February 2006

Hoyo! Hoyo! Hoyo!

February 5th saw 20 Wexham ladies set of for Sunny Spain, under the superb leadership of our Captains Anne and Carol.

Sunday

This time we left the yellow t-shirts at home and went for more discreet lime green rosettes to identify ourselves as the Wexham Warblers. Everything went to plan from start to finish, flights, pick ups, golf arrangements and even the weather was wonderful. The hotel was superb, with excellent facilities, and its own beach.

Monday

Following champagne breakfast what else! we left for La Quinta Golf Course, where we played a singles competition, the scores not fantastic (we were just warming up). It was good to feel the warmth of the sun after the sub-zero temperatures of the UK the previous week. We had a late night following a visit to Puerto Banus, restaurants and piano Bar.

Tuesday

The sun still shone, as we headed for La Quinta - this time teams of four, best three scores on each hole counting. Well for some at least…we were mastering the course though some fairways resembled stretches of Mt Everest. This evening saw us at Estapona, more food and a little wine!!On returning to the Hotel, more surprises as we discovered hidden talents of Liz Lunn who entertained us on the piano, with a little help from her friend. We danced the evening away, repaired to the bar and another late night followed…

We arrived back after midnight not quite as energetic as when we left, but having had a fantastic few days. Thank you Anne, Carol and helpers for planning and organizing such a successful trip, ensuring the rest of us could relax and enjoy, which we did, and we hope you did too. Looking forward to the next one.

by Maria Brennan

Night Golf, 9th February 2006

The Ladies Section was represented by the Nightingirls - namely Anne Leach, Carol Grant, Sue Carroll and Julie Kinchin. Nine teams were directed to their respective tee-offs and John Kennedy sounded the claxon for the start of the competition. Even with illuminated balls it was still tricky to always see the direction they shot off to, the flags were also lit to show the target. We had torches - large and small - to guide our way to the greens and to find errant tee pegs - it was hilarious. Our team held their own and came in mid way in the results. However we were up against the Pros and ground staff etc! All returned to the Clubhouse for a very welcome chilli and rice - thanks to Paulo for thawing us out! This competition is highly recommended for anyone who's up for a laugh ….

by Sue Carroll

Review of 2005

As January is a fairly quiet month in the golfing calendar I thought it might be a good idea to take a look back over the events of 2005.

FEBRUARY: Sixteen Wexham Ladies went to the Pine Cliffs Resort in Portugal for three days. Everyone had such a great time that this year twenty of us headed off to Marbella in Spain.

APRIL: Our first friendly match of the year with other clubs was against Haste Hill. The season got off to a good start with the match resulting in a draw.

MAY: The golfing year really got under way with Sue Carroll hosting her Lady Captains Day on Monday 2nd. This was a glorious sunny day and Sue and her husband John were on the 10th tee with refreshments. After the golf everyone enjoyed a BBQ which was followed by prize giving and the presentation of a gift to Sue. Later in the month the Ladies were off again for another couple of days, this time to the Manor of Groves Golf Course in Hertfordshire. This proved to be a very challenging course with lots of ditches (just like the Grand National!). May 18 saw the first Wednesday evening session for new members with 33 ladies joining in their first competition. We also enjoyed our first away day of the year. Maureen Bailey and Hilary Linton organised these very successful days - the first of which was at Aylesbury Park.

JUNE: Past Lady Captains gathered for a round of golf followed by lunch. This is an annual event and this year was attended by 12 Captains past and present. The next big event was the Club Championship held on 28th June. It was a really hot summer's day and for the first time two rounds of golf were played on the same day. There was also a trophy for the Senior Ladies Club Championship held on the same day.

JULY: This was a busy month. Wexham Park hosted its biannual charity day, this year in aid of the Shooting Star Hospice. The day was so successful that the hospice was presented with a cheque for £5300 and Wexham Park Hospital Children's ward also received a cheque for £1000. A record number of players entered with thirty seven teams of four playing a Texas Scramble. Friday 15th was our Ladies Invitational day which gave us an opportunity to invite a friend from another club to play in a fun competition. A new event was added to the calendar this year. This was the Jenny Powell Challenge which was organised by some of her friends from the club. This was a great fun competition with teams from the Ladies Section, Men's Section, Seniors, Juniors and Staff. After a day of rain we all felt that Jen must have been smiling down on us in the beautiful evening sunshine.

AUGUST: Tuesday 9th August was the annual Captain v Vice Captain competition. This is a fun day with ladies playing on either the Captain or Vice Captains team. Everybody on the winning team receives a prize, which this year went to the Captains team. The last Wednesday evening session for new Lady members was held in mid August. This is always great fun, when the new ladies play with the so called experienced members and we end the evening with a buffet. This year the standard of golf was really high and a record number of 28 ladies attained their handicap. On 23rd August twenty two members went off to Farnham Park for the last away day of the year.

SEPTEMBER: This was a hectic month for friendly matches. We played Haste Hill, Hurst, Hennerton and the final match of the year against Birds Hill. Twelve ladies visited Selsdon Park for a weekend of golf. They all enjoyed the hotel and golf which apparently involved quite a lot of water hazards. Also in mid September Janine Prunty and Lin Ives were very successful in the Sunningdale Ladies Open Foursomes. The competition was played over three days and Janine and Lin were the eventual runners-up.

NOVEMBER: Our AGM was held. Gifts were presented to retiring members of the Committee and new members were voted in. This is also when the prize giving for the major events of the year is held, including the Club Championship, Summer Knockouts etc.

DECEMBER: The first fun competition of December was the Christmas Pudding Stakes, followed by the Turkey Trot which of course is played in fancy dress (optional!) In the evening members returned for the annual Christmas Dinner. As always this event was very well supported.

by Sue Goodliffe