2023 Seniors Xmas party. Report from Don Wraight

Senior Xmas Party 2023 - Tuesday12th December. What a day!! The course being closed was not unexpected given that most of the other courses in the area are also closed. The pre-party Scramble was organised by Don and ready to go but not missed, as Stuart Miles kindly organised a short putting session for the regular golf addicts. Very loud Xmas jumpers were on show and the prize was won surprise, surprise, by our top-winning prize winner of 2023 – Mick Carnell. Time to put the glad rags on and what a magnificent effort was made by all of the seniors on show. Old jumpers and over trousers miraculously morphed into sartorial elegance. I didn’t know they scrubbed up so well - it reminded me of Cinderella. The actual meal began on the dot at 2.00pm but all attendees were at their seats in plenty of time for pre-festive presentations and it was a pleasure to present the following: The immediate Past Senior Captain, Chris Jacques was the first recipient, following thanks for his two-year stint in office and he was presented with a Xmas gift on behalf of the entire senior section. We moved onto the annual Devon outing in June - Les Williams, Mike Scott and Neville Bassett were mentioned for the Forrest Trophy and the 28 My Aspidistra award, but unfortunately, they were not present to receive their trophies. The remaining Ramnee Trophy was collected by Liam Roddis, with a magnificent accumulation of 167 point over the 4 days. The Donderbuckles Trophy (best nett medal through the year) was also presented to none other than our Club Captain – Mick McHugh with a nett 64. The two course Xmas feast ensued and the wine flowed throughout. The food was delivered with precision and was excellent in both quality and quantity. There were many comments about how good the food was but Don sidled up to me and said that the food was not good…. “It was bloody brilliant!!” Time for the thank-yous: Hayley was first up and she was thanked for her efforts, not only on the day, but throughout the year. She received a bouquet of flowers and a generous collection by way of thank-you from the floor, to share amongst the catering/waiting-on staff. Mark Jones was next up and both he and the greenkeeping staff were thanked for their continuous efforts throughout the year. He was also --presented with a generous token of thanks to be shared, from the senior section. At this stage, I felt it only right to extend my thanks, once again, to Steve Monk and Don Wraight who organised yet another superb Xmas Party. At this stage, the troops were ordered not to hail their taxis as there was going to be a draw, not only for early subs payment but the remaining bottle prizes from the cancelled Scramble. The winner of the malt whisky for early subs was club President – Chris Jones. All of the names that signed up for golf and party attendees went into a hat for three bottles of red and three white. The winners were Peter Lord, Peter Bowen, Alan Barnsdale, Barry Evans, Vic Rogerson and Jon Falcus. I can honestly say that those winning names took some remembering given the amount of cloud that has entered my brain since. Quiz sheets had been left on the table from the very start and the troops carefully filled the answers in whilst eating and drinking. Chris Jacques was the quizmaster and he took the floor following the raffle draws. The answers were disseminated and scores calculated. The winning table belonged to Don Wraight et al. who were presented with a veritable parcel of large Toblerones. Don “Bailey” Wraight kept the party going with snaps and photographed all of the presentations. The attendees were given the word - “conviviality“ at the very beginning and the whole occasion was held in great spirit. All were thanked for their attendance and wished a safe journey home.