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.

A cheerful bunch showed up for the club’s Boxing Day Stableford, the penultimate round for 2019.  The 8.30 am hit-off time caught a few napping with golfers pulling into the carpark or trundling up the 1st fairway as the groups were leaving the rooms for the tee.  It was a clear and, after the first few holes, pleasantly warm morning.  The early start found all groups watching the first drives very carefully as holes 1, 2 and 3 all tee off to the east.  The gentle breeze moved from the south to the east and back, most unusual for RGC.  It occasionally blew up and made distance off the tee much more challenging.  Despite being the day after Christmas there was a surprising amount of good golf played, a goodly number of birdies and a few eagles that just lipped out or pulled up a few mm short of the cup.  On a clear, sunny morning the results were

Winner; Jim Patton (20) – 39 pts from Hugh Drummond (21) – 38 pts and Michael Reid (27) – 38 pts

NTPs; 15th – Michael Reid

Ten teams teed up for the club’s Presentation Day Ambrose competition.  The day was clear and sunny but a gusting southerly wind kept everyone on their toes, especially on the par 3s and the final hole with its internal “out of bounds”.  The field moved quickly and everyone was back in the rooms by around 2.30pm ready to enjoy the club’s presentations and a great meal.  The Par 45 “Old Course” layout has proven very popular in recent years with many players observing nine holes is too short and 18 is too long, the 12 is just right (Apologies to Goldilocks). On a windy, enjoyable day the results were;

Winners; Mitch Atlas/Sherif Abdel Sayed/Michael Nicholls Jnr – 42/6/36 from Keith Hocking/Mick Nicholls Snr/Mal Mottram – 44/6.5/37.5 & Bruce Robb/Lorraine Robb/Paul Green – 50 /12.2/37.8

NTPs; 8th – Mick Squire, 9th – Jim Patton & 10th – Mitch Atlas

RGC 2019 Presentations.

2019 Club Champions Darlene Baker & Mick Squire. 

2019 B Grade Champion, Peter Scanlon Shield & John Jeffrey Shield winner John Freestone

with RGC Life Member Peter Scanlon

2019 W. E. Tom 4BBB Champions Scott Williams, & Chris vanDerVliet 

with RGC Pres Anthony Lakey

2019 Rose Scanlon winner Jenny Hartley with RGC Capt Lorraine Robb

2019 Algie Mitchell Champion John Laing with RGC Pres Anthony Lakey

2019 Medal of Medalists Jenny Hartley (Rob Rea absent) with RGC Captain Scott Williams

2019 John Laing Shield Champion Pat Chisholm with RGC Life Member John Laing

2019 Relative Pairs winner Jim Patton with RGC Pres Anthony Lakey (Absent Chris Lingard)

RGC captain Lorraine Robb with 2019 Women’s Singles Matchplay champion Wendy Gosden.

Another strong field teed up for the club’s Par round and 5he final of the John Laing Shield.  Play began on a sunny afternoon, the whole course was in good nick meaning players could easily find their ball if they strayed into the rough. There was a little southerly wind  but it rarely effected play.  While there was good cover on most fairways the recent heat and lack of rain saw all players get good value for well struck drives.  The surrounds were in almost perfect condition; allowing approach shots to bounce up onto the greens or allowing putting from reasonably well of the green.  The final of the John Laing Shield was another tight affair again coming down to the 18th.  On a beautiful summer’s afternoon the results were;

Winner; Scott Williams (17) +7 from Mick Nicholls Jnr (17) +4, Keith Hocking (29) +1 & Jim Patton (20) Sq

NTPs; 1st Mal Mottram, 15th – Anthony Lakey & 16th – Keith Hocking

John Laing Shield Final

Pat Chisholm (6) D Les Gaunt (0) – 2up

John Laing with 2019 Shield Winner Pat Chisholm