Sudbrook Moor golfer Dan Blankley enjoys success on his return to the sport

Sudbrook Moor golfer Dan Blankley has made a triumphant return to the sport.

Blankley tried golf as a teenager back in the 1990s but drifted away from the game until this year.

Now 37-years-old, he has returned and hit the competition scene with massive enthusiasm and plenty of successes.

His year-long performances have moved his initial handicap index of 16 down to his current 12.

At the weekend, he rocked his rookie season by triumphing in the Rainbow Series to win the championship trophy.

Each player's best six rounds are built into the eventual aggregate prizes with a share-out from the Pot of Gold.

One of the scheme's very successful ingredients is the total of nine opportunities to improve on previous performances and to replace a lower score with an improved scorecard.

Blankley built his final total of 233 points with stableford scores of 42, 42, 42, 37, 36 and 34.

He entered every competition within the 2023 scheme and secured the title by one point.

There were six players pressing him in the final stableford with runner-up Pedro Morais finishing on 232 points.

Morais has achieved this runner-up spot for the past two years, and, on both occasions, missed the title by just one stableford point.

On a rather bleak and drizzly Saturday, Dave Sharples (+3 points), Ian Barnes (+11 points), Andy Newman (+6 points) and Michael Coupland (+2 points) all returned improved November scores, adding vital stableford points, to climb the final Order of Merit leaderboard.

November Rainbow leading scores: 1 Neil Baker 43, 2 Kev Turner, 40, 3 Ian Barnes 38.

The 2023 final Rainbow Championship: 1 Dan Blankley 233, 2 Pedro Morais 232, 3 Michael Coupland 225, 4 Dave Sharples 222, 5 Ian Barnes 216, 6 Andy Newman 211.

Rainbow Monthly winners, between March and November: Barry Smith, Andy Dunderdale, Miles Thorndike, Sue Watson, Lee Gayton, Pedro Morais, Dave Sharples and Neil Baker.