Former AFC Wimbledon stopper Spike Brits completes Prostate Cancer UK's Big Golf Race

The 16-year-old, who joined The Dons as an eight-year-old and last summer secured a club-record fee for an academy player by signing for Premier League champions Manchester City, raised over £3,600 for Prostate Cancer UK by conquering 72 holes of golf in one day – known as the Marathon - after his dad, Colin, was successfully treated for prostate cancer in 2019.

Spike, fresh from helping England to the quarter finals of the Under-17 European Championships in Cyprus, was joined on the course by Gerry Williams, Colin’s close friend and father of fellow AFC Wimbledon academy graduate, Morgan Williams.

Colin and Morgan were on hand to support the golfing duo, who teed off their epic challenge at 4.45am at Croham Hurst Golf Club in Croydon on Monday, June 10 - which also marked the start of Men’s Health Week and concluded with Father’s Day – and returned to the clubhouse at 8.45pm after 16 gruelling hours of golf.

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Spike said: “Prostate cancer is a disease that has affected me and my family first hand. My dad is a prostate cancer survivor and I saw all the challenges Dad went through to beat the disease and the impact it had on us as a family.

“A key factor in him being healthy now was his early diagnosis, so if our team can raise funds and awareness to improve testing and survival rates for others, then that would feel very special to me personally.”

Gerry, 49, said: “It was the most amazing day. This was a wonderful team, and laughter rang around the course the entire time. There was some good golf on show as well, despite tired legs and sore feet in the last round.

“We will never forget doing this together and we couldn’t have done it without all the amazing people who donated money, Adam at Croham Hurst GC, our friends and families and the brilliant team at Prostate Cancer UK. As Colin said at the very beginning: ‘if we can help change one person’s life, then it’s worth it.’ Thank you all so much.

“By supporting Prostate Cancer UK, the golf community has a unique power to reach potentially vulnerable men with awareness and risk messages that could save lives.”

This year, the leading men’s health charity is urging more golfers to take part in The Big Golf Race to help save dads, grandads, brothers, uncles and friends from a disease that affects 1 in 8 men in the UK.

Since The Big Golf Race was launched in 2020, more than 10,000 golfers have raised over £3.4m to help fund life-saving research to radically improve the way prostate cancer is diagnosed and treated.

Seren Evans, Head of Events and Community Fundraising at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “We’re delighted with how many golfers, clubs and partners have embraced The Big Golf Race and helped to build it into a fun yet challenging way of helping to help save men’s lives.“Prostate cancer is a disease killing one man every 45 minutes – roughly the time it takes to play three holes of golf – and it sadly exists in every golf club.

“But with the support of golfers like Spike, Gerry, Colin and Morgan and the thousands of others like them who have conquered The Big Golf Race, we’re able to continue to fund research into better tests and treatment for prostate cancer and keep men in the game for longer.

“Thank you to Spike, Gerry, Morgan and Colin for their fantastic efforts and congratulations for completing their Big Golf Race challenge.”

To join the thousands of other golfers in taking on Prostate Cancer UK’s Big Golf Race, visit prostatecanceruk.org/TheBigGolfRace.