TWO golfing buddies landed a hole in one after raising £7,500 for children’s charity Molly Ollys.
Pat Manning and Bill Ryan covered 160 miles over 10 days, playing a single hole of golf at 35 courses, starting and finishing at Leamington County Golf Club.
They followed a route via Redditch, Warwick, Kenilworth, Stoneleigh, Coventry, Sheldon, Solihull, Birmingham, Kings Norton, Bromsgrove, Droitwich, Worcester, Evesham, Welford, Bidford and Stratford-upon-Avon.
At the start of the challenge the pair set out to raise £4,000 for the charity which was created following the death of Rachel and Tim Ollerenshaw’s eight-year-old daughter Molly from a rare kidney cancer.
Pat, 59, and Bill, 62, have almost doubled their original fundraising target for Molly Ollys, which supports children with life-limiting and terminal illness and their families.
Pat, from Warwick, said: “This has been the most incredible experience, it has been enjoyable but tough and has stretched me in terms of stamina and resilience.
“From beginning to end we met some lovely people and were made to feel welcome by everybody.
“At no time did we consider giving up – we were spurred on by the donations people were making and the work Rachel and her team do.”
An unexpected encounter also helped ‘drive home’ the human message behind their odyssey.
Sophie Coleman, a bar supervisor at Blackwell Golf Club near Bromsgrove, told how she was supported by the charity who donated a new laptop to help her continue her college work whilst undergoing chemotherapy for Hodgkins Lymphoma at the age of 17.
Sophie, now 21, has now been given the all-clear.
She said: “Molly Ollys is an amazing charity as it gave me something to look forward to whilst I was feeling rubbish.”
Rachel from Molly Olly’s said: “Through our work at Molly Ollys, we have been privileged to meet some very special individuals and Bill and Pat are two such people.
“Before they embarked on their challenge they took time to really understand the significance of the impact of our work and the potential impact they could have.
“As a result they went above and beyond and their achievement should be fully celebrated.”
For more or to donate visit www.justgiving.com and search Pat Manning.
