Due to the closure of the golf course caused by last Friday’s stormy winds, the only golfing activity to report this week is the Happy Mondays competition.
The maximum number of rounds possible in our Winter League is now reduced to eight. The forecast looks good for the next few days though. There is some light rain forecast for early Friday morning, but I think we can expect to be playing our 12-hole comp on all holes and on proper greens.
I played an enjoyable 13 holes today in the company of Paddy Moran and Kevin Bocquet. Neither Paddy or I had played with Kevin before. I persuaded Kevin to write a paragraph or two to introduce himself to everyone in the senior section. If you don’t yet know Kevin, but think he looks vaguely familiar, it is highly probable that you used to watch him on the telly!
Happy Mondays – Monday 27 January
Match Reporter: Peter Willson
A bitterly cold day feeling much colder than the 4 deg. C indicated on the thermometer. Dry but mainly cloudy with some watery sunshine and a brisk breeze.
Game: Team Stableford
14 players – 4 teams – 2 x 4 and 2 x 3.
Played over 8 holes only (although that was enough in the low temps). On temporary greens with odd puddles in the fairways
Winners: Kevin Bocquet, Eric Cox, Steve Rowley and Peter Willson – 15.8 points per player
2nd: Pete Broady, Les Fecitt, Charlie Hill and Ken Pearce – 14.8 ppp
Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 30 January)
Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 2nd Feb
A ‘Hello’ from Kevin Bocquet, our journalist-in-residence!
Hello everyone, my name is Kevin Bocquet and I joined Lymm GC in April last year. I was a member at Styal for several years, but after moving to High Legh, decided it made more sense to switch clubs. I’ve enjoyed my first year at Lymm, particularly playing on a course which stays much drier than I’m used to (the top holes at least). And I’ve found everyone very welcoming.
Early in my adult life, it became clear I was not suited for proper work, so I became a journalist. I spent most of my career reporting for the BBC both on radio and on TV, which on slow news days could be boring, on good days quite frenetic and occasionally very exciting.
I’ve already had the pleasure of meeting many Lymm seniors and look forward to meeting the rest of you.
A little late, but straight from the heart – To all members of the Lymm Golf Club Seniors Section I wish you a New Year filled with laughter, love, and success, I may be late, but my wishes for your happiness are always on time. Here’s to a year full of joy on the fairways, friendship amongst all our members, and health to each and every one of us. I personally have made many friends in my short time with the seniors, and looking forward to making many more.
At last, the weather has abated, and we can get back to our favourite sport of whacking that pesky pill of peril around a big field…!
A beautiful winter’s day, no wind, 12 holes on offer, and a record 49 players for the first round available in 2025. However, I collected 64 completed cards from the box!!
Alas there was no ‘keep a 6 off your card’ handed in.
A large field of 49 runners completed the 12 holes on offer, 25 players from Division 1 and 24 players from Division 2.
Just the one 2 recorded today, Martin Franks. See the Second Lord of the Treasury Steve Gosling for your balls.
Division 1 Results Winner – Steve Barlow with 27pts R/up – Andy Timms with 26pts 3rd – Paul Collins with 25pts on a CPO
Division 2 Results Winner – Jeff Ashurst with 27pts on a CPO R/up – Steve Bramall with 27pts 3rd – Keith Melia with 26pts on a CPO
A few comments for you all to digest, following our first round of the new year, and a few headaches for me after collecting the scorecards!
Three Div 1 players put the wrong WHS club hcap down, and two Div 2 players couldn’t remember their hcap from the Autumn league…
Eight players completed 13 holes and recorded all in their total on their card, trying to confuse me. Took me a while to work that one out.
Eight members did not register their rounds before last Friday. I think the booze laden Xmas pud got to scramble too many brain! Don’t forget to register your round prior to playing on Fridays. You can register for them all in advance. You can register for all rounds up to the round 10 now if you like. If, nearer the time, you decided cannot play on the day, just remove yourself.
Finally there were fourteen cards in the box from the 27th December 2024. Now that really confused me!!!
Happy Mondays – 20th January
Reporter: Richard Yates
A very cold morning, with drizzle most of the time.
There were 18 of us, playing in 5 groups.
Winners: Dave Craggs, Steve Bramhall, Tony Lambert and Charlie Hill with an impressive average of 32 points per person over 15 holes.
Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 23 January)
Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 26 January
2025:Editor’s notes
Would you like to be Newsletter editor for the Senior Section?
My obligatory three years will be up in autumn. If you’re interested, please let me or the committee know.
I would be happy to continue into next year if no-one comes forward between now and autumn, but I do think it would be good to get some fresh impetus for our ‘comms’.
The Newsletter is published on the ‘WordPress’ platform. It is easy to use.
I would like to echo Paul Foster’s ‘New Year’ positive sentiments on our Senior Section. I joined LGC four years ago, on my retirement, age 60, having not played golf for a decade. Back in 2020 it was a shock to me to discover that a radically new rule book had been published. Even ‘water hazards’ no longer existed. And what was all this ‘WHS’ stuff?
When I started looking for a golf club, England was just gradually coming out of ‘Covid’ lockdown, and I had just moved from Sandbach to Altrincham (not easy in lockdown). I phoned a few golf clubs within reasonable distance (all of which were still closed) inquiring about membership. I phoned Tim, the former business manager of LGC, who was friendly enough, and he started talking about Lymm’s relatively high ‘slope rating’. I told Tim that I’m not keen on hilly courses… And so you can imagine how the conversation went!
On joining LGC, I was encouraged by Steve in the Pro’s shop to join the Senior Section, and I’m glad I did. However, the first person I was introduced to was a guy with outrageously colourful clothes and what sounded like a South African accent (but is apparently Rhodesian): Rob Taylor, Senior Section secretary/communications officer. I complimented Rob on his attire. He said, “the strange thing about you Englishmen is that you live in a dull climate and yet insist on wearing dull clothing!”
No-one is more frank than Rob, which is fine: I’m a Yorkshireman!
Rob asked, “What did you do for a living?” “Scientific Technical Writer”, I replied. “Good, he said”, just what we need. “I’ve been doing the comms for the Senior Section since its foundation, and am looking for for someone to take it over…”
There has been a frustrating lack of opportunity to play golf since the floods of two weeks ago. However, walking in last Friday’s sunlit snow provided some compensation for the cancellation of Round 1 of the Winter League! I took this picture, walking down the 6th Hole (Par 5) at Dunham Forest. I think the 6th is the most picturesque hole on the course in all seasons.
Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 16 January)
The scene from my window, at about the highest point in the Altrincham area, is deep and crisp and even. And with a forecast of freezing temperatures for the next few days, the prospects of playing any golf this week are looking very slim.
Let’s hope that the forecasters have got it wrong, and things do thaw out by Friday, in which case we will be playing Round 1 of 10 of the Winter League.
Paul Foster has drawn up the rules for the league, and the handicapping system we will be using for each division.
Winter League 2025 – Handicap Rules
Reporter: Paul Foster
The winter league 2025 will be played over 12 holes
1st Division
Handicaps reset to the WHS 95% playing handicap.
After a score above 24pts: 0.5 a shot reduction for every two shots under par.
25pts – no change
26 or 27pts – 0.5 shot reduction
28pts – 1 shot reduction etc.
After a score of 20 to 24pts: No handicap adjustment.
After a score of 19pts or less, a single addition of 0.5 of a shot to be added to the handicap.
Handicaps that include 0.5 are rounded up to the next whole number
2nd Division
Handicaps to continue from as they were at the end of the Autumn league 2024.
After a score above 24pts: 0.5 shot reduction for every shot under par.
After a score of 20 to 24pts: No handicap adjustment.
After a score of 15 to 19pts: A single addition of 0.5 of a stroke to be added to the handicap
After a score under 15pts: 0.5 of a stroke added to the handicap for each point less than 15pts
Handicaps that include 0.5 are rounded up to the next whole number
The Divisions
Paul has also worked on resetting the divisions. The Div 2 list is slightly longer; this is because fewer people in Div 2 play in the winter league than in Div 1.
Handicaps
Go to the Handicaps page to see your handicap for Week 1 of the Winter League.
Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 9 January)
Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 12 January
Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 2 January)
Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 5th January
Friday 27 December
Here are a few snaps from Colin Hughes, who played in the mist with fellow members of the senior section last Friday. Colin has no idea why the police were searching the ship canal.
Game on Friday 3 January
This Friday will be an individual Stableford, using existing senior handicaps. A bottle of wine will go to the winner.
Lymm Golf Club Senior Section 