Sarah Smith - First Tournament of the Season

I played in my first ladies tournament of the season on Monday at Little Aston Golf Club. Arriving on the Sunday to great weather and a temperature of 20', when waking up the next morning to play it was fairly chilly with a max of 10'C that day - a little shocked to see the waterproofs get put on in May! It was nice to get back into the swing of competitive golf and Little Aston is a pretty course to play and start the season on. 

I had a very steady round (for me!) finishing the front half level par after being -2 through 8 and doubling the par 3 - note to self, more bunker practice needed! The back half was full of pars, 1 birdie and 1 bogey so another steady level par. Although slightly frustrating missing a birdie putt on the 18th, I am very happy to have shot level par putting me in T4th position out of 34 Women Professionals.

T4th also gives me a great start to the order of merit ranking for the WPGA events being played throughout the year. My aim is to beat last year's placing of 7th in the Ladies European Tour Access Series Qualifying Order Of Merit.

My next tournament is in a couple of weeks' time at Dunham Forest Golf Club, a long drive up towards Manchester!


 

Martin Limits the Damage against Gog Magog

Saffron Walden scratch team supported by Amherst homes started their CAGU DIV 1 scratch league defence against a strong Gog Magog side at Windmill Hill last Wednesday night.

In a cold evening, Olly Tuck and Mark Reeve set out against the County Foursomes winners Quinney and Smits. A birdie start for the Gogs pairing set them off to a 3 up advantage mid-way. A hole in one by Tuck on the 18th hole reduced the deficit to a 2 hole loss.In the second match Callum Brookes and Spencer Burlingham took on Vince and Williams. The Walden pairing were not firing together and 4 birdies in a row by the Gogs pairing saw them romp home to a 6 up win.

Walden's final pairing of Richard Southall and Louis Martin took to the course against Gogs' strongest pairing of Jarvis and Dimambro. With Southall's experience this proved a perfect foil for the young talent of Martin. They raced to a 3 up advantage and won the match on the 14th hole. They eventually finished 3 up. The final score was SWGC 2 Gog Magog 4. Other results were Brampton Pk 5 Ely 1, Ramsey 4 St Neots 2.

Graham Goodman captain said "This was always going to be a tough opening fixture against a strong Gog side. We started off last year with a 4-2 loss and look were we ended up. It was a great debut for young Louis who played superbly. This year we have been hit by unavailability and players moving careers so we have to maintain the Walden team ethic and blend in the new players to succeed"


 

Seniors Delight in Unexpected Victory

The senior members turned out in force to compete in the Michael Noakes Trophy, sponsored by his son Simon, in memory of his father, a past captain of the club. Teams of 3 competed, with 1 score counting on the first 6 holes, 2 on the second 6 and all 3 on the final 6. Bryan Lewis, Keith Peacock & Roger McNaught played consistent golf, and were satisfied with their 77 points which included a birdie by Lewis, age 82 and still walking the 18 holes, but as none are among the regular prize winners, they fully expected others to beat their score. They were greatly surprised, and delighted, to carry off the trophy.

In second place were Hugh Jenkins, Roger Smout & David Wiseman (75 points) with Bill Stanford, Geraldine Still & Nick Rouse (73). Nearest the pin winners were Bryan Lewis, Peter Taylor, Alf Magona and Peter Still.


Seniors Team Stableford Results from Monday, 8 May

There was 32 players giving 8 teams of 4 for this event. It was a cold and windy morning. But we all enjoyed an excellent lunch followed by prize giving. 

3rd Place on C/B with 99 points - Brian Lewis, Mike Spicer, Roger Cowen & Clive Walker 

2nd Place on C/B also with 99 points - Peter Taylor, Nick Rouse, John Hann & Bob Ayres. Peter reported that his team played well but Bob Ayres was the star scoring 33 points in just 14 holes!

1st Place with 101 points - Bill Hall, David Wiseman, Chris Porter & Roger McNaught. Bill's team amassed a fantastic 101 points. Chris Porter played inspirational golf including a par on the difficult 13th. The team scored 60 points in the back 9! 

Nearest the pin on the 18th - David Wiseman 

John Stewart had been nearest the pin for a while but David played his 6 iron to beat John - it had to be measured!


Seniors Match Vs Stowmarket

Bill Sandford lead the Saffron Walden Seniors in their latest match on Wednesday, 3 May at home which saw them beat Stowmarket for the 4th consecutive time to maintain their excellent start to the season. 

Geoff Mansfield and his partner fought their way back from 3 down with 4 to play to record a half, whilst Tony Gomes overcame a similar deficit to win on the 18th. At the opposite end of the line-up, Colin Bailey and Eric Grant played some superb golf to win 6&5. 

Overall the team won by the convincing score of 7 - 1, ensuring that Saffron Walden have now won 5 of their first 7 matches.