Stoke by Nayland
SENIORS
January 2025
From your Captain:
Fellow Seniors,
Welcome to the January newsletter.
I hope everybody in the seniors had a great Christmas. It’s now time to put the turkey and trimmings behind you and shake off the excess pounds on the golf course. I, for one, will be in need of some serious weight management throughout January and February!
Whilst we welcome new members to the senior’s section throughout the year, January is sometimes a sad occasion as we say farewell to those seniors who do not rejoin the section. There are normally a variety of reasons for this, so whether you no longer play in the competitions, or have moved to pastures new, or simply do not play so much golf nowadays, I wish you all well in the years to come.
It’s only a couple of months until we reach spring and the start of our senior matches. Our Essex Senior’s team will be captained by Eric Fisher, and as usual, have been drawn away for the first match to Forrester’s Park. The John Day team will captained by Ian McKay. As you know, Ian is heavily involved with Essex Golf Union, so I will be supporting him in his campaign. The John Day team will also play away, no surprise, against Royal Epping Forest. I would like to thank Eric and Ian for their services and wish them, and their teams a good run in the competitions.
Finally, in March, we will start our Interclub matches. For our new members, or anybody who hasn’t played in these matches before, they are an opportunity to play against opposition in the surrounding area, both home and away. They are a fun occasion and whilst winning is desirable, they are not taken too seriously, so don’t feel intimated about joining in. Although SbN have a playing handicap limit of 28, you can still play with a higher handicap, but be capped at 28. Don’t hesitate, sign up for the team now on ClubV1. Those who have signed up in the past should still be included in the team, so no need to re-enter. If in doubt, speak to one of the organisers Pete Hele, Malcolm Norton, VC Graham Cork or myself.
Finally, I would just like to wish everyone a very happy and healthy 2025 with great golfing.
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
Greetings fellow Seniors – I hope you all enjoyed Christmas and that Santa brought you what you wished for.
It finally happened – after two false starts, the Captain’s Drive In finally took place. As 11th December approached, anxious eyes were cast over numerous weather apps – but happily the day dawned dry, if cloudy, and Captain Kevin, with nerves of steel, boomed his drive 167 yards down the middle of the fairway, encouraged by a healthy crowd of Seniors (just as well, as his playing partners found rather more “exotic” parts of the course). Well done to the ten gentlemen who, using their skill and judgement, correctly predicted the length of the skipper’s drive – and many thanks to you all for donating your winnings to the Captain’s charity, and indeed to all who took part. We raised £446 – a great effort.
With the Drive successfully accomplished, a keenly contested Yuletide Scramble then took place. This was the first Seniors competition to be played on the Gainsborough Winter tees, which meant that most of us were playing off significantly lower handicaps, nonetheless we saw some very impressive scores. Congratulations to the winning team of Mark Clark, Adrian Beckingsale, Kevin Walsh and Lionel Hatch, who triumphed with a net 60. Special mention must be given to Steve Stacey, who made the interesting tactical decision to leave his clubs at home, renting some from the pro shop. This turned out to be a fine strategical move, as his team finished in 2nd spot!
More importantly, this event demonstrated once again the wonderful generosity of the Seniors, raising a staggering £1,300 for the Sudbury Storehouse Foodbank, a very worthy cause, particularly at this time of year. Many thanks to all who donated and to especially to Roger Davies for organising.
The next competitive action - our monthly Stableford takes place on 8thJanuary – at the time of writing there are still a few spaces available. January also sees the return of the Swindle – starting on the 6th.
Many Happy Returns to all members who have had their birthdays in December and those new year babies who will be celebrating in January.
It just remains for me to say best wishes to all for a happy 2025 – may it bring you a bagful of birdies!
As always, if anyone wishes to share any “amusing” stories with me for the next newsletter, this can be done anonymously, or otherwise, by emailing grahamcork@outlook.com .