Yorkshire golf: White Rose are Northern champions after five-star performance

When the forecast of a storm forced the final-day matches to be reduced to a singles session only, captain Dawn Clegg’s team were already assured of the title as Lancashire – the only team who could have caught them on match points – could not make up the leeway on game points after their 8-1 thrashing by their White Rose rivals on Thursday.

Yorkshire rubber-stamped the triumph by making it five wins out of five as they defeated Cumbria 4-2, winning three matches, halving two and losing only one, the top match where Curtis Cup player Rochelle Morris (Woodsome Hall) was beaten by Caitlin Whitehead.

Hallamshire’s Holly Morgan won her match 9&7 to make it four victories out of four for her in singles, while Alison Knowles (Hickleton) won 3&1 to match this feat.

Woodsome Hall’s Melissa Wood came in for her first match and earned a half and Megan Clarke (Cleckheaton) also halved to remain unbeaten in singles through four matches.

Lightcliffe’s Hannah Holden triumphed 3-1 and finished with a perfect return from three singles.

Rotherham’s Olivia Winning, only able to play Wednesday and Thursday because of work commitments, won both of the singles matches in which she played.

Huddersfield’s Megan Lockett won three out of four singles and her successor as Yorkshire champion, Megan Garland (Selby), returned two wins from four.

Gemma Batty, originally from Leeds, has reached English women’s open match play championship semi-finals at Holme Hall, Lincolnshire.

Batty, a Stirling student who recently won the Slovenia international, is just back from the World University Games where she came fifth. She had such a quick turn-around she did not have time for a practice round.

She came through a low-scoring quarter-final against Lianna Bailey (Kirby Muxloe), closing out her opponent 4&3.

“I was three up through nine and then we halved every hole in par until I birdied the 15th to win. We both played very, very steady golf,” said Batty.