January 2001 Issue No. 12 Captain: Peter Griffin
There will be at least four new faces around the table when the council holds its post AGM meeting next month. Among those missing will be ex-captains David Bielby, Adrian Brierley, and Richard Reay, all of whom have decided not to contest this year's elections.
Our thanks are due to all of them for the time and effort they have put in on behalf of the members - largely without the credit they deserve.
All have served with distinction, and most people will
agree that David Bielby, in particular, is owed a debt of gratitude for his
tireless dedication to the "bed of nails" job of greens secretary - a
traditionally thankless task, particularly during one of the wettest years on
record. Four candidates will
compete for three three-year vacancies. They are (in strictly alphabetical
order), retiring councillor John Andrew, Jack Cain, Terry Marner, and John Yemm.
New vice-captain Brian Hope will also join the council as
an ex-officio member.
The AGM will be held on February 27 and it is in the best
interests of everyone to attend, particularly if you have any suggestions or
complaints, (or even praise), about the way the club is run.
It has already been agreed, at a special general meeting,
that fees will be increased by 3.5 per cent this year, increasing the gents'
full subscription to £430 - an increase of £15 - and ladies' fees by £10 to
£300, with the same percentage increase applied to all other categories.
A £20 levy has also been agreed to provide continued
security on the course.
The meeting will be under the chairmanship of new captain
Bill Waterhouse.
The eagle-eyed will have spotted a couple of
newcomers in the club's trophy cabinet - long-lost replicas of the
Championship and Grasshoppers cups dating back more than half a century.
They were won, respectively, by E.W.F. Whalley in 1948, and
ex-captain R.C. Whalley in 1944, but where they have been since then remains a
mystery.
The two men are undoubtedly related, and are believed to be
brothers. Clifford Hill, who has
been a member since 1938, thinks R.C. Whalley was called Robert. But
he has no recollection of the other Whalley. Can anyone help to solve the
mystery?
The trophies have been returned to Werneth thanks to the
help of Saddleworth Golf Club, who were informed that some of their silverwear
was going up for auction in Bristol. The catalogue also revealed that our two
replicas were also up for sale.
Saddleworth's vice-captain (now captain), Alan Ramsden,
contacted our past captain, Dave Griffiths, and asked if we were interested
in purchasing them - and was, of course, told that we were.
In the event, Saddleworth's bid of £150 secured the
solid-silver trophies, and they are now on permanent display. But
where have they been, and what is known of their former owners?
Incidentally, Saddleworth asked for no more than a donation to their captain's charity fund, and our thanks are due to them for their help in returning these reminders of the past
R.C. Whalley won the Grasshoppers trophy when captain of
the club - a feat also achieved by current captain Peter Griffin last season.
Still missing, however, are photographs of a couple of past
captains from the from the gallery in the lounge - A. Greenwood (1923-24), and
J.T. Mercer (1945-46).
Clifford Hill has two very good reasons for remembering Tom
Mercer - he lives in the same house in Southway formerly owned by the former
captain and won his vice-captain's prize in 1944.
"As far as I remember, he ran a nut and bolt
manufacturing business in Hollins Road and had a couple of brothers called
Rupert and Leonard," he said.
But does anyone have any information on Mr. Greenwood? And
more importantly, does
anyone know the whereabouts of any relations or friends who may have photographs
of the two former captains?
Ten-handicapper Terry Marner has become the fifth member of
Wedge's hole-in-one club - with a little help from the Almighty.
Austin Hall, chief editor of Oldham's Talking Newspaper for
the blind explained: "Terry is our latest recruit, and he holed his tee
shot at the 15th - and then got a two at the 16th - after listening to a tape of
his first edited news items from the Oldham Chronicle.
"He told me he was a great believer that if you did
something useful in life you got your reward - but I told him not to expect a
hole-in-one every time he completed a script!"
Other club members involved in this worthwhile project are
Albert Kingham, Peter Waters, and Ron Vickers. Further volunteers would be
warmly welcomed.
After the monsoon, the ice-age...
Once again, weather conditions ruled out any club
competitions over the past month, with the Christmas turkey competitions among
the casualties - good news for turkeys but a disappointment for our members.
However, since the Wedge last went to press there have been
several single Stableford events organised by the professional - some on winter
greens and with only 16 holes in play.
The first of these was on by John Booth with 34pts to ward
off Brian Donnelly, who carded a score of 33pts.
The Christmas competition was won by John Kingham with 38pts, who
beat Dave Griffiths on a card playoff.
The first winner in 2001 was John Yemm with 34pts. He edged out John Andrew with a better back nine.
John Yemm again triumphed on lucky-for-him January 13 with
a splendid 36pts. Ged Hulme came second with 36pts, thwarting Alan Cowling on a
countback.
In an earlier competition not previously reported, Ken
Holt, with 35pts, defeated Mick Manion on a CPO who, in turn, beat Noel Brown
over the last nine holes.
Sad to relate, the ladies were unable to stage a single
competition due to the weather and the state of the course.
At a special meeting of seniors wishing to play in the
Lawrence Batley league in the coming season, it was decided to continue the
present system of picking the team on a rotation system - rather than selecting
the strongest line-up - to give everyone an equal opportunity of taking part.
It was reported that Mr Batley had always envisaged the
league as providing pleasant social golf rather than overly serious competition
though, of course, everyone tries to win.
This year's fixtures for Werneth are as follows:
April 20 - Branshaw, Keighley (H).
April 27 - Queensbury,
Bradford (A).
May 4 -
Crosland Heath, Huddersfield (H).
May 11 - Hanging
Heaton, Dewsbury (A).
May 18 -
S. Leeds (A).
June 1 -
Hebden Bridge (H).
June 8 -
Low Laithes, Wakefield (H).
Return fixtures, in the same order, will be played on June 22 and 29, July 6, 13, and 27, and August 3 and 10.