A Message From The Golf Shop
Summer arrived officially last weekend and it certainly was a hot one. We have had a lot of activity at the club over the last few weeks and this trend continues right on into July.
The Senior Championship is a week and a half gone past and we've kept moving like a downhill putt on Still Valley #7. Let us take a moment to recognize the great participation, excellent performances and the strong community that came together for 2 days. We had 47 players in total which was quite a bit more that 2019. Players from all skill levels participated and it looked to me that everyone enjoyed playing and testing their skills. The weekend belonged to two players, Jackie Kavanagh and Mike Bell. They both had outstanding day 2 scores that eventually earned them top honours in each division available for their respective championships. That is no small task and is a testament to their all-round game and preparation.
Click here for the leaderboard.
A very deserving congratulations to Michael Bell and Jacqueline Kavanagh as our Men's and Women's Senior Champions for 2020.
The Good, the Bad, and The Ugly was played this past Saturday and it lived up to its reputation. The Good was a nice friendly 2-person scramble played on Sand Hills and was full of smiles and happiness. The Bad was a Better Ball game on Homestead that saw some smiles but not as many as one may have hoped. The Ugly was an Alternate Shot format played on Still Valley and it was ugly. Hey, it was meant to be ugly right? We had a leaderboard that saw major swings on that last nine with the winning team of John Alpaugh and Dennis Kavanagh knowing that they had to finish with 2 birdies to win and they did just that. What an incredible finish, beating out Daniel Hepp and Steve Reavie for top spot.
Click here to see the results
With the course becoming much busier, we are seeing a more diverse range of players enjoying the course. Some enjoy a pace of play that is below 3 hours for 18 holes, some enjoy a pace that is 4+ hours; both come with some issues. The quick players may become easily frustrated when they must wait and the slower players may not understand why they are being scrutinized by fellow members or the Golf Shop. We know that there is a ‘too slow’ but there can also be a ‘too fast’. The ‘too fast’ players may need to come to terms with the standard playing time of 3:45 to 4 hours for 18 holes as that is considered good pace of play within golf club culture. The ‘too slow’ need to realize that their slow pace of play can literally ruin the pace of play for the remainder of the day, especially when the club is busy. When a group is waiting on you, or you have lost your position on the course, it is imperative that you either speed up, skip a hole, or let faster groups play through. When you are playing through, it is good etiquette to play through quickly. Remember the courtesy that the slower group is extending you and blaze through that hole out of respect. Maybe that means a longer gimme than normal, or simply take a par or bogey and move on; whatever you think shows appreciation for the gesture.
Junior Days are going to begin on July 8 with a morning and afternoon session. We can take up to 12 juniors per session and it will include 1 hour of pre-round time with a Golf Shop Assistant before teeing off and playing a fun nine-hole round. The morning session begins at 9am with the first groups teeing off at 10am. The Afternoon session begins at noon with the first groups teeing off at 1pm. The Juniors will need to register each week through Golf Genius. We will provide a link via a direct email to the Junior Members.
The Junior Senior event is coming up on July 11 and should be a great time! Juniors can pair up with an adult member or guest to play a fun nine-hole scramble. We will send direct registration invites to all the juniors this week.
Titleist Custom Fit Day: July 2, 10am-3pm.
We are pleased to have Titleist come to our Club for a Custom Fit Day on July 2. Due to Covid-19 precautions, we will not be allowing walk-ups, all users must have a booked appt. There are five spots open from 10am to 2pm, each approximately 45min to 1 hour in length. Please email me directly to reserve: chris@vesprahillsgolfclub.com
Lastly, I would like to inform you all that we do have a Local Rules document in the Golf Shop that outlines the different local rules we have here at Vespra Hills Golf Club. The most significant local rule is the one that permits players to drop a ball 2 club-lengths onto the fairway for a 2 stroke penalty in a lost ball scenario, versus having to go back to the tee or where the original shot was taken. There is much more to this local rule, so please take a moment to review it. We would be happy to provide a copy for you via email or print.
Take care and see you all soon
Chris McNair
