2025 Seaton Salver
This year’s Seaton Salver, which was held on Saturday 7th June, was probably one of the closest fought in the event’s long history. With a field limited to sixty, and made up of some of the region’s best golfers, expectations were always high and they certainly delivered. Whilst the morning conditions could have been described as benign, with light winds and a couple of minor showers, in typical links fashion the afternoon was blustery with heavy showers before calming down towards dusk.
The first round of the 36-hole competition, saw eight players shoot below par, leaving a total of twenty-one within two shots of the lead, which stood at two under. However, the highlight of the morning session was undoubtedly a hole-in-one of the 6th (Mashie). Stephen Dines, who plays at Lincoln Golf Club, hit a majestic 7-iron on the 169-yard, Par 3 to record the fifth ace of his golfing career.
And so, everything rested on the second round and as usual some golfers rose to the challenge, whilst others fell by the wayside. Joint first-round leaders Nathan Ali (Cookridge Hall) and Jonty Butcher (Wheatley) both succumbed to the pressure, whilst Luke Bonsor (Consett) recorded two great rounds of 69-70.
Meanwhile, the man of the moment and eventual winner, might not have even been in the starting line-up had it not been for a late withdrawal on Friday. With the field limited to just 60 players, the ballot point was set at 0.8 which left Seaton Carew’s, Dominic Moon, expecting to sit this one out. However, a positive reaction to a late phone call meant he was back in the fray and he certainly took the opportunity it presented. A sub-par morning round of 70 (-1) was followed by an afternoon score of 69 (-2), leading to a count back to decide the winner and Dominic’s better second round was enough to clinch the title.
The 33-year old is a recent addition to the Seaton Carew membership, having moved from Bedale Golf Club earlier in the year.
(Pictured – Dominic Moon)
