Last week's renovations went very well, the damp weather meant that the holes in the greens haven't been filled, simply smeared or covered over. This means they may well re-open over the next couple of weeks, but we will have a light top dressing program in place to ensure that greens recover fully.

February has been a relatively dry month, but it has also been uncharacteristically cold with no growing conditions. This on top of the wettest year for over 10 years has led to a serious shortage in grass cover leading to extremely slippery surfaces. It's because of these slippery and dangerous slopes we have needed to keep buggies off of the steeper holes as I have serious concerns over the safety of the operators. Even with our specialist equipment with its low centre of gravity, and highly trained team we have had two serious incidents this winter caused by slippery and wet ground. To all of you buggy users I thank you for your patience and hope you understand that whilst the closure of 7 holes is frustrating it is being done for your safety. If any of you want to play the full 18 holes and you think you can walk the first 6 and the last, we are more than happy to drive your buggy up to the 6th hole so it is waiting for you and pick it up from the 17th.

The days are getting longer and the weather is beginning to look friendly with double figures forecasted for the weekend which will aid greens recovery significantly and kick start grass growth. The winter projects are all but completed and we are moving into a period of tidying and preparation. Myself and my team are just about ready for the spring, hopefully it's just around the corner.

Can you believe we are in March already, I am with Glenn in hoping spring is just around the corner.

March does see the arrival of our new clothing lines, including Tommy Hilfiger, Glenmuir, FootJoy, Nike and PING for the Men with JRB and Catmandoo for the Ladies.

This week we had the new adidas Boost shoes in and are eagerly awaiting the new Hyperflex shoes from FootJoy I spoke about last week. We are receiving new lines everyday, so keep popping in to see what we have on offer and remember we endeavour to PRICE MATCH, please give us the chance.

To make room for all these new lines, we have made further reductions to some of our Sale lines. adizero shoes now only £49.99 saving over £60 and Men's T shirts from £19.99, hurry while stocks last.

Oakley Prizm Eyewear

Another new arrival are the Oakley Prizm Sunglasses. Prizm is a new Oakley lens technology that fine tunes vision for specific sports and environments. Launched successfully in Goggles this winter, Oakley now launches them for sunglasses as well. Emphasising colours where the eye is most sensitive to detail, Prizm improves performance and safety by enhancing vision without the compromises of conventional lens tints. This is the first time lenses have been purpose-built for specific activities, and the benefits of this technology are huge. Available for Road Biking, Trail Biking and Golf.

The Prizm lenses have been designed to sharpen visual acuity to help you see more clearly and react faster, enhance colour recognition to help you spot what you need to see, optimise your ability to see and track moving objects in your periphery and improve performance to help you compete with confidence.

Click here to find out more about the new Prizm range.

Breaking 100

I am continuing with the breaking the 100 series, this week we have a drill to allow you to create a consistent impact and utilise your upper body strength.

Hold the balloon for solid shots

One of the major problems for the player that scores over 100 is hitting a bad drive and then compounding the mistake. If you're in trouble, you should have two goals.

- The first is to get out of trouble and back to the fairway with the least amount of risk. That usually means hitting a short iron out of the rough instead of trying to chop at it with a 5-wood or hybrid.

- Your second goal is to make solid contact on the shot you pick.

Try this drill: Hold a balloon between your forearms at address, and practice hitting sand-wedge shots while keeping it in place. You'll create a longer, more consistent impact area. This drill works for every club -- even your putter.

Chris and I will be running two more short game clinic's in March these are very popular so get your name down soon to avoid disappointment. To book please call us in the professional shop, or click here to get in touch.

Short Game Masterclass - Friday, 20 March - 11.00am - 12.30pm ONLY £10

Short Game Masterclass - Saturday, 21 March - 2.00pm - 3.30pm ONLY £10

Get Fitted

Nothing in golf technology can improve your game more than properly fitted clubs, yet less than a third of golfers get fitted. "A gain of 15 yards is becoming a lot more common these days," so what does all this terminology mean?

Launch - Monitor Terms

1. Ball speed - The initial velocity of the ball as it leaves the clubface. Nothing is more important to distance. Ideally, ball speed should be 1½ times swing speed.

2. Launch angle - The angle in relation to the ground of the trajectory of the ball after impact. Launch angle is not the loft on a driver, although launch angle can be affected by driver loft. Your launch angle should be 10 degrees or higher.

3. Backspin - The rotation of the ball after impact. Ideally it's 2,000 to 3,000 revolutions per minute; slightly higher spin is OK for slow swing speeds.

The only way for you to understand where you are losing out is to get on a launch monitor, this will give you an understanding of where you are in the three areas above. This will also relate to the type of shot you hit slice, draw, high or low. Then we will be able to advise you on the correct loft, length, shafts and grip thickness for you.

To find out more and to book a session on our Launch monitor please speak to one of the team in the shop, or click here to get in touch.

Bookings are now being taken for the next Sunday roast on March 29th.

The current bar hours are as follows:

Mon - Fri 10am - 6pm
Sat and Sun - 7.30am - 6.30pm

These times will be reviewed when the clocks change at the end of the month.

This Thursday, 12 March at 10.30am the ladies will be playing Corhampton (away) in the next round of the Mail on Sunday. Supporters are more than welcome.

The winners of the St David's stableford are:

Division 1 - Matt Richards with 35 points, very fitting as Matt is Welsh! He beat David Bannell on a countback.
Division 2 - Mike Cherrett with 38 points, with Ross Garfitt runner up on 34 points.

A mixed weekend for Robin and I, Pompey drew and Saints lost, but on the golf course we won one match and lost one. A rare defeat now, but it was against the two Hockley legends I spoke about last week, Alan (LA LA) Carpenter and Pat (PO) Lawson. Robin did however, hole a 10 footer to birdie the last and go on to win on the 19th against Paul Downing and Ben L'enfant.

Both games were very close all the way round, but a few turning points late on swung the games. I think our 3 putt on 16 and then both Robin and I hitting it OB on 17 was quite a big turning point in Alan and Pats game.

Another two great games and only two left to play before the final on Sunday, 29 March.

- John Simpson 6th Card from Fri 6th to Sun 8th March, played from the yellow tees.

- Ladies Medal Saturday, 7 March

- Hampshire squad training Saturday, 7 March tee reserved 2.00 - 3.00pm

- Men's Mail on Sunday v Alresford Sunday, 8 March tee reserved 1.15pm - 2.15pm

- Family Foursomes on Sunday, 22 March is now open for entry, only £15 per pair, please sign up in the foyer.

Titleist fitting day on Tuesday, 31 March, BETWEEN 11AM AND 3PM no appointment necessary. Click here to find out more about Titleist's fantastic new ranges.

A few forward dates for your diary

Come and try the latest equipment from Cobra at our fitting day on Friday, 8 May from 11am -3pm. Book your time with any member of my team or click here to get in touch.

The Delhi Cup on Saturday, 16 May is a 36 hole scratch open event for those with handicaps of 9 and under, Hockley members are eligible to play, please complete an entry form available on the website or in the foyer and hand in to the office.

Click here to find out more

The Hockley Pro Am on Friday, 29 May, 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 3. Your chance to play with a Hampshire Professional and your entry fee includes coffee & bacon roll on arrival, a 2 course meal and prizes.

Click here to find out more