Welcome to this week's newsletter, which contains a great quiz on the past decade of golf for you to give a go, as well as the latest golfing challenge that’s well worth trying at home. Stay safe and enjoy the read. John.
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| Is a return to golf imminent? We have been living through unprecedented times for golf and the whole of society. At a time when the golf season should have been getting into full swing, courses have been closed. I am a very proud member of the PGA but sometimes I wish they would communicate with other golf industry bodies more. Well, it seems to have taken a major crisis like this to get them all around a virtual table for the good of the game. The PGA, The R&A, The British Golf Industry Association. The British and International Greenkeepers Association, The Golf Club Managers Association, The UK Golf Federation, TGI Golf and Foremost Golf collaborated to release a coordinated opening plan. This plan sets out the way golf can be played ensuring the safety and wellbeing of golfers and members of staff alike. In addition, The PGA is working with Government, the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Golf and other leading bodies on a wider strategy and framework for the re-opening of golf. So there is a chance that soon, course restrictions will be lifted, most likely on a phased basis, and golf will open for business once again. Until then we all need to stay safe and be patient. |
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| Jack W Gaudin Club Found in Garden Shed. With all of this going on many of you have had a chance to do the jobs that you have been putting off for ages. Doug Campbell took on his garden shed and I am glad he did, Doug dropped me this message. Hi John, Since I know you're searching for the odd curiosity item to keep our fellow members occupied, let me tell you what I found when I was clearing out my garden shed this week. I found a clutch of old golf clubs tied together by a round of string. Amongst them was a 'mashie', which immediately caught my interest. Engraved on the back, was the detail of the owner of said 'magic wand' - JW Gaudin - and a note of his home club.... Remarkable! I have absolutely no idea when I bought/was given/purloined this club but I wonder if any club historians are able to recognise the name and, therefore, date the actual club? I think it would be marvellous to use into the wind on the 18th in pursuit of a medal-winning score - punching low into the breeze - but, sadly, I think the cane shaft would be better suited to my sweet peas. Any clues? Best, Doug Well, I knew straight away that Jack A Gaudin was one of my predecessors at Alwoodley. In fact, he was TAGC Professional from 1912 to 1946. He was a pretty decent golfer, winning the Yorkshire Professional Championship in 1927, the Leeds Cup in 1922 and 1923 and finished 6th in the Open in 1926. Doug did some research of his own and came up with an article in the Glasgow Herald from 1921. Gaudin was featured playing in a big-money match play tournament, unfortunately, losing in the final. It was interesting to see that Gaudin beat two-time major winner Ted Ray on his way to the final and Percy Allis was in the field as well. Actually, since 1912 there have only been four resident pros at Alwoodley. Norman Rowell who was Gaudins assistant took over from 1946 to 1962 then Ian Duncan from 1962 to 1989 then yours truly 1989 to 2050… I can’t see what the attraction is, it could be, great members, great co-workers, great course, great city and great county! |
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Are you missing live golf? How about watching some of the world's best players playing in their studios like the one we have here at Alwoodley Golf Club? Well, TrackMan have partnered with BMW and tournaments on simulated courses will be played commencing on the 9th May with a competition on the Old Course St Andrews. The winner of each event will get $10'000 to go towards their chosen coronavirus-related charity. Click here for more information. |
| Click here for more info.
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Keepy Ups.. On the subject of Keepy Ups Tipper Wilson spotted this video of ‘Trick Shot Queen Tania Tare’, I think this just about closes the book on this for now. Click here to watch the video. Enjoy. |
| Tania Tara
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What did Nick do next? Last week I asked what did Nick do next? Well it was just another day at the office for Nick as he chipped it close and knocked it in for a simple par. So A was the answer. John’s Top 10 UK Courses Many thanks to those of you that dropped me a message with their Top 10 UK Courses. Actually, for the most part mine seemed to fit with lots of you, I suppose a great course is a great course. Some of you simply used the criteria of ‘how much fun did I have’ on a course as their measure. This sounds eminently reasonable because isn’t that why we play this great game. A few of you seem to have a real soft spot for Royal West Norfolk – Brancaster. I knew of it but these replies made me research it further and suffice to say Brancaster is another course on my rapidly growing bucket list. |
| The answers: 1. Oosthuizen, 2.DeChambeau, 3. Luiten, 4. Reed, 5. Aphibarnrat, 6. Fitzpatrick, 7. Rahm, 8.Olesen. | Silhouettes Quiz. Wow this quiz was tough I only got two, how did you do? |
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Golf's greatest rivalries |
We want to hear from you There’s much debate as to golf’s greatest rivalry. From one era to the next, elite players have gone head-to-head and produced some truly memorable moments on the course. At this current time, there’s a whole host of young talent jostling for position at the top of the rankings: McIlroy, Koepka, Rahm and Thomas to name just a few. However, in terms of a rivalry between two golfers, we don’t seem to have that right now. So, we want to know what your favourite golfing rivalry has been through the years. Click the link below to head to our website and take part in our poll. Enter our poll here.
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Fact of the week In 1971, Alan Shepard – the first American astronaut in space – became the first person to hit a golf ball on the moon. Here’s what he said to the USGA after landing back on earth: “I shanked the first one; it rolled into a crater about 40 yards away. The second one, I kept my head down. I hit it flush and it went at least 200 yards.”
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What can you remember from the last decade? We hope you enjoyed last week's Silhouette Challenge; some were certainly easier than others. The end of 2019 also marked the end of a decade, but how much can you remember - on a golfing front - from those 10 years? Put your memory to the test with this week's quiz as we challenge you to recall some amazing feats in the world of golf. Good luck!
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