Saturday April 7th – Foursomes & Algie Mitchell Semi-finals

The field took to the course on a reasonably still, sunny day, the wind did pick up a little from SSW later in the round, but in general a pleasant day for golf.  The 3rd and 8th greens were a little soft, but all played well and generally putted true.  The recent rain and heavier dews saw the fairways greening up with new growth popping through; Romsey, like all local courses, just need a little more rain to see them green up completely. Our attempt to finally knock over the paspalum on 2nd fairway looks to have been successful so other areas of this nasty weed had better beware.   Between the Women’s Bowl on Thursday and Friday afternoon the birds had again done some damage to 7, 9, 16 and a little to 15th, even pulling up some of the bent grass turf patches. Perhaps more rain will see these destructive creatures move off.  The Foursomes format sees teams of two alternating strokes, a challenging format which does not easily allow individual golfers to get into a rhythm.  It was great to see life member Pater Scanlon back on the course after his recent operation.  On a beautiful day for golf the results were;
Winners; Hugh/Pam Drummond – 93/25.5/67  from  Rob Rae/Peter Scanlon – 94/24.5/69.5
NTPs; 15th – Bob Dwyer & 16th – Roger Baker
Algie Mitchell Shield Semi-final
Rob Rae D Mick Nicholls Snr – walkover
Algie Mitchell Final
Jim Patton (2) Vs R Rae (0)

Thursday April 5th – 2018 Romsey Women’s Challenge Bowl

Thursday 5th April saw Romsey Golf Club hosting the 25th Annual Romsey Women’s Challenge Bowl; a team’s Stableford event with teams of three competing.  Teams do not play together so final scores are not known until the final teams get in.It was a foggy start for first three holes turning into a warm, sunny autumn day. As the day warmed adjustments in shots to the greens were required.  14 clubs were represented with a total of 16 teams and some individual entries.  There was a full field of 52 players from both DDGA District and neighbouring clubs,   The Challenge Bowl Trophy was originally donated by Phillip and Virginia Newell from Newell Electrics who were instrumental in initiating the first Bowl in 1993. The 2018 event was generously sponsored by Sage Business Group and Director, Tim McCarthy, was on hand to present the trophies to all the winners.

The 2018 Women’s Challenge Bowl was won by Goonawarra G. C.  Cheryl Price (24) 37 pts, Kathleen Eiser (26) 34 Pts & Barb Marino (23) 30 pts. – 101 points;

Runners Up; Woodend – 98 points.

A Grade Winner; Ricky Rickman – Seymour (13) 36 points

B Grade Winner; Cheryl Price – Goonawarra ( 24) 37 points

NTPs; 1st – Cheryl Price, 3rd – Chris Barrett (Bacchus Marsh West) & 16th – Cheryl Price

Small Team’s event; Ricky Rickman (13) 36 pts Seymour, Loretta Matthews (20) 32 pts Woodend & Sandra Wicking (11) 34 pts Kilmore – 102 pts

DDGA Player of the Year Points; 5 pts Veronica Maher (23) 36 pts Trentham c/b, 4 pts Ricky Rickman (13) 36 pts Seymour, 3 pts Sandy Wicking (11) 34 pts Kilmore, 2 points Bev Bellman (28) 33 pts Marysville c/b & 1 point Helen Young (21) 33 pts Trentham

The Winners of the 2018 Romsey Women’s Challenge Bowl;

Cheryl Price, Kathleen Eiser, Barb Marino.

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Wednesday April 4th – Foursomes

Another glorious, mid-autumn day for golf ; the sun was shining  (at about 23C), the wind, just a gentle puff from the SSE, the greens had recently been repaired, the course had been swept of miscellaneous fallen twigs, bark and branches and all was well in the golfing world.  The preparations for RGC’s 2018 Women’s Challenge Bowl were very noticeable and much appreciated. A friendly round of Foursomes was played on the 12 hole “Old Course” and enjoyed by all.   On such a beautiful day the results were;
Winners; Jenny Hartley/Leila Beasley with a scratch score of 67.

Saturday March 31st – Monthly Medal – Stroke & Putts

Players headed to the tee on a beautiful, still day but  most golfers struggled to play to their handicaps.  There was water in many cups and occasional casual water behind and at the sides of some greens; certainly well watered greens. The greens and surrounds were in magnificent condition giving great advantage to those playing attacking approach shots.  The very recent  patching and rolling of the greens has been very successful so, whilst a little slow, the greens were a pleasure to play on and those who putted with conviction were well rewarded.
Winner & March Medalist; Andrew Laing – 87/18/69 from Jim Patton – 92/20/72
NTP: 15th – A Laing & 16th – R Walker
Least putts;  J Patton – 28
Algie Mitchell Shield Quarter Finals Results
J. Patton D J. Moody – 4/3 on Friday,

Wednesday March 28th – Monthly Medal & 2nd Rd Silver Spoon – Stroke & Putts

Players found a glorious autumn day, perfect for golf, as they took to the field for the March Medal.  The women also played the second round of the Silver Spoon.  The course had softened up slightly with the recent rain although another downpour would be useful. A band of helpers were working diligently on the greens using bent grass turf to repair the corella damage. The volunteers on our course spend many hours and do a fantastic job. Let’s hope the corellas move on very soon.  On a wonderful day to be walking around the park with a few clubs inhand the results  were;
Winner and March Medalist; Lorraine Robb – 107/34/73   C/B from Jenny Hartley – 99/26/73 with Elaine Scanlon        107/32/75
Least Putts; Pam Drummond  – 27.

Monday March 26th – DDGA – Foursomes – Lancefield G. C.

Another wonderful Dalhousie event saw 58 players take to the course at Lancefield for the DDGA Foursomes Championships. These Championships began in 1962 and have been played every year since except for one cancellation due to extreme weather.  The course was in lovely condition; the very recent rain had softened the course nicely and allowed golfers to attack the pin with confidence.  Drives down the middle of the fairway were rewarded with some summer run although not as much as in recent weeks.
Scratch Winners; Jess Pickwick and Sandy Wicking (Kilmore G. C.)  84, a fantastic foursomes effort.

Handicap winners;  Bev Bellman and Helen Howard (Marysville G. C.) – 98/24.5/73.5.
RGC was well represented, Elaine Scanlon/Jenny Hartley, Wendy Gosden/ Darlene Baker and Lorraine Robb/Pam Drummond. Lorraine and Pam had the best of the Romsey scores coming fourth overall with 108/31.5/76.5.

Sunday March 25th – Men’s Pennant Rd 1 – Lancefield G. C.

The first round of the 2018 Pennant Golf season got underway in wet courses all across Dalhousie District.  Romsey was taking on Hidden Valley at Lancefield.  Saturday’s heavy rain brought a deal of casual water with some bare patches becoming quite muddy so relief, club length fairway played, was given.  The gusting wind also proved a hazard.  Romsey got the pennant season off to good start with a 4/3 win;
Shannon Wright – 2 up, Scott Williams – 1 up, Mick Nicholls Jnr –  2/1 win, Rob Rea – 4/3 win, John Freestone – 4/2 loss, Hugh Drummond – 5/4 loss & Mick Nicholls Snd – 8/7 loss
The day’s complete results were;
Romsey  D Hidden Valley – 4/3
Woodend  D Trentham – 5/2
Kilmore D Mt Macedon -5/2

Saturday March 24th – Relative Pairs – 4BBB

The 2018 Relative Pairs (An RGC shield event) was called off at 11.20am due to heavy rain, the BOM radar also showed a large storm front that would cover the area for almost all of the afternoon.  The Relative Pairs competition has been rescheduled to Saturday April 21st

On a better note, the Golf and Bowls Clubs enjoyed a great night’s semi-competitive bowling on Fri 23rd.  With 25 golfers on the rink it was very great fun to see their attempts and to catch a bit of coaching re the finer skills of the game from the Bowls Club members  The evening allowed for a great deal of social interaction  as the bowls gradually rolled down the green

Thursday March 22nd – 2018 Women’s Challenge Bowl – Kilmore G. C.

60 golfers competed in the 2018 Kilmore Golf Club Bowl, the club’s annual Women’s Challenge Bowl.  Some wonderful scores were recorded across the three grades.  Romsey was represented by a team of three who thoroughly enjoyed their round, the hospitality and delicious lunch served after the 18 holes.  Wendy Gosden continued her recent good form by recording a great score of 39 pts which earned her another point in the  Dalhousie District Player of the Year Award.  Pam Drummond played some wonderful golf to record a very respectable score of 36 pts and Darlene Baker, the third member of the team, scored 20 pts.  A very enjoyable day all round.

The day’s winners came from Woodend who, with scores of 42, 42 and 33, produced a combined Stableford Points score of 117

Wednesday March 21st – Doris Chambers – Foursomes.

For the first time in many weeks players teed off on a cooler, stiller morning.  The recent dews had produced a green tinge across most fairways but they were still hard with the odd crack here and there; balls travelled a long way with the occasional one taking a surprising deviation.  The greens had recovers well from their recent deep coring however some recalcitrant corellas were still hanging around determined to do as much damage as they could before they headed north for the winter.  As a result putting on the 15th and 16th was quite a challenge.  The Doris Chambers Cup is an 18 Hole Stableford Foursomes event. The perpetual trophy was donated by Miss Doris Chambers OBE, former Ladies Golf Union President and was first played in 1950. Romsey women today played a qualifying round of this competition, the winners will proceed to one of two State Finals later in the year.
Results for the day :
1st; Wendy Gosden/Elaine Scanlon 32/38pts
2nd; Kath Jekabsons/Darlene Baker 23/35pts
3rd; Pam Drummond/Jenny Hartley 29/34pts