Year One – Crane Valley 1996
The first Trevor was an eight a side match with the following players
representing the two teams:
OHA - LT, Copey, Gazza, Hoody, Jules, Kill, Leafy and Rich.
ROW - Prich, Dronny, Irritant, Kai, Karlos, Lethal, Sarge and Woz.
Even year one had a small selection problem as Gazza was unable to play day one
attending a job interview, so his brother, the Saint stood in as deputy for the day.
Jules had the privilege of hitting the first shot in Trevor history but the 9 hole match went the way of the ROW as one of the early successful ROW partnerships, Prich & Dronny, prevailed. The ROW proved too strong throughout the weekend and three days later duly became the winners of the first Trevor.
The two main highlights of the inaugural event was a mammoth sports quiz hosted by LT in the Spartan
accommodation in Bournemouth when local residents stepped into the smoke filled room somewhat disgruntled by the level of noise emanating from said room. The poor elderly couple that lodged this complaint were quite shocked
by what they had stepped into!!
Secondly was the longest singles match in history. With all other games completed, the boys waited eagerly for
the final game to come round the corner of the final hole - but they hadn’t quite anticipated how long this wait would be!! Not one, not two nor three different groups appeared, each time local players, before finally the last singles match
was seen on the 18th.
After five hours (!!) Kill and Woz finally emerged. Woz seemingly a little frustrated by the time he had spent on the course, Kill just focused on the task ahead!! Somehow Kill managed a half against his mighty opponent. (with
what lay ahead in future singles matches for Kill, perhaps he should have adopted a similar approach with his later singles opponents – that of boring them into submission!! - LT)
The legend of The Trevor had been born!!!
representing the two teams:
OHA - LT, Copey, Gazza, Hoody, Jules, Kill, Leafy and Rich.
ROW - Prich, Dronny, Irritant, Kai, Karlos, Lethal, Sarge and Woz.
Even year one had a small selection problem as Gazza was unable to play day one
attending a job interview, so his brother, the Saint stood in as deputy for the day.
Jules had the privilege of hitting the first shot in Trevor history but the 9 hole match went the way of the ROW as one of the early successful ROW partnerships, Prich & Dronny, prevailed. The ROW proved too strong throughout the weekend and three days later duly became the winners of the first Trevor.
The two main highlights of the inaugural event was a mammoth sports quiz hosted by LT in the Spartan
accommodation in Bournemouth when local residents stepped into the smoke filled room somewhat disgruntled by the level of noise emanating from said room. The poor elderly couple that lodged this complaint were quite shocked
by what they had stepped into!!
Secondly was the longest singles match in history. With all other games completed, the boys waited eagerly for
the final game to come round the corner of the final hole - but they hadn’t quite anticipated how long this wait would be!! Not one, not two nor three different groups appeared, each time local players, before finally the last singles match
was seen on the 18th.
After five hours (!!) Kill and Woz finally emerged. Woz seemingly a little frustrated by the time he had spent on the course, Kill just focused on the task ahead!! Somehow Kill managed a half against his mighty opponent. (with
what lay ahead in future singles matches for Kill, perhaps he should have adopted a similar approach with his later singles opponents – that of boring them into submission!! - LT)
The legend of The Trevor had been born!!!
Year Two – Lyneham 1997
The success of year one led to an expansion of the teams to a twelve a side match. LT stood down as captain passing this role onto Rich who introduced a policy that has since stayed in place for the OHA team.
The OHA team, primarily boys educated at the great pillar of education that is Hampton School, would be allowed two “captain’s picks” of non Hamptonians.
Rich duly introduced Matt Rowlands and JG into the fold in 1997, JG’s introduction being particularly impressive, as a last minute call up, flying in from Malta the day before the event. He became the first of the Jockos to represent the OHA, a run that continued for the next 16 years when finally broken in 2012.
Kill sadly failed a late fitness test, a reasonable excuse as he was recovering from major heart surgery, meaning that three other Hamptonians made up the team. Saint was, of course, not a debutant having played a day the previous year, the two new boys being Joey and Cooky.
Prich introduced four new boys to his team – Evan, Kev, Medsey & Softers, the common thread all being mates from the heady days at Leicester Poly (sorry De Montford University!!). Three of these boys would become established lifelong trevorers, one would become the first of the “disgraced trevorers” two years later.
Kill attended the Trevor as a non-player and started the event with a remarkable player presentation ceremony on the first tee before settling into his role as the roving on course reporter with many passionate player interviews undertaken within the heat of battle.
As proved to be a recurrent theme in later years, The Trevor debutants struggled to deal with “the pressure of The
Trevor” and although they enjoyed the weekend, points proved quite elusive for the majority. The end of weekend interviews from said players had a recurrent theme - “I didn’t know what I was stepping into!!”.
The Irritant secured his status that befitted his name and it remains questionable over the years he spent at The Trevor whether he wound up the OHA team more than his own!! Certainly, this year his outrageous behaviour of engaging in a scrap with fellow ROW team mate, Softers(bit of a mismatch in my eyes – LT!!) whilst in a car that involved the opening of a passenger door when driving at 50mph and also breaking Softers’ glasses at the same time, certainly added fuel to this debate!!
Once again the ROW prevailed, this time the match was very close. News had filtered in from the course that a ROW victory had secured the winning point and then the players at the clubhouse witnessed an amazing event as captain Prichy went on a uncontrolled dance of joy down the 18th hole – quite remarkable scenes!!
The OHA team, primarily boys educated at the great pillar of education that is Hampton School, would be allowed two “captain’s picks” of non Hamptonians.
Rich duly introduced Matt Rowlands and JG into the fold in 1997, JG’s introduction being particularly impressive, as a last minute call up, flying in from Malta the day before the event. He became the first of the Jockos to represent the OHA, a run that continued for the next 16 years when finally broken in 2012.
Kill sadly failed a late fitness test, a reasonable excuse as he was recovering from major heart surgery, meaning that three other Hamptonians made up the team. Saint was, of course, not a debutant having played a day the previous year, the two new boys being Joey and Cooky.
Prich introduced four new boys to his team – Evan, Kev, Medsey & Softers, the common thread all being mates from the heady days at Leicester Poly (sorry De Montford University!!). Three of these boys would become established lifelong trevorers, one would become the first of the “disgraced trevorers” two years later.
Kill attended the Trevor as a non-player and started the event with a remarkable player presentation ceremony on the first tee before settling into his role as the roving on course reporter with many passionate player interviews undertaken within the heat of battle.
As proved to be a recurrent theme in later years, The Trevor debutants struggled to deal with “the pressure of The
Trevor” and although they enjoyed the weekend, points proved quite elusive for the majority. The end of weekend interviews from said players had a recurrent theme - “I didn’t know what I was stepping into!!”.
The Irritant secured his status that befitted his name and it remains questionable over the years he spent at The Trevor whether he wound up the OHA team more than his own!! Certainly, this year his outrageous behaviour of engaging in a scrap with fellow ROW team mate, Softers(bit of a mismatch in my eyes – LT!!) whilst in a car that involved the opening of a passenger door when driving at 50mph and also breaking Softers’ glasses at the same time, certainly added fuel to this debate!!
Once again the ROW prevailed, this time the match was very close. News had filtered in from the course that a ROW victory had secured the winning point and then the players at the clubhouse witnessed an amazing event as captain Prichy went on a uncontrolled dance of joy down the 18th hole – quite remarkable scenes!!
Year 3 – East Dorset, 1998
The early Trevor years were played in the Easter holiday period and on tight budgets - boy we paid the price this year with the weather. This weekend was one of floods throughout the country and this Trevor was played in pretty atrocious conditions throughout - cold and wet with the course almost unplayable. Indeed we were often the only mad fools on the course!! Somehow we managed to get things done.
The ROW team were unchanged, a very rare occurrence whilst the OHA made two changes to try and secure their first Trevor victory.
Kill was now back to full health, Saint was unavailable and Jim Hook made his debut at the expense of Cooky, the captain deciding on a more mature selection policy.
The event started in a cloud of controversy, highlighting the feisty nature of the early days. LT had only just recovered from a ruptured Achilles operation and was only able to play using a buggy as transportation. After a very heated
debate, the ROW captain announced that LT’s playing partners could not share the buggy leaving LT to a pretty lonely and miserably cold weekend of solitude in a buggy – thankfully such poor decisions are no longer part of The
Trevor!!
This was the first Trevor with on course accommodation that proved helpful with timings as the rounds took so long in the awful conditions – on one day play was not completed until after 8.00pm, pretty well in the dark!! One sad memory was the break in to Copey’s car only discovered on departure.
Finally the OHA got there first Trevor win in another closely fought contest. It really was a battle of attrition rather than quality golf, and with everbody focused only on trying to keep warm and dry, memories of any of the golf remain as cloudy as the weather!!
Both captains announced their retirement, Rich appointing Gazza as his successor, Prich passing the baton onto Lethal. Two good friends off the course but two friends that became bitter rivals on course (Lethal just knew how to get into Gazza’s head!! – LT). An interesting next two years was guaranteed!!!
The ROW team were unchanged, a very rare occurrence whilst the OHA made two changes to try and secure their first Trevor victory.
Kill was now back to full health, Saint was unavailable and Jim Hook made his debut at the expense of Cooky, the captain deciding on a more mature selection policy.
The event started in a cloud of controversy, highlighting the feisty nature of the early days. LT had only just recovered from a ruptured Achilles operation and was only able to play using a buggy as transportation. After a very heated
debate, the ROW captain announced that LT’s playing partners could not share the buggy leaving LT to a pretty lonely and miserably cold weekend of solitude in a buggy – thankfully such poor decisions are no longer part of The
Trevor!!
This was the first Trevor with on course accommodation that proved helpful with timings as the rounds took so long in the awful conditions – on one day play was not completed until after 8.00pm, pretty well in the dark!! One sad memory was the break in to Copey’s car only discovered on departure.
Finally the OHA got there first Trevor win in another closely fought contest. It really was a battle of attrition rather than quality golf, and with everbody focused only on trying to keep warm and dry, memories of any of the golf remain as cloudy as the weather!!
Both captains announced their retirement, Rich appointing Gazza as his successor, Prich passing the baton onto Lethal. Two good friends off the course but two friends that became bitter rivals on course (Lethal just knew how to get into Gazza’s head!! – LT). An interesting next two years was guaranteed!!!
Year 4 – Princes, 1999
The first three years had been organised on a modest budget but The Trevor had now become big enough and important enough to up the ante and move up a notch in terms of quality of the golf course.
Princes became the first of these quality venues, an Open final qualifying course and host to the 1935 Open (won by golfing legend Gene Sarazen – LT). It was also our first venture to a Links Course. Accommodation was in Sandwich at The Bell, the weather was kind and everybody agreed this was the best Trevor to date – and once again not without controversy!!
The team changes meant three new debutants. For the ROW, Kai was unavailable and Evan left out in disgrace after a few personal issues back in the land of his fathers (he had also gone walkabout and nobody actually knew where he was!! - LT). This brought in new boys, Jack & Big Dog, two welcome additions to the fold.
For the OHA, Rich had now returned to Oz and, not surprisingly, was unable to make the journey, so Cooky returned. Jules had joined Rich Down Under after a job posting just before the Trevor, opening the door for the debut of the second Jocko, Clacks who made an immediate impression on and off the course!!
Saintly returned replacing Matt Rowlands, who now had played his last Trevor. The ruthless Copey, had perhaps received one to many jibes about his height from the giant that was Matt and took his revenge by persuading Gazza to not pick him!! A hard man indeed!!! (In his defence, with Clacks on board, the non OHA allowance of two would have been exceeded and there were ten Hamptonians available - LT).
Probably the highlight at the start with a large Trevor audience, Cooky, perhaps trying that little bit too hard, managed an air shot on the first tee (a Trevor first and still the only occasion in Trevor history– LT!!).
The big incident occurred on the 18th green in the four ball match between Kill & Jim against Dronny & Softers. With
the majority of trevorers watching from the balcony, this was the last game and we had all been waiting quite a while (why wouldn’t we as it involved Kill in a tight one – LT!!). Then we all stood confused as long conversations ensued on the 18th green. A rules infringement was called and the hole claimed that halved the match - and all hell broke loose!!
Captain Gazza stormed downstairs to find out what had happened, threatening to knock seven bells out of any ROW player that got in his way!! Explanations were given in the changing room once everybody had calmed down a
little, poor old Softers, the innocent party in this torrid affair, was apoplectic but the decision stood as we retired to the hotel as it was the end of day’s play, tempers still frayed!!
Somehow by the time everybody had assembled in the bar, the decision had been properly reviewed and the ROW skip announced that the result would be adjusted as the ruling was incorrect - a magnanimous decision welcomed by all and the incident was soon forgotten after a few beers.
It is mentioned in such detail because it did possibly prove to be a benchmark moment in The Trevor’s history –
yes it would always be competitive, but incidents like this have not been seen on the course since this time, or have they?? LT with a fading memory.
Back to the golf. The ROW had some hot boys this weekend, certainly the Irritant’s finest weekend and arguably Medsey’s best and along with an overall strong performance by all the team under the tutelage of the wily Lethal, the ROW prevailed to win back the Trevor to go 3-1 up in the series.
Princes was such a success that a return was inevitable and it duly became the first course that we returned to for a second Trevor in 2008.
Princes became the first of these quality venues, an Open final qualifying course and host to the 1935 Open (won by golfing legend Gene Sarazen – LT). It was also our first venture to a Links Course. Accommodation was in Sandwich at The Bell, the weather was kind and everybody agreed this was the best Trevor to date – and once again not without controversy!!
The team changes meant three new debutants. For the ROW, Kai was unavailable and Evan left out in disgrace after a few personal issues back in the land of his fathers (he had also gone walkabout and nobody actually knew where he was!! - LT). This brought in new boys, Jack & Big Dog, two welcome additions to the fold.
For the OHA, Rich had now returned to Oz and, not surprisingly, was unable to make the journey, so Cooky returned. Jules had joined Rich Down Under after a job posting just before the Trevor, opening the door for the debut of the second Jocko, Clacks who made an immediate impression on and off the course!!
Saintly returned replacing Matt Rowlands, who now had played his last Trevor. The ruthless Copey, had perhaps received one to many jibes about his height from the giant that was Matt and took his revenge by persuading Gazza to not pick him!! A hard man indeed!!! (In his defence, with Clacks on board, the non OHA allowance of two would have been exceeded and there were ten Hamptonians available - LT).
Probably the highlight at the start with a large Trevor audience, Cooky, perhaps trying that little bit too hard, managed an air shot on the first tee (a Trevor first and still the only occasion in Trevor history– LT!!).
The big incident occurred on the 18th green in the four ball match between Kill & Jim against Dronny & Softers. With
the majority of trevorers watching from the balcony, this was the last game and we had all been waiting quite a while (why wouldn’t we as it involved Kill in a tight one – LT!!). Then we all stood confused as long conversations ensued on the 18th green. A rules infringement was called and the hole claimed that halved the match - and all hell broke loose!!
Captain Gazza stormed downstairs to find out what had happened, threatening to knock seven bells out of any ROW player that got in his way!! Explanations were given in the changing room once everybody had calmed down a
little, poor old Softers, the innocent party in this torrid affair, was apoplectic but the decision stood as we retired to the hotel as it was the end of day’s play, tempers still frayed!!
Somehow by the time everybody had assembled in the bar, the decision had been properly reviewed and the ROW skip announced that the result would be adjusted as the ruling was incorrect - a magnanimous decision welcomed by all and the incident was soon forgotten after a few beers.
It is mentioned in such detail because it did possibly prove to be a benchmark moment in The Trevor’s history –
yes it would always be competitive, but incidents like this have not been seen on the course since this time, or have they?? LT with a fading memory.
Back to the golf. The ROW had some hot boys this weekend, certainly the Irritant’s finest weekend and arguably Medsey’s best and along with an overall strong performance by all the team under the tutelage of the wily Lethal, the ROW prevailed to win back the Trevor to go 3-1 up in the series.
Princes was such a success that a return was inevitable and it duly became the first course that we returned to for a second Trevor in 2008.
Year 5 – East Sussex National, 2000
The popularity of The Trevor was growing and going into the new millennium the teams expanded for the first time up to fourteen-a-side.
Kai returned to the ROW team replacing the unavailable Medsey and two new debutants were introduced , Matt Watson and Hippo.
The OHA team were unchanged with the extra two made up by both Oz boys, Jules & Rich managing to make the trip. Something that they have generally managed to do for many years hence – good on yer!!
Once again we were beset with some very inclement Spring weather, the course already a tough test, became a monster in these conditions. Obviously the Hampton boys seem to manage these tough conditions a little better as they had the upperhand over the first two days to take a big lead into the final singles day - this on top of their only previous success in equally bad conditions two years earlier.
This led to a remarkable display from the ROW on the final day as the ROW team appeared en masse bedecked in shirts with pictures of all their Trevor legends adorned on their uniforms (a similar sight to the scenes at Brookline in the Ryder Cup only one year earlier – LT!!). This failed to inspire the ROW as it had the Yanks at Brookline, but was a clever and amusing trevor by the skip that has become a firm part of the event's history. Thankfully this session was played in dry conditions, the first of the weekend.
So Gazza had his win as captain, the series score became 3-2 in the favour of the ROW and the captaincy
armbands were passed onto Copey (OHA) and Softers (ROW).
This event will also be remembered by the shocking uniforms (the shiny shirts!!) that LT had procured for the event and also for the local pub that we took over for the weekend’s accommodation. This included the legendary Trevor Towers where the OHA took residence for overly long team meetings with Gazza’s complete absolution of responsibility for picking his daily pairings - thank god for JG!!
Jim Suds, later to become a trevorer twelve years hence, became the first non-trevorer to attend a Trevor for a day.
Kai returned to the ROW team replacing the unavailable Medsey and two new debutants were introduced , Matt Watson and Hippo.
The OHA team were unchanged with the extra two made up by both Oz boys, Jules & Rich managing to make the trip. Something that they have generally managed to do for many years hence – good on yer!!
Once again we were beset with some very inclement Spring weather, the course already a tough test, became a monster in these conditions. Obviously the Hampton boys seem to manage these tough conditions a little better as they had the upperhand over the first two days to take a big lead into the final singles day - this on top of their only previous success in equally bad conditions two years earlier.
This led to a remarkable display from the ROW on the final day as the ROW team appeared en masse bedecked in shirts with pictures of all their Trevor legends adorned on their uniforms (a similar sight to the scenes at Brookline in the Ryder Cup only one year earlier – LT!!). This failed to inspire the ROW as it had the Yanks at Brookline, but was a clever and amusing trevor by the skip that has become a firm part of the event's history. Thankfully this session was played in dry conditions, the first of the weekend.
So Gazza had his win as captain, the series score became 3-2 in the favour of the ROW and the captaincy
armbands were passed onto Copey (OHA) and Softers (ROW).
This event will also be remembered by the shocking uniforms (the shiny shirts!!) that LT had procured for the event and also for the local pub that we took over for the weekend’s accommodation. This included the legendary Trevor Towers where the OHA took residence for overly long team meetings with Gazza’s complete absolution of responsibility for picking his daily pairings - thank god for JG!!
Jim Suds, later to become a trevorer twelve years hence, became the first non-trevorer to attend a Trevor for a day.
Year 6 – Hawkstone Park, 2001
The first major change in Trevor history. After years of average or disgusting Spring weather, the decision was made to move to a Summer Trevor, something that has remained in place ever since.
Fourteen-a-side again and with Joey absent due to poorly timed birth control, young Toby made his Trevor debut for the OHA. The team was unchanged apart from this.
Toby certainly added a new steel to the team and an unheralded level of commitment - has there ever been another trevorer on the range before breakfast??!!
The ROW team lost The Irritant (the reason remains faded –maybe
he had just tried the patience of all too much??!! - LT) and Sarge, now
posted to the US was unable to make the trip. Captain Softers managed to pull on his reserves from the cider county bringing in Doctor Gareth and Gary Rosevear to fill the gaps for their one and only Trevor appearances.
On arrival, Copey was usurped by Hippo as his Aston Martin “top trumped” Copey’s Jag (he will match this later – LT). This
certainly created much hilarity for the ROW boys!!!
And what a Trevor it proved to be. Firstly the move to summer, not surprisingly, brought the best weather yet. Shorts were the order of the day.
The on-site venue was popular, the games room being a popular part of the evening festivities.
This was also the first Trevor with two quality courses. It was also the first change from a 27, 27, 18 hole Trevor to
18, 36 18 holes.
LT also atoned for his uniform nightmare the year before with the short sleeve slipovers proving to be the best ever Trevor uniform –indeed a few trevorers still adorn this top many years later.
The golf was fought hard and remained close all weekend and was also played in an excellent spirit – the two captains should take great credit for this new entente cordiale.
Unbelievably the match came down to the last singles game on the 18th green between Rich & Jack. With 26 trevorers looking on, Rich held his nerve to hold a tricky little three footer to secure the point that tied the overall
match – the first ever Trevor tie (and maybe the last? – LT).
The ROW therefore maintained their one point lead in the series, 3 ½ - 2 ½ .
An unbelievable way to finish the weekend and although the courses did not reach the high standards of a Princes
or East Sussex, almost everybody to a man agreed this had to be the best Trevor yet.
Fourteen-a-side again and with Joey absent due to poorly timed birth control, young Toby made his Trevor debut for the OHA. The team was unchanged apart from this.
Toby certainly added a new steel to the team and an unheralded level of commitment - has there ever been another trevorer on the range before breakfast??!!
The ROW team lost The Irritant (the reason remains faded –maybe
he had just tried the patience of all too much??!! - LT) and Sarge, now
posted to the US was unable to make the trip. Captain Softers managed to pull on his reserves from the cider county bringing in Doctor Gareth and Gary Rosevear to fill the gaps for their one and only Trevor appearances.
On arrival, Copey was usurped by Hippo as his Aston Martin “top trumped” Copey’s Jag (he will match this later – LT). This
certainly created much hilarity for the ROW boys!!!
And what a Trevor it proved to be. Firstly the move to summer, not surprisingly, brought the best weather yet. Shorts were the order of the day.
The on-site venue was popular, the games room being a popular part of the evening festivities.
This was also the first Trevor with two quality courses. It was also the first change from a 27, 27, 18 hole Trevor to
18, 36 18 holes.
LT also atoned for his uniform nightmare the year before with the short sleeve slipovers proving to be the best ever Trevor uniform –indeed a few trevorers still adorn this top many years later.
The golf was fought hard and remained close all weekend and was also played in an excellent spirit – the two captains should take great credit for this new entente cordiale.
Unbelievably the match came down to the last singles game on the 18th green between Rich & Jack. With 26 trevorers looking on, Rich held his nerve to hold a tricky little three footer to secure the point that tied the overall
match – the first ever Trevor tie (and maybe the last? – LT).
The ROW therefore maintained their one point lead in the series, 3 ½ - 2 ½ .
An unbelievable way to finish the weekend and although the courses did not reach the high standards of a Princes
or East Sussex, almost everybody to a man agreed this had to be the best Trevor yet.
Year 7 – Dartmouth Country Club 2002
The first of a run of long journeys to The Trevor.
A nice venue, a small drop in standard, but providing excellent value for money. The main course was a good challenge and also a long, hilly walk with this becoming the first Trevor where buggys became very prevalent – this time without the controversy of 1998!!
The weather was superb all weekend, perhaps even too hot – survival of the fittest maybe? A surprise, therefore, when the more senior OHA team prevailed comfortably aided by a massive win on the singles day. The only real memory from the singles was Prich managing to eke out a half against Rich winning the last five holes to do so!!
This was to be the start of a golden era for OHA Trevor golf– on reflection now it was quite simple that more of the team were now playing regular golf and many improving. The ongoing availability of the two Jockos also provided great strength at the top of the order during this time.
Joey returned for the OHA taking the place of the second trevorer to be disgraced. Cooky - his Budweiser incident in Richmond has probably seen his last day in Hampton colours. Apart from this, the team remained unchanged.
For the ROW Sarge and the Irritant both made welcome returns replacing the Somerset stand-ins.
So the OHA win had levelled up the overall series to 3 ½ -3 ½ .
Copey retired as the first unbeaten skip announcing JG as his successor. Softers, although without a win can sit proud to have been a major part of the historical tied Trevor, offered Woz as the new leader for the ROW to turn the tide of 4 years since an ROW victory.(Now we were going to get into Trevor overload with these two captains!!! - LT)
A nice venue, a small drop in standard, but providing excellent value for money. The main course was a good challenge and also a long, hilly walk with this becoming the first Trevor where buggys became very prevalent – this time without the controversy of 1998!!
The weather was superb all weekend, perhaps even too hot – survival of the fittest maybe? A surprise, therefore, when the more senior OHA team prevailed comfortably aided by a massive win on the singles day. The only real memory from the singles was Prich managing to eke out a half against Rich winning the last five holes to do so!!
This was to be the start of a golden era for OHA Trevor golf– on reflection now it was quite simple that more of the team were now playing regular golf and many improving. The ongoing availability of the two Jockos also provided great strength at the top of the order during this time.
Joey returned for the OHA taking the place of the second trevorer to be disgraced. Cooky - his Budweiser incident in Richmond has probably seen his last day in Hampton colours. Apart from this, the team remained unchanged.
For the ROW Sarge and the Irritant both made welcome returns replacing the Somerset stand-ins.
So the OHA win had levelled up the overall series to 3 ½ -3 ½ .
Copey retired as the first unbeaten skip announcing JG as his successor. Softers, although without a win can sit proud to have been a major part of the historical tied Trevor, offered Woz as the new leader for the ROW to turn the tide of 4 years since an ROW victory.(Now we were going to get into Trevor overload with these two captains!!! - LT)
Year 8 – Woodhall Spa, 2003
The long trudge up to deepest, darkest Lincolnshire was well worth the trip as we all headed to the HQ of the English Golf Union, our first top 10 ranked course in the UK.
Some may argue that the championship Hotchkin course was a little too tough!! With cavernous bunkers requiring steps to get in and out and plenty of heather, accuracy was the order of the day. The
secondary Bracken course, whilst challenging provided some respite.
The accommodation also provided some history as the Petworth Hotel was previously the home to the Dambuster Squadron in WWII. It will also be remembered for the evening sing-alongs with Jules tinkling the ivories!!
The OHA team remained unchanged and the ROW saw a strong new debutant in the guise of the giant that is Sagey, replacing Sarge unable to make the long trek across the Atlantic.
It would be fair to say that handicap negotiations were a heated affair as JG and Woz used their golfing wiles to the max with some hard and prolonged trevoring!! (LT played off the lowest ever Trevor handicap, this being 2).
The weekend proved a hard fought battle with the OHA recording another victory; perhaps the stronger (lower handicap) team was always likely to prevail on what was undoubtedly the toughest Trevor test to date.
Therefore for the first time in Trevor history, in year eight, the OHA moved into the lead in the series 4 ½ - 3 ½.
The Headmaster showed true Trevor commitment by having to hastily depart after his singles match to catch a flight to join his family, already on holiday. Unfortunately Jim failed to calculate the remoteness of Woodhall Spa, duly missed said flight and had to pay for another the following day - true Trevor commitment!!
Another quality venue probably sitting alongside Princes and Hawkstone Park in the Top Three Trevors to date.
Some may argue that the championship Hotchkin course was a little too tough!! With cavernous bunkers requiring steps to get in and out and plenty of heather, accuracy was the order of the day. The
secondary Bracken course, whilst challenging provided some respite.
The accommodation also provided some history as the Petworth Hotel was previously the home to the Dambuster Squadron in WWII. It will also be remembered for the evening sing-alongs with Jules tinkling the ivories!!
The OHA team remained unchanged and the ROW saw a strong new debutant in the guise of the giant that is Sagey, replacing Sarge unable to make the long trek across the Atlantic.
It would be fair to say that handicap negotiations were a heated affair as JG and Woz used their golfing wiles to the max with some hard and prolonged trevoring!! (LT played off the lowest ever Trevor handicap, this being 2).
The weekend proved a hard fought battle with the OHA recording another victory; perhaps the stronger (lower handicap) team was always likely to prevail on what was undoubtedly the toughest Trevor test to date.
Therefore for the first time in Trevor history, in year eight, the OHA moved into the lead in the series 4 ½ - 3 ½.
The Headmaster showed true Trevor commitment by having to hastily depart after his singles match to catch a flight to join his family, already on holiday. Unfortunately Jim failed to calculate the remoteness of Woodhall Spa, duly missed said flight and had to pay for another the following day - true Trevor commitment!!
Another quality venue probably sitting alongside Princes and Hawkstone Park in the Top Three Trevors to date.
Year 9 – Five Lakes, 2004
An Essex Trevor and Five Lakes lived up to the reputation that Essex has.This was almost definitely the poorest Trevor venue since moving up in quality, but there was method to the madness in selecting this venue - based on price to allow an upgrade for the forthcoming 10th anniversary the following year.That said, still an enjoyable weekend, once again played in glorious conditions.
Clacks was unavailable and captain JG brought in another Jocko, Bruce Russell as his stand in. Two days later Bruce had earned
the mantle as the ultimate Trevor bandit by being involved in trouncings of whoever got in his way, yet he came back to earth with a loss in the singles to show how things always even themselves up in The Trevor.
Medsey made a welcome return for the ROW, Karlos being the lucky man to miss out on this Trevor.
The only real memorable moment of this Trevor was the captain’s collaboration in fixing the singles draw (without the
prior knowledge or approval from LT!!). In their defence the OHA had accumulated such a large, almost unassailable lead that led to this decision. Indeed it almost backfired on the OHA as the ROW recorded a number of early wins and in the
end, they only just squeezed home.
The only memorable golfing moments were in the singles, Kill earning his second half in a singles match against Hippo, his first point since year one in 1996 breaking a run of six consecutive losses – well done Kill, now for a win!! LT got taken apart by an on fire Dronny to lose his proud record of winning all his Trevor singles (8) until this time.
The long era of OHA dominance in the new millennium continued, now unbeaten since 2000 (5 years) to take a two point advantage in the overall series, 5 ½ -3 ½
.
JG passed the captaincy onto Jules for the 10th anniversary celebrations to follow whilst Woz decided on a
third term in office determined to halt this winning tide.
Where this third year in office has worked and has since proved an excellent Trevor, by default , is that it now split the captaincy changes in the teams meaning that each future Trevor captain has the opportunity to pit his wits against different captains during their term in office rather than the same one each time.
Clacks was unavailable and captain JG brought in another Jocko, Bruce Russell as his stand in. Two days later Bruce had earned
the mantle as the ultimate Trevor bandit by being involved in trouncings of whoever got in his way, yet he came back to earth with a loss in the singles to show how things always even themselves up in The Trevor.
Medsey made a welcome return for the ROW, Karlos being the lucky man to miss out on this Trevor.
The only real memorable moment of this Trevor was the captain’s collaboration in fixing the singles draw (without the
prior knowledge or approval from LT!!). In their defence the OHA had accumulated such a large, almost unassailable lead that led to this decision. Indeed it almost backfired on the OHA as the ROW recorded a number of early wins and in the
end, they only just squeezed home.
The only memorable golfing moments were in the singles, Kill earning his second half in a singles match against Hippo, his first point since year one in 1996 breaking a run of six consecutive losses – well done Kill, now for a win!! LT got taken apart by an on fire Dronny to lose his proud record of winning all his Trevor singles (8) until this time.
The long era of OHA dominance in the new millennium continued, now unbeaten since 2000 (5 years) to take a two point advantage in the overall series, 5 ½ -3 ½
.
JG passed the captaincy onto Jules for the 10th anniversary celebrations to follow whilst Woz decided on a
third term in office determined to halt this winning tide.
Where this third year in office has worked and has since proved an excellent Trevor, by default , is that it now split the captaincy changes in the teams meaning that each future Trevor captain has the opportunity to pit his wits against different captains during their term in office rather than the same one each time.
Year 10 – Saunton, 2005 (10th Year Anniversary)
Apart from the difficult journey to Saunton, a trek to Devon on a summer holiday weekend was always going to be problematic, this Trevor arguably leapt to number one in the rankings of Trevor venues to date. It certainly befitted this milestone year in Trevor history.
Saunton is said to be the best links never to have hosted an Open, simply because of its remote location as we discovered. We stayed
in the delightful town of Barnstaple and, although, only five miles away, the drive still generally took 20 minutes each day.
We experienced glorious Devon sunshine throughout, two tremendous courses, a nice hotel and keenly contested
match.
The ROW had Kai and Kev absent, indeed 2004 proved to be Kai’s last ever Trevor (to date 2012 – LT) as family commitments took over in his life, a sad loss of a top trevorer. On the plus side, Karlos returned after his
one year sabbatical and another stalwart, Sarge made a welcome return.
Gazza now married had located overseas (maybe he too may have played his last Trevor – for now LT) and the last full-time OHA
debutant started his Trevor career, brought in by new skip Jules.
Nick, a quiet man, in the early days, certainly earned his stripes off the course with a virtuoso chess performance in a team challenge back in the hotel – of course the OHA team had failed to inform his opponents that he was once a child prodigy on the boards, a former English schools champion and first junior to beat a grandmaster – but did they
ask??!!!
The formal celebrations of this milestone Trevor took place with an excellent meal in a private room back in the
hotel with much revelry throughout.
Woz really gritted his teeth determined to win his first match, to reverse the OHA winning streak and his exacting leadership, along with some inspired pairings duly led to an ROW triumph.
Some OHA players will say he was assisted by some eccentric decisions from their own skip Jules who definitely did things is own way. Perhaps that it was the first year when a skip took no counsel from his team, a new philosophy to Trevor captaincy. At the time this maybe irked his OHA team mates, but that is the captain’s prerogative.
One could now argue that this was a revolutionary and inspired (except for the result!! - LT) new way to lead a team that has become more the norm in later years. Certainly the long, long long team meetings have become a thing of the past.
One thing is for sure, the ROW at this time had mastered the links with two wins out of two that had been played on this hallowed turf.
The gap had fittingly been narrowed once again to one match, the OHA leading 5 ½ - 4 ½.
The end of a long unbeaten streak for the OHA and maybe the start of a period of ROW dominance?
Who knows the cyclical nature of form that goes with The Trevor??!!
Ten years had passed, The Trevor was now a fixture in everybody’s calendar and long may it be so. Still ultimately
competitive, there was evidence that the social side was overtaking the golf as we all age a little, our competitive juices wane a little and we all see what the event really offers that few groups of this size get to experience on an
annual basis.
Now onto the second decade!!!
Saunton is said to be the best links never to have hosted an Open, simply because of its remote location as we discovered. We stayed
in the delightful town of Barnstaple and, although, only five miles away, the drive still generally took 20 minutes each day.
We experienced glorious Devon sunshine throughout, two tremendous courses, a nice hotel and keenly contested
match.
The ROW had Kai and Kev absent, indeed 2004 proved to be Kai’s last ever Trevor (to date 2012 – LT) as family commitments took over in his life, a sad loss of a top trevorer. On the plus side, Karlos returned after his
one year sabbatical and another stalwart, Sarge made a welcome return.
Gazza now married had located overseas (maybe he too may have played his last Trevor – for now LT) and the last full-time OHA
debutant started his Trevor career, brought in by new skip Jules.
Nick, a quiet man, in the early days, certainly earned his stripes off the course with a virtuoso chess performance in a team challenge back in the hotel – of course the OHA team had failed to inform his opponents that he was once a child prodigy on the boards, a former English schools champion and first junior to beat a grandmaster – but did they
ask??!!!
The formal celebrations of this milestone Trevor took place with an excellent meal in a private room back in the
hotel with much revelry throughout.
Woz really gritted his teeth determined to win his first match, to reverse the OHA winning streak and his exacting leadership, along with some inspired pairings duly led to an ROW triumph.
Some OHA players will say he was assisted by some eccentric decisions from their own skip Jules who definitely did things is own way. Perhaps that it was the first year when a skip took no counsel from his team, a new philosophy to Trevor captaincy. At the time this maybe irked his OHA team mates, but that is the captain’s prerogative.
One could now argue that this was a revolutionary and inspired (except for the result!! - LT) new way to lead a team that has become more the norm in later years. Certainly the long, long long team meetings have become a thing of the past.
One thing is for sure, the ROW at this time had mastered the links with two wins out of two that had been played on this hallowed turf.
The gap had fittingly been narrowed once again to one match, the OHA leading 5 ½ - 4 ½.
The end of a long unbeaten streak for the OHA and maybe the start of a period of ROW dominance?
Who knows the cyclical nature of form that goes with The Trevor??!!
Ten years had passed, The Trevor was now a fixture in everybody’s calendar and long may it be so. Still ultimately
competitive, there was evidence that the social side was overtaking the golf as we all age a little, our competitive juices wane a little and we all see what the event really offers that few groups of this size get to experience on an
annual basis.
Now onto the second decade!!!