Team “The Rest” staged a brilliant final-day comeback to defeat Team Malta 13.5–10.5, capturing the prestigious annual Malta vs. The Rest tournament and bringing a spectacular close to the 2025/26 Royal Malta Golf Club season.

The highly anticipated Ryder Cup-style event brought together the finest Maltese golfers against the top expatriate players residing on the island. While the competition was fierce on the greens, the entire weekend was played in the trademark friendly and camaraderie-filled atmosphere of the club.

A See-Saw Battle

The three-day tournament was a masterclass in balanced competitive golf:

• Day 1 (Alternate Shot): Team Malta took an early edge in the foursomes—a format that historically favors the local side—nosing ahead with a narrow 3.5 to 2.5 lead.
• Day 2 (Fourball Betterball): The momentum leveled out during Saturday’s fourball matches, with both teams trading blows to finish tied at 3–3 for the day, maintaining Malta’s slim overall advantage.
• Day 3 (Singles): Entering the final day, the math was clear. Malta needed 5.5 points to retain their crown, while The Rest required 7 points from the 12 singles matches to snatch it away.

When it mattered most, the expatriate side delivered under pressure. Team The Rest put on a dominant singles display, racking up 8 out of a possible 12 points to completely turn the tide, seal the overall victory, and triumphantly reclaim “The Sword” trophy.

The Teams

Team The Rest (Champions): Tony Kjaldstrom, Steve Dodd, Pavel Lunev, Bryan Paterkin, Steve Paterson, Victor Henri, Andy Featherstone, Tim Cleasby, Peter Canaki, Noah Gratil, Zhetang Zhang, and Anders Bergman.

Team Malta: Peter Naudi, Andrew Naudi, Nicholas Scerri, Franco Degabriele, Phil Sammut, Sam Azzopardi, Nick Urpani, Nick Laferla, Ruud Critien, Mark Ganado, Danijel Bogdanovic, and Jay Jay Micallef.