Mini MODS Quarry Park – March 26th

A beautiful Spring afternoon met the 37 players congregating on Quarry Park for their 2 o’clock tee offs. With temperatures in the high teens, blazing sunshine and a gentle breeze the stage was set for a wonderful afternoon of golf.

The MPO division welcomed Ryan Ford back fresh from his win at Gilly’s 3 weeks earlier. He was joined by two newcomers to the MODS in Loughborough’s Ollie Harris and 992 rated Connor McHale up from London for the day. The division was rounded out by Quarry Park legend and International Hall of Famer Derek “The Wind” Robins and Richard Hatton.

Robins, recently back from his usual Winter tours abroad, got off to a flying start, carding birdie after birdie. He stayed bogey free to shoot a storming 1010 rated 6 under par. Harris throwing smooth shot after smooth shot matched the birdie count but found the round marred by one bogey on the always tricky hole 3 leaving himself one back on five under par. McHale had a very frustrating 4 on the short hole 12 leaving him 3 under par, a round below the high standards he sets for himself but still in the hunt.

The second round got off to a collective shocker on the tough hole 1 with Harris and Hatton throwing away shots in the Dogwood and not a look at a 2 from anyone else on the card. The second hole was nearly as poor with no player converting their birdie chances but at least no bogeys. It took to hole three and the last player to drive to finally throw a good shot with a near ace from Hatton and the first Birdie for the card.

This finally seemed to kick some life into the players and Hatton, Robins and Harris all drove into the circle on the 4th with Hatton and Robins converting. Harris with the closest lie but slightly obstructed found himself in a contention ending meltdown as his spin putts flew back and forth past the basket. 5 putts later he carded an incredibly disappointing 6 after a superb drive on the hole.

Harris tee’d last on the difficult Par 4 hole 5 having seen McHale drive OB, the only major mistake of his round. Harris’ drive was superb and led to an easy up and down birdie three to shake off the yips from the hole before. Hatton feeling good with back to back twos approached to the foot of the basket before seeing an outrageous kick lead to the disc rolling up the hill, before turning back round and rolling all the way into the river Avon 15 meters from the basket. He managed to rage putt the next to hang onto par but was now effectively out of the race. Robins also carded a three, his second on the hole that day.

On the 6th Robins carded his third straight Birdie and extended his lead to an insurmountable margin. He Finished up on 10 under 4 shots ahead of both Harris and McHale who went to a playoff with Harris grabbing the Birdie for second place.

MA40

6 competitors made up the MA40 division with Jayce Stokes the clear favourite going into the event. It was Greig Underwood of Bedworth though that set the early pace with a very steady round filled with pars, 1 birdie and just three bogeys, carding a 2 over par that helped him share the lead with Stokes who came unstuck on the par 4 5th. Quarry Park local Si Groves was 3 back on 5 over par.

Underwood played well above rating again in the second round but with a couple more bogeys creeping into his game couldn’t keep pace with Stokes who shot a superb 944 rated 2 under par, hitting 5 birdies and only marred by a shocker on hole 1. Darroch Reid had a great second round shooting 6 over par to overhaul Groves by one to take 3rd place.

MA2

MA2 was always going to be a tight battle with the entire field very close on paper. Don’t Shoot’s Harry Messenger was the highest rated going into the event and came out strong with three birdies and 2 bogeys ending in a solid 1 under par round. Jamon Smith of Hinckley joined him at the top after an otherwise very good round was ruined by an unfortunate OB on hole 7. QP Regulars Terry Mathew and James Mottram were tied for third on level par.

With Smith unable to hold on in the second round Messenger drew away from the field with 4 early birdies. Mottram clung on and with a three shot swing on hole one late on pulled Messenger back to just a one shot lead. Messenger was able to hold for the win though and a tournament total of 2 under par. Mathew and Smith tied for 3rd despite Smiths incredible putt for 2 on the 13th which also won him the Longest Putt prize for the day.

MA3

QP local Adam Clifford was fast out of the blocks shooting a superb level par first round. Dom Henry was one shot back with OB on hole 8 hurting his otherwise impressive round. Keir Watson and Luke Dodd Adkins were a further two shots back. Dodd Adkins had a roller coaster round with 5 birdies but a bogey and three double bogeys holding him back.

Clifford couldn’t maintain his early form and as more bogeys appeared slipped right out of the running. Henry continued strongly and produced a comprehensive lead with a second round even par taking the win with a full 4 shots ahead of his nearest rivals Watson and Dodd-Adkins. Dodd- Adkins took second from Watson in the playoff.

MA4

The first round was very tight across the whole field. Adam Goddard was the highest rated player going in and he cemented that with an above rating 7 over par to tie the lead with Maximillian Berkmann in his first MODS event. Late Entrant Max Humphries found himself 1 shot back going into the second round. Loughborough’s Rob Benson in his first MODS event was one shot back again on 9 over.

Benson calming the first tournament nerves shot an excellent 849 rated second round with just 4 bogeys to leapfrog his way to tied first along with Goddard who had shot another solid round. Humphries looked threatening all round having played good golf but his hopes were destroyed on hole 10, the notorious “Nipple” the seven there forcing him down to third. Goddard and Benson went to the playoff where a CTP on the second hole decided the competition in Benson’s favour.

FA1

Don’t Shoot’s Amanda Bryant was the sole entrant in the FA1 division. She had a tough first round but bounced back well to a second round a full 50 points over her rating.

MJ18

Peter Douse was also the only competitor in the Junior boys category but played well above his rating in another good performance seeing birdies both rounds on hole 11.

FJ18

It was great to see Norean Woodhead have some competition in the junior girls division and a great battle was had with Oakham’s Esme Martin. In the first round it was neck and neck throughout with both players shooting 27 over including excellent 6’s on the long Par 4 5th beating many of the adult competitors. Both carded superb par’s on hole 11 in the first round and Norean would go on to beat that with an excellent birdie on the hole in the second.

Norean showed her tournament experience in the second round improving on her first and taking the win with a second round 24 over par. We look forward to seeing more battles between these two in the future!

Full Results can be found here

What are the Mini MODS?

Mini MODS is a new competition format trialled late last year. The MODS (Midlands One Day Series) was a series started in 2016 by Disc Golf UK that focused on one day events and making competitions more accessible to new players and those with time commitments stopping them getting involved in 2 day events. The mini MODS gives you the experience of the MODS but in a half day format so even more accessible and the format is proving popular from everyone from the beginner to the experienced pro.

Next Event

The next Mini MODS will be held at Bedworth on the 18th April (Easter Monday) Register here

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