He's back... 

It's been a while in actual fact it's been almost a full a summer since Paul Traynor last won and this time he wasn't carrying his mat! Matman smashed his personal course record by shooting 74 gross in the August Monthly medal. The very same day I took part in the same competition and shot exactly the same score. The only difference being Paul has a handicap allowance of 12 to the +2 allowance I play off. This meaning my nett 76 led me half way down the table while Paul's nett 62 which gave him a comfortable win from Richard Margrave who I had the pleasure of playing with on 66. Also in division 1 was Andy Bent posting 69 - 1 = 68 in third place. 

In division 2 - Phil Easter took advantage of some early conditions with another good round coming from the morning group. Phil's 79 - 13 = 66 gave him a 4 shot cushion from runner up Mike Bardsley's Nett 70. 

Division 3 is always interesting in a medal. The lesser consistent golfers are susceptible to an occasional high number when all holes must be completed. It's a real test and it's no secret, a stableford scoring system is preferred by many. Dave Walker managed to top the leader board posting an 88 - 18 = 70. His nett - level par score was good enough to pip runners up Stuart Mulvaney & Steve Dooley by a single shot.

Wednesday Stableford 

I've given some lessons in my time, but this was a first! Lines!! Let's not take any attention from the eventual winner here, Mr. Alan Booth is producing some real consistent golf at the minute, and for that reason he is top of the Wednesday league. 

Increasing his lead at the top of the league with a 12 hole stableford score of 28 points, Alan managed to hold off Steve Tither & Anthony Sharples in a card playoff. 

The topic of conversation on Thursday morning around the clubhouse was relatively new member Garry Foster. 

He reached the headlines last week with his second win of the season, which he very nearly made a trio of wins Wednesday… had he signed his card! Only to find out he had been disqualified for forgetting to sign his card, Garry paid the ultimate price and suffered.




A History Lesson with Peter Hankey 

This week I asked Pet Hankey to give members an insight into how the course and Club House looked when he joined in 1974, He said; "It was then a 12 hole course, we used to play 1 to 11 then down 17 and start again on the 1st to the 5th and finish off with the 18th." Hopefully over the next coming weeks Peter will try to tell us how the improvements to the course have taken place, to now be left with what we consider to be the best Golf Club in the North West. 




Good Golf course etiquette - Pace of play 

It's easy pointing the finger at the accused. We've all been guilty at some point in our golfing days of a bit of slow play. Here are a few pointers to be aware of while you're out on the course;

- On completion of a hole mark your scorecard on the next tee, in between shots.
- Brisk walking, but take your time over your shot.
- Spend no more than 5 minutes looking for a lost ball.
- Keep up with the game in front and not just in front of the game behind.




Physio corner 

Here's a little test for you. The often under-rated Gluteus Medius muscle keeps your pelvis level and is vitally important for hip health. 

So how are yours holding up? Try these exercises. If you can do the first, then your hips are OK. If you can do the second you're bullet proof. 

If you can't do either - it's time to get practising.