Wednesday  Fiddle   

This was the 20th running of this Competition.  The Winner of the 2011/2012 Wednesday Fiddle - the C N Jones Trophy - was Andy Edey with best average of 37.8 from the best seven from 12 Competitions.

The dinner at the end of the Winter season saw 29 players enjoy a wonderful Club House meal.

Old Layout of the Course

Ian Gough, who has been involved with the course fo rthe last 33 years tells us that evidence of the old layout can only be seen in a few places.  Above the 3rd green is the tee for the original 4th hole.  To the left of the 8th green in the gorse are the remains of bunkers.  To look at a sketch of this pick up a hard copy of the Bradnor Bugle from the Clubhouse.

"Sprinkler Head Discussions"

A player is entitled to relief from an immovable obstruction under Rule 24.2.  If the specimen Local Rule is introduced, a player is also entitled to relief for intervention to his line of play provided:  (a) (i) the immovable obstruction is on or within two club lengths of the putting green and (ii) the ball lies within two club lengths of the immovable obstructions; or (b) the ball lies on the putting green and the immovable obstruction within two club lengths of the putting green intervenes on his line of play.

For a diagram of this please pick up a hard copy of the Bradnor Bugle from the Clubhouse

Wildlife Shelters

On the slicers side of the 14^th fairway ----- have you noticed ---- the green staff are cutting gorse to start regeneration and are using the cut gorse to make wildlife shelters --- as discussed with the National Trust naturalists.

Course Conditions Update

Please note that a daily update of course conditions can be accessed on the club Tel.no 01544 230340 using option 4 - after 7.15am.

First Handicap League Game

Reminder - the first Handicap League game is a Home game against Burghill on Saturday, 7 April.  Start time 12 noon.  Kington got to the final last year - so keep the ball rolling.

Junior Presentation Evening

The Junior Presentation Evening for 2011 and the 2012 pre season meeting took place in the Clubhouse on Friday,  16th March.  It was a fantastic evening and extremely well supported by Juniors, parents, members and Committee Members.  Many thanks for your support and donations, they were much appreciated.  There were no fewer than 21 different prize winners.  Congratulations to all the Juniors for last year’s efforts and achievements.  2012 is going to be even bigger and better!!!

Grand National Competition.on Saturday,  14^th April

Teams of four (any combination) – Shotgun start at 10.30am – with a meal after while you watch the race on TV.

National Trust By Laws!

The next time you fluff a chip or miss a tiddler of a putt,  keep in mind National Trust By Law No 22 –" No person shall on National Trust property use any indecent or obscene language to the annoyance of any person.". This solemn statement is shown on the back of the National Trust  sign just by the cattle grid next to the practice area!

Changes/additions to the 2012 Diary are as follows :

Bank Holiday Mondays-  change in Seniors' Bag Day. In future the Bag Days for the 7 May, 4 June and 27 August. will be Club Bag Days. Open to all.

7 Maywill be aTexas Scrambl, .4 June will be a 4 Ball better ball. and 27 August  will be a 3 Man team event.

To enter place your ball in the bag.  The first draw will be at 07.50am.  Draws will take place at regular intervals with the final draw at 09.00am.   Entry fee is 1 paid to the Senior Section on your return to the Clubhouse.  The total entry fee will go to the winning team.  The draw will take place in the Clubhouse.

And finally:- Morris an 82 year old went to the doctor to get a physical.  A few days later the doctor saw Morris in the street with a gorgeous young women on his arm and said, "Hii there, you're doing well aren’t you?”   Morris replied,” Just doing what you said doc – get a hot mamma and be cheerful”.  The doctor replied  “I didn’t say that,  I said you’ve got a heart murmur be careful”.

Edited by Joe James.  Items to be included should reach Joe seven days before the end of each month -  01544 327636 or joe.james@homecall.co.uk

"A BIG THANK YOU"

With reference to the considerable amount of work carried out recently in decorating and upgrading the entrance corridor etc I am sure that the Committee and Members would wish to join with me in thanking those  who have given so generously of their time. With the Club making steady progress it is this type of support which not only  helps us financially but creates the right environment and community spirit which I know exists throughout the Club. I hope I have recorded an accurate list of the "workforce" as follows:-

Dave Baxendale, Ron Davies-Jones, Alan Hamilton, Tony House, Rob Metcalfe, Ross Moore, Sid Price, John Priday and George Smith

Once again many thanks to all concerned for a very professional job.

Bert Priday, Chairman KGC

Kington Members Ideas Group

Over the last couple of months a number of members have formed an informal ideas group.

These informal meetings are held on a Wednesday at 1.30pm in the club house. All members have the opportunity to put forward any ideas they may have to improve the club in any way with the focus towards improving our revenue and reduce our operating costs.  Your ideas are passed to the Chair of the various Sub Committees for action.

The day and time may not be convenient for some members, so if you have any suggestions please pass them to your respective club Captains.The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, 14th March at 1.30pm.  

Junior Presentation Evening

The Junior Presentation Evening will be held on 16th March 2012 at 18.30.   We would love to see as many Juniors, Parents and Committee Members as possible. There will be a buffet (for a small charge) and a raffle towards Junior Funds.  Hopefully all Juniors will manage to get a little prize of some sort.

The Ladies’ Section is holding a Coffee Morning on Tuesday,  17th April in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support.

Nine holes of golf plus coffee and biscuits, several stalls selling jewellery and cards etc, and of course the much loved and mouth watering cake stall.  A few slots are still available.  Details from Sylvia Lloyd on 01568 612475. 

From the Pro Shop

Now in stock:-  the very hot new Nike VRS range. Drivers, woods and irons all available in demo. Come try for yourself.  Also available now:-  the exciting new TaylorMade range, the all new R11s and the RBZ range. Available in demo for you to try.  RBZ is extremely exciting and well worth a look!

New Ladies' Club Colours

The Ladies’ Committee has decided that it is time to  have a new colour for the Club shirts this year.  The new pink shirts can be seen on a model in the Pro Shop priced at £22.50 and if you want one please add your name to the list on the Captain's Board, indicating the size wanted.  Dan has a selection of sizes for you to try on.  The Lady Captain would prefer anyone playing in matches this coming season to wear the new pink shirt but white will be an acceptable alternative, particularly when worn with the pink sweater. 

Kington Golf Club Open Day

This will be on Sunday, 6 May.  On this day we will remember Severiano Ballesteros who died on 8 May, 2011 aged 54.  Entry forms are available in the Clubhouse, from the Seniors' section or on the Club website.  These should be sent to Richard Williams at "Ty Lorwg, Garth Lane, Knighton, Powys LD7 1SB. Tel:  01547 520057

The story really begins with the Drive In on Sunday, 8 January 2012.

Our new Captains are Men's - Philip Price, Ladies’ - Audrey Philpott , Seniors - David Mains and Juniors -  Jack Cooper, . We wish them a successful year.

Members are reminded that the subscription fees for 2012/13 are posted on the main notice board.  In fact the fees are due by April 1, 2012 and only those who have paid by that date are eligible to play in competitions. Your attention is also drawn to the “Important notice to members” also posted on the main notice board concerning renewals.

Clubhouse Improvements

The Clubhouse entrance is being upgraded at the moment.  Work will begin on a total overhaul of the Cubhouse later this year.

Give Golf  a Go

Kington Golf Club's number one priority is to recruit and retain new members.

On the March 31  at 2 pm we will be holding a Taster Session to attract new members aged 16+ and couples.

Leaflets are available in the clubhouse with more details. The format on the day is as follows

         Welcome and registration form.

         Visit and practice on the Academy Course with Dan.

         Putting practice and competition.

         Refreshments.

         Completion of application for those wishing to join.

New To Golf subscription is £200 with two free coaching lessons.  We have a one day offer of an additional 4 x 1 hour free coaching lessons for those joining on the day.

Remember a member who ACTIVELY recruits a new member under the Full or New to Golf category will receive £25 bar vouchers.

Your support is vital!

Seniors

The Seniors first away day is to Wyre Forest Golf Club on 12^th April – more details to follow.

Sponsorship for Tee Markers

Note – The club is at the moment looking for sponsors for replacement plates for our Tee Markers - £65 will give you advertising for at least 15 years. Add your name to the list on the Main Notice board if interested.

Tee Peg Litter - Digger Divot comments about the problem of broken tee pegs littering the course.

 Am I alone in finding the quantity of broken tees currently littering on and around the tee areas unsightly and offensive? I have a particular aversion to the bright plastic pink ones which appear to be especially brittle, with their broken remnants scattered about the tees on all of the par 4 and5 holes. It is not just at Kington, but most courses seem to have the same epidemic.

Whilst playing in a three ball competition recently, as a good will exercise and to reduce my frustration at having to wait for the group in front to play, my fellow players and myself started to collect and dispose of the broken tees. The first 2 holes (6th and 7th) we collected over 30 on both tees. I am amazed to find that I can collect 15 or 20 bits on every tee each time I play, even if it is only a week between rounds  It is unrealistic to expect the greens staff to pick up all the tees before cutting. The cylinder blades hitting the ‘castle types’, especially the longer grey, pink and white ones, must have a detrimental effect on their sharpness. The cutters were designed to cleanly severe thin blades of grass not one centimetre thick lumps of brittle plastic.

Historically there has always been a relationship between the tee peg and the driver face. Theopen square based tee boxes on the side of the tees used to provide the sand to build a tee. It is now used as a receptacle for litter. The replacement of sand by wooden pegs had a damaging effect on the driver face. The edges of the horizontal grooves on the face became chipped by the constant striking of wood against wood. In the late fifties it became standard practise to fit a plastic insert into the faces of the wooden clubs, and the expression ‘hit out of the screws’ was born. With cheap coloured plastic, longer lasting pegs, becoming readily available in the sixties, the previous problem of the hardness of the peg being the same as that of the club-face reappeared. Golfers in the know always used wooden pegs for their driver, thus preventing the damage to the face. The problem disappeared completely with the introduction of metal woods.

The introduction of new technology and the deep faced titanium drivers require the ball to be struck by the upper part of the clubface, hence the need for longer tee pegs. Using the more fragile wooden ones almost guarantees the breakage of several per round. The plastic grey ones are much less likely to break but are more difficult to see against the grass background, and I remain convinced the pink ones have a special brittle ingredient in them to ensure they break more easily.

 What is the answer? Players should make a point of picking up their tee peg, whether it is still intact or not and dispose of the broken ones in an appropriate manner. I don’t think the sheep like to use them as tooth picks. Maybe we need bins at every tee, for easier disposal. These could then be used for the other items of rubbish, which can on occasions be seen disfiguring our beautiful course.

It has been decided to launch a Kington Golf Club monthly newsletter called the Bradnor Bugle. 

It will be available online and in hard copy from the Club House.

Watch this space!