Lymm Golf Club Senior Section

If your adversary is badly bunkered, there is no rule against your standing over him and counting his strokes aloud, with increasing gusto as their number mounts up: but it will be a wise precaution to arm yourself with the niblick before doing so, so as to meet him on equal terms.

Horace hutchinson

Newsletter editor: Ian Goodman

I used to play golf with a man who cheated so badly that he once had a hole in one and wrote a zero on his scorecard

Ronnie corbett

Newsletter editor: Ian Goodman

Round 4 Autumn League

Reporter: Paul Foster

A day of ‘I can’t see a thing’, and where did my ball go…? Most of the round was played with the sun low on the horizon, which transformed that searing ball of gas into a laser, aimed directly into our eyes. We hit several…somewhere, couldn’t see a single one. We just listened for the faint thud and prayed it wasn’t a tree, or somebody else! Guessing distances became a new sport, only spotting the ball after we had walked 30 yards passed it. Sunglasses? Check, Cap? Check, Ability to see the ball? Absolutely not, next time I’m bringing my welding goggles or a periscope.

Competitors on the day – 41, 22 from the Division 1 and 19 from the Division 2.

One 2 scored today, that man again Mr Collins again, on the long and difficult 5th, only 7 out the 41 players managed to par it, so a 2 is exceptional. Russ Jones birdied 3 of the 4 par 5s and achieved the lowest gross of the day, at 2 over par gross, only Paul Foster managed to par the 16th

Four players put the wrong handicap on their scorecard!!

Sixteen handicaps have changed for round 5, so carefully check your handicap please.

Once again we must try and keep up with the group in front, and be sure to utilize ‘ready play’. Four hours for 15 holes is not what we seek.

“Ready play” a method for speeding up play where players hit their shots when they are ready, rather than strictly following the traditional rule of playing in order of distance from the hole. The goal is to maintain a good pace of play, by encouraging players to be prepared to hit when they can do so safely, without endangering or interfering with others. 

Results:

Division 1 winner: Russ Jones with 35pts
R/up: Arthur Nuttall with 34pts
3rd: Paul Foster with 32pts

Division 2 winner:  Paul Lennie with 32pts
R/up: John Higgins with 29pts on a CPO
3rd: Colin Chisnall with 29pts on a CPO

A dank and dreary start but for those later starters the showers stopped and the sun eventually came out if somewhat reluctantly.

Game: Team Stableford 

3 teams – 10 players 

Happy Mondays – 27 October

Reporter: Peter Willson

Winners: Mike Bennett and Richard Yates – 57 points or 28.5 ppp. The win was made even sweeter by Mike holing out a 5 wood on the 2nd hole for a Hole in One – the 2nd recorded by Seniors in two consecutive weeks.

Mike says he will put a bottle of whisky on the bar on Friday.  

Second: Pete Broady, Dave Craggs, Alan Copeland and Tony Lambert – 101 points or 25.3 PPP

Highest individual score – Mike Bennett with 33 points assisted by his “5 pointer” but closely followed by Dave Craggs with 32 points also carding a 5 point hole score 

Tee booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 30 October)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 2 November

Message from Les Williams – Charity Appeal

Hello fellow seniors. The homeless in Manchester, through Rotary, are looking for any old warm clothes, shoes and blankets you are not using. If you have any, could you please bag them up and let me have them.

I am leaving my car open on Fridays in order that you can put your bags on on the back seat or front passenger seat. I then drop them off at Manchester Cathedral where there is a help centre for people who have fallen on bad times.

My car reg: 2 LCW
Silver Range Rover.

Thank you,
Les.

Your new newsletter editor: Ian Goodman

Reporter: Mark Pickles

Having done a three-year stint on the seniors’ committee, I will be handing over the newsletter next week to Ian Goodman. Ian has not been with us long. You can see his profile here, in the newsletter for 11 June 2025.

In view of the fact that Ian is not yet acquainted with everyone in the senior section, please help him out by sending any articles for inclusion, or reporting anything newsworthy or amusing. You can use the ‘Report News’ tab.

On Monday this week, I gave Ian training for managing the website. I will be available to help out if he has any difficulties while getting used to the technology, although I’m sure he’ll some find his feet. Ian tells me he used to manage an intranet for Citizens Advice.

I won’t be disappearing entirely. I might contribute an article from time to time. And I will be Ian’s reserve, taking over the newsletter when he’s away on holiday, not least because Ian does not possess a laptop PC to work remotely.

I look forward to Ian’s newsletters!

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Autumn League – Round 3 of 10

Reporter: Paul Foster

A very peaceful, autumnal day. The kind where the air carries the scent of pine and the sugars of autumn leaves. The fairways stretch out before you in shades of deep green, framed by trees dressed in fiery orange, reds and yellows. No rush, no pressure, just us seniors, the course and the calm pulse of nature around you. All the while, thinking ahead to the sumptuous steak pie that awaits us back in the clubhouse.

Competitors on the day increased to 47.

Three 2s scored for the second week in a row, one each for Tony Dixon, Phil Lomas and Mike Kendal. Mike hit the flag on the 13th with his tee shot, as close to a hole in one as you will ever see.

Some tremendous scores from Mike Pigott (lowest gross of the day) and Martin Franks. Mike played holes 10 to 18 in two under par gross.

Three players this week put the wrong handicap on their scorecard.

Unfortunately the last group out could not complete the allotted 15 holes due to some alarmingly slow play in front of them. Please keep up with the group in front, and be sure to utilize ‘ready play’.

‘Ready play’ is a method for speeding up play where players hit their shots when they are ready, rather than strictly following the traditional rule of playing in order of distance from the hole. The goal is to maintain a good pace of play, by encouraging players to be prepared to hit when they can do so safely, without endangering or interfering with others.

Results:
1st Division winner – Mike Pigott with 33pts
R/up – Barry McGuigan with 32pts on a CPO
3rd – Martin Franks with 32pts on a CPO

2nd Division winner – Alister Cook with 33pts on a CPO
R/up – Les Williams with 33pts
3rd – John Armstrong with 32pts on a CPO

Annual Business Meeting and Lunch, Friday 17 October

Reporter: Dave Craggs

A very enjoyable afternoon with fine dining and good company. 47 members attended the presentation. Andy Timms, club captain, and John Armstrong, retiring senior’s committee chairman, presented the trophies and prizes to the winners able to attend. Pictured above is Tony Dixon, this year’s senior champion, being presented with the ‘green jumper’.

For those not able to attend see attached files of Steve Gosling’s treasurer’s report, John Armstrong’s speech, and the presentation day prize winners.

Happy Mondays Report

Reporter: Peter Willson

A cloudy but reasonably mild start – marred only by a light shower after a few holes. Game: Team Stableford 

6 teams – 17 players 

Winners: Mike Bennett, Colin Crail and Richard Yates – 85 points or  28.3 ppp
Second: Dave Craggs and Peter Willson – 52 points or 26 ppp

Highest Individual Score – Colin Crail – 31 points – it just goes to show what a new set of irons can do to raise your game even further.

Special Commendation – A Hole in One – scored by John White on the 17th. Well done John and it’s not the 1st time he’s managed to hole out in a single shot.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 23 October)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 26 October

History of the LGC Senior Section

Dave Craggs and Rob Taylor have created an up-to-date history of the senior section from the early 1970s to September 2025. I feel that the document deserves its own page, which I have created here with a permanently-visible link in the header menu.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Autumn League – Round 2 of 10

Reporter: Paul Foster

A positively brief report this week after last week’s literary output.

A sizeable increment of players for round 2, up from 25 to 44, good to see. Oodles of 2nd division players joining the competition.

First the figures:
Three 2s scored on the day, one by Steve Gosling, and two by Mark Pickles, who also came in with the lowest gross score of the day.

Five 1st division players scored 31 points !! That dammed missed putt !!!

Five players put their wrong club handicap on their scorecard. Even more scrutiny of your handicap is required as there are 18 changes in handicap this week. We are now on the seniors winter hcap system, so your handicap may well be different to your existing club handicap. PLEASE CHECK on the Handicaps page here.

Results:
1st Division winner – Arthur Nuttall with 31pts on a CPO
R/up – Barry McGuigan with 31pts on a CPO
3rd – Mark Pickles with 31pts on a CPO

2nd Division winner – Alan Ranscombe with a super 36pts
R/up – Alan Copeland with 32pts on a CPO
3rd – Les Williams with 32pts

Annual Business Meeting – Friday 17th October

Reporter: Dave Craggs

The Annual Business Meeting and Presentation will commence at 13:30 on Friday. We anticipate sitting down for lunch at around 14:15. We have 50 members attending the lunch, so come early for a ring-side table!

There are four Committee members stepping down this year from the Seniors’ Committee.  After three year’s service each, Steve Gosling as treasurer, Mark Pickles as communications officer and Peter Willson as Monday booker & Competitions organiser are stepping down. John Armstrong is also stepping down after his year as Chairman,

We thank all four for their invaluable contributions to the smooth running of the Seniors Section.

It is pleasing to note that four members have stepped forward to stand for election to the Seniors Committee at the ABM on Friday.

Happy Mondays Report – 13 October

A dank and grey start to the day which didn’t improve much. However no rain and wind 

Game: Team Stableford. 18 players in 6 teams   

Winners: Steve Barlow; Steve Bird and Ron Thornton – 79 points or 26.3 ppp

Second: Alan Copeland, Steve Gosling, Charlie Hill and Phil Lomas – 102 points or 25.5 PPP.

High score of the day : Ron Thornton – 33 points including 2 x 4 pointers.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 16 October)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 19 October

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Autumn League, Round 1

Reporter: Paul Foster

A wet and wild day. Who needs sunshine when you can have 15 holes of monsoon golf, especially for the late starters who played in heavy rain from the first putt to the final putt. This turned the course into a real test of resilience, patience and waterproof clothing. More than a few players discovered their waterproofs weren’t as “proof” as advertised. From soaked socks to slippery grips it was a day to get back as quickly as possible to the safe haven of the bar and join Art and Alan for a warming glass of red wine. Despite the soggy fairways, puddled greens and plenty of slippery grips, twenty five players showed great spirit and determination to see the competition through. Did that bother us? Of course not, spirits stayed high (and so did the umbrellas) and we saw Dave Craggs and Paul Foster navigating the soggy chaos to finish top of their respective divisions, clearly Paul and Dave are part duck, part golfer..!!

Results

1^st Division winner: Paul Foster with 29pts
R/up: Grahame Brickell with 28pts on a CPO
3^rd: Dave Meir with 28pts

2^nd Division winner: Dave Craggs with 32pts
R/up: Paul Lennie with 29pts
3^rd: Alan Ranscombe with 27pts

Happy Mondays Report

Reporter: Peter Willson

A cloudy start but it turned into a very pleasant late Autumn day which was surprisingly warm. Game: Team Stableford 4 Teams each with 4 players.

Winners: Steve Barlow, Kevin Bocquet, Alan Copeland and Tony Dixon – 108 points or 27 ppp.
Second: John Booth, Dave Craggs, Phil Lomas and Alan Thomas – 106 points.

Highest Individual score – Steve Bramall – 31 points.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 9 October)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 12 October

Subs overdue

Most members have now paid their subs, but there are stil a few stragglers that our Treasurer will approach to see if they want to remain in the Senior Section.

We know things are uncertain at the moment, but it’s still important that you pay your subs. If you don’t think you can pay the whole amount, please contact our Treasurer, who will consider a monthly payment of £2.50 for 12 months, which includes a very modest interest rate. Please note that if you do not make any payment by November 1st, your credit rating could be affected and you might find it difficult to buy things on tick in the future.

Pay £25 into:

Lymm Golf Over 60s
60-20-29
50244779

LGC Seniors at Prestatyn Golf Club Senior 4BBB Open

Twelve of us made our way to the Welsh border, from where we crawled at 20mph – past many traffic-enforcement cameras – along the coast road to Prestatyn.

Players included Mr Captain – Andy Timms, and Phil Young (last year’s captain). Apart from Jeff Acton, the rest of us were all members of the Senior Section, with tee times of 10:20, 10:30 and 10:40.

Naturally, I arrived first, and was out on the practice area, which I had to myself. There is a long driveway to the clubhouse, which runs along the practice area. Mike Pigott, who travelled with Grahame Brickell, told me later that he and Grahame were laughing out loud when, from a long distance, Grahame pointed out a lone figure and said, “I bet that’s Pickles”.

I think I can say that everyone enjoyed the day. The weather was good. Gentle breeze, fairly bright with lightly overcast skies, and no rain forecast until well after we were due to finish playing. The course was in superb condition, with true and fairly-fast greens.

A handwritten note on the first tee cautioned us that crows on the golf course have been stealing golf balls on the third hole. This didn’t stop Mike Pigott – who hardly ever loses golf balls – from miscalculating the odds and opening a box of Pro V1s, only to see a crow swoop down and fly off with his new ball on the third hole. Mike wasn’t the only one. My playing partner Paul Collins and I saw our balls being carried off the third fairway by a pair of crows seemingly acting in tandem, swooping down from on high as soon as the balls landed. I think that that most of the other Lymm players suffered similar losses.

PC and I played with Trevor Williamson and John White. Trevor and John had a great round, with 40 points. The highest score for the whole Prestatyn open was 41 points, and Trevor and John just missed out on the prizes on CPO.

For our internal comp, we all put a fiver in the pot, with prizes for the best and second best round, and a nearest-the-pin. Trevor and John took first of course, Paul and I took second with 35 points. All the remaining four teams posted 34 points. These Stableford scores might seem low, but, for some reason, North Wales golf courses have a notoriously low course handicap and slope rating which, for instance, meant that I had to play off 4, and Paul off 5. Mike had to play off 2! Fair to say, I think that all pairs played well, and well above average for the main comp.

Back to the crows. There are several theories about their thieving behaviour, such as that the crows think the balls are eggs, and are storing them in a winter larder, just as jays and squirrels hide away acorns. Another theory is that the crows simply like collecting and hoarding shiny objects (perhaps to impress a mating partner, like bower birds do). However, when we returned to the clubhouse, I was talking to a Prestatyn member who offered the most convincing explanation. He said there is a former member called Dafydd ‘Dai’ Waggitt who lives in a house overlooking the third green and is suspected of training the crows to collect golf balls, and then hoarding them to impress his wife. I asked, “Is his wife impressed?” He said, “No. She was overheard saying, ‘FFS, Dai; how am I supposed to get into the garage with all these golf balls in the way?'”

Bye bye Lindsay!

Lindsay Fox left Lymm Golf Club today, after 24 years of service, heading for pastures new. I’m sure that I can speak for all of us in the Senior Section in saying that we will miss Lindsay. The seniors’ committee agreed to present Lindsay with a £50 M&S Voucher. Of the few of us in the clubhouse at lunchtime today, Arthur Nuttall, who served for 7 years on the seniors’ committee, was ‘volunteered’ to present the voucher and a card signed by many of us to Lindsay.

We wish her well in her new venture.

Health and Safety News

An unhinged-looking senior, getting ready to start up a chainsaw, was photographed on Monday walking around Lymm Golf Club car park. If you see him again, report him to the office. Under no circumstances should you approach him.

Joking apart, Phil Omersher responded to Dave Craggs’ appeal in last week’s newsletter for a chainsaw. Phil kindly offered it for no payment, suggesting a donation be made to charity instead.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Subs are now overdue!

Our treasurer, Steve Gosling, is not a happy man. He tells me that out of a membership of 95, only 39 of us have paid to date.

I know that not everyone reads the newsletter, and so please tell your regular playing partners that they must pay up as soon as possible. One or two have stated they intend to leave the senior section due to other commitments. We will need to assume that those who have not paid up before the start of the Autumn League are also intending to leave us, and will not be competing in the Autumn League. We cannot function as a large club section without funds!

Steve also tells me that there are some who have put their name on the list for the ABM lunch, but have not paid the £10 for the two-course meal (part-subsidised by the senior section). Steve would like to confirm the catering numbers with Karen as soon as possible.

If you have not already done so, please pay immediately your £25 subs and – if you are attending – the £10 for the ABM lunch. Pay into our main bank account, not the interclub match account. The details are:

Lymm Golf Over 60s
60-20-29
50244779

Seniors’ Turkey Trot 2025

Reporter: Paul Foster

Another wonderful late summer’s day, for all our punters to win this year’s Turkey Trot Voucher. Only three players managed to beat par even with a number of shortened holes (but a few lengthened par 3s to make up) all from the 2nd division. Also good to see a full complement of the Friday wine club in the bar..

Results:

1st Division winner – Paul Foster with 30pts (wife is a vegan!!)
R/up – Trevor Williamson with 29pts
3rd – Steve Gosling with 28pts

2nd Division winner – Steve Bramall with 33pts
R/up – Ian Goodman with 32pts
3rd – Phil Lomas with 31pts

We start in earnest next Friday for the start of the Autumn League…First week we use the WHS club playing hcap as used in the turkey trot. (Note at least 2 players used the wrong hcap LAST Friday, and so please check.)

Happy Mondays Report

Reporter: Peter Willson

A murky misty start to the round and a bit on the chilly side, but after a few holes, the mists cleared and the sun came out, yielding a beautiful blue early-autumn day, with little to no wind.

Game: Team Stableford. 20 players in seven teams.

Winners: Steve Gosling, Charlie Hill and Ron Thornton – 81 points or 27 PPP
Second place: Paul Foster, John White and Peter Willson – 80 points or 26.7 PPP

Highest individual score: Alan Copeland and Steve Gosling – 30 points each.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 2 October)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 5 October

Prestatyn Tomorrow (Thursday 2 October)

Tomorrow Prestatyn Golf Club is hosting a mens’ senior open (4BBB).

I believe that there are going to be 12 of us from Lymm GC, with three adjacent tee times around 10:30.

I suggest that, for our internal competition, we all put £5 into the pot. We can then pay out £30 to the first pair, £20 to the second pair, and £10 for a nearest-the-pin on the short 17th. I’ll make sure everyone approves – or has any alternative ideas – before we tee off tomorrow. In any case, bring some cash!

The weather forecast for Prestatyn is good at the time of writing, and so it should be a very enjoyable day playing this superb championship links. I’ll report the results next week.

And finally…

Craggzy wants a chainsaw, for log cutting. If you have a working chainsaw for sale, please contact Dave Craggs on 07790 976916.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Autumn League

Reporter: Paul Foster

With autumn setting in, and the Autumn League approaching, we will see some necessary changes to our Friday competitions following the recent email from Keith Melia regarding holes being out of action.

For the Autumn League we will be operating the Senior Section’s manual handicap system from round 1. Amended handicaps using the manual system over the Autumn League will be available each week on the LGC seniors web site.

Pre-registering rounds will not be required for the Turkey Trot or for the duration of the Autumn League. The winner will be the best 5 rounds out of a possible 10 rounds.

A minimum of 7 Rounds should be played in the Autumn League. If 6 rounds or less are played, the League will be cancelled.

All Autumn league competitions are scored over 15 holes only. The designated course is the first 15 holes open on that day. (i.e. if hole 1&2 are closed but all others are open, the competition is played over 3-17 for that day).

If fewer than 15 holes are open. The scores achieved on these holes will be pro-rated up to 15 holes for the consistency of recording the players’ league positions in the League.

A sleeve of balls will be awarded to players who score a two on the designated course during the Autumn League. Apart from the overall league prizes and trophies, there will be a small weekly monetary prize (that goes onto your account in the Pro’s shop) for the winner of each division on the day.

We will continue to have 2 divisions. As last year, Division 1 players have a maximum playing handicap of 18. Although Division 2 has more players in it, experience over the past few years since we introduced divisions indicates that far fewer Division 2 players compete in the Autumn and Winter periods. For example, last year, although Division 2 had about 10 more players, only 21 played the necessary 5 rounds or more, compared to 26 in Division 1.

Interclub friendly, home to Warrington, Friday 19 September

Reporter: Andy Timms (Mr Captain and CoD)

And so the series of summer friendly matches drew to a close with our traditional climax of entertaining our friends from “the” Warrington golf club. A slight change to the way the day ran saw us meeting up early for bacon butties and coffee before a slightly later than usual start. This seemed to go down well with the majority of those there, so we’ll be adopting this new arrangement going forwards into next year’s matches.

The match itself was played in largely dry conditions, thankfully, and saw a convincing win for the home team by a score of 6-2. The individual scores were as follows :

Mr Captain & Art Laird – Won 1 up
Andrew Cox & Stuart Baird – Won 2 up
David Donnell-Jones & Ron Thornton – Halved
Steve Gosling & Colin Hughes – Lost 6&5 !!
Pete Broady & Les Williams – Halved
Mike Pigott & Grahame Brickell – Won 4&2
Paddy Moran & Mervyn Roberts – Won 4&2
Mike Bennett & Ian Smith – Won 1 up

The day was then rounded off by a fine fish and chip meal and a presentation including a joke which (even if we all had heard it before) did raise a decent laugh.

A final comment – on behalf of everyone who played in the matches this year, I’d like to propose a vote of thanks for Grahame Brickell and Steve Bird who have both been brilliant this year in their organisation of the matches. Bring on next season…..

Bottle of Wine Competition, Friday 19 September

Reporter: Paul Foster

A mixed bag for the final episode of the Châteaux de Willson challenge. A day for low handicappers it seems, as the top 6 positions were all 12 hcap or less.

Nobody beat par today again out of an improved 29 entry’s, with just one 2 scored, that man PC…!

Please note there were 29 pre-registered for the comp, with only 25 entering their score into Ig, and 24 cards handed in. I repeat, If you enter a comp you must either remove your name if you do not intend to play, or, you must enter your score into Ig.

Results

Winner – Colin Royle with 30pts on a CPO
R/up – Paul Collins with 30pts
3rd – Koos Alders with 29pts

Peter, has by all accounts an exceptional bottle of wine for Colin this week, from the dusty dark corners of his stately residence underground wine cellar, I feel an 1869 Château Lafite Rothschild on offer…!

That’s it for the BoW Fridays this year, bring on the Autumn League…

Full comp results on the LGC website here.

Turkey Trot, this Friday

This coming Friday – 26 September – sees the climax of the Senior Section’s golfing year: the Turkey Trot.

The Turkey Trot is earlier in the calendar this year, the plan being that we would be playing the full WHS qualifying course off the proper tees. Unfortunately, we have had the short-notice plans from LGC that maintenance of all tees is to be carried out over the next few weeks, and drainage work on holes 1 and 12. Therefore, there is no need to enter the competition on IG. Paul Foster will manually go through the cards. There will be no more WHS qualifying rounds in the Senior Section competitions this year, because even if the course fully re-opens in mid October, our senior handicaps will have been manually adjusted after the first two Autumn-league rounds.

Entry to the competition is free to all paid-up members of the Senior Section, who will compete for the massive purse of £60: two £30 cash prizes, one each for the winner of Division 1 and Division 2 respectively. See Paul Foster’s piece above, regarding the divisions for Autumn and Winter.

Although £30 will be unlikely to get you a turkey for human consumption, it will more than cover the top-of-the-range turkey pet food, if you want to give your loyal companion a treat at Christmas.

Subs are due 1 October

It is now time to pay your £25 annual subs, which are due by 1 October.

You can pay the £10 fee for the ABM lunch at the same time. Do not pay into the inter-club match account, use the main Senior’s account, as shown here:

Lymm Golf Over 60s
60-20-29
50244779

Happy Mondays report for 22 September

Reporter: Peter Willson

A beautiful crisp, and yet little chilly, start to the day with clear blue skies. Little to no wind. The course is looking good following the recent rain which has softened it up and the greens are receptive and running true. However the pin positions were still the very challenging ones that had been set up for the LGS Finals Weekend, hence the lowish average scores.

5 teams – 19 players – for the Team Stableford game 

Winners: Paul Foster, Ken Pearce, Mark Pickles and Steve Rowley – 102 points or 22.5 ppp

Second: Mike Bennett, Pete Broady, Colin Crail and Rich Yates – 93 / 23.3 ppp

Highest individual score – Mark Pickles 30 points, which included a ‘2’ on the difficult (today) 13th, with the pin on the very back of the green.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 25 September)

Happy Mondays tee-booking schedule for Sunday 28th

Galloping Grandads!

Paul Foster went to watch his son and his daughter finishing the Warrington half marathon last Sunday, and much to his surprise, our own Alan Copeland was amongst the good, the bad and the ugly crossing the finishing line.

Alan, it seems, is no slouch in the running the shoes, and posted an impressive time of 1:43:38, which was very similar to the time posted by Paul’s son.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Interclub friendly Lymm versus Leigh, Friday 12 September

Reporter: Grahame Brickell (CoD)

Oh I do enjoy golfing days like last Friday… sun was shining, still warm for the time of year, some dampness on the ground, and as you get to the lounge/bar before the game, the room was fairly full, the coffee & biscuits were going down well and there was good buzz about the place.

Mr Captain, after a gentle nudge from myself, welcomed our guests and we endeavoured to ensure everyone knew who the they were playing with and then we headed out to do friendly battle.

I played with Les W. We found ourselves 1 down after the first due to a lengthy putt from one ‘‘of them”, but following a long edge-of-the green burdie putt at hole 6 from me, we got to the turn 1 up. From there played some solid golf through to 15… where we were sitting pretty, at +2, but up steps their Mr Long putter nailing one from off the green for a 4, needing me to hole my 20ft for a half ..good job I did, they were devastated!

They took 16, with 5 nett 4’s, 17 was halved, down to the last which again was halved. We won 1 up.

Our 1 up win was the lowest winning margin!!
Messrs Craggs & Alders 5&4
2 x 4&3 wins
Only 1 match was halved
Lymm win 7.5  – 0.5

Great games all round with plenty of good spirit being in evidence on both sides.

Roll on this Friday and our last match of the season, Warrington ! Another good win is required to round off the year.

Grahame.

Friday BoW Competition, Friday 12 September

Full results here on the main LGC website. Stuart Baird takes the bottle.

Presentation Lunch and Annual Business Meeting, Friday 17 October

Reporter: Dave Craggs

The presentation lunch this year will be held on Friday 17 October.

The format will be the same as our previous presentation lunches. The business of the ABM will precede the presentation of our 2025 Trophies to those that triumphed during this year.

No long lists to plough through nor boring monologues, just the usual barrel of laughs and a fitting end to another fabulous year.

The ABM and trophy presentation will commence at 1.30pm and we aim to sit down to lunch at 2pm – so please plan to be there before to allow time to enjoy a pre-lunch drink with your friends if you so wish.

A list is now up on the Seniors Section notice board adjacent to the locker room.

Please put your names down as soon as possible so we can have a clear shot at reckoning the numbers for Karen and her team.

The lunch will consist of steak pie and chips followed by apple crumble & custard. The meal will be subsidised to the tune of £8.00 leaving you to pay only £10.00.

If you wish to pay your annual subs of £25.00 at the same time, please pay £35.00 which should be paid to:

Lymm Golf Over 60s
60-20-29
50244779

Ref: ABM-surname

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 18 September)

Happy Mondays tee-booking this Sunday, 21 September

Andy Ward Pairs Trophy

Reporter: Peter Willson

The draw has been made, with guidance and assistance from Russ Jones. Your partners (don’t blame me – it’s the pooter which selects the names and pairings), the draw and dates for completion of rounds can be found on the main LGC website under ‘Upcoming Competitions’.

Five 1st round matches to be played by 14th November; 2nd round by 12th December.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles

Seniors’ Championship 2025 – Friday 5 September

Reporter: Paul Foster

Another pleasant late summer’s day, with little wind, no rain, and the sun intermittently peeping out from the clouds for the biggest annual prize on offer for the seniors, in a field of 25 players.

Another Rommel to add to the list, John Higgins!

With the ever increasing numbers of buggies, we now have our own version of the ‘Wacky Races’, where the Army Surplus Special and the Arkansas Chuggabug (Alister Cook & Steve Barlow) criss-cross the fairways vying for position.

Five players beat par today out of twenty six entry’s, with two 2s scored, Colin Crail & Barry Smith. Lowest gross score was Mark Pickles.

Seniors Champion for 2025 and winner of the coveted Green Jersey was Tony Dixon.

Results:
Winner – Tony Dixon with 34pts
R/up – Art Laird with 33pts
3rd – Alan Copeland with 32pts on a CPO

Friday BoW Competition Friday 5 September

Ten entries for this weeks 9-hole ‘Willson wine of the week’ competition for those who had not qualified for the Seniors Championship. Alister Cook had the only 2.

Results:
Winner – Les Williams with 21pts
R/up – Ian Goodman with 20
3rd – Martin Lowe with 19p

Interclub friendly, away at Northenden Golf Club, Monday 8 September

Match Reporter: Bob Mycock

The Lymm Team selected by Grahame (the eternal optimist) for the match at Northenden duly turned up for duty, in good spirits and in possession of our swimming trunks and snorkels just in case the River Mersey had burst its banks again after the torrential rain over the weekend.

Luckily, this time the Mersey behaved itself, and and Ron Thornton was able to put away his mankini for another Day (phew). The course however was still showing signs of the New Year’s Day Floods on the front 9 holes, with most of the bunkers GUR and still awaiting repairs. But generally the course was in good condition with mainly lush grass on the fairways.

On to the match, which was played in the a friendly and good spirit, but ultimately resulted in a resounding hiding in Lymm’s favour of 5 1/2 to 2 1/2, or an honourable draw (if you are from Northenden).

Lunch provided the biggest slice of cheese and onion pie (seen this side of Cheshire) with a couple of hidden chips…

Many thanks to the team on the day for a great performance and their support on an impressive away win.

Tatton League 2025

Reporter: Mike Pigott (Tatton team captain)

After the triumph of winning the league last year, this season was a bit of a disappointment. However, after playing the final round at Heyrose yesterday, we managed to finish a creditable 3rd place behind the eventual winners Antrobus and silver medalists Heyrose. Both the leading teams have a bit of a reputation of having a number of spurious high handicappers in their fold so finishing close to them was a fair achievement. And I am told by Andy Timms (Club Captain and deep-thinking statistician) that 905 points was 14 points more this year than we made last year when we won the title.

As Lymm captain of the Tatton side I would like to congratulate Antrobus on their great comeback to win the title and remind them we are only loaning them the trophy for twelve months!

On a personal note I would like to thank the players in the squad for making themselves available and for bearing with me when they weren’t selected, a task I found quite difficult for most games. The following players represented Lymm Seniors during the year: Paddy Moran, Ian Whitehead, Colin Royle, Mike Pigott, Richard Cooper, Steve Gosling, Grahame Brickell, Rick Shaw, Russ Sollitt, Mark Pickles, Andy Timms, Russ Jones, Dave Meir, Martin Franks and Martin France.

The league table finished Antrobus 927, Heyrose 919, Lymm 905, Birchwood 903, High Legh 900, and Styal 850.

All who made themselves available for selection are meeting up for a golfing and socialising day at Lymm on Monday 6th October. Hopefully we can all have a bit of fun, and formulate a way of winning back the title next year!

Abergele Seniors’ Open – 4-Man Team

By all accounts, Peter Broady did an excellent job, as he does every year, organising a Lymm possy of happy and smiling Seniors to compete in the Abergele GC Seniors’ Open last Thursday.

Peter reports: “Sunshine and heavy showers were the order of the day on the golf course. The greens flooded on one occasion but soon recovered when the sun came out again. Despite the weather we enjoyed ourselves”.

Results of Lymm’s in-house competition:

Winners: Trevor Williamson. Ron Thornton. John Booth. Les Williams.    70 points.
Runners up:  
Mike Bennett. Richard Yates. John White. John Armstrong.    63 points.

I spoke to Peter today, who tells me that there were four prizes for the main Abergele competition, with 4th prize on 76 points and 1st prize on 80 points.

Tee-booking schedule for tomorrow (Thursday 11 September)

Happy Mondays tee-booking this Sunday, 14 September

Andy Ward Pairs Trophy

Do you want to play in the autumn/winter pairs knockout, but have not yet put your name on the list? Please enter your name before this coming Friday (12 September). On Friday, Peter Willson will remove the list from the Seniors’ noticeboard, and create the draw for the competition on I.G.

Newsletter Editor: Mark Pickles