The Ladies’ Club Championship was played over two days of a ferociously hot weekend, with some competitors succumbing to heatstroke in temperatures that reached thirty degrees!

The ball was running for miles on the fairways after weeks of dry weather, and credit must go to the greenkeepers for maintaining the greens in fine condition.

There were handicap reductions for Gail Proctor and Rosi Brown on Day One, and for Frankie Dezis and Jackie Walker on Day Two. The trophies went to Jackie Walker as Club Champion, with a gross score of 165, the Nett Champion was Gail Proctor, with 140, and our Senior Ladies’ Trophy (over fifty) went to Lena Warren, who had also the third-lowest gross with 175, beating Mandy Hobbs on countback. Our Junior Girls were also in the prizes, with Abby Gray second-lowest gross of 170 and Frankie Dezis second-lowest nett of 144. On Day One, Clare Salter and June Symonds both had a two on the fifteenth, and on Day Two, Jackie Walker on the fifth.

With players preparing for the Club Championship the following week, the Men’s Saturday Medal was a great time to prepare for medal golf. The Saturday Medal was also held in hot conditions, again, with the golf ball travelling long distances. In Division One, a good round from Chris Young with a score of 80–67 took the honours, with Steve Symonds second, with 81–69 and Alan Broadway, third, on 82–69. Division Two’s top man was Bob Baker, with an excellent 85–68, with good rounds also from Paul Panton in second, with 92–69 and Mike Bradbury, third, on 87–71.

There was some low scoring in the Sunday Medal, held in scorching conditions, with Lee Bruton taking the honours in Division One with 74–71, with Jack Broadway in second, on 76–71 and Craig Adams, third, on 71–72. A good day for the Robinsons in Division Two, with Andrew Robinson taking top spot on 97–71, Shaun Robinson in second, on 98–72 and Neil Morgan, third, on 89–73.

With the World Cup done and dusted the wait goes on – anyone born when England won the trophy in ‘66 will be approaching sixty years of age before the next opportunity arises in Qatar. Our young team will be four years older, wiser and much more experienced.

Anyway, onto matters in the golfing world. An Eagle is a notable achievement, not quite up there at the top of the pecking order, but certainly worth a mention. However, for two Senior players, in a Four Ball Better Ball, to get an Eagle on the same hole . . . well, we could be entering the pages of the Guinness Book of Records! Ex-Captain, David Elliott, and Steve Gay, both achieved this rare occurrence on the signature twelfth home whilst playing in the weekly Seniors competition.

With golf balls seemingly sprouting legs in this extremely dry period, unpredictable bounces make club selection a bit of a lottery. Some excellent scoring was achieved by a large number of pairings, but clear winners on the day were Alan Skivington and Jim Farmer, with an impressive fifty points.