Welcome to this week’s newsletter. Last week as you may have read from Sarah's newsletter I was away with the Slade on tour at Tracy Park between Bath and Bristol. For those of you who have been down there the course is set in lovely rolling countryside and the hotel is a fantastic place to stay.
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Slade Tour
Day one and the usual start, a long journey down softened by the sound of Patrick popping champagne provided by Kieran meant we arrived for our lunchtime tee off. I was partnered by a Gary a bonnet and we played against Kieran and Kit. From the first hole we took the lead as I birdied it and we never fell behind. In tough windy conditions we managed 39 points and an outside chance of winning. Unfortunately the group in front managed 40 and 41 respectively as George and Les took the honours. |
| Day one winners George and Les |
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After some light refreshments and a nice meal we took to the same course again the following day. We were supposed to play the championship course but due to the levels of rain they had had this year it was closed for buggies. I was partnered with John Latham Jnr who I had never played with. I was told he can hit a long ball but the accuracy isn't always there. He proved this with his first tee shot by sticking it in the car park of the hotel, his provisional left him a flick with a wedge in when most were going in with hybrids or woods.
Again in tricky conditions but a bit more sunshine than the previous day we played well. I held us together on the front half to turn in 19 points then after a quick fix lesson John came into his own on the back half and despite my three putt on the last we got home in 40 points. We managed to best our playing partners Ron and Kit who had come flying out the blocks by four points. This was nothing compared to what my partner on day one managed with Ian Hudson. Obviously inspired by my play the previous day, or relived not to have me as a partner, Gary and Ian blew the field away with a tremendous 46 points. |
| Day two winners Ian and Gary |
| Terry negotiating on the ornaments half an hour after discovering vodka and coke |
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Day three and after a tough night trying to purchase silver elephants Terry Wilby found himself partnered with me. I was lying third overall behind my partners from the first two days, Gary and John. We travelled to play Windlesham near Bagshot and unfortunately the weather had turned. It was overcast and windy and half way through the round the heavens opened. We were playing against Wardy and Ian Hudson, it was a scrappy game where no one really got going but we managed to edge them by a couple of points. |
| Day three winners Kit and Andy |
| Tour winner Gary and Captain Wis |
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The day though belonged to Kit and Andy Fisher. Andy was playing middleman with Kit and George. So confident was Andy of winning the day with one of them, he only put money on one of them. Unfortunately he chose George and triumphed with Kit with 39 points. To be fair to Andy no one saw that coming, apart from Kit and John Latham. The result meant that Gary maintained his lead and was the deserved tour winner.
Shot of the week though has to go to Keith Wardley. After pushing his opening tee shot on the final day he flushed a fairway wood out of the rough only for it to pitch into the back of Micky Dowling’s thigh who was stood oblivious to Keith's position, in the middle of the fairway. The starter and John Latham Jnr were both concerned spectators on the tee, where the rest of us were rolling about laughing as we knew Keith would not be concerned whether or not Micky was able to continue but more about how he had taken 40 yards off his second shot. This proved to be the case as Keith waved his arms and remonstrated from his buggy and was even more livid as it led to a blob on the opening hole. Micky continued and still has the swelling to prove it. Good year, thanks for Dave and Wis for running it and Keith for organising it and I look forward to October when it gets started again.
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Flying Start Away for Ladies Scratch Team
Playing in Division Two of the Cambs & Hunts Ladies' County scratch league and with sights set on promotion to Division One, the ladies of Saffron Walden GC got off to a flying start with an outstanding 3-0 victory at Ramsay.
With the added challenge of playing away, the team all had convincing wins. Lady Captain Justine Voss finished 8 up with 6 holes to go while Jaine Fieldhouse and Lynda Minton both secured victory 4 up with 3 holes to go.
Pictured: Lynda Minton, Jaine Fieldhouse & Justine Voss |
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What's Been Happening in the U.K. this Spring
We now have two new English roses in our ladies section. Yes both have their British Citizenship and now with a British Passport they say it won't take as long to get in and out of the country. |
Helen Marchant and La-Vern Frost are both now BRITISH. |
Michael Noakes Trophy
The Annual Michael Noakes Trophy was played on Friday, 27 April. 10 x teams of 4 players turned out to play on a wet and windy Friday. The format was full handicap stableford scores with all scores on holes 1 to 6, best 3 scores on holes 7 to 12, then best 2 scores on holes 13 to 18. There were nearest the pin prizes for all four par 3s as well. After an excellent lunch Simon Noakes took over presenting all of the prizes that he had kindly dontated.
Nearest the Pins -
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| 5th Brandon Chapman |
| 7th Alan Seymour |
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11th Nick Rouse 18th Sean Murphy
Team Prizes -
4th place - Tony Gomes, Roger Forster, Clive Walker, Derek Underhill with 99 points 3rd place - Alf Magona, David Wiseman, Anthony Gold, Robert Golding with 101 points 2nd place - Keith Peacock, Alan Seymour, Denis Brown, Andy Barker with 102 points The runaway winners were - Peter Taylor, Malcolm Thorne, Lennen Ekner, Geoff Wollerson with an excellent score of 108. |
It should be noted that Lennen scored 21 points in the first 9 holes. Apart from the rain we all had a most enjoyable day. Well done to all and heartfelt thanks to Simon Noakes. |
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WPGA One Day Series 1 On Sunday evening this week, I travelled to Little Aston Golf Club to stay over night ready for Mondays tournament. |
For those new members who are reading this, the WPGA One Day Series is made up of 7 events for women PGA Professionals who play, coach and work at a golf club rather than for those who play full time on tour. The 7 events are an on the day event and you also receive order of merit points for the season, they are played at different courses roughly twice a month from April-September.
I was very lucky to miss the rain you had on Monday but we still got the cold winds, I'm sure you can tell from the photo below! The course conditions were tricky but the course was playing great, apart from a little bumpy on the greens where work had recently been done.
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I scored 5 over in total, finishing 14th out of 32, missing the money by 2 shots and 8 away from the leader. After being 5 over front half from a double bogey start to finish with a level back half, my game stayed steady. I was happy with my overall game, and don't like to judge the putting too much after four 3 putts on the bumpy greens!
I'm looking forward to the next tournament on May 21st at Dunham Forest Golf Club, Manchester, shortly followed by the Titliest & FootJoy Championships on June 1st. |
Keep Up To Date
For those of you who are on social media, if you haven't already 'liked' the clubs Facebook page, make sure you have a look to keep up to date with everything that is happening, special offers in the Pro Shop & competition results.
Click here to follow our Facebook page. |
TaylorMade Fitting Day
We are delighted to announce we will be hosting a TaylorMade Fitting Day on Friday, 1 June 2018. You will be able to book a 30 minute slot from 12:00 - 15:30.
A representative from TaylorMade will be on hand to take you through all the latest equipment. You may be looking for a new set for this year or wanting to see how the latest equipment compares to your current clubs.
Please call us on 01799 527728 or click here to get booked in. |
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FREE Fitting and Lesson We want 2018 to be your best golfing year yet, so listen up. Any hardware purchase between now and the end of June will qualify you for a FREE custom fitting and FREE after-sales lesson with a member of the team. So not only will you be getting new equipment that is perfectly suited to your swing, but we will also give you a lesson to ensure you're playing your best golf to date. Click here to contact the team. |
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Money Off a New Pair of Golf Shoes Our popular Shoe Trade-In is up and running once again, providing you with the opportunity to trade-in your old golf shoes for money off a new pair in-store. It doesn't matter the age, condition or brand of golf shoe that you want to trade-in. In all honesty, the worse the better!
Click here to contact the team. |
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Junior Coaching Programme 6 Week Programme At Saffron Walden Golf Club
Saturdays 10, 11 & 12noon Sundays 11:00am
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The first 5 weeks will involve learning, long game, short game, putting & skills based challenges. The final week includes an exciting competition! Only £40 for 6 Weeks! £8 per session for 'roll up' on the day. MUST book now to secure your place, maximum of 8 in a group: Rob McNicholas, Aaron Howard & Sarah Smith, PGA Professional’s Email- rob@swgc.com | sarah@smithperformancegolf.co.uk | Telephone- 01799 522786
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Many of you ask for our advice when buying something new in-store, so we thought we’d showcase our top shoes for 2018 in this week’s newsletter. Drumroll, please… |
| FootJoy DryJoys Tour | Follow in the footsteps of tour stars like Adam Scott and Henrik Stenson and try this FootJoy DryJoys Tour. We’re fans of its traditional look and waterproof leather uppers, plus we love the stable hitting platform its cleated outsole provides. |
| FootJoy ContourFIT | If you prioritise comfort, we think this FootJoy ContourFIT shoe should be at the top of list to try. Its features include an achilles pad to keep your foot secure, an extra thick insole for extreme underfoot comfort and a spacious rounded toe profile. |
| FootJoy Pro/SL | If you’d like to add off-course versatility to your shoe options so you can go straight from work to the course, this FootJoy Pro/SL is one popular option thanks to its lightweight comfort, smart leather uppers and durable spikeless outsole. |
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