International Pairs UK

Knowles In Market For World Final Glory

KNOWLES IN MARKET FOR WORLD FINAL GLORY

Market Rasen club champion Roy Knowles is keeping his fingers crossed his good season continues next month at St Andrews when he and his partner David Steel take their place in the 2008 International Pairs World Final.
Knowles and Steel will line up against competitors from 29 other countries at the Home of Golf at The Duke’s, St Andrews, from September 21-23 - in the world’s largest tournament of its kind for club golfers.
Knowles successfully defended his club championship title earlier this summer when rounds of 77 and 73 proved too good enough for the other Market Rasen members.
And the four-handicapper sees no reason why his good run can’t continue and he can lift more silverware with Steel, who plays off 11.
Knowles said: “It’s been a good summer for me so far. It was fantastic to win the club championship again and are hopes are high of a good finish.
“Although we haven’t played the Duke’s Course, we have a fair amount of experience of playing other courses in Scotland and we’re both thoroughly looking forward to the experience.
“Not many golfers get the chance to represent their country at the Home of Golf and it will be quite something. We can’t wait.”
The duo will be cheered on in Scotland by a 20-strong team of supporters and Knowles revealed their participation in the world final has caused quite a stir in their village of Ragby, nine miles outside Market Rasen.
He added: “There’s quite a buzz in our village ahead of next month. A mixture of family and friends are going to cheer us on in St Andrews while everyone wants to caddy for us. In the end, we had to sort that one out on a first come, first serve basis.”
Knowles and Steel will be joined by six other pairs from the UK as they battle for the chance to succeed Scarborough South Cliff duo Shaun Smith and Simon Deaves as world champions.
Deen (correct) Graves and Martyn Ashcroft, from Dawlish Warren Golf Club near Exeter, will lead the challenge after winning the 2007 UK Final at Carnoustie last year and they will be joined at The Duke’s by Elliott Briggs and Tom Woods, the English champions from Howley Hall GC, Leeds.
Bonnybridge duo John Maxwell and Stephen Brown will represent the home nation as Scottish champions, father-and-son Bryan and Aled Williams, who play at Cottrell Park, Cardiff, will be representing Wales and the UK line-up will be completed by Dunscar duo Jim Callaghan and Mark Gregory and Andrew Richardson and Mike Greener, from Woodham GC, near Durham.
Graves and Ashcroft made history last year when they followed up their success in the International Pairs 2001 UK Finals by winning the title for a second time and they are hopeful their good run in the competition - the largest of its kind for club golfers in the world - can continue.
Ashcroft, a property developer in Torquay, said: “We haven’t had the chance to play that much this year because work has been quite difficult but we have set aside the whole of September to practice.
“We’re both really excited about it and it would be great to bring the world title back to Torquay.”
The 2008 world final, the fifth in International Pairs’ history, promises to be the most spectacular yet with competitors from countries including America, South Africa, Malaysia, Iceland, Ireland and Nigeria taking part.
The players will march through the historic streets of St Andrews accompanied by the St Andrews Pipe Band and schoolchildren from across Fife as part of a glittering opening ceremony, before the action switches to The Duke’s for a 36-hole fourball betterball Stableford competition - which will be screened to a worldwide television audience of tens of millions of people.
And the event, which is celebrating its tenth anniversary in 2008 and has been backed by Visit Scotland for the last six years, is poised to get even bigger as it is set to expand into 52 countries.
Australia, Sweden, Russia and the Caribbean have all joined International Pairs this year while it has also signed agreements with the English Golf Union and International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) in the last 12 months.
Ross Honey, founder and chairman of International Pairs, said: “This year is a notable landmark for International Pairs and it seems fitting that the world final will be staged in Scotland at the Home of Golf.
“Scotland has played a pivotal role in the development of the competition and I really believe we haven’t scratched the surface of what we can achieve. It’s very exciting.
“We have been able to establish fantastic international partners all over the world. And I think with the people and global family we have created we can build an amazing means of moving forward.”
To enter the International Pairs and to register a club, please call 01489 878509, or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Alternatively, visit the Pairs’ website at www.internationalpairs.com.

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