Marley defies his form to win fifth title

MICK MARLEY defied the form book to win his fifth Royal Guernsey championship on Sunday. The island regular followed up a level-par morning round of 70 with a 72 to claim the title on countback from Bobby Eggo.

The win, though, came as something of a surprise for Marley (pictured). 'I had my worst score in two years on Thursday – an 80 – so I had no expectations at all,' he said.

A solid start to his first round was not a sign of things to come. Marley was two under after eight without a blemish on his card to that point before three bogeys in four holes briefly set him back.

'I was one over on the 13th tee, but birdied that hole and then eagled 14 when I holed a putt from off the green,' he said. 'After that I dropped two shots on the way in so it was a bit of an up-and-down run after a decent start.'