Greensomes April 27th 2023. Report via Mike Healey

What have you done to the Spring weather? We started off with chilly temperatures this morning and the late rain just made conditions quite miserable. Today was the first of our Greensomes season with a practice round to start with. 36 seniors signed up in pairs and a pre-draw was made from three tees. A further 5 seniors arrived and we squeezed them in for a stableford competition, which was won by Keith Hawthorn. Other members were involved in senior match knockouts elsewhere. The Greensomes format is a quick one and everyone arrived back in the clubhouse in good time for the results. Of the 18 cards returned, all but one managed to score 30+ points and countback was essential at the top end. There were 4 prizes on offer - read on. Greensomes Result: First: Richard Collier and Dave Palferman - 39 points (c/b) Second: Alan Barndsdale and Mike Healey - 39 points (c/b) Third: Reg Peacock and Barry Dare - 39 points (c/b) Fourth: Mike Hollings and Stewart Poole - 38 points (c/b) Malcolm Williams and Russ Adamson plus Ernie Williams and Bill Kelleher also scored 38 points but missed prizes on countback.

Individual Stableford April 25th 2023. Report from Mike Healey

The sun worshippers were out in force today. No overnight cloud guaranteed a very crisp start to our golf but the sun came out and it was quite pleasurable to play in shirt sleeves. 39 seniors threw their tallies in to play an individual stableford qualifier, with a couple of new faces to the group and a big welcome back to Nigel Davies after his mishap 10 days ago. The competition was initiated by Peter Bowen on ig and the scene was set with the committee going out first, in order to get back for their monthly meeting, following the results. Peter was left having to enter 7/8 cards at the end and we would encourage all to try and get the ig app on their phones as soon as possible. Anything under 35 points was just not good enough today but there were quite a few encouraging improvements compared with last week's medal and previous weeks. Three 2's were registered - all on the 5th hole. Eric Thwaites, Richard Collier and Peter Almond split the winnings from the ballsweep. Read on for stableford result - 7 prizes today. Individual Stableford Qualifier: First: Ken Tieszen - 39 points Second: Sean McCarthy - 38 points Third: Richard Collier - 36 points (c/b) Fourth: Mick Carnell - 36 points (c/b) Fifth: Bill Kelleher - 36 points (c/b) Sixth: Mike Healey - 35 points (c/b) Seventh: Ernie Williams - 35 points (c/b) Tom McGrady and Vic Rogerson also carded 35 points but missed out on countback

Seniors Medal April 20th 2023

Seniors Medal Thursday 20th April Division 1 1st Andrew Mitchell (20) 68 2nd David Mole Jones (14) 71 Division 2 1st Neville Bassett (26) 66 2nd Michael Hollings (26) 74 Division 3 1st Stuart Leyland (29) 69 2nd Peter Martin Jones (30) 70

Bonus Ball result April 18th 2024. Report courtsey of Mike Healey

This is the Bonus Ball Report Seniors - What a glorious day to be out there playing golf. We started cloudy but reached a heady 16 degrees of sunshine and shirt sleeves were to the fore. 32 seniors (perfect number) threw their tallies into the draw at 8.45am and the business end started at 9.00am with 8 x fourballs and a full course open. That alone tested one or two of our competitors. We estimated that 144 points would be an average score to make and several cards fell just short of that. 2 cards made 147 points each but they were still not good enough. There were only 2 prizes - read on for winners. Bonus Ball Result: First: Ernie Williams, Peter Fraser, Dave Jones and Mick Carnell - 173 points Second: Russ Adamson, Peter Taylor, Les Williams and Mike Healey - 153 points

Captains Newsletter April 2023

Captain's Newsletter: April 2023 Lady Captain Sue Falkus and myself would like to thank all who supported the Captain’s Drive in on Saturday 15th of April. It was wonderful to see so many members playing and we also appreciated those who weren’t playing, but who popped up to wish us good luck at the first tee. Thanks to Vice Captains Patrick and Shan and also to Dawn and Lucy for setting up the first tee and helping with the smooth running of the signing in. Patrick gave a warm welcome to our County Captain and thanked everyone for their support, he then invited Sue and myself to the tee off area. I would like to say we both hit the fairway but unfortunately only one of us did well done Sue, enough said on that. Our combined yardage was 198, and well done to Eddie Tudor with the nearest guess of 199 yards winning half the money pot of £26.00, with the other £26.00 going to our Captain’s Charity the North Wales Air Ambulance Service. Congratulations to the winner of ladies drive in Jayne Evans with a fantastic score of 40 points and to Richard Evans with another great score of 45 points to win the men’s drive in. Weather was great on the day and the course was in fantastic condition considering the amount of rain we have had leading up to the day. A massive thanks to Mark and his team who worked so tirelessly to get the course fully opened. Competitions The White Tees are now in play, so those that are involved in various knockout competitions can now see them up on ig. Please make sure to get matches played within the dates given on ig in order to insure the smooth running of the competitions. There will be numerous competitions coming up in the coming months so please support the club and join in as many as you can. Our aim this year is to try encourage more new members to the club and to try and encourage junior players to join us at Clays, so if anyone has an ideas on how to achieve this, please can you share them with me or with any members of the council or club. A Message from the Lady Captain Ladies golf, as with everyone’s, has been curbed with the poor weather however we have been able to play some golf out on the course and have also met on the driving range for practise and a social get together. It was a fabulous turn out for the Captain’s Drive in which a number of ladies were able to support, and of course a great win for Jayne Evans. Moving forward we have rescheduled the monthly medal and a number of NWLCS and Wales Golf matches are pending. Finally, this year we are hosting a Ladies Open in July which has not run for a few years so we are preparing for this event and hope it will be well supported. And Finally We are currently in negotiations with management regarding the purchase and location of new toilet facilities out on the course. We are also looking at purchasing new furniture for the bar area. Michael Club Captain

Latest results and news of Clays Seniors courtesy of Mike Healey. April 13th 2023

On Thursday, 13 April 2023 at 15:18:12 BST, Michael Healey wrote: Seniors - there are 3 reports so get your reading glasses on. Firstly - On Tuesday 11th our away match versus Northop GC took 16 members abroad and a convincing win of 5.5 to 2.5 saw us win our first match of the season. Warm sunny conditions eventually gave way to odd showers but they did not interrupt play. The opposition were both helpful and friendly around the course and it was all followed up with a convivial two course meal afterwards. Well done for the start of the season - Clays Senior team. On the same day, my thanks go to Andy Mitchell for organising an Individual Stableford back at base. 20 members entered the tally draw for a chance of one of the five prizes. The 2nd hole was closed and the winners read as follows: Individfual Stableford: First: Bill Kelleher 41 points Second: Peter Fraser 38 points (c/b) Third: Stewart Poole 38 points (c/b) Fourth: Neville Bassett 35 points (c/b) Fifth: Nigel Harris 35 points (c/b) Dave Fergus also had 35 points but missed out on countback Today - Thursday was scheduled to be a Pairs Betterball and no fewer than 38 members turned in for the competition. The weather was quite warm but the wind played a part in some of the scores. There was a lot of groundstaff work going on around the course (which just gets better and better) in preparation for the Captain's Drive-in on Saturday. They waited patiently for our seniors to play through and there were four prizes ultimately on offer. Just to round up the day the Ballsweep carry over eventually happened and it was carried over in style: Mike Hollings and Billy Spilstead both recorded 2's on the 12th hole, with Dave Jones making his on the 17th. Graham Wright also shot a splendid hole-in-one on the 5th hole. Not only did he receive a double share in the sweep but very kindly placed a bottle of whisky in the centre of the room for all to share. Well done Graham. Pairs Betterball: First: Colin Brown and Keith Hawthorn 43 points Second: Dave Jones and Graham Bryne 42 points (c/b) Third: Alan Pocklington and Mick Carnell 42 points (c/b) Fourth: Alan Barnsdale and Billy Spilstead 40 points (c/b) Richard Collier with Ken Tieszen and Brian Cross with Irwin Elkin also had 40 points but both teams missed out on countback

Senior team win away at Northop. Report from Mike Healey via Whats ap April 11th 2023

The Senior Team won 5.5 to 2.5 . Weather was sunshine and showers mixed with with very friendly opposition followed by a convival meal back in the Clubhouse.

Waltz result April 6th 2023. Courtesy of Mike Healey

The advertised Tango was changed on the day into a Waltz because of the numbers of holes open and also members who turned up. 9 x threeballs put their tallies into the draw and all enjoyed the warm sunny conditions, along with the ground improvement after maintenance and improved weather. There were three prizes for the winning teams with expected scores over 60 points: Waltz Result First: Chris Jacques, Ken Tieszen and Peter Lord 70 points Second: Keith Hawthorn, Tom Blakshaw and Peter Fraser 69 points Third: Stewart Poole, Bill Kelleher and Eric Thwaites 67 points

Peril Ball competition. Results courtesy of Mike Healey. April 4th 2023

We had been given plenty of warning about maintenance week and it has to be said that sand on greens never helps the golf on the day! It will benefit us all ultimately I'm sure. However, we persevered and the sand made little difference to the outcome. The rest of the course is drying very nicely and after a rather cool start, the blue skies appeared and we experienced a heady 14 degrees C - roll on summer. Peril Ball - what is it you may well ask? Basically a Yellow Ball competition with the normal bonus points but added differences when penalties are incurred by the holder. The troops were briefed and 9 x fourballs headed off to do battle. We did not hold a ballsweep today so there is still carry over to come. There were 3 prizes in total and the predicted score was somewhere between 90 and 100 points - read on. Peril Ball Result First: Peter Taylor, Bill Kelleher, Peter Fraser and Alan Barnsdale - 111 points Second: Dave A Jones, Peter Thomas, Ray Griffiths and Mike Healey - 101 points Third: Peter Lord, Tom Pierce, Stewart Poole and Irwin Elkin - 97 points Les Williams, Andy Mitchell, Alan Pocklington and Barry Dare also scored 97 points but missed out on countback.

Pairs both scores to count. March 30th 2023. Report via Mike Healey

There have been several reminders regarding the April medal which has now been moved from Thursday 6th April to Thursday 20th April to allow tining of greens and other ground preparation. Please check your own calendars at home. Today's Result - Yet another inclement day for our golf but playing numbers do not seem to suffer. We had 18 pairs out for a Pairs - Both to Count competition with four prizes for the winning teams. Three holes are still closed in readiness for summer competition. There was a ballsweep, well run by Peter Bowen as usual but on this occasion there were no winning 2's, so all prize money will be carried over to next week (definitely watch for numbers next Tuesday). Scoring was not brilliant today, probably due to the conditions, although Senior Captain - Chris Jacques and Ernie Williams reurned good individual cards (reflected in the winning teams). The result was as follows: Pairs - Both to Count First: Ernie Williams and Colin Brown - 60 points Second: Don Wraight and Chris Jacques - 58 points Third: Dave Palferman and Mike Hollings - 57 points (c/b) Fourth: Tom McGrady and Mick Carnell - 57 points (c/b) Download all attachments as a zip file

Seniors Texas Scramble March 28th 2023. Report via Mike Healey.

Weatherwise, we experienced rather a damp squib this morning but we soldiered on for a very enjoyable and relatively well-timed competition. 28 seniors turned out for our Texas Scramble (perfect numbers again) and all cards were returned with reasonable to good scores. There were three holes closed, so final scores were lower than usual - 3 cards in the 50's and four cards in the high 40's, with a card play-off for the runner-up place. Two team prizes were awarded as follows: Texas Scramble Result First: Jon Falcus, Richard Collier, Peter Fraser and Alan Pocklington - 48.1 Second: Mick Carnell, Bob Jarvis, Barry Dare and Andy Mitchell - 48.7 Tom McGrady, Ken Tieszen, Alan Barnsdale and Nigel Davies returned 48.7(with exactly the same team shots reduction) but lost it on countback. The Senior's Winter League was finally completed on the 21st March, as previously reported. Alan Barnsdale and Ernie Williams gave Wyn Jenkins a run for his money right up to the sixth and very last round with all scores being tight. Wyn was the final victor and after the Texas Scramble today, Retiring Club Captain, Don Wraight presented Wyn with the Winter League Trophy plus a bottle of Bombay Sapphire Gin.

Seniors Xmas tipple March 23rd 2023 Report via Mike Healey

Seniors - Another good day in the Senior calendar. What should have been the Xmas Tipple eventually arrived, everybody tippled on the ninth tee but nobody toppled on this occasion. The weather Gods allowed the competition to be played but one heavy shower, followed by a series of smaller ones just kept us on our toes. The sun eventually came out and warm conditions prevailed - that would not have happpened for the Xmas bash. The only items missing were the complimentary mince pies but I'm not sure if they were still edible from December. At this point I would add my thanks to Mike Hollings for making the spot markers with printed score sheets, which can be used in the future and also to Steve Monk for his help with the bottle prizes. 42 members entered the tally draw for the Pairs Betterball kitty competition, some with silly hats to gain extra points. 15 holes were played with hole closures on 2, 6 and 7. There were 20 cards with 30 points or more, meaning scoring was tight, plus a further 7 extra spot prizes on a variety of holes and 6 prizes in the ball sweep - read on for results: Pairs Betterball Results: First: Les Williams and Mick Carnell 39 points (c/b) Cash plus Bottles of Wine Second: Peter Bowen and Peter Taylor 39 points (c/b) Cash Third: Ernie Williams and Richard Collier 38 points Cash Fourth: Tom Pierce and Nigel Davies 37 points (c/b) Cash Fifth: Reg Peacock and Mike Healey 37 points (c/b) Cash Ball Sweep Results - Prize for 2's: Malcolm Williams, Mike Hollings (both on 1st), Richard Collier (12th), Dave Palferman (17th) and Damian Atkin x 2 (on 1st and 12th) - all Cash Spot Prizes: Nearest Pin on 1: Damian Atkin Mini Wine Nearest Pin on 5: Chris Jacques Mini Wine Longest Drive on 9: Russ Adamson Mini Wine Nearest Pin in 2 on 9: Ernie Williams Mini Wine Nearest Pin on 12: Richard Collier Mini Wine Nearest Pin on 17: Dave Palferman Mini Wine Nearest Pin in 2 on 18: Alan Barnsdale Mini Wine

6TH AND FINAL ROUND OF WINTER LEAGUE. Results courtesy of Steve Monk March 21st 2023

Today we played the sixth and final round of this year's Winter League. 13 holes of the course were open and the weather was fine throughout the morning, leading to a very pleasant game. Quite amazingly, the three leaders after Round 5 fought a good battle for the ultimate victory and finished in the top 3 places of today's round. The results today were: 1st - Wyn Jenkins, with 33 stableford points and 10 league points. 2nd - Alan Barnsdale, with 30 stableford points and 9 league points. 3rd - Ernie Williams, with 30 stableford points (on countback) and 8 league points. 4th - Peter Taylor, with 29 stableford points and 7 league points. 5th - Don Wraight, with 28 stableford points and 6 league points. 6th - George Hughes, with 27 stableford points and 5 league points. 7th - Steve Monk, with 27 stableford points (countback) and 4 league points. 8th - Mick Carnell, with 27 stableford points (countback) and 3 league points. 9th - Andrew Mitchell, with 27 stableford points (countback) and 2 league points. 10th - Reg Peacock, with 26 stableford points and 1 league point. 3 further players also scored 26 points but lost out on countback. I don't have all previous scores available so I cannot show a final table of all players' positions. I am sure Mike Healey will assemble all information and issue the final table when he returns from holiday. I can however issue the top 3 final places, as follows. 1st - Wyn Jenkins with a total of 43 league points. 2nd - Ernie Williams with 36 league points. 3rd - Alan Barnsdale with 34 league points. Well done to these 3 and also to all other players who scored points in several rounds. Finally, thanks to all who played in the various rounds through fair weather or less fair! At the last count a total of 52 of you have participated this year (12 of whom scored at least double figures of league points), which I am sure Mike Healey will be gratified by - it makes his work in organising and record keeping all worthwhile! Cheers Steve Monk

NO GOLF REPORTS THIS WEEK

Nothing to report this week as course been closed

Captains Newsletter March 2023

Captain's Newsletter: March 2023 Well here it is my last newsletter as Captain of our wonderful club. What a great honour it has been for me. I am now in my 25th year as a member of this club and what an amazing journey I have had. Having moved and relocated from West London to North Wales one of my priorities has been to find and become a member of a golf club having left Home Park golf club in Kingston and so many friends. What a friendly welcoming club this is. It has progressed to be a leading contender for the best in the area, if we are not that already. The green-staff this last month have been extremely busy preparing the course for the new competitive season which is nearly here. They have been holotined and sanded the tees, trimmed trees and used the chippings for paths and making the course attractive. Greens will be next to be holotined which will be done shortly depending on the weather, at the moment they are very fast and with Mark’s tender care can only get better. I can hear a few who will be frustrated when they are top dressed but the benefits will be well worth it in the long run. Competition sheets are online and in the foyer for all to enter. I must congratulate Alan Pocklington on producing fact sheets concerning the club competitions; I would love to see him overwhelmed with entries for the knock-outs. There are entries for the DGU team plus the Ping mixed which this year we hope enter 2 teams with your help, so please add your name if you wish to participate in this gents and ladies competition, you get to play at various courses during the heats and if successful and could end up in the semi-finals and finals at Carmarthen golf club in September. Congratulations Hayley who has passed her Level 2 Food Hygiene and Safety for Catering and has been awarded a certificate to proudly display in the bar area together with her 5 star hygiene rating. Fully deserved and I hope very much that more members will use the facilities that she provides. Finally big thanks to ALL members who have supported the club. Julie and I in our Captaincies and hope that you will do the same for our new officers who will be voted in at the AGM on the 25th March to which you are all invited. There is an Agenda on the noticeboard together with proposals for incoming officers. Happy golfing and for the last time from me RAKE those bunkers and REPAIR those pitch marks. Don Wraight

Seniors Stableford Medal March 2nd 2023

Seniors Stableford Medal Thursday 2nd March Division 1 1st David Palferman (16) 41 2nd Michael Scott (20) 38 Division 2 1st Sean McCarthy (26) 39 2nd Bill Kelleher (23) 39 Division 3 1st Leslie Williams (32) 42 2nd Gareth Thomas (31) 36

St Davids Day 2023 competition results via Mike Healey

The Met. Office is anticipating a near-record low for rainfall in the month of February and we have been able to complete all of the scheduled calendar events, including the big one today. That said - there was some rain over the course just before play today, leaving the rough a little damp in places, but the fairways held well, play was not affected and some good scores were returned. So what was the competition to attract such numbers? Today we played the first of our majors - the Nearly St. David's Trophy, which naturally carries a Welsh theme throughout! A magnificent Trophy, entered by no fewer than 48 seniors, many sporting daffodils on the day. The troops not only played their golf but all remained for soup and sandwiches, the food being organised by Steve Monk, before the announcement of prizes. To say the afternoon was convivial is underselling the occasion. Roy Jones, Past Captain and still part-time member of the club, was present and as usual, sponsored the first prize to run alongside the Trophy - thank you Roy. There were 10 prizes in total, again brilliantly purchased and organised by Don Wraight, who always maintains the Welsh theme for this occasion. Chris Jacques, Senior Captain made a short speech before the prize-giving and Roy was on hand to present the prizes, which was preceded by the anouncement of the Ballsweep winners. The scores at the top were tight, with a lot of cards returning 35/36 points but on the day, none of them were good enough. Countback was required for all of the top 10 prize winners - read on! Ballsweep Winners: Russ Adamson - (2 on 2nd), Chris Jacques - (2 on 2nd) and Bob Jarvis - (2 on 12th). All three received £10.00 Nearly St. David's Day Trophy Results: First: Alan Barnsdale - 43 points (c/b) Trophy and Welsh Penderyn whisky Second: Mick Carnell - 43 points (c/b) Welsh gin Third: Andy Mitchell - 43 points (c/b) Welsh whisky glass and stones Fourth: Dave Palferman - 39 points (c/b) Welsh Merlyn cream licquer Fifth: Wyn Jenkins - 39 points (c/b) Welsh engraved hip flask Sixth: Richard Collier - 39 points (c/b) Welsh engraved pint glass and 3 Welsh beers Seventh: Ken Tieszen - 39 points (c/b) 12 golf balls and 1 Welsh beer Eighth: Liam Roddis - 38 points (c/b) 9 golf balls and 1 Welsh beer Ninth: Bill Kelleher - 38 points (c/b) Welsh hat, 3 golf balls and 1 Welsh beer Tenth: Chris Jacques - 38 points (c/b) 6 golf ball

Winter League as of January 31st 2023

Rank Name Nov 29th Jan 26th Jan 31st Feb 7th Feb 21st Mar 9th Total Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Round 6 Points 1 Wyn Jenkins 10 3 5 5 10 33 2 Ernie Williams 7 9 7 5 28 3 Alan Barnsdale 4 6 3 8 4 25 4 Mick Carnell 10 10 20 5= Barry Dare 5 4 8 17 5= Peter Taylor 1 2 7 7 17 7 Bill Kelleher 9 6 15 8 Graham Wright 8 6 14 9= Gareth Thomas 3 5 3 11 9= Richard Collier 8 1 2 11 11 Peter Lord 10 10 12= Mike Scott 9 9 12= Nigel Davies 9 9 12= Dave A Jones 9 9 15= Andy Mitchell 6 2 8 15= Reg Peacock 8 8 17= Mike Hollings 6 1 7 17= Damian Atkin 7 7 19= Steve Graham 4 4 19= Liam Roddis 4 4 21 Colin Brown 3 3 22= Graham Bryne 2 2 22= Don Wraight 2 2 24= Peter Fraser 1 1 24= Les Williams 1 1

Winter league round 5. Results courtesy of Mike Healey

Cloudy with occasional sunshine breaking through and a chilling breeze to keep us on our toes. All repair work and drainage to the second hole has been completed, so the troops had to contend with the full eighteen holes today. The timing was good and ALL handicaps were entered correctly - thank you. The Committee members led the way round, in anticipation of a meeting immediately following the competition. Once again, there were some very good scores and the organiser is currently under the cosh with countback and card resolving. No fewer than four players registered two's in the ball sweep and they were: Mike Hollings (2nd) Don Wraight (2nd) Barry Dare (5th) and Stewart Poole (12th) - They each took a quarter share of the proceedings and there were a further six prizes for the Winter League winners. This time last year the overall WL result had been concluded after five rounds. Only three seniors can now win the Trophy - all to play for on the 9th March!!! Please find results below and WL table attached. Winter League - Round 5 Results: First: Wynn Jenkins 42 points (WL 10 pts) Second: Mike Scott 41 points (c/b) (WL 9 pts) Third: Barry Dare 41 points (c/b) (WL 8 pts) Fourth: Peter Taylor 40 points (c/b) (WL 7 pts) Fifth: Bill Kelleher 40 points (c/b) (WL 6 pts) Sixth: Ernie Williams 39 points (c/b) (WL 5 pts) Severnth: Alan Barnsdale 39 points (c/b) (WL 4 pts) Eighth: Colin Brown 37 points (c/b) (WL 3 pts) Ninth: Andy Mitchell 37 points (c/b) (WL 2 pts) Tenth: Mike Hollings 37 points (c/b) (WL 1 pt) Dave Palferman and Les Williams also carded 37 points but both missed out on countback.

Pairs Betterball results February 16th. via Mike Healey

We only had 16 holes available today because Scottish Power were cutting trees and adjusting their cables across holes 16 and 17. It mattered not. The 37 troops who turned up were paired together and set forth from a variety of new tees. Although cloudy, the sun shone through and we reached a heady 15 degs temperature - almost spring-like conditions to be playing in. Because of the numbers, three members played with 2 different partners, therefore geting two bites of the cherry. The scoring was tight at the top (remember only 16 holes) with 3 cards on 39. Alas two of them lost out on countback with the four prizes on offer. Pairs Betterball Results: First: Peter Taylor and Gareth Thomas 41 points Second: Bob Jarvis and Richard Collier 40 points (c/b) Third: Andy Mitchell and Stewart Poole 40 points (c/b) Fourth: Irwin Elkin and George Hughes 39 points (c/b) Braib Beaton/ Malcolm Williams and Alan Barnsdale/ Richard Collier just missed out on countback, also with 39 points Reply, Reply all or Forward