Back in July, he’d taken off his wedding band and a dress ring before he teed off, slipping them into his pocket until after the game.

Advertise with News of The Area today.
It’s worth it for your business.
Message us.
Phone us – (02) 4981 8882.
Email us – media@newsofthearea.com.au

However disaster struck when he took something out of his pocket during the round, and both rings were lost.

He didn’t realise until after the game, and despite the best efforts of he and his teammates, the rings couldn’t be found.

It was a very distressed Larry who had to accept that they were gone forever.

But Larry’s luck changed about a month later when a thoughtful person playing at Hawks Nest Golf Club discovered the dress ring in the grass, and handed it in to the Pro Shop.

While Larry was very grateful to have it returned, it didn’t quite make up for the loss of his precious wedding ring.

Fast forward another couple of months until mid-November and the Club’s ground staff were completing their annual course renovations, which among other things, involves coring the fairways.

A large machine with rows of metal tines extracts small plugs or cores of turf, helping the grass roots become lush and green again.

After a week of coring acres of fairways, staff member Mel Mills was cleaning and inspecting the machine.

Luckily she was fastidious about her job, or she may have missed it.

There was Larry Campton’s wedding ring, perfectly married to one of the tines.

Quite miraculously, the ring was undamaged and none the worse for wear.

The eagle-eyed Mel was understandably astonished.

“I can’t believe that it’s been found like that!” she said.

“If it had been a smaller ring it wouldn’t have fit so neatly over the tine, or even been pushed down into the ground for good.”

Larry and wife Sue, who will be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary next year, were amazed and delighted at their good fortune.

By Dianne BOWES