Seniors v Millbrook Tuesday May 31 2022

 There was no shortage of drama in this match, at least as far as the weather was concerned. Take a look at these amazing photos taken by Seniors Captain Algy Grimes while his four ball was sheltering from a hailstorm near the 12th green on John O'Gaunt. And this on the eve of June!

Organiser Malcolm Lee reports on the match

I arrived just after 07:30 to be met by the full contingent of The Millbrook team in their Royal blue polo shirts, and of course our captain Algy got there before me.

Although the weather forecast was possible rain, the day started fine. Hardly any breeze and with the sun appearing not long after the match started.  However, by the time the Captain, I and our Millbrook opponents stood on the 12^th tee the black clouds loomed and rumbles of thunder were heard. As we reached the green the heavens opened with torrential vertical rain followed by a short but sharp fall of hail turning both the fairway and green white (see Algy’s photos). The hail soon melted but left the puddles on the green with the pin surrounded by a 6+ feet “diameter” puddle. From that point onwards it was a matter of occasional shortish sharp rain showers but the thunder storms, by good luck, stayed away from the course. Most groups soldiered on to the end but one, nameless group gave in to the weather after the 14^th.

Our group were all square after the 15^th then Algy had a long putt on the 16^th leaving it about 5 feet from the hole. After the other three of us failed to hole out with a 3 Algy kept his calm to win the hole. So we teed off on the 17^th 1 up. Then unfortunately our fortunes turned. I gave very  little help on the last two but Chris, Millbrook’s captain showed us his true capabilities, which we had seen little of until then, winning the 17^th and finished with an excellent par on the 18^th for a Millbrook overall win of  +1.

With a very good 4 & 3 win by Chris Roy and Richard Young, a commendable +2 win for Andrew Lawrence and Barry Donovan and again a 2 & 1 win by Andy Shilton and Ian Simpson it still was not enough, with JOG going down with only 3 wins against The Millbrook 5.

Nearest the pin: for The Millbrook, Kevin Hughes; for JOG, Andy Shilton.

Over drinks we found out that the Millbrook captain Chris Freeman became the first registered member of Millbrook in 1977. At that time the club was known as Lyshott Heath Golf Club reverting to Millbrook, it’s name before 1977, in 2002 when it became a member-owned club.

Left to right: Chris Freeman, Millbrook Captain, Algy Grimes, 

Martin Copperwheat, Millbrook Vice Captain

Seniors at home to South Beds, May 24 2022

 Match organiser Tony Goodson reports

Shorts or long trousers? That was the crucial question ahead of our clash with South Beds. We are in May after all.

The forecast was for rain, and we did get some, although only two or three showers depending on your start time. Having noted others were wearing shorts I also wore them. I was pleased I did as the sun did come out at times.

Fortunately I only had to use one reserve, and that was done several days in advance.

The match, played on Carthagena, was very close with JOG winning 4.5 – 3.5.  My game with Captain Algy was close all the way round. We lost the first, then won the 7^th, lost the 9^th, won the 13^th to be all square, then won the 15^th to take the lead. Unfortunately we lost the 17^th to be all square again.  I got a par on the 18^th thinking that we were in to draw or win as Paul Burgess from South Beds was on the lower tier of the green at least 30ft away. He made the putt for a birdie and we lost. 

Brian Bullen in team 3 was only about 2 inches from a hole in one on the 8^th. My name was first on the NP list, but about 40ft away!

The meal was appreciated by all, and we all applauded the kitchen for the meal and service. We had Beef Bourguignon followed by Chocolate orange torte with ice cream.

A good day was had by all.

Seniors away to Saffron Walden, May 18, 2022

 Match organiser Michael Newstead reports on the day's action

Enlisting the aid of a Saffron Walden member after failing to unlock the barrier using the code I had been given and had sent to all the JOG team, I realised I had transposed the changing room code for the barrier code!  A simple mistake, I hear you cry. My own thoughts were more along the lines of, “Well things normally go in 3’s, so what else will go wrong?” 

 Fortunately, to my great relief, nothing did.  Mind you, I did receive a little playful ribaldry from Gerry Degaute, who asked me if I had solved the Enigma Code at the barrier?

Fabulous weather and a course in superb condition, breathtaking views of Audley End House and the surrounding countryside, all topped off with a delicious meal.  Everything good. Well not quite, there is the matter of the match to consider!

First out, I had the privilege of playing with our Captain, but after losing the first two holes, we knew we had a game on our hands.  We drew level and then inched ahead. We were now two in front and thinking we could win this!  Big mistake, tempting the Gods of Golf like that!!!   Birdies by them on 9 and 12, followed by a magnificent bunker chip-in on 16 - although it would have dashed through the green had it not struck the pin an almighty blow - dashed our hopes and sadly we came in second, losing 4 & 2.  

 Sadder still, we weren’t the only ones. Out of 8 matches we had 2 wins and one half, making the score 5 1/2 to 2 1/2 in favour of Saffron Walden.  All that remains therefore is to congratulate Peter Wade and Robert Anderson (match 6) and Jonathan Lean and Ian Riches (match 8) for giving John O’Gaunt some degree of respectability, not forgetting of course, the aforementioned Gerry Degaute and Andy Shilton (match 3) for their magnificent half against stiff opposition.

 All in all though, a great day out and our game played in the spirit in which it should be.

Seniors at home to Harpenden Common May 17 2022

 

Seniors Captain Algy Grimes and match organiser Gerry Degaute on the first tee with Harpenden Common's David Henson and Paul Bagnall

Match organiser Gerry Degaute reports on a good day for JoG Seniors

Harpenden Common arrived on a glorious sunny morning at John O’ Gaunt with a track record that was second to none. Given our results this season so far we may have feared the worst.

 The Harpenden Common team assembled in the clubhouse looking confident whilst we were left waiting for our full complement to arrive; not easy when one of the team has gone to Harpenden Common for our home match; classic senior moment.

 Anyway the opening match started well for us as Captain Algy and Organiser Gerry went one up immediately and slowly but surely reached four up with five to play. Then came the fight back albeit we held on to win 2&1. Things generally behind us must have been going well for John O’Gaunt judging by the overall result which I will reveal shortly! 

  In one of the more closely contested matches things got so nervy that one of our team members failed to make the red tees with his tee shot and was obliged to buy his playing partner a ‘hors-d’oeuvre’ of chips ahead of the post match meal.

 The overall result was a resounding 7-1 win for John O’ Gaunt which included a number of reasonably comfortable matches highlighted by a 5&4 by Nigel Underwood and Philip Armstrong. Despite the result the Harpenden Common Captain and his team were extremely complimentary about the quality of our course, the catering and the genial behaviour of our team. In closing my report I would like to thank our team for their all round performance. 

The teams enjoy lunch after Algy relaxed the dress code
 to smart casual on the hottest day of the year so far

Diary of a newbie, by blog editor Tony Lloyd

When Andy Shilton put out an appeal for seniors to take part in the under-subscribed match against Harpenden Common I thought this might be the time to finally have a go. What could possibly go wrong!

So it was that I turned up to play my debut match.

I was teamed with 7 handicapper Paul Hammond, so I doubted very much whether I, as a 28 handicapper, would contribute much to the score, although I did have my moments.

The round started well, and we were one ahead for most of the front nine, ending up all square at the turn. Finding ourselves two down by the 13^th we fought back valiantly, reducing their lead to one but never quite gaining the upper hand.

Our opponents Colin Young and Steve Hewitt were extremely good company and both were highly impressed with the condition of the course. So they should. They won!

After much banter and a very agreeable lunch I came away pleased that I had taken part, although disappointed with our result.

All I would say to anyone thinking about playing in the matches is “give it a go”. You might even win!

I am now looking forward to the return match at Harpenden Common … unless organiser Gerry Degaute sees sense and drops me from the squad!

On the 7th green in three. Seniors Captain Algy captures one of Tony's better moments

Seniors away to St Neots, May 9 2022

 Match organiser Ian Riches reports

The day started bright and sunny and with no congestion on the A1. Sixteen doughty gentlemen from John O’Gaunt arrived on time at St. Neots Golf Club ready to do battle and establish some pride from recent drubbings elsewhere. But as the great Jack Nicklaus once said: “This is a game. That's all it is. It's not a war."

For those yet to play St. Neots, I can report it is indeed a good test of golf. Playing the course in May meant it was in fine condition and whilst it is not a long course by modern standards, its fairways are tight and the greens very true. The river Ouse provides a backdrop to some very pretty holes around the course.

At the pre-match coffee, we were told by the St. Neots captain, Andy Skeoch, that the greens weren’t as fast as we were used to at JOG, but this was definitely not the case. Maybe some gamesmanship was at play.

St Neots is definitely a course that requires some local knowledge if it is to be played well. Many of the holes are dog-legs and apart from the par 3s I can’t recall a hole where it was possible to see the flag from the tee box. 

Despite some valiant efforts, JOG Seniors once again came off second best. Messrs Walker and Standen were the only victors, achieving a resounding 5 & 4 win despite giving away 11 shots to their opposition. In all the other matches there were no draws and St Neots sadly achieved a very comfortable 7/1 victory.

As has been the case with other matches this year, JOG was giving away far too many shots to the opposition, in this case 48. We therefore look forward to welcoming SNGC to JOG next month where our lower handicaps and longer course will help us prevail .

Annual Medal and Jubilee Cup May 10 2022

Paul Jones receives the John Freedman Trophy from Seniors Captain Algy Grimes

 A close fought annual medal for the John Freedman Trophy ended with Paul Jones victorious on net 63 with one birdie, eight pars and six bogeys.

In second place, beaten only on countback, was Jim McIlwaine, who won the Jubilee Cup for scoring the most stableford points for those with playing handicaps of 21 or higher.

In third place, on 64 points, was Bill Walker.

Commiserations to Dick Cobb who carded a 10 on the first but clawed his way back to net 65,  just missing out on a podium place.

The best gross score, 74, was recorded by Chris Saunders.

Congratulations to Geoff Elcome who scored the only eagle of the day on the third.

Ninety-six players competed for the trophy on the Carthagena course. Early starters had to contend with prolonged showers but the day turned fine and warm for many.

Jim McIlwaine, second in the annual medal, receives the Jubilee Cup for the most stableford points

Bill Walker is congratulated by Algy for third place in the annual medal

Ken Robinson Scramble May 3 2022

 

Seniors Captain Algy Grimes presents the trophy to winning team: Richard Knell, Alban Macdonald, Stephen Collins and David Crosby

Scoring in the Ken Robinson Scramble was very close, with only 10 points separating the 21 teams.

Eighty-four seniors played for the trophy on the John O'Gaunt course in mild conditions with a couple of showers thrown in.

The winning team of Stephen Collins, David Crosby, Richard Knell and Alban Macdonald scored a very impressive net 55, consisting of 5 birdies and only two bogeys, the rest being pars.

In second place, on net 57, were George Burnham, Tony Goodson, Paul L Jeeves and Andrew Wellings.

And in third place, on net 58, were Rob Bage, Alan Kirkham, Paul Marshall and Jim McIlwaine.

With the same net score but missing out on a podium place on countback were Geoff Elcome, Gordon Goodchild, Paul Hammond and Sam Standen, as well as Warren Churms, Alan Curtis, Neil Gregory and Graham Lewis.

Seniors away to Aspley Guise April 28 2022

Match organiser Jim Kerr reports

The day started with a bite in it. The weather was dry but cool, bordering on cold if you were standing in the wind.

Algy and I had a return match with Mac and Jim. I felt sorry for Algy as he was stuck in a four ball with three Scotsman. We had a great day with plenty of banter. The only extraordinary thing that happened was on the 17th green. Mac was just about to putt when Algy let out a yell. Mac's ball went skidding across the green, we all looked up to see what was happening and there was a crow perched on Algy's bag picking out the balls and throwing them on the ground trying to get to his biscuits at the bottom of the bag. 

Being gentlemen, Algy and I agreed that Mac should take his shot again. The fact that we had already won the match did not come into it ( tongue in cheek).

When we got into the clubhouse it turns out that this crow was a serial offender as it did the same to Andy Shilton when he was on the 11th green and got away with his Marathon chocolate bar ..

There were several tales of woe when we got back to the clubhouse. Andy reckons that Sam Standen had a senior moment when he picked up his ball when he had one putt to win and two to half the hole and bring them all square. He went on to say that Sam girded his loins and went on to win the next two holes, sinking a 5 foot putt to win the game. 

The next sorry tale was game 7. David Crosby and Tony Goodson came into the changing room muttering to themselves when asked how they got on. A crestfallen Tony tells me they were all square coming up the 18th, with both of them on the green. The opposition were off the green but one of them chipped in for the match. Oh dear, the joys of golf.

I have to congratulate their kitchen. We had a lovely meal of sea bass with Dauphinoise potatoes and to follow a chocolate brownie.

These matches are really tough but some of us have to do it.

The final result was a respectable draw and after the home match result I was well pleased.

Seniors at home to Cambridge Country Club April 26 2022

Match organiser Derek Young reports

We took on the seniors of the newly renamed Cambridge Country Club (formerly Bourn) on the Carthagena Course which I can report is in excellent condition with the greens being as good as I can remember them.

Highlights of the day were Jonathan Lean almost scoring a hole in one on the thirteenth and Peter Wade winning the “nearest the pin” on the eighth. There were various stories of our opponents’ good fortune and numerous accounts of them hitting trees and the ball ending up on the fairway. 

The meal was Beef Bourguignon which everyone seemed to enjoy.

Well onto the result. As a team the JOG Seniors were less than successful and I have to report that we suffered a white wash. Our only hope is that we have a return match in July when we play for “The Scroll” which they have held now for a number of years. I will try to pick a more competitive team!

On a brighter note and as time was marching on, our Captain Algy Grimes gave up the practice of inflicting us with one of his jokes. I'm sure its only temporary.

Seniors away to Dunstable Downs April 22 2022

 Organiser Brian Bullen reports on the day’s action

The weather was chilly and windy but became sunny within 40 minutes. The course was good, but had some hardness in the greens.

I would like first to thank Peter Wade, Keith Perry and Andrew Bowen who all came in the team late due to withdrawals.
I’m very pleased to report that we won 4.1/2 to 3.1/2.
Algy had to give 7 shots to Ian Wooster (D.D.’s Captain)who was a very useful player!
Algy and I played steady together but we found ourselves 3 down with 5 to play (even though I got a par on hole 8 index 1). Algy won the 15th with a great chip and I won the 18th with a 3ft putt .
Peter Jarman & Paul Hammond won. This was the first time P.J. had beaten Tony Rogers (handicap 8) in the previous 8 matches.
The other winners were Terry Sweeney/Nigel Underwood, Bill Walker/Richard Young.
The other halved players were Peter Wade/Keith Perry and Neil Pinnington/David Streatfield.
As usual, the comradeship with the Dunstable Downs players was excellent and the carvery was exceptional.

Senior Section Committee Meeting April 1, 2022

 

Attendance:

Algy Grimes (AG), Jonathan Lean (JL), B ill Walker (BW), Richard Coventry (RC), Richard Westergreen – Thorne (RWT)

 

Apologies: Andy Shilton (AS)

 

Mike Tipper and Tom Simm

Mike and Tom attended the early part of the meeting and discussed matters of general interest. Tom confirmed that he will set aside the studio again for the Senior Captain's Day. Tom also said that he will be looking for volunteers from amongst the club membership for ball spotting at the forthcoming Pro Am competition on 23^rd May. 

Mike was welcomed to his new role as club Vice Captain. As part of the discussion, he outlined to the committee that the club is 75 years old in 2023 and that more information about the planned events will be forthcoming later. Mike also referred to discussions to align the terms of office of the four Captains within the club. Mike was informed that we were having problems obtaining monies from competitions and matches from the club (see below).

Minutes of Previous Meeting

Agreed as a true record of the meeting:

Proposed by Algy Grimes and seconded by Jonathan Lean and agreed unanimously.

Matters arising not on the agenda

New Auditor – Trevor Darrington has kindly agreed to take on the role of Auditor

Captain's Report (AG)

It has been a very good start to my year as Captain; we have played our match with the Ladies where there were some very good scores, especially the 48 points by Robert Isaacson and Hilary Pearmain. This was followed the next week with our first Seniors Competition, 4BBB trophy, again a good scoring competition where 40 points won it for Michael Newstead and Andy Brown. Our next main competition was played today, the Rex Bullock. 

The start of our interclub matches has resulted in a close loss (4.5/3.5) at Bedford and County where we were all treated to a drink courtesy of Terry Sweeney’s Hole in One. The next game saw us playing Saffron Walden at home, a very close match as it ended in a draw (4/4). The home match with Wellingborough last week did see us secure our first win of the season, (6/2).

Brian Gill

It is with enormous thanks to Karen Gill for the amazing gesture in donating the proceeds from the sale of Brian’s golf scooter to my Captains Charity. This has made an incredible start to the fundraising efforts towards Sepsis Trust; I cannot thank Karen enough, very generous of her.

The fundraising has also been given a lift with the proceeds from the sale of Ken Doggrell’s trolley.

At the last Golf sub-committee, it was suggested by Ladies Captain Hazel, that I invite senior ladies to sign up to our section to enable them to play in our competitions, I have held off doing this until raising it with this committee. There was also a discussion about the rules of each of the Sections as well as the club, I believe Andy Shilton is looking into this.

I clarified with Michael, that under the rules of golf, it is permissible to play stoke play competitions in 4 balls, Therefore I would like to make the Seniors Captains Day a 4 ball shotgun start similar to what David Gauge did a few years ago.

Something that Gordon would like us to consider is a Memorial Space/Legacy initiative, not solely because we have had a request by John Ellary’s family to add a ‘tribute’ to him on the course. Their ideas include;

1) Block paved area and each block could have the members name on it (Disney does something like this before you enter the theme park and so does the Atlanta Olympic Park)

2) A trophy/ shield/ plate for the juniors to compete in winning yearly as dad enjoyed playing along with the junior members and enjoyed seeing their skills develop

3) A summerhouse/ hut on the course (I remember seeing a few there when we were allowed to walk on the course during lockdown) that has a dedicated wall to put small plaques up and for golfers to sit and have a quiet moment

4) a small garden area with plaques in the flowers

 

Action Points:

Following discussion it was agreed that AG should continue the dialogue with the club regarding memorials/legacies and report back at the next meeting.

JL will set up the Senior Captains Day as a fourball event with a shotgun start.

It was agreed that AG would not initiate a specific invite to Ladies as it is already agreed that competitions are open to all seniors within the club and entries for all our competitions are labelled as such.

Vice Captain's Report (JL)

JL briefly reported to the committee on the members he has been in contact with and where cards have been sent.

Treasurer's Report (RC)

The seniors currently have around £2,000 in the bank alongside the monies so far collected for the captain’s charity.

RC reported that the club have yet to hand over funds collected via the club system to the seniors for the competitions and matches played to date this year. RC has an up-to-date record of transactions but needs the payments of funds with the club to be processed and paid. RC will not make any payments to the club until the matter is resolved and invoices paid.

Mike Tipper has been informed of our concern (see above) which was also an issue in 2021.

Hon. Secretary's Report (RWT)

After several weeks with no new members joining the Senior Section we have had three people join in the past week or so. One by contacting myself, one new member of the club via Gordon and one long standing club member who signed up for a competition and so I contacted him. This gives us a current list of 220 seniors who receive the weekly newsletter.

I have taken off the list several people where I have been made aware that they are no longer at JOG but I am yet to go through the club membership list and compare with our list for a final check. As a reference point, we ended 2021 with just over 190 members.

We have completed the matches with new members that we organised and many thanks for helping by taking part. The feedback I have received was very positive and it is a very effective way to engage with new members who would like to get to know people and ask questions, etc. One game was not able to be held for a range of reasons but both new members were happy to cancel rather than wait until later in the year.

I have been working on the Calendar for 2023 and have had contact with all the clubs we play with. As always things are fine until there needs to be a change which can lead to a domino effect if not careful.

Current challenges are:

-          Wellingborough cannot come to us when they usually do as their club have decided to introduce an event that cuts across it. I am still trying to find a solution.

-          As for the need to move the Senior Captains Day that we have discussed as JOG is hosting a national competition in its normal slot, I have proposed the solution we agreed to move the date by a couple of weeks. This has been accepted by Michael in principle but he will not look at the 2023 club calendar in detail until August and so we cannot get confirmation until then.

 

I have been in contact with Northampton about the arrangements and catering options, etc.for the Swap Day which we are holding this year for the first time and we have this on the agenda for discussion. We have also agreed a date in 2023 for a Swap Day with St Ives.

The Newsletter continues to generate a number of emails each week from members and there is always a big spike in entries for competitions each time it is published. I am also very pleased to see that the blog continues to get hundreds of hits each month. Tony Lloyd is also doing an excellent job putting news items on to the club website to raise our profile and reach fellow seniors with what is going on.

Competition Secretary's Report (JL)

Since the last meeting we have had the following competitions.

The Green Tilley Singles Knockout and the Foursomes Knockout are up and running.

Greensomes with the Ladies.  A bit of nimble footwork needed to get the right numbers, but we got there in the end.  Sadly, I had to miss out and keep myself in reserve.  This was won by Robert Isaacson and Hilary Pearmain with 48 points!

4BBB Trophy.  This was won by Michael Newstead and Andy Brown with 40 points.

Jock Allan Prostate Cancer Charity Day.  This was won by Ian Riches and Andy Brown with 49 points!

The Rex Bullock was played today.  There were 14 on the reserve list who we could have accommodated if it had been changed to a one tee start.  81 players competed.

The next competition is the Ken Robinson Scramble on 3^rd May.  This is limited to 92 entrants playing in teams of 4.  2 tee start at 10 minute intervals.

As decided, I have now changed the Annual Medal Trophy and Jubilee Trophy, the Rex Cleaver Championship Trophy and the Annual Stableford to be a one tee start from 7.30am with a limit of 102 players.  If these fill up, then I will change future relevant ones to be the same format.

I have not been inundated with volunteers to take over Competitions Secretary duties next year.

The role of Competitions Secretary was discussed and JL will take away several suggestions to follow up.

Match Secretary's Report (AS)

Matches are now underway with three having been played to date and four more matches to played in April.

Match Results

We started with a narrow loss against Beds & County, improved on that with a draw against Saffron Walden, and finally got an entry into the win column last Tuesday with a comprehensive routing of Wellingborough.

We have fielded teams easily for all games with minimal changes to the selected squads.  Future squad numbers look to be healthy.  The only match which is slightly short of numbers is Cambridge Country Club at home, but I’ve got some reserves up my sleeve so I’m comfortable.

Due to Covid I’ve had requests to not dine at a couple of games.  This is due to players having to have negative PCR tests before flying off on holiday.  I have agreed that this is acceptable and asked the match organisers to discuss this with the opposition.  This seems to me to be part of the new reality of post covid life.  I would welcome any thoughts on this point, and I’m sure we will get feedback from the opposition clubs.

Things to improve.

I need to find a better way of sharing the squad selections than the Excel Spreadsheet as a number of our members were unable to access it.  I’ve had conversations with Tony Lloyd and Michael Grace about securing a place on the web-site.  This is not possible on the current site but may be on the new version which should be live shortly.  Once we’ve migrated to the new site I will discuss again with Michael.  If this doesn’t come to fruition then I will find a way of publishing the Matrix in a more user friendly form.

Some of the Match Organiser communication (with me) could be improved, particularly closing down the post-match tasks, but this will come with familiarity.  

Other observations

It appears we are charging more for our meals than other clubs.  For example Beds & County was under £17.  I will keep a note of this as we go through the year (where we get the information).

Generally everything is under control with the next batches dues to be selected at the end of this month. 

The report was discussed and it was agreed that it is difficult to compare prices with other clubs on a similar basis. For example, some clubs subsidise matches, some pay for prizes and tips in different ways, some hire in outside caterers, etc. It was agreed that the cost of participating needs to be monitored.

Immediate Past Captain's Report (BW)

Nothing to report.

Prostate Day

A report was presented by BW

Lessons learned

Acquisition of Auction items:

1. Much uncertainty regarding voucher policy:  Who requests, receives, allocates, by when?
2. Auction item list needs to be finalised before auction goes live.

Running the on-line Auction

1. Interface between auction manager and Seniors’ Section web master worked well but would be more efficient and effective if auction manager could have web access.
2. Connection procedure laptop to TV complex needs documenting.
3. Did chits on table work well enough? Need to publicise on Tables.

Payment by winning bidders

Procedure uncertain: when, to whom, by what means?

Other aspects

Shotgun start still resulted in time between first and last finishing over an hour apart.

More help needed at end of round from non-playing members to:

1. Check and collect cards. (Clearer instructions on card completion)
2. Collate 2s Club results.
3. Look after guests (Jock)
4. Collect collate Nearest Pin lists

Meal arrangements still time consuming. Insisting on everyone finishing before meal is served delayed proceedings by up to an hour and resulted in long queue at servery.

Microphone

Very unreliable. Needs to be repaired or replaced.

Tombola Organisation

Tickets were produced for 100 prizes without knowing how many prizes there were. This led to some prizes being split into insignificant proportions.

BW was thanked for his hard work on our behalf to support the organisers of the day.

Captain's Charity and Honorarium

AG confirmed that the Longest Day Charity Event for the four Captains within the club will take place this year on 22^nd June.

A discussion took place about the use of the senior captain’s honorarium and associated bar card.

Action point:

AG to report back at the next committee meeting on what he considers to be appropriate expenditure so that the use of the honorarium and card can be agreed and confirmed.

A O B

AG reported that the Ladies have a Greenkeepers Revenge competition.

AG informed the meeting that it is permissible to hold Alternate Day Competitions

Date and time of next meeting  

10 May after Annual Medal Comp
19 July after Annual Stableford Comp
30 August after Bailiff Shield Comp
11 Oct after Team Trophy
8 Nov after Roll Up before Bring and Win and discuss Annual Dinner
19 Jan 2023 (to discuss AGM) at 2.30pm

 

 

 

 

Seniors at home to Aspley Guise, April 19 2022

Organiser Jim Kerr reports on the day’s action

It is with a heavy heart that I sit here and write this epilogue to a heavy home defeat.

The only thing that cheered me up was the thought that not many other clubs’ Senior members would throw their game for their Captain and organiser and lose to make Algy and myself feel better at only getting a half.

We can’t blame the weather … it was a perfect day for golf.

Nigel and his team presented the course in perfect condition..

Our game started with me getting a chip-in par to take the first hole. We were 3 up at the turn.

We went down the 18th on dormie and lost to an 8ft put for a par.

On reflection like all these matches it was a good day’s golf.

There were a few mumblings about golf handicaps with one guy getting 23 shots but starting bogey par par. Others had similar tales of woe. I think the new handicap system only plays out on medal play . With Stableford  or better ball games every body can play most holes reasonably well and therefore use their shots better than the lower handicappers.

I think the important point is to make sure you get the best out of the day and the meal and banter usually makes up for any disappointment.

I have to thank the bar and catering staff for their service and the quality of the meal was excellent.

The only thing left to write is the result. We lost 7-1 … and our 1 was 2 halfs. 

Roll on the 28th and lets hammer them at Aspley Guise. Come on J.O.G.🏌👍🏌