On Sunday 17 September the semi-finals and final of the South Matchplay Championship took place at Stranraer Golf Club on a typical autumnal day with a slight breeze.
Both the semi-finals in the morning were very tight games with Danny McConnachie (D&C) beating Martin McNae (Lochmaben at the nineteenth and Chris Corbett (D&G) beating holder Neil Hamilton (Powfoot) by one hole.
The final in the afternoon was another closely fought and friendly game. Danny got off to the perfect start by winning the first hole after both he and Chris hit wayward drives. Chris won holes 4 and 5 with regulation pars to go one up and held this slim advantage to the turn before a birdie at the tenth increased his lead to two holes.
A par at the short tenth by Danny reduced Chris’s lead to one hole before Chris won 13 and 14, with another birdie, and they halved the short fifteenth for Chris to be three up. Danny then produced a spirited and rousing surge winning 16 and 17 to stand on the eighteenth tee needing a win to take the match into extra time. The hole was halved in par 4’s and Chris emerged as the worthy South Matchplay Champion for 2017.
The photograph shows Jim Burns, Past President of Scottish Golf, winner Chris Corbett and runner-up Danny McConnachie