Two amateur golfers from Mansfield have qualified for an expenses-paid trip of a lifetime to Morocco after finishing second in the UK northern regional final of the 2015 Morocco Matchplay, powered by HowDidiDo.

Baker Alan Robinson (37), left, a 24-handicapper, and Oakmere Park GC club-mate Tom McCann (35), who plays off 22, came third in the pairs final, at Oulton Park, Leeds.

Now the two long-time friends will be heading out to February’s final at the Golf de Mogador, in Essaouira, a 16th-Century, fortified harbour town on Morocco’s Atlantic coast.

It was quite a day for McCann who learned only that morning that he and his wife were expecting a baby girl. Indeed, as a result of his attendance at a 20-week scan, he and Robinson were sent out last to accommodate his hospital appointment.

“There’s a couple of weeks’ gap between the event and the due date,” McCann said. “It’s my birthday while we’re away as well.”

Robinson added: “We’re over the moon. We’ve been playing together for three years since we stopped playing football.”

In total, 32 competitors will enjoy complimentary return flights to Morocco, five nights’ accommodation at the five-star Sofitel Essaouira Mogador Golf & Spa hotel and four rounds of golf at nearby Golf de Mogador.

Participants will also receive a welcome reception and cocktail evening, and a final night presentation gala dinner.

The highly rated Gary Player-designed links-style course, which dates from 2009, demands long carries between tees and fairways, as the vegetation and sand shape the layout.

Four competitions culminate at the final, sponsored for a second year by the Moroccan National Tourist Office — singles, pairs, mixed pairs and senior pairs, with 32 golfers, from across the UK fighting it out for the titles.

Each pair played up to four qualifying rounds to reach the regional final.