FOR the third time this season, the Worcestershire Golf Club has been chosen as the venue for prestigious county golf tournaments.

On this occasion the club hosted a team competition between the top lady golfers from Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire and Herefordshire. The four teams competed, over three days, for a place in the regional finals of the English Ladies Golfing Association.

With the course in immaculate condition and with the weather set fair for the three days, keen competition was the order for every day's play.

Playing a 'round robin format' over the three days, each county provided a squad of eight players. Six ladies from each county played in the morning foursome matches and six for the afternoon single matches.

The Worcestershire and Herefordshire team, captained by Lesley Fox, included the county champion, Karen Greenfield and also the county girls' champion, Kirsty Law.

The team started the competition in good form, winning all their foursome matches on each of the first two days. The county ladies found the single matches however more difficult on the first two days, yet recovered to perform well in the singles on the third day.

On the final day there were excellent wins for Kirsty Law, Clair George and Sarah Cranton. Sarah also scored a dramatic singles victory, of seven up with five to play, in her singles match on the first day against Staffordshire.

In the three-day competition, the Worcestershire and Herefordshire team secured a very creditable second place only being beaten by Warwickshire.

The winning team was strengthened by the inclusion of former professional lady golfer, Tracy Atkin and the current English Ladies' Stroke-play Champion, Felicity Johnson. A sign of the quality of Felicity's golf was the news that she has now been selected for the Great Britain and Ireland squad to face the Rest of Europe later this year. In the competition Staffordshire were third, with Derbyshire fourth.

The event ran smoothly throughout the three days, due in no small measure to the organisational skills of lady captain, Ruth Scott, and the large number of lady and club members who assisted as starters, scorers, receptionists, drinks suppliers and ball spotters. The competitors and county representatives were most complimentary to The Worcestershire for the excellent way the competition had been organised.

In division one of the club's mid-week medal competition, young Steven Lane, returned a two below par score of 69 to gain first prize.

Experienced golfer Nigel Teale was in second place, having a one below par round of 70, with Paul Yorke a further shot back in third place.

Mike Frechette won division two with a round of 69, two shots better than Clive Taylor who was in second place. With a par round of 71, Paul Butler was third.

In the seniors' interclub fixture against Kington, on their picturesque course, the Worcester-shire players returned with their worst defeat of the season, losing by 5 matches to 1 .

The only players to record a win were Colin Preece partnered with James Ferguson, while Trevor Southall and Clive Fox halved their match.