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2011 - The 7th BHNH Classic was held at Ufford Park Hotel, Golf & Spa, Suffolk. The winner was Guy Harris, after a shootout on Day 2 with Darren "Pippa" Frampton. We only had 11 players, so no Matchplay competition this year. Dave finished 5th after bending the rules and having a caddy, Anja. 2012 - The 8th BHNH Classic was held at Crowne Plaza Resort, Colchester – Five Lakes, well, sort of! It had been raining so much that we had to play a different course on Day 1. We played at Forrester Park Golf Club, Maldon, but that course was waterlogged as well. We did play at one of the Crowne Plaza courses on Monday, but it was the worst course I've ever played and was so waterlogged on some holes, you would lose your ball in a fairway lake! The winner was Alan Edwards, his 2nd outright win along with a tie in 2009. We had a nice meal, except someone had 27 of the 30 available potato wedges! A big game of Spoof finished the evening off nicely. 2013 - The 9th BHNH Classic was held at Barnham Broom Golf Club, Norfolk. The second occasion that the tournament had been held there, and the winner was Rob Mulliss after a gap of 7 years. This made Rob the most prolific 'Bob Hoper' with 3 outright wins. A few of us went to the horse racing at Newmarket the day before, and a group headed into Norwich in the evening to check out the local talent. 2014 - The 10th BHNH Classic was held at The Belfry, West Midlands, on the very special occasion of my 50th birthday. We pushed the boat out a bit this year for a great location. On Day 1, we played the Derby Course and on Day 2, the PGA course. For the second year running, the winner was Rob Mulliss. This was Rob's 4th outright win in the BHNH Classic. Most of us went to the 'Bel Air' nightclub but wished we'd stayed in the hotel and watched MOTD2! 2015 - The 11th BHNH Classic was held at Sprowston Manor Hotel & Country Club, Norfolk. I relinquished all organising responsibility to Paul and Adrian due to my age and inability to organise a piss up in a brewery! They did a great job and changed the scoring and handicap system to something resembling understandable. Alan Edwards was champion for the 3rd time outright with one tie in 2009. Rob Mulliss had to settle for 2nd place this year, but pushed Alan all the way. Probably the biggest game of Spoof of all time took place in the evening. 2016 - The 12th BHNH Classic was held at Staverton Park Golf Course, Daventry. Yet again, the BHNH Classic was won by a Rookie, Darren Norris, who travelled all the way from Cornwall (or Devon?). Darren was very consistent over the 2 days and beat Rob Jepson by only 3 points. I did okay on Day 1 with a buggy but struggled for fitness on Day 2 and shamefully gave up after 15 holes! Adrian Horn won Nearest the Pin, and Paul Bownes won Longest Drive. 2017 - The 13th BHNH Classic was held at Wensum Valley Golf Course, Taverham. The winner was a 'Northern Monkey' called Rob, but for once not Rob Mulliss. After his 2nd place the previous year, step forward Rob Jepson. Rob obliterated the field on Day 2, scoring 42 points + 2 bonus points. Overall, Rob scored 80 points, with Guy Harris 2nd on 71 points. Rob Jepson also won Nearest the Pin, and Alan Edwards won Longest Drive. I
failed again to go under the radar! 2018 - The 14th BHNH Classic was held at The Lodge at Meyrick Park, Bournemouth. This was a Bob Hope first, combining Dave's stag do and the BHNH Classic. The Stag do involved a huge game of 'Drink While You Think', which proved to be very good fun. Then a few of us went to 'Spearmint Rhino', obviously not wasting money on scantily clad women dancing on our laps. For the second time in Bob Hope history, we had a tie with Nick Storrie and rookie Will Kent both scoring 80 points, with Paul Hollis and Guy Harris tied for 3rd place on 75 points. Paul Hollis also won the Nearest the Pin trophy, and Rob Mulliss won Longest Drive. 2019 - The 15th BHNH Classic was held at Hellidon Lakes, Daventry. No stag do this year but a big game of poker after the meal, where a rare feat was witnessed (no, not me buying a round), Adrian Horn had the 9 dart finish, 147 break, hole in one, of Poker, the Royal Flush! This was a momentous year with Simon Bunn finally winning the Bob Hope! An okay 1st round, then fireworks in Round 2 saw him score 41 points to finish on 72 points. In joint 2nd place were last year's winner, Will Kent and Rookie, Tony Wilkinson, on 69 points. Rob Jepson won the Nearest the Pin trophy, and Rob Mulliss won Longest Drive for the second year running. 2020 -The 16th BHNH Classic was held at Meon Valley, Southampton. 2020 will go down in history as the year of the Coronavirus pandemic that ruined all our fun; however, the Bob Hope No Hope Classic did still go ahead. Last year's winner, Simon Bunn, put up a woeful defence of his title (but he was off 8 handicap). The winner was last year's runner-up, Tony Wilkinson, who obliterated the field, finishing in style with an outrageous birdie at the 18th. Tony Wilkinson also won the Nearest the Pin trophy, and 500/1 outsider Nigel Jarvis won the Longest Drive trophy. 'Drink While You Think', and 'Spoof' were played in the evening, but social distancing rules meant it wasn't a wild evening of middle-aged fun as usual. 2021 - The 17th BHNH Classic was held at Cotswold Hotel & Spa, Chipping Norton. Again, because of Coronavirus it was held on the August Bank Holiday weekend. We welcomed back two Northern Monkeys, Mulliss and Bownsey, but apparently, 2017 Champion Rob Jepson is getting married (given up golf), hopefully, we'll see him in 10 years! The winner was a rookie, a sleeping giant, and judging by his margin of victory, he left his Sombrero in the car! Step forward, Metin Hassan, as your champion golfer, with a dominant display, scoring 40 points on Day 1 and with bonuses, 52 points on Day 2. In 2nd place was the Bob Hope all-time MVP, Rob Mulliss, with 78 points and tied 3rd were last year's champion, Tony Wilkinson and Nick Storrie with 76 points. Tony Wilkinson cleaned up in the individual trophy department, winning both the Nearest the Pin and Longest Drive. 2022 - The 18th BHNH Classic was held at Abbey Golf Club & Spa, Redditch. There were a couple of notable absentees, namely previous winner & BHNH stalwart Simon 'Bunny' Bunn and Mr Bob Hope himself, tournament founder (and former winner), Alister 'Balders' Baldwin, missing the Bob Hope for the first time. However, we welcomed a new player in Barry Searles, and welcomed back after a 10-year break, Kevin Dutnall. Day 1 saw overcast, drizzly rascal conditions, and at the end of the day, Rob 'Northern Monkey' Mulliss held a 1-point lead over Paul 'Pablo' Hollis. Rob Mulliss held on to his lead on Day 2 to claim his 5th BHNH title with 79 points, and his first since 2014. After a storming Day 2, Adrian 'Hornster' Horn had the Bob Hope of his life, scoring 41 points and 72 points overall to finish 2nd, with Pablo 3rd with 69 points. The nearest the Pin trophy wasn't won on Day 1, so rolled over to Day 2 and was won by Will Kent and the Longest Drive was won by Darren Norris. 2023 - The 19th BHNH Classic returned to the 2019 venue at Hellidon Lakes, Daventry. We had 14 players and welcomed Rookie Wes Jones for his Bob Hope debut. I missed Day 1 because of family commitments, but joined up for the meal and evening of middle-aged shenanigans! Most people struggled on Day 1, with only 2 players scoring over 30 points. Paul Hollis led Nick Storrie after Day 1, but that changed around on Day 2, and your 2023 champion was Nick Storrie, his first outright victory with 68 points, closely followed by Paul Hollis on 64 points and an impressive personal best finish for Paraig McGovern. The nearest the Pin trophy was won by serial nearest the pin winner Tony Wilkinson, with his 3rd NTP in 5 attempts. The Longest Drive trophy went to Darren 'Daly' Norris for the second year running. 2024 - The 20th BHNH Classic was held at Forest of Arden Hotel & Country Club, near Birmingham. Again, it was a special occasion weekend, being my 60th Birthday. On the Saturday, 4th of May, a group of us stayed in Central Birmingham and had a night of festivities to celebrate. This included a night at the dogs, and the 6th Race was the 'Balders 60th Birthday Stakes'. Back to the golf, we played both courses at the Forest of Arden. Day 1, no one scored over 30 points, and only 1 point separated the top 5. However, on Day 2, Daniel Stevens - 'Longers' had the Bob Hope of his life to claim victory. That is the beauty of the Bob Hope: anyone can win. Wes Jones was only 3 points behind in 2nd place, and former Champion Tony Wilkinson was 3rd. Mike Healey won the Nearest the Pin trophy, and Will Kent won Longest Drive. Nick did an amazing job on the trophy, revamping the winner's plaque with engravings of all the former winners. |
