Matlock 2026

Firm-and-fast moorland fairways sitting 850 feet above sea level, blue skies and sunshine, a countback finish at the top of the WHS leaderboard, and a Best Gross round from a pair in seriously good form — Matlock delivered a really memorable day of golf.

Course Highlights

Sitting 850 feet above sea level, Matlock Golf Club offers an 18-hole par-70 course that unfolds across stunning moorland terrain — adorned with heather, gorse, wildflowers, and wildlife habitats throughout.

With cut-and-fill greens, steep banks, and the meandering Bentley Brook weaving through the layout, the course places a real premium on accuracy over power. A genuinely characterful venue that always rewards thoughtful, controlled golf.

Weather Conditions

A mild morning turned into blue skies and plenty of sunshine for the rest of the day. The wind picked up early in the afternoon but quickly calmed to a gentle breeze — genuinely pleasant conditions overall and about as good as Matlock could offer.

Tournament Highlights

With the course playing a lot shorter than usual thanks to firm and fast fairways, the field responded with some fantastic scoring. The WHS leaderboard was very close throughout, with the eventual winners edging it on a better back 9 — a superb 27 points coming in to seal the win.

The Best Gross round was equally special — Lee Clawley and Martin Kirkbride finishing on a stunning -2. Martin also picked up the Men's Longest Drive too — not bad going for someone in his 60s.

Winners

Huge congratulations to Stephen Stratton and Michael Johnson, who took the top spot with a superb 48 points — sealed on countback thanks to that outstanding 27-point back nine.

A massive well played to Paul Gawthorpe and Adam Sturman in the runners-up spot, matching the winning score of 48 points. A brilliant round and desperately unlucky to come out on the wrong side of countback.

Best Gross honours went to Lee Clawley and Martin Kirkbride with a stunning -2 — a proper display of low-handicap golf.

On the Course

Plenty of action away from the main leaderboards too:

• Men's Longest Drive — Martin Kirkbride
• Ladies' Longest Drive — Stefanie Corkin
• Nearest the Pin — Surinder Bahia

Well played to all three for stepping up when it mattered.

A brilliant day at a really unique moorland venue. Thanks to everyone who played, to Matlock Golf Club for hosting us so well, and huge congratulations once again to Stephen and Michael on a hard-earned countback win. Onto the next one.

Leaderboard can be found here.