Sam Parsons claimed the Blackmoor Bowl for the second time in three years to complete a rare double, having defended the East Hampshire club’s championship title earlier this summer.

And having claimed the Solent Salver for the best aggregate in the Stoneham Trophy and Mike Smith Memorial, his latest victory was further evidence of Parsons’ purple patch.

Parsons, who has missed out on playing for Hampshire’s first team in 2025 – focusing on the Challenge League as part of the county’s development squad – has been on fire since getting back to his best.

Parsons, who fired rounds of 68 and 66 to win the Blackmoor Bowl by a remarkable seven shots, carded five birdies in his second round, as he remained the only player to shoot two rounds below par.

He had been tied at lunch by former Blackmoor junior Steve Mitchell, the Sussex first-team player who is now a member at Cowdray Park, near Midhurst.

Corhampton’s Mike Smith Memorial winner Jamie Markwick had to settle for fourth place with rounds of 70 and 72, while Stoneham’s promising junior Fred Gill came home with two 71s to finish one behind Surrey’s Jonathon Poulton.

Parsons, who proudly showed off his latest crystal ware with son Milo in his arms on the balcony at Blackmoor, admitted his game has gone to another level since the birth of his son last year.

Parsons said: “I first spoke about the effects of becoming a dad and the benefits it has brought to my game last year.

“I was also asked recently about my reactions to watching Scottie Scheffler parading the Claret Jug with his son after winning the Open.

“Quite a lot of people read that article – even though I think a few of the boys did, it hasn’t stopped me from getting back in the winner’s circle twice more.

“It really has been something else. The Solent Salver has been won by some of the biggest names in Hampshire golf over the past 30 years, including Richard Bland and Justin Rose.

“Now I have done the double at my own club by winning the club championship and the Blackmoor Bowl in the same season.

“I guess I just need the Selborne Salver to complete the Blackmoor Slam, having won the county championship here last year.

“I can’t put into words the difference being Milo’s dad has made to me as a golfer other than to say again, bad shots no longer seem important, and all I want to see is his smiling face – and he seems to like it when I have got a trophy in my hand.

“It will be fun to see in future years what he remembers about this. I just want him to enjoy playing and watching sport like I do.”

The only downside for Parsons is that any dream of landing a first Cullen Quaich by claiming the Hampshire Order of Merit will have to wait at least another year, despite his victory.

Defending champion Robert Wheeler – who won the Hampshire Open against the county’s top club professionals and leading amateurs nearly a year ago to dominate the Order of Merit standings – already has an unassailable total.

Wheeler’s current total of 82.83 points cannot be beaten, with Parsons moving up to second – 40 points behind – after scooping 15 at Blackmoor.

By Andrew Griffin