Two More pictures from Cirencester

A great day out lets hope we can get the seniors back on track

 As you will hopefully have seen we are trying to get the seniors going again Tuesdays and Thursdays.

If we can is it useful to restart the blog, I'll be asking you all soon.

In the meantime we had a great day out at Cirencester Wednesday 1st Sept (2021).

Kevin

Words and pictures thanks to John Alexander.

Seniors Day Out 

September 1st 2021 will go down in the golfing annuls of the Witney Lakes Seniors. After two years of doldrums golf, last Wednesday made up for the missing events and fragmentation at our home club.

For the old guard meeting up again was like the reunion of geriatrics trying to remember and share the memories of good times past and for the new guard a warm welcome to the banter and bawdiness (or is that baldiness) as we all munched away at our bacon rolls in what for some of us,  was still the early morning.

No app’s, no IG, no photos of cards just a plain old fashioned enjoyable golfing day out at a lovely golf course with excellent morning rolls and coffee and a delicious meal after all the huffing and puffing of the exploration of the undulating acres of Cirencester golf club.

Thirty odd of our oldies in 8 four balls took to the task of overcoming a new course for some and a rerun for others, stopping at the halfway house for topping up as necessary.

Standing on the first preparing to whack the ball uphill towards the green the slope did not look too intimidating but I guess there were some of us whose knees were wobbling in the hope of a god shot before the eyes of our mates. But when you got to the green, eventually, and looked down it would be easy to imagine the slope covered in snow and resembling an alpine ski jump.

There were some lovely holes with all sorts of blind tee shots, different lies and not so subtle cross slopes, tricky greens and bunkers the course presented a challenge to any one of our group.

However, some mastered the challenge and after dinner prizes were distributed and speeches given. Four players tied on 37pts but ironically the day’s winner with 41pts was the event organiser Malcolm Saunders who as usual did a super job which gave us all a good day out and excellent value.

Now that we have sampled what reality is like playing in the seniors group let us all hope that we can look forward to more of the same and that in the future at Witney we can enjoy being and playing together again.

JA

September 2nd 2021.

Tough Day at the Lakes

 So

The first Roll Up of the new era and it was blistering hot. I think the scores speak for themselves. Mark my playing partner and myself gave each other a sly look on the 10th Tee and agreed we had had enough.

By the time I was supposed to finish I had gotten home had a sandwich and a shower and fallen asleep. Great Decision.

I wil change the next roll up to stableford if I can a bit more forgiving.

Dont forget from tomorrow you can sign up for the Inagural Bill Woodbridge Memorial Trophy

 Dear Golfers

We are trying to get going again in something like the style we had before Lock Down but its not going to be the same and most of us wouldn't feel safe if it was.

We tried a couiple of competitions in July and they seemed to go OK, we have more in August and lets hope they go as well. In addition we have tried to start the Roll Up again for weeks where there are no competitions. 

We cant block out Tee times at the moment and I'm not sure we will ever be able to do again but what we can do is get in a day early before any members or visitors can book Tee times and tie up the slots we want.

So for the next Tuesday (18th not 11th) we can book tomorrow before anyone else. If you book a Tee time from 8 till 10 anyone else who wants to join in the comp can see the slots available and who is playing them and book up to join them. We think thats the way forward and means you can play with different people who you may not have seen otherwise.

From the IG app you can sign yourself and any other members in but as far as I know you cant pay on their behalf. This is not an issue for August as these roll ups are free but it will matter in September when we start to charge a £1fee. I suppose those with a Pay Pal account can settle up on their behalf and sort out a cash repayment later.

Anyone has any suggestions about how this could be made easier please let a committee member know.

Hopefully I'll be keeping up the blog from now on any feed back would be good

Kevin

So a small turnout today for the Hot Toddy trophy. I managed 18 holes but not in the competition. The white tees were miles back well done to everyone who got round.

I don't really understand about why you couldn't enter on Intelligent Golf the competition was loaded but there must have been something amiss with the entry  rules.

13 played so we have allowed for just one division.

Prizes £15, £10, and £5

Winner Barry James 76
Second Mike Twyman on 76 (after countback)
Third Brian Floyd on 77

Clearly a lot going on with the Carona Virus and us over 70's being sent into lockdown, I had a quick word with Charlie Stockford and I think he will make our options clearer in the next few days.
In the meantime we carry on as best we can and wait further developments


Kevin

I managed to get round 18 holes yesterday my first Medal since 2018, AND I came third in Div2 AND I marked the card of the winner. What a day!

So congratulations to Bob Kirkwood he played very straight and didn't make any big mistakes, very difficult in that wind yesterday.

I know there were questions about why handicaps hadn't changed after the game and my understanding is that on advice from the Handicap Secretary the course as played had been too short and so the game was changed to Non Qualifying

So after all that fun on the course we had a committee meeting and I am very pleased to say (among lots of other stuff of course) we agreed to rename the Invotec Trophy  The Bill Woodbridge Memorial Trophy in memory of Bill Woodbridge (rather obvious really)

More information on Bill was posted here a couple of weeks ago but we will make that more visible soon.

Kevin

Kevin

So a cold day but except for a small amount of rain a nice enough day

21 played so enough for prize money for 2 divisions but only first and second places
First £5, Second £3

So in division 1 both with 36 points

And in division 2  first with 36 points second with  a very unlucky 34

There was also a Uboat match played out today I cant remember who played but Mike Twyman had a big smile on his face when I saw him

Sorry for the delay in posting the results from yesterday, IG had decided not to talk to me until this morning

So a wet course but once again very fair greens and considering everything some good scores.



Yesterdays result

Nett Results

Division 1

1st Alec Tyrell (20) 34
2nd Barry James (11) 33
3rd Rod Bools (17) 33

Division 2

1st Brian Floyd (32) 31
2nd Patrick Hiles (36) 26
3rd John Watt (24) 25

Prizes for both divisions
£8 1st
£5 2nd
£3 3rd

Kevin

Still Waters Run Deepest

Bill Woodbridge (95) was laid to rest yesterday and his wake was held in the Sports Bar. Many of you will have come across “Old Bill”. He loved to sit on the bench at the 10th during comps and greet members crossing from the 9th green to the 10th tee. Last summer he would wait for the seniors to come through and often would jump in a buggy and play a few holes with them. He was always cheerful and lived and breathed golf at Witney Lakes.

Yesterday I found out something about this frail, slight old man who would struggle to bend down and pick up his ball and certainly had difficulty in lining up a put. He was in fact a GIANT of a man because on the 6th June 1944 that frail man was a 18 year old Royal Marine Commando and was one of the first to step forward on Gold beach.

June 1944

The first operation No. 47 (Royal Marine) Commando was involved in was Operation Neptune the Normandy landings better known as D-Day 6 June 1944. No. 47 landed at Gold Beach at 09:50 hours 6 June near the town of Asnelles. Five of the Landing Craft Assault carrying the Commando ashore were sunk by mines and beach obstacles with the loss of 76 of the 420 men in the Commando. These losses delayed No. 47's advance to their primary objective the port of Port-en-Bessin. Leaving the beaches after noon they fought through La Rosiere and dug in around Escures for the night prior to their planned assault on Port-en-Bessin on the 7 June.

His family didn’t know, they found out when clearing his things finding his medals and memoirs, I guess he just kept it to himself.

Next time you’re in the bar, raise a glass to him, or spare him a thought as you cross from the 9th to the 10th. I’m guessing his spirit won’t be far away!

RIP Bill, it was a honour to have known you.

Rod Bools

Seniors Captain

Good afternoon Golfers of Witney

We are trying to get the Blog and the results service going again, some technical hitches but hopefully it wont be long.

This afternoon we celebrated the life of Bill Woodbridge, known to most of us as "Old Bill" who in later years stood at the tenth tee and went round the back nine with whoever had the best buggy.
In earlier days he had been a good golfer and even in his 90's had played a pretty straight ball. He was 95 when he died last month and his family were very keen to tell us how much they appreciated the friendship he had enjoyed with all the seniors. We will find a way to commemorate him soon, watch this space.

Today only the back 9 were open but 7 brave souls (or is that soles) still managed the 3 clubs and a putter roll up, and in fact the course wasn't at all bad considering the weather; and the greens were still pretty good.

So the clear winner with 15 points was Martin Buckingham who gets £5 for his efforts. One prize only.

Weather could be tricky Thursday lets hope it gets better soon

Kevin

Fellow Golfers

As you will have seen from his email Rod has revamped the program to fit in with some changes in the year In particular the Club Champs is in June to fit in with a request from the Club Company and the Senior Open is a bit later than usual to fit in with holidays etc.

I am close to getting back to golf and with Cliff Smith taking over the reins as treasurer hopefully we can help Rod get things a bit smoother in the future.
In all of this change Intelligent Golf is going to be playing a bigger and bigger part so it would be a good idea if you aren't already familiar with it to get to know the ropes.

Lets hope the weather gets better and we can all get some proper golf in


Kevin

Dear All
I expect by now you will have seen the sad news about Ron Wright.

A really nice man who welcomed me into the club when I joined and a stalwart of the Witney Lakes Seniors. Enough of that today I'm sure we'll talk about him and remember him over the next few weeks.
Anyway I know not everyone can always open PDF files as on Rods email so I have attached the information below

Kevin

What wet day?

I managed 4 holes today. The first for nearly 10 months and I just about managed to get round with only 2 wet feet. 9 holes soon then who knows.

So I know it was difficult to get the UBoat organised today lets hope we can do better next round. I don't know who has tried it, but you can message anyone in the club using Intelligent Golf. You place the message on the system and it emails people telling them a message is there for them. Might be very useful if you don't have peoples email or phone number

The charity hole is now in play, its the 15th, see this blog and the notice board for details.I have the collection tin but it should be back in the Sports Bar Thursday.

One final thing. The Wooden Honors Boards are no longer used and I know everyone who has their name on one would love to own it as a keepsake, what a great Christmas present stylish and retro at the same time. I'm sure the wife will find a place for it at home.
All that's needed is to see Cliff Smith and make a small contribution to the Captains Charity.


Who needs Black Friday

Kevin

For all of you new to the competition here are the Rules for the UBoat

U-Boat Knock-OutTrophy

1. Open to all Male members of Witney Lakes Golf Club, aged 55yrs and over on the day of the competition, who hold an active/competition handicap.
2. Format – Pairs Matchplay, 4-Ball Better Ball
3. Pairs are drawn at random, with the exception of the previous year's winners who will be paired together to defend their title.
4. Tees - Yellow
5. Handicap – Strokes received, 90% Handicap difference, off the lowest handicap player in group.
6. History - Malcolm (Mac) Savage, another original member of the Seniors and the Section's first treasurer, presented this German U-Boat key as a trophy. The key itself is a valve handle for the control of air to the ballast tanks of a submarine and came from U-85, which surrendered in Dec. 1918 after the end of World War I. 
7. This is a winter 4BBB, knock-out competition, which starts in November.

9 holers

Calling All 9 Holers
Tomorrow we have our first 9 hole competition. We will run these occasionally so that all of our members even The Old G**s can take part in our competitions. So the competition is over the first 9 holes only, many of you will carry on and finish 18 holes anyway and that is OK. In fact its to be warmly congratulated as the weather tomorrow looks pretty poor.

So if after 9 holes your playing partners have had enough then please just wait and carry on with the three behind you.

Please see the details of the semifinalists, to be played on 29^th Aug, or before if people cant make the 29th

SEMI FINAL 29/08/2019
Peter Burdon 17 v Julian Marks 14
SEMI FINAL 29/08/2019
Colin Keenan 10 V Barry James 10

Big congratulation to Mike Barrett for I believe his first win with the Seniors, good to see Mike getting back into his golf lately.

Also good to see Ron back in the winners enclosure following his recent injury, and always good to see Eric high up on the score sheet

22nd July Stableford – 18 players – 1 Division

1^st Mike Barrett £5, 2nd Ron Feasey £3, 3^rd Eric Wearing £1

DON’T FORGET TOMORROW YELLOW PERIL GAME TEAMS OF £ PLAY WITH YOUR MATES – or anyone else who has no mates!

18^th June Stableford – 13 players – 1 Division

1^st Tony ward £4, 2^nd Roger Laban £2, George Stobie £1

20^th June  Stableford – 17 players – 1 Division

1^st Alan Jones £5, 2nd Glyn Rees £3, 3^rd Roger Laban £1

25^th June Stableford – 8 players – 1 Division

1^st Mike Twyman £4, 2nd Cliff Smith £2, 3^rd Dave Williams £1

27^th June Stableford – 12 players – 1 Division

1^st Geoff Mills £4, 2nd Alec Tyrell £2, 3^rd Mike Smith £1

2^nd to 4^th July Seniors Championship 25 players 1 Division

Winner Gross Colin Keenan £10

2^nd Tony Ward £7

3^rd Julian Marks £5

Winner Nett Cliff Smith £10

2^nd Tony Carter £7

3^rd Phil Smith £5

Winner Veterans Cliff Smith £5

2’s Rod Rapley £5

9^th July Stableford – 16 players – 1 Division

1^st Alec Tyrell £4, 2nd Brian Rollerson £2, 3^rd Geoff Mills £1

11^th July Stableford – 18 players – 1 Division

1^st Alec Tyrell £5, 2nd Brian Rollerson £3, 3^rd Geoff Mills £1

16^th July Stableford – 22 players – 1 Division

1^st Richard Gent £5, 2nd Doug Keen £3, 3^rd Alan Jones £1

Summer Stableford R4 – 19 Players 1 Division

1^st Peter Cartwright £5, Phil Smart £3, Cliff Smith £1

22nd July Stableford – 18 players – 1 Division

1^st Mike Barrett £5, 2nd Ron Feasey £3, 3^rd Eric Wearing £1

KO Singles latest situation

Seniors Singles Knockout
	ROUND 1 - 21/5/2019	ROUND 2 - 4/6/2019
1	Rod Bools	Alan Jones v Bob Kirkwood
2	Alan Jones		ROUND 3 - 11/7/2019
3	Bob Kirkwood		Bob Kirkwood v Peter Burdon
4	Mike Twyman
5	Peter Burdon	Peter Burdon v Malcolm Saunders
6	James Barnatt			SEMI FINAL 29/08/2019
7	Malcolm Saunders			Peter Burdon v Julian Marks
8	Terry Edmonds
9	John Watt	Julian Marks v Chris Hatherly
10	Julian Marks		ROUND 3 - 11/7/2019		FINAL 26/09/2019
11	Chris Hattherly		Julian Marks v Kevin Sheehan Playing 19th July
12	Cliff Smith
13	Martin Buckingham	Rod Rapley v Kevin Sheehan
14	Rod Rapley					WINNER
15	Kevin Sheehan
16	Steve Miles
	ROUND 1 - 21/5/2019	ROUND 2 - 4/6/2019
17	Tony Ward	Tony Ward v Richard Gent			FINAL 26/09/2019
18	Jim Whalley		ROUND 3 - 11/7/2019
19	Graham Simpson		Richard Gent v Colin Keenan
20	Richard Gent
21	Glyn Rees	Phil Smart v Colin Keenan Playing 14th June
22	Phil Smart			SEMI FINAL 29/08/2019
23	Colin Keenan
24	Alec Tyrell
25	Declan Jordan	Declan Jordan v Brian Floyd Playing 11th July
26	Doug Keen		ROUND 3 - 11/7/2019
27	Brian Floyd		Brian Floyd v Barry James
28	Bill Howard
29	Ken Gregory	Eric Wearing v Barry James
30	Eric Wearing
31	Barry James
32	Graham Wilson