Tee Times Golf Magazine, December 2016

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ISSUE 187 DECEMBER 2016 Tel: 01329 834360 Email: peter.teetimes@gmail.com www.teetimesgolfmagazine.com

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PLAY GOLF, LIVE LONGER PLAYING golf can add years to your life and prevent serious conditions such as heart disease and dementia, researchers have found.

American author Mark Twain once described golf as ‘a good walk spoiled', but a major review of the health benefits of the game shows it has significant physical and mental value for people of all ages and backgrounds.

Scientists examined the findings from 5,000 studies and their review, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, concludes that playing golf can improve the health of hearts, arteries and lungs, as well as having a positive effect on metabolism.

It could also help people suffering from chronic conditions including heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, bowel and breast cancer, and the effects of stroke. The physical benefits were said to increase with age, with older players enjoying improved balance and stamina, said the researchers.

at the University of Edinburgh, said: 'We know that the moderate physical activity that golf provides increases life expectancy, has mental health benefits, and can help prevent and treat more than 40 major chronic diseases such as heart attacks, stroke, diabetes, breast and colon cancer.

Lead scientist Dr Andrew Murray, from the Physical Activity for Health Research Centre

“Evidence suggests golfers live longer than non-golfers, enjoying improvements in

Gary Player, pictured at the 2014 Masters and still fit as a fiddle at the age of 80, sticks to his lifelong regime: ‘Eat correctly, exercise correctly. Your body is a temple and you have got to treat it as such’

cholesterol levels, body composition, wellness, self-esteem and self-worth. Given that the sport can be played by the very young to the very old, this demonstrates a wide variety of health benefits for people of all ages.'

While we’re talking about oldies. . .

The study found that golfers typically burn at least 500 calories over 18 holes and the physical aspects could also help cut the risk of anxiety, depression and dementia.

The study was part of the Golf and Health Project, led by the World Golf Foundation, and future research will focus on golf’s effects mental health, muscle strengthening and balance.

. . .and here’s proof from ace John, aged 91 A 91-YEAR-OLD member at Stoke Park Country Club, Spa & Hotel has scored a hole-in-one - watched by playing partners with a combined age of 267!

Padraig Harrington, European vice-captain at the 2016 Ryder Cup, said: 'The Golf and Health Project is clearly taking an important step forward to shine a light on the benefits of our sport. I have seen how impactful golf can be on peoples' well-being - now it's time to get this message out there.'

John Bush aced the picturesque 168-yard, par-three third on the Lane Jackson nine for his third hole-in-one, the other two coming when he was a mere stripling in his eighties. John's playing partners in his regular fourball were also veterans of the fairway: Dennis Child is 89, Bob Cook 90, and James Grant just 88.

Tiger: Yes, I can beat Jack's record: Page 6

John’s regular fourball (ages totalling 358): left to right: Dennis Child, Bob Cook, John Bush and James Grant

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WINTER WARMER WARMer GOLF PACKAGES 2016 WEEKDAY WINTER WARMER

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Storm squeezes in

THE WACKY WORLD OF GOLF

ENGLAND’S Graeme Storm has qualified for next year’s European Tour by the skin of his teeth.

Paying their respects, the Aussie prankster ‘golfers’ enjoying North Korea

Storm, 38, finished 100 Euros short of the prize money needed to guarantee his spot.

But he kept his card after world number eight Patrick Reed had points deducted for not playing the minimum five tournaments required.

Relieved’: Graeme Storm

‘I'm relieved,’ said Storm. ‘The rules are the rules - if you don't play your numbers, you know you'll come out of the Order of Merit and lose your membership.’

TIGER: I can still beat Jack’s 18 Majors record

The 14-time Major champion said he would not be playing because his game was ‘vulnerable’.

Woods said he may be ready for his foundation's event, the Hero World Challenge, this month, and he still believes he can beat Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 Majors.

The 40-year-old American won his 14th major at the US Open in 2008 but has not won a PGA Tour event since 2013. He has not played since August 2015 after back surgery.

Down, but is he out?

Questions continue over Woods’ comeback

After backing out of the Safeway, Woods was asked if he thinks he can reach Nicklaus' tally. He said: ‘To be honest, no... I'm going to get more [than 18].’

The pair were chaperoned throughout their five-day trip, which included a tour

Their nerves were jangling when it came time to leave North Korea. Ruig told his local newspaper: ‘There are stories of people not coming home.’

He said: ‘My health is good and I feel strong. I'm close and I won't stop until I get there.’ He is now ranked 786 in the world.

SIR Nick Faldo says everything is stacking up against a Tiger Woods comeback.

‘It's going to be a hard grind to come back and compete against the best in the world,’ said six-time Major champion Faldo, 59.

He said Woods looked like he was ‘struggling just to get in and out of the golf buggie’ at the Ryder Cup.

Their email to the North Korean golf organisers, loosely worded in a way that could have been interpreted as coming from an official Australian team, produced an invitation to take part.

The pair finished 84th out of 85 competitors in the tournament, played on the golf course where North Korea’s late leader Kim Jong-Il was reported by the state media to have made 11 holein-ones.Their caddy told them at the end of their round that they had brought ‘great shame on their family’.

Woods sits on 79 Tour victories, three behind the all-time record held by fellow American Sam Snead.

FALDO: It’s all against you Sir Nick told BBC Sport: ‘Golf is a wicked game, it dangles a carrot. Ten years ago, I'd hit balls and think, “I can still play, I can still hit it”. Then you'd go to the course and can't make a score. Everything is stacking up against him now. Physically, mentally and obviously competing.’

of the capital city, Pyongyang. In a country not noted for its sense of humour or tomfoolery, they even placed a bouquet at a monument to the country's revered leaders (above).

Real estate agent Morgan Ruig and builder Evan Shay had just wrapped up a polo event in China when they decided – over ‘a long lunch’ – to go to a local tailor and have official-looking green jackets made.

IT was a move which prompted one critic to ask: Have we ever seen a more shocking example of sporting stage fright?

Former world number one Tiger Woods had delayed his comeback again, just days after committing to play in the Safeway Open in California.

TWO Australians, both ‘terrible golfers’ by their own admission, blagged their way into a premier golf tournament in North Korea.

THE wildlife in South Africa is frequently big, hairy and hungry. But players and spectators at the Nedbank Golf Challenge hosted by Gary Player in Sun City laughed and applauded when play was brought to a standstill by a pack of furry little locals. Television cameras caught the mongoose invasion, which looked as if it was headed for a ball on the green, which presumably looked like a tasty egg.

But the herd ignored the temptation and scurried on their way, leaving everyone debating the old question: are they mongooses or mongeese?

Faldo presenting Woods with his first Masters Green Jacket in 1997

‘Watching him walk, he just doesn't look supple to me. I know the stamina needed to play 72 holes. He may be able to hit balls on a range, but there's a rhythm to that. On a course, you get a five-minute gap between two shots. I think maybe he is starting to hit the ball better, but it's the stamina to play.’

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HIGH HOPES AT THE 16th HOLE PLAYERS at the Turkish Airlines Open had to have a head for heights as they drove off the 16th tee. . .installed on the top of a holiday villa.

The tee was placed on an artificially grassed roof at the Regnum Carya Golf and Spa Resort in Antalya after developers built over the original tee. Lee Westwood had some helpful advice for his fellow competitors: ‘You want to be sober.’

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SOUTH WINCHESTER GOLF CLUB

Hampshire's best Winter Golf Course South Winchester Golf Club is a links-style course designed by Peter Alliss and Dave Thomas, established in 1993. Located just five minutes from the M3, it is close to the historic city of Winchester.

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Does Single Length Irons Work For Me? The concept of making each iron in a set the same length is not new. Eric Cook’s Iso-Vibe Golf Company in Canada began offering single length sets of irons to the North American golf market in 1986. Perhaps the best known introduction of a single length set of golf clubs was the former Tommy Armour Golf Company’s release of their EQL single length woods and irons in 1989. Since that time, a handful of lesser known, under-marketed companies have offered single length sets of irons, mainly through an on line direct-to-golfer offering. Now Tom Wishon has used his design technology and entered the market.

The theory behind single length is consistency of motion: one ball position, one setup, one swing.

The 1975 patent on the concept even states that single-length clubs “are advantageous in that the player can become skilled in a shorter time and to a greater degree in obtaining the control necessary to hit the golf ball squarely and with requisite impact.”

We all have the favourite iron in our set, and the belief of the single-length apostles is, why not have every club be built to that length?

Wouldn’t we then have consistent contact with the centre of the face for improved energy transfer? It might, but only if the iron heads are custom-weighted to a constant weight to go with their single length, something that in general is not done across the golf retail landscape.

In a single length set of irons, every club is made so that everything that has anything to do with swing feel is the same in each club – same length, same shaft weight, same total weight, same head weight, same swingweight, same balance point, same Moment of Inertia (MOI), and the same shaft stiffness/bend profile design.

The only element that is different within single length clubs are the loft angles, to enable the single length clubs to each hit the ball different distances.

At the same time, it must be said that many golfers have achieved very good swing and shot consistency using irons built to normal incremental lengths which are very accurately custom fit to their size, strength, athletic ability and swing characteristics.

However, if a golfer has suffered from chronic or occasional shot inconsistency, converting to a single length concept could offer some help.

Normal incremental length sets of irons cannot duplicate that many different fitting elements.

While it is possible to build incremental length sets of irons to all be matched to the same MOI, each club will be different in total weight, head weight and balance point.

As such, the technical reason for creating a single length set of irons is to offer the golfer a chance for improvement in swing repeatability, swing consistency and shot consistency because every club is as perfectly matched for every possible aspect that has anything to do with swing feel.

The purpose of a set of irons is to have each iron hit the ball a specific different distance with equal distance gaps between clubs through the set. That enables a golfer to choose an appropriate club for the different distances golfers will find themselves from the greens when playing a round of golf.

Early club designers learned there were a number of things in the design of irons that would cause each club to hit the ball a different distance.

conventional length set. Also depending on the single length chosen, the golfer may find that shot distances with the high loft irons and wedges are longer than the golfer was used to in the conventional length set. This could happen if the single length is more than 1” longer than the length of the high loft irons/wedges in the conventional set.

Tom Wishon with his Sterling Irons has got around this in two ways. Each head is now made to the exact same weight and the length is now based around either the 8 iron or the 7 iron. The original sets were based around a 6 iron and conventional weighted heads causing the problems mentioned above.

The question remains should you take the plunge and look at single length irons? As in all things in golf there is no definitive answer.

One of most important piece of advice to all golfers is, “If it ain't broke – don't fix it!”. If your golf game is going well and has a acceptable degree of consistency, there is no

reason to go down this route at the moment.

However, if inconsistency with your irons is driving you wild, this is something that is definitely worth a second look.

It will definitely not be for everyone. Hit testing carried out by Tom Wishon showed that there will be some golfers for whom switching from a conventional incremental length set to a Single Length set will just be too strange, too different and too weird for lack of a better term. But it has also shown that for a large number of golfers it has transformed their games and brought about a hither too unreachable level of consistency.

A copy of this and my previous articles for Doyle’s Dilemmas can be found online at http://www.teetimesgolfmagazine.com Should you have any questions on this or any equipment matter please feel free to call me on 01256 322007 or 07859 920055.

First is a different loft angle on each iron, with the spacing in degrees of loft the same between each iron.

Second is a progression of different lengths so the golfer’s clubhead speed would intentionally change to coordinate with the different lofts to hit the ball a different distance with each iron.

Third is an increase in the total weight of the irons as they become shorter, which coordinates with the shorter length to cause the golfer to swing the shorter clubs at progressively slower swing speeds.

More recently, research into shot performance has shown that the distance between the different irons in a set comes 80-85% from the loft angle change from club to club, and 15-20% from the length change from club to club through the set. As such, length change within a set of irons is much less important for a distance difference between irons than are the differences in the loft angles through the set. This opens the door for a single length set to be a viable alternative to the conventional incremental length set.

The earlier models of Single Length irons suffered in two main areas. Depending on the single length chosen, the golfer may lose enough clubhead speed with the lower loft irons to cause a loss of distance for the lower number irons in a Single Length set against a

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Continuing the saga of a late-convert golfer’s search for glory on the greens. . .

ONE of the recurring features of seniors’ golf is that every now and then you have to go to a place of worship and sing a couple of hymns.

We need to do this from time to time because the club flag has been at halfmast, which signals that another of the bus-pass boys has played his last putt.

I had one the other week where his widow asked me if I would do a reading at the crematorium.

You know the piece: it’s St Paul’s letter to the Corinthians about faith, hope and charity.

At least, that’s what it used to be about when we were all lined up in our school blazers. Since then, it has become faith, hope and love.

Good heavens, look who’s joined us. . .

DIARY OF A BUS-PASS GOLFER

The meaning of charity has changed over the years. Today it suggests Oxfam shops and chipped teapots.

So, to get nearer to the original meaning, the translators from the original Greek substituted love.

Fascinating? I should say so. How on earth did he come to know that? Because he’s a bishop is the unlikely answer to that.

You could have knocked me down with a crozier, but, on balance, I decided to take his word for it.

I wouldn’t want to back my liturgical knowledge against a bishop.

By Bob Evans After the funeral, I went to catch up with our golfers who’d played a round in the morning and adjourned to a pub for lunch.

Anyway, it causes your fingers to curl down into the palm, which plays hell with the Vardon grip.

Nor my golf either. He hits a fine ball, although I fear he lacks the colourful vocabulary the game demands.

It sounds wrong to me - that early conditioning is hard to cast off - but then I have reached the age when I resent change. All change. I even get upset if they change things I don’t like.

I hadn’t seen them for a while. I’ve been on the injured list for a few weeks after an operation for Dupytrens Contracture, which gentlemen of our vintage know all too well.

When I went to catch up with the chaps I found they had a new recruit: a fine golfer, which is unfortunate, but we’ll overlook that because he’s clearly one of the good guys.

What’s more he’d had Dupuytrens too.

When he missed an easy wedge to the green, the best he could manage was a murmured “Oh dear.”

If it was good enough for King Alfred, then it’s good enough for today’s world, that’s the way I see it.

It’s known as the Viking Disease because it mostly affects elderly men of north European descent. The cause? No-one knows, unless it was all that rape and pillage.

I was telling him about my disappointment to find charity ousted by love, and he told me why.

He’s got us all doing it now. After a similar mis-hit, I found myself saying “Crikey Moses.” I thought he might approve of that.

At least it has an Old Testament derivation.

Olympian Justin DUCK! IT’S RUBY, THE 8-YEAR-OLD DRONE KILLER takes time off HAMPSHIRE’S Olympic champion Justin Rose missed the closing stages of the 2015-16 season to fully recover from a back injury.

Rose, 36, had played in 21 events including the Ryder Cup since the PGA Tour season began in October last year.

The world number 11 was in discomfort because of a disc herniation at The Players Championship in May.

‘I have decided to take the next eight weeks off for rest and recovery,’ he said. ‘At this point in my career, it's important to invest in my body. This time off is crucial for me to return to peak performance.’

The Englishman's Olympic win arrived after a number of players withdrew from the Games, some citing concerns over congestion in their season schedule.

The gold medal was the only win of Rose’s season and his decision meant he missed the British Masters and the European Tour's Race to Dubai finale.

Left, the filming drone can be seen top right of the picture as Ruby lets fly. Above, the drone’s eye view as the ball heads for a perfect shoot-down

AUSTRALIA’S top young golfer has added a new title to her Instagram profile: Drone Killer.

A male voice, apparently that of the cameraman, says: ‘An eight-year-old girl killed this drone.’

A 48-second video shows eight-year-old Ruby Kavanagh, driving a golf ball straight into a $1,900 drone. The machine, which had been filming her swing, wobbles then plummets to the ground.

Sheer luck?

A manipulated video?

Whatever it was, Ruby’s online followers were delighted.

Website gizmo puts Marc back on line MARC Warren has thanked a £30 golf training aid he found on the internet for saving his European Tour card for next season.

aid online, bought two of them and I warmed up every day using it. I felt as if I could just go on the course and swing without really thinking about it - a big difference.’

The 35-year-old Scot finished fifth at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and eased fears about his immediate future: ‘I saw a training

Warren had slumped to world 214th before winning £155,832 at St Andrews and retaining his card.

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‘I could swing without really thinking about it’

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ONYRIA PALMARES BEACH & GOLF RESORT The final step in our Trent Jones Portuguese trilogy was to be on the Algarve, the early destination for golf tourism in the country which was pioneered by Penina, the course designed Michael Rees by Sir Henry Cotton. The Algarve is now home to over forty golf courses, stretching from the Spanish border to the extreme west of the Iberian peninsula.

Having driven south from Troia, we settled into the luxurious five star Cascade Resort. Our appetites were to be sated by visiting the superb Dom Henrique restaurant in the centre of Lagos, a bustling and exciting seaside town, filled with holidaymakers enjoying the atmosphere. This typical Portuguese town has narrow streets and alleys housing bars and restaurants to suit every taste. Dom Henrique served excellent food, a very wide choice of dishes, with speciality fish courses that proved to be a gourmets delight. It was the ideal way to conclude a day of golf and travel, with fine dining and a comfortable bed to return to.

The Onyria Palmares golf complex comprises three nine hole loops, entitled Praia, Alvor and Lagos, each of which can be combined to provide a variable eighteen holes of first class golf. Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jnr, the course opened for play in 2011, and in addition to the three courses, there is a 300 meter driving range, chipping area, putting green and Academy, as well as the usual well stocked pro shop.

We had the opportunity to play all three, a real treat, enjoying the panoramic views of the Bay of Lagos, with each loop providing a different challenge. The Alvor is classic parkland on the upper slopes of the area; Lagos is a combination of parkland and dunes, the foretaste of what to expect as you play Praia, which is laid out near to the sea, on a site of classic coastal dunes, with views of the Atlantic Ocean, the estuary of the River Alvor. The three combine to give the experience of all types of golf in one delightful setting.

I can do no better than quote verbatim from a piece written by Trent Jones Jnr when the unique links and parkland courses had been completed.

The Algarve is a renowned golf destination, much like Pebble Beach or St Andrews. So when I first came here I said “Well I have to play up here, we have a lot of good courses in this

Have Clubs Will Travel...

region”. But when I saw the land, I thought “Wow Maybe once a decade I might get a piece of land to work like this”. We studied the land at great length, in order that the golf course would have the minimum impact upon it. In fact Mother Nature is the best master and the best architect, so we follow her. Never fight with Mother Nature. We follow the land and let the land evoke a response to us.”

When I read those words it was apparent what a superb job he did in following his instincts, because it looks as though the courses have been here for decades, rather than the few years they have been in existence. This location has been the recipient of numerous awards for golf and tourism and is regularly placed in any rating system, whether in Europe or worldwide. The three courses were is excellent condition, with fast true greens and fairways a delight to play from, a marvellous golfing day to savour.

The Onyria Golf Resorts company, which owns and operates resorts, villas, hotels, restaurants and golf courses has an intriguing success history. A project that began twenty years ago, when the group was created to undertake the integrated managements of all those tourism concepts. It is a group which incorporates the whole family, spanning several generations with a common aim to offer the very best and create enduring experiences for their clientele.

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The family enterprise adheres to the principle that the past is today’s heritage, the here and now to be lived and worked to the full, and then the future will yield prosperity through the imagination and challenges that present themselves. It started with the acquisition of a plot of land at Quinta de Marina in Cascais.

It became the first project in hotel management, the Hotel Quinta da Marina Resort, which became an important landmark in the evolution of the group, symbolising as it did, an excellent beginning.

In 2016 the group opened a new restaurant in Lisbon, called Monte Mar, we visited on the first day of our trip and sampled the delicious fayre, already described in the October issue of TeeTimes. From the terrace you can look out over the River Tagus and the spectacular 25 de Abril suspension Bridge which runs over the broad span of the river. It has already been frequented by A list celebrities including ex US President Bill Clinton.

Another successful facet of this expanding group; very shortly there will be another addition to the portfolio, when the Onyria Palmares Beach House opens next year in 2017. This five star boutique hotel will comprise eighteen rooms and two suites, each with beds facing the large windows so that guests wake to a view of the Meia Praia beach, attention to detail all the way.

So our journey down the magical Trent Jones Trail, which started at Quinta da Marina in Cascais, passed through the Troia Peninsula and finally arrived in The Algarve had come to an end.

Three great courses, two by Trent Jones Snr, Quinta da Marina an Troia, and the last by his son Robert Jnr sampled and savoured, before the Monarch flight back London and reality.

For more information visit the websites: www.onyriapalmares.com www.golf@onyriapalmares.com Flight Information Lisbon: Monarch, the scheduled leisure airline, operates year round flights to Lisbon from Birmingham, London Gatwick and Manchester airports with fares, including taxes, from £44 one way (£79 return) Faro: Monarch, the scheduled leisure airline, operates flights to Faro from Birmingham, Leeds Bradford, London Gatwick, London Luton and Manchester airports with fares, including taxes, starting from £49 one way (£94 return) For further information, please visit www.monarch.co.uk and @Monarch for any tweets.

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TYLNEY PARK GOLF CLUB LADIES RAISE AMAZING ROMSEY CROWNED CHAMPIONS IN FUNDS FOR MACMILLAN STONEHAM CUP FINAL CANCER SUPPORT Hampshire Ladies Golf

Stoneham Cup Winners Romsey

As always, this year’s Stoneham Cup competition provided many thrills during the group and knockout stages and finals day promised more of the same. This year’s semifinalists Lee on the Solent, North Hants, Royal Winchester and Romsey all gathered with their teams at Hockley Golf Club on Friday 30th September to see the competition through to its conclusion.

The weather turned out to be much better than the earlier forecasts had predicted, a relief for all those playing and to the many spectators that came along to watch.

Following some closely fought matches in the morning semi-finals, Royal Winchester and Lee on the Solent had to bow out, leaving Romsey and North Hants to advance to the final. After hopes of retaining the title that they had won in 2014 were thwarted by Hartley Wintney in last year’s quarter finals, Romsey were determined as ever going into the afternoon round. For North Hants there was an equal hunger for the title which they had last won in 1971 in a final that was also hosted at Hockley.

The first match out was a terrific one to watch with the players achieving 7 birdies between them, and this with only 15 holes

played. All the remaining matches were exciting and entertaining, especially for the neutral spectators, particularly the second match which took 19 holes to resolve.

In the end, it was Romsey that came out on top to be crowned this year’s winners of the Stoneham Cup, leaving North Hants as worthy runners up.

Our thanks go to Hockley Golf Club for allowing us courtesy of their course and to all their staff for their assistance during the day. The help and understanding of the Hockley members was very greatly appreciated, and as always, the referees led by Di Stock did a brilliant job.

We would also like to take this opportunity to thank our Knockout Competitions Secretary, Marilyn Monger for all her hard work organising not only the Stoneham Cup but also the Knight Cup, North Hants Trophy & Plate and Winter Scratch competitions. Marilyn will be stepping down this year and we wish Jill England every success as she takes over the role in 2017.

Details of all the knockout and group winners from this year’s Stoneham Cup, along with the draw for the 2016 competition can be found on the HLCGA website www.hlcga.com.

The Ladies of Tylney Park Golf Club have spent the last year holding various fantastic events to raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Louise Foxwell, the outgoing Lady Captain of the club, chose to support Macmillan as her charity of choice for the year. Louise chose Macmillan, as various family members, fellow golfers and friends have been touched by cancer in some way, so Macmillan’s work felt particularly relevant to the club.

Louise organized a host of different activites during her captaincy year, including a Ladies Golf Drive, a World’s Biggest Coffee Morning, fining club members for rule breaking and a big raffle!

In total the Tylney Park Ladies raised a fantastic £1,765.31, which could help to pay for a Macmillan Nurse for nearly two weeks, helping people living with cancer and their families receive essential medical, practical and emotional support.

Stoneham Cup Runners-up North-Hants

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Around two million people across the UK are living with the consequences of a cancer diagnosis. Macmillan provides medical, emotional, financial and practical help for cancer patients, from specialist cancer nurses to grants to cancer patients with money problems.

Natalie Wiltshire, Fundraising Manager for North East Hampshire said: “Sadly the number of people being diagnosed with cancer is increasing every year and that means Macmillan’s support for people living with cancer is in more demand than ever.

“No one should have to face cancer alone and it’s only through the fantastic support we get from golf clubs like Tylney Park that we can be there for people cancer and their family when they need us most.”

Whatever your passion or pastime is, you could use it to raise money for Macmillan.”

“There are lots of wacky and wonderful ways to get involved and by signing up to hold your own event.”

“It can be your event, your way, you’ll also be making a big difference to the lives of people affected by cancer.”

For information on fundraising for Macmillan call 0300 1000 200 or visit www.macmillan.org.uk/fundraising.

To access support from Macmillan visit www.macmillan.org.uk or call 0808 808 00 00.

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Lee-on-the-Solent Golf Club FOUNDED 1905

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PADRAIG’S WAIT IS OVER WOOSIE’S WAIT IS OVER FANS everywhere were delighted to see the name of Padraig Harrington back in the winner’s slot on the scoreboard of the Portugal Masters.

IAN Woosnam has been inducted into World Golf's Hall of Fame. The Welshman, 58, a former world number one, won his only Major at the 1991 US Masters and captained Europe to Ryder Cup victory in 2006.

Harrington, 45, one of golf’s good guys and a three-time Major winner, secured his first European Tour victory in eight years with a one-shot victory.

Woosnam spoke in April of his disappointment at not having been inducted. ‘I can't really understand why I'm not in there when there are other players in there who have not got the pedigree that I've got,’ he said.

The Olympian missed 25 greens in regulation, yet needed just 51 shots from those locations to complete the holes.

His average: down in two in all bar one of those holes.

Harrington said: ‘It's a big win. I tried to be really aggressive. I have a pretty good short game that was on form this week. No matter where I hit it, I felt I could get up and down.’

The announcement changed Woosnam’s immediate playing plans. He now says he will continue taking part in the Masters, despite saying that this year would be his last.

Harrington: Eight years since last Tour victory

‘This has given me a bit more enthusiasm to play for another couple of years at least,’ he said.

Woosnam: ‘This gives me more enthusiasm’

An Asian first Youngsters with in WGC event an eye on their

HIDEKI Matsuyama of Japan became the first Asian winner of a World Golf Championships event as Britain's Rory McIlroy finished fourth.

Matsuyama shot a six-under 66 in the last round of the WGC-HSBC Champions to finish seven clear of Sweden's Henrik Stenson and American Daniel Berger.

His 29 birdies at Sheshan International was three short of the PGA Tour record. Finishing on 23 under par, his total was also just one shot off the 72-hole record score at the Chinese course.

• France's Alexander Levy beat England's Ross Fisher in a play-off to win the European Open in Bad Griesbach.

In an event reduced to 54 holes by bad weather, Levy sank a winding 20-yard putt on the second extra hole to secure his third European Tour title.

Fisher, who also won this event in 2008, had hit a seven-under-par 64 to set up the play-off after Levy bogeyed his final hole for a two-under 69.

AMERICAN Ryder Cup player Brandt Snedeker claimed his first European Tour title with an emphatic nine-shot victory at the Fiji International.

The 35-year-old world number 23 began the final day at Natadola Bay Golf Club with a three-shot advantage and carded a round of 68 to finish 16 under.

It eclipsed Charl Schwartzel's eight-shot Tshwane Open win as the biggest victory margin of the European season.

World number 179 Michael Hendry of New Zealand was a distant second.

golfing future TALENTED young players from the South West have been selected for the England Golf Under 16 regional squads for the 2016/17 training programme.

They follow in the footsteps of players such as Masters champion Danny Willett and the world number two amateur Bronte Law, who both came through the England regional squad system.

Altogether 130 players have been selected for the young squads.

Ebonie Lewis: Among six girls chosen for the national training programme.

Picture: Leaderboard Photography

The South West squads are: Girls: Laura Curtis (Cumberwell Park, Wiltshire), Lilli Horn (Ferndown, Dorset), Ebonie Lewis (Knowle, Gloucestershire), Seona Mauchline (High Post, Wiltshire), Evie Stone (East Devon, Devon), Scarlett Williams (Parkstone, Dorset). Coach Martyn Thompson, Manager Sheila Davidge.

Boys: George Leigh (Trevose, Cornwall), Will Lewis (Long Ashton, Gloucestershire), James Reed (Exeter, Devon), Joe Reynard (Truro, Cornwall), Dom Walter (Cumberwell Park, Wiltshire), Dylan Xanh (Mendip Spring, Somerset). Coach John Jacobs, Manager Mark Powell.

RAFA DELIGHTS THE GOLFING KIDS RYDER Cup star Rafa Cabrera Bello took time out from his globe-trotting schedule to put something back into the sport that has given him so much when he delighted children at the Sheikh Rashid School for Boys in Dubai with a golf lesson.

Rafa has been hitting the heights all season but the 2012 Omega Dubai Desert Classic winner, who has not missed a cut in competitive golf for more than a year, is known as one of the most down to earth and good-natured players on the European Tour and he proved it by passing on some of his knowledge.

‘Just watching the kids smile really makes my day,’ he said.

Rafa’s visit was part of an initiative by the Emirates Golf Federation supported by the European Tour and DP World which will see over 6,000 schoolchildren given ‘introduction to golf’ lessons by the end of the year.

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Stoking up the enthusiasm: Rafa Cabrera Bello passes on some tips to more young golfers

Rafa really hit the headlines this year when his partnership with Sergio Garcia in the Ryder Cup had observers making comparisons with the legendary pairing of Seve Ballesteros and José María Olazábal.

The 32-year-old surfing enthusiast earned his place at Hazeltine on merit, having secured an automatic qualification during a remarkably consistent season.

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DECEMBER 2016

WHATS HOT OR NOT CAPTAINS’ CHARITY 2016 in the World of Ladies Golf

Your Monthly Blog by

Claire Kane

MEON VALLEY GOLF CLUB

The Black Art of Gamesmanship

There are times when playing with someone can be more difficult than the actual game of golf.

We’ve all experienced the odd moaning minnie, constantly complaining about how badly they’re playing or the occasional over friendly opposition insisting on helping you by pointing out every hazard and tricky aspect of their course (hole by hole) – a guarantee that your ball will end up in that direction!

The most difficult case I’ve ever came across was a supposedly friendly, better ball competition where we played a very competitive lady who was clearly determined to win. Everything started off very pleasantly but as the game progressed there were more and more incidents, some of them completely going over my head until I eventually realised it was more about gamesmanship than a golf match.

It started with a bullish attempt of putting the flag back in the hole and walking off, declaring they had won the hole when we clearly had another shot to equalise. I didn’t think much about it at the time as I’ve been known to suffer from the occasional bout of mathematical and memory mishap myself over the years.

During the course of the round, various inappropriate comments were made, including the remark of “thank goodness I don’t have to play that” just before I walked up to take a shot. I hadn’t even considered my ball to be in a difficult lie until then and guess what; I didn’t exactly strike it very cleanly.

The final straw came when we managed to turn the game around and go one up. As I took the honour on the tee and stood over my drive, she pipped up with the ultimate stinging remark about how she couldn’t work out how I managed to get so much power and distance from my ‘unusual swing’. Well as you can imagine, I completely duffed my drive and from that point on, I struggled to even hit the ball off the tee, let alone get any distance. I later made a joke about how I couldn’t hit a decent drive after her remark and she was definitely sheepish for the rest of the game.

It’s important to be relaxed and keep calm in order to play good golf and thankfully, I remained cool despite the many barbed comments and holding a dangerous weapon in my hand!

© Claire Kane Follow my tales on twitter@golfsnippets

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A SUPERB SICILIAN COCKTAIL

Have Clubs Will Travel...

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, separated from the southern tip of the Italian mainland by the Strait of Messina, and home to Mount Etna, the Michael Rees tallest active volcano in Europe and the most active in the world. Simple geographic facts set to describe an island which is rich in culture, cuisine and architecture. Home to several very important ancient archaeological sites, such as the Necropolis of Pantalica, the Valley of the Temples and the temple of Hera at Selinunte. A UNESCO World Heritage site.

For the golf enthusiast, there is also the very highly rated Verdura Resort, which has been ranked as Italy’s number one golf resort, and consistently ranked among the best in Europe. I once asked a colleague what would be his definition of the perfect golf resort, his response was “great golf, weather to match, everything on site, marvellous food and wine, and service with a smile” with that as my template we could well have finally found the answer in the Terre Sicane region of the island.

Since it first opened in 2009, this Rocco Forte Hotel resort had established itself as one of Europe’s luxury premier golf and lifestyle destinations. It is located on the southern coast between Agrigento, famed for the Valley of the Temples, and the fishing village of Sciacca, a ninety minute drive from either of the Trapani or the Palermo airports.

In addition to three superb golf courses there is a fantastic array of other facilities provided to ensure that there is little you could wish for that is not available for the discerning holidaymaker. You could stay the whole time without leaving the grounds and never exhaust the list of things on offer.

As soon as you arrive at the reception there are instant and smiling attentive staff waiting to help and attend to everything for you. You will have already had the first views of the golf courses, spa and the accommodation, and there is so much more to discover as

you become acquainted with this superbly equipped resort. All around the different locations there are cycle racks, with cycles parked available to pick up ride and deposit wherever convenient, a great way to travel to the various points of attraction.

Having settled into the rooms, which have been designed and equipped with every possible need, there was time to relax on the sun bed on the individual terrace with sea view, which each room has, and admire the panoramic views of the Mediterranean Sea before changing to dine in the first of the restaurants to be sampled in the resort.

Our programme would include playing all three golf courses, a cookery lesson, time in the spa and fitness centre, and a visit to one of the nearby Planeta vineyards at Menfi to sample and see the production of some of the universally recognised wines of Sicily, and finally an opportunity to sample the cuisine in three of the four restaurants in the resort and drinks in some of the five bars.

The resort, which was named as the recipient of Editor’s Choice for Best International Resort 2016, hosted the Sicilian Open in 2012. Both the championship courses were designed by internationally renowned American architect Kyle Phillips, who has created such courses as The Grove, Kingsbarns, Dundonald Links Loch Lomond and courses all around the world.

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In addition to the two main courses there is a quality nine hole par 3 course, ideal for sharpening the short game, or when time is at a premium, but the East and West courses are the jewels in the crown of the resort. Sir Rocco Forte himself travels regularly to enjoy his two very special golf courses. With a double ended driving range and extensive practice facilities, it ticks all the boxes.

The East course is ranked as one of the finest in Europe, and it is an interesting feature that one of the two courses is restricted to two balls only every day. In a ballot cast by our group after playing both, the East course narrowly won the vote between the two layouts. A testament to the quality of both, which were in superb condition and a credit to the team of greenkeepers. The short 6th hole is one to be remembered, the first real sight of the sea on the East Course, which concludes with par four along the coastline and back to the clubhouse. Despite being outvoted my personal choice was the West course, swayed by six holes in particular, the 8th and 9th on the front nine, and the last four along the coast to complete the round. There is an old boxing maxim that says do your best work at the end of the round, and that certainly works on the West Course, the final four are truly memorable, with golfers looking down from the terrace as the last shots are played. Two great tracks, and either a delight to play, but both a real treat.

A visit to the spa is an experience, 4000 square metre facility with treatment rooms, gym and fitness centre, yoga studio, indoor pool and four outdoor Thalassotherapy pools, and a spa bar with healthy alternatives.

There is plenty to keep the youngsters happy whilst you are enjoying the numerous treats, with a dedicated kids and teen’s club filled with extensive activity programmes.

For racquet fans there are six quality tennis hard courts, and for the beach addict there is an extensive array of water sports, something for everyone as well as the golfer.

The island is served with regular direct flights from the United Kingdom by British Airways and Ryanair and EasyJet and it is no surprise that the resort has been recognised with numerous golf and travel awards with abundant accolades from a wide variety of publications.

The resort created by Sir Rocco Forte and his sister Olga Polizzi is one of ten individual hotels and resorts in exceptional locations, they belong to a family well versed in ensuring that the guests enjoy the very best experiences during their stay and thus return again and again.

For more information visit the website: www.roccofortehotels.com/verdura

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DECEMBER 2016

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DECEMBER 2016

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L to r: Kim Barton-Smith, Rose Road, Sue Buenfeld, Ladies' Captain Bramshaw Golf Club and Marc Daniels, Mens' Captain at Bramshaw.

The Captain's decide to choose Rose Road as the Captain's charity this year, undertaking many fundraising events including a walk of the Test Way, raising almost £15,000.

Senior Community Fundraiser, Kim BartonSmith, accepted the cheque from

Bramshaw's ladies' captain - Sue Buenfeld and mens' captain, Marc Daniels. Head of Fundraising at Rose Road, Nicky Radcliffe said “We're absolutely thrilled to receive the monies that the members of Bramshaw Golf Club have raised. In my many years' at Rose Road, it's the largest amount we've ever received from a golf club. It's fantastic".

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ENGLAND 6.5 / Wales 11.5 - This year's 'Oldfield Trophy', the Ryder Cup style match between the disabled golfers of England and Wales took place at the prestigious Cotswolds Hotel & Spa in Chipping Norton, Oxon on 16/17th October 2016.

After 2 days competitive golf, Wales won the trophy for the first time and now the series stands at 3-1 to England for matches played – England won at Pontypridd in 2013, The Wiltshire in 2014, The Vale in 2015, and now Wales at Cotswolds in 2016.

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The Captain's decide to choose Rose

Bramshaw's ladies' captain Sue Buenfeld

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Images are for illustration purposes only. All proces are correct at time of printing, we reserve the right to change any price at any time, all offers are subject to availability.

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DECEMBER 2016

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DECEMBER 2016

Stoke Park Scholars Take Giant Step Towards International Recognition Conor Gough

Taylor Paul

Tom Gregory

Youngsters from Stoke Park dominate the selections in the England Golf U16 Thames Valley regional squads ahead of the 2016/17 training programme.

which won its fourth successive Bucks Challenge Shield – and their selection in the girls’ squad completes a memorable season for them.

The historic Buckinghamshire club provides three of the golfers in each of the eightstrong girls’ selection and seven-strong boys’ squad.

They are joined in the Thames Valley England squad by club-mate Izzy Holmes, 15, who, like each of the other five, is a member of the hugely successful Stoke Park scholarship programme.

Not surprisingly, 13-year-old Conor Gough, who recently won the English Boys’ Under14 Open Amateur Stroke Play championship, features in the boys’ squad alongside clubmates Tom Gregory, 13, and 14-year-old Taylor Paul, who also showed up well in August’s championship.

Stoke Park’s director of golf, Stuart Collier, said: “Congratulations to all of our scholars who have been selected for the regional squad, the first step towards international recognition. They will be following in the footsteps of people like Masters champion Danny Willett and the world number two amateur lady and three-time Curtis Cup player Bronte Law, both of whom have come through the regional squad system.

Thalia Kirby, 15, and Daisy Kennedy, 14, were part of the Stoke Park ladies’ team

Daisy Kennedy

“Naturally, everybody at Stoke Park is immensely proud of their achievements – not just with this recognition, but for their successes throughout the year – and credit should also go to the dedicated team of coaches we have here who spend a lot of time working with youngsters of all abilities.”

Set within 300 acres of beautiful private parkland estate in Stoke Poges, Bucks, Stoke Park Country Club, Spa & Hotel is only 35 minutes from London and seven miles from Heathrow Airport. Laid out across 300 acres of mid-19th century, Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown-landscaped parkland, the 27-hole golf course was designed by the legendary Harry Colt in 1908.

It is one of just two five-AA Red Star golf clubs in England and the historic land on

Izzy Holmes

Thalia Kirby

which it stands is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086. The historic course played host to the PGA Matchplay in 1910 and, even more famously, the golf match between Sean Connery’s James Bond and Auric Goldfinger, in the 1964 film, Goldfinger. It also has a thriving golf club with around 800 active members.

During the winter of 2015/16, every bunker on the Colt course – the first nine holes of the historic 27-hole layout – underwent major renovation to both shape and size, as part of a seven-figure investment in a facelift of the whole course.

And this winter will see a similar overhaul of the Alison course – holes nine to 18 – as Stoke Park. www.stokepark.com

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CORHAMPTON GOLF CLUB

SET IN THE HEART OF THE SOUTH DOWNS NATIONAL PARK. FREE DRAINING COURSE FOR SUMMER AND WINTER PLAY

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AMPFIELD GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB

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For further information on the above please contact Nikki Fowler on 01794 368480 or email nikki@ampfieldgolf.com Ampfield Golf & Country Club Winchester Road Ampfield Nr Romsey Hants SO51 9BQ

www.ampfieldgolf.com

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DECEMBER 2016

Monthly tuition to get you on top of your game by Advanced PGA Lady Professional, Katie Dawkins

HAMPTWORTH GOLF CLUB www.hamptworthgolf.co.uk

DRIVING YOUR DESIRE TO IMPROVE If the weather is ghastly outside then what better place to hone your games that a cosy driving range! But are you actually achieving anything by going there?? If you really feel the urge to hit some balls then ensure you have a game plan for your practice session and stick to it. That way you will walk away with better technique, not just having ingrained those bad habits.

If you are working on something specific in your game then allocate the first half of your basket of balls to this. Hit a few balls with a wedge or 9iron just to get your eye in to begin with. Then take a mid iron and work on your faults. Rehearsals are so important when changing something in your game. So dedicate at good amount of time without a ball just getting the feel for what you are trying to achieve. If your range has mirrors or reflective doors then use these to SEE what your look like. Once you have a feeling hit a shot but do it at 50-75% effort. This way if the movement is new to you your muscles get a chance to adapt. If you execute your practice shots at full speed attempting a different feeling all that will happen is you will resort back to what you know best.

Usually this means practicing your old swing faults without realising it. To really change it break the swing down and practice just small shots to change an impact position or do really slow backswings if you are changing something here.

Ask your pro for drills that will SHOW you that you are practicing properly. If you are working on more than one thing, Work for 5 balls on one aspect ie: the takeaway/backswing. Then work for 5 balls on impact position for example. Break it up. If you try and work on all aspects of your changes at once you will end up tapping your head and rubbing your

- 01794 329 344

Based at Ampfield Golf Club and Meon Valley Golf and Country Club

A smooth ride If your car had a bent axle, chances are that you could have an accident and the ride would be anything but smooth. You could try buying new seats or tyres, but that bent axle would still give you a bumpy dangerous ride!

Of course it would be insane to drive a car with a bent axle - but many golfers are trying to play using one. The axle of a golf swing is the spine. Of course the human spine isn’t straight like the axle of a car, it has curves in it. The golfer with an optimally aligned spine will find it much easier to create an effortless, powerful, repeating swing than a golfer who has less than optimal curves.

This is because increased curvature reduces the spine’s ability to rotate.

Here are some guidelines to positive driving range practice: Firstly warm up properly if you want to get the most out of your session. Start by swinging 2 clubs together or simply get the arms swinging in windmill fashion. Once warmed up then stretch your whole body out by placing an iron with the grip end to the floor and hold onto the club head. Now walk your feet back until your arms are outstretched at a right angle to your legs, tuck your head in between your arms and stretch out.

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stomach. Not easy and certainly you won’t do each aspect as well as you could if you worked on them separately.

Now you’ve had a good go at your faults it’s time for some realistic practice. Using 5 balls again challenge yourself to hit 5 different targets. Go through your usual pre-shot routine for each shot, now you are practicing what you will be doing on the course. This will help you work on visualisation, alignment (it’s all too easy to just go with the mat, then when on the course aiming can get sloppy) and execution of shots. Vary your clubs for a true representation of what happens on the course. Throw a few drives in and allocate yourself a fairway using the targets on the range.

End your practice session with some short game. Challenge the person you’ve gone there with (or yourself) to getting close to baskets or smaller targets. Try landing one ball about 50 yards away with your wedge then aim to land the next shot just over this one and follow this with a slightly longer shot again to work on distance control. Make practice fun and give yourself scores for good shots.

There are endless possibilities to be explored on the range when working on long and short game. Visit Hamptworth Golf and Country Club for a lesson with me and get your Winter driving range regime ironed out, or treat someone to a lesson voucher this Christmas. Visit my new and improved website www.katiedawkinsgolf.co.uk for more details. Happy Practicing and Happy Christmas.

Test this for yourself. Sit up in a chair, lift your chest and place your head so that your ears line up above your shoulders. Now place your arms across your chest and rotate.

Check out how far you turn - probably approximately forty five degrees. Some of you will be a little more and some a little less. Now round out your upper back and push your chin forward and turn again. See the difference!! Being out of alignment inhibits a good, flexible turn.

How much you can turn the upper part of your spine determines the amount of hip turn you will need in order to make a full shoulder turn. In the classic turn, the shoulders move ninety degrees and the hips turn forty five.

Someone with less spinal rotation needs more turn of the hips and the golfer with more range in the upper back needs less hip turn.

My son Tom only has eleven degrees of rotation in his upper spine. He plays his best golf with a big hip turn. Having less than optimal curves can affect the swing in many ways. Take the example of a very fine player who is pictured here. His name is Elliot Groves. He played on the Euro Pro Tour this year. He wanted me to look at his swing and advise him on exercises that would benefit it.

Like all professional golfers Elliot wants to have a predictable shot. In other words, one that is going to behave as intended. An intended fade doesn’t turn into a hook or vice versa. First of all we filmed the swing. I explained that the moves he didn’t like in his action were as much physical as technical. I

Golf Academy

gave him a couple of exercises to perform to gain the feel of certain positions. He continued to do this for about fifteen minutes and then, without any mention of swing technique at all, we filmed another swing.

The pictures (above) show the before and after; the changes are quite dramatic.

You can see in the swing with improved biomechanics that the club is nearly on line at the top of the backswing. At impact the shaft is nearly the same angle as it was at address - unlike the original swing where the handle is a lot higher. The white line marks the original shaft plane. Also, in the corrected picture, the body angles set at address remain through impact.

Just as a point of interest, when the handle is high the club head is held open longer before impact and closes quicker, making the shot more unpredictable.

I hope this article makes you stop and think that maybe there’s an easy way to improve!!

Martin Butcher

BLACKMOOR GOLF CLUB

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Romsey Golf Club Welcomes you all

Romsey Golf Club is an oasis of beauty on the edge of Southampton. Described by a journalist as ‘A real woodland gem’ the course makes its way through undulating ground with tree lined fairways, raised greens and deep bunkers.

WINTER 4 BALL OFFER (to include Full English Breafast) Tee Times available Monday to Friday from 10am

ONLY £100 “We continue to develop and improve the quality of the course” Romsey Golf Club, Romsey Road, Nursling, Southampton, SO16 0XW Telephone: 023 8073 4637 www.romseygolfclub.com

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