History
The Matchplay Trophy, first awarded in 2002, is the youngest of the Club’s trophies.
The driving force behind its inauguration was Ronnie Walker who saw the lack of a matchplay event as a gap in the Club’s fixture list. A matchplay competition would give members the chance to play with others they might not know so well, on courses with which they were not so familiar. There was a precedent for such a competition. A minute in April 1904 reads “ The Handicaps for the Hole Tournament having been adjusted , the Captain made the draw.”, evidence of an early hole and hole competition. In 1910 minutes record a Captain’s prize and Club prizes of £1, 15/- and 10/- for that year’s event. In 1920 the minutes record that Messrs Torrance and Omit reached the final which was played over Bruntsfield. There is also evidence in the early Club minutes of a Winter foursomes competition being played on New Year’s Day at North Berwick for a number of years. Winners received a special prize, a share of the entry money, but no trophy. No minutes exist indicating an end to these competitions which must simply have dwindled and been forgotten.
A new trophy was required for a new competition at the beginning of a new millennium. It was found thanks to Tom Mitchell, Captain 2001/2. His visit to Kirkwoods unearthed a novel design in glass, strikingly different to the tradition silverware of the Majority, Calder or Consolation Cups.
With only sixteen entrants in its first year, the Matchplay was not instantly popular. To ensure all entrants played a reasonable number of games there was a group stage of four round robin pools of four players. The eventual winner, Ken Drew, therefore played 5 matches on his road to collecting the brand new Trophy. The 2015 winner, Stewart Marshall, also played 5 matches on his way to victory. He did not have to bother with a pool stage , because with an entry of 43, it was a straight draw. His path to victory can be seen in the Appendices.
After a slow start, the popularity of the Matchplay has grown so much that in the last four years an average of over forty members have entered. At the same time, the club has tentatively entered the digital age with the launch of its own web site. Included each year on the site is the matchplay draw and updates on each round, with highlights, are reported by the Secretary as the competition progresses. Such highlights have included:
Winners:
This trophy is awarded to the winner of the hole and hole competition held each year. Previous winners are as follows, some are linked to a post with more information about that years games:
2011 G R Barr
2010 I C McLeish
2009 H G Lees
2008 D M Paterson
2007 J C Stevenson
2006 S W Russell
2005 G S Geary
2004 S W Russell
2003 K T Drew
2002 K T Drew