Full results from the competition can be found here
Click here for the photo gallery from the 2008 KENT OPEN

Oh here we are and here we are and here we go....

And so the 2008 season comes to a close with the now traditional end of season finale at the Kent Open at Strokes. After the deluge of the previous day, the organisers arrived at the course with one eye on the skies and thankfully the weather held and for the 3rd year running we had a clear days play in November. The course was in fine shape despite the battering of the previous 24 hours and the field started to gather. And with all the UK minigolfing clubs represented, it promised to be a hard fought battle all the way. 26 players were ready to go (including the rare sight of Brian 'The Hut' Wood lining up for the 2nd time in 3 years) as the claxon blew to signal the start of the final ranking competition of the year.

All aboard and were hittin the road...

Following on from his excellent form at Strokes this year (haven already walked off with the Megabowl and the top UK player at the British Open), Andy 'No.2' Exall got off to a terrific start, setting a marker down with a 33 (and we could have even seen a new UK course record if not for the 4 at Heartbreak Ridge!! And all of this with a cold!!!). Bill 'The Conqueror' Bullin was closely following with a 34, with the KMGC lining up behind - Dave 'Four Strings' Forrest, Sean 'Freebird' Homer, Rocky 'Harry Putter' Bullin & Marion 'Double trouble' Homer all within a couple of shots of the leaders. Planet Hastings finest (Jo & Nick) were in the mix on their first trip to Strokes (helped or hindered by the youtube videos, only they can answer that one!!), as were their less illustrious team mates, Tim & Ted. One of London's finest, Alan Norman, intent on picking up enough ranking points to leap frog Gareth Holmes in the official rankings, had made the trip down by train to give it a final shot of the year. He may not have come away with the points, but at least he's got a nickname - so all was not wasted Stormin'!

Well gidy up gidy up and get away...

Scott 'Donkeygringo' Lancley led the way for the novice prize with a 9 stroke advantage after round one and would go on to claim the top novice following his success at the British Open...EEEooooooRRRRR indeed!!!! The ace's hunt was well and truly underway, with Andy and Bill leading the way with 5 & 4 respectively, followed by a gaggle of players on 3...the thought of what prizes might await the victors on each hole was keeping the players focussed for those hole-in-ones! The 'new' ace celebrations were being put into effect following hours of thought, planning and heavy drinking the night before... Ted 'Big Top' McIver and Richard 'Squire' Gottfried were clearly on top of their game with some 'unique' dance moves being showcased as the aces went in... no doubt we will all remember where we were the first time we saw Ted doing his 'Billy Jean' ace celebration at the first (complete with singing, dance moves and possibly the worst ever attempted moonwalk on a minigolfing course!!). However, all celebrations were eclipsed by Jen 'Twinkletoes' Forrest's tigger celebration at the 13th... possibly THE greatest moment of the whole weekend!!!

Were goin crazy and were goin today...

With the weather holding up (we even saw the sun in the first round!!) players began to settle into the groove of the course and the leaderboard began to form as the challengers for the title of Kent Open champion began to make their moves. The KMGC captain's grip on the title faltered with a 38 leaving it down to another of the KMGC to go for the title this year... step up Dave Forrest and Rocky Bullin, both with a 34 in the 2nd round with Dave leading the competition by one shot from Andy Exall & Rocky as the 2nd round ended. Bill, Tim and Sean were circling behind but it looked like a 3 way shoot out to decide the title. Nick was finding some good form at Strokes in his second competitive round with a 37, although most players were struggling to lower their scores (perhaps it was the thought of the pending Ace play-offs that were unsettling the masses as the afternoon drew on or in the case of Ted, perhaps he was all danced out after the Billy Jean debacle!!).

And I like it, I like it, I like it, I like it...

So with 2 rounds down, the play-offs for the ace-prizes took place with several holes being played out across the course. Cries of anguish and shouts of ecstasy were heard as the contenders where whittled down one by one until the victors stood tall like the gladiators in the colliseum, waiting to find out what they would be taking home from the competition. Shock of the play-offs saw Brian 'The Hut' Wood step up and transform into an ace machine, showing the form that may well see him take a novice prize in his next outing. After unleashing the inner beast with howls of frankly quite shocking intensity, Brian claimed the prize for the First hole, the ever saught after Sooty Crazy Golf Video! Andy Exall conquered the Snake (hole 2) to take home a Big Top Jigsaw and a signed (by Squire!?) Backgammon set: Dave Forrest grabbed a delightful Candle & Bath Products set for the 3rd: Andy picked up a his and hers Book Set for the 4th: Gary choked back his disgust when taking a Charlton Scarf for the 5th: Rocky grabbed a set of inflatable jousting sticks for the 6th: Dave's eyes widened with delight when picking up a crate of Stella for the 7th: Rocky got the signed copy of the KMGC ROCKS! CD with inflatable guitar for the 8th: Gary was relieved to find the 10th prize was not another bit of Charlton memorabilia but a brand new DVD player: Teds delight was clear to see when he picked up his Elizabeth Arden beauty set for the 12th: Bill got a double whammy of prizes for the 13th & 14th with a top class JML bundle (thanks Emily!) and a moustache kit, something for every occasion: Nick secured a DVD bundle for the 15th: Ruth picked up a craft box for the 16th: and Jo picked up the wonderful KMGC 2009 Calendar (available now for only £5!! pre-order by sending an e-mail for details to Susan4rest@aol.com) for triumphing against Brian in a epic tussle on the 18th (complete with Mexican waves by the gathered crowd!).

I li-li-li-like it, li-li-li-like it...

With three hole prizes still undecided, Suzuka (the 9th), Heartbreak Ridge (the 11th), along with Beecher's Brook (the 17th and the only hole at that point not having been aced), the competition resumed in reverse leader board order as the players took to the course for one last time, the final 18 holes of the season, to decide who would take home the spoils of the day...

Here we go...

The juniors had the honour of leading out the field for the final round showing the true spirit of the game as they took on and mastered some of the toughest and best holes on the UK minigolfing circuit. The future of the KMGC is safe in their hands. And so the competition neared it's conclusion. Matt Backler triumphed over his playing partners and friends Andrew Robinson and Pete Nicholls (all playing in their first competition) and with a final round of 48 ended the competition as 3rd highest novice (only beaten for the top novice by two of the local KMGC heroes, Gary and Scott - no shame there!!). Rich 'The Bass' Hopkins, fresh from his KMGC awards success, graciously allowed someone else to take the plaudits at the 7th this competition, and instead moved his masterclass onto the 4th - 3 rounds, 3 aces!! Top stuff RTB!! Matt 'Woody' Wood pulled a 39 out of the bag to finish a respectable 12th, but still managed to end the day £10 down having lost his forum wager to Tim & Sean (who also subsequently lost their fivers to Andy Exall in their own three way wager - life can be so cruel!).

And so we come down to the top 10 players. Scott, the days top novice, finished joint 9th with Ruth 'Plate Thrower' Bullin, a terrific performance particularly when considering nine of the top ranked players were taking part on the day. No doubt more scalps will be taken in 2009 as the KMGC best newcomer establishes himself as a force to be reckoned with on the tour.The Planet Hastings trio of Nick, Ted and Tim ended 8th, 7th and 6th (Ted battling back with a terrific 33, the equal lowest round of the weekend, despite his strange 'dancing' celebrations). Following his terrific 34 in the 2nd round, Rocky fell short with a 40 on the last round but still left the weekend as the top KMGC player from the KIT on Saturday and with numerous ace prizes under his belt - not a bad haul! The reigning champion, Sean put in a valiant 35 rounding off his total with a crowd pleasing ace at the last, but his push for the title had by this point gone, with Bill rattling in a superb 34 to move into contention.

And then there were two... Dave Forrest, battling through the nerves of leading the competition, took the honours of top KMGC player for the Open, putting in a career best performance, 1 under for the three rounds, with a final round of 37 to the delight of his team mates and in particular an incredibly proud daughter and wife cheering him on all the way. Well played Dave!!! But even this valiant effort wasn't enough as the form player at Strokes this year, Andy Exall, rattled in another round of 34 to take the title by 2 shots with an unbeatable 3 under par for the day!! Another awesome performance from a worthy winner of the KMGC's flagship event! We salute you No.2!!!

Rockin all over the world...

And so the competition drew to a close. Tim picked up the PS2 Crazy Golf game for the 9th with a second ace of the day, Nick Chitty picked up a bottle of wine and glasses for an incredible ace at the 17th (the only one of the day) - straight in the hole off the ramp!!! Showboating at it's finest!!! Andy Exall picked up a CD micro player for topping the aces for the day (10!) and Jen picked up a Potty Putter for a valiant 26th place (no doubt her dad will continue to develop his evident skills by borrowing the set from time to time!!). Which just left the ace prize for Heartbreak Ridge to be contested - fittingly due to their history of play-offs - between Andy & Sean. And following his form of the year, Andy banged in an ace to take the final play-off of the year and a tin of Roses!! What a perfomance from one of the best players on the tour and a valued supporter of Strokes and the KMGC!! Great stuff!!

With the prize ceremony complete (and thanks again Andy for your kind words in your marvellous speech to end the day) it was all over for another year.... and what a year it's been! Thanks to everyone for their support in making this and other events at Strokes this year such a success... special thanks to Marion for her superb organisation on the day (with notable mentions to Sue & Jen as well) and to the Woods for providing us with one of the best courses in the UK for us to host our annual year ending bash!

See you all again next year!!

VTK

THE KENT OPEN HALL OF FAME

2008 Winner - ANDY EXALL (ave 35.0)

2007 Winner - Sean Homer (ave 37.3)

2006 Winner - Steve Vallory (ave 39.5)

Click on the video links below for a guide to how to play the course;

THE FRONT NINE

 

THE BACK NINE