SOUTH Bradford have finished second yet again in a team golf tournament this season, but they could have no complaints about their runners up spot at the Champion Club event.

Cleckheaton beat them by one stroke in the Team Championship on July 26, while Rawdon pipped them to the post in the Nine Hole Clubs team tournament on August 16.

But at Woodhall Hills last weekend, The Manor beat them by eight strokes in the stableford format.

Poor Chris Foster, who is also the Bradford Union captain, has played for South Bradford in all three near misses.

Discussing the luckless Foster, who has put in strong individual performances all summer, Bradford Union president Simon Tabel said: "South Bradford have come second a few times and they were a bit unfortunate in the Champion Club, as they played quite well.

"Chris has a three handicap, and played a super round to finish with 38 points, but it was the top four scores for each team that counted for the final total.

"He's been the one constant in those three teams that have finished second.

"Chris is the Bradford Union captain so he probably wouldn't have been playing as much golf as he has done if we'd had inter-district matches this summer."

Moving on to the winners, Tabel added: "The Manor ran away with it and won by eight shots. The stand out performance from them came from past union captain Chris Sugden.

"He ended up six shots below his handicap, which is five anyway, to shoot a fantastic one under par gross score."

That meant he racked up 42 points, just pipping Bradford's Matty Warr on countback to scoop individual victory.

Sugden and Warr both have handicaps of five, two of the lowest in a diverse field.

Tabel explained: "We put on this tournament four or five years ago to give more union golf to a range of players with different handicaps, so here at Woodhall Hills that went from just above zero into the 20s.

"We were worried there wasn't enough union golf for those with higher handicaps, so that's the reason for the competition."