The Trilby Tour is going from strength to strength, and skysports.com was invited to Rockliffe Hall to find out what all the fuss is about.
Graeme Bailey checks out and plays in the Trilby Tour
The Trilby Tour is going from strength to strength, and
skysports.com was invited to Rockliffe Hall to find out what all the fuss was about.
Personally, I was slightly sceptical about an amateur tour, but within minutes of arriving for the qualifying day I was starting to get it - within 24 hours I had talked to founder William Hunt and let's just say they will not now find a bigger fan.
I was invited to represent
skysports.com in the pre-qualfiying event prior to the main tournament with the prize being the top foursome gaining a place in the competition real.
Unfortunately the dream did not come true, although I did secure nearest the pin on the brilliant water hole which is the fifth.
But just from the pre-tournament participation, there was already a buzz around Rockliffe and you could gauge that the atmosphere was building.
Unlike the other golfers who were playing in the main event, I did not have to pay £200 for the privilege and initially I was still a little unsure as to whether I would.
However, the gear you get - full William Hunt ensemble, including trilby and personally embroidered Callaway tour bag - meant that you were virtually getting your money back without even leaving the clubhouse.
But as soon as I arrived on the morning of the main event, I could see and sense what the day and the tour as a whole was all about.
As William Hunt, the founder of the tour, explained to me, it is all about the golf.
"Trilby Tour is about ordinary guys doing extraordinary things, it is like Pop Idol but you play golf and don't sing," the effervescent Hunt explained.
"I love amateur golf and quite frankly it is these guys that pay our wages, it is part of golf that is often over-looked.
"This is what I imagined and I hope that doesn't come across as anything other than being humble - I wanted it to become the top tournament for those amateurs to play in - this is all about fierce competition.
"It is all about theatre, this is a play today. We take control tell you what to wear, when you need to be here and that way you forget about anything other than playing golf.
"If we want to talk about celebrities we go to Saville Row and meet Robert de Niro and every footballer and we have been very fortunate with that, but this is a tournament about golf and, if celebrities want to play they pay, but I don't want people saying they are on an A ticket and they are on a B ticket, I want everyone to be together.
"The camaraderie built from playing is nothing short of beautiful."
Going global
Although keeping a lid on the size of the tour, Hunt does have aspirations to make it a global brand, but keeping it strictly within the amateur remit.
"We want the Trilby tour to be exclusively inclusive, but don't hang about - we don't want it to be 40 tournaments - it will be 11 next year including the final, but we are going to South Africa, Australia, Japan and America.
"We will be doing complete tours and we will turn this into a worldwide event and if it goes to plan and we get half a dozen from each one then it can become special - we can do national teams, it is doable and how good would that be?"
Hunt admits that he has already been approached by some of the biggest venues in the country to take the tour there, but he says they will not be going down that avenue - indeed he admits he has a return to Rocklifffe in his sights.
"We were offered a Gleneagles type course, we would drown there. We will never go to Wentworth, or something like that - I do not want the guys overawed by that. We keep it retro, we have boards and scoreboard all around, and it is something I am very proud of and have a lot of fun doing it.
"I would love to come back here it is a terrific venue."
And a return to Rockliffe is something the North-East venue would be more than open to, as director of golf Ian Knight explained.
"The day itself was a tremendous success. The players, spectators and indeed all the team at Rockliffe Hall helped to make it a really very special day," he told
skysports.com.
"All the extra touches that William Hunt and his Trilby Tour team bring to the event makes this a unique occasion that I hope we'll be able to repeat here at Rockliffe Hall for many years to come.
"We're confident the highlights show will do justice to the course and the facilities here.
"The feedback we had from everyone involved in the day, including those from Sky Sports, has been a tremendous boost for a course which is maturing rapidly."
Norwich golfer Paul Collins took the honours on the day, but there were no fewer than five golfers from the North East who made it into the top ten who went on to the grand finale of the William Hunt Trilby Tour at The Buckinghamshire Golf Course on August 11th.
Rockliffe Hall member Tom Weir were joined by Paul Walsh from Catterick Garrison, Julian Hayward from Richmond, Matthew McCrady from Newcastle and Chris Hewitt from Washington at the final.
If you would like the chance to play in the Trilby Tour in 2012 - visit their
official website here.
And if you would like to experience the outstanding Rockliffe Hall, their inaugural Open takes place this weekend,
check their official website for full details.
