NOT even a hole-in-one from Billy McKenzie on his final hole before lunch could fire Hampshire to a fourth successive victory in the South-East Qualifier as Berks, Bucks & Oxfordshire had their day in the sun, shooting a remarkable 10 under par at Orsett GC in Essex to clinch their place at the English County Finals in September (writes Andrew Griffin).

The last time Hampshire failed to win the 11-strong SE Group was back in 2014 when Scott Gregory had just broken into the first team.

Hampshire captain Colin Roope, of Blackmoor GC, was trying to emulate predecessor Martin Young’s victories in 2016 – when Harry Ellis fired his team-mates to victory at Calcot Park, and last year at Sheringham when they won by two.

BB&O were seven ahead at lunch on seven under par as a 66 from George Gardener counterbalanced a worst score of 77 and also headed the leaderboard.

That kind of lead has been reeled in more often than not in the event’s long history.

But there was nothing the watching captain, who arguably had the strongest Hampshire side on paper in a decade – could do or say to prevent what unfolded after lunch.

The three counties took four more shots collectively, but that masked a complete collapse from Gardener, who took 17 more after his morning heroics.

With his 83 the first card in, there seemed to be hope for Hampshire, but John Gough added a 69 to his 71, while Ollie Huggins had a pair of 71s.

Tim Shin had two 70s, but they were all overtaken by David Langley who added a superb best-of-the-day 65 to his first round 70 to win the Peter Benka Trophy, which Ellis and Tom Robson claimed in 2016 and 2013.

It left BB&O on 854 – 10 under par for 36 holes – 12 clear of the defending champions, with Kent a further six shots back.

McKenzie, whose ace came at the 15th, was third individually on five under after adding a 70 to his opening 69.

Meon Valley’s George Saunders bounced back from a disappointing 77 to shoot 70, while the Shanklin pair of Jordan Sundborg and Conor Richards shot four over and two over in total respectively.

Robson was also two over, while Martin Young, who has been playing in the qualifiers for 20 years, produced two 70s.

While BB&O can start booking their accommodation for Aldeburgh (Suffolk) for the finals, Roope will focus on claiming a place in the South-East Group final at Frilford Heath in October. A win against Surrey at Hayling on August 5 will guarantee a first appearance in the final since 2014, when Hampshire lost to Essex.

A draw – or even a defeat – would leave Hampshire requiring help from Dorset or Kent in their remaining games.