The recent rains and milder weather saw pleasing growth across all of Romsey Park and most golfers took advantage of the good conditions.  The greens, apart from those attacked by the corellas, were again in top nick and the surrounds continue to the best they have been in many years.  A number of players took advantage of the morning tee-off times to get out on the park early and enjoy the beautiful summer’s morning before heading to Hanging Rock for the Elton John Concert.  The large field who teed up for the the January medal enjoyed the  conditions with some players really giving their handicaps a work-over.  Few played better than evergreen veteran Les Gaunt (6) who, after a few ordinary holes to begin with, pared or birdied the final 11 holes.  An early score of nett 68 looked to be pretty good but as the groups came in it became apparent that 68 was not safe.  On a beautiful, still afternoon the results were;

Winner & January Medalist; Ron Walker – 92/26/66 from Chris Manktelow – 104/36/68, Andrew Clement – 78/10/68, Bob Dwyer – 108/36/72 & Les Gaunt – 78/6/72

Women’s Winner; Lis Manktelow – 100/24/72 from Pam Drummond- 114/32/82

NTPs; 15th – Les Gaunt, 16th – Jim Patton

Least Putts; Andrew Clement – 26

Texas Ambrose was the day’s competition, there was a stiff northerly wind combined with quite humid conditions so a nine hole comp was welcomed by those in the field.   Summer run was in evidence with long straight drives rewarded with a few extra metres. The greens were very consistent and strong, bold putts were the order of the day.
Results
1st;     Wendy Gosden/Hugh Williams/Bruce Robb – 45 pts
2nd.;   Lorraine Robb/Elaine Scanlon/Darlene Baker – 44pts
3rd;     Jenny Hartley/Beryl Cole/Pam Drummond – 29 pts

Another strong field teed up on a still, warm afternoon for the club’s Guest Day round of Texas Ambrose.  There was generally good coverage on most of the fairways and the greens and surrounds continue to be in top condition.  The recent rain had softened the fairways and the vast majority of balls bounced true, very few good shots bouncing at 90 degrees off the fairway into the rough.   Texas Ambrose, also known as Gentsomes, allows teams to take the best drive then each player plays their ball into the cup and the team takes the best two stableford scores.  It was a day for birdies and eagles (A Clement 14th) and many teams carded excellent scores.  The day’s results were;

Winners; Pat Chisholm (12)/Mick Nicholls Jnr (15)/Dave Kenney (30) – 99 pts from Dean vanDenHeuval (13)/Steve Wilkins (17)/Mitch Atlas (12) – 98 pts & Andrew Clement (10)/Les Gaunt (6)/John Laing (28) – 93 pts

NTPs; 15th Dean vanDenHeuval, 16th – Pat Chisholm

On Wednesday 15th January a (possibly) unprecedented decision was made by some members to stay in the clubhouse because of the adverse weather created by the smokey conditions.  Those who stayed in the clubhouse enjoyed a chat and cuppa.

A few hardy golfers did hit the course to play 6 holes of social golf.  One pair even managed to complete 18 holes of Stableford in the conditions.

A strong wind is needed to move the smoke hanging over our town.

Another strong field teed off in the club’s stroke competition.  After just under 20mm of rain overnight the course was a deal softer and it was expected that  balls would pick up mud so “mark, lift, clean, replace” was brought into play.  The wind was again quite unusual; starting in the south then moving to the east and oscillating between the two for the remainder of the round.  The irrigation had worked hard over the recent hot weeks and there was good coverage on most fairways, the greens and surrounds  remained in excellent condition.  In the end it was a tight affair with a count back over the back six holes required to decide the winner.  On a windy afternoon the results were;

Men’s Winner; Keith Hocking – 98/27/71 C/B John Freestone – 92/21/71, Michael Reid – 98/26/72 & John Laing – 101/29/72

Women’s Winner; Lis Manktelow – 98/24/74

NTPs; 15th – Anthony Lakey, 16th – Clive Mensforth

A round of Ambrose was the order of the day to start the 2020 season for Wednesday golfers.  The weather was mild and windy but the smokey conditions caused by the current bush fires in the east of the state were another thing to consider. The strong winds helped to alleviate the smoke somewhat but the gloominess over Mt Macedon was a constant reminder of the vastness of the fires.  Pars were the order of the day as all groups appreciated the Ambrose format and with a strong field the results were;
Winners; Jenny Hartley/Jan Harver/Colleen Duller  – 53/12.44/40.56 from Darlene Baker/Denise O’Meara/Connie Cecys – 55/12.22/42.78 & Lorraine Robb/Wendy Gosden/Pam Drummond – 58/10.55/47.45

After well over a week of hot, dry weather with SE and SW winds the irrigation was under pressure to keep the fairways green; relief from bare spots was allowed.  From the first drive all players faced a gusting  wind swinging between SE to SW.  It pushed balls well off course and on the Nth/Sth holes shortened even the best drives and approach shots.  The evil lay in the occasional lull which often caught players out.  The greens were again in top nick and, except for the gusting wind, putted very true.  The 4Ball Multiplier stableford format requires both players to score at least one point on each hole or the team score for that hole is a zero.  Teams who  were able to avoid a “wipe” were in with a good chance.  At the end of the day the winning team felt that they had “left a lot of shots out on the course”. On a very windy afternoon the results were;

Winners; Mick Nicholls Jnr (16)/Steve Wilkins (17) – 83 pts from Mick Nicholls Snr (22)/Keith Hocking (28) – 71 pts

NTPs; 1st & 16th – Les Gaunt, 15th – Rob Rea

It was a cheerful and boisterous bunch who teed up for the club’s New Year’s Day Stableford competition.  Clear skies, warm air and hard and fast fairways made sure most shots covered a good distance.  A steady S/SE breeze and a few cracks in a some of the fairways saw a few balls head off line but generally conditions were excellent for golf.  A number of players took advantage of the benign conditions to post excellent scores.  As with much of the state, fires interjected themselves into the round and a number of RGC members were called away to CFA duties.  On a clear, warm afternoon the results were;

Winner; Jim Patton (20) – 41 pts from Andrew Clement (11) – 40 pts, Pat Chisholm (12) – 39 pts, John Laing (28) – 38 pts, Scott Williams (16) 37 pts & John Freestone (21) – 37 pts

NTPs; 15th & 16th- Jim Patton

A strong field teed up for the final Monthly Medal of 2019.  With the expected temperature well into the 30sC the club’s Extreme Heat policy was activated and play began at 8.30am.  The warm air saw all players gain good distance off the tee and the hard fairways meant shorter than usual approach shots; correct club selection proved vital and many players found themselves “over the back” facing very difficult chip shots to get back on to the green,    With a few irrigation problems solved during the week the greens were again in good nick and putted with good speed and little movement.  On a warm, sunny morning the results were;

Winner and December Medalist; Chris vanDerVliet – 93/28/65 from Mick Nicholls Jnr – 84/17/67, Keith Hocking – 99/28/71 & Andrew Laing – 94/19/73

Women’s Winner; Pam Drummond – 107/32/75

NTPs; 15th – Liam Hocking

Least Putts; John Laing – 28 C/B from Mick Nicholls Jnr.