SUFFOLKNORFOLK

MAY/JUNE 2013&

GOLFERwww.suffolkandnorfolkgolfer.com

Southwold Golf ClubEst 1884Country Memberships

£270

“A Club steeped in history”

“One of the oldest and finest courses in East Anglia”

“Everybody welcome,all year round”

Visitors and societies very welcome

FOR FURTHER DETAILS AND TOCHECK AVAILABILITY CALL

01502 723790 or 01502 723248Email: mail@southwoldgolfclub.co.uk

www.southwoldgolfclub.co.uk

Summer £18.00from 3.30pm

Sunday afternoonMembers £130

Must live more than 25miles from Southwold

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Royal Worlington & NewmarketGolf ClubFounded 1893

Regularly featuring in Golf Monthly's top 100 course rankings for Britain and Ireland

“The finest nine-hole course in this Country”.“A classic nine-hole course”. “One of the

finest nine-hole courses in existence”are just some of the many tributes that have

been paid to Royal Worlington Golf Club.

For a unique Clubhouse atmosphere, a relaxedround of golf, on a course with large, firm,

contoured greens, excellent fairways that drainwell all year round contact the Secretary at

secretary@royalworlington.co.uk or by telephoning him on

01638 717787County Card visitors are accepted as are 3 and 4 balls (at certain times), all visits must be arranged in advance.

www.royalworlington.co.uk

STUDENT MISSES OUT ONHOLE IN ONE PRIZE OF£7500 - BY ONE DAY !17 year old golfer Josh Robertson, who is currentlystudying at the Lee Westwood Golf School Essex,scored a hole in one at Princes Golf Club on the firstday of the two day British Schools National Finals.

Josh, from Melton in Suffolk, said "I used a 4 iron forthe 188 yard into wind shot which I hitperfectly, it took one bounce anddisappeared. I was shocked atfirst and said where did thatgo then realised I had holedout for my first ever hole inone".

When he handed his cardinto the tournament staffhe then found out if hewere to have done thatthe following day he wouldhave won £7500 in cash.

All the Teachers andtournament staffcommiserated with him.Tournament Director David Quinsaid "As a gesture of our sympathy with Josh wehave sent him some Galvin Green and Bridgestoneprizes along with his hole in one certificate"

Lady Captain Mary Pendle donated a cheque to the WoolverstoneWish Appeal for the value of £1650. L-r: Mary Pendle LadyCaptain Rushmere Golf Club 2012, Victoria Barber (WoolverstonWish Committee) and Carol Perks President Rushmere Golf Club.

Melissa Schroeder the first Junior Girl to be Junior Captain atRushmere, took over from Jordan Bloomfield. Her drive off the1st, would have been accepted by alot of members!L-r: Jordan Bloomfield (Past Junior Captain), Carol Perks Junior

Organiser & Club President), Melissa Schroeder (Junior Captain2013/14), Harry Burman (Junior Vice Captain).

RUSHMERE NEWS IN PICTURES

L-R: Russell Rayner - Waldringfield, Rushmere Vase Nett Winner;Tony Wallis Rushmere Golf Club Captain 2013; Luke Thompson -Rookery Park, Rushmere Vase Gross Winner (147).

Adrian Saggers (a 27 handicapper)acheived his 1st hole in one atthe Par4 15th Hole 260 yards, using a Driver! He was playing inthe Rushmere Seniors match against Ufford Park, His playing part-ner was (l-r) Roger Gant, Adrian, Mick Morley and Ray Kay playingfor Ufford Park.

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Suffolk Golf UnionWELCOME FROM RON KENT

5pm on 16th May and the copy deadline is just four days away!

Some time ago, my wife’s interest in tracing her family history presented a rare opportunity for us to dosomething together by joining the Bury St Edmunds branch of the Suffolk Family History Society. I hastento add that I have no such desire to trace my own forbears who, I suspect, may have included one or twothoroughly bad lots!

As with most organisations, one of the Society’s magazines appears through our letterbox at quarterlyintervals, maybe reflecting the fact that it usually contains some 72 pages and is, therefore, far morevoluminous than our own and, therefore, takes more time to produce.

So what has all that got to do with golf you might ask and the answer, of course, is absolutely nothingwhatsoever but, like a golfer who warms up for his round (or should do!), it gives me a chance to drag myindolent self into a state of readiness to embark on this latest issue.

There is one thing I found we have in common in that, in his welcoming message (March issue), theChairman mentions that we are currently gripped with snow and hopes by the time the issue reaches us,things will be entirely different. In the last issue, I vowed not to mention the weather again as it isinvariably quite different by the time the magazine reaches our clubs.

So I shall say nothing more than that it is sunny out there today but that infernal wind is still growling,growth has started, but only just. Bearing in mind the quite appalling weather we have had of late, we mustwait and see whether, with the longest day just five weeks away, you will soon be wheeling out the BBQsand at last really managing to…..

... Enjoy your golf

Footnote: I missed the copy deadline by four days!

EDITORIAL/ADVERTISING: 150 Fronks Road, Dovercourt, Harwich, Essex CO12 4EF Tel: 01255 242141 E-mail: suffolkgolfer@aspects.net www.suffolkandnorfolkgolfer.com Publisher: Linda Basham

Opinions, comments and reports in Suffolk & Norfolk Golfer Magazine are not necessarily those of the SUFFOLK or NORFOLK COUNTY GOLF UNIONS.

Front Cover:European Golf

Machinery

Anyone wishing to submit articles or comment about golf matters generally should write to Ron Kent, 77 Bennett Avenue, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3JJ. e-mail: golfsgu@btinternet.com

Suffolk Golf Union Current Officers and Members of the Executive CommitteePresident: Ron Kent (Hintlesham) Tel: 01284 705765; Vice President: Phil Platten (Woodbridge)Tele: 01394 461246; Honorary Secretary: Charlie Wilderspin (Rookery Park) Tel: 01502 588028 Treasurer:Geoff Henney (Woodbridge) Tel: 01728 685525

Executive Committee: Ray Baines (Felixstowe Ferry) Tel: 01394 276076; Bill Darling(Stowmarket) Tel: 01449 615854; Alan Eriera (Beccles); Colin Firmin (Ipswich) Tel:01206 298742; Phil Platten (Woodbridge) Tel: 01394461246; Tony Tyrrell (Fynn Valley)Tel: 01473 785463

Other positions: Chairman Suffolk Junior Golf: Mike Stevenson (Thorpeness) Tel: 01502569765; Team Captains: 1st Team: Mike Rees (Rookery Park) Tel: 01502 568941 2ndTeam: Andrew Collett (Bury St Edmunds)Tel: 07919 250396; Seniors: John Cullum (BurySt Edmunds) Tel: 01284 735614; Seniors Manager: County Referee: Mike Rees (RookeryPark) Tel: 01502 568941 EGU Delegate: Charlie Wilderspin (Rookery Park) Tel: 01502588028; SE Group Delegate: Mike Rees (Rookery Park) Tel: 01502 568941; ChairmanSuffolk County Golf Partnership: Colin Firmin Tel: 01206 298742; Ecology Officer:Michael Thomas (Ipswich) Tel: 01394 283973. Right: Bill Darling at the Championship desk

Diary of a PresidentSince our last issue, things have really got busy aswe move into the new season.

22nd MarchAt Waldringfield for the Union’s Annual General Meeting.There is a good attendance for the usual morning golf,followed by lunch with the AGM to follow. I felt for thoseplaying golf, fortunately dry but bitterly cold and Iwondered if we should do the golf and lunch bit later inthe season. Fortunately, nothing too controversial arisesat the AGM.

24th MarchWe should have travelled to Royal Worlington andNewmarket for the annual “warm-up!” match againstSuffolk Ladies but snow just before the match put paid tothat idea.

4th AprilWith theweather stillbitterly cold, Itravelled toFelixstoweFerry for thematchbetween acombinedteam ofUnder 16s and Under 18s against Essex. Play becameimpossible and the match was called off just after lunch.Tony Garnett’s picture of the 12th green says it all.

15th AprilThis time we make it to Royal Worlington whereour Seniors took on the County’s Senior Ladies.I kept well out of the shot negotiations and itwould be unchivalrous of me to mention theoutcome of the match. Well played gentlemen.

17th AprilTo Purdis for the annual Seniors match againstKent, one of the strongest Counties at that levelin England. Although we lost 6-4, I thought therewere some positives to take from this popularfriendly match.

21st AprilTo Rushmere for another warm-up match, thistime our men taking on the Suffolk PGA. Withfour pairs playing foursomes and Hambroscoring, we went down by four holes. Againsome promising performances, giving TeamCaptain Mike Rees some food for thought aboutforthcoming pairings.

28th AprilRushmere for the Amateur Foursomes, our firstChampionship of the season. Fair weatherconsidering, dry at least, but still a blustery wind.Pleasing to have a strong field of 56 pairs which

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produced a tense finish.

A brief gap in fixtures enabled Jean and I to get awaydown to Haslemere in Surrey for a few days. BeingSurrey people, it was nice to go back and there is somestunning scenery as you get towards the South Westcorner of the County.

10th and 11th MayTo Bury St Edmunds, just round the corner, to follow theSuffolk Ladies Championship in which granddaughterLily is playing. Weather still changeable and quite coldwith one horrendous shower just to soak everyone atthe end of the day.

12th MayTo Aldeburgh for our opening Anglian League meetingagainst 2012 Champions Lincolnshire. We made atremendous start in the morning foursomes, going in tolunch leading 3-1, somewhat unusual for us.Lincolnshire hit back after lunch but we held our nerve

to take the match 7-5. A cracking result.

14th MayTo one of my favourite places, Sheringham, whereour Seniors were playing their first majortournament of the year. I missed day one whenthe wind and rain were abysmal apparently. Day2 was dry but some very strong winds playedtricks for everyone. Under the circumstances, Ithought we did well to finish 7th against some verystrong Counties. Overall, my prediction that thefield would return more 80s than 70s proved aneasy call.

A day off then 3 days at Skegness for the Eastern InterCounties Foursomes await us.

Sleet covering Felixstowe's 12th green

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John CookGolfer ExtraordinaryRight: John in familiar pose, awaiting thenext competitors

John Cook’s considerableachievements in golf wererecognised at a recent presentationat his club Felixstowe Ferry GolfClub when the Club ChampionshipTrophy was renamed the John CookTrophy.

John has been as member of theclub for a very long time and haswon many major Club and CountyTrophies during his playing career.Until recently, he was regularly seenon the course, still striving to perfecthis technique, such was hisdedication to golfing achievement.

His list of successes at County levelis impressive, winning every CountyChampionship in the County’scalendar. They included theAmateur Foursomes (with R.J. Evans) in 1973, theSuffolk Open in 1975 at the age of 54, the AmateurChampionship in 1979, when aged 58, the President’sMashie (Matchplay Championship) in 1980 and theSeniors Championship in its first year of competition in1990 and again the following year. Beyond his homeclub, he won the English Golf Union South East Group’sSeniors Championship, over 70s section in 1993. Whosaid golf is a young man’s game!

At Club level John saw his name regularly engraved onmany trophies including the Club Championship on nofewer than eight times. In addition, he was a regularmember of the Hambro Cup, winning on five occasions,the last at the age of 71.

John joined the Royal Air Force in 1938, spending 38years in the service and rising to the rank of SquadronLeader. His dedication to golf started in 1948 whilststationed at Dereham in Norfolk and an initial handicap of15 quickly went down to 2.

He played golf all over the world and his many successesduring that time included the RAF Championship in 1957,as well as successive Team Championships in RAF StrikeCommand competitions. He recalls playing a youngPeter Alliss, among many of the top players at the time.

Following his retirement from the RAF, he regularlyrepresented the County team and was the CountySecretary for a brief period, no doubt preferring to be onthe links than sitting behind a desk.

One of the interesting things about John’s golf career isthat he never had any golf lessons and is basically selftaught. His inspiration came from an instruction book byByron Nelson, followed by hours of practice on the puttinggreen and practice area.

Although he would recommend anyone taking up thegame to seek professional guidance, the considerabletime practicing rather than playing is invaluable. Anyonewanting to emulate his many years of success would dowell to take note!

FootnoteI am grateful to Trevor Mason at Felixstowe Ferry GolfClub for making this information available. I rememberJohn being the Manager of the Suffolk 2nd team whenmy son Paul broke into the County scene some 30 oddyears ago. John regularly acted as starter at the cluband our picture shows him waiting for the next players tocome on to the tee. Ron Kent

Some Junior NewsTrevor Mason reports on our Under 18sand Under 16s at Felixstowe FerryIt was very disappointing that our match against Essex on4th April was curtailed by a blizzard.

The Under-18s performed superbly in the morning bywinning all three 9-hole foursomes matches on theKingsfleet course. With the Under 16s being 2 – 1 upafter the foursomes it would have taken a dramatic turnaround for us not to win the match over all. Sadly thecourse became unplayable with snow on the greens bylunchtime. We can justifiably claim a moral victory.

After considerable deliberation and discussion, I haveselected the team to represent Suffolk in the EGU SouthEast Group 6 man event on 30th May at Studley Wood,Oxfordshire.

The team is -Rob Salter (Captain), James Biggs, JasperJohnson, Matt Mann, Lewis Staffand Paul Waring

Sussex Under 14s v Suffolk Under 14s Manager Ian Woodhead reports on a trip toSussex

On Sunday 14th April, Suffolk’s under 14s played theirfirst match of the season away against Sussex atManning’s Heath Golf Club. The inter-county matchstarted in 2012 with a visit to Suffolk by Sussex and itwill now become a permanent fixture.

Unfortunately for Suffolk, the weather for their practiceon the Saturday was bad with torrential rain making itimpossible to complete the round but when better weatherdawned on Sunday (literally – first tee time 8.10) theprevious day’s deluge was forgotten except for theconditions underfoot.

Nine holes of foursomes on the Kingfisher course startedthe day and after some close matches, the score stood at21/2 matches each. In the leading match the Suffolk pair ofJack Cuthbert and Jai Gayle got the first points on theboard with a 3&1 victory. After defeat in match 2,Suffolk edged ahead again in the third match with a 3&1win for Jude Everett and Jamie Hurren. The two Sussex

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Joshuas –Hardy andDavis – fought out ahard earned 1 up winin the next match so itall came down to thelast pairs on thecourse. The tenaciousSuffolk pair of AlfieHalil and HarveyWatts were all squarewith just one hole toplay. In the end, after two typically flashy andunsuccessful Mickleson-like flop shots from the edge ofthe green, it was left to a monster putt from Hilton tosecure a half for Sussex which was almost snatched awaywhen Watts just missed the par putt.

In the singles matches George Mills put his morningdisappointment behind him to beat Suffolk’s Captain JackCuthbert to get Sussex off to a good start but Jai Gaylelevelled for Suffolk. Jack Orris lost 5&4. Harry Worner(Sussex) had a great match up against Harry Frickerlosing 2 down on the last hole but after the next twomatches Sussex recorded comfortable wins and it lookedgood for them, two points ahead. Ben Uttridge and TomFowler tied the match up. As the other two matches –finished 1-1, the overall match score finished in a drawwith 71/2 points each

Man of the match for Suffolk was Jai Gayle for hitting ahigh percentage of fairways and making good use of atrusty putter.

It was a great performance from all the boys whetherwinners or losers and it was all very enjoyable to watchand, for once, not in freezing weather.

Manning’s Heath Golf Club looked after the teams welland sticky toffee pudding disappeared off the dinnerplates very quickly! Thanks to the Club, to Suffolk &Sussex players and Managers as well as parents formaking the long trip.

Happy Team and officials in Sussex

County Team NewsRon Kent reviews the early results of our Men’s TeamsThe annual match against Suffolk Ladies at RoyalWorlington almost survived the snow but a late coveringprevented the match taking place.The annual warm-up match against the SuffolkProfessionals did get under way at Rushmere on 21st Mayand proved a useful foursomes work-out.Suffolk’s one victory went to Chris Soanes and GuyMummery who beat Peter Latimer and Chris Smith 4 up.Josh Cotterell and Matt Mann halved with Keith Prestonand Laurence Dodd but the team were beaten 21/2 to 11/2,Chris Vince and Sam Truman losing to Ollie Rush andPaul Wilby by 4 down and Nathan Overton and Ali Halllosing to Kevin Earp and Kelvin Vince by a similar marginOverall, it was a valuable practice for the team, followedby the usual excellent buffet (thanks Sean). I am indebted to the indefatigable Tony Garnett for thefollowing.

Suffolk made a tremendous start to their Anglian Leaguecampaign with a 7-5 victory over Lincolnshire, the reigningchampions, in breezy conditions at Aldeburgh on 12thJune. Suffolk beat Lincolnshire in the final match of lastseason at Stoke Rochford after their opponents hadalready won the title.This year Suffolk established a 3-1 advantage in thefoursomes and claimed four of the eight singles.Every Suffolk player enjoyed at least one success. ChrisSoanes and Ben Wallis let an early lead slip away in theirfoursomes but both scored valuable wins in the singles.An untried Suffolk foursomes pairing of Chris Vince andChris Bartrum went on to win after being level at the turn.Vince also won his singles 6 and 5 against Josh Illsley.Suffolk foursomes champions Alastair Hall and NathanOverton won their match with the latter also scoring acrucial one-hole win in his singles against George Stott.Hall lost his singles against Matt Haynes who was fourunder after four holes having eagled the first, birdied thesecond and then birdied the fourth. Hall did well in thecircumstances to lose by a narrow 2 and 1 margin.

In a match when Suffolk’s leading players Jack Cardy andJosh Cottrell lost their singles, it was pleasing for teamcaptain Mike Rees to see strength in depth. The fastgreens, the wind and the gorse proved too much forLincolnshire on the day. Suffolk’s young second team led by three and a halfmatches to a half in the foursomes but lost six of theireight singles at Waltham Windmill Golf Club near Grimsby.Lincolnshire fielded an experienced team while Suffolk hadfour juniors and two others who are still teenagers.Guy Mummery and Jasper Johnson both had a great day.They teamed up in the foursomes to win 2 and 1. Thenboth scored victories in the singles, Mummery winning 8and 7.James Biggs and Robert Salter would have won theirfoursomes but for Lincolnshire sinking a 20-foot putt tohalve the match on the last green.Finally to Seacroft for the 9-Counties Eastern InterCounties Foursomes. It is always a tiring weekend, usually played out against a strong wind,some cold weather and often rain.

Suffolk did reasonably well on Saturday morning, takingpoints off a very strong Lincolnshire side but not many offthe eventual winners Cambridgeshire. Out of 10, ourmorning tally stood at 4 points.

The afternoon turned out to be a complete disaster, theteam unable to record a single point or even a half againstNorthants and Norfolk. Suffolk Captain, Mike Rees had adifficult task lifting the side for Day 2.

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From a President’sNotebook By Ron Kent

An area of concern for the County is the steadydecline in the sales of County Cards in recent years.When I first became interested in playing, the CountySecretary issued the cards personally and I wellremember hot-footing it over to Joe Kerrison’s house inIpswich to purchase several for the family.

There are a number of reasons for the current trendwhich severely affects not only the revenue for theCounty Men but also for our County Ladies to whomwe pass on 20% of the income. The poor winter andcold spring, the harsh economic times and the ageingmembership, who play numerous friendly matches, allimpact on the level of sale. However, if you areinterested in playing some other courses for half-price,

YES or NO?By Michael Thomas

Those of you who have longputters, or have an interest in thedebate as to their legality, will be

able to up-date on the latestposition by accessing the R&A

website and looking at the shortfilm which has been produced on

“Anchoring”.Long and Belly putters will NOTbe banned, but Rule 14 will berevised and come into force inJanuary 2016 to prohibit any

anchoring to the body by eitherholding the hand against the

chest, or achieving the same thingby anchoring the forearm.

Pressing the Belly putter to thebody will also be outlawed.

The penalty for breach of the newrule will be Two Strokes in stroke

play and Loss of Hole inmatchplay.

Sunday morning was unusually pleasant with severalglimpses of the sun and we took points off Bedfordshire andEssex, our total lifting us above Bedfordshire in the battle toavoid the dreaded Wooden Spoon.

Five points in the afternoon against newcomersWarwickshire and Leicestershire saw the missionaccomplished and Bedfordshire ruefully got their trophy.Congratulations to Cambridgeshire, like ourselves a smallcounty with 29 clubs, on their overall victory.

Final placings: Cambridgeshire 28, Lincolnshire 25, Northants241/2, Leicestershire 201/2, Essex 20, Norfolk 171/2,Warwickshire 161/2, Suffolk 141/2 and Bedfordshire 131/2.

Suffolk Team: Jack Cardy, Josh Cotterell, Ben Wallis, ChrisSoanes, Nathan Overton, Alastair Hall, Guy Mummery, AndyCollett, Chris Vince and Chris Bartrum.

Suffolk continue their Anglian League programme againstCambridgeshire at Bourn on 2nd June, the 2nd teamentertaining Cambridgeshire at Rushmere on the samedate.

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I recommend you make haste to your club manager’soffice and spend a modest £15. All participating clubs,totalling well over 100 across Suffolk, Norfolk andEssex will reduce the daily green fees by 50% andmany will do the same for just one round but, mostimportantly, please telephone the club before yourintended visit to find out what is on offer and just incase the club is holding a major event and you have awasted visit.

* * * * *In these difficult economic times, when golf clubmembership is in overall decline, clubs are wiselylooking at every opportunity to reduce unnecessarycosts. Already this year, several have failed to find theanswers needed and folded, others have reduced staffand made other painful economies where they can.

The one thing which clubs cannot afford to do is tolower the input of their green-keeping staff. Of course,modern machinery has continued to progress, to thedetriment of employment opportunities, ever since theLuddites first went into action but the knowledgerequired to select and get the best from these highlyexpensive machines is increasingly paramount. A golfclub is nothing without a good golf course with which toattract members and visitors.

With many thousands of leavers from our schools,colleges and universities about to come on to the jobmarket in the next month or two, employment prospectsare not that exciting. I visit the BIGGA website (BIGGAbeing the British and International Golf GreenkeepersAssociation) from time to time and I was interested toread about apprentice schemes, training opportunitiesand employment prospects generally for young peoplein the golf industry. Apart from the normal green-keeping duties, those of a mechanical mind might wellfind opportunities to train for work in maintaining thesehighly complex machines, whether at the club or with amachinery supplier.I was interested to read that one young man, leavinguniversity with a degree in psychology, had been unableto find work in that field and had turned to what is inessence the outdoor life which is green-keeping and Iknow of some young people who have similarly movedinto green-keeping in one form or another.

Greenkeepers are increasingly highly trained, capableand much-respected people with the club’s mostimportant asset in their care. Looking at the websiterecently, there could be possibilities abroad as well ashere at home.

I thought it might just be worth a few school-leaverslooking at the website to see if they are attracted to thismost important of jobs. If so, www.bigga.org.uk is theplace to go.

* * * * *Arguably for the first time in many a day, I have sadlymissed the copy deadline by four days and I apologiseto Linda, to our regular readers and, most importantly,to our advertisers who support us so well in these times

when advertising budgets are under careful scrutiny bythe accountants.

The truth is that, with a number of other duties andcommitments, I am finding it really hard to meet thedeadlines and efforts to find an “assistant” to assembleand write some of the copy have met with no success.

I was, therefore, most grateful to Tony Garnett, (right)the regular golf writer for the East Anglian Daily Timesand Ipswich Evening Star, when he suggested I couldreproduce some of hiscopy in our issues. Tonygets around a lot, keepinghis ear to the ground farbetter than I can so,naturally, I was mostgrateful to him and jumpedat the chance. Adding some of hiscontributions to my ownscribbles and themagazine’s loyal band ofcontributors will prove anenormous help.

That said, I have beenwriting the magazine (well, most of it) since July 1999and I feel it could benefit from some fresh ideas andinput.If you know anyone who might be interested in joining

the ranks give me a call or drop me a line. You willfind the contact details in this issue.

Haverhill Golf ClubNEW FOR 2013

Parklands AcademyMembershipFor adult beginners and novice golfers18 hole short course, set within the maingolf course • £360.00 for 12 monthsIf you have friends or family who are interested in taking up golf who want to attend beginners golf sessions, pleasecontact the office at Haverhill Golf Club on 01440 761951 or the Pro Shop on 01440 712628

Further details and application formsfor all membership categoriesincluding 5 & 7 day, junior and social,can be found on our website

www.club-noticeboard.co.uk/haverhillCoupals Road • Haverhill • Suffolk CB9 7UW

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Suffolk Seniors warmed up for a busy season aheadwith two friendly matches against Kent and Essex.

That both matches were lost was not altogethersurprising. At Ipswich, Suffolk could not quite matchKent, although several of the games were close. PeterWood (3 and 1), Richard Barton (3and 1) and DavidDuffell (7 and 6) all won with Adrian Callaby and NickOwles both halved. The final result (4-6) against thecurrent national Seniors Champions was a great effortand augured well for the season ahead.

At Romford, we lost to Essex which can pick from 80clubs compared to our 31. The 31/2 - 81/2 resultdisguises some very close finishes. Andy Whittakerwon 1up, Andy Ball had an astonishing win by 7 and 5,Brian Smy won 3 and 1 with Tom Collett securing a half.New Seniors Captain, John Cullum, must have taken alot of positives from the matches, three of which werelost by the narrowest of margins.

With the friendlies over and done with, the Seniorstravelled to Sheringham where they attempted to qualifyfor the finals of England Golf Seniors CountyChampionship. Qualifying is based on a team of sixplaying 18 holes scratch strokeplay on each day withthe best five scores from six to count. The winning teamprogresses to compete against the winners of theNorthern, Midlands and South West Groups in the finalswhich this year are being staged at the RAC Club inSurrey.

Conditions on both days of qualifying were dreadful as aresult of which, despite many senior internationals in thefield, scoring was extremely high.

Suffolk were forced to change their originally selectedteam team at the last minute, bringing in Jon Marks, asa result of a hand injury suffered by Richard Barton.

The event was won by Kent who will again go forward tocontest the finals. Suffolk were placed 7th out of the 11counties taking part.

Individual Suffolk Scores were as follows: StevenWhymark 75-81-156, Roger Taylor 82-80-162, AndyBall 80-82-162, Andy Whittaker 77-94- 171, Jon Marks87-85-172 and Chris Ginn 84-93-177.

Final positions were as follows:-1.Kent 771 2.Surrey 7753.Berks, Bucks & Oxon 782 ; 4.Herts 785 5.Hants 793,6.Sussex 802 7.Suffolk 819 8.Essex 823 9.Beds 84510.Norfolk 846 and 11. Middlesex 857

The Seniors followed up with an emphatic 10-2 win intheir opening East Anglian Seniors League matchagainst Norfolk at Woodbridge Golf Club on 21st May2013. The Woodbridge course was in excellent conditionwith just enough breeze to pose a few problems on thecross wind holes. There were comfortable wins forSteven Whymark, Andy Whittaker, Peter Wood, ChrisWyatt and Phil Platten, who was making a welcomereturn to the Suffolk Seniors side.

Suffolk Seniors get their season under way

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“The scourge of modern-day golf”. That’s how one of thecompetitors at the recent South Eastern SeniorsQualifying competition, recently held over a testing wind-swept Sheringham course, angrily described golf as hesees it today. Under the circumstances, one could wellunderstand his apoplexy. No doubt, like many others ofhis age, he plays (and therefore observes) plenty of golfon which to base his opinion, reinforced by the fact that ithad, on this occasion, taken him three hours to play theopening nine holes, or so he claimed!

His argument was seconded by a competitor in the recentSuffolk Amateur Foursomes Championship at Rushmere,who declared he probably would not play in the eventagain for the same reason (slow but not three hours toplay the opening nine!), although, perhaps, two rounds inthe mid eighties in a scratch competition would not havehelped his frame of mind.

There is no doubt that play is tediously slow on mostoccasions. Obviously, bad weather, where players arecontinuously putting on (and taking off again) wet geardoes not help, neither do high winds (which we certainlysaw at Sheringham) when players, even of the highestcalibre, run into trouble and become involved in ballsearching and, as at a very windy Sheringham, evenwaiting for the ball to stop trembling on the greens!

Whatever, there is no doubt, play is generally abysmallyslow these days and the five-hour medal round is much inevidence. Naturally, television, where players areplaying for high stakes, is a major reason and, as theiricons, particularly for some, but not only, young players, itsets the fashion.

The slowness at the recent Suffolk FoursomesChampionship was due partly, although not entirely, tothe fact that many competitors have not the faintest ideahow to play properly. Rarely these days do you see thenon-driving partner walking down the fairway to await hispartner’s drive but, instead, both players go on to the teeto assess the situation and work out how to play the hole.

It is not unknown for players, with their distancemeasuring devices, to check the distance and then walkto the nearest disc on the fairway (or bush on theircourse guide) to work out the distance again, sometimesverifying the distance yet again with the metering device.In the old days you relied on your judgement and not onmechanical aids.

The regular pantomime on the greens, taking off theglove, checking the line from front, both sides, back andback again, even lying flat on their stomachs, furtherdelays the pace of play. Strange how often we putt tomiss the hole!

With the progress of modern equipment bymanufacturers, eager to persuade you your not-so-oldclubs are obsolete and you need a new (expensive) set,there is no doubt that many courses are no longerdesigned to do what was originally intended. Thismeans that the actual course layout can actually slow upplay. And, in these harsh economic times, how manyclubs can afford the seemingly necessary and expensiveredevelopments to the course, never mind the disruptionfor the long-established members who see nothing wrongwith how it is now?

Today, many of the better players can reach par 5s in two(driver and an 8-iron, Simon!) so they have to wait for thegreen to clear and those behind have to wait for those infront to move on. Follow a par 5 with a par 3 and thenanother par 5 and pile-ups are almost certain to occur.Better amateurs will even take on some par 4s, adding tothe delays if followed by a par 3. But as we have said,re-modelling is simply out of the question for many.

National events are blessed with a number of trainedofficials, all working to pace of play guidelines, to chivvyup slow play although it still occurs. At grass roots level,we rely on volunteers and not too many of them areavailable. Even if they were, we would face high costs toreimburse their reasonable travelling expenses, although,of course, they receive no pay for performing their duties.

So what are we to do at club and County level? At bestwe have mostly two or three officials on course (clubshave no-one) who cannot be everywhere and they dohave to go in and eat, if only once, during their multi-hourshift. Usually bigger events have one official coveringjust three holes.

Quite frankly, we can threaten “on the clock” here andthere (assuming we can afford the clocks) but we cannotbe everywhere to cure the problem. Sadly, unlesssomeone can come up with the answer, we have to plan,certainly at County events, to accommodate slow play, inmy opinion using 10 minute slots with a starter’s time(one gap every 6 to 8 groups), to allow the field to spreaditself out and take care of the inevitable mishaps. It wasa format I introduced and used regularly when CountySecretary. Don’t try pushing water (slow play) uphill witha broom (recalcitrant golfers). Just sit back and justyawn unless, like the gentleman at Sheringham, youprefer, quite reasonably, to fulminate!

Inevitably, 10 minute intervals would mean smaller fieldsas tee times and the available daylight run out. Therecommended times for various formats to be completedwhich are printed somewhat euphemistically on manyclub score cards are fiction. Many players are obliviousto them.

Defeatist or realistic? If anyone has a real answer, forgoodness sake tell us about it.

Ron Kent

Slow Play.Is there a cure?

Full results were: Steven Whymark won 6 & 5, RogerTaylor won 3 & 2, Richard Barton halved, Andy Whittakerwon 6 &5, David Whinney lost 2 & 1, Geoff Henney won3 & 2, Peter Wood won 6 & 5, Jon Marks won 4 & 2,Chris Whyatt won 5 & 3, Chris Ginn won 2 & 1, JohnCullum halved and Phil Platten won 5 & 3

The next Anglian League match is againstCambridgeshire at Bourn on 13th June when Suffolk willbe seeking to avenge a home defeat suffered last year.

Championship ReviewRon Kent looks at the resultsso far and events to come

The only Championship to be decided so far was theSuffolk Amateur Foursomes, played at Rushmere onSunday, 28th April.

Despite the economic conditions which have underminedentries for County competitions everywhere of late, theSuffolk Foursomes attracted an excellent field, totalling56 pairs representing over 100 of the top golfers in theCounty.

Despite the difficult lead into the event for the green staffwho have battled with a long cold winter and now arelatively cold and dry Spring, the course looked inexcellent condition and the staff must deserve the highestpraise, considering what they have had to contend with.

There were some interesting pairings including 2nd TeamCaptain Andy Collett teaming up with Graham Wardley, aregular competitor in County events, locals James Wrightand Michael Buck (still not totally clear of a pervasiveback injury), youngsters Guy Mummery and LukeThompson from Rookery Park, the Wright brothers Willand Tom and former Suffolk Seniors captain Jon Marksaccompanied by Chris Ginn.

With Rushmere never a pushover, the best of themorning scores were all over par, four pairs returning 2over on 72. Regular County pairing Nathan Overton andAlastair Hall, father and son pair Roger and JackNicholson from Bury St Edmunds, the highly successfulGorleston pair of David James and James Chadd sharedthe lead at lunchtime.

The experienced campaigners from Gorleston, KevinWoods and Steve Crosby, Neil Meadows and JohnBlackmore, James Wright and Michael Buck were alllooking over the leaders’ shoulders on 73, as were JasonFinch and Sam Debenham, winners of the event in 1998and now on 74.

As is often the case, several of the morning leaders fellaway in the afternoon. Wright and Buck slipped to 75,Meadows and Blackmore found a 78, the Nicholsonsreturned 79 as did James and Chadd. Woods and Crosbysaw their chances disappear under an 82.

As the competition moved to its close, three pairs leadingon 148. Collett and Wardley had shot into contentionwith a pm 72, Wright and Buck levelled with them as didWoodbridge pair Andy Whittaker and Steve Mann.

With a play-off looming, Suffolk County regulars NathanOverton and Alastair Hall, coming in last, avoided the needfor overtime by returning another excellent 72 to finish on144, a victory by 4 shots. It had been one of the tensestand most exciting climaxes of this event for quite a longtime. The competition season now moves on to Haverhillwhere the Amateur Championship is due to be contestedon 9th June. Assured of some excellent greens, the eventwill see some of our University players returning fromhome and USA colleges and another exciting contest looksto be in store.

The top sixteen available qualifiers will then contest theSuffolk Matchplay Championship over the same course thefollowing weekend.

Bring it on!

Nathan Hall (left) andAlastair Hall receivethe Trophy from thePresident

Suffolk Matchplay NewsThe first matchplay competitions to get under way were theParks and Beaumont Trophies, enthusiastically competedfor every year by our senior golfers.

The Parks Trophy provided a quick exit for holders Wood-bridge but not without a tremendous battle, Southwoldwinning by the narrowest of margins, just one hole.

Diss and Thorpeness have a good record in this event andDiss it was who made a home draw count beating thevisitors by 9.

Suffolk Golf Union Junior Committee 2012Chairman - Mike Stevenson 485 London Road South,Lowestoft, Suffolk NR33 0PD Tel: 01502 569765 Mobile:07778 576008 E-mail: mikeandmarystevenson@live.co.uk

Secretary - Charles Wilderspin 10A Chestnut Avenue,Oulton Broad, Lowestoft, NR32 3JA Tel: 01502 588028Mobile: 07921 102826 E-mail: charles.wilderspin632@btinternet.com

Managers: Under 18s - Trevor Mason Fells Cottage,72 Ferry Road, Felixstowe, IP11 9LU Tel: 01394 274331 E-mail: trevor@mason72.fslife.co.uk

Under 16s - Tony Watkins 43 Bull Road, FoxgroveGardens, Ipswich IP3 8GN Tel: 01473 713748 Mobile07710 763091 E-mail: tonywatkins01@hotmail.co.uk

Under 16s - Ian Woodhead 29 Spire Close, SudburyCO10 0PZ Tel: 01787 378733 Mobile: 07818 403020 E-mail: i.woodhead@virgin.net

Under 14s - John Morcombe The Old Chapel, CalderRoad, Melton IP12 1TP Tel: 01394 386515 Mobile:07899 791028 E-mail: jdmorco@msm.com

Head Coach - Keith Preston Aldeburgh Golf Club,Aldeburgh, Suffolk IP15 5PE Tel: 01728 453309 E-mail: preston901@btinternet.com

County Child Protection Officer - Stuart McCallum Tel: 01473 782780

13

The local derby at Bury St Edmunds was a close contest,Flempton triumphing on their delightful 9-hole course by2 shots. Rumour has it that Bury won one of the holeswith a fluke cannon off a inquisitive passing muntjak whodeflected a ball which was heading out of bounds ontothe green where the grateful gentlemen took fulladvantage by sinking the putt!

Waldringfield and Gorleston defied the home advantageby winning at Rushmere (by 2) and Newton Green (by 5)respectively. Fynn Valley won comfortably enough by17 at home to St Audrys.

As in the Parks, the holders of the Beaumont Trophy forthe longer handicap seniors, Ipswich made a quick exit atBeccles by 6 holes. Rookery Park, who have done wellin this event in the past, suffered a heavy defeat by amuch-changed Bury St Edmunds squad by 17 holes.Other away winners were Ufford Park (by 2 at inauguralwinners Diss) and Seckford, who had what looks to havebeen a clear-cut win at Bramford by 12.

Otherwise, games all wentto the hosts, the largestmargins being atWaldringfield (15 up vFlempton) and Brett Vale(by 14 v Haverill).

Woodbridge and FelixstoweFerry recorded double figurewins at home by 10 overSouthwold and by 11 overThe Suffolk respectively.Cretingham, Halesworth andFynn Valley completed thehome victories, withperhaps Halesworthachieving the best win overRushmere, always a difficultclub to beat in any of thematchplay competitions.

And so to the Men’s events,the Hambro and TollyCobbold Cups which werecontested on 19th May.

Again, the Hambro Cupholders made a quick exit,Rushmere, unable toovercome a difficult awaytrip to Gorleston, goingdown by 9. Woodbridgehad a good win by 11 atBury St Edmunds, otherwisematches went in favour ofthe hosts, the largestmargins being at FynnValley (by 17 over TheSuffolk) and at Seckford (by16 over Bungay andWaveney Valley).

Ufford Park, who beatStowmarket by 10, seem tohave started well and couldmake good progress in

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forthcoming rounds. Otherwise Aldeburgh, Hintleshamand Ipswich all got through safely.

The Tolly Cobbold Cup matches took place on the sameday with 14 ties to be decided. Five of them went infavour of the visitors, namely Rushmere (by 7 atBramford), Halesworth (by 2 at Cretingham), Bury StEdmunds (by 13 at St Audrys), Newton Green (by 4 at StClements), Flempton (by 4 at Southwold) and RookeryPark, who had to go the extra hole to overcome UffordPark.

Close calls for home teams needing the extra hole were atFynn Valley (v Brett Vale) and Haverhill (v The Suffolk).Woodbridge (by 26 against Stowmarket), Gorleston (by 21v Beccles), Ipswich (by 10 v Aldeburgh Artisans) andWaldringfield (by 10 against Diss) got safely through bydouble figures and Seckford beat Felixstowe Ferry by anarrower margin of 6.

Second Round ties for the Hambro and Tolly CobboldCups will be played on 23rd June.

Around The CountyThorpeness Junior Open by Mike Stevenson Thorpeness Junior Open,a Suffolk Junior Order ofMerit event, was playedon a glorious sunny day.47 Players from 19different clubs took part.

The winner of the BellCup was Jed Seeley fromNewton Green with 75.2nd was Laurence Stafffrom Thorpeness on 76.Jed is seen here with Mick Crabtree and Carolyn Youngs.

The handicap prize went to Sam May, also from Thorpeness,with a score of 69 and the stableford prize for higherhandicappers was won by Charlotte Gregory from Ipswich.

Prizes were presented by President Mick Crabtree and theevent was organized by Ladies Captain Carolyn Youngs.

As as result of this event, the SGU Order Of Merit table isnow led by Sam Byford with 15 points followed by KaneMayes 141/2, both from Fynn Valley.

The next events are at Haverhill on 29th May followed byWaldringfield on 31st May and Seckford on the 16th June.

Junior Organisers of golf clubs should encourage their Juniormembers to enter these events in the County as they do offervery good value and an opportunity to play other courses.

Stowmarket Golf Club’ NewCaptain Drives-infrom our regular contributor Ron WoodhamOn Easter Saturday, Stowmarket Golf Club’s new CaptainDick Taylor commenced his year of office as traditiondemands by driving offdown the course from thefirst tee. The theme for theevent based on Dick’sstatus as a Gold Certificateholder for HighPerformance car driving,was kept secret from Dickby organiser Pat Shepherd,this year’s Vice-Captain.

Despite an icy head wind,snow flurries, traffic lights,cones and club members inswinging 60’s dress, nothing could put Dick off his swing. Aroadway had been marked out on the Tee and three golf ballswere teed up by Club Manager Geoff Scott, suitably attired asa flower power hippy. Choosing the middle of the three ballsand showing the concentration of a highly trained fastperformance car driver the new Captain hit a confident shotstraight down the fairway in excess of 200yards.

Club member Phil Fairbrother won the raffle for a year’spersonal car parking space and the winner of a bottle ofChampagne for correctly predicting the length of theCaptain’s drive-in was lady club member Sue Baker. Allproceeds will go towards the Captain’s chosen charity,Multiple Sclerosis.

Holes in Oneby Tony Garnett from hisGarnett on Golf column inthe East Anglian DailyTimes.

Regular Suffolk senior playerDick Barton (right) ofWoodbridge had the fourthhole in one of his career whenplaying in the Les Jones Cupon his home course. His four-iron, with a slight fade,bounced on the front of thegreen and ran onto the hole.Adam Humphrey, who playsoff a handicap of 4.9, had a

hole in one atGorleston recentlyAdam (left) plays earlyon Saturday morningsregularly and, statingthe obvious I suppose,is reputed to be a“very good player”.

And to end on a charitable note…HELP FOR BEACON HILL SCHOOLalso from Tony GarnettStephen Creasey (left) raised £3858 during his year ascaptain at Waldringfield Golf Club. The money waspresented to the headmistress Carolyn Davies of BeaconHill School in Ipswich which Stephen’s son Harry (centre)attends.

The CaptainDrives In

15

Peter Ballingall@LETTER FROM SPAIN

I was sitting the other morning on the terrace at the Club enjoying my morning coffee (un cortado)and toast with olive oil [tostada con aceite] enjoying theview in the early sunshine. The temperature, even at8.30 [your time 7.30] was already 18degs andeverywhere was peaceful and quiet.

After a busy winter season most of the northernEuropeans had returned home to their own countriesand I sensed "an end of term" feeling and "emptiness"after the bedlam of the past four months. Happy to saythat we welcomed more golfers this winter to ElRompido than ever before and "the team" is contentwith its efforts!

As I sat there in my air of tranquility it struck me how Inever get bored of the views as I looked out over themarsh towards our home and the other houses on theMarina but, as my eyes shifted to the south and west, Irealised that in a short while, I would no longer be ableto see the river [El Rio Piedra], the spit of land thatseparates it from the Atlantic [la flecha] or the Atlanticocean itself. The small pinos that were planted somenine years ago on the side of the ninth fairway besidethe clubhouse have grown much taller and the newshoots are beginning to mask what was una vistapreciosa.

Time marches on with ever-increasing alacrity and, forme at least, it came to me that whilst things progressedand developed gradually, un-noticed almost, over aperiod of time, suddenly the realization hit me that Iand those things around me are getting old!!!

Age, of course, is just a number - nothing more but itbrings with it a change of outlook, an urgency almost,to do things before time runs out!!

Mrs. B. must have sensed this as she secretly planneda "present" for a "big" birthday that was looming.

On a Saturday recently I asked her innocently if shewas playing Bridge that evening as usual. She repliedthat no, she was going to Faro Airport to collect hersister Sue who was going to stay a few days to lookafter our pups and that we were going to Cambridge onTuesday!!! I was speechless!

Putting aside for a moment my loathing for travellingand flying I suspected she had arranged a familyreunion which, I knew, was going to be wonderful so offwe went.

What I was not prepared for was what happened onthe night of the party. Not only did my sons, mybrother and his family appear but, out of the blue,

came some of my dearest friendswhom I hadn't seen in years.

I was shocked, over-whelmed andovercome with emotion at such asurprise. I knew nothing about it.

Jenny Lee Smith [whom many of you will rememberwhen she represented Barnham Broom as its Tour Proin the early 80's] and I have been the closest of friendsfor over 40 years and long before she became themost successful lady professional golfer in the UK atthe time [and one of the best in the world]. Althoughwe had kept in touch we had not seen each other inover 30 years. Ian Soulsby and Marjorie arrived also.We have been friends since 1970 from the days Iworked for John Jacobs in Newcastle.

Just as I was getting to terms [emotionally] with thisPete & Annie Charlton appeared. They were the oneswho made me most welcome when I arrived in Norfolkand we remain good friends today.

Messages also were received from Ian & Mhairi Walker[who, with Colin Bothway built Barnham Broom andengaged me as the first Pro at the Club] who weresailing in the Caribbean and from Malcolm Campbell[previous Editor of Golf Monthly] who was on a missionin the USA at the time [and to whom I owe my career].Both would have been there otherwise.

How humble I felt that they made such an effort to bewith me. How difficult was it to express my joy anddelight at seeing them all.

How my wonderful, scheming and devious wifemanaged to arrange everything without my knowledgeI will never know - but it was the "best birthdaypresent" I could ever have received.

As one grows older family and friends mean more thanever before.

Although back home again in Spain I am reminded of abook written by Richard Bach, "There Is No Such PlaceAs Far Away" and whilst it is true we are separated bymany miles we can still be together in thought.

How fortunate I am to have them.

Contact me, Peter Ballingallat: Apartado de Correos 101

21450 Cartaya (Huelva) ESPAÑAPHONE: (0034) 959 02 42 42 or

E-mail: pballingall@golfelrompido.esWebsite: www.peterballingall.com

16

The weather wasn’t very good but it didn’t spoil thequality of the competition as Suffolk sought itsChampions for 2013.

First came the Ladies Strokeplay Championship.Thirty-six holes of medal play saw the winner, Lily Kent(Ipswich) 78/77, collecting the Woodbridge ChallengeBowl and the title of Strokeplay Champion. Her scoreand the fifteen immediately behind her qualified theplayers for the Match play stage of the event.

Blaize Esmond (Aldeburgh) 76/81 finished two shotsback, having recorded a couple of disastrous holes enroute. Vanessa Bell (Ipswich) and Vicki Inglis(Woodbridge) were a further shot back. Both returned80/78.

The Matchplay Championship was played over thefollowing two days. Ball striking was good, putting notso good though, to be fair, the greens were probablysuffering a bit from the inclement weather of recenttimes.

There were no shock defeats in the first round whichleft County Captain, Laura Lowe’s hopes intact for her2013 team to represent Suffolk in the initial stage of theEnglish County Championship. Liz Laflin (Stowmarket)lost to Wendy Airey in a match that could have goneeither way but, when she played Lily Kent in thequarters, Wendy’s direction finder deserted her. Shespent time off the straight and narrow and bowed out.Kent went on to beat Bell 1 up in a tight semi-final

Sharon Luckman (Felixstowe) got past Inglis andproceeded to take out Esmond on the crucialeighteenth hole for another 1 up scoreline. Blaize hadthe measure of Lils James in the quarters.

The final was a case of experience versusinexperience. Luckman is a great grinder. Kent,fluent of swing, has plans to join the US golfing scenein the autumn. She was notably more confident thanthis time last year and the final was satisfying to watchas first one then the other player gained theascendancy. Sharon moved to three up at thirteen, butLily launched herself on the comeback trail with a birdieat the demanding fourteenth and continued the attackat fifteen where her opponent, whose bunker play hadbeen exemplary, surprisingly shot the ball well beyondthe flag. The third success in a row saw Lily squarethe match at sixteen. Seventeen was halved and thatleft all to play for down the last.

It’s good to hold up to the right at eighteen but Kentmissed the fairway off the tee and landed amongsttrees. Luckman found the semi-rough. Lily was leftwith a ten-foot putt to keep the match alive it failed todrop. The match and the title, for the second time inher golfing career, went to Sharon.

Matchplay Results: First Round: Lily Kent (Ipswich) bt EmilyPenfold (Newton Green) 3/1; Wendy Airey (Diss) bt Liz Laflin(Stowmarket) 5/3; Sarah Howe (Ipswich) bt Helen Bray(Ipswich) 3/2; Vanessa Bell (Ipswich) bt Eloise Aldous (NewtonGreen) 4/3; Vicki Inglis (Woodbridge) bt Alice Barlow (Newton

Green) 4/3; Sharon Luckman(Felixstowe) bt Amanda Norman (Felixstowe) 2 up; Lils James(Rookery Park) bt Sarah Saggers (Ipswich) 3/2; Blaize Esmond(Aldeburgh) bt Wendy Wilderspin (Stowmarket) 4/3.Quarter Finals: Kent bt Airey 2 up; Bell bt Howe 3/2; Luckmanbt Inglis 2/1; Esmond bt James 3/1.Semi-Finals: Kent bt Bell 1 up; Luckman bt Esmond 1 up.Final: Luckman bt Kent 1 up.

Qualifying Scores:155: Lily Kent 87/77; 157: Blaize Esmond 76/81; 158:Vanessa Bell 80/78; Vicki Inglis 80/78; 161: Sarah Howe 81/80;Sharon Luckman 78/83; 163: Lils James 85/78; 164: WendyAirey 78/86; Liz Laflin 81/82; 169: Amanda Norman 80/89;Sarah Saggers 83/86; 171: Helen Bray 85/86; 172: EloiseAldous 87/85; 174: Alice Barlow 89/85; 181: Emily Penfold89/92; Wendy Wilderspin 89/92.

Sharon Luckman to lead the County Team… by JulieLatimer-Jones

The Championship Strokeplay Winner (Lily Kent), DetmarHackman of Sabona and Matchplay Winner (Sharon Luckman)

Liz Robinson is the SeniorLadies Strokeplay ChampionThe Championship organiser. Liz Robinson (Bury StEdmunds), finished three shots ahead of her nearest rivalsin the Senior Championship Strokeplay competition,returning a score of 85. It is the second year of this eventand twenty-four competitors joined in, with eight to qualify forthe match play stage. The Bury St Edmunds players had afield day on their home course and came out at the top ofthe heap. Liz had already decided not to go forward to theMatchplay stage, but her four fellow club members made itthrough.

Fortunately, from the host Club’s angle, the automatic drawplaced them one in each match and all four moved into thesemi-finals, guaranteeing a Bury Champion. In the semi-finals, Bev Allen played Julie Byford, while old friends, JudyHamshere and Barbara Cole, faced each other. Julie wentthrough with relative ease (4/3), but Judy and Barbaraenjoyed a tough battle that went to the 20th with Barbaraemerging as the winner. Barbara beat Julie 3/1 in the final,retaining the Championship that she won in 2012.

Qualifiers: 86: Bev Allen (Bury St Edmunds) and Barbara Cole(Bury St Edmunds); 89: Julie Byford (Bury St Edmunds); AnneArcher (Ipswich); Judy Hamshere (Bury St Edmunds); 90: AnnGraves (Woodbridge) 91: Anne Amos (Gorleston); 95: SallyCade (Newton Green).

17

Simon Godbold and Mark Thomas ofIpswich Golf Club, win through toMatchplay Championship Grand Finalsin DubaiIn June 2012Simon andMark paid £25each to enterthe biggestNationalAmateurCompetition inEngland andIreland. They won all 5 x 4 ball better ball Matchplay games,arranged one per 45 days, and all played at their home Club,Ipswich (Purdis Heath), giving them a big advantage!The Regional Finals held at The Forest of Arden consisted of oneround playing better ball Stableford with the top 5 teams winningthrough to The Grand Finals in Dubai taking place in May.After completing the round, in horrendous weather conditions, with35 points on the day, qualified 4th overall and were on their way tothe Finals.There were 10 x teams competing for the all illusive 2103Matchplay Championship winner's trophy at The Els Club inDubai. The Finals consisted of 3 x rounds, 1 per day, of better ballStableford scoring off 3/4 handicap.“This course is the best golf course we have played to date. It waswonderful and a fabulous experience, although the heat wassometimes unbearable (50 degrees in the sun!),” says Simon.They finished in 5th place, only 4 shots off the top spot and areentering for the 2014 Championship at the end of June 2013!

Results:First Round: Bev Allen bt Sally Cade 7/6; Julie Byfordbt Anne Archer 3/2; Judy Hamshere bt Ann Graves 2/1;Barbara Cole bt Anne Amos 5/4;Semi finals: Byford bt Allen 4/3; Cole bt Hamshere20th.Final: Cole bt Byford 3/1

Presentation:The County Captain, Laura Lowe, thankedeveryone for their help in making theChampionships so successful and sheexpressed appreciation to the Association’ssponsor, Mr Detmar Hackman of Sabona for hiscontinuing support and for coming to presentthe prizes.

The winners: Ladies Strokeplay Championship:Champion – The Woodbridge Challenge Bowl:: LilyKent (Ipswich) 155 (78/77)Runner up - The Maggie Ivor-Jones Plate: BlaizeEsmond (Aldeburgh) 157 (76/81)3rd: Vicki Inglis (Woodbridge) 158 (80/78)

1st Handicap – The Berendt Jug: Sarah Howe(Ipswich) 161- 8-1532nd Handicap: Wendy Wilderspin (Stowmarket) 181-26-155

Ladies Matchplay Championship:Champion – The Churchman Challenge Cup: SharonLuckman (Felixstowe)Runner-up – Lady Eddis Silver Box: Lily Kent(Ipswich)Semi-finalists: Vanessa Bell (Ipswich) and BlaizeEsmond (Aldeburgh)

Senior Ladies Strokeplay Champion: Liz Robinson(Bury St Edmunds) 85;

Senior Ladies Matchplay Champion: Barbara Cole(Bury St Edmunds)Runner-up: Julie Byford (Bury St Edmunds)

The County Team to travel to The BedfordshireGolf Club on 24th June until 28th June is asfollows: Mrs Laura Lowe (Captain); Vanessa Bell (Ipswich);Vicki Inglis (Ipswich); Lils James (Rookery Park); LilyKent (Ipswich)Liz Laflin (Stowmarket); Sharon Luckman (Felixstowe);Amanda Norman (Felixstowe); Sarah Saggers(Ipswich)

Non-travelling Reserves: Eloise Aldous and AliceBarlow (both from Newton Green).

Suffolk Ladies County GolfAssociation Current Officers:

President: Mrs Pippa Beak Tel: 01449 781261;Captain: Mrs Laura Lowe: Tel 01206 263298 Hon

Secretary: Mrs Jeanette Longman: Tel 01394450939; Hon Treasurer: Miss Hermione Scrope Tel01359 232618; England Golf Representative: Mrs

Anne Archer: Tel 01728 685315; Handicap Adviser:Ms Ann Graves Tel 01394 411020; Contact forJunior Golf: Mrs Judy Hamshere Tel 01284

386207; Senior Organiser: Mrs Liz Robinson, Tel:01284 752818. Scratch Score Assessor: Mrs SueCook Tel 01728 688406. All other personnel may

be found on the County website at www.suffolkladiesgolf.org.uk

Snow didn’t stop thenew golf captains teeingoff or raising money forthe ‘Sue Ryder‚ Charity’.Despite the challengingarctic weather, CarolBoffey, Chris Griggs & Luke Cleland all drove in at Ufford Park Golf Club.With the snow forecast on everyone’s mind, Ufford Park reportedly got the best of the weatherlocally with many other local courses covered and having to close. Thankfully Ufford Park hadno snow on the course when the Captains stepped on the first tee, the only remainingchallenge was the extra strong head wind. Junior Captain, Luke Cleland, started off the proceedings and hit his shot 190 yards, withLadies Captain Carol Boffey following after, hitting a beautiful 128 yard drive straight down themiddle. Club Captain Chris Griggs rounded things off as he hit his tee shot 150yards. All threeof these are known to hit further than the recorded drive, so the wind definitely made a 50 yarddifference at least.Things soon changed as the team competition started, as the weather originally forecastedturned up and the snow started to come down hard. The original 18-hole best 2 out of 3stableford competition turned in to a 9-hole competition, probably to most of the Membersdelight considering the circumstances.The Captains sold raffle tickets, had a guess the driving distance competition, as well as jokercards for the competition at £5 each, which would double a players score on a nominated hole.All proceedings went to the Captains Charity, The Chantry‚ Sue Ryder Charity, of which Chrisand Carol both decided to raise funds for. The Chantry provide care and support for peoplewho have complex neurological needs such as an acquired brain injury, stroke, multiplesclerosis, motor neurone disease, cerebral palsy, Huntingdon’s or Parkinson’s disease. Thetotal of the money raised on the day was a fantastic £370.The winners of the front 6 competition were Dan Felgate, Paul Jordan & Lorri Sage with 31points. The winners of the back 9 competition were Simon Talbot-Hurn, Colin Fulton & PaulBurke with 49 points.

18

Captains Drive In

Fynn Valley’s newcaptain for the year isPaul Gray. He kickedoff his year in stylewith a 241 yard drivedown the tenth, raising funds for hischarity for the year,Woolverstone Wish

Stuart has developed well throughoutour sessions and when he gets theopportunity to play he has been gettinground the course in about 100 shots.You have all seen the progression inStuarts technique over the time wehave been featuring him in thesearticles but I think with theimprovements he has shown that heshould be scoring better. There are, inmy opinion, a couple of reasons forthis. One is that Stuart does not get toplay that regularly, this can impact ourscores as our short game is often notas sharp as it would be if we wereplaying lots of rounds. The other ishow often and effectively Stuartpractices. When we have a long gamesession it can take him a while to gethis eye in but it willoften transpire that ithas been a week or twosince he has hit anyballs. With this in mindI thought this would bea good opportunity todiscuss the differenttypes of practice andhow they can all cometogether to help usimprove.

It is important tounderstand that thereare 3 main types ofpractice, they are:

a) warm upb) technical c) game simulation

Before we tee-off some sort of warmup is conducive to starting our roundoff well. There will be a hugevariation in what works for differentplayers and often this will be governedby the facilities at the course you areplaying. In my opinion it shouldinvolve hitting some golf balls,preferably on a practice ground or

driving range, but if need be in apractice net. There should be verylittle technical thought insteadfocussing on tempo and ball strike.These simple thoughts of tempo andstrike should also carry over into theshort game where the other mainobjectives are to learn the speed andfirmness of the greens.Next we have technical practice, thisis the one people spend the most timedoing because we are constantly toldif we hit enough balls we will mastera skill and hit every shot perfectly.This is type of practice where wewill maybe do practice drills,rehearse movements or try to get theclub into the correct positions to hitthe shot we want. This practice

definitely has its placebut as golfers we spendtoo greater percentage ofour practice time 'just'hitting balls, pitches,chips or putts. Once wecan consistently performa skill that we are doingduringtechnicalpractice itstime tostop andtest whatwe havelearned.

I have putthe final category ofpractice under theheading of gamesimulation. This iswhere we try to createon-course scenariosto see how the variousdepartments of ourgame stand up underpressure. Theimportant part of this

practice is that it needs to bequantifiable, in the same way that around of golf has a score attached to it,this way we can measure if we areimproving at something. An example ofthis would be a par 18 chipping andputting challenge, this involves playing9 greenside holes with one ball andrecording your total score. The targetfor this is to chip and single putt everhole for a score of 18 shots. There arenumerous other skills tests andchallenges for all parts of the game, askyour PGA professional for some ideas.

I hope this has given you some ideas tomake better use of your time by first ofall asking yourself 'what sort of practiceis this?' Once you have identified whatcategory of practice you are working onalso be aware that the most successfulgolfers spend one third of their practicetime working on their long game andthe other two thirds on pitching,chipping, bunkers and putting. Simplysticking to this ratio will help reduceyour scores significantly.

by KELKELVIN VIN VINCEVINCE

PGA Professional,Rushmere Golf Clubkelvinvince@hotmail.co.uk01473 728076

Stuart, 29, from Felixstowe is likemany newer golfers, who has been

to the driving range and playedwith family and friends, but hashad no formal tuition. We aregoing to report on our sessionsand see how much my adviceaccelerates Stuarts progress.

SUFFOLK PGA by Tony Garnett

Suffolk professionals have the edgeSuffolk PGA won a keenly contested match against aSuffolk county team at Rushmere by four holes (Hambroscoring) or two and a half matches to one and a half.In the top match Lawrence Dodd and Keith Prestonappeared to have matters well in hand until Josh Cottrelland Matt Mann won three holes in succession to go oneup on the 18th tee. Dodd and Preston salvaged a half bywinning the last.Haverhill professionals Paul Wilby and Ollie Rush havean impressive track record in this annual fixture. Theytook control of their match against Chris Vince, also fromHaverhill, and Sam Truman of Woodbridge and endedfour up. It was the same score-line when Kevin Earp andhost professional Kelvin Vince beat Nathan Overton andAlastair Hall.In the fourth game the Rookery Park amateurs, ChrisSoanes and Guy Mummery, played very steadily toovercome Chris Smith and Peter Latimer by four holes.The professional pair won the last.

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21

Doctor Golf is here to answer any minor or major ques-tions or queries, if you have something to ask, please

send to: mail@doctorgolf.co.ukor ring 01394 383480

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!Four golfers from Bungay Golf Club have just returnedfrom California playing Pebble Beach, Quail Lodge,Spanish Bay links, Pasatiempo, The Shore Montereypeninsular and Spyglass Hill.All the golfers have played numerous courses inEurope including 7 British Open courses but in theiropinion, the courses in the USA were the best.

L-R: David Smith, Peter Revell, Chris Woodruff & Peter Bicker

Quick Fix vs Long Term Development!As a coach with over 20 years experience, helping playersof different ages and abilities, recent discussions with othercoaches have been focussed on “What does the golferlook for from a golf lesson?” The answer to this can often be a little more complicatedthan “just wanting to get better!”In fact there are many different answers to that particularquestion, some of which are detailed below:

For instance what we need to know as Golf Professionals is‘’What’’ do they want to improve: –

a) Find an idea that will stop them slicing it in the competi-tion tomorrow - (a no win situation for player and coach!)

b) Spill their head of all the issues that have troubled themover the past round/season/lifetime - (a counsellingsession!)

c) Review themselves on video in comparison to atournament player – (a very detailed analysis session)

d) Have use of tools and be given drills to help feel certainmovements within their swing – (a physical exercisesession)

Until the coach knows which of the above, the student reallydesires, and more importantly, their willingness to pursuethese goals, can they truly offer the best and correctadvice?It is as important to the coach to find out when and why theyseem unable to perform the required shot when they want it,(we can all play a great provisional ball!!), as it is to see ifthere is any underlying issue in the mechanics of themovement.

Although all great coaches would aim to have the playerhitting better shots during the lesson, thereby improvingtheir confidence, it is having the understanding and ability toreproduce these mechanics when they are needed that willseparate a good outcome from a poor one. These coacheswill need to be aware of their students’ long-termrequirements which may be as diverse as: wanting to holeout better, hit more greens, lower their handicap, representthe club, attend a corporate golf day or win a tournament! From this analysis the coach and student can then worktogether to formulate a plan and timescale of what canrealistically be achieved.

If you asked me personally I would first of all need to assessthe current game that the student plays, making note ofwhich shots they play well and which shots are playedpoorly, whether it is the execution of the particular shot thatthey have chosen or whether the choice of shot was thecorrect one in the first instance. Attempting a shot that youmay only pull off once out of 100 attempts, does little foryour score or indeed your confidence when faced with thesame shot on future occasions.

LONG STANDING RELATIONSHIP ATUFFORD PARK HOTEL, GOLF & SPAThe family owned leisure complex at Woodbridge inSuffolk, has taken delivery of new maintenance equipmentfor their 18-hole golf course, from near neighboursRansomes Jacobsen. Delivered by local dealer BartramMowers, this season’s new equipment consists of aCushman Turf-Truckster and a Jacobsen LF570 lightfairway mower. “The LF570 replaces our former Jacobsen fairway mower,the LF3800,” said head greenkeeper Adrian Hollins. “The570 is the updated version of the 3800, which was anexcellent product and there was no reason to change.However, we did look at competitor machines, just to makesure we were certain of our choice! The reels on the 570run faster than on the older model and the quality of cut,in my opinion, is better than ever. “The Cushman Turf-Truckster is a great general purposeheavy duty vehicle on which we can mount sprayers, topdressers, slitters and other equipment. This is our fifthsince I’ve been here and it’s a really flexible workhorse.”Colin Aldous is Chairman and owner of Ufford Park and ishappy with the long standing relationship with theIpswich-based manufacturer. “I bought Ufford Park some21 years ago; that’s how far back the relationship withRansomes and Bartrams stretches,” he said. “Since thenwe’ve more than doubled the size of the business; hotelrooms have expanded from the original 25 to 96 and we’veadded and improved our conference facilities considerably.The golf course has improved year on year and Adrian,working closely with Stuart Robertson, our experiencedPGA professional, has gradually improved the aestheticsand presentation and it’s looking the best it’s ever been. Wekeep investing in the business and we are seeing theresults.”

22

3rd Time Lucky for Ladies OpenEveryone at St Audrys Golf Club kept their fingers crossed forfair weather for the third Ladies Open. The previouscompetitions were both played in torrential conditions but itwas third time lucky – the sun shone and perfect conditionswere enjoyed on the day.The event is one of the first in the calendar and the One TwoOne format proved to be an enjoyable test of golf on thistricky 9 hole course. The Competition was won by Maureen Minter and Joy Pikefrom Cretingham GC. Angela Day and Rosie Owen fromSouthwold GC came second with Sylvia Bloomfield andGloria Lee of Ipswich GC third.Other prizes – Best front nine Rose Smith and HelenaMcDougal from Seckford GC, best back nine MaureenPearson and Pat Cofield from Felixstowe GC. Nearest the pin prizes were won by Mari Davey fromWaldringfield GC and Gill Self from Seckford.

Deborah Dann took the prize for thelongest drive.

* * * *St Audrys Seniors section continuesto thrive, with up to 40 membersregularly turning up for the Mondaymorning competitions, even in therecent inclement weather. Thismakes the nine hole course a littlecongested but slow play is rarely aproblem as the good humouredbanter between friends keepseveryone on their toes. St AudrysSeniors enjoy a full programme ofmatches against other local clubsfrom late March through to Octoberand the Senior Members CharityDay, which will be held on July 8ththis year, is always a popular fixture.The seniors section at St Audrys GCsupports the East Anglia’s Children’sHospice and has raised over£16,000 during the past 9 years.

Fynn Valley Golf Club held their Annual Presentation and PastCaptain’s Dinner. A well attended evening saw the year’s trophiespresented to the winners (above), followed by a delicious meal.

PRESENTATION DINNER

The Suffolk Schools’ Golf Association TeamChampionships were held recently at Hintlesham GC. Ona fine but breezy day some excellent golf was playedwith the eventual winners being Thomas GainsboroughSchool with Samuel Ward Upper in second place. Thatsimple statement hides what was a very close resultwhich was only decided by scores in the final groupings.A total of 24 teams representing 17 different schools tookpart on the day. The scoring was stableford with the besttwo scores from each team of 3 players counting. Withthe first two players from each team back in theclubhouse Thomas Gainsborough with Jed Seeley 41 &Tom Hatton 43 were leading from Kesgrave, RobertSalter 41 & Sam Byford 40 with Hardwick Middle, FionaStokes 36 & Alex Halil 42 in 3rd place. Samuel Ward’sthird player, J Carpenter, then came in with a superb 45points which meant that their best two scores nowequalled Thomas Gainsborough’s 84 points and all wouldbe decided by the third score for each team. WithSamuel Ward’s third score already known at 36 it was atense time waiting for the Thomas Gainsborough’s thirdplayer, Alex English, to come in. When he did it was witha score of 37 and victory went to his team by just 1 point.Kesgrave “B” just pipped their “A” team into 3rd placethanks to their third player, J Middleston, coming homewith a fine 45 points. The Thomas Gainsborough’swinning team (below), will go on to the National finals atWoodhall Spa later in the year when it is very likely thatthey will be joined by the team from Samuel Ward.

Many thanks go toHintlesham for the useof their course whichwas in great condition.Before the trophies weregiven out a presentationwas made to Mrs JudithBiglin who, after over 15years of dedicated work,was stepping down fromthe Suffolk Schools’ GolfAssociation committee.In his speech, Chairman,David Wright thankedJudith (both right) for allher work over the yearsand pointed out that without all her time and effort theSSGA would probably have folded several years agowhen volunteers were very hard to find.The next SSGA events are the Area competitions whichare: Northern Area at Diss GC on July 1st, SouthernArea at Fynn Valley GC on July 4th & Western Area atHaverhill GC on July 9th.

Suffolk Schools’ Golf Association Team Championships

23

Around& A b o u twith Hacker

NORFOLK COUNTYGOLF UNION

NCGU CONTACTSPresident

Alan Winstanley, Sheringham Golf Club

Vice PresidentDoug Gilchrist, Weston Park Golf Club

Imm. Past PresidentFrank Myers, Thetford Golf Club

Hon. County SecretaryMike Devlin, Acacia House, The Street,

Tibenham. Norfolk. NR16 1QAGreat Yarmouth & Caister Golf club

niblick@btinternet.com 01379 674516

Hon. County TreasurerRichard Betts, Gt Yarmouth & Caister

Golf Club 01603 720957 email: richardbetts@btinternet.com

County CaptainIain Yule, ings Lynn Golf Club

iain.yule@btinternet.com

2nd Team CaptainSteve Tidy, Costessey Park Golf Club

tidygolf6@yahoo.co.uk

Seniors CaptainDavid Pattrick of Royal Cromer Golf Club

Seniors AdministratorMalcolm Carr of Sheringham Golf Club

Email: malcolm.carr@tiscali.co.uk

Junior Secretary - Norman Blanch, 10, Hillside Crescent, Wicklewood,

Norwich. NR18 9QD Tel; 01953 604394

Email: normanblanch@btinternet.com

Team Managers: Andrew Cullington01603 898311 ajcully@btinternet.com

Gary Davis 01603 610006Email: davis393609@aol.com

Preston Jones

PGA Secretary - John Paling‘Squirrels Reach’, Folgate Lane,

Old Costessey, Norwich NR8 5EF Tel:01603 741301 Email:jandjpaling@uwclub.net

Norfolk Schools - Margo Horsburgh5 Bishops Croft, Barningham, Bury StEdmunds, Suffolk IP31 1BZ 01359

221281Email: dandmhorsburgh@talktalk.net

Girls Organiser - Carol Delf Gt Yarmouth & Caister Golf Club

As I write this the weather has just improved sufficiently for a couple ofdays to give an indication that Spring is just around the corner. Nodoubt things will change again in a very short time as the wind is due toreturn back to the north east, and that augurs nothing, but lowertemperatures and windy times.Since May 1st, I suspect many club secretaries have looked for theauthority to run ‘Preferred Lies’ in qualifying Competitions, for the nextmonth until there is some sign of growth. These are difficult times forall clubs’ green keeping staff and I sympathise with them.

England GolfEngland Golf ran the training seminar for the USGA Course RatingSystem during the first week in May, at which the County Secretaryattended. It will be followed up with a second session later in the yearto clear up any problems which the approved County Assessors maycome across over the summer.The Norfolk Ladies’ President ( and County Assessor ) Nickie Clarkewill be one of the four highly qualified Instructors for the course, whoalso include a high ranking American USGA Rating Assessor, who isbeing flown over from the States for the occasion and a similarpersonage from the Scottish Golf Union where the system is usedalready.

Affiliation FeesEngland Golf are still looking at the question of dual and multiple clubmemberships. It is hoped that when their deliberations are complete amember will only have to pay the England Golf Fee at his or herHOME club.If this comes about, the County Union will be looking at the situationfrom their own point of view.

Norfolk County Golf UnionAt The Annual General Meeting, the following officers were elected.President - Alan Winstanley of SheringhamVice President - Doug Gilchrist of Weston ParkHon. Secretary - Mike Devlin of Gt Yarmouth & Caister was re-electedHon. Treasurer - Richard Betts of Great Yarmouth & CaisterJunior Secretary - Norman Blanch of Bawburgh.County Captain - Iain Yule of Middleton Hall was re-elected

24

Peter Clarke (above) stood down as Hon. Treasurer after12 years in that office and was presented with a suitablyengraved glass charger by the President, who thankedhim for his services to the County Union over the past39 years. He is staying on as Area HandicappingAuthority and will continue performing the many otherlittle tasks he performs for the County Union.

Norfolk are sending what they hope will be a strongteam to the Eastern Inter Counties Foursomes weekendat Seacroft, where County Captain Iain Yule feels theyhave a real opportunity to finish high up amongst the 11teams competing.

Around the ClubsRoyal NorwichAt the Annual General Meeting of theClub, Adrian Myhill was elected ClubCaptain with John Garbutt, viceCaptain. Peter Clarke was elected ClubPresident and awarded Honorary LifeMembership for his many years ofservice to club and county golf, withMaurice Jay being elected his vicePresident.

FakenhamI learn that the Fakenham SportsAssociation have honoured Golf Club

Secretary Graham Cocker with Honorary LifeMembership. He has been Golf Club Secretary for years.

Royal NorwichThe Norfolk County Golf Union honoured our PresidentPeter Clarke with a match against the club for a trophy tobe known as the Peter Clarke Chalice. It is intended thatthis match will be an annual event between the Club andthe County.As many of you know, Peter has been an amazing stalwartof the County Golf Union, covering numerous roles andresponsibilities over nearly forty years.The County chose to select four county juniors, 4 countyfirst team players and 4 county seniors to recognise theimpact Peter has made across the entire demographic ofmen’s golf in Norfolk and the club selected a team tocompliment that format. The match teed off at 1300hrs,with quite a gathering of county officials and clubmembers watching with interest and ended in a win forthe club by 3 holes. After the match all players andofficials enjoyed a two course meal where Peter thankedall concerned in organising this tribute to him, as well asthe players who took part.The County had tried to keep this special occasion asurprise for Peter, who knew nothing of any of thearrangements until two days before the event.

Adrian Myhill, Club Captain

Peter Clarke Chalice

Peter Clarke, Alan Winstanleyand Adrian Myhill

25

KNOW YOUR PROPETER FIELD COACHING PROFESSIONAL AT BAWBURGHPeter Field is a fully qualified PGA GolfProfessional with over 25 years golfingexperience. As well as being a specialistteaching professional, Peter runs andowns his Golf Shop at the NorwichFamily Golf Centre.After amateur success and learning hisgolf skills in Norfolk, Peter turned a golfProfessional aged 16. During his career Peter has gainedexperience with Geoff Huggett, John Jacobs and BernardGallagher, competing regionally and through Europe. At 22 Peter became Club Professional at Swaffham GolfClub, establishing a reputation as both a successful coachand prominent retailer and in 2005 launched his online golfbusiness. Peter’s top golfing tip is: “When approaching the green if indoubt always select an extra club than your first choice. Ifyou’re questioning your judgement just consider the lasttime your ball finished through the green! For buddingpro’s, I recommend keeping your options open at the startof your career and always remembering that you neverknow who you’re talking to.”Peter lives near Wymondham with his wife and threechildren, aged 16, 14 and 8.Peter is passionate about Norfolk and believes you have tomake your own way in life, and Norfolk offers plenty ofopportunity to do so, as well as being a great place to live.He also adds that every golfer is spoilt for choice of whereto squeeze in the odd game of golf around the county!

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FAKENHAM GOLF CLUBBe with us in 2014 to celebrate our 125 year anniversary

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Tel. Secretary Graham Cocker on 01328 855678 • fakenhamgolf@tiscali.co.ukor Colin Williams, Professional on 01328 863534 • cwgolf@live.co.uk

TWILIGHT GREEN FEE £15.00 AFTER 3.00pm

NORFOLK SENIORSby Bernie Peet

The next fixture for Norfolk Seniors was the EGU SouthEast Group 6 man, team event. There are 11 counties thatplay in this event over 2 days and it is scratch medal with 5scores to count. Norfolk are always out handicapped inthis event, with their handicaps ranging from 4 to 6, butplaying against the likes of Surrey and Kent whosehandicaps range from scratch to 2, this makes a bigdifference when playing scratch medal golf.

Maybe it is time for the powers that be to look at the groupsand put similar size counties in terms of golf clubs indifferent groups, for example Norfolk, Suffolk, Bedfordshireetc who all have about 30 clubs in one and Surrey etc whohave over 100 clubs in another. This would make it a morelevel playing field and would make the competition moreenjoyable for all concerned.

This event was originally scheduled for Royal Cromer butdue to an admin. error had to be switched to Sheringhamat short notice, which was a shame for Royal Cromer asthere were several senior England internationals and pastWalker Cup players playing. The Norfolk team was:Harvey Scott Kings LynnDavid Pattrick Royal CromerDavid Hudson HunstantonTerry Norman Gt Yarmouth & CaisterTony Lount SheringhamDoug Gilchrist Weston Park

The weather for the event was very windy and cold withseveral squally rain showers blowing through, this wasreflected in the scoring:Harvey Scott 81 / 84David Pattrick 86 / 81David Hudson 85 / 83Terry Norman 84 / 88Tony Lount 89 / 90Doug Gilchrist 84 / WD from second round with bad back

Kent won the event and so qualify for the national finals,the individual winner was Alan Mew from Hampshire with74 / 72, outstanding golf in the conditions. Norfolk finished10th out of the 11 counties, ahead of Middlesex and 1stroke behind Bedfordshire.

THE CAPTAIN’S DRIVE IN

Fakenham Golf Club started their competition season withthe traditional Captain’s Drive in. Terry Hegarty ClubCaptain, Mrs Jean Seppings, Lady Captain, and ColinHolmes senior’s Captain, drove off before a full field ofalmost 50 members, both Ladies and gentlemen played ashotgun Texas Scramble. A sweep for guessing thecombined drives of the three captains was won by JohnHume, guessing 545 yards which was closest to thecorrect distance of 549 yds.

The main competition was won by B. McKeon , B.Playford, N. Featherstone and Mrs C. Gunner.Straightest drive on the 10th was won by Jim McGrath,nearest the pin on the 4th Mrs Jean Seppings, and nearestthe pin on the 18th by Graham Cocker.The competition was followed by a prize giving in thelounge of the sports centre.

RESULTS:

1st - B. Mckeon, B. Playford, N. Featherstone, Mrs C. Gunner 60.0

2nd - T. Hegarty, C. Holmes, J. McGrath, Mrs J. Seppings 60.8

3rd - R. Peel, J. Hume, B. Smith, T. Futter 61.0

FAKENHAM TEXAS SCRAMBLE RESULT1st - B. Smith, S. Hughes, S. Smith, M. Smith 61 3.4 57.6

2nd - N. Elmar, R. Peel, T. Jarvis, D. Vaughan 64 5.2 58.8

3rd - D. Futter, J. McGrath, M. Fletcher, A. Kirk 65 5.2 59.8

4th - D. Olley, G. Stratton, P. Nelson, K. Webb 66 5.8 60.2

20 miles, 72 holes, one epic day…have you got the (golf)balls to take on the challenge of a lifetime? MacmillanCancer Support are seeking golf fans of all abilities toprove their golf stamina by playing four rounds in one dayto fundraise as part of the Longest Day Golf Challenge2013.Golfers of all ages and abilities are welcome, participantssimply sign themselves up (junior, adult or mixed ageteam), pick a day and course that suits them and then getsponsored to play 72 holes in one day. With over 300shots and 20 miles of walking the challenge is not for thefaint hearted, but that is all par for the course…To add to the excitement, the top four teams that completethe challenge will go on to compete for the coveted 2013Longest Day Challenge Cup at the luxury Boavista Golf

Have you got the balls? Resort in the Algarve during October 2013. Last year’s UK winning team came from Norfolk so thecharity is looking for more teams to ‘putt’ their best footforward and take on this year’s challenge. HelenChapman, Area Fundraising Manager said: ‘We want tomake sure that Norfolk & Suffolk Golfers swing into actiononce again so that we can continue to support the ninethousand people who are diagnosed with cancer in Norfolk& Suffolk each year. It’s a shocking statistic that now 42%of us will be diagnosed with the illness and to be able tocontinue to fund our support services which include:financial, emotional, medical and practical support, it’s nowmore important than ever that Golf Teams step forwardand do something amazing for people living with cancer.’

For more information and to register visit:macmillan.org.uk/golf call 020 7840 4614 or emailgolf@macmillan.org.uk

Marriott Sprowston ManorJunior SectionTo encourage junior golf within Norfolk,Marriott Sprowston Manor is launchinga new junior golf scheme. Starting witha fantastic junior membership rate of£100 for any junior under the age of18, this yearly membership entitles youto play unlimited golf 7 days a week.

A junior member will have access to avariety of golfing activities, includingregular golf clinics, instructed by CraigGraver, PGA Golf Professional,covering all aspects of the game usingMarriott Sprowston Manors top golfacademy facilities.

A junior member will have their ownonline membership account, keepingthem up to date with the latestcompetitions, shop and tuition offersas well as their personal scoringstatistics and detailed results.

To introduce new junior golfersSprowston Manor holds junior tastersessions every Sunday morningcovering the basic fundamentalsbefore having the option to move intoa more structured programme. Thesetaster sessions run from 9am to 10amevery Sunday morning costing £5 perchild.

The entry level Bronze Packageconsists of six 1hour sessions coveringthe full fundamentals of setup andswing, putting and chipping with a certificate on completion ofthe programme and the opportunity to move on to the Silverpackage. The silver package continues where he bronze leftoff, with more in-depth knowledge of short game shots andbeginning to use of all the clubs within the juniors bag.

Upon completion of the Bronze and Silver programme juniormembers can advance into the gold package which consists ofsix 1 hour sessions and then a separate 2 hour session on thegolf course. The focus of the gold package is to prepare juniorsfor Membership with more explanations on the etiquette of thegame along with how to then attain a handicap.

All of the junior golf packages run year round, and are timed tocoincide with the school terms, and start from just £40 per childwith 6 children per group as a maximum. In addition during theschool holidays Sprowston Manor run a 2 day junior tuitionprogramme which starts at 10am and runs through until 3pmand includes a mixture of tuition, games and competitions. Thecost is £35 for the 2 days.

Once a junior joins the golf club there are a variety of juniorcompetitions to enter and an order of merit event which runsthroughout the year

For more information about the upcoming junior programme ormembership at Sprowston manor please call 01603 254290 oremail Craig at craig.graver@marriotthotels.com

NORFOLK JUNIORSby Norman Blanch - Norfolk Junior

Secretary

The first match for the Norfolk Under 18’s, wasat Hunstanton Golf Club on a cold, windy day. The Match was between Leicestershire,Bedfordshire and Norfolk with Leicestershirewinning and Norfolk second. Very good performances were from Tom Gomer(Royal Cromer) Dylan Green (Easton College &Costessey), Toby Briggs (Dunston Hall) andJack Cullington (Bawburgh) both under 14. The overall view is that the boys played theirpart in making it a very good competition.The Norfolk side was one of the youngest everput out with 4 under 16's and 2 under 14, sowith these boys improving, the future of theCounty teams look good.

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SUMMER SIZZLER GOLF SOCIETYDAYS AT SPROWSTON MANOR, AMARRIOTT HOTEL & COUNTRYCLUBThis summer start your round with a coffee and bacon roll followed by 18holes of championship golf at the Trilby tour's only Norfolk Venue.

Call our events team on 01603 410871 to book your next golf day

Sprowston Manor, A Marriott Hotel & Country Club Wroxham Road(P)+441603410871 MarriottSprowstonManor.co.uk

T&C's: Minimum 8 golfers. Subject to availability.

2010 Marriott International, Inc.

overcoming Matthew 5 and 4 to takehome the title of NCGU Matchplay

Champion 2013. NCGU President Alan Winstanley,ably assisted by County Vice President DougGilchrist, presented the Championship Trophy to adelighted Jack in a well attended ceremony in theclubhouse immediately following the game.

l-r: Vice President Doug Gilchrist, Jack Yule and CountyPresident Alan Winstanley

A cold, occasionally wet and very blustery weekend,sparkled with quality golf at the Norfolk CountyMatchplay Championships held at Swaffham GolfClub.On the Saturday, sixteen of the best players from theCounty Order of Merit contested the opening roundof matches reducing the field to eight by lunchtimewith a further four going by close of playon day one. Sunday saw a bright coldmorning with the 4 semi-finalists keen toshow what they can do. Iain Yule ofMiddleton Hall played against MatthewBacon from Costessey Park, with Matthewemerging victorious by 5 holes and 4 toplay, whilst fellow competitor Jack Yule(son of Iain) from King’s Lynn and CharlieBright of Royal Cromer fought it out in thesecond semi-final, with Jack finishing thejob of the 16th hole, 3 and 2.The afternoon final saw a keen, evenlymatched affair, with both playerscontributing to a fine match. Jack finally

28

by Michael Devlin - Hon. County Secretary

69 pairs started the annualCounty FoursomesChampionships at RoyalNorwich Golf Club with greatexpectations. By the end of dayone, two pairs were leftstanding for the Championshipwith a further two pairs throughto the 2nd Flight.One pair still in with a greatchance for their thirdsuccessive Championship wereDan Henderson and Brian Belshaw both of RoyalNorwich Golf Club. Sadly for them, fellowcompetitors also from Royal Norwich in the form ofScott Nichols and Austin Brydon took away thatopportunity by a convincing 3 & 2 margin. Scott andAustin met Bruce McQuade of Royal Norwich andhis partner James Ong from Eaton in the final. Anepic battle ensued with the lead changing handsseveral times throughout the afternoon, buteventually Bruce and James emerged as theChampions with a 2 & 1 victory.The 2nd Flight winners were Mark Allen andAndrew Crown both of King's Lynn, who defeated

Matthew Bacon of Costessey Park and his partnerAaron Bullock of Caldecott Hall by 2 holes.

The Champions were presented with the Carrick &Thompson Bowls for their efforts by CountyPresident Alan Winstanley, ably assisted by theCaptain of Royal Norwich, Adrian Myhill. Thewinners expressed their thanks to all who competedto make the event so memorable and also to RoyalNorwich for the fantastic condition of the coursewhich provided a fitting test for such an event.

County Foursomes Championship

l-r: County President Alan Winstanley, Winners: BruceMcQuade & James Ong, Royal Norwich Cap. Adrian Myhill

County Match Play Championship

Aylsham High School had the distinction of completing an unprecedented triple at the 2013 NSGA Championships heldat Eaton Golf Club. Tom Gomer set the ball rolling with an excellent 71 to win the Boys’ Championship followed homeby 13 year old Jasmine Campbell with a marvellous 82, made even more remarkable by her 16 handicap to win theGirls’ Championship. These two were joined by Harry Gillingwater to successfully win the Team Championship and qual-ify to represent Norfolk Schools in the National Schools’ Team Final at Woodhall Spa in July. This is the first time thatone school has provided three major winners in one year.

There were some notable other winners, with 12 year old Abigail O’Riordan winning the Girls’ Handicap Championshipwith a 69 and Wymondham High’s Harry Bradfield, also only 12, collecting the Boys’ Handicap Championship with a 68.The new Under 14 Boys’ and Girls’ trophies were respectively won by Finlay Heywood from Notre Dame with a 70 andAmy Taylor who attends Wymondham College with a 73. This year we had a large number of younger entrants and allof their results bode well for the future of golf in Norfolk.

Under 14 Champion - Boys: Finlay Heywood, Notre Dame, Eaton- 86-16=70

Under 14 Champion - Girls: Amy Taylor Wymondham CollegeBawburgh 84-11=73 ocb

School Team Champions: Aylsham High 135; Tom Gomer 69;Jasmine Campbell 66; Harry Gillingwater 71

Girls’ Handicap Champion - Abigail O’Riordan, Wayland Academy,Thetford - 96-27=69

Girls’ Champion - Jasmine Campbell, Aylsham High, Royal Norwich82

Boys’ Handicap : 1. Harry Bradfield, Wymondham High, BarnhamBroom - 90-22=68; 2. Luke Stannard, King Edward VII, MiddletonHall - 75-6=69; 3. Joseph Bailey, Norwich School, WensumValley - 97-27=70.

Boys’ Champion: 1. Tom Gomer Aylsham High, Royal Cromer -71; 2. Nic Cains, Easton College, Dereham - 73; 3. Chris Hills,Easton College, Royal Cromer - 74

The teams to represent Norfolk in the South East of EnglandSchools’ Championship in May were selected after these competitions and are as follows.

Boys: Tom Gomer - Aylsham High, Nic Cains - Easton College, Chris Hills - Easton College, William Cross - EastonCollege. Girls: Jasmine Campbell - Aylsham High, Amy Taylor - Wymondham College, Jessica Dixon - Easton College

There will be two individual entries, Alex Fellas – Easton College and Luke Stannard - King Edward VII.

There was one more presentation carried out when Alan Winstanley, President Elect of the Norfolk County Golf Union,presented the 2012 Picken Trophy to Frazer Chettleburgh of Dereham Golf Club for his achievements in that year.

NORFOLK SCHOOLS GOLF ASSOCIATION(Affiliated to the English Schools Golf Association)

By Hon Secretary - Margo Horsburgh5 Bishops Croft, Barningham, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, IP31 1BZ (Tel: 01359 221281)

Right: The team winners were HarryGillingwater, Jasmine Campell and Tom Gomerfrom Aylsham High

Pic: Adrian Judd, Leaderboard Photography

The King's Lynn Seniors' Open 2013 was only open to players from other clubs. 84 golfers from East Anglia andthe Home Counties entered the event, which was a stableford competition in two handicap divisions 0-12 and 13-28. There was one overall winner, 6 prizes in each division, nearest the pin on the 5th, 12th and nearest the pin onthe 18th in two.The weather was better than the forecast suggested with only one heavy shower in the afternoon. The competitionwas off the white tees which proved difficult tosome and reflected in the scores. Only oneplayer was under par.After the meal the Club Captain, Mike Sackree,presented the prizes to the winners.Over all winner Reg Mayhew (Diss) 37pts. 0-12Handicaps Paul Bellamy (Letchworth) 35pts, MartinIbbitt (Newark)34pts, David Beaver (BurghleyPark)33pts, Chris Gwinnill=Sharp (Bury) 32pts, JohnYuill (Newmarket) 32pts, Steven Harvey (RystonPark) 32pts; 13-28, Stuart McIntosh (Letchworth)30pts, Albert Jacobs (Spalding) 30pts, DerekMankelow (Peterborough Milton) 29pts, Terry Sutton(Blankney) 28pts, John Bryant (Ramsey) 28pts.

RichardKerkham,SeniorsOrganiser,Mike Sackree,Club Captain,Reg Mayhew,overall winner.

NORFOLK PROFESSIONAL GOLFERS' ASSOCIATIONPGA website: www.club-noticeboard.co.uk

by Secretary, John Paling‘Squirrels Reach’, Folgate Lane, Old Costessey, Norwich NR8 5EFTel: 01603 741301 Email: jandjpaling@uwclub.netCOMMITTEE MEMBERS Chairman: Mike Jubb Norfolk PGA Representative: Michael Few Captain: Ryan Pudney Vice Captain: Neil Lythgoe Committee: Alan Hemsley, Lee Patterson

Royal Cromer Pro AmWe caught the course looking as best as any in the areaand it showed in some good scores from a big field of 21teams. Former Royal Cromer assistant pro’ Ryan Pudney(Mundesley) headed the scores early on with a par 72, butit was David Woolley (Middleton Hall) coming in withthe winning score of 2 under par 70. It was a pleasurefor David to be at the winner’s table, because for the past12 months he has struggled with the habitual golfers’back. Joining Ryan on level par was Stuart Brown fromPeterborough and trainee Joe Lambert (Norfolk PremierGolf) who hobbled the last three holes with a partiallycollapsed knee.

After falling short on the individual winner’s prize,Peterborough’s Stuart Brown brought in the winning teamwith a team score of 14 under par. Joe Lambert was ablysupported by his team finishing just one shot behind thewinner’s score.

Team 1st 130 Stuart Brown with John Harris, RobWarren & Mike Robinson. 131 Joe Lambert with JasonElkins, Gavin Sargent & Dave Longdale. 134 WillWoodrow (Royal Cromer) with Keith Woodcock, PeterHicks & Kevin Abbs.

Professionals. 1st 70 David Woolley. 72 Joe Lambert,Ryan Pudney & Stuart Brown. 73 Michael Few (WestonPark), Tony Varney (Bawburgh) & Neil Mitchell (BuryDriving Range).

ORDER of MERIT

Michael Few Weston Park 23Ryan Pudney Mundesley 11David Woolley Middleton Hall 10Lee Patterson Royal Cromer 8Jason Groat Denver Golf Centre 8Joe Lambert Norfolk Premier Golf 7Alex Beckett Barnham Broom 6

Ladies AM-AM at King's Lynn Golf Club With a full entry of 32 teams of four. The ladies came from allover the eastern counties and it was a delight to see them all enjoy a good days golf. The day went very smoothly and the

weather was much better than anticipated. The winners were: 1. Claire Izod, Lynn Cater, Valerie Mendham and Jane Izodfrom Diss & Oundle 86pts 2. Elaine Field, Sally Anne Dawes, Carole Hawkins & Sylvia Driver from Royal Cromer 82pts 3.

Sharon Spooner, Ali Gillings, Liz Dann & Rosie Fox-Elliot from Weston Park & Barnham Broom 81pts.ocb 4. Helen Rae,Heather Woods, Gwen Sutton & Shirley Osborne from St. Ives & Brampton Park 81pts 5. Maureen Hagen, Pat Nixon, Carol

Harrison & Liz Wainwright from Ely City 80pts ocb Nearest in on 5th Sharon Spooner 2'3" and 16th Anne Laubscher 5'9"