WORCESTER Golf and Country Club has raised £1,570 for a surgical robot for Worcestershire.

The club held a seniors’ charity cup day and members turned out in large numbers in support of the £1.6 million appeal for "Rory the Robot".

The winner from 71 players was Robin Lowe, who received the trophy from Phil Bligh, head of business at Audi Worcester, which was the main sponsor of the day.

Other prize donations were made by West Mercia Police, BBC Midlands Today, Worcester Warriors, Worcestershire County Cricket Club, St Peter’s Garden Centre and Andrew Grant.

Andrew Grant conducted an auction of a day at the House of Lords and the House of Commons gifted by Lord Faulkner, together with a bottle of champagne from the vineyards of France, donated by Paul West.

Mr Lowe said his win was "totally unexpected but all the sweeter for that reason". Mr Bligh said: “Audi are very pleased to be able to support the Rory the Robot Appeal, particularly because it is a local appeal, giving direct benefit to the citizens of Worcestershire.”

David Simms, captain of the seniors, said: “ Prostate cancer surgery is clearly of interest to males of a certain age and I am so pleased so many members of the club helped us make this substantial contribution of £1,500 to this very worthwhile appeal.”

The Rory the Robot campaign aims to raise £1.6 million to buy the surgical machine, which will be based at Redditch's Alexandra Hospital, which is the county’s centre of excellence for urology.

Prostate cancer claims the life of one man every hour and by 2030 will be the most common cancer. In Worcestershire alone there are 2,500 men surviving prostate cancer at any one time, with about 450 to 550 new prostate cancer cases diagnosed every year.

The technology will allow surgeons to remove tumours with more precision through five cuts around the prostate gland rather than open surgery.

It means less blood loss, less pain after surgery, a lower risk of complications and recovery times will fall from up to 12 weeks to between three to four weeks.

It was first developed by the US military to allow surgeons based in America to operate remotely on soldiers injured on the battlefield over the internet but has since been developed for use in general hospitals. It can also be used for head and neck cancer, colorectal and heart surgery.