CAPTAIN'S BLOG - NEWS

COVID-19 Update
You will all be aware that as of today, members who are fully vaccinated can play in groups of three or four. All others will be playing in 2's till further notice. To find out the details and a list of FAQs please refer to the  Golf NSW web page by clicking HERE. Take a look at the FAQ's, they should provide the answers you require.

As the title above indicates, due to the course drying out, preferred lies are no longer with us and we play it as it lies.  Please note this change is on your score card and is on the Course Signs as you walk from the car park and to the Pro-Shop. Enjoy the additional run on the course.

As mentioned previously, we are changing to have a Presentation Night and for 2021 this is scheduled for the 13th of November. Put this in your diary and hopefully the COVID Health Advice will allow this night to happen.
This Saturday is the start of a busy golfing calendar:

• Monthly Medal
• Club Championships - 1st Qualifying Round
• Watson Cup - 1st Round of 3.
• Veterans Plate - 1st Round - open to 65 years old and over
• Lifestyle Cup - 1st Round - open to Lifestyle members

Sunday the 10th of October

• Women's Lifestyle Trophy
• Bradford Trophy - Junior Club Championship

Sign up Sheets
Summer Eclectic and the "Shoot Your Age" Competition are posted adjacent to the Club House scorecard scanner.  Entries close end of October.

Last Wednesday with a field of 96, John Jones won with 45 points. Ball winners went to the top 29 players (to 36 points on a count back).Grade winners were:
A Grade - Dave Burgess 42 points
B Grade - Norm Dodds 41 points
C Grade - Peter Dunn 41 points on a count back.

Saturday - Single Stableford
Again 96 competitors, David Bickford won with 41 points. Ball winners went to 29th place (34 points count back). Grade winners were:
​A Grade - Dave Burgess 38 points on a count back
B Grade - John Hobbs 39 points on a count back
C Grade - Bryan Frith 38 points.

Sunday - Medley Stableford
Daniel Weekes won with 38 points with runner up Jacob Nicholls with 36 points.

Monday Madness
Alec Dietsch won with 38 points.

I received an email during the week titled "Scottish Greenkeepers Revenge" with the following pictures. Let's hope it's not going to catch on here... (click to enlarge)

Play well and enjoy...

​Dave Burgess

COVID-19 Update

As we are getting closer to playing back in 3's and 4's, we are working with MiClub to finalise how fully vaccinated and non fully vaccinated can be efficiently managed.  We will keep you all posted through email as to when we will be back to playing "as near to normal". Thank you for your patience and understanding, it has been a long stay at home period, but we have been able to play golf.  We are better off than others.

Diary Updates

The Oxley Plate has been moved to the 19th of December due to the restrictions relating to playing in 4's.
This is an annual event with Moss vale GC - a mixed 4BBB trophy.  I'll keep you posted on when the sign up sheet is available.  I hope to get a strong field to play at Moss Vale and win the plate.

This year we have a Presentation Night to celebrate the 2021 championship and trophy winners - I will finalise the date for you soon and let you know. It will be great to get back to having the Club House open once more...

A few months ago I put the call out to members to send in those unwanted or surplus landscape supplies.  This material would have probably gone to the tip but is now being reused to improve the course.  So far we have had gates, fence posts, sandstone, pavers, concrete rubble and bricks to name the main types of materials.
The latest donation is a significant load of treated hardwood fence posts which will be used on the 9th hole to secure the area around the Telstra tower and cemetery.

Thank you and keep it coming. (See photo below)

Following the greens, fairways, tee box renovations of a couple of weeks ago you will have seen the improvements to the condition of the fairways and how easy it is to get a tee into the tee boxes.  The greens have had their first cut, it's all coming together nicely.  Nature also gives us a hand with the growing season starting to get underway. The re turfed areas on the 8th and 9th holes have been cut and will soon be topped dressed. Just reminder the Temporary Local Rule relating to GUR still applies for these two holes.
Also the final touches to the new path from the 8th to the 9th were made last Thursday morning.  Look out for the new garbage bins, while not the most riveting topic to mention they do provide a valuable function.  (see below photos below - click on them to enlarge for more detail)

As mentioned last week, the "Shoot Your Age" competition will be kicking off from the 2nd of October.
The Sign Up Sheet will up on the notice board behind the Club House score card reader this  Wednesday. The Competition will start on 2nd of October and continue until the end of March 2022.  Competition is already hotting up even before the formal Competition starts, with both Les Brooker and Harry Caust breaking their age last Saturday.  For more details, contact Alec Dietsch.

October is a big month for competitions, so book now in MiClub bookings.  The club championships, lifestyle championships, junior champions and more.

This year we have a new Trophy event the Women's Lifestyle Trophy, this is to celebrate and recognise this important membership category for the future strength of the club.  (see photo below)

Wednesday - 4BBB
With a great score of 48 points Mark De Jager and Chris Shaw combined to win the 4BBB. Also with 48 the runners up were Ash Southon and Daniel Weekes.

Saturday - 4BBB Stableford
An amazing scoring day - maybe the greens should be renovated more often(??). With 49 points on a count back the winners were Grant Blanchard and Stephen Haywood from Craig Houden and Dick Hiser. Well done to Chris Barry, with 47 points, who took the individual winner prize.  Ball winners went down to a mere 46 points!!

Sunday - Medley Stableford
With a good score of 41 points Luc Puchert won the day with runner up from Moore Park GC Jet Ostrer.

Monday Madness - Medley Stableford
With 37 points Jacob Nicholls won the day.

​Dave Burgess.

COVID - 19 update.

The most recent NSW Health advice relating to fully vaccinated adults indicates that in our LGA golf could be played in groups of three or four but non fully vaccinated would still be playing in groups of two. As always, we use the guidance from Golf NSW and Clubs NSW before we implement any changes.  Currently Golf NSW are in the process of reviewing the legal aspects related to the change.

Also a reminder not to congregate in groups prior to or after your round, we are still limited to groups of two.

We will keep you posted as further clarification is available.

Golf Cart Storage...

As a part of planning for the future needs of members we are keen to understand whether you will be requiring storage for a golf cart within the next two years or so.
This will allow us to plan for shed extensions and when the extra space would be required.

Please email Kevin if you are interested, click here.

Postion Vacant

We are placing a call out for "expressions of interest" to fill a vacancy we have in our greenskeeper staff. As you are probably aware a number of industries are finding it difficult to recruit and fill vacant positions.  BGC is as well.

If you have a relative or know someone who would enjoy working with a great team, please email Kevin with their name and contact details. Email. No experience necessary, training will be provided by Matt and Adam.

As I mentioned last week a great deal of work has been completed during late Autumn and Winter with both Club House and the Course being the beneficiaries. 
The major works to the Club House were:

• External repairs and painting
• Air-condition installed in the locker rooms
• New carpet installed.

Hopefully we will get to enjoy these improvements in the next month or so.
The major Course work completed were:

• Drainage work completed on the 8th and 9th holes - recent rains have demonstrated the effectiveness of this work.
• New path to the 9th tee and the scrub removed from the area resulting in a complete makeover of this corner of the course. 
• 15th Hole stormwater drains cleared and repaired.
• Ephemeral drain pipes on the 13th, 16th and 2nd holes cleared and repaired.
• 13th pond dam wall leaks filled and will be tested in the next week or so.
• 14th RHS bunker removed and green side reshaped and turfed.
• Removal of deceased and dangerous trees.
• Corella "scarers" installed on 4 greens.  These appear to work and the 14th green is slowly recovering from the savage attacks a few months ago.

These are the main jobs and I've probably missed a few.  A huge thanks for all the volunteers who supported this work and assisted Matt and Adam.  All in all, it is many hundreds of man hours, thank you. 

While I'm sure some of us are still being told to "act our age" we are launching a new competition for members to "Shoot Your Age".  The plan is to have this competition run in parallel timing with the Summer and Winter Eclectic competitions. This will give an opportunity for Members to compete in a competition where their effective handicap is the difference between their age and BGC Blue Tee Par of 69. Please contact Alec Dietsch (email) for more details.  A sign up sheet will be posted on the notice board behind the score card scanner in the Club House.  Remember you have to be "in it to win it".

Wednesday - Green Keepers Revenge - Ambrose
First up let me say to all those left handed golfers - the 10th temporary tee did them no favours at all, unless you can swing effectively through a pine tree.  The winning combination with nett 61.75 was John Hobbs and David Ferguson and runners up Sam Mulholland and Paul Carroll with nett 62.25.  A good field for the event, 88 entrants.

Saturday - Single Stableford
A large field with a total of 119 entrants for both the mens and women's competition.  The winner of the mens competition with 43 points was Alan Fischer with Gil Levy runner up on 42 points.  Due to the size of the field the grade winners applied; A Grade winner Paul Pettiford 40 points on a count back; B Grade winner Bruce Franklin 39 points on a count back; C Grade winner Gil Levy.  Ball winners went down to 35 points with 30 place getters -  some very good rounds of golf on a renovated course.
Sunday - Medley Stableford
Winner was Noel Davis with 39 points on a count back from Bill Webster.
Monday Madness
With winter temperatures returning today,  a reduced field won by Ash Southon on 35 points. 

Some light rain overnight will do the course a world of good.  Thanks to Matt and Adam for the recent course renovations, this will set everything up well for the Championships coming up soon.

​Dave Burgess

Renovations

Today and tomorrow the course renovations are underway for the greens and the tee boxes.  Some tee boxes will be oversown and sanded while others will be aerated only.  This depends upon the condition and wear on the tee boxes. We started the coring of the fairways earlier than initially planned to take advantage of the wet weekend. The new section of the 12th fairway has been oversewn, aerated and sanded, as such, this is marked as GUR with white stakes.

As well as the course getting a work over the Club House flooring is was well.  New carpet tiles are being laid in the main entrance, locker rooms', bar  and main function room areas and the office.

Click on the photos below to enlarge for more detail.

Recent competitions have been very well represented for both the mens and womens events driven, I assume, by the current COVID travel constraints.  As we are playing in pairings, please ensure that you book a tee time well ahead of normal practice.
Wednesday - Single Stableford
First day of spring and John Jones took the honours with 40 points from Patrick Lane with 38 points.
Thursday - Women's Foursome Championship
This major event was played in pairs due to the COVID rules on a perfect day; the results can be seen here on Annie's blog, click here.

Saturday - Monthly Medal and the Max Allen Memorial Trophy
Those smarter than me played in the morning as the afternoon was a bit wet but playable. 
The Max Allen Memorial Trophy was won by Chris Kunz with a very solid Nett 63.
A-Grade Medal winner was Daniel Weekes with Nett 64 and runner up was Terry Downing with Nett 68.
B-Grade Medal winner was Chris Kunz and runner up was Angus Yuill with Nett 69 on a count back.
C-Grade Medal winner was Vernon Vella with Nett 69 and runner up was Shane Harvey with Nett 71 on a count back.

Sunday - Stableford Medley
Thomas Moulton, 37 points, won on a count back from Brian Hanrahan.

October is not too far off and it is packed with Trophy and Championship events. To name a few, Club Championships qualifying, Watson Trophy, Veterans Trophy, Bradford Trophy (Junior C.C.) and the Lifestyle Trophy.  Keep an eye on the MiClub Bookings page to make sure you "get in the running".

18th September - Secretary's Plate - Parent and Offspring - hopefully travel constraints does not impact this one too much.

Note: The Redmond Dalton Trophy has been moved to later in the year due to COVID travel restrictions.

Thank you for your feedback on the Monday Competition, we will review accordingly and make a decision.

Regards,

​Dave Burgess