NEWSLETTER - NOVEMBER 2024

Stoke by Nayland
SENIORS
November 2024
From your Captain:
This is my first newsletter post as your new Senior Captain 2025, and what an honour it is to take up this role. I follow in some fine footsteps.
Many thanks to John Parkinson for his great achievements during 2024, also particular thanks to Graham Cork for agreeing to be my Vice-Captain, I know he will do a great job and make a superb Captain in 2026.
I was extremely disappointed not to be able to take up my position in person. Having dodged Covid for nigh on 5 years, I came down with my first, and hopefully, only bout last Friday. Therefore, I hope as many of you as possible will come to my drive-in next Monday, 4th November to witness my valiant effort! Don’t forget to let VC Graham Cork know your guesses for the usual sweep, with the proceeds going to my charity Nayland Community First Responders; I hope you agree a very worthy cause.
Apart from first Covid, there are a couple of other firsts, I believe. The first new Captain not to attend his own inauguration, and the first captain to write the newsletter. This however, will be the one and only newsletter written by me as Captain, as Graham Cork will take over as head scribe for the immediate future.
I will not add anything further to this message, but instead, add a copy of my new Captain’s speech that was read out for me by my Vice Captain Graham Cork at the senior’s meeting, many thanks Graham. Not everybody could make the meeting, so you will find the speech at the end of this newsletter.
I will finish by assuring you that everything I do will be with the best intentions of the section, and you, the members.
I wish you all a great golfing year.
Kevin Price
Senior Captain 2025
Disclaimer: The following is a light-hearted review of the previous month’s events. No offence is intended, I hope none is taken!
Full (formal) information can always be found on the senior’s website www.stokeseniors.com
All club information can be found at www.sbngolfmembers.co.uk
Having written this newsletter for the last 3 years, and with the extra workload that comes with the captaincy of the section, I feel now is the correct time to handover editorial responsibilities to Graham Cork. Writing the newsletter gave me a great opportunity to get to know the club, the competitions, procedures and, most importantly, the people. The newsletter has evolved from being a monthly report, diary and a printed version of the website, to something more light hearted, contemporary and abridged.I’m sure Graham will put his own stamp on proceedings and I look forward to reading the December edition.
Congratulations to Dave Drew and Tony Reeves for hole in ones in October. Tony on Constable 13 in the Bogey competition and Dave in a Men’s section medal on Gainsborough 7, although looking at the picture on the website, it seems to be 9th or 18th. Was the photo an afterthought?
We held our final interclub match of the year in October, at home against The Essex, and boy was it worth waiting for! An 8-0 drubbing to end the season in style. Made even more special by the number of shots we were giving. Well done to all those that played in this match, and to all the people who have participated in matches during the year. Your support is really appreciated.
Earlier in October, we held the monthly stableford, which would also determine the winner of the Millennium Trophy. The Millennium Trophy is contested between the monthly divisional winners of the stableford competitions. This year, the honours went to Pete Hele, who carded 37 points on the day and apart from the trophy, also won nearest the pin and finished 4th on the day, with 2nd to 5th places in Div 1 all being decided on countback. A very lucrative day for Pete, and also for Mike Webley, who recorded the only 2 on the day. Top of the pile in Div 1 was Colin Dallas with 38 points, who has had a splendid golfing year, more on that later! In Div 2, victory was secured by Tony Reeves with 39 points, who was a clear winner by 4 points from Dick Lumsden in 2nd place.
Many thanks to Alan Line and John Williams for organising the guest day on 14th October. Everybody who attended enjoyed a great occasion that was meticulously planned, apart from the weather, as we were subjected to some very early drizzle. We all enjoyed the occasion, and it came as no surprise when Mick Henry and his partner Dave Combes secured victory with a betterball score of 46 points, winning by a 3 point margin from John Williams and his partner ‘Wee Davie’ Yates. I urge you all to put this event in your diary for next year and try and come along. It’s a great occasion and a chance to bring your guest along to enjoy Stoke’s finest hospitality.
The Past Captains held the second of their annual matches in October at Halesworth Golf Club. This was won on the day by Lionel Hatch with 37 points, he’s a rum un that Lionel. The winner of the combined trophy for aggregate of both home and away was Sir Bob Filer, no less, with 59 points. 59 points, are you sure? I understand Sir Bob’s trophy is called the PVC trophy! I assume it’s made of Tupperware.
The final competition of JP’s tenure was held on October 28th, namely, The Three Captains Match, or in this case, Two Captains and a Deputy! With the 10 best scores from each team being totted up, victory was secured by the incoming Captain’s team, a great start to the year! Notable scores on the day were a fine 37 from John Smith and a pair of 36’s from Andy Cracknell and Dave Drew. Immediately after the contest, all the competitors gathered for lunch, where a charity presentation of £10,500 was made to Parkinson’s UK by outgoing Captain John Parkinson. This was followed by the seniors annual meeting.
In the swindle, after months and months of deliberation, battle, cuts and banter, the eventual winner of this prestigious prize was Colin Dallas. In the words of Alexander Armstrong, Colin fought off all the opposition (well, Lionel and Toby’s Dad) to win the coveted trophy. The winner of the two previous years could only muster 4th position as Mick Henry said, “it’s not over ‘til the fat lady sings,” but realistically, she’d lost her voice some while back. Well done Colin! Many thanks to Malcolm and the Tee Bookers for their invaluable contribution during 2024.
Coming up in November, most importantly, the Bingo night on 2nd Nov. You can still get tickets for this club event, so eyes down and get those pencils sharpened! Don’t forget the club AGM on November 8th when Captain Norman steps down, I hope you have had a great year.
I’m looking forward to my drive-in on Nov 4th, please don’t give me a hard time, I find the opening tee shot hard enough as it is! But then, there is the small matter of the monthly stableford to play for as well.I’m hoping to make up for the disappointment of the 3 Captains and have a great day, with great companyand great conditions.
Also in November, on 13th, we have the Hi-Lo Greensomes, which is a drawn competition. Please put your name down as there are plenty of spaces available. The 25th sees the annual match v The Senior ladies on Gainsborough, followed by lunch; closely followed by the second stableford of the month on Nov 27th.
We have 3 new members to welcome in October, may you all enjoy your membership of the section. They are Stuart Lawson, Graham Stubbs (aka Stubbsy) and Keith Holmes.
Many Happy Returns to all members who have their birthdays in November.
Details of November’s schedule and all fixtures for the remainder of 2024 can be found on the website.
If anyone wishes to share any “amusing” stories with me for the next newsletter, this can be done anonymously, or otherwise, by emailing kevinprice@btinternet.com
New Captain’s speech
My sincere apologies that I am not here in person to say these few words. I know that Graham will do a fine job however, and it is good practice for him!
It was indeed, a privilege to be asked to be Senior’s Captain, and I hope that I can do the position justice. I will always try to do the right thing for the members and the club. Any actions I take will be for the right reason, even if they don’t always turn out that way!
I’m in my fourth year at Stoke by Nayland; I know it’s been said before, but I just want to reiterate what a friendly and welcoming group the seniors are. I was a member at my previous club for 30 years, but I feel a greater sense of belonging here at Stoke.
I would like to express my thanks, and I’m sure everyone would agree with me, to John Parkinson, our Immediate Past Captain (without a parking space!). John has worked tirelessly to make 2024 a success, for the members, for his charity (Parkinsons UK) and for himself on the golf course. I have a small gift for John from myself, which I will give to him at the next opportunity.
A key aspect of being senior captain, is the team around you, indeed, it would be a more arduous task without the assistance of the Captain’s helpers, namely, Allen Smith, Peter Jay, Malcolm Norton, John Parkinson, Pete Hele and not forgetting Graham Cork. They all provide invaluable assistance and help the section to run smoothly. There will be a couple of minor changes in the coming season, Graham Cork will publish the newsletter on a monthly basis, so please keep him updated with any stories, serious or funny. Graham will also assist with the organisation of the InterClub Matches.
Whilst I mention the InterClub matches, it would be great to see some new faces join in. If some of our newer members are not familiar with them, please speak to any of the helpers who will be more than happy to explain the procedure. A couple of people mentioned that they didn’t think they were good enough to play in these matches; well you are. Mick Henry was one of these, but he played in his first match and realised that it was fun, good banter, a chance to meet new people and play some different courses in our away matches, all at a reasonable cost. Mick ended up playing in something like 10 or 12 matches. If you want an endorsement, ask Mick. Although there is a maximum playing handicap of 28, you can still enter with a higher handicap, it will just be capped at 28, so don’t let that put you off.
Next Monday, I will be attempting to knock the skin off the ball as I undertake my Captain’s drive in. I know that Graham has been busy with the sweep and it’s now time to reveal my chosen charity for the year. I had plans in place to raise money for one of the larger charities, however, I was made aware of a requirement for funding for a concern right on our doorstep, and that is Nayland Community First Responders (NCFR), who will be my chosen charity for 2025. Falling under the umbrella of East of England Ambulance Service-NHS Trust, NCFR are pretty much self-funded, with the only item supplied for them being a shirt! There are currently 6 responders who share 2 ½ kit bags. They have to buy their own uniform, communications equipment, kit bags and contents, a defibrillator is £1500, in addition, they use their own vehicles to attend incidents. They operate within a 5 mile radius of Nayland, in areas where many of us live, and indeed have attended the hotel and golf club on numerous occasions.
I know that in previous years, our members have proved to be extremely generous. I don’t wish to take anything for granted, but I know that if I can even raise half the sum that JP raised, it will make a significant difference, and may even save lives of people we know.
If anyone in the seniors is able to give any assistance, particularly for my Charity Day, then it would be really appreciated. I’m specifically thinking of auction lots, hole sponsors and general help.
I plan to undertake a charity challenge during the year, although I don’t know what yet. Longest day challenges have been done, so it may not be golf related. If anyone has any suggestions for a type of endurance feat, then please let me know, all sensible suggestions will be considered.
On the subject of challenges, Graham and I have been discussing a Captain/VC challenge. Although it has been mooted before, it has never really taken off. We would like to offer a prize for the pairing that has the best result against the Captain & VC, so we’re really talking about who loses by the smallest margin!! We would plan to play these matches as either the first or last group of the swindle, depending upon numbers in the swindle, or at a time to suit, with each pairing having the option to make a voluntary donation to the Captain’s charity.
I don’t intend to make a raft of changes in 2025, if something works, why would you want to? My only plan relates to the handing out of competition prizes, tankards and nearest the pin prizes in particular. It has become very difficult to make presentations and take photos at the end of a competition. As we only have a one tee start, it can sometimes be in excess of 3 hours between the first and last groups finishing. If you finish at 12.00 noon with a good score, why would you want to wait until after 3.00pm to receive your tankard. The Captain is also under pressure to wait for 3 hours or more after each competition to award prizes to people who are no longer there. I’m planning on holding a semi-annual lunch, perhaps after the May Stableford and after the three Captains in October, when all of the previous months awards are given out. It will be an opportunity for everyone to receive their trophies in front of an audience, to rapturous applause and heartfelt congratulations!
It just leaves me now to wish everyone a great year’s golfing ahead, both individually and if you are a part of one of the Essex teams. I apologise once again for not being with you. Having dodged Covid for nigh on 5 years, it’s finally taken it’s toll, just 2 weeks after my most recent vaccination. I thank Graham for agreeing to be my VC, he will do a great job this year and next. Lastly I thank you, the members, for being who you are, and for the support you have shown me in 2024 and since my arrival at Stoke.
Many thanks
Kevin Price
Senior Captain 2025