Monday December 27th 2010 – Ambrose
Public Holiday (in lieu of Boxing Day) Ambrose competition. The day began with cold winds and the threats of showers but the weather improved and by the end of the round jumpers and vests were off and everyone was enjoying the sunshine.
Players played in groups of two or three. Winners on the day were Andrew Clement, Bob McLennan and Gary Watts with a fine score of 9 under 63/3/60. Runners-up were Mat Thornton, Neil Jarman and Jarrad White with 63/1.25/61.75.
NTPs went to Gary Watts -1 and 16 and Mat Thornton 15.
Saturday December 18th 2010 – December Monthly Medal – Stroke and Putts.
Players hit-off in cloudy skies and it was not long before the rain began to fall. But as soon as the umbrellas and wet weather gear were out the rain stopped. There were occasional falls for the rest of the afternoon but not enough to really hamper anyone’s golf.
The fairways were in excellent condition, apart from a few crab holes that were still quite damp, and the greens were showing strong signs of coming back to their best. The second green, which has been fully renovated, should be back in play early in the New Year.
On a day of good scoring one player stood out, Kev Milner returned an excellent five over the card; 76/13/63 to take out the medal. Other good rounds came from Ron Walker; 90/19/71, Jim Menzies; 86/14/72, Keith Hocking; 103/31/72 and Mat Thornton; 76/4/72.
Kev also won least putts, 27, on a count-back from club captain Andrew Clement.
NTPs; 1st- John Freestone, 15th – Andrew Clement and 16th – Les Gaunt.
The club will be offering three free juniors’ clinics during January. Fridays Jan 14th, 21st and 28th, the clinics will run from 3.00 pm to 5.00 pm. For more information please go to the club’s website; www.romseygolfclub.net or contact the club at mail@romseygolfclub.net
Romsey Golf Club wishes all its members, and the broader community, a happy and safe Christmas and New Year.
Saturday December 11th 2010 – Stableford
There was steady drizzle as the players hit off. The wet fairways and some gusting winds also made it difficult to post a good score.
However this did not worry outstanding junior, Daniel Wright (5) who went on to record an excellent score of 42 point. Keith Hocking (30) also played well to return 36 points.
NTPs went to; 1 – Ben Noel and 15 – Kev Milner.
Sunday December 12fth 2010 – Ambrose
12 hole Ambrose event before the clubs “Annual Presentation Day”. Teams of two played the 12 hole Championship Layout (par 45). There was much laughter and plenty of good nature “stirring” during the round however this did not stop all players competing fiercely. Keith Hocking/Mick Nichols had a day out with a score of 50/18/32 to easily win the event.
The 2010 Presentation Day was a great success, after a wonderful lunch, all presentations completed and the many raffles were drawn many golfers joined with bowlers for a a few relaxed ends on the bowling green.
Saturday December 4th 2010 – Stroke.
The recent heavy rains meant that fairways and rough were still quite wet with casual water on almost every hole however the greens were surprisingly firm.
The day’s winner was junior’s captain Jarrad White with a good round, under tough conditions, of 88/16/72. NTPs 15 and 16 went to Kev Milner.
Saturday November 27th 2010 – Stroke
The 3rd round of the 2010 Club Championships (played Saturdays November 6th, 13th and 27th). With over 50 mm of rain in the previous two days both dams were filled to overflowing and there was a great deal of “casual water” on all of the fairways; the course would provide many challenges, on top of that the forecast for the day did not look good with storms and heavy rain moving in from the west. However it was decided that play would go ahead.
The 1st group of three hit off just after 11.00 am with all other groups following as soon as the 1st green was clear. At 11.15 am a heavy shower brought out the umbrellas and wet weather gear, this rain soon petered out and there was only the occasional heavy drizzle for the remainder of the day. The wind was uneven in strength and moved from northerly to westerly during the course of the day.
Under trying conditions the two leaders, Daniel Wright and Nathan Hodge played excellent golf to return to the rooms, scores still tied at 229 “off the stick”, wonderful performances on such a difficult day. This meant a “sudden death” playoff over holes 1, 2 and 4. Both players pared the 1st. Daniel’s third shot on the 2nd stopped only 150 mm from the hole leaving Nathan with a 2.5 m birdie putt, which he sank to take out the 2010 Club Championship.
Winners on the day were;
A Grade and Club Champion – Nathan Hodge (2) 77/74/78 -229
B Grade Champion – Bob McLennan (12) 83/85/91 – 259
C Grade Champion – John Freestone (20) 91/89/97 – 277
Laurie Thomson Shield – Daniel Wright (Best handicap result by a junior) D Wright – 214
Peter Scanlon Shield John Freestone (Best handicap result by a veteran) J Freestone – 217
John Jeffrey Shield – Daniel Wright (Best overall handicap score) D Wright – 214
The day also saw the November Monthly Medal decided. Ben Noel showed he had the skill and tenacity to play good golf under very tough conditions returning a fine 84/17/67. NTPs went to 15 – Daniel Wright (Daniel also won the meat raffle!) and 16 – Mat Thornton.
With the play-off concluded and all players in the rooms by 4.30 pm the rain really came down, quickly flooding the bowling green and proving to be too heavy for the spoutings to handle. The 2010 Club Championships were finally concluded.
Saturday November 20th 2010
The 2nd round of the 2010 Club Championships began on a wonderful, still, sunny, day. The course was in the best condition for over 10 years and both dams were full to overflowing. The conditions were perfect for some good scoring. Players hit off from the 1st in groups of three at seven-minute intervals, first away were current stroke leaders, Mat Hall, Mat Thornton and Daniel Wright.
The round’s handicap winners were;
A Grade Nathan Hodge 74/2/72
B grade Dean Van denHeuval 89/19/70
C Grade John Freestone 89/20/69
NTPs went to 1 – Bob McLennan, 15 – Mat Thornton and 16 – Nathan Hodge.
After two rounds the Championship stroke leaders are Daniel Wright 76/75-151 and Nathan Hodge 77/74-151. 2009 Club Champion Mat Thornton is within striking range at 76/77-153. The final round will be played on Saturday November 27th.
Club Presentation Day will now be held on the morning of Sunday December 12fth. A 12 hole round of Ambrose will start proceedings.
Ex Romsey member and current professional, Chris Gaunt, had a great result at the Box Hill ProAm during the week. At the end of the 1st day he was equal 11th at -1 (The round saw a new course record -7/63 was set by David Branston) Chris had a stunning 2nd round, setting a new course record of -9/61 and winning the event by three shots at -10.
Saturday November 13th 2010
The fairways were in wonderful condition, the greens were rapidly improving and the bunkers had been filled and raked; it was round two of the 2010 Romsey Golf Club Championships. Everything was right, except the weather. Steady rain on Friday night and well into Saturday morning saw two greens under water and pools on every fairway when the greens committee inspected the course and called the day’s golf off at 10.15 am.
However, like on so many wet Saturdays in Romsey this year, the members were more than happy to enjoy a warm, dry afternoon in front of the TV allowing Daniel Gaunt to again provide the entertainment. This time it was his wonderful 3rd round, in extremely difficult conditions, at the JBWere 2010 Australian Masters which saw him move to outright 2nd.
Daniel’s final round had it all, some stunning shots, some good luck and some bad luck but in the end the boy from Cohuna, Stuart Appleby, -10, came over the top of everyone to win by one stroke. Daniel finished in 3rd place at -8.
Saturday November 6th 2010
The 2010 Club Championships began on a wonderful spring day. The air was still, the sun was shining and the fairways were lush, however the greens, whist improving, still had someway to go. All players hit off from the 1st in groups of three and whilst the odd golfer put a ball “Out of Bounds” most got away to a good start. The October Monthly Medal was also being contested after it had been washed out the previous Saturday.
At the end of the day leaders were;
A Grade – exceptional junior Daniel Wright 75/5/71 and evergreen veteran Les Gaunt 80/9/71
B Grade – Kev Milner 82/13/69 and Rob McLennan 83/12/71
C Grade – Dave Richardson 97/28/69 and Tony Lakey 98/28/70
Stroke leaders in the Club Championship on 75 are; Daniel Wright, Mat Thornton and Mat Hall.
Ron Walker played a great round 86/19/67 to take out the October Monthly Medal (Ron was not able to play all three weeks of the Club Championships so his score was not registered in that competition.)
Least putts went to Mat Thornton with 24
NTPs went to 1 – D Wright, 15 – Les Gaunt and 16 – Paul Noel.
The 2010 John Laing Shield was also decided on Cup Day, Jarrad White defeated Rob Rea – 3/1
Saturday October 30th 2010
Steady rain forced the cancellation of the October Monthly Medal. As the rain continued to fall the hot topic of conversation within the clubrooms was the excellent performance of ex-Romsey player, Daniel Gaunt, in the Apulia, San Domenica Grand Final, at La Puglia, Italy. Daniel’s first three rounds of 67, 74, 66 placed him two shots clear at -6 going into the final round. Unfortunately his final round of one under 70 was not quite good enough to win as young Englishman, Matt Haines, stormed home with a 66 to win by one shot at -8. However, Daniel’s second placing has moved him up to 7th on the 2010 Challenge Tour Rankings and will definitely see him take a place in the European Tour in 2011.
The 2010 4BBB Knock-out final will be between J. White/M. Hall and P. Noel/R. Rea.
The 1st round of the 2010 Club Championships will be on Saturday November 6th.
Saturday October 23rd 2010
Steady rain had fallen during the morning and the players walked on to the course in overcast conditions for the club’s Aggregate 4B competition on Saturday. The weather remained calm and slowly improved as the day wore on. Again there was some casual water on a few of the fairways however the greens were much improved.
Winners were A. Clement (10)/R. Rea (17) with 69 pts. 2nd – P. Scanlon (27)/K. Hocking (31) with 67 pts. NTPs went to 15 M. Hall and 16 – K. Hocking.
Shield event matches were also recently played. The John Laing Shield where J. White D J. Freestone 1 up. Jarrad will now play Rob Rea in the final. The 4BBB Knock-out semi finals were also concluded when J. White/M. Hall D R. Walker/J. Freestone on the 19th.
Daniel Gaunt continues his fine season in Europe with a 5th placing in the 2010 Egyptian Open. Rounds of 71, 70, 70 and 68 saw him finish four shots behind the winner. This performance moves him up four places to 12fth in the 2010 Challenge Tour Rankings and will almost certainly see him regain his full European Tour Card for the 2011 season.
Saturday October 16th 2010
Despite almost 50 mm of rain during the week and an indifferent weather forecast for the afternoon, a good group of players hit off in Saturday’s Stroke event. During the round players had to contend with rain, gusting winds, hail and ….. some bright sunshine! Uneven bounce around the greens made approach shots tricky and the inconsistent speed of the putting surface caught many players out. The heavy rains of Wednesday and Friday meant that there was a deal of casual water on the fairways but in general the course had held up well. It was very pleasing to see the new growth on the greens, they should be much improved come Club Championships in November.
Posting a good score was a difficult task, the winner on the day, after a count-back from Andrew Clement and Bob McLennan, was Kev Milner, 88/13/75. The day’s only NTP went to, Daniel Wright -15
Saturday October 9th 2010
On a beautiful spring day golfers hit off in the club’s Par competition. The fairways, which had been cut twice during the week, proved ideal for clean hitting and many golfers noted that they were in the best condition since late 1996. The greens, however, were a different story. They still showed the signs of the recent coring, sanding and seeding works and again proved tricky to putt on. Never-the-less, the much improved condition of the course and the beautiful spring weather were more than enough to bring everyone back next week.
Winner on the day was Graeme Clement with +1.
NTPs went to 1 – Daniel Wright and 15 – Rob Rea.
Saturday October 2nd 2010
A small, but vocal, group of players hit off at 8.30 am in Romsey’s stableford competition. The lush fairways, in the best condition since 1996, meant that players could not land short and bounce on however the recent coring and sanding of the greens meant that many good shots landed on the greens only to bounce off.
Putting was difficult; each green had a different speed and players aiming above the hole often found their ball went straight rather than the graceful curve into the hole they had planned for.
On a difficult day Gary Watts (13) played excellent golf to win with 34 pts.
The club is extremely proud of junior, Daniel Wright’s performance at the 2010 Country Week Golf Championships. Daniel played two fine rounds at Croydon and Amstel Golf Courses to win the “Juniors’ Champion” title.
Saturday September 25th
With coring, sanding, sowing and fertilising of all greens on Fri 24th and because of the AFL Grand Final there was no golf at Romsey on Sat 25th.
The committee took this opportunity to get a number of tasks around the course completed. There was a strong turnout for the “Spring-Clean Working Bee”; the greens were attended to, many dead or dangerous trees and branches were cleared, club machinery was serviced and washed down, two new tees were constructed and damage caused by last month’s heavy rains was repaired. At the end of the day’s work everyone enjoyed a relaxed BBQ.
Saturday September 18th 2010
The September Monthly Medal, (stroke and Putts) a week earlier than usual because of the AFL Grand Final and because of the coring, sanding and seeding of the greens scheduled for September 24th. Whilst the fairways had recovered well from the heavy rains earlier in the month the greens were still inconsistent proving difficult to read and providing all golfers with many challenging putts.
Talented junior Daniel Wright, in a fine warm-up for the State Schoolboys Championship, played an excellent round, 77/5/72, to win the August medal. NTPs went to 15 – D Wright and 16 – K Milner. Best second shot on the 4th also went to D. Wright, least putts went to A Lakey – 27.
Saturday September 11th 2010
The 14mm of rain on Friday morning and during the afternoon put paid to any golf at Romsey on the 11th. However all was not lost as many current and retired players watched Romsey golfer, Danny Gaunt, attempt to record his second win on the 2010 European Challenge tour. The Kazakhstan Open, with a total pay cheque of 400,000 Euros, is the richest tournament on the tour.
Danny got off to a brilliant start with rounds of 65 and 66 to be equal leader on 131, -13 at the halfway mark. He was unable to continue this excellent standard; his final two solid rounds of 71 and 71 saw him finish on -15, a tie for 5th. Still a great result for the ‘94 and ’95 Romsey Golf Club champion.
Romsey Golf Club has recently launched its own web site; https://www.romseygolfclub.net It is a straightforward site aimed primarily at members and hoping to provide information to those moving into the town and local area.
Saturday September 4th 2010
Due to the heavy rain all golf was cancelled, both dams were overflowing and there was deep casual water on almost every fairway.. The 2010 Club Championships were also moved from September to November.
Saturday August 28th 2010
August Monthly Medal and 2009/2010 Medal of Medalists (Stroke and Putts). A strong field hit off in cool, cloudy conditions. There were showers during the early part of the round but these had cleared by 3.00 pm. The course was quite wet so there was little run forcing golfers to play controlled golf before attacking the greens by aiming directly at the flags.
Mat Thornton played an exceptional round 73/3/70 to win both the August Medal (on a countback from Les Gaunt, 78/8/70, and Kev Milner, 82/12/70) and the Medal of Medalists (again on a countback from Les.) On another tough day on the course Graeme White, 88/17/71, also performed well.
The only NTP of the day went to veteran Les Gaunt – 15th, his good day continued when he also won the meat tray. Best 2nd shot, on the 5th went to Tyson Ellis.
Saturday August 21st 2010
Election Day. After the month’s heavy rains the greens and fairways were too soft or had so much casual water that they unable to be mowed; everything looked to be against the golfer. As a result Saturday’s Par competition favoured the low markers, golfers who were consistently able to aim for the flag and then have confidence in their putting stroke. After a tough day on the course evergreen veteran Les Gaunt and upcoming junior Ben Noel were tied on even, after a count-back Les was announced the winner.
NTPs went to Matt Thornton – 15 and Ben Noel – 16.
Saturday August 14th 2010
Strong winds, gusting between 80 – 100 Kph greeted the 15 hardy golfers who hit off in the stableford event at Romsey on Saturday. Longer hitters benefited from the ongoing rains, which had kept the course very soft; there was no run and balls often became plugged proving tricky to locate even if in the middle of the fairway. The flukey winds often destroyed a good shot or assisted a poor shot to find the fairway or green.
After a very difficult day on the course timeless veteran, Les Gaunt, again proved just what a great golfer he is with a fine return of 34 points. Runner-up was another veteran, Mick Nicholls, with 33.
Captain, Andrew Clement, took out the only NTP of the afternoon with a wonderful shot on the 15th.
The members of Romsey Golf club are very pleased with the announcement of funding for the Romsey Sporting precinct and are looking forward to seeing what positive effects this grant has on 60% – 70% of Romsey Park that makes up the golf course.
The Park provides a wonderful resource for the whole town and all groups, sporting, scouts, cubs etc, who utilise the area should be actively and fully involved in the allocation of these much needed funds.
Saturday August 7th 2010
A beautiful sunny winter’s day greeted the players as they hit off in the August 4BBB stableford competition. The greens were a little firmer however the recent rains meant that there was still some casual water on many fairways. The two dams were also about half full creating more than a few problems for some of the twenty players.
Winners on the day were long-term low marker Mat Thornton (3) & upcoming junior Ben Noel (17) with an excellent score of 46 second on 39, (after a countback) were, were Graeme White (17)/Paul Noel (18) from Jarrad White (17)/Mat Hall (4)
The only NTP of the afternoon, the 16th, went to Jarrad White.
Saturday July 31st 2010
In clear, still conditions, twenty-six players hit off to contest the July Monthly Medal (stroke and putts). After another week of steady rain the course was quite wet and there was casual water on almost every hole; relief through the green was given. With little run on the fairways and balls plugging on and around the greens it was a tough day to record a good score.
Under these trying conditions a number of players performed well however two efforts stood out; John Freestone 92/21/71 and Dean Jones 75/4/71. After a count back John was declared the winner.
NTPs went to 1 – Kev Milner, 15 – Andrew Laing, 16 – Roger Baker. 2nd shot on the 5th – Dean Jones and least putts – Roger Baker (25).
The club held its AGM on Fri 30th of July. The 2010 – 2011 executive is – President – Bob Preece, Secretary – Kevin Dunn, Treasurer – John Boyce Mens’ Capt – Andrew Clement & Ladies’ Capt – Lorraine Robb. A Public Relation’s committee was also formed.
Saturday July 24th 2010
Par competition. Cold, clear weather saw a good turnout with 24 players competing in the par competition. The recent good rains meant that players had to adopt a new style of game; dropping it short and running up to the flag would no longer work. For the first time during dry many years the more skilful players were advantaged as they fired directly at the pin. Highlight of the day was a lightning round, 2 hrs 45 min. by Mat Thornton (+2), Daniel Wright (+2) and eventual winner Jarrad White (+5).
NTP went to 1 – Wright, and 15 & 16 Mal Mottram. In a Round 3 match of the John Laing Shield, John Freestone defeated Dean Van denHeuval 6/4.
Saturday, July 24th, saw the celebratory dinner to recognise the Romsey’s two, 2010 pennant wins. It was a wonderful night with many members, their friends and families celebrating a successful pennant season.
The club also celebrated Danny Gaunt’s fine year on the European Challenge Tour. In the last 10 days he had set two course records; -10 at the Old Course at Burhil, Surrey and -8 at Colchester, Essex. Danny went on to win the 150,000 Euro event at Colchester to hold a place on the 2011 European Challenge Tour. He will be attempting to secure a place on the full European Tour.
Saturday July 17th 2010
After a week seeing almost 40 mm of rain and the cancellation of the 2010 Romsey Bowl, an annual ladies team stableford event, golfers were not quite sure just what to expect as they hit off in Saturday’s stableford event. The greens were quite soft and there was very little run on the fairways so scoring was going to be difficult.
After an erratic round, including three wipes and three 4’s, Tony Lakey emerged as the winner with 38 points. Veteran Peter Scanlon and Paul Noel were runners-up with 35 points. NTPs went to 15- P Noel and 16 – Gary Watts.
2nd and 3rd rounds of the John Laing Shield were also played. Jarrad White D Kevin Dunne 6/5, Kev Milner D Les Gaunt 5/3 and Rob Rea D Mick Nicholls 6/4.
Saturday July 10th
Despite freezing winds and, at times, almost horizontal rain 11 hardy golfers took to the course. Captain Andrew Clement unselfishly volunteered to stay in the rooms to keep the food hot and the drinks cool. 11 proved to be the number for the day as all 11 players agreed to call off play at the 11th hole. Golfers then headed back to the clubrooms for warm food and a relaxed drink.
However there were two pairs who had agreed to play their 2nd round matches in the John Laing Shield. These four proved to be made of sterner stuff and played out the 18 holes. Dean Van denHeuval D Graham White – 2 up and Kev Milner D Graham Clement – 2/1. A stoic, if slightly worrying, effort by these four golfers.
The rain showed that recent drainage works were successful with much ground water now running into the course’s two dams. Once full these dams will raise the difficulty level on six holes.
Saturday July 3rd
The 1st round of the John Laing Shield, a handicap knock-out competition, outstanding junior, Daniel Wright, is the defending champion. Six pairs played their rounds in clear, cool conditions. A number of other players had organised their rounds for later in the week or were involved in 1st round byes so a stableford competition was also played. Steve Wilkins won with 34 stableford points.
NTPs went to; 1 – R Rea, 15 – S Wilkins and 16 – K Milner.
During the last four weeks almost 200 indigenous, native trees and bushes have been planted around the tee boxes and along the fairways. Current conditions are perfect for these new plants. It is hoped that these plantings will bring a wide variety of native wildlife back to the park, make the golf course more challenging and give those having a bad day with the clubs a beautiful place in which to enjoy an afternoon’s walk.
Saturday June 26th; Monthly Medal.
Players set out in cold, overcast weather, playing conditions soon deteriorated as steady rain and strong winds swept across the course. At various stages of the afternoon there were numerous pools of water on fairways and many greens had large areas under water or were otherwise badly effected by the heavy rains. It was a hard day on the golf course and scoring was difficult.
At the end of the round three players were tied on 73, Mat Hall, Les Gaunt and Anthony Lakey. A count-back over the last nine holes could not separate them but after a count-back over the last six holes Les was declared the winner. There was also a count-back for least puts, 28, with Lakey winning over junior Dean Van den Heuval.
NTPs went to Les Gaunt – 1 and Kev Milner – 15.
Saturday June 19th – Par
The par competition began in still, warm weather, more reminiscent in early autumn/spring than early winter. The recent rain had made the fairways quite soft so relief, to a hand-span, was given through the green. A number of players; Gary Watts, Graham White and Dean Van denHeuval were well in the positive until the last few holes but misjudged pitches to the course’s small greens soon saw their challenges falter.
One of the club’s junior golfers; Ben Noel, continued his recent excellent form, winning with a fine performance of +2.
NTPs went to A Lakey – 1st and R Rae – 15th.
A semi-final in the club’s 4BBB competition was also played. R Rae/P Noel defeated C van DerVliet/A Lakey – 4/3.