Saturday December 29th – December Medal – Stroke & Putts

After three days of 35C+ the course had dried out quite a deal however, some overnight rain and the forecast for more later in the day and into Sunday morning looked to be a real positive for the course.  The round began with light drizzle falling, this soon lifted and conditions were still and very humid.  The predicted steady south/SSE winds did not eventuate giving all players confidence they could expect consistent flight from high approach shots.  Warm air saw the strong field get good distance off the tee and there was plenty of run on the fairways.  With the greens running quite fast all chips had to be “centimetre perfect” or risk rolling well off leaving a very tricky “up and down”.  On a sticky afternoon the results were;

Men’s – December Medalist; Rob Rea – 86/18/68 from Mick Nicholls Snr – 94/24/72, Mick Squire – 81/8/73 & Mick Nicholls Jnr – 90/17/73

Women’s December Medalist; Darlene Baker – 88/16/72 from Elaine Scanlon – 104/30/74

NTPs; 1st Mick Nicholls Snr, 15 & 16 – Andrew Laing

Least Putts; Rob Rea – 23

 

Wednesday December 26th – Boxing Day Stableford

It was a determined and hardy group of RGC members  who teed up for the Boxing Day Stableford competition, Rev Allan Williams was down from RAAF Richmond for his annual round at Romsey and a number of other visiting golfers took advantage of the beautiful conditions and the friendly clubrooms.  The round began with the temperature at about 25C with virtually no wind.  By the time the field was into the back nine things had heated up and balls were travelling further in the air and along the fairways.  The Corellas have arrived in some numbers and begun to attack the 7th, 15th and 16th greens, limited damage so far but very still very disappointing as RGC’s greens are in their best state for many years.  Despite the top conditions no one was really able to take control of the course and post a score well under their handicap.  On a beautiful, very enjoyable morning, the results were;

Winner; Mal Mottram (10) – 35 pts from Chris Lingard (3) – 33pts & Mick Nicholls Jnr (16) 33 pts

NTPs; 15th – Chris Lingard & 16th Allan Williams

Saturday December 22nd – Ambrose

A strong field took to the course for the penultimate round of the year, Ambrose.  Teams of three and four hit-off on a cool, overcast afternoon.  Teams who got one good drive away on a hole often found the next few drives all over the place and players went for extra distance.  With each player having to record three or four drives a few teams were in trouble as they headed down the final few holes and found the location of their second shot was less than opportune.  During the round the wind blew strongly from the south then the east and almost anywhere between; players often got caught by a gust seeing a well aimed and well played shot veer sharply away from the green.  The greens were in top nick however, on a few, dodging the little nuggets left by the ducks, was quite a challenge.  As the round drew to a close the sun came out, the jumpers came off making for a very pleasant end to the day.  On a cool, windy afternoon the results were;

Winners; Pat Chisholm/Jim Patton/Mick Nicholls Jnr – 69/7.6/61.3. from Scott Williams/Michael Reid/Dave Richardson – 74/11.6/62.3 & Bob Dwyer/Mal Mottram/Hugh Drummond – 74/ 11.16/62.84

NTPs; 15th – Les Gaunt

Saturday December 15th – 4BBB Stroke

After the torrential downpour of Thursday morning (40mm) and some more than steady rain on Friday (20mm) then an amazing 60 minutes that saw 25mm drop on the Park on Saturday morning the course was soft, with occasional casual water and muddy in some areas, relief, to a handspan was given.  To add to the challenge the days of rain meant the fairways had not been cut. Play began under cool, overcast conditions and soon enough steady rain fell; it looked as if the golf might have to be called off when, after three holes, the rain ceased and the sun came out making for a very steamy afternoon.  There was also a flukey wind, moving from the NE to E, which caught a number of players out once their ball got above the tree line.  The 4BBB Stroke format records the best nett score for each hole, if a pair could play steady golf with the odd excellent hole they were in with a good chance.  Three pairs had very good front nines recording scores well below par.  The back nine proved more than challenging as the sun dried the greens and putting was much slicker.  The corellas have returned and begun to attack a few of the greens, after so much time and funds spent to improve the greens what can you do?  On a humid afternoon the results were;

Winners; Anthony Lakey (22)/John Freestone (21) – 62 from Scott Williams (18)/Chris vanDerVliet (25) – 68 & Jim Patton (18)/Mick Nicholls Jnr (16) – 68

NTPs; 15th Mal Mottram

Wednesday December 12th – Par 3 Course

Our captain rearranged the course to allow a 12 hole Par 3 competition today. A field of 11 players enjoyed the challenge of teeing off from strategically placed tees creating par 3s on the Old Course.   Some shorter holes were quite tricky making club selection all important. Great score were recorded with the final results
Winner; Jan Harver –  55/36/19 from Denise O’Meara – 58/36/22   C/B  Connie Cecys-58/36/22

Saturday December 8th – Stableford

After two days of mid 30C with drying northerly winds the course had dried our considerably.  The recycled water system was running flat-out to make sure as little as possible of the deeper soil dried out.  The greens were still in good nick, putting very true and holding high approach shots.  While the fairways had dried out the surround were still reasonably soft; approach shots just missing the green did not move very far from their line.  All players got excellent value for their drives but those who kept it on the fairway were able to score well.  In the end it was a battle between two of the club’s veterans with one looking the winner until the final group came in.  On a hot, overcast afternoon the results were;

Winner; John Laing (30) – 41 pts from Mick Nicholls Snr (24) – 38 pts, Les Gaunt (8), Andrew Clement (9) & John Freestone (21)  all 35 pts

NTPs; 15th – Les Gaunt

Wednesday December 5th – North Pole Rules

Lorraine and Beryl created a mixed up fun game of North Pole Rules for our 12 hole Christmas round.   Teams were given instruction for each hole and these needed to be followed to record a score. Only using woods for an entire hole or conversely only irons was a challenge. Most difficult for some however was not speaking from tee to putting out !!! (One shot penalty for those who couldn’t follow this rule)
The round was Ambrose which allows for a relaxed atmosphere and accommodates the odd duffed shot which was appreciated by many . The field was strong with 14 players enjoying the course conditions and friendly atmosphere of North Pole Rules .

Saturday December 1st – John Laing Shield Final & Par

For the first time since March the temperature was scheduled to be over 30C.  The rain of last week was gone and the fairways were hardening up.  Hot, dry air and firm fairways promised good distance off the tee however, a strong wind form the N/NW made sure that players had to plan shots carefully or risk being pushed well off course.  Golfers who were able to keep the ball below the tree line were able to play more more steady golf.  The conditions saw all players struggle to play consistently with only a few being able to equal or better their handicaps.  The Final of the John Laing Shield was an up and down affair with both players getting a few in from before being pulled back to square.  It was not until the middle of the back nine that one player was able to draw ahead.  On a hot, blustery day the results were;

Winner; Mick Nicholls Snr (24) +1 from Chris vanDerVliet (24), Rob Rea (18) & Mick Nicholls Jnr (16) all square

NTPs; 15th – Rob Rea

John Laing Shield Final

Mick Squire (0) D Les Gaunt (0) – 4/3

RGC captain, Scott Williams with 2018 John Laing Shield winner Mick Squire

Wednesday November 28th – Singles K/O Final & Canadian

It was a beautiful day on the golf course, the sun was shining, the temperature was mild with just a hint of blustery wind every now and again. The course was in beautiful condition with the fairways nice and neat and the greens were lovely. The field played Foursomes but the scores did not reflect the near perfect conditions. Perhaps the proximity to the festive season played a role but a lovely time was had by all as they enjoyed a stroll in the park .
Results;
Winners; Lorraine Robb/Kath Jekabsons from Pam Drummond/Darlene Baker

The final of the Singles Knockout was also played today.  Beryl Cole and Jenny Hartley battled boldly with Jenny eventually winning 3up on the 16th hole. Congratulations to Jenny for being the winner of the Singles Knockout 2018 and well done to Beryl for making the final .

Sunday November 25th – Day 2 Romsey Open – Graeme Clement Shield

Another overcast start to the day however, as the morning progressed the weather soon cleared and players had generally excellent conditions. The tournament had been renamed to honour long term RGC member, committee member, secretary & captain Graeme Clement.  Clubs represented were; Fox Hills, Trentham, Euroa, Heathcote,  Mt Macedon, Seymour, Woodend, Romsey, Strathbogie, Broadford, Yea, Avenel & Rich River.  The first 12 holes saw almost everyone getting used to the speed of the greens with a number of players putting from above the cup and finishing well passed leaving a difficult 2nd putt.  Players were in at about noon for the traditional Romsey Roast and desserts.  Top scores for the morning were Mark Corradin (Euroa) – 47, Mick Squire (Romsey) – 49 & past champion, Chris Lingard (Heathcote) – 50.

At 1.00pm everyone headed back to the course, the 2nd 12 holes would tell the tale of the tournament.  Some players seemed to really enjoy the afternoon regardless of how their scoring was going while others concentrated more on their golf. In A Grade  Mark Corradin had to work hard as Ian Richardson (Seymour) put the pressure on with a 3 under front nine to return a a back 12 of 45, square with the card.  B Grade saw ever reliable Mick Squire came in with a 52 while  in C Grade RGC veteran John Freestone played very steady golf to come home with a 59.  Presentations saw Andrew Clement give a short address remembering many of the happy moments brother Graeme had at the club and whilst representing RGC in Pennant Golf.  On a beautiful day for golf the results were;

Graeme Clement Shield; Mark Corradin – 96   & A Grade H/cap; Ian Richardson – 100/8/92

Andrew Clement with inaugural Graeme Clement Shield winner Mark Corradin

B Grade Stroke;  Mick Squire (Romsey) – 101  & B Grade H/cap; Mick Doyle (Mt Macedon) – 108/12/96

C Grade Stroke; John Freestone (RGC) – 117     & C Grade H/cap; Hugh Drummond (RGC) – 124/28/96

NTPs; 1st – M Willis (Mt Macedon), 8th – Mark Fountain (Seymour), 9th – Mick Doyle, 10th – C Hanson (Broadford)

2nd shot on the 3rd; Gary Watts (Fox Hills)