Greg Rogula

Hello Golfers,

Welcome to this week's edition to Leek Golf Club's weekly newsletter. We hope that you're having a fine week both on and off the golf course.

Enjoy the read.

Club news

Governance Review

Dear Member,

As you may be aware, a working group has been set up to review our current Club Governance in order to update the model to meet the needs and challenges of modern golf.
The review was undertaken following past issues raised by stakeholders and feedback from the April survey/forum where it was agreed by your Management Committee to address this issue as a matter of urgency.
The working group is composed of Ken Hollins (Captain), Arthur Doherty (Vice-Captain), John Pennington (Past Captain), Janet Wood (Lady Captain), Dave Brookhouse (Hon. Secretary.), Ben Johnson (England Golf) and two volunteer members: Ben Stazaker and Craig Stanier.
Several meetings have been held by the group who are working towards the delivery of a Governance Structure proposal in line with the plan presented at the April forum. The aim is to present the final proposal to members in September.

Of course, there will, in the meantime be further updates through the Club communication systems and perhaps additional meetings to capture members’ views throughout the process. Also, a “Governance” area in the Club website is to be created whereby members can keep up to date with progress.

If you have any questions, now or at any time going forward please feel free to contact the office.

Keeping you posted.
Hon. Secretary
On behalf of John Pennington (Chair of Governance Working Group)

Junior news

Presidents Day for Juniors - Saturday, 6 July

The recent good weather, unfortunately, took a break for the 2019 Presidents day for juniors.

A small field braved the elements which did not affect the scoring with some fantastic cards being returned.

The Presidents Prize was awarded to the best Stableford score with Harry Fearn beating Peter Malkin into second place, both scoring 40 points but Harry winning on countback.

The best gross score also went to Harry with a fantastic round of 66. Harry finished the front-nine two-over-par but six birdies and three pars on the back-nine resulted in a magnificent four-under gross score. Well done Harry.

Second place went to Peter Malkin with 40 points and third place to Zarak Curley with 39 points.

The two nearest the pins went to Zarak Curley on the fourth and Dylan Kirkby on the ninth.

The prize presentation took place in the clubhouse and the juniors enjoyed an excellent meal with President Mr Brian Cockersole.

The results were as follows:

- Overall winner – (Best Stableford) Harry Fearn – 40 points
- Best Gross – Harry Fearn 66
- 2nd – Peter Malkin – 40 points
- 3rd Zarak Curley – 39 points
- Nearest the pin 4th – Zarak Curley
- Nearest the pin 9th – Dylan Kirkby

A big thank you to the President for his hospitality from the junior section.

Ladies news

Ladies Open 2019

The 2019 Ladies Open was held on Wednesday, 3 July.
Twenty-two teams travelled to Leek to play and thoroughly enjoyed playing our course. One lady flying in from Dubai!! We received lots of compliments so many thanks to the Greens staff for all their hard work providing the great conditions.

The ladies were greeted by Deb Barnet and Nel Boulton as they entered the clubhouse with coffee and tea provided on arrival. Thank you to both Nel and Deb and also the kitchen staff.
Linden Davies and Mr Senior Captain were at the helm on the 1st entertaining the ladies. Giving them hints and tips for the best way to play the course!

The sun was shining and the ladies were very grateful for the juice and cakes provided in the halfway house. Thank you to both the Ladies section and Senior section for providing the refreshments and also Mr Trevor Smedley and Mr Senior Captain for serving them.

Some great scores were achieved and the Winners were:

- Anne Cockersole (Leek) Sue Simmons (Enville) Sandy Couch (Stafford Castle) 86 points
- Ester McNeal, Denise Martin, Sam Barley (Barlaston) 81 points
- Paula Parkes, Helen Grocott, Elizabeth Hindmarsh (Trentham) 81 points

Thanks to the Chef and kitchen staff for the excellent food and service. The salads on the specials board were amazing!

Lady Captain held a raffle and raised £137.05 for her charity.

A very good day was had all round.

Many thanks again to all involved.

Trentham Ladies Open

Congratulations to Lisa Davies, Lynne Ball and Andrea on flying the flag for Leek in the Trentham Golf Club Open finishing in second place. Well done.

Pro's news

Pro's Day

Thanks go out to all everyone who competed in Pro’s Day.

Also thanks to Carol and Lorna for their work in the halfway house providing everyone with refreshments and food before competitors attempted to beat the pro on the eleventh.

Results of the day below:

Men's

Division one

1st - Dan Smart - 39 points.
2nd - Lee Hollins - 39 points.
3rd - Dennis Vincent - 39 points.

Division two

1st - Aran Warren - 43 points.
2nd - Martyn Pearce - 39 points.
3rd - Rob Barker.

Ladies

1st – Jenny Cordon; 2nd – Pip Nadin.

Nearest to the Pin 4th - Phil Jones.

Nearest to the Pin 13th - Georgina Taylor.

Know your rules: Bunkers

Playing out of the sand is tricky enough without complicated rules getting in the way. Fortunately, golf’s hierarchy rewrote the rule book (literally) and from January this year we've been able to do a few things in the sand that we never could before.

So, what are these new-fangled rules and what do you still need to watch out for in order to avoid a penalty?

What you CAN do:

Touch or move loose impediments in a bunker (local rule previously)
Touch the sand with your hand away from the ball
Ground the club in the sand away from the ball as long as you're not testing the sand

What you CAN’T do:

Deliberately touch the sand to test its condition
Ground the club next to the ball when playing the shot
Touch the sand on a practice swing
Touch the sand when making your backswing

message the team >

Hands up...

...if the only time you 'practice' your wedge play is when you hit a few shots at the start of your warm-up routine? Sadly, this isn't going to lead to a dialled in wedge game, which is one of the fastest ways to see your scores come tumbling down.

1 club. 3 swings. 3 distances.

Sounds easy, right? Well, it could be but first there are two things you must do in order to start saving shots.

1. Correctly gapped wedge system - What we mean by this is having an equal gap between each club in your bag, so you're never left trying to 'manufacture' a shot on the golf course (this is where large numbers start). Mizuno's S18 wedges are perfect for exactly this reason, coming in a range of lofts from 45 (PW) to 62 (LW) degrees so you have every distance covered with your wedges.

2. Have 3 distances with each club - As per the graphic above, if you became comfortable with full, three-quarter and half swings with each of your wedges, you’ll find that your wedge play becomes seriously more effective.

So now you know the secrets to lower scores, it’s time to utilise our expertise and professional advice in order to start unlocking your full potential with your wedge play. Come and speak to a member of the team next time you're at the club.

find out more >

Video of the Week

Amongst all of the product launches so far in 2019, it's these beauties from FootJoy that has really perked our interest. Why? Watch this video to find out…

I hope you enjoyed the newsletter have a great weekend.

Leek Golf Club
Cheddleton Road
Birchall
Leek
ST13 5RE

Phone: 01538 384767

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