WERNETH WEDGE

No. 66 Captain: Shaun Rattigan August 2006

YOUR CHANCE TO SELECT CENTENARY CAPTAIN.

The club’s fourteen-man council has decided to dispense with years of tradition when deciding who should be Captain in 2009 – our centenary year.
The normal procedure is for the current Vice-Captain to arrange who should take over from him when he succeeds to the captaincy. But, because a centenary is such a major event in the life of any organisation, council has decided to leave it open to the members to nominate who they believe is most deserving of this prestigious honour.

First and foremost, any person nominated must first allow his name to be put forward, and must be proposed and seconded by members.

The council will make the final decision, and the qualities they will look for have been carefully defined.

He must be: WELL known to many members; CARRY a high profile; HAVE made many contributions to the club over the years, such as voluntary work on the course, council membership, organisation of events, and fund-raising. GOLFING honours will also be taken into account, not least those which have increased the standing of the club.

There are several members who could possibly fit the bill, but this is not the place to make any suggestions. Council would appreciate your nominations in the form of a short note stating your nominee’s name, the names of his proposer and seconder, and a brief explanation of why you think he should be considered.

Any member of the council, particularly the Captain and the Secretary, will be pleased to discuss the matter with any member. Meanwhile, the Centenary Committee set up to make all the necessary arrangements is appealing to members for their ideas and offers in support of this very significant year in the club’s long history. Please contact any member of the committee, or of the council, with anything you may feel may assist.

The Centenary Committee members are: Bill Waterhouse (chairman); the current Captain, Shaun Rattigan (fundraising); Heather Jeffreys (secretary); Nadine McNamara (fundraising and ladies’ representative); David Whaley and Alf Selby (historians).

FATHER AND SON ARE CHAMPIONS.

To the surprise of hardly anyone, Paul Rowbotham and his youngest son, Adam, won the club championship and the junior championship respectively. Paul’s achievement was particularly noteworthy because it represented a hat-trick of consecutive titles. And he did it in some style on a very windy day, with rounds of 69 and 71 (140), to win by eight shots from ex-Captain Kevin Roberts. Just to emphasise the Rowbotham domination of club events, Adam found himself battling it out with his older brother, Aaron, in the junior championship. Both were only four over par when they came to the eighteenth hole, but Adam’s second shot finished within inches of the hole for a cast-iron birdie. Aaron also a good shot to the green but missed his putt and had to concede the championship to his younger sibling.

IT’S THAT MAN AGAIN!

Paul Rowbotham, playing off a handicap of just two, was in blistering form in winning the James Waterhouse Trophy – another major event. He returned a magnificent five-under-par gross total of 63 to thwart the unfortunate runner-up, Alan McMunn, who also carded a net 61 off a handicap of ten but lost on a card play-off. Five others were only a shot adrift on an extremely low-scoring day, including the other two-handicap Rowbotham, eldest son Lee, along with Terry Marner, Paul Durkin, Terry Wroe, and Jack Cain.

AND YET MORE ROWBOTHAM.

Paul Rowbotham is not only a fine golfer, he is also pretty fast on his feet. With a little help from his friends, he zipped round the course in a remarkable 44 minutes 33 seconds in a fundraising exhibition of high-speed golf. What is even more mind-boggling is that he achieved the feat in just 76 shots, including birdies at the fourth and twelfth, after a lung-bursting sprint across the gully and up the hill. He was aided by others teeing up his ball at each hole, carrying his clubs, and acting as spotters if necessary. On the same day, twenty club members – with the Captain driving off the first and putting out on the eighteenth – nipped round the course in 17 minutes 51 seconds. The two events raised £250 for the Centenary Fund which, at the last count, stood at £3,400.

JANE CLARK WINS LADIES’ INVITATION

Former Lady Captain Jane Clark, partnered by Brookdale’s Sue Boothby, won the section’s Invitation Day better-ball Stableford competition with 46 pts Runners-up were Lady Vice-Captain Judy Wilkinson and her daughter, Joanne Startin, of Ashton and Lea, with 42 pts. Fiona Dooley, now playing at North Manchester, had the longest drive on the 18th, as well as winning the nearest the pin prize at the 7th. Hilda Garner was nearest the pin on the 3rd, and Jane Clark was on target at the 15th. Earlier in the month, Madge Griffiths won The Grandmothers Trophy with a score of 90-22-68, and the in-form Jane Clark won an LGU medal, carding 83-18-65.

SLOW PROGRESS FOR HARRY GREEN.

Harry Green, who suffered a severe spinal injury in a fall while working on a construction site, continues to make slow progress in a Sheffield hospital. Friends say he is chatting normally but, at the time of writing, is still paralysed from the waist down.

HUNT FOR NEW PROFESSIONAL.

Club professional Roy Penney has left after a ten year stint to become Director of Golf at Whitefield Golf Club. It is understood there have been several inquiries from professionals interested in coming to Werneth, but the council has not made any decision on the issue yet.

SUE KEEPS THE CARVERY GOING.

Following an early sailor’s farewell from chef Rob Weston, who has gone back to sea aboard Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior, kitchen duties have been taken over by Sue Mills, who lives near the club. Apart from providing the usual snacks and meals during the week, she is also continuing to provide the highly-popular Sunday carvery – three courses anytime between 2-6pm at a bargain price of £6-95.

WHO NEEDS WOODS?

Sorry to mention the Rowbothams again, but it would be unfair not to mention that Lee won the second Fairway Cup qualifier with a score of 62-2-60, with James Dyson in second place with 76-15-61. Lee followed this three days later with a 66-2-64 in an all-irons competition from Mark Abbot, who lost on a CPO despite returning identical figures.

And just to finalise this Rowbotham edition, dad Paul won the club’s invitation mixed event, partnered by Angela Whaley, after at three-card playoff which went to the final six holes. Young Jack Suttie (70-9-61) won the lst Div monthly medal from Mike Fogo (68-6-62). The 2nd Div winner was Brian McCabe (73-15-58) with Gareth Hey (79-17-62) in second place.