The New Bridge Has Started

The foundations and beams are in position on the 15th for the new (Maureen Braven) bridge. The bridge is being funded from donations and money raised within the Club and the work so far has been courtesy of Kenny Shepherd and Derek Himlin. The next task is for the stonemasons. Great job guys .... well done.

Hadrian League - Parklands vs Newcastle United

This was an away match but the scene is familiar .....

A cloud burst, a deluge, flooded greens and the match was abandoned without a ball being struck ..... try again next week!!

Super win against Slaley

The Men's team played at home yesterday evening against Slaley Hall in the Hadrian League match. With the course drying out after the deluge last weekend, the only cause for concern was the bunkers. However, with the help of Richard from the shop and a few willing members, the bunkers were raked and most became playable on the night. All the matches were close with two finishing on the 17th and 2 on the 18th. There were wins for Graeme Hewitt 3/2, Chris Bowman 1up, Paul Shanks 2up, Daniel Trotter 3/2 and Craig Wilson 2/1. Ian Davidson lost 3/2 to an in form opponent. It was an impressive team performance all round. The result was a 10 - 2 win for Parklands. Well done to you all. Ronnie Dixon sent his best wishes .... he had to go to that place called 'work' .... well somebody has to ... glad it's not me!!

Junior Team Result - Parklands 8 Ponteland 4

Report from Robert Hope :- A phenomenal result for Parklands on a wet weekend at Ponteland, when many courses were waterlogged and closed.
With a harsh defeat against City last week lingering on the teams mind, we knew we were the underdogs who would have been thankful for a draw.
A fantastic victory of 8-4 against a stronger and more experienced Ponteland side gave the team a massive boost, creating a wave of confidence for all and hopefully marking the beginning of a winning streak. The first 3 off the tee each gave 9 shots away while the final 3 were more evenly matched
The team would like to offer heartfelt thanks to Ben Goldie for once again playing number one, with the additional pressure that the position brings. This week Ben played four handicapper Peter Sym. Despite a shaky start Ben managed to sink a number of impressive puts to pull back a number of holes, before being beaten on the 13th. Well done Ben for showing such resilience in the match.
Oliver Hogg ventured out as number two playing six handicapper Adam Barker. Olly was up against it from tee off . Although his head went down slightly after the 8th, after some words of encouragement he rallied and was proud to finish five and three after being 6 down through 6.
Robert Hope took on nine handicapper Rachel Bruce reigning county girls captain. The two started off well and played shot for shot until Robert emerged victorious down the 18th with both players leaving with a mutual respect for the other and a new found friendship.
Tom Brookes had his 2nd victory for the junior team playing Mathew Fenwick. Having lead for most of the way, Tom won the match on the 16th green. A more enjoyable match this week for Tom against a great opponent giving him good reason to keep smiling.
Wayne Mcculloch showed guts and dug deep coming from three down through four holes to achieve victory. After a wayward front nine Wayne found form on the back nine to win the match on the 16th green.
Joanna Rumney played a storming match in her 2nd team appearance beating 15 year old Samuel Newman eight and six. Joanna was gracious in victory and also went on to support the team through the remaining matches. Well done Joanna, I hope Ponteland do not steal you away from us next year!
Samantha Malone picked up the gauntlet as team reserve once again and enjoyed a good round on the course.
Extra thanks to Brian and Trish Malone who came and supported the juniors and Jack who provided an excellent caddie service for Wayne.
Parklands juniors would like to recognise the welcome and hospitality we received at Ponteland, a close team of great sportsmen.

Men's Captain's Day Cancelled

I visited the course this morning (like visiting a sick relative) to witness the effects of the deluge. The pond on the 2nd has burst its banks and there is extensive flooding. With the course closed, there is little option but to cancel and reschedule tomorrows competition. The new date is Sunday, 9th August 2009 and a new draw will be made. The entry sheet will go out next Sunday morning as normal.

Wash Out for the Weekend

The Lady Captain, Maureen, was on the phone early this morning to tell me that the Ladies Captain's Day scheduled for tomorrow has been cancelled owing to the 2 inches of rain currently pouring from the sky. Such are the plans of men (and women) dashed by the actions of the gods!! The day has been re-scheduled for Saturday 1st August ... check the website for further details.

My Captain's Day on Sunday is looking very unlikely ... Steven Quince will assess the course in the morning and I hope to have the information out on the web and on this blog before noon ... b*****ks!!!!

Beaten but not down at Newbiggin

It's always a bad sign to get a text message when driving to a team match. I pulled over and read that Ricky Jamieson was going to be late. Don't worry. we have until 6.30pm to tee off. I arrived at Newbiggin on a warm and sunny evening. The threat of rain seemed to have gone, and we were ready for a tough match. The phone rang again. Ricky was not coming ... and with two regular team members not available I had no reserves. Frantic phone calls ... and voila ... Karl Mossom raced up from Parklands to fill the breach and we were a team of 6 again. But it was tough .... Newbiggin played the Penny brothers who are their Newcastle and District players with handicaps of +2. Their 6th player had a handicap of 2 .... a strong team on their own turf ... Matches at the start of the back nine were running to form, we were down in 5 and even in 1. The results started to come in ... Graeme Hewitt lost 5/4 but felt he played well, Chris Bowman lost 3/2, Craig Wilson lost 4/3. Ronnie lost 5/4 .... get the picture? The exception was Daniel Trotter playing at no.6 who had a good run of holes and won 4/3 to secure 2 points and ensure that we did not go home empty handed. Left out on the course with a growing crowd of onlookers was Karl playing at no.3 .... he was all square with three to go ... and his opponent was swearing, banging his club down, generally bad mannered. They halved the next ... then a par three ... Karl's opponent topped a chip shot and promptly broke his wedge over his knee ... the hole was halved ... down the 18th and both players had a putt for birdie. .... and both missed by a couple of inches ... and a half was secured and a point for the team. We had lost 9 - 3 but it was an ok result. Thanks to Karl for filling the gap ... it was appreciated by the team and me.

Club Championship Finals

It was Finals Day today and the finalists in the Men's and Ladies matches battled through 36 holes whilst the finalists in the Seniors Handicap and the Ladies Bronze settled their matches over 18.

The Seniors match was between Paul Gaughan and Mick Mcginney and this one was close. Mick was 4 up after 4, only to be reigned back by Paul and the match went all the way to the 18th where Mick sank the match winning putt to ensure it was his name that went on the trophy.

In the Ladies Bronze it was Amanda Pattison against Yvonne Welch and this was a hard fought competition until Amanda pulled ahead to secure her win on the 16th green.

The Men's Final brought Steven Quince and Paul Shanks together, both playing in their first Club Championship Final. In the morning session, Steven Quince pulled ahead to get to 4 up only for Paul to bring him back to all square by the 16th green. However, Steven then won the 17th and 18th to go to lunch 2 up. The afternoon session saw Steven pull ahead again, only for Paul to bring him back to all square on the 16th. Deja vu. Steven then won the 17th and the Championship depended on Steven sinking a 10 foot putt on the 18th to win 1 up. The putt had a run round the cup and fell in and Steven Quince is Champion. Well played to you both. Exciting to watch from two skillfull golfers.

In the Ladies Final, Candy Paige-Brown was facing the challenge of an in-form Angela Rumney and Candy soon found herself down in the morning session with Angela playing well and sinking some long putts to take a commanding 6 hole lead by lunch. In the afternoon session Candy had steadied the ship and was holding her own and managed to claw back a couple of holes. But the task was too great and Angela won the match on the 33rd (16th) hole. Angela became the Lady Champion for the 7th time. Well played to both the finalists.

Men's First Team Win against League Leaders

This Wednesday evening, we played Prudhoe, top of the Hadrian League with only one defeat all season ... we thought that this was going to be a tough fixture and it was .... for all our team members. It was a cool evening with the chance of more rain. The recent deluges had left the bunkers in an awful condition and they looked like dry river beds. The results in the individual matches were close and 4 went down the 18th and 1 finished on the 17th. There were wins for Chris Bowman, playing no.2, who finished 1 up by sinking a 10 foot putt on the last for a much deserved win; Ronnie Dixon who was 5 up early in his match had to fight off a rally by his opponent to win 2/1; Paul Shanks, our Club Championship finalist, won 2 up on the 18th with a great display of approach play and a very honourable half was secured by Craig Wilson who played the visiting Captain. Graeme Hewitt had a close match before losing 2/1 and Ian Davidson played a tough opponent only to lose 4/2. The overall result was a super 7 - 5 win and another feather in the cap for our team .... well done to you all.

Home Defeat for Junior Team

From Robert Hope ........ After an 11-1 defeat earlier in the season against some of our most experienced juniors, we always knew that Sunday would be a difficult match.
With such strong opposition, it was great that so many Parklands members came to support us on the first tee, thanks to you all, it really helped as City had arrived in force.
First on the tee was Ben Goldie playing Jack Hermeston. All credit to Ben as he was four down by the eighth but showed great resilience to take Jack all the way to the 16th. Our number two was Samantha Taylor who swapped the lead with Marcus Kairinos a number of times, before he landed 3 birdies in a row to take the win with 3 and 2. Robert Hope stretched his match until the 17th where a chip in birdie was needed to take the match to the final hole. Sadly, amid torrential rain and thunder Robert’s chip failed to find the hole. Tom Brooks played his second team match with high hopes and continued to smile even after being beaten on the 12th and having the dubious honour of making the after dinner speech. Wayne McCulloch played Chris Raff and fought long and hard, but eventually succumbed on the 15th. Joanna Rumney joined the team at the last minute, saving the team from conceding points. With a nineteen shot difference in handicap, congratulations and admiration goes to Joanna who showed guts, determination and courage to make it to the 13th.A great match and I think that the final 12-0 score really doesn’t reflect how well the team played, but that’s the game, and we all look forward to the next match.

Beaten Semi Finalist

Last night brought defeat for me on a cool and damp golf course. I lost my Seniors Semi Final to Paul Gaughan on the 18th green to lose the privilege of playing on finals day of the Club Championship next Sunday. We were evenly matched, but Paul was simply better on the putting green and never missed a single putt from within 10 feet. So Paul plays either Kenny Shepherd or Mick Mcginney in the final and I am free to referee the 36 hole Men's final. C'est la vie.

Club Championship - Quarter and Semis

Saturday was Quarter and Semi Finals Day for both the Men and the Ladies. An early start on a superb sunny morning brought out some excellent golf and a number of exciting matches. The course was in great condition and the recent rains made the greens receptive. In the Men's quarters in the morning, Steven Quince beat Graeme Hewitt, Paul Shanks beat Karl Mossom and Ian Davidson beat Daniel Deakin. In the Ladies matches, Candy Paige-Brown beat Amanda Pattison, Deborah Welch beat Gill Davidson, Yvonne Welch beat Ciaran Hannon and Angela Rumney beat Terry Hallows. In the Men's seniors, there were wins for Mick Mcginney, Kenny Shepherd, Paul Gaughan and me. The Semis were played on the afternoon in glorious sunshine and 25degreesC. The greens had quickened up and the golf was played at a similar pace. In the first of the Men's matches Steven Quince continued his morning form with a string of birdies to beat Daniel Trotter. In the second match, Ian Davidson staged a comeback only to lose on the 17th to Paul Shanks. In the Ladies matches Candy Paige-Brown beat Deborah Welch and Angela Rumney beat Yvonne Welch. So the men's and ladies finalists are set for their 36 hole championship deciders next Sunday. Just lets hope that the weather is as good as today.

Shoe cleaner repair

The compressor which feeds the shoe cleaner has been repaired and is now in full working order. We have also replaced one of the air guns which had been damaged. Please ensure that you hang the gun back on the hooks when you have finished using it. Thanks.

Junior Team vs Bedlingtonshire - Match Result

(Text and photo courtesy of Robert Hope). This was a new era for the Parklands Junior golf team as for most of those playing, this was their inaugural match. In addition Andy and Judith Hope took the reins as team supervisors for the first time.
To be honest, the day started badly with the bus arriving and departing without the team. Thankfully our lady members rose to the occasion with Pat Mattinson, Candy Paige-Brown and Alyssa Balding’s father all pitching in to get the team to Bedlington on time – many thanks to all.
The weather played kind to the team with only a slight breeze and the course was in excellent condition, enabling both teams to play great golf.
The first pairing of Alyssa Balding and Josh Laverick was evenly matched and went to the sixteenth, where Josh emerged victorious putting Parklands 2 down.
The second match of Ben Goldie and Ross O'Connor ended on the 14th green, putting Parklands 4 down. Ben tried hard and played well, but the seven shots difference proved difficult for our number two.
In the third match Oliver Hogg overcame a shoulder injury to play the first 14 before defeat arrived. Congratulations must go to Olly, as despite the ten shot difference, he put in a great effort until the very end.
Robert Hope played Elliot Smart in the fourth group. Robert, who had previously been beaten by Elliot at the Parklands home game, had his revenge with the match ending 4 and 2 and Parklands picking up their first points of the day.
Tom Brooks made his first team appearance playing against 13 handicapper Ryan Priest at number five. Tom's hard working performance during the match resulted in a 4 and 2 victory.
With the overall result riding on the final match of Wayne McCulloch versus Michael Dunn, the tension was rising as they approached the 17th hole with Wayne one hole in the lead. The 17th is a long par 3 and both players were feeling the heat. A long drive from Wayne found the charity bunker and Michael ended in the rough. With all the members from both teams watching, Wayne stepped up and made a great shot from the bunker and went on to win the hole and his match
Another first time appearance was made from Samantha Malone playing reserve. Her morning training session paying off as she successfully halved her match with Harrison - well done Sam.
The overall result was a 6 - 6 draw. Well done to all concerned.

Men's Captain's Day - Sunday, 19th July 2009

My Captain's day is on Sunday, the 19th July. The competition will be stableford format, full handicap for the Captain's Trophy. There's lots of prizes to be won, including best nett and best gross, best nett by category, longest drives by category and 4 x nearest the pin. There are also prizes for best senior, best junior, best visitor and best dressed player. With refreshments offered on the 1st and food and drink on the 10th, .... all that's missing is you ... so get your name down and enjoy the day. The entry sheet will be available as normal at this Sunday morning's competition. (poster courtesy of Neil Watson).

The Lady Captain's Day - Saturday, 18th July 2009

It's the date for every lady member to note, Saturday, the 18th July and Maureen's Captain's Day. There's lots of prizes to be won, including best nett and best gross by category, longest drives and nearest the pin and a pitching competition. With goodies offered on the 1st and nibbles on the 10th, along with afternoon tea on completion .... all that's missing is you ... so get your name down and enjoy the day. (poster courtesy of Neil Watson)

Back to Winning Ways

On a very warm and humid evening, the Men's team had a Tuesday fixture at Westerhope GC in their 8th Hadrian League match of the season. The team was Graeme Hewitt, Chris Bowman, Craig Wilson, Ian Davidson, Ronnie Dixon and Paul Shanks. The course was in superb condition and the wet weather of the previous night had left the odd puddle, but softened the greens to make them quite receptive. Brain King had dragged himself from his sick bed to support the team and John Best, John Bainbride and Chris Wappat were in attendance to caddy. At the end of the 9th we were up in 2 matches, all square in one and down in the other 3. By the end of the 13th it was down in 2, all square in 2 and up in 2 .... and the stage was set for an exciting last 5 holes. Ian Davidson was first to finish with a 2/1 win. Next was Craig Wilson who clawed his way back from being 3 down at the 14th to secure a half on the 18th. Then Paul Shanks secured a win 2/1 with a strong finishing run. Ronnie Dixon who had also been 3 down at the 14th secured another half on the final hole in a nail biting finish. Chris Bowman had a loss 3/2 and finally Graeme Hewitt had a great 4/2 win to finish the night. We won 8-4 and I witnessed a great determined performance from the team. Well done guys. Westerhope provided excellent hospitality throughout the evening and finished by serving us the biggest and best fish and chips I've had in a long time.