His victory bid in the scratch tournament at Bawburgh Golf Club began on Saturday as he mastered Norfolk Boys champion Liam Caffyn and county first-teamer Scott Wright.
The following morning saw Bradfield – the head greenkeeper at Mattishall Golf Club – busy at work before 6a.m.
Barely two hours later, he rushed back to Bawburgh to take on Sean Rafferty in a semi-final clash.
It was a match in which Bradfield always held the upper hand and eventually he closed out a 3&2 win, sealed in extraordinary style.
His tee-shot to the par-3 16th landed towards the middle of a pond before miraculously kicking right to end up on the greenside fringe.
The joke went round that Bradfield’s golf ball walks on water – and duly he began the final in majestic fashion.
A 10-foot birdie putt dropped at the first hole and he never looked back against Harry Brister, who over the weekend put up a bold defence 12 months on from claiming the county’s match play crown.
Within five holes Bradfield was 4-up on an opponent whose putter did not perform to the same level as it had during an epic 2-up last-four clash with Warwick Calasse.
Finally, Brister won his first hole of the match at the seventh but Bradfield’s deft up-and-down at the next soon restored his comfortable advantage.
Into the back nine and Brister pulled off a remarkable par to halve the 13th where his ball hit a small sign and bounced back towards the green instead of sailing out of bounds.
It was a huge stroke of luck and he won the next hole with another fine chip and single putt.
But there was to be no dramatic late comeback from Bawburgh golfer Brister as Bradfield’s well-judged two-putt par at the 15th hole was sufficient to secure the Austin Brydon Trophy with a 4&3 win.
It was a much-deserved breakthrough victory for Bradfield, as popular a golfer as he is talented.
Bradfield, 25, said: “I definitely didn’t have the easiest route.
“Liam, up and coming, a really good golfer – I didn’t expect to beat him. Definitely not Scott. And then Sean, I didn’t expect to beat him.
“I didn’t really expect to beat anyone. I expected a short day on Saturday!
“I've never won anything major – this is definitely at the top.”
For the second successive year the handicap title went to Richard Abbs, who beat William Stursberg in a to-and-fro final.
Mundesley golfer Abbs received five strokes, the last of which was at the 18th where he preserved successfully a 1-up advantage to clinch outright victory.
Photos (Rushmer PR)
Pics 1 and 1A: Harry Bradfield clinched the biggest victory of his career at the Norfolk Match Play Championship
Pic 2 Harry Bradfield saved his best golf for the final in which he beat 2025 Norfolk Match Play champion Harry Brister at Bawburgh Golf Club
Pic 3 and 3A Richard Abbs celebrated a second successive triumph in the handicap division of the Norfolk Match Play Championship
Norfolk Match Play Championship (Bawburgh Golf Club, October 10-11)
Scratch tournament
Round of 16
Harry Brister (Bawburgh) won 2-up v Jacob Jeary (Bawburgh)
Phil Scott (Mundesley) won 3&2 v Jack Bennett (Royal Norwich)
Ben Rawsthorne (Bawburgh) won 3&1 v Charlie Green (Bawburgh)
Warwick Calasse (Sprowston Manor) won 4&2 v Karl Diggens (Sprowston Manor)
Harry Bradfield (Mattishall) won at the 1st extra hole v Liam Caffyn (Dereham)
Scott Wright (Middleton Hall) won 5&4 v Olaf Gent (Thetford)
Sean Rafferty (Royal Norwich) won 2&1 v Dan Palmer (Sprowston Manor)
Ryan Clarke (Mundesley) won 5&3 v Alex Day (Bawburgh)
Quarter-finals
Brister won 1-up v Scott
Calasse won 2&1 v Rawsthorne
Bradfield won 2-up v Wright
Rafferty won at the 1st extra hole v Clarke
Semi-finals
Brister won 2-up v Calasse
Bradfield won 3&2 v Rafferty
Final
Bradfield won 4&3 v Brister
Handicap tournament
Round of 16
Richard Abbs (Mundesley) won 5&4 v Darren Farman (Great Yarmouth & Caister)
Robert Webb (Bawburgh) won 2&1 v Todd Pitcher (Mattishall)
Ian Daywin (Bawburgh) won 5&4 v David Holt (Dunston Hall)
James Martin (Dunston Hall) won 1-up v Andy Cranmer (Dunston Hall)
William Stursberg (Royal Cromer) won 6&4 v Hugo Fisher-Briggs (Royal Norwich)
Matthew Bennett (Wensum Valley) won 6&4 v Stuart Goddard (Wensum Valley)
David Fullegar (Sprowston Manor) won 2&1 v Steve Ormston (Dunston Hall)
Jack Johnson (Royal Norwich) won 5&3 v Paddy Green (Bawburgh)
Quarter-finals
Abbs won 2-up v Webb
Martin won 3&2 v Daywin
Stursberg won 5&4 v Bennett
Johnson won 5&3 v Fullegar
Semi-finals
Abbs won 1-up v Martin
Stursberg won 6&5 v Johnson
Final
Abbs won 1-up v Stursberg