Each month, our three Captains share with us their news from the previous few weeks and take a quick look ahead to the upcoming month.

Men’s Captain, Norman Davidson

“By the end of September, I was hoping to be congratulating all the winners of this year’s trophies, however, due to a number of reasons, this has not been possible.

“Gary Borthwick found himself competing in three finals, Dan Martin in two and unfortunately, I hear that Mark Baxter who was due to play in the final of the Stoke Foursomes has broken his wrist. I wish Mark a full and speedy recovery.

“For those finals that have been played, I’m delighted to congratulate the following:

• Spring Foursomes Gary Borthwick and John Partridge, runners up Richard Bland and Ian Smith
• Constable Bowls Steve Hale and Michele Seamark, runners up Gary Borthwick and Barbara Rowe
• Shaw Plate Ian McKay, runner up Kel Dixon
• Scratch Cup Matt Eaves, runner up Greg Smith
• Hi-Low Foursomes Tom Dean and Matt King, runners up Mark Clark and Paul Golding
• The Constable Champion and Medal winner was Cyril Williams, who also won this year’s Order of Merit.

“Well done to all those who took part in this year’s Club competitions.

“This coming Saturday, sees this year’s annual Captains’ Dinner, where I will join with Lady Captain, Stella Hammond and Senior’s Captain, John Parkinson in celebrating our year in office”.

Ladies Captain, Stella Hammond

“An Indian summer day in September meant that the field of ladies competing in the Autumn Meeting for the Specialist Shield needed sunglasses and visors as opposed to wet weather gear for a change! It was a glorious day once the initial cloud burnt off.

“After playing in either 18 holes or 9 holes, with the course in excellent condition, everyone enjoyed a two course meal and the results were as follows:

• Winner – Catriona Chaplin with 40 points
• Second place – Margaret Bentley with 39 points
• Third place – Stella Hammond with 39 points on countback
• Front 9 winner – Anne Hemmings
• Back 9 winner – Melissa Halfhide
• The winner of the 9 hole competition- Barbra Caden

“We also had the pleasure of meeting two volunteers from my Charity Little Lifts, Sharon and Graham, they spoke to us about the charity and how it was founded and bought along display boxes.
“I had the pleasure of passing over a cheque from the fund raising of £3186. A huge thank you to you all for the wonderful support you have shown. A final total will be given once I have finished my year.

“There are still two 4-ball vouchers available for Seckford and The Heron. If interested, please let myself or Harry Hibbert know.

“The Val Bradford memorial trophy was played, on Thursday 26th and Saturday 28th respectively. The winner was Bev Thompson with 34 points, on countback with Katie Clark second.

“Looking forward to October we have the Captains Dinner, medal and stableford winners’ competitions and the Daily Mail foursomes qualifier”.

Joke of the month
Golf balls are like eggs. They’re white, they are sold by the dozen, and a week later you have to buy more.

Quotes of the month
“Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose. …

“When your shot has to carry over a water hazard, you can either hit one more club or two more balls.” – Henry Beard. Beard wrote several golf books and played frequently, never keeping score.

Seniors Captain, John Parkinson

“As autumn arrives, we have experienced a lot of rain and, unfortunately, Dollar Spot
has returned to some of our greens.

“The good news is that the greenkeepers are addressing the issue much quicker than last year, and we hope they can minimize the damage to the greens.

“I understand that winter golf can be a challenge for some in the senior section. To help, the club is planning to install new winter tees and mats on Gainsborough, with a target to have them ready by November 1. Over the next few weeks, you will see work being done to get these in place and ready.

“Our final inter-club match will be played at home against The Essex on October 9. Just a reminder that these are friendly matches played in the right spirit, and most importantly, they are a great social event and a fantastic way to play against other local clubs. Also, remember you only pay for your lunch. If you haven’t signed up for them, please do so for next season or ask myself or VC Kevin Price for more details.

“Senior competitions for October include: St Andrews Greensomes, Monthly Stableford and Millennium Trophy, Guest Day on October 14, and finally The 3 Captains team competition on the 28th”.

Quote for this month:
“The point is that it doesn’t matter if you look like a beast before or after the hit, as
long as you look like a beauty at the moment of impact.”
– Seve Ballesteros