RINGWAY Golf Club put on the style with a top-class and challenging course, superb off-course facilities and the usual friendly welcome from staff and members for the Cheshire Senior Championships.

A good field of players responded with some great golf, sportsmanship and a nail-biting finale in a dramatic three-hole play-off.

Northenden’s Dave Nelson completed a hat-trick of titles as he kept his cool to hole a birdie putt on the third play-off hole to beat Peter Tomlinson (Aldersey Green) and Ken Craven (Sandiway), with his previous wins coming in 2012 and 2015.

They had all finished on +5, one more than Northenden’s Tim Christie who had the only sub-par round with 70 in round two.

Nelson looked to have blown his chances of catching the top two, who held a one-shot lead over him, after putting his drive on the 18th into a fairway bunker about 140 yards short of the green.

But a superb recovery shot onto the green, followed by a nerveless birdie putt, forced the play-off.

Craven birdied the first hole but landed in two bunkers on the 17th with a bogey allowing his rivals to draw level before Nelson again birdied the 18th to win the title with Tomlinson finishing runner-up.

The best gross age-group trophy winners were Roy Smethurst (Crewe), Ron Harrison (Ringway), Richard Mallard (Chorlton) and Craven and the age group nett prizes were taken by Christie, Ian Gemmell (Stockport), Roger Fielding (Ringway) and Alex Peers (Bromborough).

Cheshire president Sean Ritchie presented a Cheshire plaque and cuff links to Ringway captain Gerry Carey and thanked all at the club, Cheshire organisers and the players for making it another great championship that will be staged at Bromborough in 2018.

Meanwhile, it’s getting down to the final stages of three of the Manchester and District Golf Alliance’s inter-club competitions which have been in action throughout the summer season with hundreds of players from across the region involved.

In the Archie Preston Trophy for Mixed Foursomes the final will be held at Sale Golf Club, the winners of the 2016 competition.

The draw for the remaining 16 teams from an original entry of nearly 100 clubs is: Alsager v Wychwood Park, Ashton-under-Lyne v Wilpshire, Breightmet v Heaton Moor, Brookdale v Prestwich, Haydock Park v Romiley, Oldham v Stand, Pleasington v Shaw Hill, Tytherington v Bolton.

The Alliance Seniors Team Knockout Trophy is the most recent competition to be introduced and has attracted a growing entry each year as they aim to play in finals day at Manchester Hopwood, who host the event each year.

The holders are Swinton Park and they are still in the mix as they visit Bury. The rest of the draw is: Ashton-under-Lyne v Manchester, Chorley v High Legh Park, Chorlton v Shaw Hill, Davyhulme Park v Alsager, Eaton v Birchwood, Fairfield v Greenmount, Houldsworth v Davenport.

The Williams BMW Junior Challenge Trophy is down the quarter-final stage with finals day again being hosted by Lowes Park GC.

The draw is: Ringway v Davyhulme Park, Westhoughton v Leyland, Sandiway v Crewe, Manchester v Stamford.