THURLESTONE GC ladies’ captain’s away day was at Bovey Castle Golf Club on Monday, September 22 with 25 ladies signed up for a team stableford competition.

Captain Fiona Turner was able to join each group and play at least two holes with them before waiting to join another group until all 18 holes were played.

The Bovey Castle course is a very pretty parkland course and the ladies were treated to some glorious autumnal colours. Accompanying the golf was a meal of fish and chips and a prizegiving ceremony.

Coming out on top were the trio of Claire Guard, Liz Lacon and Jane Mason, who prevailed with an impressive score of 74 points.

Nikki Smith, Gill Markham and Mary Rawsthorn came next with 69 points, beating the third-placed team of Liz Stewart, Tess Brownhill and Anna McGrath via countback.

Nearest the pins were achieved by Diane Baker (hole six) and Liz Stewart (hole 17).

Fiona thoroughly enjoyed the day and would like to thank to the committee for their help before and on the day, as well the ladies who signed up to play.

On Sunday, there were 16 three-man teams playing a stableford with two scores to count. The winners with 81 points were James Toogood, Kevin Rogers and James Mitchell.

Countback was needed again for second and third, both of the following trios scoring 80 points. Stephen Pike, Darrell Day & Martin Oakes-Monger in second and Lewis Kendall, Mark Lee & Jonathan Axten in third. There were six birdie twos scored.

On Wednesday, 26 Thurlestone ladies played a club foursomes stableford and the Doris Willes Little foursomes stableford. The winners were Jan Brooking and Heather Spencer with 38 points, ahead of Elizabeth Sharman & Liz Stewart (36pts) and Diane Baker & Sue Esplin (36pts).

Autumn has now been signalled at Bigbury with the entry sheet for the gents’ Winter League (the Lawson Cup qualifier) being posted at the Clubhouse. This honours board competition is open to all players and the top scoring eight pairs go through to a foursomes match play knock-out, followed by the quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final.

The last September mixed stableford has taken place with 30 gents and ladies playing together in the same competition. And again, there were many handicap reductions with the good scores recorded on the day.

The winning score was 41 points, recorded by David Rogers. In second place with 40 was Paul Dunkley, and third was Keith Ridley on 39pts. The highest scoring lady in the competition, and in close contention with 37 points was Nikki Elliott, who was joint fourth with Jeff Bailey.

There was only one birdie two on the day on the 15th hole, scored by Keith.

Head greenkeeper Richard Shapland reports that for his team, a busy autumn and winter programme is underway. The work includes greens maintenance, tree scarification, fairways and walkways to be fertilised to aid their recovery prior to the winter. There are also a variety of winter projects to be tackled.

Richard confirms it’s not going to be a quiet time for him and his green-keeping colleagues, with never a dull moment!

Bigbury’s golfers greatly appreciate the wonderful condition of their golf course and will be showing patience while essential work is being undertaken.

Monday, September 29, saw the annual John Gutteridge Memorial Trophy Stableford competition, held in memory of the much-respected former senior member who sadly passed away seventeen years ago while playing at the club. All proceeds from the day went to the Devon Air Ambulance charity.

25 players took part with prizes on the line kindly donated by long-term friend George Reeve.

Conditions looked promising, with a pleasant day and little wind greeting the early starters. However, overnight heavy dew left the fairways and greens extremely wet, and the recently sanded surfaces made putting tricky.

On top form was the ever-consistent Andrew Dix, who took first place with an impressive 37 points, further strengthening his lead in the Senior of the Year standings. Paul Harding and Gary Bonser followed closely behind, both carding excellent rounds, notching 35 points apiece.

Then came; Mario Aresti (34pts), Nigel Osborne (34pts) and Gordon Holmes (33pts).

Birdie twos were recorded at the par-three 5th by Trevor Pretty, Mario Aresti, and Philip Brooking.

The nearest the pin winners were: George Reeve (hole three), Mario Aresti (five), Gary Bonser (seven), Mark Whitworth (18) and nearest in two on the second, Mario Aresti as well.

In summary, it was a fine day of golf that produced some strong scoring across the field.

With just three qualifying events remaining and thirty points still to be awarded in the senior of the year battle, the race looks to be between the current top four—though there’s still scope for a late challenge.

Andrew Dix is out in front on 77 points, his closest challengers being Gary Bonser (73pts), George Reeve (70) and Roy Baldwin (64).

As always, thanks go to competition guru Nigel Osborne for overseeing the day.

26 Dartmouth seniors made the trip to Oake Manor GC for the senior captain’s away day. The course was in immaculate condition, and with fine weather throughout, the stage was set for a memorable outing.

After a hearty full English breakfast, players took on a Stableford competition with a host of prizes up for grabs.

Mark Whitworth had the longest drive as well a nearest the pin, along with Mario Aresti, Richard Bevan, Andy Dix, Bernard Young.

Overall, John Gratton prevailed and was joined on the podium by Barry O’Shea and Bernard Young.

The real winners, however, were all who took part—everyone agreed it was a fabulous day of golf on an excellent course. Thanks go to Oake Manor and their staff, as well as to Nigel Osborne, Trevor Pretty, and Mario Aresti for their help in organising the day.

In the finale of the South Devon Seniors League (SDSL), the three league winners played off at Bigbury. Stover emerged as champions, with Exeter finishing runners-up.

At the jamboree day held at Stover, the remaining twelve league teams contested the minor spoils. Churston claimed victory, while Dartmouth finished in a creditable eighth place. Well done to all who represented the club.

Next week sees a Stableford qualifier and the penultimate friendly match of the season against Dainton Park.