Team GB celebrate at Royal St George's after winning the Simpson Cup

Golf

Team GB surges to Simpson Cup victory after sensational singles

Team GB have broken the Simpson Cup deadlock after a commanding singles performance to win the 2025 competition in Kent and take a 7-6 lead in the overall series.

The Ryder Cup-style golf tournament is for wounded, injured and sick veterans of the British and United States military.

A nail-biting first afternoon at Prince's Golf Club on Tuesday meant the hosts and the USA were locked at 3-3.

A fast start in the fourballs was delivered courtesy of Paul Copley and Matt Arnold, who maintained their lead through the match to see off USA captain John Goudie and partner Jerome Taylor 4&3. Further victories for Dave Onions and Steve Dickinson, and Dave Ward and Sam Stoddart, kept GB in the hunt after the first day.

The players went down the shoreline to Sandwich for the big day of singles. The host of many an Open Championship, Royal St George's, was the stunning setting for GB's victory push to lift the Ben Simpson trophy.

Team GB has had the historic superiority in the format, with a record of 81-68 prior to this year's competition, and a true links challenge beckoned.

Despite a stiffening sea breeze, they set off at lightning pace yet again, winning the first six matches and painting the leaderboard a striking shade of blue.

Triple amputee Nick Kimmel, last to tee off for the USA, was an inspirational reminder of the significance of the competition's deep purpose.

Paul Copley won the battle of the rookies, beating Devon von Lichtenstein 4&3, before Matt Arnold triumphed 7&5 over John Goudie.

With wins for Kushal Limbu (5&4), Dave Carroll (5&3), Neil Flynn (6&5) and Steve Dickinson (7&5), the score moved to 9-2 at one stage, meaning the home side needed just one more point to secure the trophy.

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Meanwhile, red built up at the other end of the leaderboard, with Justin Lynn seeing off Dave Ward 6&5, but 10-cup veteran, professional Mike Brown, calmed GB nerves by closing out his match 1 up against Jerome Taylor.

Speaking to BFBS, GB Captain Andy Stevens said, "I'm feeling so happy but, to be honest, I've had such a buzz and such a feeling about this team, I really have. And every time I've spoken to them, I’ve told them that I've had this super buzz feeling and I'm just so so happy."

Speaking about the conditions, he added: "A proper links, and it was more or less, towards the end of the season, so probably about four weeks ago, and it's been the same ever since… today, we had the sea breeze coming in, and at one stage we had a two-club wind, and then it would drop. Proper links."

Having hit the winning putt 10 years ago, Stevens also touched on the special memory of Ben Simpson, after whom the trophy is named.

"The memory of Ben being here, of him in the practice round and during the Sponsors' Day, hitting amazingly long drives and having competitions with some of our players, so such happy memories of Ben here and so appropriate that the trophy is now named after him."