Ian and I played our first Captain/Pro of the year on Wednesday morning. Our 'challengers' were Duncan Beal and Alan Barrass and we had a great game to match their great company. 

Both sides had turns at being 1 up during the round and we held that slender lead going down the last until Alan sank a super put to level the match! 

Thanks again for guys for a most enjoyable game.


 

Adding to the enjoyment was the course itself. The great work on developing a 'winter' course over the past couple of years has ensured that members can enjoy their games all year round. The installation of new paths, designated quality winter tees and improved drainage has made a huge difference.

This week has also seen the start of clearing all the hawthorn and scrub from several areas around the course. As this has built up over 20+ years the visual improvements are wonderful in addition the fact this work will help the course too.

Lots of work has taken place around the car park too which will lead to extra spaces as well as enhance the aesthetics.

 

 

There's always great excitement around the ProShop this time of year with new products arriving and this week we have even had a new coffee machine delivered. Don't panic it's a new version of the one we have always had so you can still have the same delicious drinks. If you have not tried our fantastic range of coffees please feel free to call in.

The arrival of new products from TaylorMade and Titleist has resulted in some fittings this week. There are some perceptions regarding having clubs fitted - 'only better golfers benefit' being one of them. One fitting this week was with a senior gentleman whose objective was to see if we could find more length off the tee for him. His own club was 'only' 4 years old and he had purchased it after reading what would be good for him and then buying online.

After loosening up and hitting some shots which were 'as good as this goes' it was evident the shaft was too heavy and stiff and the loft was also too low. We were able to try some different options of manufacturers combined with different shafts, lofts and weight settings before finding another driver which increased the average driver carry by 25 yards.

As you can imagine this gentleman was highly delighted. Fittings are great fun as well as being very informative about your game. Click here if you would like to arrange a fitting.

It has been great this week doing lessons and sensing how keen many are about their game for this year. It really is the ideal time to start getting your game in shape so click here to get in touch.


 

Many congratulations to Simon Evans winning the Winter Stableford with his great score of 46 points on Saturday. Indeed there were some great scores which was great to see and well done to all prize winners. 

For the list of results please click here.

2017 promises to be one of the most fascinating years in recent time. The world's top five golfers - Day, McIlroy, Johnson, Stenson and Spieth - are all major winners over the past couple of seasons as they continue to battle it out to be the world's best.

Hot on their heels is Japan's Matsuyama who had a quite phenomenal end to 2016 with four wins in his last five starts - the other being a runner-up finish. But one man who builds excitement even more than the aforementioned guys is Tiger Woods. The 41-year-old has already signed up to four events by end the end of February as he looks to continue his climb back up the rankings in his comeback season.

It's so hard to call what's going to happen this year, but be sure to watch our video of the week below as we preview potential storylines of 2017 in the golfing world. If you'd like to have your say then take part in our poll and let us know who you think will end the year as world number one. Click here to take part.