Geoff Garnett rounds up the golfing news in and around Cheshire.
Cheshire legend sets new record
STOCKPORT Golf Club star David Peel has set a new record for Cheshire by overtaking Roy Smethurst’s long-standing mark of 186 appearances for the county.
David was proud to overtake a true legend in golf by playing in the annual match for Cheshire men against Cheshire Ladies at Vicars Cross GC and he will be looking to extend the record in a busy season ahead.
David Peel said: “I made my debut for Cheshire in 1996 alongside Jamie Donaldson and we were regular Foursomes partners for the next 18 months.
“I was part of the Cheshire teams which won the Northern Counties League in 1998, 2004 and in 2011. In 2011 I was County Captain for the first time for a three year spell and was delighted to win all of my singles matches that season.
“Cheshire have always encouraged junior golf and have an excellent coaching programme, which over the years has produced some very talented amateur and professional golfers.
“They presently have a strong batch of players coming through with two players in the Men’s England squad.”
Northern Counties Ladies Foursomes at Vale Royal Abbey GC
VALE Royal Abbey Golf Club and the Cheshire County Ladies Golf Association were excellent hosts for the Northern Ladies Foursomes Championships staged over three days attracting players from across the North of England.
The opening day saw the field reduced to 16 pairs to play over the next two days in the match-play format and the final day saw the semi-finals and final decided with Cheshire pairs firmly in the mix.
The first semi-final saw Sue Goddard (Delamere Forest) and Chris Orchard (Vale Royal Abbey) take on Lancashire duo Carol Helm (Bolton Old Links) and Chris Ogden (Great Lever and Farnworth) and emerge with a win to make the final.
The other semi-final had Delamere Forest duo Ann White and Emily Andrew beating Jayne Halliwell and Mary Pat Moore (Bingley St Ives to make it an all-Cheshire final.
It was Delamere Forest to the fore and Ann and Emily won the day to be delighted winners of the famous competition and they were presented with their trophies by Cheshire Captain Barbara Baird (Vicars Cross). There was plenty of action for those players knocked out in the early rounds with the Stableford Foursomes won by Jane Antrobus (Oldham) and Bev Scholes (Rochdale) with 35 points, one more than Childwall’s Norah Parr and Carole Hanlon with Turton’s Denise Williams and Hilary Hibbert next in with 33.
The Team Foursomes saw the Childwall quartet of Ann Farrelly, Lynn Smith, Connie Figari and Alannah Whelan lead in with 69 points.
Great charity effort by High Legh Park Captains
HIGH Legh Park Golf Club’s Lady Captain Patricia Woods ended her year in office with a very special and proud moment. Along with some of her helpers she was delighted to hand over a huge cheque for over £15,000 to Jessica Harrington, the local representative for the Marie Curie charity.
Patricia said: “Together with my Captain Alister Cook we chose a charity which supported people, both patients and their families affected by cancer or other terminal illnesses. Marie Curie works slightly differently to Macmillan and provides support throughout such a difficult time and because of the daffodil symbol it was a perfect match for us. The daffodil is a very special place for me because when I got married they were in full bloom around my family home.
“Major fund-raising efforts were a Charity Golf Day supported well by local businesses, an Irish Evening on Captain’s day (because I am Irish), numerous raffles and auctions for fantastic prizes donated by members of the club, the club pros and personal contacts. There were also ‘fines’ for going in the Captains’ bunkers selling baked cakes, serving refreshments and flower displays.
“So many people at the club put in a lot of effort and have been amazingly generous but in particular the work of people like Isabella Dobson, Beryl Tench, Jane Walden, Dorothy Crerer, Rita Hesketh, Sue Watson, Lynne Allatt, Diane Livingstone, Jean Scudamore, our Vice Captains Neil Burke and Pamela Fahey as well as the Vaughan family and all of the staff at the club.
Jessica added: “I’d like to say a big thank you to the captains for nominating Marie Curie and to all the members of the club for their generosity and really getting behind the fundraising events that helped to reach such a brilliant total.
“The money raised will help Marie Curie to provide over 762 hours of nursing care and will make such a big difference to the people we care for in Cheshire.”
