july 2017 number 121 club must adapt to today’s … · july 2017 number 121 club must adapt to...

Bush TelegraphJuly 2017 Number 121

CLUB MUST ADAPT TOTODAY’S MARKET PLACE

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stronger because outside organisations arealready aware of the excellent service weprovide, but the plan is to build revenue fromthis source until green fees and societies’revenue is more than £146,000 a year. Toachieve this will obviously require some robustmarketing. We must also continue in our effortsto attract more social and external events,which not only bring in valuable additionalrevenue, but also provide a ‘showcase’ for theclub to prospective new members.Social importantSponsorship will also play an important part aswe strive to improve our financial position.Currently we enjoy revenue of just over £4,000from that source. By 2022 the target is toincrease that to £10,00 a year. Members are aware that the new irrigationsystem will be a costly, but necessary exerciseand the plan is to arrange a £200,000 bank loanover 15 years and to cover the expected annualrepayments of £17,076 from our rental income. The presentation went on to describe anorganisation structure which will be a keyelement in the forward plan. The appointmentof our new General Manager Stewart Judd willimprove the day to day running of the club, butwe also need to implement a ‘step-change’ inwhat the club has to offer. Vitally, theManagement Committee must have acceptanceof such changes by the membership so thatevery element of our plan can be successfullyimplemented. “We know that these are testing times”, saidthe Chairman. “But with the right structure,resources, plans and support from themembers, we will flourish”! ff

THIS was a key message given by Chairman Nick Balnaveat the five-year plan presentation. One of the foremostchallenges was the need to deliver a competitive and

relevant offering for today’s and tomorrow’s membership.Some of the early points which set out our financial situation made it clearthat our income has been steadily declining over the past four years. Costs,which had been rising year on year have been put on a tighter rein but thegap between the two main elements in the accounts still gives cause forconcern. Later on in the finance presentation it was stated the Management

Committee wanted to work to the principle thatgolf operating income should cover operatingcosts, but accepted that in the short term, whilstrevenue streams were being built, that loanswould be required.Membership is clearly an important factor andthe Committee has set out some ambitious, butachievable plans to create growth in all of themain categories over the next five years. Agrowth target was described and shows that weare aiming to increase Male playingmembership from the current level of 266 to300 by 2022; Ladies playing is planned to risefrom 69 to 95 and Junior membership, whichcurrently stands at 35 is targeted to climb to 50by 2020 and remain at that level throughout theplan period. More Social members will also beencouraged and the current level of 170 ishoped to grow slowly, but steadily until thenumber stands at 200 in five years time. Plan for growthSeveral important issues that strongly influenceclub membership were presented and the planfor growth was clearly described. As well asseveral key incentives, including the targetingof golfers playing elsewhere through a socialmedia campaign. There will be a new member-get-member scheme which will reward success

with 10% of subs on the bar card in the firsttwo years of new membership, one month trialmembership and a free membership schemefor Juniors. An interesting ‘LifestyleMembership’ idea is also under consideration.Several local clubs are using this idea toattract new members and we must be able tocompete with them. More pondsRay Ripsher deputised for David Dickinson,who was away with Irene flying the Bush Hillflag in a pre-arranged competition, and hepresented a major plan of improvements bothon and off the course. The practise nets willbe improved; more trees will be planted;fences will be repaired and the tee plaqueswill be renewed. But there was also someworrying news for certain nervous golferswhen additional ponds were mentioned. Raycalled new ponds between the 5th and 6thholes and 8th and 10th holes “aspirations”!(More lost balls? - Hopefully not.) Anyway,they are sure to make our course even moreattractive and provide even stiffer tests forthose demanding better players. There were several strong points made aboutattracting societies. This year’s figure is more

MEET STEWART JUDD THE announcement of Stewart Judd’s appointment as our new General Manager

has been made, but I had the opportunity to sit down with him recently to talkabout his plans for our golf club. And he seems to be full of good ideas! But whatabout the man himself? Stewart was born in Brighton 47 years ago and studied at the University there before going

on to add a diploma to his degree in GeneralManagement. So from an educational point of view hecertainly has the right qualifications. But his 20-yearexperience in golf club management is just as impressiveand particularly the last seven of those years which hespent as General Manager of the very smart Windleshamclub and helped it to win the coveted Golf Mark club ofthe year award in 2015! So why leave such a prestigious club? Stewart explainsthat he thought he needed new challenges and that it wastime to move on. And having seen our advertisement inthe Golf Club Managers’ Association publication, hedecided to apply, and obviously impressed ourManagement Committee, because here he is! In the meantime, Mr. Judd has to endure the daily grindof driving himself from Sunningdale to Bush Hill Park,

and home again in the evening. “Not too bad”, he says. But that is some indication of hispositive attitude. Half way round the M25 and back every day. Quite a trip.But what of his ideas to boost our membership? He is a very strong believer in the principlethat a golf club should be a very welcoming place and to get across the idea that membersneed to have a ‘real sense of belonging’. He believes that your golf club should beInclusive and not Exclusive, and a place where every member looks forward to his or hernext game or the enjoyment of an attractive social programme. He also recognises thatmost golf clubs need to attract younger members, so will put a lot of effort into using theirfavourite method of communication - Social Media! He knows that it works and soon theairways will be buzzing with personalised messages to bring in the younger element.Stewart is very aware that most clubs are struggling with membership challenges but hepoints out that in spite of this, participation in the game has actually gone up. Oh! by the way....Stewart Judd has a ‘live handicap’ of nine. Yes, that’s right NINE! Andhe can’t wait to play the course that he hopes to stay with for a long time to come. He mayhave played Sunningdale and Wentworth and all of those other posh courses, but we betBush Hill Park will test him. Let’s wait and see... Meanwhile, we offer Stewart a warm welcome and hope that he achieves just what the clubneeds. He looks to be a determined and very focused chap, and he’ll get every support thatwe, the members, can provide. Good luck to him! fRANk fARMER

“Reeding is my favourite pastime” - says spread-eagled Neil

“There's nothing like a good reed before settling down for my regular afternoon nap”,says greenkeeper Neil. He had waded knee-deep in the pond to collect a few weeds before that familiar feelingcame on, but reeding always works for Neil and soon he was spread out for forty winks inthe sun. Perhaps Neil will decide to take his holiday in the Fens this year? He'll find plenty of'good reeds' down there...

TIGHT REINCONTROLSCOSTSFINANCIAL cost control has played an

important part in managing the club’saffairs and in spite of several categoriesshowing disappointing results as the lastfinancial year closed, there are someencouraging signs as we progress into the2017/18 year. At the end of the previous year subscriptions,bar profits and outside functions were downbut cost were held on a tight rein, in spite of theunexpected high cost of our kitchenrefurbishment and the installation of the newalarm system. Cost control, as well as thewelcome VAT windfall and increased rentsmeans, that in spite of declining revenues, wewere able to cover the initial expenditure of theirrigation system as well as the annualrepayments of £17,000 without impinging onrevenues achieved by the golf section. The drop in membership subscriptionsamounted to £35,000 and that can be attributedto the trend across the golf industry, localcompetition and our membership profile.Nevertheless, income from societies and greenfees showed a significant increase over theprevious year. The contribution from outsidefunctions was slightly disappointing butforward bookings for the current year arelooking much stronger. Clearly, the club’sreputation for providing top-level socialfacilities is becoming well-known. While the gross revenue from bar takings wasdown on the previous year, we were given aloyalty bonus of £3,000 by the brewery and,once again, tighter cost control helped toachieve the net contribution of £5,000. The major kitchen refurbishment involved anew floor, four new refrigerators andredecoration costs which set us back £25,000but we still managed a saving of £7,000compared with last year. Administration costswere in line with 2015/16 but theimprovements made to our website of £6,000meant that the year ended with an increase of£8,000. We are confident that the appointment of ournew general manager will go a long way toimprove our various revenue streams and thatthe investment in his specialist skills will playan important role in maintaining tightmanagement of our financial affairs. We arealready working hard to ensure that our2017/18 budget is robust and that the five-yearplan will protect and ensure the future of theclub

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Past-Captains celebrate

above: Mark Stevens,organiser and the winnerof the Past Captains’ Cupwith a score of 38 points,winning on count back.

THE traditional annual and veryprestigious event, the Past

Captains’ Dinner and Trophy was heldrecently.The dinner was spectacular and thecompany was just as excellent as italways is. This year, ably organised byMark Stevens, saw a near record numberof Past-Captains attending.The usual, often heated, debate followeddinner, with expert opinion discussing theClub’s affairs and hopefully passing onyears’ of experienced comment to theManagement Committee. I must say thatover the years little has changed and weall enjoyed every minute.Congratulations to Mark Stevens forwinning the Past Captains’ Cup whichwas presented by our guest, CaptainDavid Morris.

SUMMER golf is now well underway andsince the last issue of the Bush Telegraph

we have had Charity Day, Captain’s Dayand Guest Day. I have been extremelypleased with how well these events havegone and I want to say a big thank you to allthe people involved and helping to makethem happen.Charity Day needs lots of helpers. Roger andPippa Munyard did a great job of registration inthe morning and Tony and Pam Brookman inthe hut alongside my wife Tracy did a fabulousjob of providing beverages and cakes. Manythanks are also due to the kind folk whodonated raffle prizes that helped to raise justover £2,000 for Enfield Carers Centre.Tracy did me proudCaptain’s Day was an opportunity to get outthe fancy dress suit for Ladies’ prizepresentation and for the Saturday itself when Iwas driving round in the buggy. I hopeeveryone will remember that day for as long asI shall. Once again my wife Tracy did meproud with her stint in the Hut providing freshfruit and cakes to the many. She was ablyassisted by Billie, Jenny and Irene. The

£2,000 RAISED FOR ENFIELD CARERS ASCAPTAIN PREPARES FORHIS JUMP IN THE POND

What next for ourCaptain?

evening party was tremendous, and with thereduced numbers we were able to hold theevent upstairs where the atmosphere wasbrilliant. What a great show Julia Martin put onfor we lucky folks.Wet August awaitsGuest Day had just taken place and 44 playersenjoyed the course in fine condition and thehospitality of our members. Winners on the dayin the team event were David Dickinson, JohnQuinby, Ray Hurding and Rob Hurding with 90points. The winning pair with 47 points was afriend of mine Peter Walters and the club’svery own Ian Lanario. Once again Tracylooked after the hut in the afternoon andAlasdair put on a fabulous spread in theevening. I took the opportunity of holding araffle which raised a further £140 for thecharity. We are lucky to have such experienced staffthroughout the club. Debbie and her team arealways ready to help and Alasdair with histeam seems to cope with all catering matterswithout any stress at all. Graham has managed to keep the course undercontrol in the last full year before the new

irrigation system is installed, which is a creditto his team.Breaking news is that moves are afoot to getthe Captain to ‘Jump into the Captain’s Pond’for Charity. If £300 can be raised insponsorship then this will hopefully get off theground on August Bank Holiday Monday whenit is fun Day. No doubt pictures will appear inthe next issue.

below: Club’s Creme de laCreme as past-Captainsmeet once more.

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IN my last article I remembered two young members of the clubwho died serving their country in the Second World War. I now

introduce you to two other members who served their country withdistinction.Wing Commander Donald Kingaby, D.S.O., A.F.C., D.F.M. andtwo bars, D.F.C. and Croix de Guerre BelgeDon kingaby was a shy and unassuming man but had the amazingdistinction of becoming the first and only RAf pilot to be awarded

three Distinguished flying Medals, anachievement that is recognised in theGuinness Book of Records. He was alsoawarded the Distinguished Service Order,the Air force Cross, the Distinguishedflying Cross and the Croix de Guerre.Don joined the RAf volunteer Reserve inApril 1939, at the age of 19, with a burningambition to be a pilot. In the summer of1940 he qualified as a pilot and was postedto 266 Squadron. In September, due to hisgreat progress, he was transferred to 92Squadron and found himself in the heat ofthe Battle of Britain. He shot down his firstMesserschmitt on the 12th October andover the next few weeks, during frenziedfighting over the south coast, he shot down

two Me109’s, an Me110 and a Dornier 17. The following month hedestroyed four Me109’s in a single day. It was then that he wasawarded the D.f.M. for, “Displaying great courage and tenacity in hisattacks against the enemy”. His prolific scoring continued into the NewYear when fighter Command went onto the offensive with sweeps intothe continent. At this time pilot losses were high but Don addedanother twelve kills to his tally. At this time the press referred to him asthe ‘109 specialist’, a title which he found, “rather amusing”.In October 1941 he was commissioned and taken off active service tobecome involved with training. This did not last long, however,because in March 1942 he was back on operations with 111 Squadron.Later he was posted to 122 Squadron where he became flightcommander and later squadron commander. It was in April 1944 thathe led a wing of Spitfires, which in his opinion were the finest fighteraircraft ever built. He flew spitfires on 450 operations.Don was officially credited with destroying 23 enemy aircraft, with 8probables and 16 damaged, most of these achieved before he reachedthe age of 23.After the war he made the RAf his career and became involved inaerobatics. from 1949 to 1952 he led 72 Squadron leading theformation aerobatic team. This team became the first to roll seven jetsin formation.He played a lot of golf at Bush Hill and I had the privilege of playingwith him on several occasions. He never wanted to talk about hisexploits in the war and it wasn’t until much later that I found out abouthis amazing achievements.He eventually emigrated with his wife, Helen, to the United States tobe with their two daughters and it was here, in WestfieldMassachusetts, on the 31st December 1990 that he died. A shy herowho was another of the few.Group Captain Ken Gatward, D.S.O., D.F.C. and barken was the second youngest of six sons and he and two of hisbrothers were members at Bush Hill.At the outbreak of war in 1939 ken was a sergeant pilot and wascommissioned on 27 July 1940 and flew Bristol Blenheims with No 53Squadron on low level raids. He later converted to Bristol Beaufightersin 1941 which he flew with No 236 Squadron.But, though his career in the RAf during the war was indeedauspicious, he is remembered for one astounding piece of bravery, anadventure straight out of a ‘Boys Own’ magazine.In the early spring of 1942 the Special Operations Executive gatheredintelligence that the Germans marched down the Champs Elysees toGestapo Headquarters every day at 12 o’clock. A mission was plannedin which an aircraft would shoot up the parade and then drop thefrench Tricolour on the Arc de Triomphe, the aim being to raise themorale of the french people. flight Lieutenant ken Gatward and hisnavigator, Sergeant Gilbert fern, were chosen to undertake themission, which the SOE described, somewhat satirically, as ‘unsafe’. It

was said that Churchill himself had sanctioned the operation.They first attempted the raid on the 13th May 1942 but due to poorweather had to abandon the attempt.Three more attempts were made until, on 12th June, they were finallyable to go ahead. What happened next is perhaps best told in ken’sown words:

“We flew close to the ground all the way, often as low as 30 feet, at220 m.p.h., hopping over trees and buildings and navigating with amap. Sergeant Fern did a magnificent job and guided me straightinto Paris on course.The parade, as usual, was for midday, and we picked up in thedistance the shape of the Eiffel Tower and at 12.02 p.m. we wereover the Champs Elysees. I climbed to 300 feet and banked for theattack, but there was no parade, the boulevards were almostdeserted and somehow the Germans must have learned of ourmission. I had a feeling of tremendous frustration and decided tocarry on with at least part of the mission, which was to drop thetricolour. I roared along the Champs Elysees at below roof topheight, climbed over the Arc de Triomphe, and as we flashed past,Sergeant Fern flung out the flag. By now we were approaching thePlace de la Concord and Gestapo headquarters and as I passed Isprayed the place with cannon fire”.

Gatward was immediately awarded the DfC for his actions that dayand fern received the DfM.In June 1944 Gatward became a flight Commander with No 404 RoyalCanadian Air force Squadron, operating from Wick. He took overcommand in March 1944 and received the DSO in June 1944.Subsequently he was promoted to Group Captain.ken Gatward's brother, Walter, known as Wally, was also a member atBush Hill and an amazing character. The story linked with him, almostcertainly apocryphal, is that, following a particularly unprofitablesession on the fruit machine, he picked it up and threw it in the lake!The Wally Gatward Memorial Trophy has been played annually since1987 and the profits are donated to the RAf benevolent fund.

D J DICkINSON

WE PROUDLY SALUTE BRAVE AIR ACES

HAVING withdrawn from the field ofbattle it was time for the winners to

gather around them their loyal followersand join them in loud celebration. As befitsGentlemen of their social standing, eachdisported himself in a dignified manner inspite of the urgings of their minions. One hundred and eight members and friendscame together in the crenelated and decoratedclubhouse bedecked with the Red Cross of St.George to prove their loyalty and, with theenthusiastic encouragement of a wanderingbard calling himself Gordon Bennett, they sangtheir hearts out. Gordon had distributed aparchment with the words of favourite balladsand the merry minions responded lustily. England’s proud history was recalled in suchditties as ‘Down at the Old Bull and Bush’,‘My Old Man Said follow The Van’ and ‘TwoLovely Black Eyes’ (which is what SirNicholas and his fellow knights had earliergiven their foes on the field of battle). Not onlydid the songs celebrate our Patron Saint, butthe festive fare played its part. Pie And Mashwith Liquor! food fit for kings never mindknights and Minions What a day! What a knight! St. George wouldhave looked on and nodded with approval. The deeds of yesteryear continue and the crygoes up: “Bush Hill Park and St. George forEngland!”

‘ENGLAND AND ST GEORGE!’

,

Above: ‘What a Celebration; What a La Di Da! ‘Till Someone Rolled the Carpet Up . . .”Bottom right: Sir John, Sir Martyn and Sir Nicholas graciously allowed Sir Roger de Munyard tojoin in their celebratory cavorting since he was one of the unfortunates whose lances were brokenin the final stages of the Tilt. When the Heralds ‘Counted Back’ Sir Roger and his Consorts weredenied their hoped-for victory, but as a noble gesture Sir Roger was invited to join the winners asa consolation for his disappointment. Bottom left: Lady Deborah and her trusty bodyguards Sir Adam and Sir Reece were there to serve.

ALL THE ACTION ATOUR Club Captain is not known for his

understatement. In fact he surprisedpassers-by in the middle of his crackingCaptain’s Day by remarking: “It seems tobe going quite well at the moment!” Quitewell, Captain? Everybody there seemed to be having a whaleof a time and your becoming outfit summed itup very well. (for those not fortunate enoughto be present on the day, David Morris wore athree-piece suit that was totally covered withUnion Jacks; he was red, white and blue allover) and he carried it off with his usual stylesuggesting that behind his modest smile, hewas absolutely thrilled with the way it was allturning out.There was just one slight disappointment. TheBombadier Bus broke down. But the beer camejust the same and a rickety bar was set-up atthat point where the players trooped-off afteran exhausting round and a number of pints (orwas that gallons) of very best British ale wasgratefully consumed.And, yes - the golf. Well, the winner of theclosely contested tournament was none otherthan Rob Wiles! It’s likely that Mr. Wileshasn’t appeared in the winner’s slot for sometime so his friends and admirers were delightedto see that he had scored a magnificent 40points, which goes to prove that Rob is not justan expert dog-walker. He can be seen mostmornings with faithful Bailey and he willalways give you a smile and a wave as youdrive towards the clubhouse. He’s a modestchap, but clearly a man with other talents

Ladies resultsHandicaps up to 20:

1st: Sue Collins - 35pts2nd: Helen Constantinou - 34pts

Handicaps 21-30:1st: Lesley Stephens - 35pts2nd: Louise Fickling - 30pts

Handicaps 31-54:1st: Janet Beacham - 38pts

2nd: Pat Turner - 37ptsNearest the pin on 13 - Gunn Robbins

Beat the Captain on 16 -Shirley Fielder

Cela Selley makes short work of the 16th

Sue Collins and Wendy Goodman putting at the13th

Sue Collins winner of handicaps up to twentygets a laugh from the Captain,s sober suit.

Our two Captains having a break with Sharon

Sunny line-up: Helen, Lesley, Janet, Pauline and Tracy

OUR CAPTAIN’S DAY

Men’s results1st: Rob Wiles (above) - 40pts

2nd: Jack Allen - 39pts3rd: Simon Lawrence - 39pts

4th: John Stolliday - 39ptsNearest the pin on 16th - Prakash Kapur

Nearest the pin in 3rd on 18th - Jack AllenStraightest drive on 2nd - Andy Gerrard

Captain Colourful ready for action at the nineteenth hole

Tony Thorley playing to the first

Dave Griffiths approaching the sixth

Tracy worked hard at the hut

because to score 40 points on a nerve-wrackingday like this takes some doing. Jack Allen got close to Rob’s winning scorewith a handy 39, but so did Simon Lawrenceand John Stolliday, so it took one of thosecount-backs to separate them in the finalratings. Nevertheless, they all did well enoughto be among the prize winners. Jack Allen is clearly another skillful playergetting ‘nearest the pin’ on both the 3rd and the18th (this was not an enormously long drivebut based on his third shot!).Prakesh kapur did the same thing on the dodgy16th. when many of his less fortunateclubmates frequently have to hack-out of thatdreadful bunker before even getting a putt. Andy Gerrard made the straightest drive at the2nd. which was an encouraging start to theround, but obviously the wily Mr. Wiles hadvictory in his sights and, anyway, he didn’twant to disappoint Loki who patiently walksthe course with him every day. The Ladies had their Captain’s treat a few daysbefore and they, too, were greeted by the flag-festooned Club Captain and he obviouslyenjoyed hosting a great day of golf as well asthe welcome ‘refreshments at the hut’. In the ‘handicaps up to 20’, Sue Collins tooktop prize with 35 points, Helen Constantinoucoming a close second with 34. In the 21-30handicap division Lesley Stephens shot 35which gave her a five-point margin oversecond placed Louise fickling and JanetBeacham with 38 points took the prize for the31 to 54 handicap section with Pat Turner just awhisker behind with 37. Not to be forgotten onsuch an important day was Gunn Robbins whogot nearest the pin on the 13th and, not to beoutdone, Shirley fielder made her presence feltby beating the captain on the 16th (we hope thecaptain didn’t mind!)

On the Saturday evening there was, as always,a great celebration. There was lots of singingand dancing, but, as our picture shows below,John Stolliday’s 39 points were given a ratherpointed salutation which he may live toregret! But apart from that, David Morrisdeclared that ‘all in all, it all went rather well’.And it did. Well done the winners and, we hope you aremaking a good recovery John! But another memorable day for Dave to chalk-up. His patriotic suit just about summed it up.“keep the flag flying!” ff

Above: The girls got in the swing. Below: John gets the point.

Everyone wins on Charity Day

THE WINNERSThe prize winners on Charity Day were-first place 94 points won on countback

Swinging both waysJohn Worroll, Martyn Lainchbury,

John Hayes, kevin Prime Second place 94 points

Shaken, not stirredPrakash kapur, Sean Ruby, Andy Garrard,

Peter Wafford Third place 92 points

Giovanni 1 Giovanni, Peter fletcher, Graeme Dilley,

Derek SwabyNearest the pin on 4th in two shots

GentlemenAndy Garrard

LadiesCela Selley

Nearest the pin on 16th Gentlemen Denis Pyatt

Ladies Theresa Boyle

The winners of the ‘Hit the green’ challengeon the 13th were

kevin Prime, Neal Avent and Ricky Russell

CAPTAIN’S Charity Day is guaranteed toachieve two things: first and most important

is that Enfield Carers Centre will over £2,000 tohelp them in their excellent work. The second thing to be guaranteed is the weird andwonderful names dreamed-up by the competingteams: “Azzurro” and “Raging Bush fires” were justa sample, but it was “Swinging Both Ways” whoobviously used their new-found ability to bestaccount because they - John Worroll, John Hayes,kevin Prime and, yes, the financial Director himself MartynLainchbury - scored an amazing 94 points and took first prize from“Shaken Not Stirred” because they won on that ‘count-back thing’Prakesh kapur, Sean Ruby, Andy Garrard and Peter Wafford shouldconsole themselves, however. How can an accountant like Mr.Lainchbury ever lose a count-back? Peter fletcher, Graeme Dilley and Derek Swaby partnered Giovanni totake third place, so even though he runs the best restaurants in town,Giovanni could only boast two Michelin stars on that particular day.There was an unusual innovation for this year’s Charity Daytournament. The Captain invited competitors to ‘Hit The Green’ in a

Chairman takes a break ‘Billies’Boys’ stock up at the hut ready for the last five holes

The winning team John Worroll, Martyn Lainchbury, John Hayes and Kevin Prime look proud

Ray lets rip driving from thethirteenth tee

Who could mistake the followthrough of Peter Wafford?

special challenge and three of them did. Neal Aventand Ricky Russell were on the spot, and it’s nosurprise that one of the winning team - kevin Prime -was there to join them on the dreaded 13th. Pam and Tony Brookman did a magnificent job asthey ran The Hut throughout the day and from thelook of those cakes on this page, it’s a wonder thatthe players decided to continue their rounds when somuch good grub was on offer. Once again, a lovely evening followed and the

dining room was filled with supporters, some of whom had also strucklucky with the raffle prizes. Giovanni decided to take a lovely picture ofthe club as his prize rather than a free meal at McDonalds; PeterWafford won a golf bag because he is giving serious thought to takingup the game; Graham Careford decided against the lawn mower andchose a large bottle of Champagne instead and because she likes to takeher time, Cela Selley walked off with a bottle of Sloe Gin. In fact Celawon three prizes. Oh! and to round things off, a welcome guest from Muswell Hill golfclub knocked the life-belt off its stand at the 13th. which takes somedoing. So altogether it was a splashing (sorry, smashing day!) ff

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Vets get off togood startAS our sturdy Veterans team reached the

mid-point of the season and after 14hard-foughtmatches, therecord showedthat we had lostfour, drawn two,but werevictorious in eightmatches withoutany help frommyself.Our lads showedthey could winaway as well as athome (EnfieldG.C., our dearfriends andneighbours, was

one of the sides that succumbed), so not a badrecord for a side that sometimes struggled torecruit enough players to make up thenecessary numbers.And it's rare that a season goes by without anamusing incident or two. In the home gameagainst Hendon, one of our visitors wasobviously so taken with our decorative pond atthe 17th that he allowed his trolley to take a dipin it! Apparently, his spirits were notdampened - even though it took a day or two todry-out his bag and clubs, and it made foranother laugh or two in the bar afterwards.An excellent season so far. DAVE TURNER

ONE of the most exciting days of anyNational Serviceman’s week was Pay

Parade. We lined-up and when our namewas called we shouted back our ‘last three’ -that’s the last three numbers of your fullservice number - marched forward, salutedthe paying officer then received our £2 0s 0pfrom the pay clerk, turned about andmarched back to our place in the ranks. The shifty-looking pay clerk would smirk asthe paltry pay was handed over. And if youwould like to see what I mean by ‘the payclerk’s smirk’ take a close look at the winner ofthis year’s Army Cup. Yes, Lance CorporalCobden was in the Pay Corps (what more isthere to say?) In fact, Mr. Philip Cobden - now back in CivvyStreet - has won the Army Cup no fewer thanthree times and if he carries on like that therewill be some mumbling in the ranks about‘handicaps’. Anyway, warm congratulations toMr. Cobden. No hard feelings, honestly!The latest Bush National golfing event sawguests taking part and how nice it was to havesome of the younger members of the club joinus old servicemen. One of them, GrahamEdwards, was the winner of our special GuestPrize. But what he may not have gathered wasthat part of his prize is to be eight weeks of‘square-bashing’ to really lick him into shape(date and venue to be arranged)

Phil has last laugh asBush Nationals gettheir pay-off

The evening meal was ‘liver and bacon’ andthe Orderly Officer (Pilot Officer Munyard)moved round the tables asking for “anycomplaints”. As always, there were none andhappily ‘back to our billets we crawled! Our great thanks go to Peter Smith whocontinues to organise these lovely occasions.Those of us who served our country during atime of her greatest need, salute you! ff

Natural sportsman Phil bowled everybody outwith his Army Cup win!

WE seemed to have had a very busy couple of months of golf.Thank goodness the weather has been kind to us.

We welcomed Alex, George Low’s daughter who came to Bush HillPark to present the George Low Cup whichwas won by Sarah Reese and myself.The Centenary Salver was won by LesleyStephens. More than 30 ladies attended thedinner in the evening and great fun was hadby all.The Past Lady Captains’ was won byLindsey Bannister. It’s always nice to seepast Lady Captains return to the club.The Captain’s day was a great successthank you to Dave and Tracy for spoiling

us. Sue Collins won the Captain’s day prize.The Ladies’ Invitation to Gents was won by Cela Selley and RayRipsher. The delicious homemade cakes was enjoyed by everyone andI would like to mention the super meal provided by Alasdair.Our Ladies’ Invitation Day followed four days later. Eleven clubswere represented and Helen Constantinou and Rachel Gedney werethe winners on the day.We had our away weekend at the Weald of kent which was perfectlyorganised by Cela Selley. Again, great fun and Helen was our overallwinner. My Lady Captain’s day was taking place as this issue went topress, but I’m sure that everyone who took part had another enjoyableday. I do wonder where this year has gone with only six weeks left ofmy Captaincy. But it has been a memorable time for me - and, anenjoyable one for those lovely ladies in our section.

JENNY POMPHREY - LADY CAPTAIN

‘Great golf, great fun anda memorable year for me’but not many weeks to go . . .

Good golf, good company - come and join usI MUST say that it is increasingly

getting more difficult to findplayers for the Tigers, Rabbits andMixed teams, these are greatevents to take part in, to meet newfriends and play different courses,if you would like to take part inany of the Teams full details are onthe club’s website or use the emailaddresses below for each team. I would like to thank Jon Copley andDerek Swaby for helping me with theTigers and Rabbits also everyonewho has played so far this year; itsgreat to have you on-board.TigersThis year we have entered the TigersA Team, which is between 3 and 12handicaps so far we have playedthree matches winning one at homeagainst Crews Hill and loosing awayto Stockley Park and Pinner Hill,after all matches had been played wecame 3rd out of 4 teams just missingout on the next group stage.We have also entered The BullivantBowl, which is between 7 and 12handicaps played home and awaywith a six man team playing four ballbetter ball. Our first match wasagainst Stanmore away the result wasa draw 1½ : 1½ the next round was athome, we had a very exciting gamewith the end result a tie 1½ : 1½ thismeant we had to have a play-off Garyflanagan and Mark Stevens were

picked (no pressure) to play, I’m gladto say that we won on the first holeputting us through to the next roundagainst Crews Hill at home this wasanother very close match ending allsquare after three matches. Our awaymatch also finished all square afterthree matches, Rob Grover and MarkStevens were picked to play and ouropponents birdied the firstunfortunately I just lipped out for abirdie giving Crews Hill the match.I want to thank everyone who playedfor the Tigers A Team and BullivantBowl and look forward to next year. Rabbits This year we have had a brilliantstart, we have played eleven matcheswinning eight halving two andunfortunately losing one, keep up thegood work fellow Rabbits. The Rabbits are friendly group and ifyou have a handicap of between 16and 28 you are more than welcome tojoin us; we typically play on aTuesday afternoon around 1.30pmwith a meal afterwards the cost is£21.00 for home or away matches.You can find all details regardingdates and matches on the clubswebsite under Teams/Rabbits. If you are interested in playing forthe tigers or the rabbits section,contact Mark Stevens [email protected] [email protected]

MIXEDThe next mixed event is the Lambert Trophy which is to be playedon October 15th.If you would like to play in mixed competitions but don’t have apartner for any of the matches please contact either Janet Connor ormyself at [email protected] and we will do our very bestto arrange a partner for you. MARk STEVENS

Spring TrophyThe Spring Trophy was held on the 23rd of April andcongratulations to David Morris and Lesley Avent with a fantastic42 points. Second was Janet Connor and Mark Stevens with arespectable score of 38 points

Maytime GreensomesThe Maytime Greensomes took place on the 21st of May andcongratulations to Janet Connor and Mark Stevens for a winningscore of 37 points, just beating Lesley Avent and Mark kermodewith 35.

Brasted TrophyOur first mixed event this year was the Brasted Trophy held on the17th of April. Congratulations to Tracey and Ray Ripsher with afantastic 40pts just pipping Cela and Norman Selley on count-back.

ANEW Club Champion wascrowned recently when John

Guiney came home with a 36-holescratch score of 153 (80 and 73). The Silver Salver for 13 handicapplayers and above, along with theSenior Quaich was emphatically wonby Brian Pomphrey with a gross 77(net 61), perhaps you will be enteringthe Club Championship next yearBrian.

HALF-WAY through the year and the weather is glorious. Thosecold winds a long-distant memory.

The other long-distant memory is the diseases that affected our greensin the autumn of last year. Thanks to the restorative efforts of Grahamand his team they recovered and have been magnificent this year, withonly a few isolated scars remaining. Due to the vagaries of the oldwatering system we have had to hand water some greens, which hasbeen necessary but time consuming. Tees have also been good this year,the best I can remember them. This is due in part to raising the height ofcut and to the thorough preparation carried out in the spring. Even here,though, there are some that have suffered because the sprinklers justdon’t reach all areas. This, of course, will all change next year!The irrigation system has been its usual temperamental self, withleakages aplenty. for several days last week it failed completely, wethink because of a loose connection somewhere. We are reluctant tospend much money on a system that will be removed in a few months.However, the future looks good; we have signed the contract, so there’sno backing out now, and work will begin on 4th September and lastabout six to eight weeks. Can I again reassure everyone that there willbe very little disruption and all the work will be carried out during theweek. We will, on occasions, have to close holes for an hour or two butagain only on week days and we will try to do it when there are fewplayers around and never, of course, on a Wednesday morning.Bunkers in the main have been better, though some are still poor andneed work. As always our best efforts are compromised by foxes, andstones are an ever present problem. The solution is to shoot the foxes(not our preferred option) and to install liners, which are expensive. I dofeel compelled to mention, however, that many players still rake thesand to the back of the bunker which produces a kind of bowl effect andof course reduces the amount of sand in the middle. Please push thesand as well as pull for an even rake and to avoid those horribledownhill lies.More ponds?What’s next then? Well, once the irrigation is in we need to carry outsome more drainage work. The 12th green is next on our list, which wewill do before next winter and we plan also to put new drainage in onthe 5th hole. A number of our tees need levelling and we will start withthe 3rd in October followed by the 1st if time and weather allow. Iwould like also to improve the practice facilities, starting with the nets,which in my opinion let us down. Some new mats and a better fittingnet itself would improve this facility no end. I have also been promisinga new practise green and bunkers at the back of the 1st tee if financesallow. We intend to run irrigation down there from the new systemwhich would make maintenance easier.Graham is enthused to redesign the approach to the 12th green. Thiswould involve taking out the bunker short of the green and constructinga new one slightly to the left. The right hand grass bunker will return tosand, which will give players a fighting chance of getting near the hole– well those who can play bunker shots anyway!John Worroll has kindly said that we can have some of the ‘200 Club’money to plant some more trees around the course. This is mostwelcome and would go a long way to help ‘tighten up’ holes such as the10th and the 12th.finally, some weeks ago, we formed a little ‘greens focus group’,consisting of a cross-section of members, to debate plans for the future.We discussed a range of issues, from the possibility of employingartisans, whether or not we should have long rough, to where we shouldput the rakes when not in use, in or out of the bunkers. But the reallyinteresting suggestion, which met with unanimous agreement, was tobuild more ponds, especially after the success of the 17th lakeextension. We have often talked about a pond between the 8th and the10th holes, given that the poplars are nearing the end of their natural lifespan, but the group also thought a pond between the 5th and the 6thwould look good. This would be situated where the old copse used tobe, just short of the oak tree. Graham intends to have a look at this inthe spring. Happy golfing! D J DICkINSON

Contract signed -new irrigationready to goGreens chief reports

NEW MEMBERS Dawn rises with great expectationsNEW Dawn is the name of a much-loved English Rose. We now

have one of our very own - Dawn Rose - who has happily plantedherself right here at Bush Hill Park Golf Club and we will do our best tomake sure that it is fertile ground in which to develop her golf.Dawn has been playing for 17 years but thought it was about time thatshe joined a club and, luckily for us, we are ‘conveniently situatedclose to where she lives’ She says she has two main objectives: to reduce her handicap and toplay in competitions. That’s clear enough, and we wish her good luckin both of those ambitions. But at this stage we extend the warmest of welcomes and hope that sheenjoys herself as a new member, both on the course and in our favouritewatering hole afterwards. ff

Graeme AllenWE have another serious cricketer in our midst - and we now what

formidable golfers they make! Martin Dunnett, a Yorkshiremanstill hitting sixes and is one of the mainstays of our Veterans team, willbe delighted that Graeme Allen has joined the club. Graeme turned outregularly for Enfield C.C. but once he had ‘retired’ from that game, hedecided to continue as an active sportsman, rather than become just aspectator, so after a spell at Crews Hill G.C. he decided to join us. Butwhy Bush Hill Park and not that other club across the way? “My son joined as a Junior under the excellent free membership schemeand so I decided to come to Bush Hill as a Twilight member but now Ihave moved up to full membership and obtained a recognised handicapand look forward to improving my golf, making new friends andjoining in competitions. Not only that, I have found that the club’sfacilities are the best in the area and the staff in the Pro Shop, restaurantand office very friendly and accommodating. I am really lookingforward to enjoying all that the club has to offer.” ff

OBITUARIESRene McCullochOUR mother was born in 1921 in a nursing home in Tooting,

South London, the first child of the family. She lived with herfamily in Merton Park and had a very happy childhood between thewars. Unusually for that time, she and her brother and sisterenjoyed family seaside holidays in Belgium.

Our grandfather was a strictVictorian, but a firm believer inwomen’s education, so he wasdelighted when Mum won ascholarship to the local independentschool at the age of 11. At 14, shewas sent to Clark’s secretarialCollege in Surbiton, Surrey whereshe won many certificates andawards. In keeping with ourgrandfather’s ambition for women,he taught mum to drive, aged 17,which was completely unusual for agirl of that time. She passed hertest first time, a fact she constantlyreminded us of, and held a cleanlicense for 75 years.Mum was called up in 1942, andjoined the ATS. When they knewshe could drive, she was snapped upand trained to drive ambulances,

trucks and two-ton lorries. She was posted to Newcastle where she metDad who was waiting to be posted to the far East. When they marriedin 1947, Mum had to leave her secretarial post as it was unacceptablefor married women to be secretaries. In her early years as a doctor’swife, she was expected to stay at home and take phone calls frompatients, but to her satisfaction, this led to her being practice manager inlater years.Always a good sportswoman, Mum played hockey, cricket and tennis inher youth, but hadn’t played golf until she met Dad. He had been a goodgolfer in Scotland, and introduced her to the game. They playedoccasionally on public courses when my sister and I were growing up,preferring to spend what little spare time they had with us. However,when they decided we were ‘off-hand’ they joined Bush Hill Park GolfClub. Mum was naturally a shy person and preferred to play social golf withDad until she was persuaded to join the Ladies’ Section. Dad remaineda social golfer, but Mum played to win! Her two proudestachievements were winning the Grandmother’s Cup twice, once in 1978when her first granddaughter was born, and again in 1981, when herfirst grandson was born. She also won the Autumn, Victory and kaySteel trophies. Together Mum and Dad won other competitionsincluding the Brasted Trophy. They were a good team!Ladies Wednesdays were sacrosanct. We knew not to organise events onthat day as Mum was always busy. They were known to travel toScotland to stay with my sister on Thursday to return Tuesday in timefor Wednesday golf. Mum joined the Ladies Committee and became Lady Captain in 1982.I seem to remember she was involved in the move to persuade thegentlemen to allow ladies to use the 19th hole!Mum helped to organise many functions at the club. I have attendedmany coffee mornings, and Burn’s Night suppers, which were initiatedby our parents and quite the family affair with Dad playing the piano,Mum helping him with the music and my niece playing the bagpipes.Both my sister and I had our wedding receptions at Bush Hill Park GolfClub, and it was often a venue for family Sunday lunches andcelebratory meals. Mum and Dad celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary in 1997with a party in the dining room for many family and friends. Mumloved her time at Bush Hill Park and was sad to leave the friends shehad made when Dad became infirm and they moved to Scotland. She returned to meet her old friends as often as possible whenever shecame south. Sadly, she became very infirm hersdelf in the last twoyears and was unable to make the journey.Mum was strong, feisty and loving and the most selfless and generousmother. She passed away on June 1st and will be sorely missed by mysister Janet and I, and the rest of the family. kAY INGLE

Raymond GreenwayRAY was a member of Bush Hill Park Golf Club for 40 years -

but he didn’t play golf! His status as a Social Member did notdetract from his affection for our club, as well as supporting histwin sister Vera as she made her mark as Lady Captain, he made

sure that many important Greenwayfamily celebrations were held righthere in the clubhouse. ‘The NaughtyTwins’, as they were known, wereborn in Haringey and lived with theirfamily behind and above theirstationers shop. Ray went on to Stationers School andnot long after the outbreak of WorldWar Two, he joined a platoon of HomeGuard and by 1943 he had joined theRoyal Air force, first posted as acrewman in a motor-boat ferryingaircrew to their flying boats, then

accepted for air crew training where he qualified first as a wirelessoperator, then as an air gunner - but his flying duties didn’t stop there.When it was discovered that Ray could handle a Box Brownie camera,he was sent off to Pinewood Studios to be taught aerial photography.That led to operational flying in a Mitchell bomber as an official warphotographer and towards the end of the war he travelled throughfrance, Belgium and Germany with passes actually signed by GeneralEisenhower that got him into recently liberated territory. After the war Ray returned to the profession he had barely begun before1943 - as a surveyor and property manager. He married Joan in 1949and ten years later along came Janet, described as ‘his little rascal’. Andwhen her turn came around, Janet presented Ray with Christopher andCharlotte, and it was Charlotte, now a professional journalist, whowrote a fascinating account of Ray’s war-time exploits that would beenough to fill a boys’ book of incredible adventures. Charlotte’s storydeserves the widest-possible reading, because it describes that Ray’s lifelike so many of our fellow members past and present - was quietly filledwith incredible events that helped to shape the history, not only of ourclub, but of our country itself. ff

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