Yardley Member Newsletter

Yardley Member Newsletter - Winter 2018

A Message From the President

Dear Fellow Members,

By the time you receive this Newsletter, the holidays will already be over. I hope everyone enjoyed this special time of the year with family and friends.

January brings with it a lull in golf activity, driven mainly by the weather. Cold temperatures and the occasional snow cover means we will have sporadic opportunities to play golf. Course Superintendent Matt Glenn and his skeleton crew do their best to give us any opportunity to play, but Matt’s main concern is to make sure having the course open doesn’t damage the course and especially the greens. It requires patience on our part as members and understanding that the conditions will dictate when we can play and Matt makes that call.

While we may be in the “off” season golf-wise, it does not mean that our responsibility for repairing fairway divots and ball marks on the greens ends. During December I noticed and many golfers have commented, that divots and ball marks were not being repaired. It becomes even more important to repair divots and ball marks, as the grass is not actively growing during the winter months. The same rules apply during winter golf as they do during the summer -- repair fairway divots, preferably with sand mix and repair your ball mark on the green and one other. Doing these simple things will pay dividends in the spring.

I am sure you have noticed all the work being done on the traps in the fairway and around the green on hole number 10. That work will continue, weather permitting, this winter with the goal being to have it ready for April 1 ^st .

Over the next few months there will be events going on at the Club that I wanted to make you aware of. On Sat., February 17 ^th , there will be a Member Appreciation and Awards night from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. We will present awards to the 2017 tournament winners at a short ceremony to start the evening and then have a fun night with entertainment for the balance of the evening. More details will be coming out, but please mark it on your calendar to attend. Also, on Sat., January 13 ^th , Jeff Krick will be at the Club doing his Elvis impersonations.

On Fri., February 16 ^th , The Violations Sensational Motown Band will perform the sounds of Motown, Oldies and The Sound of Philadelphia (TSOP). These are fun nights. There will be a cash bar and reservations are required. Please support your Club and participate in these events when possible.

In November, we held our annual election and elected three members to the Board, Marty Dansbury, Greg Buliga (both incumbents) and Drew Worek, a new member to the Board of Governors. I want to thank Doug Barran for the time he spent on the Board in 2017 and the valuable service to the Club he performed.

As we embark on a new year, I want to thank the membership on behalf of the Board of Governors for their support of the Club in 2017. Yardley is unique among local clubs for its camaraderie, social interaction and competitiveness. It is the way it is because of the great members and employees we have. The Board wishes all members and employees the best of everything in 2018.

Dave Zewe

President

From the Membership Department

Welcome 2018!!! Let’s make sure we have a healthy 2018! If you haven’t brought in a friend, relative or neighbor to Yardley Country Club yet, now is a great time with our MEMBER REFERRAL PROGRAM. With the MEMBER REFERRAL PROGRAM, any member who refers a new member can receive up to $250.00 credit.

Any questions, please call the Business Office at (215) 493-4531 ext. 100.

Welcome our newest YCC members:

Pete Bailey

Joe Dunphy

John Glennie

Jack Green

Mark Grilli

Neil Kern

Michael Lam

Fred Olson

Steven Perry

Samuel Shear

Mike Smith

Tom Smith

Kyle Turns

Mark VanWert

Bill Welsh

Mike Winberg

Thank you.

The Membership Committee

Pro's Corner

Happy New Year!

I want to start off by saying “thank you” for a wonderful year: 2017 was my first year as your Head Golf Professional and the membership couldn’t have been more welcoming to me and my entire staff. The planning process has been going on for a few weeks now for the 2018 Tournament Schedule. As soon as the Tournament Committee approves the schedule, we’ll send it out to the membership.

Save the Date

Member Appreciation/Awards Night is Sat., Feb. 17, 2018, 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. Come out and enjoy a fun evening with great food, dancing and a two-hour open bar. Cost for the event is $40.00 per person.

Deep Golf Thoughts from the Golf Shop

The most relief we can probably find on the golf course comes from this old-fashioned thing called fun. In fact, it’s next to impossible to be having fun on the course and have our muscles lock up with tension and resistance at the same time. Those of us who have played this silly game long enough, know that we ultimately cannot control where a golf ball goes. The harder we try, the more tension we create. We can, however, learn to manage our thoughts and emotions in a more productive way. Accessing a mindset of enjoyment and fun gives us our greatest opportunity for our absolute highest level of performance and success.

John Shapcott, Golf Pro

(215) 493-4531, ext. 105

January & February Winter Hours for the Golf Course and Golf Shop

Monday – Golf Course, Practice Area & Golf Shop Closed

Tuesday thru Friday: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday - 9:30 a.m. Shotgun

Greens Update

by Matthew Glenn, Golf Course Superintendent

The winter is here. Mother Nature has already given us some snow and has also given us some mild temperatures. Looking back at the 2017 golf season, I feel it was a success. We were able to exceed my expectations on course conditions and complete some needed improvements. Not only were we able to fix a huge problem with rebuilding #13 bunkers, we planted trees on #1 to keep the integrity of the hole intact, plus some smaller improvements in building some cart paths and reseeding numerous rough areas.

Moving forward to the 2018 golf season, the crew and I are excited to keep improving Yardley Country Club. Working with Barry Deacon, the Greens Committee and the Board of Directors, we will be putting together an extensive and adventurous plan to rebuild many bunkers. Plus, we will keep great playing conditions throughout the golf season.

For the rest of the winter season, we have pulled all tee markers for repair and painting. We placed one white tee marker on each tee for those groups that want to use it. You can tee off from either side to help distribute the wear. If you are not playing in a group, we ask that you tee off from a different area anywhere else on the tee box. This new process will help keep the tees in shape throughout the winter months when growth and healing are at a minimum.

We also cut two holes on each green. Once you finish playing the green, please move the pin to the opposite hole. Plus, as always, please fix all ball marks and replace divots to help insure the greens, tees, and fairways are in shape for the next golf season.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Barry Deacon, the Greens Committee and the Board of Directors in helping the grounds crew to have such a successful year. Their communication and support has played a huge part in improving the golf course and making our jobs easier. Also, a huge thank you goes out to the entire membership for their patience and support in making Yardley the great Club it is today.

Pace of Play Update

Rules & Regulations

By Vincent Wagner

Dear YCC Members:

We have now collected a season’s worth of pace of play data. As previously mentioned, Saturday and Sunday mornings are the critical times because that’s when most Full Members plan their golf. At other times, the course is not as crowded and faster groups can play through as necessary.

This year, we tracked 444 rounds over the season, with an average time of 4:07 against the 4:00 hr. target. We improved to 39% of the rounds at or below four hrs. from a mid-season achievement of 20% - so people made the effort in most cases. The Pass/Fail was position with respect to the preceding group, which is all you can play to and control. For the season, there were 49 groups at least a full hole behind or 11% when they finished. If we put in a five minute ‘grace’ period, that total drops to 18 rounds out of 444 or 4%. With a wave up on Hole #17, that five minutes could be recovered many times. So we’re getting there.

The concern remains the ripple effect that leads to the 4:25-4:30 times by the end of the morning and major back-up thereafter. Everyone must be aware of their position on the course.

1. Play ready golf . You can chat as you walk but go to your ball and be ready to play. If you are in a cart with another player don't sit and wait for them to play, drop them off and go to your ball.

2. Maintain your position with the group in front. Remind your group to be responsible to get back into position if you fall behind even if someone must skip part or all of a hole due to a lost ball.

3. 17th Hole : When everyone in your group is on the green, wave up the group behind if they are on or approaching the tee, especially when there is a backup on the box. The 17th plays more like a short par 4 and waving up the group behind will be a great help in saving five minutes or more.

The Committee will explore possible remedies to further improve the situation so that weekend play can be enjoyed by all of the membership. The best solution is that all of us manage our respective groups to keep up. Lost balls, leaves, thick rough, and normal course situations affect all of us at one time or other. But with adjustments in pace, these can be remedied within a hole or two.

Yardley is a course that can be played (walking) in 4 hours. If everyone is respectful to their fellow players we should all be able to enjoy a comfortable pace of play during the busy weekend periods.

We thank the membership for registering in and out so we have reliable data and not just opinions to help address and solve this problem.

- The Rules & Regulation Committee

YWGA News

By Chris McHugh

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!

THANKS, EVERYBODY, FOR A GREAT 2017 SEASON. YOUR YWGA BOARD AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS ARE BUSY WORKING ON THE 2018 SEASON. STAY TUNED!!!!

Winter Golf and Your Email Service

Don’t forget the shotgun starts each Saturday and Sunday at 9:30 a.m. As the Golf Shop has requested, please respond by Thursday if you wish to play Saturday and by Friday if you wish to play Sunday.

Effective January 1, 2018, your email service will be up and running again. Each week Chris McHugh will send out a reminder about the weekend shotguns and ask who wishes to play on Sat. and/or Sun. After McHugh receives the responses, she will email those who signed up to play so they know they have a group(s) to play with. Per usual, McHugh notifies the Golf Shop so they have a heads up on how many ladies plan to play.

YWGA ELECTIONS – 2018

The following ladies were elected to the YWGA Board for 2018.

Chair - Deb Lane Linde

Vice Chair - Chris McHugh

Treasurer – Leslie Daveler

Secretary - Maggie Coe

Thanks go out to Maggie Coe for assuming the secretarial duties. Maggie is a relatively new member of YCC and we are happy to welcome her to management!! Karen Klemp, our former secretary, has many, many obligations to YCC and the Trenton District; she needed a break. Thanks, Karen, for your service.

The following ladies serve on the YWGA committees:

Handicap – Deb Wagner

Sunshine - Karen Baran, Beth Sandora

Tournament – Sue Malone, Peggy Hammond, Monika Poelzmann

Social - Lynn Apple, Denise Kaplan, Karen Zewe

Ringers, etc. - Jane Daveler, Jane Warwick

Sunday Ladies – Pat Rodeawald

Trenton District – Karen Klemp, Shirley Turner

Phila. District – Janet McIlvaine

A list of the YWGA board members and committee members, with their email addresses, will be posted in the locker room shortly. Please contact anyone on the list with questions or queries.

WOMEN’S TRENTON DISTRICT GOLF ASSOC.

Karen Klemp submitted the following information on the Women’s Trenton District Golf Association. Copies of the WTDGA 2018 tournament schedule are available in the locker room. Be sure and pick one up.

Yardley Country Club was well represented this year in the Women’s Trenton District Golf Association. There were several first, second, and third place finishes this year, too numerous to mention. There were three events that deserve special recognition. Our own Rick Hughart placed 2 ^nd out of 14 pro players on May 24th at Greenacres, helping many of our participating players to win prizes. Jane Warwick had an incredible year in the WTDGA by first winning the 2017 Seniors Net Championship. Most impressive was the end-of-year tournament playing the best of the best in match play where Jane won the WTDGA Cup Net championship.

The WTDGA (of which all YCC women are members—with a max handicap of 36) gives us a chance to play some fun tournaments and great courses. The courses you get to play are: Bedens Brook Club, Burlington Country Club, Cherry Valley Country Club, Copper Hill Country Club, Forsgate Country Club, Cobblestone Creek, Hopewell Valley Golf and Country Club, TPC Jasna Polana, Oak Hill Golf Club, Old York Country Club of Chesterfield, Peddie Golf Club, Springdale Golf Club, Stanton Ridge Golf and Country Club, Trenton Country Club, and, of course, Yardley Country Club.

The schedule is always posted in the locker room and on the website: http://www.wtdga.org .

If you have any questions, contact Karen Klemp, [email protected] or Shirley Turner, [email protected] , YCC’s Women’s Trenton District Association representatives.

WOMEN’S GOLF ASSOC. OF PHILADELPHIA

Janet McIlvaine, the YCC representative to the WGAP, submitted the following information. The Philadelphia District, which has 90 clubs, provides many opportunities for women to play throughout the season. The most noted are the team matches that occur late in April and in early May. But there are many other opportunities including Open Days at other clubs, tournaments set up by handicap, Wife/Husband and Mother/Daughter tournaments, invitationals, scholarship tournaments and more. There are also junior events. The fee for joining the Phila. District was $85 last year, but there are no entry fees. These are wonderful opportunities.

Banquets and Special Events

By Amy Reeves, Banquet Manager

What a wonderful 2017 the Banquet Division has had. Happy New Year to all our members in 2018! Looking back on 2017, we are happy to report over 130 banquets took place in our lovely banquet rooms, a great start to an even better 2018. In addition, we are looking forward to a number of great events. On January 13th we welcome Jeff Krick as our fabulous Elvis impersonator. We are offering a dinner buffet, spectacular show and cash bar for only $40.00 per person.

High-energy Motown/R&B band, The Violations, will perform at the Club on Friday, Feb. 16 ^th from 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. If you love the Motown classics, you won’t want to miss The Violations, a very popular Doo Wop band that brings back our favorite songs from Motown, Oldies and The Sound of Philadelphia (TSOP). This Valentine’s weekend event includes a spectacular five-course dinner, dancing, champagne for two and a rose for every lady. Tickets for the event are $75.00 per person.

We look forward to seeing all of you and thank you for your loyal support at the club.

Upcoming Events at Yardley:

Elvis Dinner Show

Sat., Jan. 13, 2018

7:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.

Cost: $40.00 pp