IT WAS groundhog day for the ladies at Dartmouth Golf Club, with more rain once again stopping play. The only positive is that we’re all thoroughly enjoying the coffee sessions - world problems could be easily resolved with our help.

The men’s midweek competition suffered a similar fate so there was much anticipation for the weekend conditions and we weren’t disappointed, just amazed at the blue sky and something called the sun in the sky!

The format was a Florida Scramble, so much hope and expectation for a flurry of pars and birdies - something that was fulfilled for the teams at the top but not at the bottom.

One team perhaps had the additional handicap of a player whose mind must have been elsewhere - obviously confused by the appearance of a tee to mark the ball position, they attempted to tee up their own shot from the fairway and were only stopped by the intervention of their teammates.

At the top, the results were good and very close, with the winners needing a fault-free back nine to take first place and second place cursing dropped shots on the fourteenth and fifteenth.

1st: Pete Hannaford, Lee Marels, Dave Nicholls & Matt Young 61 on countback from

2nd: Andy Birss, Paul Brown, Steve Tozer & Jeremy Wiltshire

3rd: Shelley Durrans, Gordon Kidd, Chris Mayer & Dean Raspin 62

Thanks again to Terry Farkins and his team for the way that they are maintaining the course and enabling play whenever the weather permits.

Thurlestone ladies captain Fiona Turner was very clever on Wednesday, February 11, to make the competition a 9-hole Bowmaker as the rain came in when the last two groups were on the course.

The winners were Victoria Gibbens (10), Liz Sharman (8) and Heather Spencer (8) with 37. In second place were the team of Gill Markham (13), Elizabeth Lacon 17) & Tess Brownill (11) with 35 and in third place were Barbara Smith (11), Jane Smyth (9) & Pam Adams (8) with 34.

There were no birdie twos scored. Fourth were the team of Shona Wilson (11), Julia Dorey (7) & Trish Gledhill (9) with 33.

It was much better weather on Saturday 1 for the men’s club stableford and they had a good field with 51 entries. The winner was Alan Cumming (14) with 49 points from Jacob Brooker (12) with 38 points. Third was Paul Froude (16) with 36 points and 4th was Nick Jenkins (7) with 36 points.

Out of the 51 entries, only four players scored a birdie two so congratulations go to Jonathan Doyle, Duncan Miller, Ashley Pigott, and Matthew Smallridge for that.