Another cup weekend passes and as with last year, GT walks away with the honours thanks to the ultimate choke from first round leader, Buchs.
Day 1 saw the rugged Scot accumulate a demanding 5 point lead after carding a suberb 41 stableford points. Solid performances from both GT and Zacka ensured they would join Buchs in the leaders group at Merrist for the final round, much to the annoyance of a distraught Foz who was seeing his dream of a maiden cup victory slide away yet again. A special mention must be made of Caunter who after 5 holes was finally able to put some points on the board. It is this grit and determination that makes him the unique player so many admire.
Shot of the day goes to Radford after teeing off, hitting 3 consecutive hazards, and ending up on the green. Class!
The day ended with some well earned beers at the 19th hole with banter in full swing. Although confident making his way to dinner, Buchs seemed to struggle with the mounting pressure of leading such a prestigous tournament. The ruthless field sensed his weakness and in true cup spirit, ensured he was never without a drink in hand for what turned out to be a very long night.
Day 2 started slowly for the field as they crawled up to the bar at Merrist Wood Golf course to order their bacon and egg sandwiches. Breakfast was quiet and most seemed to be thinking about a gruelling 4 hours ahead on a course that has the potential to punish and demoralise those who stray. Thoughts were also with Buchs who stupidly overdid it on the alcohol the night before, and was unable to leave his comfort zone of the clubhouse toilet to join the field as the first group teed off. This was the start of his historic downfall, or as some would say, "choke".
No one told GT about course reputation as he split the first fairway down the middle with a 300 yard drive to set up an easy par. It was all one way traffic from here on in as he chewed up Buchs' lead within seven holes and never let go. Zacka was able to stay close throughout but four ringers on the back 9 cost him dearly and he had to settle for second place, in front of a devastated Buchs who will need to cut down on his alcohol consumption to have any chance of victory next year.
Beers were once again flowing at the 19th as another brilliant Expat Cup weekend came to an end. GT holds on to the prized cup for another year whilst Caunter takes home the inaugural wooden spoon following two rounds of unique shot selection.
Next years tournament is sure to be another cracker with either Portugal or Cyprus being lined up as the venue. The boys are sure to be out on the fairways of Guildford over the coming months to ensure they're in with a chance of wrenching the Cup away from GT!
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