Hello from a sunny CMGC!

It has been a huge week for the club with so much going on, therefore this weeks newsletter is a huge one. So sit back relax and hope this great weather continues! A big welcome to John and Dr Yong Lu who have joined CMGC this past week.

Once again the greenkeepers have been working their magic on the course, this picture was taken on Saturday.

The whole course has been cut, it is amazing the difference having some fresh lines in the fairways and tees makes. Buggy's are currently on the course but again this is weather dependent.

Sam Claims First Win As A Professional

On Friday 6th March 2015, Cleobury Mortimer golf club headed to Oswestry Golf Club for the first professionals alliance after the winter break.

It was great to see a packed field with 88 people playing and Cleobury being the strongest supported club fielding three teams. The format was the best two Stableford scores per hole along with individual prizes for both amateurs and professionals

Although the temperatures were mild, strong winds played havoc with many struggling to adapt to the tough conditions. Professional Sam Pain and his team of Amy Millward, Andy Thomas and Dave Slater played some stunning golf as a team to finish on 83 points. They were leading all day but were pipped to top spot by the last team who scored 86 points. The second place finish was still a great result and gives Sam's team and the rest of the Cleobury teams the confidence to compete at the top of the leader-board.

In the Pros' Event Sam was looking to build on his tied 6th place in the previous event and after a solid one under par back nine found himself top of the pack along with Mark Butler from Staffordshire. A delighted Sam had this to say after securing his first professional win:

'It was tough out there today but that suits my game, I can grind away and made some crucial putts at the right time. I would like to thank and congratulate my team on their second place finish and for their support during the round. I am delighted to get my first win as a golf professional and look forward to my next event at Kington in two week time'.

Lesson Successes for Sam Pain

Keith Gardner came to me struggling with his game around the greens and short shots. He had experimented with a wide range of ideas but nothing was giving him any confidence.

Keith booked a short game lesson with me. We went back to basics trying to get his confidence back.

By the end of the lesson we saw a dramatic improvement in his short game and Keith has continued to work hard and practice as shown by his winter golf training camp in South Africa!

Big thanks to Keith for this picture showing CMGC on tour, remember if your going away wear the logo and send me a picture.

Worcestershire PGA Dinner

After the success of the Oswestry Alliance team CMGC headed straight down to Kings Norton Golf Club for the Annual Worcestershire PGA Dinner. It was great to network with over 150 attendees at the dinner and enjoy the entertainment from a comedian and magician.

Like many of these dinners there was a charity raffle with the tickets filled out on your table and collected before the grand draw, however for some reason our table got missed out and just as the winners were due to be drawn, Phil Cundy (Professional at Droitwich) grabbed our tickets ran on stage and made sure they went in. First prize was a nice new set of TaylorMade RSi irons which were won by our very own Graham Pain!!! Last names in the hat, first ones out!

Pictured is Tom, Richard (the new county secretary) Graham with his new clubs and vice captain Dave Moore.

Captain and his Vice do the business!

Big congratulations to Club Captain Jon Gaskell and his Vice Captain Dave Moore who won away at Churchill and Blakedown fin the Daily Mail Foursomes Competition.

After being three down after three holes Dave and Jon soon kicked in to gear and started to rally. They were one up with one to play and after Churchill found out of bounds Jon and Dave could relax and coasted to a 2 up victory.

Jon had this to say 'We never let our start get us down and always believed we could get back in to the match. It is a great feeling to win and we look forward to the draw for the next round'.

Emily's England Call Up

Cleobury Mortimer golf club member and English U15 champion Emily Price has been included in the England Golf A team for the Scottish U16 Girls' Open Stroke play Championship at Strathmore on 9-10 April. The 36-hole championship includes an individual event and a team competition, played over both rounds.

A big well done Emily, everyone at Cleobury is very proud of you.

It has been a great week for Emily who has also secured a playing deal to use the new Titleist Pro V1 golf ball. She is pictured here with Sam accepting her first batch of balls.

Results

The week's ladies event was the Yellow ball team competition. A strong turn out for this tactical game where the yellow ball counts for double points and is alternated between each member of the team meant that all was to play for.

With sunny spells throughout the day some great golf was once again played. Amy Millward, fresh off winning the 3 ball alliance the week before was once again on fine form and was backed up brilliantly by Sian Hawes and Marj Hughes. After posting a fantastic 86 points they were made to sweat when the team of Jenny Dorrell, Gill Carr and Annette Juckes returned to the clubhouse also scoring 86 points. With the cards checked it was the team of Amy Millward, Sian Hawes and Marj Hughes who took top spot on count back.

A thrilled Amy had this to say 'it's great to see so many ladies entering these competitions and supporting the ladies section. We had a great front nine on badgers, which helped our score; we played well, kept the scores ticking along and enjoyed playing together as a team'.

Short Game Area

The short game area at Cleobury already has a reputation as one of the best short game areas in the county but like with most things we want it to be the best. With the guidance of professionals Rob Grier and Sam Pain we set about how we could improve this area.

The short game is extremely important in golf and is where we can always look to improve, crucial up and downs keep momentum going and stops you from throwing away needless shots. On the short game area we wanted to make it so that you can use your skills and imagination around the greens. We identified a number of trees to be thinned out which help with longer pitch shots whilst also giving the area extra light.

The next phase was identifying the most common shots you will be faced with, the chip and run and the 40- 60 yard shots, these are shot types and yardages we should all be confident of getting up and down from. We have also put in three concrete pads with mats on making it an area you can practice on all year round. The two tiered green means you can practice the different yardages and techniques with your shorter irons.

We are also in the process of extending the green by up to a third of the current size, this will again help with practicing different types of shots as we are hoping to have 4 flags to aim for instead of the current two. The green extension will take some time as it needs to be treated professionally once the growing season starts. We can't wait to see this area improve and help develop the users short games.  

In order to keep this great area at its best we ask if everyone can please repair pitch marks.

The top dressing is down to mark where the green will be extended. This mat pictured will offer pitch and runs shots.

As shown above you are able to hit 40 yard pitch shots over a target. In addition you can hit picth shots from the pad 60 yards away.

Dave Walker

Big congratulation to Dave Walker who aced the 6th on the Badgers Sett course on Sunday.

A sweetly struck 9 iron was just short, kicked off the bank and rolled in!

Now that's how you play the hole!

Betterball Results

The members of CMGC were once again out in force to support the final betterball of the winter season.

On paper there were a number of partnerships that certainly looked like they were more than capable of shooting a great score so it was no surprise to see Paul Liggins and Jamie Fearnley, fresh off their recent win in the Tex AM post a fantastic score of 45 points, which was one better than afternoon starters Bryan Colley and Joe Harper. Not to be out done were early starters and long time friends Mike Wood and James Griffiths who were simply red hot round Foxes Run which also saw them shoot 45 points, taking victory on count back. To shoot 45 points on a windy day so early in the season is to be applauded.

CMGC coach Sam Pain had this to say 'it is great to see Mike and James back in the winners circle, we know how good Mike is in these type of formats, having the freedom to play aggressively certainly suits Mike and to see James, who took time out towards the end of 2014 for back surgery posting great scores really is a credit to how well he is playing.'

A special mention must also go to Roger Evans who for the sixth competition in a row was in the gross 2's money! Has anyone had a similar run like this? I can boast three 2's in one round, let us know if you can beat either of those by clicking here.

A huge thank you to everyone that has so far picked up some of the new logo FootJoy clothing we have in store. They are priced at £35 or any 2 for £60.

The Stretch Pique Golf Shirt is the ultimate high-tech performance garment to wear on the course...

- 96% Polyester 4% Spandex

- ProDry® Fabric- Exclusive ProDry fabric provides moisture management and thermal protection.

- Anti-Microbial Finish

- Anti-Microbial Finish elimates odour.

Motocaddy Trade-In

Also don't forget the new Motocaddy bags are all £20 OFF when you trade your old bag in!

We have all of the options in stock at CMGC and have already had to order more in due to demand.

The most popular seller has been the new fully waterproof bag for £150.

 In the UK when the weather is always uncertain it is money well spent to keep your clubs and belonging dry!