(Image: Baildon Golf Club)
Golfer John Brear has just won Baildon’s prestigious Club Cup for the first time at the age of 62, exactly a century after his grandfather achieved the feat.
Brear’s family history at the club is incredible, while it was a poignant victory as well, given the death of his best friend earlier this year.
Talking about the family connections to Sunday’s success over Rob Lang in the 36-hole final, Brear said: “I was absolutely amazed.
“I never realised the date of my grandad Alan winning it until we were looking at the cup and it said 1926.
“My great grandad Page was one of the founder members of the golf club back in the day too.
“My dad David was president at Baildon and my mum Alison was lady captain.”
But it was not just himself or his family that Brear was doing proud by winning the Club Cup.
He explained: “I put quite a lot of pressure on myself because my best friend, a guy called Mark Ramsden, who'd been at the golf club for 50 or 60 years, passed away with Motor Neurone Disease this year.
“I set myself up a little bit by saying I was going to win it for him, so that absolutely makes it extra special.”
Even taking the emotion out of his triumph, it was still a heck of an effort from Brear.
John Brear celebrates his success with his wife Alicia and their dog Benji. (Image: UGC)
He said: “It means a lot anyway, because I'm 62, which is quite old to be winning the Club Cup.
“To have 36 holes against a lad who’s 20 years younger than me was quite a feat.
“The final was extremely tough but luckily the weather was really nice, because the day before it had been horrendous.
“We didn't get to 36 holes because I beat Rob quite comprehensively, but it was still hard work.”
Brear made a point of thanking those who tend to the course after his victory as well.
Asked how well Baildon Golf Club, founded in 1896, is playing at the moment, Brear said: “It's the best I've ever known it.
“I mean, it's probably a good time to ask me after I've won the cup, but it's absolutely superb.
“They do a fantastic job, they really do, especially given the weather we get up there as well.”
Before speaking to Brear, we liaised with Baildon’s current club captain Neil Bather, who told us the Club Cup has been going since 1901, just five years after the course opened.
Asked if it was the tournament all of the club’s golfers want to win, Brear admitted: “It's the holy grail.
“It's the one that everybody wants to win.
“You start off with whatever it is, something like 120 people entering the competition.
“You have to qualify for it and then you have to go through the knockout stages.
“I'd never been to the final until Sunday, and I hadn’t even been to a quarter final before.”