Birdie blitz sets Adam on his way

WELL DONE, CLUBMATE: Adam Rowbotham receives the District Championship trophy from Werneth captain James Buckley (right).

GOLF: ADAM Rowbotham produced an opening-round birdie blitz on the way to a stunning six-shot winning margin in the Oldham and District Championship.

The scratch golfer, competing on his own Werneth course, set off with birdies at the first four holes and never looked back.

He made other gains at the eighth, 11th and 18th, along with dropped shots at the 13th and 15th to card a five-under-par 63 and lead by one after the morning round of the prestigious 36-hole competition.

Then, in the afternoon, a chip-in for an eagle at the par-five eighth, plus other birdies at the fifth, 13th and 15th — his only dropped shot came at the penultimate hole — saw him register a 64 for a 127 total.

Adam’s closest rival was Crompton and Royton’s Kris Sutcliffe, who carded 64-69-133 and would have been closer to Adam’s score but for making double bogey at the two closing holes in the afternoon sunshine.

For 22-year-old Adam, the win emulated that of his older brother Lee, who won the title in 2003.

“Lee went on to retain it the following year so I will be hoping to do that as well,” said Adam, whose performance saw his handicap cut to -0.5 and within one good round of achieving another goal of his for the season — to become a plus-handicap golfer.

Werneth also claimed the nett prize through Chris Cordwell’s 64-64-128, ahead of Brookdale’s Pete Buckley’s (66-64-130).

And the home club were celebrating a third success in the Brierley Cup — the best four scores from each club.

Adam was joined by brother Lee and father Paul, along with Cordwell, for a winning total of three-under-par 541.



ADAM Rowbotham wasn’t the only member of the Werneth golfing family to pick up silverware at the weekend.
Just 24 hours after Adam landed the District Championship, his older brother Lee and wife Tracey teamed up to win the President’s Salver at Crompton and Royton.