Fore Info October 2017

The most suitable alternative is to display a dead rook close to those bunkers which are at risk. Although it is recognised that some members
may not welcome this, the Management Committee has decided to adopt this alternative in order to minimise damage to bunker surrounds which could, if unchecked, cost several thousands of pounds to repair. More information is in the Greens article.

The winner of the Captain’s Prize was Jess Miles with 37 points – not a high scoring day, partly due to the tee placements which, I understand, were quite demanding. Best Man was Drew Fielden with 37 points also, Best Lady was Cathy Hilton with 35 points (on countback from Elaine Spreadbury) and Best Junior was Millie Jonathen. Millie couldn’t win Best Lady as she qualified already for Best Junior. Congratulations to all our winners.

Both Dave Farr and Mike Day have had holes-in-one since my last report – congratulations to them both.

The Francis Holmes Shield, played between the original Hampshire 9 hole clubs – Andover, Romsey, Marlborough and Alresford was played on 23rd September at Marlborough this year and was won by the home team. Alresford managed third place – well played all.

The HCLGA Alresford Cup for Junior Girls involving players from Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Kent, Middlesex and Surrey was played at Alresford on Sunday 24th September and Hampshire was represented in the F division by our own Jenny Myers who carded a very creditable 33 points. Surrey won the day with the Hampshire team coming 5th out of the 8 counties.

Forthcoming events

28th Sept Rules session with Malcolm Scott 

1st Oct Cock & Hen Trophy

15th Oct Men v Hampshire Schools

21st Oct Auction of Promises

22nd Oct Harry May – Two generations Trophy

11th Nov Club Dinner

Watch out for notices for these events and
join in the fun!

Andrew Frearson

Club Captain

The winning team with 77 points was Mary Panter, Mal Hope-Mason and Nancy Brooke. Nearest the pin on the 13th was Linda Glynn and longest drive for handicaps 26-36 was Mo Brooking. My thanks to Jennifer Clelland and Sandra Hooker for their hard work in organising this and making it such an enjoyable day for us all.

Alresford hosted the annual Alresford Cup on Sunday, 24 September, a county event for Junior Girls with all the home arrangements made by Mary Rook who had an excellent team of helpers on the day. We were all given an amazing insight into what we might have achieved if we had started golf a lot earlier in our lives and it was a delight to watch their game and share some of their views on life and golf! The winning team came from Surrey and, having acted as Starter on the 10th tee, I had the privilege to have in my group to shepherd the girl with the highest overall score of 44 Stableford points, Alex Phelps. What a credit to her county, club and family and what a future she has in the sport.

Warm congratulations to the teams who did so well at Hockley and Tidworth, results shown on the results page. We have had such a successful end to the season and I would like to thank you for all your enthusiasm and commitment.

Further afield, we were represented in the Hampshire team for the English Women’s County finals at Felixstowe Ferry by Kelly Travers, supported by Mary Rook and Lyn Travers. Hampshire came a very creditable fourth and Kelly was a major contributor to this result.

October looks as though it might be a quieter time but I would urge you all to keep an eye on the noticeboard and sign up for the forthcoming winter and social events.

Jean Coveyduck
Ladies Captain

If one of the pair does not have a handicap, then while they are welcome to play they are not eligible to win the trophy, although they are eligible to win a prize.

The sign-up sheet is on the notice-board in the Entrance Hall. The closing date is Monday 16th October with the draw being made on 17th October.

Winter Leagues

The sign-up sheets for the Winter Mixed Foursomes and the Men’s Lombard 4BBB are now available in the Pro’s Shop. These competitions are open to 7-day members with competition handicaps. The closing date for entries is Sunday 22nd October and the draw for the leagues will be posted by Tuesday 24th October. Generally each team will have 3 matches to play and all matches in the leagues must be completed by Sunday 4th February 2018 after which the draw will be made for the Knock-out phase.

George Clelland

Question. A player damaged his ball at a certain hole, declared it unfit for play and substituted another ball. Later in the round on another hole, he played the damaged ball. What is the ruling?

Thanks once again to our local rules expert, Brian Overton, for setting these fascinating questions

By the time you read this article the summer season of Vets matches will be drawing to close, with only one game left to play, namely the match at Cowdray Park on the 9 October. However, we still have other games to enjoy, including the annual game between the Vets and Ladies, and of course the Bagman Trophy on the 11 October.

As we get towards the end of this playing season, the fixtures list for the 2018 season is being finalised and for first time will include a home and away fixture with Hamptworth Golf Club. This will replace our annual fixture against Avington Park. Shown below, The Beast, Hamptworth’s 666 yard par 6 hole!

Hamptworth Golf Club is just inside the New Forest, approximately 40 minutes drive from Alresford. The course is undulating and challenging, but nevertheless enjoyable for all ability levels, and is well maintained with good quality greens.

The clubhouse is a good standard with a large bar and dinning area, with the promise that the catering will be good.

I believe this will be a very popular and welcome addition to our fixtures list, so that next year we will have the opportunity to enjoy playing at 20 different 18-hole Clubs during the summer season.

The annual Vets & Partners Dinner will be held on Thursday the 12 October and for £22.50 per person, we can enjoy a 3-course meal together with wine. If you have not yet paid you are requested to do so by 4 October.

Finally, congratulations to David Nightingale for winning the rain delayed over 80’s Championship.

Geoff Procter
Vets Captain

This is easily accessed by the golfer on a number of multi-media platforms such as mobile applications, in-cart computers, the club’s website and in-house LCD TVs. All of this equipment is provided completely free of charge to the club.

The website Hole Guide has been updated to provide links to the 3D Flyovers – these are surprisingly realistic and provide an excellent overview of the hole.

Course Plan Updated

Some of you may be aware that there is a very detailed plan of the course available on the website here. This has been updated to incorporate changes to the course over the last couple of years. Bunkers have been removed where appropriate and the transplanting of trees reflected.

Ron Beal
Webmaster

We are concerned about the damage to bunker surrounds caused by rooks (see below).  The cost of repairing this could run to thousands unless we control at source.  Please see ‘Management Corner’ for update.

We have learned of a recent incident at Dibden GC, where a diseased tree fell on a green keeper causing life changing injuries. We are therefore looking very closely at reducing this area of risk to golfers and staff. There are 2 trees on the course which are dead or dying and require immediate removal. One is the first Silver Birch on the left of the 9th fairway; the other is the 3rd tree on the left of the 12th fairway. We will arrange tree surgeons to come and remove these 2 high risk trees.   For your information, a report was put together by external tree consultants 6 years ago, identifying trees which had potential to become H&S risks. The trees identified have been numbered and are regularly checked.  We do plan to review and update.

The new ‘Course and Greens Information’ web page is now live on the club website. This web page can be accessed from the ‘members only’ area of the website and contains links to documents and other resources relating to the maintenance and development of our course.  Many members have passed very positive feedback regarding the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page. This will be a working document and we have already made additions to the content.  Many thanks again to Jon Capp who has driven this initiative.

Finally, as we start to think about winter golf, we have prepared a supplementary yardage chart reduced yardages to the temporary greens.  These will be available in the Proshop soon.

Happy golfing!

Mark Tiplady

Answer. There is no penalty. However, the player may not again declare the ball (in the same condition) unfit for play. Decision 5-3/2

Not a member of the 100 Club?

If you’re not a member of the 100 Club, you can become one for as little as £1 per month. Shares in the 100 Club are purchased for £1 per month and there is no limit on the number of shares which can be held. In general, most members have between 1 and 5 shares and pay by monthly direct debit, though it’s also possible to pay quarterly or annually. Each share is allocated a number which is entered in the monthly draw. The top prize is £100, with a second prize of £50 and four other prizes of £32. For more information contact George Clelland on 01962735008 or george.clelland@btinternet.com, or call in to the Secretary’s office.

George Clelland