AYRSHIRE WINTER LEAGUE - Defending champions reach semi finals

The qualifying sections of the 2008 - 2009 Ayrshire Winter League have been completed with the defending champions Prestwick St. Nicholas (pictured right) remaining on course to retain the title.

Prestwick St. Nicholas qualified from their group and now face Troon Portland in the semi finals.

In the other semi final, Irvine Ravenspark face Troon Welbeck.

If any player or officials of participating clubs are able to keep us updated with details of the semi finals and final matches details, we will publish these on the web page in due course.

HAPPY NEW YEAR - Best wishes for 2009

Wishing all our visitors a happy new year and best wishes for 2009. We have much to look forward to next year, with The Open Championship at Turnberry, The Scottish Amateur at Royal Troon and the Ladies Home Internationals at Irvine (Bogside) amongst the highlights of the forthcoming season in Ayrshire.

Best wishes also go to Loudoun Gowf Club and Troon St. Meddans Golf Club who both celebrate their Centenary year in 2009, as does The Ayrshire Ladies Golf Association.

Hopefully the members of all three clubs will have a memorable year of celebrations to mark this notable milestone.

Finally, many thanks to all our visitors who have contributed to over 30,000 hits on the web page this year, which makes the effort put in in producing the weblog worthwhile for all involved.

Please feel free to e-mail any suggestions for improving the web page or make comments via the link at the bottom right of each page entry.

Very best wishes to all for 2009 !!!!

Alasdair

GOLF IN TENERIFE - Competitive golf invite from the Peanuts Golf Society

We Recently received the following info from Bill McLellan who runs the Peanuts Golf Society in Tenerife.

If you are thinking of a golf holiday in Tenerife, the web site is worth checking out for an opportunity for competitive golf and to meet new friends there during your stay.

There is also a link to the Peanuts Golf Society website on the left of this page.

Bill wrote :-

"I run the Web Site for our Golf Society here in Tenerife,I am also an overseas member of Glasgow Golf Club as I have a house in Alloway which I come over to in the summer. I wondered wither you can give us a link and a small write up on your Ayrshire Golf site as many of your readers will at some time come out to Tenerife to golf and may like to know they can have a competitive game.

Have a look at our site www.peanutsgolf.co.uk and we would be only too pleased to see anyone from Ayrshire out here on the Links

Regards and Happy New Year"

Bill McLellan

FAIRWAY SAVER REWARD - St. Nicholas Ladies lead the way

From the Scottish Golf Union website :-

The ladies section of Prestwick St Nicholas Golf Club became only the second in Scotland to earn a £500 reward from Dunfermline Building Society’s Fairway Savers initiative – then generously donated the money to a local charity.

As part of their 3-year sponsorship deal with the Scottish Golf Union, Dunfermline Building Society are rewarding clubs with a donation of £500 if fifty of their members open a Fairway Savers account at their local branch.

Led by Lady Captain Anne Grant and Ayr Branch Manager Katie Hodge, Prestwick St Nicholas quickly reached their target and the duo were presented with a cheque from SGU Chief Executive Hamish Grey recently.

Lady Captain Anne Grant commented :-

“CLIC Sargent in Prestwick is the ladies club’s nominated charity this year and through various initiatives we have ran this year our members raised more than £5,000 for what is a very worthy cause.

We committed to donating the Dunfermline Building Society Fairway Saver reward to the charity if we reached our target, so my thanks go to my fellow club members for their support in making this and our other initiatives this year so successful.”

The Scottish Golf Union has been supported by Dunfermline Building Society for the last two years through their sponsorship of the Junior Masters, Junior Club of the Year and Scottish Golf Dinner. Since the launch of the Fairway Savers affinity account last October, more than 4,000 new accounts have been opened by golf club members up and down the country, generating further investment for grass roots golf in Scotland.

Hamish Grey, Chief Executive of the SGU, said:

“The Fairway Savers affinity account has been a hugely successful part of our sponsorship with Dunfermline Building Society with benefits for everyone involved. I am delighted that Prestwick St Nicholas Golf Club has earned their reward through the hard work of their lady members.

Its great to see how a golf club can support their local charity so well and this is just one example of the wider role golf plays in the communities across the country.”

The Dunfermline Building Society Fairway Savers account is available for both adults and juniors and offers a competitive interest rate whilst supporting grass roots golf in Scotland.

Katie Hodge, Branch Manager for Dunfermline Building Society in Ayr, is delighted to see their sponsorship of the SGU working so effectively:

“Golf is a very important part of life in Ayrshire so it’s great from a local perspective that Dunfermline Building Society has such strong links to the sport. The sponsorship has certainly been successful for us both nationally and locally and it’s wonderful to see the club’s charity also benefiting from our partnership.”

SCOTTISH SENIORS GOLFING SOCIETY - new website launched

Keith Howie from West Kilbride, the present Vice captain of the Scottish Seniors Golfing Society is in the process of constructing a website for the society.

The website has recently been launched and can be accessed on www.scottishseniorsgolf.com or through the link on the left of this page.

The website provides news and info about forthcoming events as well as result, photographs and an online shop where members can purchase S.S.G.S. merchandise, as well as information on how to join.

Keith plans to list the regional websites on the site in the near future.

SGU HANDICAP AUDIT - returns now overdue from some clubs

The annual SGU handicap audit of players with one of a handicap or less is underway and club and match secretaries are being urged to complete their club returns as soon as possible and forward the results to the Scottish Golf Union as previously requested.
Negative returns are also required to be notified to the SGU.

A number of Ayrshire club returns have still not been received by the national body. It would be appreciated if club secretaries and officials could ensure that the requested returns are completed and forwarded as previously requested.

GOLFERS GOING TO UNIVERSITY - What about Cardiff ?

Considering going to University ?...... Category one golfer ?.......... this recent correspondence from Cardif University Golf Society Recruitment Officer Gareth Rees may be of interest :-

I write to you on behalf of the Cardiff University Golf Society. I was recently appointed Recruitment Officer as we feel the need to market our society and target potential students and members. I would be very grateful if you could forward this message to relevant individuals and institutions in your constituency (schools, golf clubs, junior golf development programmes etc.). We are mainly looking for golfers with a category 1 handicap but golfers of all standards are welcome in our society.

Here is some information about what our society has to offer:
· The society has two teams that play in British Universities and Colleges Sports leagues; the first team in the South Premier league and the second team in the Western Conference league.
· We offer weekly coaching with PGA National Coach Keith Williams at the Vale of Glamorgan Golf Resort, and also weekly training sessions.
· The society enters a team every year to play in the World University Match-play Championships in Germany and also sends two players to represent the University in the Boyd Quaich Tournament in St Andrews, Scotland.
· Every member of the society has the opportunity to have high quality gear including kit and golf bags.
· The University offers an annual Bursary to students who show outstanding ability and potential in Golf. Applicants must show evidence of a high standard of Golf participation and performance together with a low handicap, typically 2 or 3 for men and 6 for women.
· Golf Bursars will also receive:
o Coaching
o Sport science support
o BUPA physiotherapy
o Free Gold membership to University Sports Facilities
o Free access to sports talks and workshops
o Personal mentoring
· An exuberant social life giving golfers and non-golfers the opportunity to socialise and bond in a variety of ways.

Cardiff University offers a very high standard of education in a huge range of degree programmes, unlimited extra curricular opportunities, and a friendly atmosphere, which is why students should give Cardiff their serious consideration when selecting the University that is best for them.

If you have any queries please don’t hesitate to contact me either by e-mail on reesg11@cardiff.ac.uk or by phone on 07980195726.

Kind regards,

Gareth Rees, Cardiff University Golf Society Recruitment Officer