SEATON CAREW are celebrating becoming Durham Club champions for the seventh time and the successful triumvirate have put their glory down to continuity.

Seaton finished four shots clear of second-placed Eaglescliffe at the weekend on their home course when the usual 36-hole competition was reduced to 18 because of bad weather.

The three-man team - James Harper, Hughie Hamilton and Ian Hendry - posted a total of 234 and ended years of that particular trio trying to get their hands on the silverware.

The threesome have finished runners-up twice since they last won the trophy in 1999, and Seaton have never finished out of the top five.

And soul survivor of that triumph six years ago, Harper, believes keeping faith with the same three ever since has allowed them to build a strong rapport which has led to a second success.

"Simon Robinson and John Elwood were also in the team in 1999 at Wynyard, but since then Hughie, Ian and I have played all but one of the Club Championships," said Harper.

"We've always been in the mix up since and came close on a couple of occasions, missing out by a couple of shots, so it's nice to win it again.

"There is good team spirit in our camp. Hughie and I have been playing good golf and Ian has come in and shot a good score (84).

"It normally tends to be the best three handicaps at the club, providing they are available and the decision to pick us three again proved worthwhile."

Harper, who was disappointed to miss out on playing at this year's Open Championship at St Andrews after losing out at local qualifying, admits his team had a massive advantage as the competition was held at Seaton Carew.

The tough links course was buffeted by the blustery wind and the regular downpours of rain, but that only acted to strengthen Seaton's push.

"They were horrendous conditions," said Harper, 27, whose two wins in the competition have been the only occasions Seaton have claimed the honour since 1954. "It was dull, it was wet and it was windy. Apart from that it was perfect!

"The three of us went off after each other at the start of the day and that actually helped us. The waiting around to see what everyone else got didn't matter, it just helped we were able to go off on concentrate on our own game.

"All we could do in that sort of weather was try to grind out pars around the course. You had to accept you were going to have some bad shots and keep your head up. It helped us that we knew the course inside out and we benefited."

Harper and Hamiltion both shot 75s and no other player got near to that score during the day.

Eaglescliffe (238) finished second, with Castle Eden (244), Consett (248) and Whickham (248) finishing in the top five - securing their places in next year's Club Championship.

Tyneside, Barnard Castle, Ramside, Darlington, Beamish Park, Billingham, Houghton-le-Spring, Durham City, Dinsdale Spa, South Morr and Bishop Auckland all face the prospect of trying to go through qualifiers.

* Woodham duo Phil Sutton and Gerry Fitzsimmons are one step away from competing at St Andrews in the International Pairs grand final.

Sutton and Fitzsimmons scored 45 points to overcome the challenge of 27 other pairings at the Newton Aycliffe course recently.

And they now go to Scotland in October where they will compete in the semi-finals and could play at either Montrose or Irvine Bogside.

Making the cut in the semi-finals would ensure a place at St Andrews, where Tiger Woods got his hands on the Claret Jug in the Open Championship last month.

Sutton, who plays off 15, and 22-handicapper Fitzsimmons are two of 20,000 golfers to have taken part in the International Pairs this year in Britain.

Published: 03/08/2005