First of all – commiserations to the Spurs fans out there – I am sure life next season in the Championship will be very enjoyable with visits to Millwall and Rotherham to look forward to.
Never, ever, in the annals of Ballbashing have we seen 12 players turn up for a Summer League game but that was the case on a beautiful day for golf last Wednesday when we visited the hugely rejuvenated Winter Hill course. We still remain puzzled as to what business model the new owners are deploying but, given that they have another 9 courses in the south-east, we have to presume that the model works and that we can enjoy the fruits thereof in cheap membership and good value green fees. We all agreed that the greens are very smooth and getting quicker and also that it is very nice to have the 1st cut of rough at a height at which you have a sporting chance of finding your golf ball when, of course, unusually, it runs off the fairway.
We managed to negotiate our way through the allocation of Bashers to teams without anyone looking too unhappy with their partner and set off to enjoy the landscape and views. I was partnered with JohnT and we were playing with the partnership of Stuart and Pete F. It was good to see Pete back on the course enjoying what should be only a brief respite from baby-sitting. Somehow the pregnancy plans of our children never seem to take into account that we may have some important golf to play! He was hitting the ball well but suffering from a little rust around the greens when chipping which resulted in what can only be described as uncertain flight paths and outcomes.
Roger was playing a full 18 holes for the first time since he tested man’s ability to fly from the top of his step ladder in the garden. He suffered somewhat afterwards and the physio has suggested that he should not be quite so ambitious – probably the same advice he got after falling to earth.
We enjoyed a very tight battle over the entire round and, looking at the team scores elsewhere on the day, I can see that the same went for everyone.
Never, ever, in the annals of Ballbashing have we seen any Basher partaking of alcoholic refreshment on a golf course in mid-game – well perhaps once when we needed whisky in a halfway house hot chocolate to help us get through the snow. But on Wednesday, when the drinks cart visited us, Alan spotted an opportunity to nobble the opposition in the form of Mike and John Hamilton. The cart was apparently carrying cans of g and t. You would have thought that Alan would know that John’s primary fuel is taken in some sort of alcoholic form but apparently he forgot, and, as they came off the 14th green, he bought John a can.
The impact was immediate as John put a beautiful gin-powered 9-iron onto the centre of the 15th par 3 pimple green and sunk the putt for a birdie and 4 points and thereby cantered to an easy victory over the rest of us on the back 9. We can only hope that Alan has learnt something from this episode and tries Coke Zero or similar next time.
The 12 of us enjoyed a late lunch in the sunshine where the very close team scores were shared:
MikeS and JohnH 17 + 23 = 40
Nick and Alan 17 + 16 = 33
Richard and JohnT 22 + 19 = 41
Stuart and PeteF 21 + 19 = 40
Roger and RobM 16 + 14 = 33
RobA and Bill 18 + 20 = 38
As far as the Summer League was concerned the point-scoring scores were:
MikeS and Richard (37), Stuart (30), Nick and RobA (29) and Pete (27) – for the masochistic amongst you, the other scores can be found in the league table
