Staff WriterWoburn’s John Kemp has won the English Senior Men’s Stroke Play Championship for a third consecutive year, finishing as the only player under par after three testing rounds across Woodbridge and Ipswich (Purdis Heath) Golf Clubs — which is golf’s polite way of saying everyone else was left wrestling with the weather and their own private demons.
Kemp Completes A Rare Senior Golf Hat-Trick
There are victories, and then there are victories that begin to acquire a small brass plaque and a dusting of permanence.
Kemp’s latest triumph belongs firmly in the second category. After wins at Gog Magog/Saffron Walden in 2024 and Woodhall Spa in 2025, the BB&O golfer added another title with rounds of 69 at Woodbridge, 68 at Ipswich and a final-day 73 back at Ipswich.
That left him on two-under-par overall and four shots clear of the field. In a week of breeze, rain and the sort of conditions that make a man look suspiciously at his waterproofs, Kemp was the only player to finish below par.
It was not merely a win. It was a statement in sensible shoes.
Kemp now joins Lancashire’s Alan Squires as only the second player to win three straight English Senior Men’s Stroke Play Championship titles. In amateur golf, where consistency is often harder to find than a dry glove in a sideways downpour, that is no small entry in the ledger.
A Fast Start, A Mid-Round Wobble And A Champion’s Finish
Kemp began the final round at Ipswich like a man determined not to make life needlessly theatrical. Back-to-back birdies gave him early breathing space and immediately changed the temperature of the chase.
That mattered, because Jody Fanagan had made his own thunderous move on day two with a six-under 65 at Ipswich, throwing himself firmly into contention. The Irishman had the look of a dangerous pursuer, but a final-round one-over saw him finish second on one-over overall.
Fanagan did, however, top the 60-64 category, which is a decent consolation prize when the fellow ahead of you appears to have turned the championship into a personal timeshare.
Brokenhurst Manor’s Martin Young made his move on the final day with a three-under 68, climbing to third on two-over overall. Elsewhere, Northwood’s Justin Phelps produced the round of the day, a bogey-free 66, to surge into the top 10.
Ashridge’s Simon Kay finished on four-over overall and took honours as the leading player in the 65+ category.
Kemp Credits Early Work, Swing Changes And A Bit Of Senior Stubbornness
Kemp’s win was built less on fireworks than on the sort of disciplined scoring that ages well. His opening 69 at Woodbridge and second-round 68 at Ipswich gave him the platform. The final 73 was not flawless, but championships rarely ask for perfection. They ask for nerve, control and the ability to avoid setting fire to your scorecard when the weather starts muttering.
He said: “It feels magnificent, I loved it. The first two days set me up. It was in the back of my mind winning three in a row, but in all honesty I did the work in the first two days, I played lovely. Today, I started great, struggled in the middle, but finished well.
“It was tough conditions all week, breezy, rainy – I don’t play those conditions anymore – I’m a senior! I don’t want to play in those conditions, it wasn’t nice! But we all had to battle through it and I knuckled down. I’ve got to say a thank you to my coach Chris Forsyth as we changed my swing. When we won in 2024, I didn’t like my swing – and you have to like your swing! He’s made a big difference to me. This year it’s feeling a lot better and I’m hoping to progress for the rest of the season.”
There is a telling line in there. “You have to like your swing.” It sounds simple, almost comic, but any golfer who has stood over a four-footer while privately negotiating with their central nervous system will understand exactly what Kemp means.
Golf is a game played with clubs, yes, but often lost in the space between the ears. Kemp appears to have made peace with both.
No Champagne, Just Cyprus And A 5am Departure
Most champions might allow themselves an evening of quiet satisfaction. Kemp, apparently, had logistics to manage.
Despite his victory, there was no time for celebrations, as he revealed: “We’re off to Cyprus for the European Senior Amateur tomorrow! My wife’s packed, I go home now and at 5 am we leave the house. I’ll have a couple of days to chill out and then I’ll be into the Europeans.”
That may be the most senior-amateur sentence ever spoken: historic title, wife packed, 5 am departure, Europe waiting.
It also gives the win a useful edge. This was not the end of a season. It was another stage in one still gathering pace.
The Fourth Title Chase Is Already In The Diary
Kemp’s third straight English Senior Men’s Stroke Play Championship title puts him in rare company, but the next target is even more exclusive.
He is expected to return in 2027 at Liphook and Hindhead, where a fourth title would move him towards territory currently occupied by Cheshire’s Roy Smethurst, who won the championship in 2000, 2001, 2004 and 2005.
Kemp added: “I’ll be back at Liphook and Hindhead next year to try and win it a record fourth time. It’s in my diary all the time, so I’m looking forward to it. I’d love to make a bit of history and do four in a row – it’s a big ask as there are some great players coming through and I’m getting closer to the 60 bracket now, but all being well, I’ll be there!”
There is modesty in that quote, but not much surrender. Kemp knows the field is getting stronger. He knows time has a habit of tapping even the best players on the shoulder. He also knows he has just beaten everyone again.
That tends to clarify the mind.
For now, John Kemp has the trophy, the history and a very early alarm clock. Three in a row is already exceptional. Four would be something else entirely — the sort of thing that makes even golf’s dusty record books sit up and adjust their spectacles.
