronic range-finder had packed up and we were putting in the dark.

“It was a bit of an experience and there was a good crowd at the start, but by the end of the play-off there was just one man and his dog!

“It was unusual that after 10 holes of sudden-death golf we couldn't be separated, but I think a tie was a fair result in the end.

“I was disappointed not to win, but happy to be tied first.”

Collison echoed the thoughts of his play-off rival. “It was a bit monumental,” he said.

“I was hoping to not to be involved in a play-off, having played well, but Richard came in with a fantastic score to force the play-off.

“We'd done nine holes when it was a case of 'OK, let's do one more'. We wanted to have a winner having gone all that way, but it wasn't to be as we parred the last hole - as we had the previous nine.

“I don't think we could have done anything more and I think we'd still be there now given how we played. But in the end we were both happy to share the title.”