ALNMOUTH’S Andrew Minnikin won the 2017 Northern Golf Masters at Rockliffe Hall.

On a tough day of scoring and in difficult conditions, the 37-year-old produced some stunning golf to blitz the field by seven shots with a score of 142 (-2) in the 36 hole competition. Dunnikier Park’s Liam Duncan was runner-up with 149, with Hartlepool’s Cameron Wallace following behind in third place with 150.

Andrew, who lives in Newcastle, said: “It was a fantastic day and the course was amazing. I could feel, after the first round that I could potentially be a great day for me. I started the second round really well and went bogey-free in the afternoon so knew I was going to be tough to beat.”

The Northern Golf Masters returned to Rockliffe for the sixth consecutive year. It is part of the County Scratch Order of Merit.

Forty four category one golfers from across the North-East, North Yorkshire and Cumbria with a handicap of five or below took part.

Rockliffe’s golf director, Jon Stacey, said: “Congratulations to Andrew on winning the competition by quite some margin. The golf course was in superb condition with many people commenting on how great the course is so a huge credit goes to our Head Greenkeeper, Jon Wyer, and his team. It was great to see so many young, elite players from the North-East taking part.”

SLALEY Hall has been voted the best golf resort in the north of England, according to the Golf World Top 100 Resorts in UK & Ireland ranking.

The four-star resort in Hexham, Northumberland, was ranked 24 overall in the top 100 list, in which it was competing with world-renowned five-star resorts on both sides of the Irish Sea.

Andrew Cameron, golf operations manager believes everybody at the resort should be rightly proud of the achievement.

He said: “This ranking was eagerly anticipated, as nothing of this magnitude had ever been attempted before. Everything has to come together - golf, food, hotel, relaxation - to make it somewhere a golfer wants to visit and stay for a couple of days.

“And for Slaley Hall to be listed as the highest-ranked golf resort in the north of England is a great achievement and one about which everybody at the resort can be justifiably delighted.”

was also voted Top Resort in the North of England by Today’s Golfer Travel Awards for the third year in a row. Slaley handed £15,700 over to the NSPCC in August.

Andrew Fox, general manager at Slaley Hall, said: “I’m really proud of what the entire team here at Slaley Hall – recently sold to Redefine BDL - have achieved this year. The new managers that we have brought on board have worked really well with the established teams to achieve some truly fantastic results, particularly when compared to the last few years.”