Hello golfers,

I hope you all had a good Easter. Now enjoy another edition of our weekly newsletter bringing you up to date with all the latest news and offers from Hockley Golf Club.

 

Notices

The new membership bag tags are now available for collection from the pro shop. Please keep the tag displayed on your golf bag in a prominent position.

There are still a few outstanding membership payments, so can I please urge you to contact the office should you not be re-joining and we can remove your name off the non-payments list.

Bar News

We are pleased to announce the new bar menu launched on Easter Monday offering you a wider choice of snacks and meals.

Charity Games

The winner of the bonus ball this weekend was Captain Nick Goater, who has very kindly donated all his winnings back to the charity.

Charity Raffle

The draw took place on Easter Sunday and the winning ticket was drawn out by the Lee on the Solent Captain Don Earey, the lucky winner was Mathew Richards with ticket No 98. £273 was raised for the Captain's Charity, my thanks go to all those who purchased tickets, the bar staff for selling you the tickets and to Ann Younger, Wendy Evans and Tracy Stubbington for putting the basket together.

Nick Goater,
Club Captain.

 

Course Notice

Winter rules will be removed on Monday, 24 April.

 

Hole-in-one Alert

Congratulations go to Paul Spooner who had a hole-in-one at the weekend on the 5th using a 6-iron, his first one.

 

Green Jackets Results

Congratulations to the three members of the junior section; Taylor Archer, Luke Evans and Tom Chalk who triumphed against a very polished Southwick Park team in the first round of the annual Greenjackets competition on Saturday. All three played great golf in very tough late afternoon conditions to produce an accumulated stableford points victory of three points. On to the next round now gents to face Corhampton, more sleepless nights!

Now a plea to any and all junior golfers that have a Congu handicap of 36 or below, we are currently one golfer short of being able to field a team against South Winchester this coming Saturday, we need at least one and preferably two players to complete the team. You are eligible to compete in this competition even if you are an Away Member (but not a member of South or Royal Winchester). If you are able to help us, please contact me as soon as possible on 02380 601683, leave a message if I am not home and I will get back to you.

Colin Field,
Junior Organiser.

Junior Coaching

Saturday and Sunday morning junior lessons return on Saturday, 29 April and Sunday, 30 April at 9:30am. The cost for six 60 minute lessons is £48. Please contact one of the pro shop team here if you have a youngster interested in taking up golf.

 

Girls Junior Championships

Congratulations to Beth Goater who won the Girls' Junior Championships at Rowlands Castle last Tuesday.

Ladies Stableford

The winner of the Stableford on Saturday was Helen Vidal Allen with 33 points, beating Vicky Kimber on a countback.

 

Competition Results

Since the last report we have had three very enjoyable and successful matches. We drew our home match against local rivals Alresford 3-3 and the next day recorded an excellent win at High Post, this is always a popular away fixture and we were pleased to win 4-2.

Last week we hosted Bramshaw and had a very friendly and competitive match which we won 4.5 - 1.5, four of the matches were decided on the 18th. Thank you to all those players who have taken part. We look forward to away games at Hayling Island and Stoneham in early May and I hope we can maintain our success.

I have been keeping an eye on the length of time our matches have been taking and am pleased to report that the four ball games are usually completed in four hours. There is still plenty of opportunity for members who have not played in our matches before to take part.

Lastly, I am including an email I received from the Senior's Captain of Bramshaw after our match last week thanking us for our hospitality and to Glenn and his team for the excellent condition of our course.

'Hi Tony,

Just a quick note before I retire to bed to say again thank you for the hospitality, your caring attitude towards myself and the camaraderie between all members of your and my team was brilliant. Hockley was in fantastic condition, my compliments to your Head Greenkeeper and his staff. I think I mentioned to you, today's match was up there with my favourite Seniors matches I've ever played in and I've played in hundreds. I look forwards to entertaining you and your team on the 15th June at Bramshaw Golf Club when I hope we can provide you with just as good a day as you gave us both on and off the course.

Kindest Regards,
Dave.'

Tony Crawford,
Seniors' Captain.

 

Knockout Matches

Now the Knockout matches are underway, can I please ask you all to record the results on the draw sheets, but more importantly on the PSI. This will enable all players to keep up to date with the results online.

Good Friday Men's Medal

Division One Winner - Simon Gilbert with a nett 67.
Division Two Winner - Ian Leggat with a nett 64.

Saturday's Long Course Stableford

Division One Winner - Mark Abel with 44 points.
Division Two Winner - New member Steve Stanbridge with 39 points.

Easter Monday Short Course Stableford

Division One Winner - Steve Hear with 44 points.
Division Two Winner - Crispin Weidman with 41 points.

Men vs. Lee on the Solent Match

On Sunday, 16 April, Hockley entertained Lee on the Solent Golf Club for the first of a two part annual men's match. The last time these two sides met the result ended in a tie, therefore the stakes were high for both sides.

With a strong Hockley team assembled, picking playing partners for the day was never going to be a difficult task. However, making sure we knew what shots we received or were giving, proved a little more challenging. The day was set for 10 holes of greensomes in the morning, followed by 18 holes of four ball better ball in the afternoon. After the morning matches Hockley moved into a strong 5.5 to 1.5 lead with some great wins. Following a light lunch, the afternoon rounds continued on a similar theme for Hockley, running out 5 to 2 winners. The overall result for the day was Hockley 10.5 points, Lee on The Solent 3.5 points.

The day was concluded with drinks and a two course evening meal, mixed with great company and "trips down memory lane." Thank you to all of the Hockley players for taking the time to play, as well as making this a special event. I would also like to thank Danny Francis for organising this fixture as well as the catering team for their stirling job throughout the day.

We look forward to the return leg later on in the summer.

Nick Goater,
Club Captain.

Forthcoming Events

• Thursday, 20 April - Ladies Stableford.
• Saturday, 22 April - Ladies Centenary Foursomes and Men's Medal.
• Sunday, 23 April - St George's Day Stableford and Ladies Tank Cup.
• Sunday, 23 April - Millennium League match vs. Broadstone, please note the tee is reserved from 1:00pm - 2:00pm.
• Tuesday, 25 April - Men's Long Course Stableford and Ladies Bronze Rose Bowl.
• Monday, 1 May - The Spring Texas Scramble, entry information has now been posted on the noticeboard and there are only a few spaces left.
• Wednesday, 24 May - The Hockley Pro-Am, we would love to see more members playing in this event and supporting our club and Captain. Why not invite some of your friends to play and make up a team of three? Your chance to play with a Hampshire Professional and your entry fee includes coffee and bacon roll on arrival, a two course meal and prizes.

It's Time To Upgrade

The popular battery trade-in is back and we will give you £25 OFF a new lithium battery when you trade-in your old battery, working or not. Lithium batteries are quicker charging, last longer and work out cheaper in the long run than the standard lead acid alternatives, so it's time to say goodbye if you're still using one.

Fitting Days

We will be holding a Callaway Fitting Day on Saturday, 3 June from 10:00am - 3:00pm. Come and try the new Epic driver so many of you have been asking about, to book a fitting please contact any member of the pro team here.

A Srixon Fitting Day will follow on Thursday, 8 June from 11:00am - 3:00pm.