Blog

This week sees the second half of the hugely popular Poppy Appeal nine hole competition taking place on Thursday.

Plus in the shop, we have some new ladies and mens winter clothing ranges. These items could make excellent presents or why not just treat yourself?

The Pro Shop Christmas draw has just started. Numbers are £2 each or £10 for six. You can enter in the shop or just reply to this email and we can sort out payment between us.

The ten prizes in the form of Pro Shop credit will be as follows: £250, £200, £150, £100, £75, £60, £50, £40, £30 & £25. 

Junior Awards

On Sunday, we staged the 5th end of season junior awards presentation day. We had 28 golfers play a nine hole competition at 1400 followed by over 50 people dining. We then went through a review of the junior golfing year here at HGC.

First of all we announced the winners of the eight junior competitions, four adult junior events and the Order of Merit.

We also explained that 2022 was the first year we had played in the Mid Cheshire Junior League (MCJL). The four other clubs in our league were Delamere Forest, Styal, Warrington and Bramhall.

We remembered Matthew Hodder for winning the men’s summer stableford competition and we reminded the attendees that six juniors got their WHS handicaps in 2022. They were Ollie Grieves , Rory Hobbs , Alex Keeling , Tommy Lamb , Sam Morris & Caspian Sands.

We also announced the winners of four trophies. Hector Neary and William Meadowcroft won the Best Newcomers awards while Ollie Grieves and Sam Morris won the Improver awards.

Finally, we announced the winners of the four person team competition that had taken place earlier that day. It was a tie at the top with both winning teams scoring 36 points. One team consisted of Charlie Hindle, Peter Hindle, Sam Morris & Noelle Morris. The other team was Caspian Sands, Ian Roebuck, Ollie Grieves and John Book. Well played everyone and bonus points should have been awarded for battling the elements.

Ladies Bonfire Sparkly Better Ball stableford

Congratulations to Min Fishwick, Kathleen McNairney & Ann Mattocks for winning the front nine Bonfire Sparkly Better Ball stableford with 38 points. The runners up were Sally Budd and Vicki Wells who battled round as two player team to get a very creditable 37 points.

As of the 1st November, we have gone onto the use of mats from closely mown areas (fairways and fringes) and electric trolleys must now have winter wheels.

On Sunday, we have the year end junior awards golf day followed by dinner at 1700, which will host approximately 50 juniors, relatives and friends.

It’s a shotgun start at 1400 so there won’t be any tee times available from 1210 to ensure the course is clear. If you want to play during this period that will be fine but please ensure that you leave the course by 1345. Many thanks on behalf of the junior section.

Back Nine Stableford

Well done to Tiff Fielden for winning the ladies nine hole comp on Saturday with 20 points. Ann Coulson was point behind to secure second spot, beating Kerry Gill on a card play off. 

David Rodwell recorded a fine score of 23 points to win the men’s prize. Barry Jefferies was runner up with 22 points. Nick Maxwell was third having been beaten on a card play off by Barry.

There was just one two recorded from the whole field and that was made by Paul Simpson.

Ladies Competitions

Congratulations to Kairen Seaton for winning the 18 hole competition from last week with 40 points. Kerry Gill finished in second place with 38 points.

The back nine stableford was won by Kathleen McNairney with 18 points. Mandy Gilbert also scored 18 points but was beaten into second place after a card play off.

Seniors Texas Scramble

Roger Sheen, Chris Ravenscroft and Glynn Isaac won Wednesday’s nine hole Texas Scramble with 22 points. There were then three teams tied on 21 points and coming second on a card play-off were Ian Hunt, George Buchan and Bill Harvey. Dave Swale, Tony Sampson and Rob Manley finished in third place.  

Happy Halloween!

Thanks to junior member Ollie Grieves for sharing this photo with us. I thought it was excellent and perhaps their new strap line should be #numberonepumpkiningolf 😁

As hopefully you are aware we are currently playing preferred lies. The rule on using mats and winter wheels on electric trolleys will be introduced soon as the weather deteriorates. In the meantime though, if you could start to use your winter wheels anyway, it would help to protect the course that little bit more. Thank you.

Lady and Gentleman Captain Nominates

So Thursday saw the announcement of the captain nominates and they are Roger Laitt and Jan Ravenscroft. They can be seen below with the current captains David Wainwright and Judy Pinnington. I’m sure they’ll do a great job too and we wish them all the very best when they start their duties in March 2023.

Bogey 2

Congratulations to Tony Bray for winning on Saturday with a fantastic score of seven up. John Kennedy finished runner up with four up and Ben Fallows was third with three up.

It was a bumper day for twos with eleven being recorded, two of which were snaffled by Freddie Gillan.

Well done Sally Budd for winning Thursday’s 18 hole max medal competition with a nett 71. Diana Harris, back from her travels down under, won the nine hole max medal with a nett 33. Mandy Gilbert was tow shots adrift to secure the runner’s up spot. It was played over the front nine.

Seniors Bradley 1

Well done to Graham Jones for scoring 21 stableford points to win this event last Wednesday. Eric Healey scored the same but was beaten into second place following a card play off. Ian Macklin finished third with 20 points.

There wasn’t a men’s competition last Saturday but we’re looking forward to Bogey 2 this weekend.

The ladies started out in the fog on Thursday and finished in glorious sunshine for the lady captain vs lady secretary match. The winning team was the lady captain’s side. We have some before and after photos kindly supplied by Terri Broadbent and Tracey Thompson below.

Roll Ups

As a reminder or this might be new information for newer members, the club runs various roll ups during the week. These are exactly what they say on the tin – if the time suits you, just arrive at the first tee ready to play. They are a great opportunity to meet other members and play in a relaxed, fun format.

The days and times are as follows:

• Tuesdays at 1000 – ladies 9 hole roll up
• Tuesdays at 1050 – gents 9 hole roll up followed by lunch
• Tuesdays at 1300 (or 1230 when the clocks go back) – gents 18 hole roll up
• Saturdays at 0830 (when a competition is not scheduled) – gents 18 hole roll up
• Saturdays at 1300 (or 1230 when the clocks go back and again this only takes place when a competition is not scheduled) – gents 18 hole roll up.

A brief missive this week including some results, photos and news of a hundred year anniversary.

Please also note that we’ve been having internet difficulties if you’ve been struggling to get through to either the Pro Shop or the Clubhouse.

Men’s Invitation

There was a good turnout for Saturday’s Invitation. The winners are pictured below and from left to right are Gareth Williams, Andrew Rattray from Mere GC, the gentleman captain David Wainwright, Jason Wright and Brian Greenbank.

Ladies Competitions

Well done to Kerry Gill for winning last Thursday’s 18 hole stableford. Nicola Kitching won the nine event.

Anniversary

The gentleman captain David Wainwright announced at Friday’s hot pot supper that it was the hundredth anniversary of the first. Thanks to Chris Wood for the minutes from the Council meeting on the 6th November 1922 below:

• It was decided that no alteration should be made in the wages of the employees. 
• A Hot Pot Supper was arranged for Dec 13th, the 1st function of the kind in the history of the club. 
• Mr O’Hanlon reported that Mr France had made suggestions as to enlarging the pavilion. Mr Evans offered to have a plan made and the matter was deferred. 

In case, you weren’t aware, we are now playing preferred lies on closely mown areas. It’s Wednesday lunch time as I write this and it’s been bucketing down all morning so we might have a slightly soggy course for a little while.

Bogey 1

Well done to Chris Ravenscroft winning Bogey 1 on Saturday with a good score of three up. Mike Kirchin also recorded the same score but was beaten on count back. Peter Veitch finished in third place.

Seniors Four Clubs & Putter Nine Hole Competition

The seniors took advantage of the new course layout by playing a five club challenge last Wednesday. I’ll let Chris Adams take over from here.

Twenty players took to the sunny fairways, with carefully selected 4 clubs, putter, and many with their pencil bags to enjoy playing the new course from the red tees. On balance looking at the results one might be tempted to ask if we really do need the other 9 clubs? Well played gentlemen with over half the field scoring 15 points or better.

On the first official competition to be played on the new course layout congratulations to Ian Pinnington who won six balls with 20 points on a card playoff (back six) from Tarik (four balls), with Bill Wrigley third on 19 points (two balls). Bill was also the very first player, and only one this morning, to record a competition two on the new fourth hole and wins a further three balls.

Next up is the front nine hole Bradley 1 from the yellow tees on 19 October.

Ladies Autumn Meeting

Last Thursday, the ladies played in their Autumn Meeting which a team competition with a shotgun start followed by lunch. The winning side were Kathleen McNairney, Vanessa Veitch and Freda Hunt. The runners up were Vicki Wells, Rosie Gerrard, Jane Perks and Sue Bromley. Both team are pictured below with lady captain Judy Pinnington.

Ladies Away Weekend

Thanks to Sue Bryant for sending in these snaps of the recent ladies overnight trip. The winning team were Fran Adamson, Gwynneth Bramwell, Kairen Seaton and Linda King. The runners up were Jackie Murphy, Janet Grant, Caroline Perkin & Terri Broadbent. Gwynneth also won the nearest the pin prize. Thanks go to Sue Fallows and Jo Egerton for organising and my apologies if I’ve missed anyone out!

My Golf

Last week, the gentleman captain encouragingly suggested I should write about some of my golfing exploits so here goes. On Monday morning I played in the semi final of the inaugural Cheshire & North Wales PGA Seniors Matchplay Championship at Wilmslow GC and won my match. The final was then played at the same venue in the afternoon and I’m delighted to report that I won that too.

I must admit that it wasn’t a huge field but as they say, a win’s a win 🙂 Here’s a link to the tweet from the PGA. And for those of you who stumbled across this information and reached out to me, thank you for your kind words.

So on Monday, the short 7th / 16th hole, known as Farm, was taken out of action and has been replaced by BollinView / Riverside. These will be the new 4th / 13th holes. Below is a reminder of the other course changes that have been implemented. This information appeared originally in a Greens missive which was sent out last week.

• Ladies 1st and 10th swap around.
• Crowbank becomes the 5th (playing to the front flag) and the 14th (playing to the back flag).

The path to the new holes is only partly finished and Greens ask that all members take care when using the paths in this area.

The transition from the Bollin View / Riverside green to the 5th / 14th tees is via a new grass path, can we ask all members to use this path and not to attempt to walk down the side of the the 3rd / 12th.

New course cards are now available in the Pro shop and next to the PSI terminal outside the Secretary’s Office.

As we have had to redesign the course scorecards to incorporate our new hole we have taken the opportunity to fully review our Local Rules, Course Etiquette and Warnings.

This has lead us to review our Local Rules (LR) to ensure they are up to date and comply fully with the Rules of Golf. Please note therefore that the full wordings of the Club’s Permanent LR will, in future, be posted as a Notice on the Greens Committee Noticeboard. Any Temporary LR (such as the introduction of Winter Play Rules) will also be posted there for the period during which they apply. These will be kept up to date at all times.

Ladies Competitions

Congratulations to Jan Ravenscroft for winning last week’s 18 hole stableford with a cracking score of 40 points. Chris Marsh was four points behind to clinch second spot. The back nine hole stableford was won by Paul Keeling with a whopping 23 points. Jean Green finished as the runner up with 21 points.

Better Mobility in Your Golf Swing

I think we all could all do with a little more of this. Click here to watch a video that contains four exercises that takes two minutes that you can do everyday. I’ve found Fit for Golf to be a good resource for many golf related strength, fitness and health matters.

Shot Scope

I have been using the Shot Scope V3 GPS and shot tracking watch for the last couple of months and have found it really interesting. If you’re a bit of a golf nerd like me, please click here to watch a short video where Peter Finch explains more about it. Many of Shot Scope’s products are on offer at the moment so please let me know if you like me to source one for you. For instance the V3 is now £139.99 instead of £179.99.

Photo

Thanks to David Wells for sending in this atmospheric snap of a misty first hole from last week.

This week we review Finals day and Medal final plus other competitions from last week so we have bucket loads of winners and scores to report on. And of course next week, the new 4th hole comes into play on Monday with new scorecards and much more. Keep an eye out for the Greens Committee bulletins that will be arriving in your inbox over the next few days.

For your information, I have contacted the following seven GPS companies: Garmin, Bushnell, Skycaddie, Motocaddy, Powakaddy, Shotscope and GolfBuddy to tell them about the upcoming course changes. Some have come back to me and some haven’t. Apparently it can take up to four weeks for the changes to go live. I will do my best to keep on top of this.

Medal Final – Captains Cup 2022

It was a nett 67 log jam at the top on Saturday for the men’s Medal Final. John Kennedy won the three way card play off, Adam Laitt finished second whilst Andrew Fishwick was knocked back into third place.

Finals Day

Five finals took place on Sunday and the ladies Charlton Cup was played a few days earlier on the Wednesday. The Bech Cup will be played at a later date. The results were as follows:

John Webb beat Chris Adams 3&2 to secure the Reid plate.

Amanda Greaves & Sue Bryant beat Jan Ravenscroft & Gillian Brogdon to win the ladies foursomes 2&1.

The Gordon Murray Memorial was won by Anne Webster & Mike Kirchin 5&3. They beat Al & Claire Makin in the their match.

Tracey Thompson beat Clare Withey on the 18th hole to secure the Charlton Cup.

The Owen memorial Bowl was won by Ben Fallows 2&1 after a close fought match with Eric Healey.

And finally the men’s Scratch Knockout was won by Dave McGlennon. Chris Brown was the beaten finalist in this match.

Congratulations to all the winners and to the beaten finalists, commiserations! We’ve all been there, dust yourselves down and come back stronger next year. Well done to all of you for playing these matches in a great spirit.

Ladies Section

Freda Hunt win the ladies 18 hole Max Medal competition last Thursday with a nett 73. Janet Grant was second. In the front nine Max Medal, Sue Bryant won with an excellent nett 33. Jean Green finished runner up. And Vicki Wells won the nine hole knockout competition and can be seen below receiving her prize.

Seniors Section

Last Wednesday, the seniors played golf had lunch and then followed it up with their AGM and presentation. Busy, busy!

The Tuttle is played over nine holes and was won by the evergreen Bill Walsh with 20 points. Peter Hardern was one point adrift to finish as runner up.

The Timpson is played for by the slightly more “experienced” seniors and John Bacon took top spot with 36 points. Mike Massey was second with 35 points.

The “youngsters” battle it out for the Morren. Tony Adamson won this with 39 points. Bob Siddle was second with 38 points.

We have lots of golf on this weekend with the men’s Medal Final on Saturday and Finals day on Sunday. Here’s the running order for the latter:

12.00pm Reid Plate
12.15pm Bech Cup
12.30pm Ladies Foursomes
12.45pm Gordon Murray Memorial
13.00pm Owen Memorial Bowl
13.15pm Scratch Knockout

Presentation to follow completion of all matches circa 17.30. Please note that the Carlton Cup will be played on a alternative day, to be confirmed. Please come along and watch if you’re not participating!

Foot-Joy Winter Clothing

I’m putting together an order for some FootJoy winter clothing such as mid layers and polos with the Hale GC crest on. Please click here to visit their website and if there’s anything that you would like me to get for you, just drop me an email. Of course, if you’d prefer it without the crest on that’s possible to.

Pleas just bear in mind that I may not be able to source everything but I will let you know shorty after you contact me. I will also confirm the price with you before ordering.

President’s Prize

Congratulations to Pat Jefferies and Phil Hickson for winning the President’s prize on Saturday with an excellent 40 points. Jane Wilkinson and John Bacon were two points adrift and finished as runners up. Kathleen McNairney won the nearest the line prize, Al Kenney won the men’s nearest the pin and Sue Fallows won the ladies nearest the pin.

Men’s Clothing Sale

Please pop in and grab a bargain. All polos in the sale are 50% off, some have the Hale GC crest on and some don’t. There are also some bargain waterproofs and outer wear to be had. The prices of these vary depending on the item.

Adult Junior Results & Other Junior News

We had sunshine and one heavy downpour on Friday evening but eight pairs battled round. Ben & Chris Hinton were the winners on the night with an excellent score of 23 points. The runners up were Ollie Grieves and his grandfather John Book.

The winners of the season long Order of Merit were William & Ben Hutchinson so well played to them. They are now the proud custodians of the Claret Jug for the next 12 months.

We have one final get together of 2022 which is the End of Season Junior awards which takes place on Sunday 6th November. It’s a nine shotgun start at 2pm followed by a meal in the dining room and a presentation. Please save the date and I’ll send out more details shortly.

For those of you that are members and have a handicap, we have two more junior comps scheduled as follows:

Sat 24th Sept. Tee times from 1400 – 1420
Sat 15th Oct. Tee times from 1400 – 1420

Ladies Back 9 Stableford

Congratulations to Sally Wright for winning last Thursday’s competition with 19 points. Trina Walsh finished in second place with 18 points.

Ferrets On Tour

Thanks to John Webb for this great photo of the Ferrets whilst on their recent tour of Cascais, Portugal. How many of this line up can you identify??

We have both the President’s Prize mixed foursomes competition on Saturday and the final Adult Junior event of the season on Friday to look forward to this week. And I’m sure the rains of Monday night and Tuesday will have been welcome by the greenstaff.

Medal 8

Congratulations to ex captain Cliff Wright for shooting an excellent nett 63 to win Saturday’s final medal of the summer campaign. Freddie Gillan also did a great score but finished just one shot back. Andrew Fish wick was third with a nett 65.

Ladies Front 9 Stableford

Well done to Pauline Keeling beating for scoring 20 points last Thursday to defeat Jane Wilkinson on a card play off and win the 9 hole competition.

Photo

Thanks to John Book for sending in this highly informative photo. I don’t think it has any relevance whatsoever to anyone here at Hale GC, do you??