Round 7 – Summer League – Friday 6th June

Reporter: Peter Willson

In the absence of our esteemed scorer and talented wordsmith, Paul Foster, who is out of the country (again), an abbreviated report of the Summer League Round 7 

Division 1

Winner: Tony Dixon- 33 points
2nd: Arthur Nuttall – 32 points CPO
3rd: Paddy Moran – 32 points 

Division 2

Winner: Sammy Lee – 31 points – on only his second turn out this session
2nd: Steve Bird – 28 points CPO
3rd: Phil Ormesher – 28 points 

2’s
Alan Copeland, Paddy Moran, and Colin Royle

Division league tables will be calculated and updated by Paul on his return next week.

Interclub friendly, away at Hale, Wednesday 4 June

Match Reporter: Dave Craggs (CoD)

Our return away match with Hale GC is always eagerly awaited not only for the golf but also the dining experience, and we were not disappointed.

Sorry to say the result of the match was not as satisfying. We started the day with a slight trauma as the first team had set off and we had a panic as one of the team (no name no shame) had not arrived. We phoned him, and apparently he was at work!

Thank you to Steve Gosling who rang around and found a replacement. Many thanks to Mark Pickles who lives fairly close to Hale, and fortunately made the tee within 10 minutes of the phone call!

Our home game with Lymm resulted in a win for Lymm 4-3 but on their course the result was reversed and Lymm lost 5-2.

Paddy Moran and Mervyn Roberts won convincingly 8 & 6 and the other winners were Steve Gosling and Peter Willson.

Weather was kind to us and overall a very enjoyable day.

[ Editor’s Note: Craggzy attempted a joke, but it only got 2/10 on the laughometer! ]

Happy Mondays Game

Reporter: Peter Willson

A cloudy and at times a chilly morning but it stayed dry 

Game: Team Stableford 

5 Teams – 15 players 

Winners: Steve Gosling and Alan Thomas – 58 points of 29 ppp 

Second: Pete Broady, Sammy Lee, John Mather and Steve Rowley – 28.7 ppp

Highest Individual score – Steve Gosling – 33 points 

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 11 June)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 15 June

Fun competition this Friday – 13 June

While a senior team plays an interclub friendly against Northenden on Friday, the rest of us will, for a change, play a pairs betterball (4BBB) competition with two sleeves of balls for the winning pair. Best Stableford score from the pair for each hole to be recorded on the card.

Seniors BBQ – Reminder

As noted in last week’s newsletter, we are having a BBQ and social gathering on Friday 27 June, after Round 9 of the summer league, starting at 12:00, at a subsidised cost of £5.00 per person. Dave has put list on the Seniors’ noticeboard. Please add your name as soon as possible if you intend to join us, to give us an idea of numbers to cater for.

Welcome Ian Goodman to the Senior Section

I met Ian for the first time at the away match at Hale last week. I was paired with him in fact, and enjoyed his company. I asked him if he could introduce himself to the Senior Section.

About me

I joined Lymm GC on the 1^st of April this year after playing Society golf on and off for quite a few years.  I made a great decision to join the Senior Section and have already made my mark playing for the team.  Played three, lost three.

I was born in Huddersfield, Yorkshire from a line of Scotsmen (so being ‘careful with money’ is in my DNA).  Highlights of my school years were being the singer in a punk band and getting trapped underground for 24 hours in a flooding pothole in the Yorkshire Dales.

My late father played golf off 3 at Southerness (a tough links course in the Southwest of Scotland) but unfortunately his golfing ability didn’t make it into my DNA.  I was a member at Woodsome Hall Golf Club in Huddersfield from the age of nine but gave up when I went to Lancaster University and discovered other less wholesome diversions.  I graduated with a degree in politics and philosophy, but most importantly met my future wife (Dianne) whilst “studying”.  Dianne is a Warrington girl and spent most of her early life in the Ship Inn at Walton (because her mum and dad ran it, not because she had a drink problem).  We’ve been happily married for 42 years now and have a son, daughter and two grandchildren, both girls.  My daughter is following the family tradition and currently lives over a bar in Manchester which her fiancée owns.

After passing basic military training while in the Territorial Army my original plan was to go into the army as a young officer, but a change of heart meant I went into financial services instead.  I started with the Bradford & Bingley Building Society as a trainee and worked my way steadily up the ladder managing branches in Beverley, Hull, Warrington and Wigan.  My first area role was looking after the branch network across Merseyside and Northern Ireland when the troubles were still on (in both places!). I then moved around the banking sector, working for several major banks, ending my career in consultancy work for the Co-op bank.

My last (and most enjoyable) job before retiring earlier this year was as a supervisor at Citizens Advice in Warrington. 

I had an unexpected and inconvenient heart attack / double bypass a couple of years ago but I’m fighting fit again now and still on the long journey towards my first hole in one (a par on the 16th would do).

I’m looking forward to meeting even more of the colourful characters in the Seniors Section and, if they’ll keep letting me wear the shirt, maybe even winning a match for the team.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Summer League – Round 6 of 10

Reporter: Paul Foster

Not such a good day for golf this week, with just 3 players beating their hcap. Why so hard this week compared to last week? Oh, the joys of golf!

43 entries for round six of the Summer league. 19 players in Division 1, and 24 in division 2.

Just one 2 recorded, Colin Royle on the 2nd hole. See the man who now has his own car parking space for your balls.

[ Please note that there were four 2s recorded in Round 5 of the league. I missed them in last week’s report because, for some reason, they were not automatically collated by the I.G. app. The 2s in Round 4 were: Paul Collins, Tony Dixon, Michael John and Phil Lomas. ]

Division 1 Results:

Winner – PC (again) Paul Collins with an excellent 34 pts (you’re getting as boring as Pete ‘down the middle’ Broady now, PC)

R/up – Colin Royle with 31pts

3rd – Dave Meir with 30pts on a CPO

Division 2 Results:

Winner – Richard Yates with 31pts

R/up – Joe Priestner (again) with 30pts on a CPO

3rd – Steve Bird with 30pts

Still leader in division one is PC Collins, followed by Colin Royle, with Pete Broady in 3rd place.

Still leader in division two, and still our favourite, Joe Priestner, followed by Barry Smith then Graham Sweeney.

A remarkable start from Stuart White, missed a 6-foot putt on the 1st for a par and chipped to a millimetre on the 2nd, but didn’t fall in. Would have been 9 points after 2 holes…(took me 10 holes to get to 9pts)…

Once again, no one managed a ‘keep a six off your card’, and in the 2nd division, no one managed a ‘keep a seven off your card’.

Please ensure you put your correct playing hcap on your card, and ensure your score in Ig is the same as shown on your scorecard. Makes my life much easier.

Happy Mondays Game – 2 June

Reporter: Peter Willson

A dry, sunny day with a gentle breeze – the course has greened up significantly after the recent rains and the mad bounces from the parched earth have reduced.

Game : Team Stableford (as ever)
7 teams / 23 players

Winners: just as several players were waiting with anticipation along came ‘those tail end Charlies’ to scoop the gold coins – as is often the case:

First: Mike Bennett, Colin Crail, Rob Taylor and Rich Yates = 111 points or 27.7 points per player.

Second: Pete Broady, Alan Copeland and Phil Lomas = 80 points / 26.7 ppp

Highest Individual score – Phil Lomas – 35 points. Second Tony Dixon – 34 points

Tee-booking Schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 5 June)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 8 June

Seniors BBQ – Reminder

As noted in last week’s newsletter, we are having a BBQ and social gathering on Friday 27 June, after Round 9 of the summer league, starting at 12:00, at a subsidised cost of £5.00 per person. Dave has put list on the Seniors’ noticeboard. Please add your name if you intend to join us, to give us an idea of numbers to cater for.

Llangollen Senior Open

Tomorrow, 24 of us are heading to the Vale of Llangollen Golf Club for the senior open (4BBB). We’ll report on the event in next week’s newsletter. Grahame Brickell has managed to book six consecutive tee times, starting at 11:00.

Be aware of speeding restrictions on your drive to Llangollen. There are long sections of dual-carriageway and single-carriageway with 50 mph restrictions, monitored by average-speed cameras over several miles. Three years ago, one of our members received two speeding tickets, one for drive to Llangollen, and one for the return home to Cheshire!

Please note that none of the staff at Llangollen speak English. But do not worry; if you can understand Brickellish (i.e. if you can understand Grahame Brickell’s text messages) you’re halfway to understanding Welsh. Brickellish and Welsh are closely related languages. Furthermore, Grahame himself will be on hand to translate.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Apologies for my causing some confusion in last week’s newsletter. I headlined the away-match report for Ringway with ‘away match report for Hale‘. I have now corrected it.

***

Our Secretary, Dave Craggs, has updated the senior calendar (see the Senior-Section Calendar tab). This includes a date change for the next Tatton Match (away at High Legh, on 12 June), a date change for the Hinson Cup, a date change for the Mitre Cup, a provisional date for a ‘Seniors versus Juniors’ match, and a date set for a ‘Seniors BBQ’.

The Seniors BBQ will be on Friday 27 June, after Round 9 of the summer league, starting at 12:00, at a subsidised cost of £5.00 per person. Dave has put list on the Seniors’ noticeboard. Please add your name if you intend to join us for this social event, to give us an idea of numbers to cater for.

Summer League Round 5 of 10 – Friday 23 May

Match Reporter: Paul Foster

A good day for golf apparently, with 14 players playing to, or beating their hcap. Lots of docked handicaps in WHS!

Forty two entry’s for round five of the Summer league, the half way point.

Twenty one players from each division.

No 2s recorded; Mr Gosling is well pleased.

[ Update, Thursday 29 May: There were in fact 4 x 2s. For some reason the IG app did not record them automatically.

2s scored by Paul Collins, Tony Dixon, Michael John and Phil Lomas. ]

Division 1 Results:
Winner – Colin Crail with 31pts on a CPO
R/up – Duncan Clarke with 31pts
3rd – Michael John with 30pts on a CPO

Division 2 Results:
Winner – Barry Smith with 39pts
R/up – Joe Priestner with 34pts
3rd – Stuart Baird with 33pts

Still leader in division one is PC Collins, still followed Ian Whitehead, Dave Meir and Paddy Moran.

Leader in division two is still our favourite Joe Priestner, followed by Graham Sweeney and now Stuart Baird. Joe is the only player under par in either division.

A remarkable card from Barry Smith, 14pts after just 4 holes, 27 pts on the front 9. Barry who plays off 24, was just 3 over par gross after 9 holes.

Top 6 placings on Friday were all 2nd division players.

No one managed a ‘keep a six off your card’, and no one managed a ‘keep a seven off your card’ either.

One instance of a NS (not started) instead of a NR (no return) entered on a hole played. Make sure you enter the correct abbreviation.

Tatton League Match Report – 21 May, Styal Golf Club

Reporter: Mike Pigott – Tatton Team Captain

The course at Styal was very dry and fast, and the white tees made it a very tricky prospect. A minimum target of 36 away points per pair looked a difficult task, but Lymm performed very well, getting a great start with Martin Franks and Mark Pickles with 41 points, placing them second overall. This was well backed up by Ian Whitehead and Colin Royle with 38 points, followed by Mike Pigott and Richard Copper, and Russ Sollitt and Rich Shaw, both pairs scoring 36 points.

Birchwood is now lead with 314 points, High Legh 310 points, Lymm 309 points, Heyrose 307 points, Antrobus 295 points, and Styal 289 points. (Birchwood and Styal have now played their home matches.)

Lymm were able to boast all three nearest-the-pin prizes: Richard Cooper (hole 11), Mark Pickles (hole 14) and Rick Shaw (Hole 4), and so the wine store is now building up!

Well done team. The next fixture is at High Legh on 12 June, followed by Antrobus on 16 July.  

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 29 May)

Tee-booking schedule for Sunday 1 June

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

I do not seem to have a report in my Inbox for last Friday’s 15-hole Bottle-of-Wine competition. However, you can see the results here on the main LGC website. Arthur Nuttall takes the bottle with 33 points, beating (near-teetotal) Bob Ellison on a CPO. Duncan Clarke came in third with 32 points. And I should mention that my good friend and fellow Yorkshireman Dave Waggitt came in fourth with 31 points. (Two days before, I had marked Dave’s card in the midweek comp, in which he posted an all-time record of 10 blobs!)

We have had a very active seniors’ week since the previous newsletter. I have received no fewer than three reports of interclub friendlies since last Wednesday. Furthermore, I returned home just over an hour ago through rush-hour traffic from Styal Golf Club, which today hosted this month’s Tatton League competition.

I think that Tatton captain Mike Pigott is pleased with Lymm’s performance today. He will write a report which I will publish in next week’s newsletter. Five of today’s eight-man team were LGC Senior Section members. I don’t want to steal Mike’s thunder, but suffice it to say that his steady strategy for attempting to retain the Tatton Trophy seems to be on plan. (Lymm GC won the Tatton Trophy last year for the first time since its inception, which I think was about 20 years ago.)

Match Report for Away Match at Ringway, Wednesday 14 May

Match Reporter: Russ Jones (CoD)

It was a hectic start to the day for some, as the traffic on the motorway and roads to Ringway were extremely busy.

A clear sky and a slight cool breeze welcomed us to the first tee. Then the sun shone warm and bright for the rest of the round.

The welcome from the Ringway team was very nice. The course played hard and fast (although “not as fast as Lymm”, was the comment from Hale members who played in the Open at Lymm the day before).

Cumberland sausage and mash was served afterwards. Very tasty and, served with a smile, but that was the end of the pleasantries, as we were comprehensively beaten 6 ½ v 1 ½

Russ Jones (CoD)/Grahame Brickell Won 4&3
Alan Burton/ Jeff Ashurst Lost 4&3
Captain/Jeff Chapman Lost 6&5
Charlie Hill/Mervyn Roberts Halved
Ian Whitehead/Peter Broady Lost 3&2
John Armstrong/Phil Lomas Lost 5&4
Koos Alders/Steve Gosling Lost 5&4
Paul Collins/Steve Barlow Lost 3&2

Thanks to Grahame for helping me get through my first Captain of the Day. I hope the team responds better if I’m ever asked to do it again!!

[ Editor’s Note: Well done Russ. You played a captain’s innings at least! ]

Match Report for Home Match against Bramhall – Friday 16 May

Match Reporter: John Armstrong (CoD)

A fine sunny day saw a magnificent home win for Lymm. Unsure whether this was down to the inspired team selection by Grahame Brickell or the management skills of the CoD John Armstrong! Or maybe just luck. However we won 5 games to three.

The winners were:
Mike Bennett and Phil Perry
Paddy Moran and Alan Ranscombe
Paul Collins and Jeff Ashurst
Dave Craggs and Barry Smith
Mervyn Roberts and Colin Hughes

The also rans were:
John Armstrong and Ian Goodman
Grahame Brickell and Mike Pigott
Steve Gosling and Jeff Chapman

Sandwiches, salad and chips were served afterwards: a change from our usual fare, but sufficient for a hot day and the reciprocal of the food we received at the away match.

Match Report for Home Match against Huyton and Prescot – Monday 19 May

Match Report: Steve Gosling (CoD)

The long awaited day finally arrived on Monday when 12 of Lymm’s finest turned up to play the re-arranged match.

A cloudy start and all matches apart from one were closely contested. By the time we got to the finish, the day heated up… as did the golf!

In our match we headed down the 16 one shot down, only to see our opponents hit a drive and a 3 wood and land pin high to claim a 4 net 3… Not even our par was good enough!

In the end everybody has a good day, great meal of gammon, egg, peas and chips and friendly banter in the club house

The result was a loss 4 1/2 to 1 1/2

Well done to Trevor Williamson and Mark Lyons for their victory

On to Sale next…

[ Editor’s Note: Seems to me like we were robbed by lawless visitors from Merseyside.]

Happy Mondays – 19 May

Reporter: Peter Willson

A dry day with some cloud cover and a slightly chilly day after the glorious hot blue sky days we’ve had for the past couple of weeks. 

Game: Team Stableford
16 players – 4 teams 

A confession to those present at the end: your organiser cannot add up (at first) – a recalculation of the scores means that the (only) 4-ball came out on top.

Winners: Les Fecitt, Tony Lambert, Phill Perry and Peter Willson – 113 points / 28.3 points per player.

2 teams in joint 2nd – Eric Cox, Tony Dixon and John Hayes also Charlie Hill, Phil Lomas and Steve Rowley – both teams had 82 points or 27.3 ppp

Highest Individual score – Les Fecitt – 31 points. Two players on 30 points – John Hayes and Steve Rowley

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 22 May)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 25 May

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Summer League – Round 4 of 10

Reporter: Paul Foster

Good to return to the seniors league competition on a hot and sunny early summer’s day, with the ball bouncing a long way down the fairway (if you managed to hit the fairway that is). Still noticed a few members without a silly hat, you know the phrase gentlemen from Sid the seagull, slip, slop, slap, you know it makes sense…

Forty six entry’s for the forth round of the Summer league, 22 players from Division 1 and 24 players from Division 2.

Two 2s recorded, Paddy Moran & Colin Royal (with a 2 on the par 4 11th !!)

Division 1 Results:
Winner – Paddy Moran with 34pts on a CPO
R/up – Dave Meir with 34pts
3rd – Colin Royle with 33pts

Division 2 Results:
Winner – Alan Copeland with 34pts
R/up – Jeff Chapman with 33pts
3rd – Graham Sweeney with 32pts

Early leader in the 1st division is PC Collins, closely followed Ian Whitehead, Dave Meir and Paddy Moran.

Leader in the 2nd division is our favourite Joe Priestner, followed by Graham Sweeney and Alan Copeland, these three are the only players under par from both divisions.

Please check your WHS hcap for next week, makes my job a lot easier if all players put on their card their correct hcap.

Just three cards marked incorrectly (as usual entering the gross and nett score under column ‘A’ and entering the stableford points scored in column ‘B’, instead of the ‘Points’ column), and a new one on me this week, putting the gross score and stableford points scored in the ‘points’ column, and only for the back 6 holes. It’s the same players every week, so I think I’ve gone as far as I can with this. No more about it from me..!

One ‘keep a six off your card’, Duncan Clarke in the 1st division.

No one managed a ‘keep a seven off your card’, in the 2nd division.

49 cards handed in, 46 entered into Ig, remember playmates, players not entering their scores into Ig will NOT be in the competition.

Inter-club Senior Friendly, Lymm vs Hale – Friday 2^nd May

Reporter: Mr Captain, Andy Timms (CoD)

Another dry and sunny day greeted the two teams, with Hale our visitors for the day. Speaking with their captain, I learnt that they have been struggling to get the numbers to put teams out, hence the reduction to 7-pairs match. However they said that for the Lymm game they were over subscribed and would have been able to fill the extra game if needed. I think we can take as a compliment for our course and team.

The matches themselves were all played in a good spirit and were rounded off by an excellent fish and chip lunch, so a good day had by all. 

The results, a positive one for the home side, with Lymm coming out 4-3 winners overall. Individual match results below :

Captain & Peter Willson – Lost 5&4
Andrew Cox & Barry Smith – Won 1 up
Tommy Lawless & Dave Craggs – Lost 2&1
Russ Jones & Stephen Bird – Won 2&1
Richard Smyllie & Sammy Lee – Won 4 & 2
Mark Lyons & Mervyn Roberts – Lost 3&1
Grahame Brickell & Phil Lomas – Won 3&1

Overall Result – Lymm 4 – 3 Hale

Inter-club Senior friendly, Lymm V Helsby, Monday 12 May

Reporter: Pete Broady (CoD)

The day started with the prospect of thunder and lighting in the afternoon.
Thankfully the day turned out to be dry, although hot and humid.

As the results show some very close fought matches.

RESULTS.
 Broady+Bramall: Match Halved
Mr. Captain + Ashurst: Match Halved.
 Smyllie+ Perry:  Match.  Halved.
 Jones + Willson:  Match.  Halved.
 Collins+Whitehead: Won.  2 up.
 Meir + Bird: Won 3+2.
 Lawless+Craggs: Won 4+3.
Armstrong +Gosling: Lost 5+3.

Overall result: Lymm 5 – 3 Helsby.

Good to hear great remarks about our course and, after the match, the steak pie, followed by Danish cheesecake.

Look forward to playing the return match at Helsby in August.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 15 May)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 18 May

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Bottle of Wine Competition – Friday 2 May

Reporter: Paul Foster

A marvellous early summer day, little cloud, and a full sun all round, hope you all slapped on the sun cream and donned a silly hat?

Winner of the wine of the day was Joe Priestner, with a tremendous 36 points over the 15 holes. Joe is another one saying goodbye to his present hcap!

This week 13 players beat their hcap.

Runners up were Ken Pearce, Michael John, Andrew Ransom & Koos Alders, all with 34 pts.

Notables:

35 entered their scores into Ig. Just 2 incorrectly marked cards, one with nett score added in column ‘A’, and the other had Stableford points entered in the ‘B’ column. All the rest were blob on! Well done boys.

Don’t forget to enter NS (Not Started) for holes 16, 17 & 18. Do not enter NR (No Return) for holes 16, 17, and 18, because the WHS will assume that you played them, and had a bad score. This will result in an incorrect adjustment to your handicap.

Dave Meir had two 2s and 4 birdies in total.

Mark Pickles had the lowest gross overall, with 65.

Lowest gross front 9 were Koos Alders & Mark Pickles with 37.

Well done also to Mike Bennett, Howard Jones, Dave Waggitt who scored only +3 over par on the back 6 holes.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 8 May)

Happy Mondays

There was no Happy Mondays competition this week, due to the bank holiday. And no tee-booking is necessary this Sunday because there is another bank holiday Monday on May 26.

Interclub-friendly against Hale on Friday 2 May

I have not a received match report. If I receive one before next Wednesday, I will publish it in next week’s newsletter.

Newsletter Editor – Mark Pickles

Another shorter newsletter this week, largely because there is no report for the match against Huyton and Prescot last Friday. The H & P team failed to turn up, somehow thinking the match was to be played on the following Monday!

Friday Bottle of Wine Competition

Reporter: Paul Foster

A marvellous late Spring day, light cloud, an intermittent coolish breeze, and a relatively empty course. What’s not to like…?

Winner of the wine of the day was Steve ‘the actor’ Barlow, with a tremendous 36 points over the 15 holes, and the only one to beat his hcap. Say goodbye to playing off 16 Steve!

Runners up were Colin Royle, Arthur Nuttall & Bob Ellison, all with 29 pts.

Notables:
23 entered the BOW competition
22 entered their scores into Ig
2 incorrect hcaps entered on the card
2 incorrectly marked cards

All the rest were blob on..!!

Happy Mondays Report

Reporter: Peter Willson

A lovely late Spring day – blue skies, no wind, ground firm – so why did the majority of us score so poorly? Not many excuses can be found.

Game : Team Stableford

6 teams – 19 players.

Winners: Mike Bennett, Pete Broady, Ken Pearce and Ken Rigby – 116 points or 29 ppp
2nd: Phil Perry and John White  – 47 points or 23.5 PPP

High Score of the day – it’s that man again – Pete Broady with 33 individual Stableford points.

Tatton League

Reporter: Mike Pigott (Team Captain)

The first round of the Tatton League took place on Monday 28 April at Birchwood, in glorious sunshine.

Lymm Seniors, the holders, picked from their tried and tested squad from the last few years, plus four or five new additions who are available for selection.

Mike Pigott and Dave Meir finished with 38 points, after a sticky patch in the middle of the round, following by Ian Whitehead and Colin Royle, also with 38 points. Third home were the reliable pair of Andy Timms (Club Captain) and Mark Pickles, again with 38 points. The last pair, Richard Cooper and Steve Gosling excelled themselves with 44 points. A great debut for Steve, who said, “I enjoyed playing with Richard today”. Who wouldn’t, the way Richard plays!

Dave Meir and Richard Cooper won nearest the pin prizes, and Richard and Steve missed out on the best score on a back-nine card playoff.

Scores after Round 1 of 6:

High Legh: 163 points
Birchwood: 159 points
Lymm: 158 points
Heyrose: 157 points
Antrobus: 151 points
Styal: 145 points.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 1 May)

Happy Mondays Tee-Booking Schedule for Sunday 4 May

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Apart from the tee-booking schedules, there is not much to report this week, due to the lack of senior-section golfing events over the Easter holiday period.

However, congratulations are due to Pete Broady, who came second in the Saturday competition (Stableford), in a field of about 150 players.

For anyone interested in nature, I heard a Cetti’s warbler today by the 6th tee, the same place I frequently heard one last year. It’s a rare bird that I will report to Brian Ankers, who monitors the birdlife on Lymm Golf Club, and puts up the nest boxes, and is connected with a network of ornithologists throughout the region. Brian writes the ‘Wildlife Report’ on the main LGC website. Here is the song of the Cetti’s warbler on YouTube. It is very distinctive, and very loud. Other summer visitors I have heard (but not yet seen) are whitethroats and chiffchaffs. I have yet to see a swallow at Lymm this year, but I’m sure we’ll start to see them any day soon, as they arrive back from South Africa to the place where they were born.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 24 April)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 27 April

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Summer League – Round 3 of 10

Reporter: Paul Foster

The playing conditions are vastly improving, and at last we are thankfully off the mats, but still playing off some winter tees. Fifty nine entries for the third round of the Summer league, 28 players from Division 1 and 31 players from Division 2.

Four 2s recorded, Alan Copeland, Howard Jones, Russ Jones & Alan Thomas.

Division 1 Results:
Winner – Steve Gosling with 36pts
R/up – Arthur Nuttall with 34pts
3rd – Martin Franks with 33pts

Division 2 Results:
Winner – Phil Lomas with 32pts on a CPO
R/up – Joe Priestner with 32pts
3rd – Les William with 31pts

Seven Div 1 and four Div 2 players put their wrong hcap down. Please check handicaps before signing your card. This is especially important now we are switching to WHS qualifying. It is also important to make sure you sign in to the competition in I.G. at least one day before play, otherwise your card will not be included in the competition.

I am still getting marked incorrectly (usually entering the gross and nett score under column ‘A’ or by entering the stableford points scored in column ‘A’ or ‘B’, instead of the ‘Points’ column). We are getting better at this, but it seems it’s the same players every week that incorrectly mark the cards. All we need is gross score in column ‘A’ and stableford points in the ‘Points’ column.

Three ‘keep a six off your card’, Martin Franks, Ian Whitehead & Mike Pigott in the 1st division.

One ‘keep a seven off your card’, Colin Hughes in the 2nd division.

59 cards handed in, 53 entered into Ig, remember playmates, when we are back on the WHS system, players not entering their scores into Ig will NOT be in the competition.

Funny notes;

One player registered in IG a ‘hole in 1’ on the 2nd hole for 5 points! It should have been a 5 scored for 1 point.

John Higgins lost his ball on the 11th green! It took nearly a minute to locate his marker!

My fourball would like to apologise to Mike Pigott, Alan Ranscombe, John Armstrong and Dave Waggitt, as we teed off from the 13th when they were still on 15th green. There’s a sign by the 13th tee telling us to wait till the 15th green is clear before teeing off… all please note.

Interclub friendly away at Leigh

Reporter and CoD: Grahame Brickell

The day started so well … bright and dry, the prospect of rain having dissipated.

With only the 1st tee as the starting whole, the later starters didn’t arrive early enough for coffee and hence missed the CoD’s rousing rally for a better performance than our team had at Warrington!

As the results show, only the first 5 players clearly got the message!

Results:
Brickell & Roberts W 1up
Broady & Ashurst W 2&1
Jones & Parry W 1up
And then it went downhill!
Armstrong & Smith L 4&3
Barlow & Willson L 1D
Mr Captain & Bennett L 5&7 😬
Gosling & Burton L 3&2
Williamson & Lee, halved on 18

Overall a loss 3 1/2 to 4 1/2, which is not bad for an away match. We expect to beat them at the return match at Lymm in September.

The steak, mash and veg, following by apple crumble and custard, was very enjoyable.

There was no repeat of a golfer falling into a pond this year!

Next match, our first home fixture Friday 25 April against newbies Huyton & Prescot.

Watch out for three ‘availability’ posts coming soon on WhatsApp for ..
Helsby home monday 12th May
Ringway away weds 14th May &
Bramhall home frid 16th May
A busy week!!

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 17 May)

Happy Mondays – 14 April

Reporter: Peter Willson

A dry yet quite breezy and chilly day, which didn’t deter 19 Happy golfers trying to emulate Rory McIlroy’s exploits the day before in the exciting finish at The Masters.

Game: Team Stableford
6 teams / 19 players

Winners: John Booth, Colin Chisnall and Alan Thomas – 86 points or 28.7 ppp
2nd: Pete Broady, Tony Dixon and Tony Lambert – 80 points or 26.7 ppp

Highest individual score – John Booth 33 points, second – Alan Thomas 31 points.

There is no tee-booking schedule for Happy Mondays this week because Monday 5th May is a bank holiday.

Slow Play

Once again, our Senior Section pace of play was far too slow last Friday, with reports of three groups backing up on one hole due to a slow group ahead. Lymm Golf Club has put out some general instructions on avoiding slow play. And we have been instructed to write our start times and finish times on all scorecards.

Always play ready golf.

The problem we have in the senior section is that we have have groups of diverse ability and diverse hitting distance. In order to get around this, please be prepared to play out of turn if it is safe to do so. For instance, if you have hit your ball 270 yards down the right-hand side of the fairway, and your playing partner has hit a shot half that distance into the semi-rough on the left, walk quickly to your ball and play it.

Whilst we encourage you to play out of turn to speed up play, only do so if you have assessed it is safe for everyone, including yourself.

This week’s ‘Nutty’s Notable’: Rob Taylor

Reporter: Arthur Nutall

Rob was born in 1947 in Simonstown, South Africa. His earliest idyllic years were on the family Chicken Farm, but when “big school” loomed, the family moved to the campus of the University of Cape Town. (Sadly, this wasn’t because Rob was a child prodigy – it was because his Dad worked there!) 

1955 – the winds of Afrikaner Nationalism were blowing hard, so his very British family piled into their very British car (a Standard Vanguard) and headed into the British territory of Rhodesia (now Zambia).

Rob recalls tumbling through his school years at Churchill Boys School, where he played Rugby, Cricket and Athletics and some nominal desk learning. He slid from there into a job with Rhodesian Customs & Excise, starting at the bottom and ending 11 years later as the department’s Director of Training Schools. Postings included spells at Victoria Falls, Biet Beit Bridge (on the Limpopo River), Chirundu (on the Zambezi River) and even 2 years abroad – in Beira, Mozambique (evading the sanctions imposed by the Wilson Government).  

Threaded through all this was his National Service. He was called up in 1966. The Bush War had started, so it was Infantry, Logistics, Signals and finally (believe it or not!) Military Intelligence. Through the magical system of rolling camps – on average, he spent 4 months of every year in the Bush – living the dream.

In 1977 – the winds were blowing a different tune but the writing was on the wall, so it was time to pack up the family again. By this time, it consisted of his wife, Joyce, 4-year-old Tamara and tiny baby Neil. The destination of the next chapter was “Mud Island” (as England was affectionately known), Plymouth to be exact – the ancestral home.

Rob says that moving to England was possibly the best decision they ever made. It turned out to be a land of golden opportunity for all the family. Rob spent 33 years in business management: general management (4 companies), start-up ventures (3 companies) and some rescue consulting and contracting.

When asked about his career highlight, he believes that this was definitely his first job, where he spent 10 great years with Pioneer Concrete. He progressed from Plant Manager to Regional Director North West (hence his move to his current home in Knutsford).

In the early 90’s, Rob joined two American entrepreneurs for an exhilarating 5 years in a start-up company that was to become Virgin Media no less, experience that, in the early 2000’s, Rob took with him as he devised and instigated a project to digitise the Scottish Highway Agency fibre optic network (signalling and CCTV) – a concept design in partnership with Tyco Technology.

By 2010, it was time to close the workbook and start another new chapter. He took up golf! And coerced by myself and Phil Blake, Rob help to set up and administer our Senior Section for a number of years.

Rob and Joyce have never got used to our British winters, and annually chase the sun to places such as Africa, Australia, New Zealand, India and Tenerife.

Arthur Nuttall

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Straight Down the Middle!

A large and ebullient crowd gathered around the first tee for the Captain’s Drive-In on Sunday 6 April. To the sounds of clapping, cheering, and not a little heckling, our very own Andy Timms walked up to the tee markers.

As Andy teed up the ball, all became suddenly hushed. Thankfully he held his nerve and launched the perfect drive, long and straight, earning himself a few “wows” from the spectators and a huge round of applause.

I’m sure that I speak for all members of the Senior Section in wishing Andy a good and happy tenure as Mens’ Captain of Lymm Golf Club. I’m pleased to report that Andy will remain on our Senior Section committee. He will continue to liaise between the seniors and the main committee, and he has volunteered to do the organisation of the Mitre Cup (Seniors v Ladies) in August.

Our roving investigator, Arthur Nuttall, recently caught up with Andy, who features in this week’s ‘Nutty’s Notables’.

Summer League – Round 2 of 10

Reporter: Paul Foster

A splendid early summer’s day, with fifty five entry’s for the next round of the Summer league, 23 players from Division 1 and 32 players from Division 2. Just 3 players under par from the 1st division, but an exceptional 13 players under par from the 2nd division.

Two 2s recorded, John Higgins and Colin Hughes

Division 1 Results:
Winner – Paul Collins with 33pts
R/up – Steve Barlow with 32pts on a CPO
3rd – Colin Royle with 32pts

Division 2 Results:
Winner – George Clarke with 36pts
R/up – Phil Ormesher with 35pts on a CPO
3rd – Graham Sweeney with 35pts on a CPO

Another candidate for Nutty’s Notables: Division 2 winner of the week George Clarke. Well done George!

Four players put their wrong hcap down. Please check your seniors hcap in the newsletter for next week, just in case we are not back on the WHS system. Five cards marked incorrectly (usually entering the Stableford points scored in column ‘A’ or ‘B’, instead of the ‘Pts Scored’ column). But all the rest were beautifully presented, well done boys.

One ‘keep a six off your card’, Paul Collins in the 1st division.

Three ‘keep a seven off your card’, Mervyn Roberts, Mike Bennett & Alan Copeland, in the 2nd division.

55 cards handed in, 52 entered into Ig.

Happy Mondays – 7 April

Reporter: Peter Willson

Another glorious sunny, blue sky day without a cloud in the sky, and after a cool start it turned into a very pleasant spring day

Game – Team Stableford 

7 teams / 24 players 

Winners– It’s those 3 again out last and coming home when others were anticipating winnings ! Mike Bennett, Colin Crail and Richard Yates – 93 points or 31 ppp

Joint Second – Steve Bird, Tony Dixon and Les Fecitt – 84 points / 28 ppp and Pete Broady, Alan Copeland, Ron Thornton and Peter Willson – 112 points / 28 ppp

Highest Individual Score – Mike Bennett 36 points 

Tee-booking Schedule for Tomorrow (Thursday 10 April)

This is the schedule for 25 April. It will be a fun comp (bottle of wine to the winner) because we are hosting an interclub friendly match against Huyton and Prescot Golf Club.

Happy Mondays Tee-Booking Schedule for Sunday 13 April

Do you have some business-promotion experience?

John Tomlinson, a director of Lymm Golf Club, is seeking volunteers to help attract business-sponsorship partnerships. The Ladies’ Section has been doing an excellent job in this regard, and John is wondering if there are any members of the Senior Section with sales and promotion experience who are willing to help.

John writes:

“As part of our drive for new income streams we need 1 or 2 volunteers to call potential local sponsorship partners. We are in the middle of sending a small promotional message by post to local businesses and then following up with a phone call to the addressee. So far the ladies section have made almost 300 calls and it would be good to have some gentlemen to make the calls as well.

“We have a master list of names and phone numbers and a standard script for each call. The aim of the call is simply to identify any interested local businesses that Keith Melia can then call with details of our sponsorship packages. The ideal volunteer would have experience in sales, marketing or regularly making telephone calls.

“If you are able to help or would like more information, please contact me (John Tomlinson) or Keith Melia.”

This week’s ‘Nutty’s Notable’: Andy Timms (Mr Captain)

Reporter: Arthur Nuttall

Andy was born in Potters Bar, just outside the M25 and spent the first 8 years of his life there, before his parents moved to Bramhall in the 70’s. He was down south just long enough for him to become a Spurs fan (no regrets there he claims!?). His dad was a single figure golfer for most of his life, (He was Artisan Captain at Potters Bar Golf Club the year that his mate Tony Jacklin, the professional there, won the Open). Andy started his golfing journey as a junior at Bramall Park Golf Club, where he stayed as a member for nearly 30 years.

He studied Civil & Structural Engineering at Sheffield University, and it was there that he met his future wife Liz. They have been married for 35 years now and have two children, Michael and Mary.

Professionally, he was a Civil Engineer, working in the water industry initially at Trafford Council before moving on to several engineering consultancies, finishing up at United Utilities, where he was a Project Manager in the glamorous world of sewerage and wastewater treatment. Along the way he became a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers, finally retiring in 2021.

Despite being a Spurs fan, he retains a strong interest in football. He is a FA qualified junior football coach and was secretary of Urmston Meadowside for several years, during which time the club won several national grass roots football awards. Given that he also had a full time job, golf didn’t get much of a look in for about 10 years, and only when his children stopped playing football did he take the game up again, joining Lymm back in 2012.

His other passion is food, and more specifically cooking. He has a collection of over 90 cookbooks and takes real pleasure in preparing meals from scratch, his specialties being a slow cooker pork chilli con carne and barbecue baked side of salmon.

Andy is not a chap who likes to sit idle for too long, and since retiring, he’s immersed himself in golf club life. To that end, in addition to accepting the role of Captain, he also sits on 4 committees at the club (Greens, Seniors, Men’s and Social) and is regularly one of the Wednesday green volunteers.

Also, his nerdy engineering background has left him with a love of data, which is why he started keeping a log of every game of golf he plays. Highlights from that list include the fact that he has so far played 1,031 rounds of golf at Lymm (correct as of 25th March) and has played 184 different courses (in 6 different countries) in his lifetime so far.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles