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Nikki gears up to defend title

2/ 8/2008

THE Wild Bunch will be gunning for glory in the MEN Greater Manchester Junior Open at Sale on August 26.

And the boys will have their sights set on the girls after last year when they were upstaged by Nikki Foster.

Since then, the 16-year-old Accrington player has enjoyed success in the bigger arena.

This season she joined forces with another former winner - Mere's Charlotte Wild whose dad Martin instigated the event 12 years ago - to capture the Northern Women's Foursomes at Warrington.

Nikki was already Lancashire Girls' champion when she claimed our title with a six-under-par 64 and is one of several past winners making their mark at regional and national level.

Among them is England player Kelly Tidy, from Bolton, this week picked for the Junior Ryder Cup in America, while Mere's Gina Brown has gone on to triumph in the JJB Sports MEN Women's Championship for the last two years.

Nikki, Charlotte and Gina will all be back at Sale this time.

Matthew Nixon, the 2006 British Boys' champion from Ashton-under-Lyne, is too old to defend his gross title but there will be plenty more talented youngsters ready to step into his spikes such as Davyhulme Park's Luke Davies who won the Under-14 section with a fine 66 off his 12 handicap.

Martin Wild, who made 100 appearances for Lancashire and was twice county champion, said: "There were no junior events like this when I was a youngster and that's why I started it.

"I always knew it would be a success because there is a conveyor belt producing many promising young players in Greater Manchester.

"The tournament always creates a special atmosphere and the competitors feel like a million dollars when they've completed their rounds.

"It's all free - including the food and, as always, there will be a fantastic prize table thanks to all the sponsors who support us every year."

The tournament is open to golfers aged under 18 on January 1 this year with a maximum club handicap of 24 for boys and 36 for girls.

Closing date is August 15 and competition organiser Andy Barlow advises players to send in their entries as soon as possible because the field is restricted to 150.