Round Up Of 2014
The Scotsman Trophy
26th March 2014 / Stockport Golf Club
Sponsors - Ken Buckley - The Scotsman, Ian Cook - Mailing Lists UK, Bob Bolton - Barton Grange Advertising.
An amazing turnout of 50 golfers played the inaugural competition of 2014 at Stockport Golf Club making it the most well attended meet for many a year. It was an excellent opportunity to blow away some of the winter cobwebs and play one of the most prestigious parkland courses in the area for what was an outstanding package of value and quality. Thanks to Hon Sec Ken for his formidable negotiating skills.
Heavy rain the previous day had left the course a little damp underfoot so it played quite long, especially in the icy cold easterly breeze. Despite this the greens didn't fail to impress, giving an indication of their impending lightening pace now that the sward has commenced growing. Considering the conditions the course was fantastic and proved to be more than a test for everyone with only one person playing to his handicap, the eventual winner Malcolm Ealand who had 36 stableford points off a 16 handicap. Ian Cook off a handicap of 18 pushed Malcolm all the way to the clubhouse with 35 points and Colin Axon off 6 had 33 points.
The best score from a 20+ handicapper was Stuart Barratt off 26 with a creditable return of 32 points that included a back 9 of 20 points. Of the dozen guests that were welcomed on the day, Rick OKill off a 14 handicap scored 34 points to scoop the guest prize by a 2 point margin from Gavin Peavoy.
It should be noted here that before the meal commenced Captain Clive Kirkham requested a minutes silence in memory of Mike Kilham who sadly died this week. The MAGS flag was flown at half mast as a mark of respect.
Former MAGS Captain Mike Kilham passes away
March 2014
It was with great sadness that the MAGS members were made aware of the death of Mike Kilham at the first meet of the year. Our flag was flown at half mast at Stockport Golf Club in his memory. Mike was Captain of MAGS in 2007 and a regular supporter of most meets. In recent years he had not enjoyed the best of health. His dry wit and warm friendly nature will be greatly missed by his many friends within the society.
The Monty Milner Trophy
30th April 2014 / Romiley Golf Club
Sponsors - Monty Milner main prize, David Bolton Guest and back 9 prizes, Malcolm Ealand front 9 prize
Once again the turnout was fantastic with 31 members and 15 guests. It's been over 15 years since MAGS visited Romiley. I suspect we will be returning a lot sooner such was the quality of the course, hospitality and value. We were fortunate to be formally welcomed to Romiley on the day by a Romiley ex-captain and former member of MAGS Mike Kope. Mike used to work at McCanns and remembered fondly a number of our members past and present.
The course was in excellent condition for the the time of year and proved to be more than a test for most, with only 1 player matching his handicap and 1 bettering it at the close of play. The greens were true but tricky, the weather conditions were benign until the end of the day when the late starters suffered a short sharp downpour. The late rain didn't prevent Hon Sec Ken Buckley rifling his iron shots at the pins on both par 3 nearest the hole competition, winning not one, but two boxes of balls - and he didn't share any with his playing partners who encouraged him to the prize - scandalous!
Despite the low scoring, 20 players were within 5 shots of one another. The significance of this comment is that in a departure from the normal Spring Meeting event, the Monty Milner Trophy forms the first half of the NABS trophy that is awarded to the member with the best combined score with the Autumn meeting to held at Wilmslow in October. Colin Axon posted an impressive score of 32 points and looked to be on target to retain his trophy won last year at Whitefield. However he was pipped at the post by Declan McKenna off a 20 handicap with 33 points. Colin, playing off 6 handicap, had the consolation of winning the scratch -19 prize. The front 9 was won by Mike Williams with 17 points and the back nine was won with 18 points by Steve Fletcher. Now here's a surprise - the Guest Prize winner was Anthony Guy. Not much of a surprise there as he seems to win every time he turns up. The only surprise was that he won with 37 points instead of his customary 38. When questioned about this his reply was 'my handicap has come down by one'. There were 3 two's on the day which saw crafty Ken add to his ball tally along with Tony Wedd and Colin Axon. Full result table below for anyone interested in their NABS trophy potential.
Despite the reminder to include name, handicap, front 9, back9 and final score on the scorecard there were still one or two offenders who don't know their pencil from their elbow. On checking the cards it also came to light that one of our number had an 11 a 9 and 2 7's. Now we all know that the etiquette of the game is to pick up when you can no longer score to keep the game moving along. For this reason 'Boris' Barrett was publicly named and shamed then rewarded for giving us all a laugh with one of two sleeves of balls generously donated by Romiley Golf Club. It was decided to donate the other sleeve to someone who showed great perseverance and didn't shy away from handing in his scorecard even though it only had 8 points on it. Congratulations Andy Garner you are now 5000/1 on with most bookmakers for the NABS trophy!
Results:
Winner Monty Milner Trophy – Declan McKenna (20) 33 points
Winner Scratch -19 handicap – Colin Axon (6) 32 points
Winner 20 + handicap – Declan McKenna (20) 33 points
Front 9 – Mike Williams 17 points
Back 9 – Steve Fletcher 18 points
Guest Prize – Anthony Guy 37 points
Nearest the pin – Ken Buckley at both holes!!
Invitation Day - The Cyril Bond & First Friday Team Trophy
5th June 2014 / High Legh Golf Club
Main Sponsor - The Daily Telegraph. Special thanks to Bauer Media for providing a 'Goodie bag' complete with Todays Golfer magazine and the nearest the pin prize
Hon Sec Ken had really 'bigged up' High Legh and generally speaking it didn't fail to impress. We had 48 players turning out on a pleasant summer afternoon to compete for the Cyril Bond trophy. In a new departure, Ken integrated the First Friday team trophy into the proceedings much to the confusion of many, including no less a scholar than David Wilkinson. As Ken said before the event 'confusion will reign' and of course he was correct! It was especially amusing to watch those with Sat Nav course planners insisting the 6th hole was a long par 5 when in fact it was a short par 4. Whatever happened to the good old days of a scorecard and some common sense when you had to judge the distance by eye?
There was some scandalously high scoring, much to the chagrin of Monty Milner who managed to avoid the prize table once again (you need a a better partner Monty!). The eventual winner was the duo of David Bolton with guest Gavin Peavoy who won last years competition. Having first hand experience watching some of the rubbish David has played this year I can't believe he played so well - obviously out to impress his boss again! They also snatched the First Friday title. The winners were pushed all the way by the strong pairings of Robin Wiltshire with David Jones and the evergreen Mike Massey with Dave Martin.
RESULTS:
Cyril Bond Trophy
David Bolton / Gavin Peavoy 49 points retaining the trophy
Robin Wiltshire / David Jones 47 points
Mike Massey / Dave Martin 46 points
First Friday team Trophy
David Bolton, Gavin Peavoy, Steve O’ Brien, Rob Axon - 90 points
Phil Sullivan, Rick Sullivan, Robin Wiltshire, Dave Jones - 89 points
Malc Ealand, Steve Brotherton, Monty Milner, Bob Bolton - 87 points
Nearest the pin Dave Jones
Captains Day - The Arthur Wood Trophy
Sunday 6th July 2014 / Swinton Park
Main sponsor - One Advertising. Front & Back 9 sponsores Mike Williams and Bob Morritt
38 intrepid golfers turned out on a glorious sunny afternoon at Swinton Park, this was our first visit to this course and almost everybody had a great time, even if scoring was difficult for some.
The Captain was in fine form over dinner, well I suppose he had to be, as he obviously wasn’t over 18 holes!!!!
Shocked, as he thought his MAGS winning days were over, we were treated to a fine winners speech from Lord Monty befitting the ARTHUR WOOD TROPHY, all 3 A4 pages of his speech and a “3 megabyte Chewy Luis” joke, apparently it could now be entered for the Booker Prize!
The plus 20 handicap prize was graciously (and sheepishly again) received by Hodders, with a grand total of 25 points, a full 14 points behind the other 24 handicapper who won the visitors prize, while on holiday over from Mexico…Bandit!!
25 points…Not sure what it says about the rest of the high handicaps, we might have to look at this grouping for next year and possibly look at Over 18 handicaps and embarrass a few more MAGS members, and make the split a little more competitive.
A special thanks go to One Advertising as our main sponsor with Mike Williams and Bob Morritt sponsoring the front and back nine respectively.
It was another well supported and well organised MAGS day out, that was enjoyed by all, the food was excellent, the presentation banter was witty and everyone went home happily, especially Darren “Dave” Johnson who managed to secure the highly regarded Daily Telegraph Antique Umbrella…..again.
RESULTS:
Winner – Monty Milner 36 points
20 + Winner – Mark Hodkinson 25 points
Front Nine – Lee Thomasson 19 points
Back Nine – Darren Johnson 19 points
Visitors Prize – Lewis Holloway 39 points
Nearest pin – Tony France (guest)
MAGS goes mad in Wales
16-17 August 2014
What a MAGS GOES MAD IN WALES weekend that was, 24 intrepid golfers , a global field ( 2 from Dublin) fantastic courses, fun and friendship, what more could you ask for? Well for a start less windy but at least it didn’t rain. To say it was blustery would be an understatement , but somehow especially on the links course it was fun and congratulations to our very own Captain Kirk who scored a magnificent 34 points to secure victory at North Wales GC on the Saturday, closely followed by Ken Buckley in second place with 32 Points.
Nearest the pin was won by David Bolton, no one else hit the green , a par 3 113yds in length , this hole was unbelievable with winds that had to be 25 mph in from the sea , it really was a fantastic hole.
Now 24 golfers hit their beds Saturday night but alas only 22 made it on the Sunday at Abergele GC ( no names), congratulations to Ian Cook winner with 39 points , 2nd place went to David Bolton with 36 points, again he was the only person to hit the green on the nearest the pin hole.
It really was a fantastic weekend and a massive thank you to Jim Sinclair Smith and his company TMW for sponsoring the prizes.
Overall winner and highest points scorer over the 2 rounds went to Gerry Cash ( a Dublin raider) guest of Ken Buckley with 69 points a fantastic score , second place overall went to our Captain with 66 points.
The hospitality from the clubs was great, so much that this weekend has already been booked for 2015 when we will play North Wales GC AND Conway on the Sunday, this weekend is not to be missed , just speak to anybody who went , highly recommended for your diary.
Captain Clive Kirkham gives us his take on the Miguel Angel Jimenez warm up technique - nice try skipper but no cigar!
Autumn Meeting
9th October 2014 / Wilmslow Golf Club
Well the last main event of the year decided where the John Cartwright, NABS and Edward Bates trophies would be housed for the next 12 months. The weather just about held off once again adding to the enjoyment and splendid condition of the Wilmslow golf course. Once again there was an unbelievable turn out of 43 golfers including 12 guests. The award winning steward and stewardess ensured we were looked after in fine style with an excellent meal and a choice of fine beers and wines. Captain Clive Kirkham delivered his final address before the AGM as our 2014 captain, with his usual panache humour and style before handing over to the ice cream man Hon Sec Ken - where did he get that jacket?
Tony Wedd presents Autumn Meeting winner
Robin Wiltshire with John Cartwright trophy
There was the usual plethora of absolutely average scoring with one or two notable exceptions. The John Cartwright Autumn meeting prize was a close run result with a 3 way play-off. David Bolton (17), John Evans (9) and Robin Wiltshire (11) were all tied on 37 points. First to be eliminated in a card play-off was David with an inferior back 9 of 18 points. John and Robin both had 19 points so it came down to a back 6 which Robin just edged by 1 point with a score of 12 points to John's 11. The 20+ handicap prize was won by Declan Mckenna (20) with a score of 33 points. The front 9 was won with a score of 19 points by David Bolton whilst the back 9 went to John Evans with 19 points. This time it was John's turn to benefit from a play off as his back 9 was equalled by Billy Howard. On a back 6 Billy had 10 points to John's 11. The guest prize was won by, soon to be new member, Mike Sarath (17) with a score of 37 points. Colin Axon put his tee shot within 3 feet at the 9th to win the nearest the pin prize. Phil Sullivan had not one, but two 2's earning him a bottle of wine from the societies coveted cellar.
The NABS trophy is awarded to the member having the best aggregate score of both spring and autumn meetings. Declan Mckenna's score of 66 points wasn't quite good enough to hold off David Bolton who pipped Deccy by one with a combined total of 67 points.
The Edward Bates trophy is awarded to the past captain having the best aggregate score of spring and autumn meetings. Bob Bolton managed 59 points but it wasn't good enough to prevent evergreen Phil Sullivan from receiving the trophy with a score of 60 points.
Edward Bates trophy winner Phil Sullivan
NABS Bates trophy winner David Bolton with Tony Wedd and Captain Clive Kirkham
TeXmas Scramble and AGM
Thursday 13th November 2014 / Hazel Grove GC
Following the success of last years scramble prior to the AGM the event was repeated once again down at the Grove. A veritable hooley blew all day making for interesting golf. In fact the wind was so strong that it blew our out-going captain CK so far off course that he was 5 holes late for the start. However on his arrival he immediately asserted himself by holing a 7inch putt ( pretty much his sum contribution for the round!).
The turn out was impressive once again with 32 players competing for the 15 hole prize. It was great to see Les Ashcroft in attendance after his year of health issues. Despite the wind, scoring was still pretty good. Three teams managed a gross score of level par but the team of Rob Axon, Steve (won a prize stayed for the meal) Evans, David Goose and Steve O'Brien managed to go one better with a 1 under par gross of 58, which when 10% of their their combined handicaps was applied, gave them the best nett score of 51.2. Second and third places scores were 51.8 and 52.0 - sorry guys no prizes for this!
The AGM followed the golf. Hon Sec gave his annual report announcing that the club was in a very healthy financial state and that attendance levels had been the best this year since the halcyon 'out to lunch' days of the 60's and 70's. An overhaul of the society rules was discussed and approved and the committee was appointed for 2015. There being no other business, Captain Clive Kirkham gave his farewell speech stating how much he had enjoyed his year in office and confirming Ken's words regarding the strength of the society. He thanked the committee, all members and guests for their support and introduced the Captain for 2015, Mr Mike Williams. Mike thanked Clive for an exciting year and looked forward to being in office during 2015. I'm sure we're all looking forward to supporting Mike next year.
Mike Williams MAGS Captain 2015
Mike Williams welcomed into office by outgoing Captain Clive Kirkham
