Rules quiz

A player may repair natural wear of the hole on the putting green before putting

1. True
2. False

Answer at the end of this newsletter

Find the Fact – Andy Timms

Only one of the following statements about our immediate past Captain is correct. The other two are false. How well do you know your fellow senior?

1. Andy is a keen cook and has over 74 recipe books in 3 different languages. Andy has calculated (for reasons best known to himself) that if he cooked one recipe per day it would take over 34 years to work his way through his collection
2. Andy is a FA qualified coach. During his time as Coach and Chairman of Urmston Meadowside the club won the FA Charter Standard Club of the Year twice
3. During his time as Captain of Lymm last year Andy played golf 163 times on 53 courses, in three countries with over 200 people

Answer below

Summer League – Round 7

Reporter: Paul Foster

Under a sky so blue it looked photoshopped, the Seniors assembled for another glorious late-spring round — part golf competition, part textile experiment.

The fairways were immaculate, the greens deceptively unreadable, and the dress code apparently interpreted as “wear the shortest shorts medically advisable”. Several players arrived looking less like golfers and more like retired cruise entertainers or auditioners for ‘It ain’t half hot mum’. Scoring proved far less cheerful than the weather. Despite ideal conditions and a breeze gentler than a clubhouse handshake, only three brave souls managed to better par. The rest spent the afternoon demonstrating increasingly creative methods of leaving putts short, long, left or right. The rough was busy, the bunkers overworked, and one unfortunate duck on the 12th may file a complaint to the club committee after being buzzed twice by low-flying Titleist balls. Edgar Crowe was repeatedly spotted unzipping golf bags in search of “bootie” on the second hole. Whether he was searching for a tasty snack, an ‘on view’ banana, some contraband confectionery, or something far more suspicious remains unclear. We witnessed Edgar conducting “full investigations” on three of our four trolleys (the smell of engine oil on Ron’s groovy machine seemed to put Edgar off searching his bag). At the halfway hut, cold drinks disappeared faster than stableford points, while several competitors claimed their games were “just about coming together” moments before recording triple bogeys on holes 10 and 11. Highlight of the day belonged to Mike Kendall on the 14th, whose majestic drive travelled approximately 240 yards — sideways. Applause was generous nonetheless, mainly because it avoided all trees, the four ball in front, the four ball in front of them, the four ball on the 16th and a fairway bunker to end its epic journey smack in the middle of the 15th.fairway. In total 12 players ducked after hearing a thunderous “Fore” from our direction.

As the sun dipped and scorecards were examined with the seriousness of international treaty documents, the consensus was unanimous: glorious weather, dreadful golf, exceptional entertainment. And somewhere in the clubhouse car park, Edgar was still checking bags for bootie.

• Two 2s scored today, Steve Barlow and Charlie Hill
• Two cards missing, but IG completed.
• One card handed in but not completed in IG
• Please don’t forget to pre-register in IG for all senior rounds.

Results

Division 1

Division 2

As the summer league enters the final stretch, the first division leader is Steve Barlow, who has a commanding lead of 9 points from Michael John, and in the second division, Steve Bird leads Art Laird by 1 point

Leader Boards

Happy Mondays Report

No report this week as Monday was a gloriously sunny bank holiday.

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 28 May

PLEASE NOTE: There will be a Bottle of Wine competition on the 12th of June as there is a match against Northenden on that day. As the team has yet to be finalised at the time of writing you may end up in the team but also appear on the schedule below. If you are selected in the team to play Northenden, and you appear in the schedule below, can you please cancel yourself off the tee booking once it is on IG. If you are in the team and flagged as a tee booker, could you please ensure another member of your group makes the booking on Thursday evening. The tee time of 9.18 a.m. has deliberately been left blank to speed up play in the Interclub match, please do not book yourselves into that tee time. You may see seniors who are in the team against Northenden take that booking just to protect the tee time.

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 31 May

Non golf related trivia

Three ‘interesting’ pieces of trivia:

1. Leonardo DA Vinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years to paint the Mona Lisa’s lips
2. Blue is the favourite colour of 80 percent of Americans
3. The average four-year-old child asks over four hundred questions a day

Rules Quiz answer

Correct answer is 2) False. Explanation: See Rule 13.1c. A player may repair damage on the putting green without penalty, however “damage on the putting green” does not include any damage or conditions that result from natural wear of the hole.

Find the Fact answer

Answer 1. is correct. Answer 2 is correct other than that Andy was Secretary of Urmston Meadowside rather than Chairman. Answer 3 is also almost correct, Andy played in four different countries during his year as Captain of Lymm Golf Club.

Rules quiz

In a stroke-play competition, players A, B and C were drawn by the Committee to play together starting at 9.00am. A and B were ready to play at the appointed time. Due to bad traffic, player C arrived at 9.02am after A and B had teed off but just in time to play in the correct order. What is the ruling?

1. There is no penalty.
2. Player C is disqualified.
3. Player C gets two penalty strokes

Answer is at the end of this newsletter

Summer League – Round 6

Reporter: Steve Bird

Question. Is this the first time that your Friday results have been finalised from under the Eiffel Tower?

Probably, I would guess. The reason being that Monsieur Foster continues his ‘vacances’ in northern France and today (Friday) he reached gay Paris. There is no truth that he parked his mobile home under the Arch de Triomphe in the middle of the Place de L”Etoile. So full marks to Paul for giving up his holiday time to help collate the results.

Whilst the weather was very bright and sunny there was a biting wind and scores were consequently a lot lower than last week with only one player, out of 41, playing to net par.

There were 2 twos scored by Duncan Clarke and Barry McGuigan (please see Mervyn our treasurer for your sleeve of balls).  Division One – all three players scored 29 points and places were decided by CPO

Results

Division 1

Division 2

The leader boards will be brought fully up to date on Mr Foster’s return to Blighty.

Happy Mondays Report – 18 May

Reporter: Steve Bird

Once again the weather conspired with.our Inter Club Match to leave a very depleted field.

Only 3 teams of three

Winners – Steve Barlow, Alan Copeland and Colin Crail with an average of 25.6 points

Second – Steve Bird, Tony Dixon and Dave Waggitt 22.3

Third – Colin Chisnall, Alan Thomas and Eric Cox 20.6

Top scorers for the day Messrs Copeland and Crail with 26 each. 

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 21 May

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 24 May

Non golf related trivia

1. Chocolate kills dogs! True, chocolate affects a dog’s heart and nervous system. A few ounces is enough to kill a small sized dog.
2. Mosquito repellents don’t repel, they hide you. The spray blocks the mosquito’s sensors so they don’t know you’re there.
3. It’s impossible to sneeze with your eyes open

Rules Quiz answer

Option 3 is the correct answer. Explanation: See Rule 5.3a. As C arrived and was ready to play no more than five minutes late, instead of being disqualified, player C gets two penalty strokes for failure to be ready to play at the appointed start time

Rules Quiz

Tatton League – 2nd Round – Thursday 7 May

Reporter: Mike Pigott

The second round of the Tatton League was played at High Legh Golf Club on a cool breezy morning. The course was in reasonable condition with the greens having undergone their Spring treatment, still a bit slow with the presence of sand. The course played very long off the white tees, on the 18th there were 78 paces from the back tee to the yellow tee making the course very demanding. This showed in some of the scoring.

Lymm were winners on the day with 42 points from Martin Franks and Steve Gosling, 40 points from Ian Whitehead and Russ Jones, 38 points from Mike Pigott and Richard Cooper and 36 points from Andy Timms and Mark Pickles (this was later reduced to 35 points due to a clerical error on the scoring – lesson learnt!). Lymm total of 155 for the day was six better than second placed Heyrose and twenty shots better than the overall leaders Antrobus. This now gives Lymm a 15 point lead overall after two games.

A special mention to Martin Franks and Steve Gosling as they won the best score of the day and to Mark Pickles for nearest the pin on the 9th hole.

Summer League – Round 5 Friday 8 May

Reporter: Steve Bird

Firstly, your usual scribe is currently ‘on the continent’ and when he massaged (Editor’s note: I really hope that’s a typo!) me on Sunday, he was on Sword Beach, Normandy no doubt with his binoculars looking for any remaining Boche and then seeking out local beers – or is it cidre in that locality? Needless to say, I shall not be waxing lyrically in the style of PF – no point trying to compete with greatness.

The WhatsApp Group of your Committee was very hot last Thursday when Keith reminded members they had to vacate the course by 12:45 on the following day. It became apparent that the later starting groups would probably not complete 15 holes and various solutions were discussed – in the end the decision was taken to round up pro rata the scores for any players not completing the full 15.

Some of the published scores you see on the Clubs web page will not correlate in respect of the few individuals whose scores were rounded up i.e. they will be less than the rounded up scores.

There were five ‘twos’ scored, namely Mike Bennett, Duncan Clarke, Martin Franks, Michael John and Russ Jones.

Scores in Division 1 were impressive with two players scoring 33 not making the podium. Only one player broke net par in Division 2.

Results

Division 1

Division 2

The leader boards will be updated on Mr Foster’s return from his jollies.

IMPORTANT REMINDER – Registering your round and entering your scores onto IG

Please remember that you now need to register your round on IG and enter your scores onto IG on completion of your round for all Senior competitions. One senior from division 2 had to be disqualified having finished in third in last Friday’s Summer League round as his card was not entered onto IG after the round. Please see the following extract from an email sent to all members from the Handicap and Competition Sub-Committee on 6 May:

Immediately after playing in a competition, all competitors must enter their cards via the IG app and upload a photograph of their scorecard before depositing their original card in the box outside the Professional’s Shop. Please ensure when uploading a photograph this clearly shows that the card has been signed. If this carries on (cards not being entered), we will have to bring in a one Competition ban, for all those that do not follow the above rule.  If you are having an issue with completing the task, then please speak to the Professional’s shop and they will be happy to help you.

Happy Mondays Report – 11 May

Reporter: Steve Bird

A combination of the rain and our match against Bramhall meant that only 12 hardy souls turned out in four teams of three.

Ironically, by 9 am, we were playing in glorious sunshine on lush green fairways.

The winning team was that of Tony Dixon, Ken Pearce and Richard Yates with an average score of 25

Runners up were Steve Barlow, Steve Rowley and Dave Waggitt with a score of 23.3

Top scorer for the day was Ken Pearce with 28

Can I add a personal thank you to Tony Dixon who found my specs somewhere on the eighth hole. They has been perched on top of my cap and I hadn’t noticed they were missing until the 10th!! 

Interclub match v Bramhall – Monday 11 May

Author: John Armstrong (Captain of the Day)

Lymm beat Bramhall – 5.5 to 2.5

There were wins for:

• J Armstrong & Ian Whitehead.
• B McGuigan & P Ormesher
• A Timms & S Baird
• D Craggs & J Woodward
• G Brickell & B Ellison

Match halved:

• A Laird & M Lyons

2nd Place for

• S Lee & B Simpson
• P Perry & P Willson.

The food was excellent a bacon butty on arrival with tea or coffee, steak and mushroom pie, after the match

Local Rules

I am sure most of you will have read Keith Melia’s Friday update of 8th May. For those that missed it there was a helpful link to the Temporary Local Rules list. Please click on this link if you need to bring yourself up to speed.

Lymm Visitor

Author: Barry Smith

This morning (May the 8th) on the 4th hole, I got a birdie, well a picture of a birdie, an exotic birdie at that!

The Egyptian Goose!

Scientific name: Alopochen aegyptiaca

Apparently Egyptian geese aren’t true geese, they’re members of the shelduck sub-family, Tadorninae. They are naturally found in Africa, in the Nile valley and south of the Sahara. They were introduced to Great Britain to be kept in wildfowl collections, and are usually found in south-central England, East Anglia, and the East Midlands, so this one might be lost. Egyptian Geese are said to be noisy and quarrelsome, with aggressive behaviour which has ruled them out of some collections, therefore they might well be a good fit for Lymm Seniors!

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 14 May

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 17 May

Non golf related trivia

Three interesting pieces of trivia to share with your loved ones over tonight’s evening meal:

1. A cockroach can live for 10 days without a head
2. 40 percent of McDonald’s profits come from the sales of Happy Meals
3. On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily

Rules Quiz answer

Correct answer is 1. Explanation: A spider web is a loose impediment even though they are attached to another object and may be removed. (See Definition of Loose Impediments and Rule 15)

Rules Quiz

Find the Fact – Dave Craggs

Only one of the following statements about Dave is correct. The other two are false. How well do you know your Secretary?

1. Dave was one of the founding members of Helsby Golf Club
2. Dave flew a glider sitting in the same seat (but not at the same time) that Anneka Rice had occupied whilst filing Challenge Anneka in 1993
3. Dave ran in the Warrington 10K (6.2 miles) at the age of 71. He completed the course in under 52 minutes and raised over £200 for the River Reeves Foundation which was set up following the tragic accident in Sweden involving members of Viola Beach

Answer below

Fun round – Bottle of Wine Friday 1 May

Reporter: Ian Goodman

No report this week I’m afraid (as no one seems to have collected the cards in Mr Foster’s absence!) but the result taken from IG was as follows:

Happy Mondays

Reporter: Steve Bird

Nothing to report this week as Monday 4 May was a bank holiday.

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 7 May

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 3 May

Rules Quiz answer

Correct answer B. Explanation: See Rule 18.1. Once the player put another ball in play under penalty of stroke and distance, the original ball is no longer in play and must not be played.

Find the Fact answer

Answer 2 (Anneka Rice) is correct. Dave can’t remember if he was a founding member of Helsby Golf Club which came into being in 1901. Dave did complete the Warrington 10k run but he was 73 years of age, not 71, when he did this. Other than his age all the other facts in answer 3 are correct.

Rules Quiz

Summer League – Round 4

Reporter: Paul Foster

The seniors turned out in great numbers, some 46 happy smiling members for the latest round of the summer league competition, played under a beautiful warm spring sky that made for near-perfect golfing conditions. The course looked in excellent shape, with firm fairways and receptive greens rewarding well-struck approach shots (none by me though).

Scoring proved competitive across the field, with several players taking advantage of the calm weather to post solid points totals. However, the greens remained a consistent challenge throughout the day. Despite the favourable conditions, putting was far from straightforward, with many competitors finding it difficult to judge pace and line. A number of good rounds were held back by missed opportunities on the greens, as the slightly unpredictable speed tested even the most experienced players. Just 5 players managed to better their handicap.

Overall, it was an enjoyable and well-contested competition, highlighted by good camaraderie and the pleasure of playing in such fine weather. With a bit more sharpness on the greens, scores could have been even better – but that’s golf.

It was a day that will go down in history – or at least take a very long time getting there.

Under bright sunshine and ever increasing temperatures, that felt suspiciously close to “why are we doing this,” our group teed off at the leisurely hour of 9:45am. By 10:30am, we had successfully completed the 2^nd hole… after a brief discussion about whose turn it was, where the tee markers used to be in 1987, and whether anyone had seen Ron’s left sock.

The pace of play was described by officials as “unhurried,” by one player as “glacial,” and by Edgar & Alan Crow as “deeply concerning.”

Highlights from the round include: A tactical pause while three players compared knee braces and one adjusted his sun hat for optimal “ventilation efficiency.” On Hole 12 there was an official fairway pit-stop. Estimated duration: 1 hour 25 minutes. Main activity: discussing how much slower everyone else is, oh, and looking for 2 balls at least 100 yards further down the fairway from where they completed their grass cutting voyage.

By the back nine, conditions had intensified. The sun was relentless, shadows grew longer, and putting lines were judged less by slope and more by “which direction feels emotionally right.”

The round concluded just in time for dinner… the next day.

In summary:
A heroic effort, a test of patience, and a masterclass in how to turn 15 holes into a full-day event. Buggies in increasing numbers, swings remained questionable, and absolutely nobody was in a rush – least of all the winners, who are still signing their scorecards.

Next week’s forecast: slightly cooler… but don’t expect things to speed up.

One 2 scored today, Mike Pigott.

Don’t forget to pre-register on IG for all seniors rounds.

Results

Division 1

Division 2

Leader Boards

Happy Mondays Report – 27 April

Reporter: Steve Bird

Another fine morning greeted 17 players comprising two teams of four and three of three. The course at times was busy with greens staff and irrigation contractors all very active. To paraphrase ‘Apocalypse Now’ – “I love the smell of seaweed fertiliser in the morning” (Robert Duvall). I expect if we want a decent course then we just have to endure these distractions.

The winning team was Steve Bird, Dave Craggs and Dave Waggitt. with an average score of 26.3. It was a real team effort with no one scoring less than 25.

Runners up were Messrs Barlow, Dixon, Goodman and Gosling with an average of 25.75.

Steve Barlow again top scored for the day with an impressive 33 followed closely by Colin Chisnall with 32.

It was good To see us all on the terrace following our games enjoying a drink in the sunshine. Dare we assume spring has sprung?

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 30 April

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 3 May

Rules Quiz answer

Answer 3 is correct. The player would be disqualified. Explanation: See Rule 4.3a. A player may get information on distance or direction from a distance measuring device, however the device must not be used to measure elevation changes. As the player used the device on two separate occasions they would be disqualified.

Rules Quiz

Find the Fact – Mike Kendall

Only one of the following statements about Mike is correct. The other two are false. How well do you know our Friday tee-times organiser?

1. Mike first saw his future wife immediately after regaining consciousness in an ambulance after being knocked clean out during a football match
2. Mike was a contestant on “Who wants to be a millionaire”. Mike didn’t win the million, but did manage to walk away with £16,000 having answered nine questions correctly
3. Mike once had to stop Roy Keane from throttling another guest at a social function which Mike had organised and which Roy attended

Answer below

Summer League – Round 3

Reporter: Paul Foster

The long awaited transition to WHS handicaps finally hit the fairways this week, as 44 brave (or mildly concerned) golfers teed up without the comforting cushion of the ‘mat’. This is a bold new era of fairness and accuracy. For the vast majority of us, it felt more like showing up to a knife fight armed with a teaspoon. Conditions didn’t exactly roll out the red carpet. Lively squalls occasionally sweeping across the course, turning well-struck drives into abstract art, and for the later starters, leaving umbrellas performing interpretive dance routines. Putting, usually a gentle art, became a psychological thriller (as usual for me). Greens that looked innocent enough from a distance revealed hidden agendas up close. Three-putts were the day’s most popular scoring method, with several players boldy exploring four-putt territory. Despite all this, spirits remained high. After all, golf isn’t about the score – it’s about the shared suffering, the exaggerated storytelling afterward, and the firm belief that next week, in calmer conditions, everything will be completely different.

In summary: 44 golfers, mostly with new handicaps, zero mats and enough wind to qualify for its own membership. Remarkably, out of all the competitors, only one managed to beat par, his name whispered in hushed tones in the bar, as if he had discovered a loophole both in the WHS system and the weather itself, in the corner was Ron Thornton beavering away trying to find a mistake in the winners score card.

The other 43 are currently reviewing their life choices, green-reading techniques, and possibly their membership.

A character-building day, if nothing else

Please don’t forget to pre-register on IG for all seniors rounds.

Two 2s scored today, Duncan Clarke and Tony Dixon.

Results

Division 1

Division 2

Leader Boards

Happy Mondays Report – 20 April

Reporter: Steve Bird

A glorious Spring morning greeted 22 players in four groups of four and two of three. The scores were not great, and the general consensus was that the fairways were not conducive to ball roll-on and the greens were ‘weird’. No one could explain why as they looked fine but for some unknown reason three putts were common and many short putts were missed – even after allowing for the new gimme rule.

The winning team was Steve Barlow, Peter Willson and Richard Yates with an average score of 27.6. Steve top scorer for the day with 31 points

Runners up were Alan Copeland, Eric Cox, Charlie Hill and Phil Lomas (welcome back Phil) with an average of 24.75.

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 23 April

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 26 April

Rules Quiz answer

The correct answer is A. Explanation: Two shots onto the green. One putt that rolls off the green. One penalty stroke for taking unplayable relief under option 19.2a (stroke and distance relief). One putt that is holed. Total = 5 strokes

Find the Fact answer

Answer 3 is correct. Mike did need to “step in” to prevent the truculent Irish mid-fielder from lamping another guest at Mike’s daughter’s birthday party. Mike’s daughter attended the same school as Roy Keane’s daughter. It is not known if Roy Keane ever attended school.

Rules Quiz

Summer League – Round 2

Reporter: Paul Foster

The sun showed up like it had a seniors’ tee time booked, the breeze politely clocked in at ‘gentle encouragement’ and the striped fairways, well, let’s just say they looked forgiving. Welcome to today’s mid spring day round 2 golf report.

Conditions were, in technical terms, ‘absolutely glorious’. Birds chirped, blossoms starting to bloom, Edgar & Allan Crow looking for courtships, and somewhere in the distance a golfer loudly negotiated with a bunker.

However, putting remained….ambitious. Several balls approached the hole with confidence, had a good look, and decided they’d rather not commit. One putt broke so much it’s now being studied by scientists!

Our 4 ball invented a new language or a new dialect or we have all developed a speech impediment, I’m not sure. All 4 of us managed to hit the same clump of trees left of the 12^th with our 2nd shots, one by one emitting garbled cries of arghhhh…. orrrnoooorr…. whaaaaaaa… eeeehhhhhnothere!

Forty two happy golfers stepped out onto the course, with scoring simply sublime, twenty two managed to equal or better their handicap. So, playing to 4 better than your handicap in the 2^nd division, gave you no chance of stepping onto the podium.

As bags were packed and tales were exaggerated, one truth remained clear: on a magnificent mid-spring day like this, even the bad shots somehow felt like they didn’t matter.

Five 2s scored today, Dave Waggitt, Mark Pickles, Rob Taylor, Bob Ellison & Phil Lomas.

Results

Division 1

Division 2

Leader Boards

Seniors Calendar Monday 4 May – Correction

Happy Mondays Report – 13 April

Reporter: Steve Bird

A lovely spring morning greeted 17 players which was an excellent turnout considering there was an Inter Club Match where 16 of our number were involved. Five teams took part, three of 4, one of 3 and one of 2. The course is drying out and some good scores were evident. 

The winning duo were Richard Yates and Colin Crail who scored 36 and 28 respectively with an average of 32 points Needless to say, Richard top scored for the day. 

Gallant runners up were Steve Barlow, Kevin Bocquet, Tony Dixon and John White with an average score of 28.5.

Please note that Monday 4 May is a Bank Holiday so there is no booking to be done this coming Sunday. Members can obviously book social rounds if they wish

Clarification of ‘Gimme’ rule – only applicable for Happy Mondays games

Author: Steve Bird

There have been numerous versions of what constitutes a ‘gimme’ for our Monday matches. Your committee debated this at length last Friday, for example how long IS a putter handle? 

In the end it was decided that a ‘gimme’ would be allowed if the ball was 12 inches (30 cm) or less from the hole. This decision was taken to clarify the many versions that are being used and, in an effort, to speed up play. So now is the time to get out those old wooden rulers from you school days and put them in your golf bags (joke) 

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 16 April

Please note that as we are playing a seniors’ match against Helsby GC on the 1st of May the preferred playing times requested by seniors may not be available

Rules Quiz answer

Correct answer A. Explanation: See Rule 12.2b(2). There is no penalty for a player casually leaning on their club in a bunker providing it is not for the purpose of testing the condition of the sand

Rules Quiz

Find the Fact – Paul Foster

Only one of the following statements about our Handicap Secretary Paul “the axeman” Foster is correct. The other two are false. How well do you know your fellow senior?

1. Paul once played 9 holes of golf with Bobby Charlton
2. Paul has just passed 5,000 beers tasted
3. Paul once won a 9-hole golf competition played on the longest day of the year in Iceland

Answer below

Summer League

Nothing to report this week as last Friday was Easter Friday. It’s back to normal this coming Friday. Round 2 will be played over the first 15 holes. Feel free to carry on just for fun as the course is now fully open. Please check the link below to establish what your latest Senior’s handicap is.

Seniors’ handicaps

Leader Boards

Happy Mondays Report

Again, nothing to report this week as we were all finishing off our Easter eggs on Monday of this week. Back to normal next Monday.

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 9 April

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 12 April

Rules Quiz answer

Correct answer it 1. True

Explanation: See Definition of Loose Impediment and Rule 15.1.

Find the Fact answer

Answer 1 is correct, Paul did play nine holes of golf with Bobby Charlton. Paul also recently exceeded 6,000 beers tasted (he passed the 5,000 mark some time ago). He also won a 9-hole golf competition played at midnight, but it was at Dounreay in Scotland not in Iceland.

Rules Quiz

Find the Fact – Trevor Williamson

Two of the following statements about Trevor are correct. The other one is false. How well do you know your fellow senior, can you find the false statement?

Playing for Doncaster Rugby Union Football Club, Trevor Williamson, gained a reputation for his “bone-crunching, but scrupulously fair” tackling (a ‘Telegraph’ quote). Apart from winning the Yorkshire shield in 1979, the year was memorable for him for receiving punches from a Triple Crown of opponents, each of them fed-up with being on the receiving end of his tackles – something he remembers with great pride! All three were internationals:

(a) England Centre, Richard Cardus, playing for Roundhay in the Yorkshire Cup (Roundhay became Leeds Tykes)

(b) Scotland Centre, Graham Birkett, playing for Harlequins in a 7-a-side tournament at Doncaster.

(c) Wales legend & British Lion, Terry Cobner, playing out of position at Centre for Pontypool

Answer below

Summer League – Round 1

Reporter: Paul Foster

A short report today.

Thirty two members out on the course to play the first round of the eagerly awaited summer league.

Five players from the 1st division scored 30pts, so lots of head scratching to separate them

Four 2s scored today, Trevor Williamson, Steve Gosling, Richard Yates & Alan Copeland.

Only two hcaps docked today…Grrrrrr……BUT….. all hcaps correctly entered..Hooray….!!

Results

Division 1

Division 2

Seniors’ handicaps

Leader Boards

Happy Mondays Report – 30 March

Reporter: Steve Bird

After an overnight deluge the wind was ‘blowing a hoolie’ as the Scots would say, and there were waves on the Ship Canal. One of our number even spotted a surfer. The wind was a strong westerly so the third and fifth holes were particularly challenging.

After the full 18 holes had been open for the weekend the course was back down to 13 holes – I suspect in about five months time we shall be complaining about the fairways being hard and straw coloured!

A good turnout of 22 players comprising two teams of 4. four of 3 and one of 2.

The winners were Steve Bird, Pete Broady, Barrie Simpson and Peter Willson with a average score of 24.25 closely followed by Kevin Bocquet, Alan Copeland and Phil Perry on 24.. Phil top scored for the day on 29 points. 

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 2 April

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 5 April

Art Fair and Exhibition in Altrincham

Reporter: Mark Pickles

Thank you to all who have made encouraging and positive comments about the oil painting now hanging in the Legends Lounge. I unveiled it last Thursday at the AGM, where it was well received.

If you’d like a canvas or paper print, of any size up to the original size, let me know, and I will get a price for an archival-quality fine-art print (using the giclée printing technology) guaranteed not to fade or discolour. (I asked my printer how the manufacturer’s can claim that giclée prints, being a relatively new technology, have light-fastness for up to a hundred years. Apparently prints have been tested by blasting them with UV light that is equivalent to 100 years in a bright room.)

If you’re interested in seeing my other artworks, see my new website here at www.markpickles.art. I am presently taking commissions.

I have recently joined the Altrincham Society of Artists, which gives me access to a shared studio. I gave up my own large studio last year because I was spending too much time playing golf to justify the rent! Also, being in the local artist’s group gives me the opportunity to exhibit a few works several times a year, with shared costs for marketing and exhibiting. Our main annual exhibition is in July, at Altrincham Grammar School for Girls, where I plan to display four large paintings.

This Easter weekend, we are having an ‘Art Fair’ in Altrincham. Do come along, if you’d like to see me dabbling with a hog hair brush. It’s more fun than watching me shank a 7 iron! I will have some originals and prints on display.

Rules Quiz answer

2 is correct – False. Explanation: See Clarification Immovable Obstruction/1. Any turf leading to or covering an immovable obstruction is not part of the obstruction.

Find the Fact answer

(b) is false.

Trevor did not receive a punch from Graham Birkett, he played alongside him in a Harlequins team that were short of a player when they visited Doncaster. 

(a) he did receive a punch from Richard Cardus when he tackled him into touch, denying him a try-scoring opportunity.

(c) he did receive a punch from Terry Cobner (and Bobby Windsor) whilst playing against them for Monmouth. They were returning from injury, playing for Pontypool ‘Seconds’ in a Welsh Cup competition.

And here’s the evidence. ‘Hitman’ Williamson second from right on the top row.

Rules Quiz

Find the Fact – Steve Barlow

A bit calmer this week, no explosions. Only one of the following statements about Steve is correct. The other two are false. How well do you know your fellow senior?

1. Steve was trapped in the lift of a building in Manchester with both members of the boyband Jedward until they were all rescued after 75 minutes
2. Steve once had breakfast with Bruce Forsyth, Jimmy Tarbuck and Kenny Lynch
3. Steve has driven a McLaren F1 sports car at a speed in excess of 200 mph on an airfield in Dubai

Answer below

Seniors Fun Game – Friday 20 March

Reporter: Paul Foster

A perfect early Spring day greeted 38 senior golfers. Crisp clean air that still carries a hint of winter, but without the bite, the sun giving just enough warmth on your face to make you leave the jacket in the bag. The course is waking up after the slumber of a wretched winter. A faint smell of damp earth and freshly cut grass, the kind that makes every deep breath invigorating. The recently dressed greens are basically the course’s way of saying, “Let’s see what you’re really made of.” They looked perfect – smooth and inviting like a snooker table. In reality? It’s more like putting across a marble floor that’s been lightly sprinkled with breadcrumbs. A 6-foot putt casually rolls 12 feet past like it’s late for a meeting. The putt starts on a perfect line, then hits a grain of sand and takes a sharp detour like it’s avoiding traffic. Mike, John, Richard and I reckon we missed more putts from inside 2 feet than England have missed penalties. By the turn, for any putt under 3 feet, we just closed our eyes, switched to left-handed putting and pretended it was for triple bogey (no pressure). We also proposed that we should replace our putters with brooms. I blamed my four putts from inside 5 feet on the 14th on the miss-alignment of Jupiter and as I walked off the green, I briefly contemplated taking up tennis!

Thirty eight players took to the fairways, of which just six members beat par. Just the one 2 scored today, Alan Ranscombe on the tough 13th.

Upon inspection, Bill Berry submitted a card not only legible, but also correctly totalled, internally consistent, and free from ‘creative adjustments’. Authorities are monitoring the situation.

Winner: John Armstrong with 34 points. Takes home a quality bottle of Wine Society Rioja
Runner up: Peter Willson with 33 points

Summer League – Round 1

Next Friday 27 March sees week 1 of the Summer League. We will continue to use the winter handicaps, until such time as the course is deemed ready for WHS by the club, when we will all revert to our WHS handicaps. The league is played over 15 holes (or fewer if 15 aren’t open, with scores pro-rated up to 15 holes). Players can play holes 16 to 18 just for ‘fun’ if they are in play. Please see the Strategy, Rules and Guidance document if you require further detail. Your latest Seniors handicap can be accessed from the link below. Let battle commence!

Seniors’ handicaps

Happy Mondays Report – 23 March

Reporter: Steve Gosling

Monday saw 17 golfers eager to explore the forgotten land as they headed out for the first Monday 15 hole comp of the year.

The weather was a bit cooler than last week, but pleasant enough for some very respectable scoring. 8 of 17 scored to their handicap or better.

Nobody came close though to Stephen Rowley who with the help of a 5 pointer on the 11th amassed a very decent 37 points for the day, which helped carry his teammates Steve Gosling and Dave Waggitt to victory with an average of 29.3.

Second place was shared by 2 groups, both scoring an average of 28. The groups being Andy Timms, Kevin Bocquet and Alan Copeland  and the group of John White, Sammy Lee and Phil Perry

Hopefully we have 15 holes open now going forward.

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow Thursday 26 March

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 29 March

NB. If you have your name down for the interclub match against Leigh then you will have been omitted from the booking sheet below. If for any reason you don’t make the team you can just book yourself onto one of the tee-times below.

Rules Quiz answer

Answer 3 is correct. See Clarification Advice/2. Information obtained by observation is not advice.

Find the Fact answer

Answer 2 is correct. Steve had breakfast with Jimmy, Kenny and Brucie (good game, good game!).