ON THE
GRAPEVINE March 2014
Email: vinegolf@senet.com.au
Web: www.vinesofreynella.com.au
In this edition… Name a Paver ON THE COURSE…greens renovation, jockey pump, green rings A WORD FROM THE GIRLS…plenty happening
FROM THE PRESIDENT…Don Johnson
During the past week I have received advice that the Onkaparinga Council has changed the zoning of the Golf Club to ”Community Zone and Recreation Policy Area” and therefore the chances of any subdivision is highly unlikely. We are fortunate that the Club has not spent any further funds on this possible development as it would have been a complete waste. It appears that the Council have changed the zoning without advising the Club even though they knew we were still investigating a possible subdivision. It is disappointing that the Council did not advise the Club of the change. In view of the above I will look into whether this could reduce the Government valuation which may reduce our Council Rates. It does make me wonder why the zoning was changed. I will write to the Council and ask them . It is with regret that Greg Hart has resigned as Vice President Finance; due to personal reasons. I would like to thank Greg for his input during the short period that he has been involved. His past experience has been very useful as shown with some of the suggestions he has made in regard to the Club finances. At the February meeting Committee approved the appointment of David King to take over the position of Vice President Finance. With his past experience I am confident that the Club’s finances are in good hands. I am sure David would
appreciate somebody stepping in to fill the vacancy on the Finance Committee.
It is pleasing to report that the jockey pump, paid for from the Capital Levy, has been more successful than was expected. A trial of the pump has shown that it will take longer than was expected for the larger pumps to start because the jockey pump can handle initial lower end load before the larger pumps need to start. This pump uses about a quarter of the electricity when compared to the larger pumps. Final details of the Jubilee Celebrations will be completed in the next couple of weeks. A full itinerary of the events will be advised accordingly. I know that Hughy Bell, who has been a member of the Club for 44 years, will be making a special trip down from Queensland to attend. The recent rain we received has changed the course dramatically and it does prove that if we have sufficient water the course could be maintained at a better standard during the hot weather.
Children Are Quick TEACHER: Winnie, name one important thing we have today that we didn't have ten years ago. WINNIE: Me!
ON THE COURSE…from Russell Virgo (Vice President, Course) Greens Renovations The greens will be renovated, in line with our maintenance programme, commencing late on Sunday afternoon 30th March and continuing on Monday 31st March 2014. On these days holes will be closed for play if green staff are working on them. The start on Sunday afternoon allows for machine coring and sanding of the greens to be completed on Monday minimising the impact on play on the course. The work will be a complete renovation…coring and sanding. For the technically inclined members...the core holes will be 15mm diameter and the sand is ACL Horticulture sand. The programme will continue with greenstaff brushing the sand into the surfaces on a daily basis. The Course Committee ask all players for their co-operation to ensure that there is a safe working environment for green staff at all times. To assist with recovery of the greens…all players are ask to repair plug marks in the correct manner. Green Rings You may be wondering about the green rings that appear occasionally either on the fairways or the greens??...in some circles they are called "Fairy Rings" It is an underground fungus which moves out in a circle and as it spores and dies it gives off nitrogen which fertilises the turf, turning it a darker green. Sometimes it will spout toadstools, thus it gets its name "Fairy Rings at the bottom of your garden". Capital Levy – Course The small "Jockey Pump" has been installed within budget and trailed with excellent results running up to 6 sprinklers before any of the main pumps cut in. It is very quiet in operation compared to the other pumps in the shed and will create a saving in electrical use and main pump use compared to the previous set up. Thank you to the "Bradford boys" for a job well done.
The Environment - Sustainability of Operations (part 2 of 5) Chemical Use Minimising use, timing (a stitch in time). We tend to only apply chemicals when there is a valid reason to do so. Preventative treatments are only used when they are the only option, or for a perennial problem, or will give a far greater outcome on the whole. Communication of rates and instructions to reduce wastage/damage. A separate job sheet is produced for each chemical application with all required specific information provided to the operator. We try to use the least toxic approach to pest control on the course. In some cases we use volunteers to dig weeds rather than apply chemicals or spot spray rather than boom spray.
FOR SALE BY OWNER. Complete set of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 45 volumes. Excellent condition, £200 or best offer. No longer needed, got married, wife knows everything.
MARRIAGE A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't. A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, but she does.
A WORD FROM THE GIRLS…from Karen Rama (Captain) The 4th of March heralded in the Ladies 2014 Winter Golf Season, and on the 11th we kicked it all off with our first Monthly Medal. Karen (Bunny) Brunton was our standout performer with a nett 68 – well done Karen! I would like to extend a HUGE thank-you to all the Ladies that have entered our 2014 Special Competitions. Our numbers were very good this year and we had a particularly significant increase in the Laurel Wreath matchplay event (40 entrants), which is fantastic to see. Tuesday 18th sees us celebrating St. Patrick ’s Day (albeit a day late), so look-out for all the ‘lean, green, golfing machines’ on the course. I’m sure we’ll have a lot of fun on the day. Registrations of interest for our Pennant, Cleek, Hickory and Nomad teams have been received and practice sessions will soon be getting underway. We wish all our girls every success for the coming season. Entry forms are available for the very popular Lady Mayoress’s Golf Day at North Adelaide Golf Club on Friday 9th May, the cost is $65. If you’re interested, please act quickly as this day fills up fast. Are you thinking about ‘May Week’ at Goolwa this year? Start chatting with your friends, it’s certainly a fun week and there are A, B and C grade divisions. Entries open on Monday 31st March at 10am (http://www.southlakesgolf.com.au) and the event runs from 13th – 16th May. Another date for your diary, 24th April will be our Gala Day. This is a shotgun start and it is open to anyone, so give your interclub friends a call and let them know it’s coming up. We’ll also be having a trading table, so if you would like to make a donation, it would be gratefully received. Finally, I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome our newest club member, Mia Kroemer. Mia comes to us from West Lakes Golf Club. Please extend to Mia an exceptionally warm welcome and I hope that she enjoys being part of our ‘friendly’ Club.
JUNIORS…from wayne Corbett (Vice Captain) McMillan Shield Competition 2014 On Sunday 23rd February our McMillan Shield Team took on a strong and very competent Grange Green team in ideal golf conditions at the perfectly groomed and presented golf course we know affectionately as The Vines and, after a long and close struggle, emerged a comfortable winner. It was also heartening for our Team members to see our Club President, our Club Captain, a previous Club Captain, our Ladies Vice President, both our Club Professional and General Manager as well as several other Club members and parents observe, first hand, the fruits of our Club’s junior development plan. This week, Chris Gibbie and Jarred Clarke were the first pairing to lead the Team out from the first tee. They were followed by Emily Dunbar and Kyle Dickenson and then came the pairing of Ryan Francis and James Percey. Unfortunately, as the Grange Green team were unable to provide a number 7 player or a reserve, this meant that Louis Pretty (our number 7 player) won his game 10 and 8. However, Louis and Cole Wearing, our reserve player, were able to play a competitive practice match between themselves as a learning experience. With our nose slightly in front after the first 9, the back nine holes were shaping as the “make or break holes” for our Team’s result, again. As games on the back nine holes progressed, Emily battled on gamely but eventually lost to her determined and very competent opponent, 5 and 4. Chris Gibbie was sending some prodigious drives off the tee on the back nine. He closed out his game comfortably to win 4 and 3. The scores in Jarred’s game continued to fluctuate with each completed hole until he eventually won one up on the 18th. Kyle continued to have his “ups and downs” but fought back bravely to halve his game on the 18th. This meant, at that stage, both Teams were tied. For our Team to win outright, we needed either Ryan or James to win their individual game. More tension for all watching and following. With supporters from both sides surrounding the 16th, 17th and 18th holes watching the games of Ryan and James unfold, the pressure kept on building. From the 18th tee, Ryan hit a magnificent drive with his customary gentle draw and finished well down and in the middle of the fairway. James also hit a perfect tee shot to the middle of the fairway, slightly right of centre. James then casually hit a majestic fairway wood from about 180+ metres onto the green and, with his opponent struggling, had two putts for a win. Ryan, having left his second shot short then played a sweetly struck 8 iron to the edge of the green, about 3 metres from the pin. Ryan had his two putts and won 2 up and James, after that magnificent fairway wood, made his par 4 and won his game 1 up and, with these outcomes, the Team posted a fantastic win of 5 ½
games to 1 ½.
Sunday, 2nd March our Team played West Lakes at Kooyonga. This match provided a totally different challenge for ALL of our Team members as each member had to concede strokes to their opponent rather than receive them. Once away, our first pairing, Stephen Bartlett and Chris Gibbie took time to hit their straps. Stephen had to concede 13 strokes to his opponent whilst Chris gave up 22. Chris was first to settle into a rhythm and held a lead of 3 up after his first 9 holes. Stephen was trying his best but was again on “unspeaking terms” with his driver and was 4 down after the front 9.
JUNIORS (continued) Jarred Clarke and Emily Dunbar, who was playing her first game at Kooyonga, both conceded strokes. 15 and 8 respectively but, they struggled on gamely through the first 9 holes to be square and 2 down respectively. Both Ryan Francis and Kyle Dickenson were enjoying playing on this course, Ryan for his first time. Despite conceding 7 and 6 strokes respectively and both feeling unwell, they were in complete control of their games after the front 9 holes were 5 up and 8 up respectively. James Percey and our reserve, Lingli Courage who was playing a practice game with Jordan Percey, were also experiencing Kooyonga for the first time. Stephen eventually lost his game 5 and 4 whilst Chris continued his great form to win 4 and 3. Kyle won his game 10 and 7, Ryan won 6 and 5 and then James also came in with a 6 and 5 win. With our nose in front in 4 out of 7 games, a close win was looking our best outcome. However match play can be a fickle game. Jarred’s game continued to fluctuate with each completed hole whilst Emily clung to a 2 up advantage after the 15th hole. Jarred was square after the 16th but then lost the 17th go 1 down with the 18th left to play. Emily lost the 16th but completed the 17th holding a 1 up advantage. With the entire Team surrounding the 18th tee block watching their two Team mates strive for a win on the hole to provide a strong overall Team result, Jarred struck a magnificent 3 wood and Emily, as usual, was also straight down the middle of the fairway. Both had a good view of the green for their second shots but unfortunately, each finished in the left fairway bunkers. More drama and tension for their Team mates. Jarred was first to play and struck a magnificent wedge onto the green to leave himself a downhill putt of about 3+ metres. Emily came out of the bunker a little more conservatively and then played a sweetly struck chip and run to about 4 metres left of the flag. Jarred was first away and his almost perfectly struck putt shaved the edge, but left him with a tap-in to win the hole and halve his game in brilliant style. It was a great comeback by Jarred as his opponent had played an exceptional game. Emily also putted well to finish off her opponent in style and complete her first game at Kooyonga, a 2 up winner. After the excitement died down, these two wonderful finishes on the 18th hole provided an overall winning result for our McMillan Shield Team of 5 ½ to 1 ½. A fantastic outcome over a determined opponent. Our group of enthusiastic players and parents/caddies left The Vines course at around 9.15 am on Sunday 9th March to challenge the Tea Tree Gully team on their own course. For the duration of our journey, we were chauffeured comfortably in a 12 seater bus, with enclosed trailer for all the golf gear, being expertly driven by our golf professional, Steve. Unfortunately, one of our “mainstays” Jarred Clarke, had fallen victim to tonsillitis and was unable to take his place in the Team. This however provided an opportunity to elevate two of our promising juniors. The ultra-competitive Lingli Courage was promoted from Reserve and into the Team for her first competitive game at this level and Lauchie Evans (an enthusiastic new comer to our Squad) was drafted in as our Reserve player. We teed off from the first tee and were lead away again by the pairing of Stephen Bartlett and Chris Gibbie. Next to follow was the pairing of Emily Dunbar and Ryan Francis, another two of our steady players. These were followed by Kyle Dickenson and James Percey and then came, Lingli courage and our reserve player Lauchie Evans.
JUNIORS (continued) After the front nine holes had been completed, Stephen was only 1 down whilst Chris was looking comfortable with a lead of 3 up. Emily, who was playing her usual steady and purposeful game was square with her opponent whilst Ryan held a lead of 1 up. Kyle was feeling “off colour” and not playing his usual fluent game, was 5 down whilst James Percey was again displaying class and precision to hold a comfortable lead of 3 up. Coming behind was Lingli Courage who was having an enthralling game with her direct opponent and the two reserve players who were playing a “serious” practice game. After their first 9 holes, Lingli was looking quite comfortable with a lead of 3 up and young Lauchie Evans, who was playing his first ever competition and relishing every moment of it, was holding his own against his opponent. After a determined fight, Stephen eventually lost his game to his very competent opponent, 4 and 3 whilst Chris, who held an extremely commanding lead of 6 up deep into the back nine holes, eventually held off his very dogged opponent to win his game 1 up on the 18th hole. Kyle had also succumbed early to lose his game 7 and 5 whilst James Percey came in a little later on with a solid win of 3 and 2. Again, and for the fourth week in a row, we still had some extremely close games being played where we needed at least two wins from the remaining four games being played by Emily, Ryan, James and Lingli, if our Team was to register a close win. The tension continued to increase with both Ryan and Lingli starting to fatigue from the pressure, the terrain of the back nine holes and the humid conditions. Scores in the games being played by Emily, Ryan and Lingli continued to fluctuate with each completed hole and then unfortunately, Ryan lost his very tight and closely fought game, 3 and 1. Both Emily and Lingli, despite being quite fatigued and tired, found that little bit extra. Emily went from 1 down on the 15th to win her game on the 18th, 1 up. Lauchlan (Lauchie) Evans completed his first competitive “practice” match with a 3 and 2 win, a great effort for our newcomer experiencing his first visit to Tea Tree Gully. Lingli, who was 3 down coming to the 15th, fought back very bravely to win a couple of her final holes, then narrowly lost the 17th to leave herself 1 down with the 18th to play. She was well aware that she needed to win her final hole to halve her game to provide a tied overall result for the Team. Fighting fatigue, immense pressure and nerves and, with the encouragement of all of her Team mates, she continued to play superbly. But, despite her herculean effort, halved her final hole to finish 1 down. Throughout her epic battle with an opponent who held a much lower handicap, she displayed great temperament and composure whilst providing a magnificent fight back for her Team. Unfortunately, the final result meant that our Team lost our match against Tea Tree Gully, 3 games to 4. This result places our Team second in the overall rankings, having won 3 matches and 20 individual games whilst the Grange Gold team has won 4 matches and 19 ½ individual games.
The final round in this year’s competition will be extremely interesting with our Team needing a strong win against the Glenelg team at The Grange Golf Club on Sunday 23rd March. “Because we have been unable encourage parents to become involved in providing the Egg and Bacon muffins on a regular basis on Saturday mornings, the Match Committee has decided to discontinue this service forthwith. Alternative avenues are under consideration for the raising of much needed revenue for the development of our junior golfers.”
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