Gerard and Laura O’Connor overcame defending champions Sally and Tom Parrish to land the 2011 honours in Burhill Golf Club’s prestigious Family Foursomes tournament.

The visiting father and daughter duo saw off the challenge of the mother and son pairing, both members at Burhill, by 3&2 in a thrilling final of the foursomes matchplay competition after winning three holes in a row in the latter stages.

The three-day festival tournament, now in its 74th year having first been held in 1937, is one of Burhill’s most popular and longest established on its annual calendar.

This year it attracted 45 pairs, including 37 non-member duos from around the southern home counties and even one couple from France – Paul Masters and Karen Howe, who so enjoyed playing in a previous competition they took a holiday in England to coincide with this year’s event.

To win the tournament, eventual champions Gerard and Laura O’Connor (Worplesdon Golf Club) had to battle through six knock-out rounds. In the semi-finals they overcame Sarah Knollys and Hugo Wright (Sunningdale Golf Club) by 3&1 while Sally and Tom Parrish defeated Pauline and Rory Toogood (Ashridge Golf Club) by 4&3.

The Langmead Morgan Trophy

As a precursor to the main tournament, 38 pairs crossed swords for the annual Langmead Morgan Trophy, with Sally and Tom Parrish gaining consolation for their eventual defeat in the Family Foursomes final by securing victory. The trophy, first played for in 2003, was donated by Juliet Morgan to mark the 50th anniversary of her first outing in the Family Foursomes.