The three captains at Orchardleigh Golf Club started the season proper with 18 teams and a shotgun start on Good Friday, played, like their ‘Drive In’ earlier in the year, in fantastic weather.
Playing in teams of four with two to count on the par 5’s, three to count on the par 4’s and all four players to count on the par 3’s, a score over 100 is considered good. Winners Tom Grant, Steve Arnold, Phil Daggatt and Mark Adams (Sage) recorded a highly creditable 110 points, with second place Paul Lewis, Dave Jukes, Nigel Coleman and Simon Addison four points adrift on 106, just one point in front of Julian Seviour, Ken White, Adrian Brewer and Jonathan Ward with 105.
Mark Adams also picked up a prize for nearest the pin on the par 5 second (in three shots) while the ladies proved more accurate on the par 4, with Lorraine Collings being closest in two, and Diana Bullock was closest in one on the par 3 seventeenth. The 72 players followed their game with lunch and a sports quiz before club captain Rob Edney conducted a mass balloon bursting session in aid of the three captains’ chosen charity, Cancer Research UK. A wonderful £510 was raised.
Club matches have started, with the Avalon A and B teams both playing Breen this weekend, with Breen winning both games. The Seniors have played seven matches so far, winning four, drawing two and losing just one, away to Burnham and Berrow. The first Seniors Medal of the year saw Tony Birch shoot an impressive six under his handicap to card a nett 66, winning by some distance! 33 seniors also travelled to High Post GC for an ‘away day’, enjoying a fine course in beautiful conditions. With two to score on each hole in the Bowmaker competition, an average score of 72 would be acceptable. Winners Brian Francis, Mike Norris and Malcolm Goodbody produced 83 points, beating the Seniors captain, John Scott, into second place with fellow players David Chalker and Robert Harris. A raffle at the end of the day raised another £165 for Cancer Research UK.
