New Measured Winter 'Brown' Course, Scorecards & Handicap Tables Working a Treat!

A massive thank you to all of the Committee Members (& of course Barry Woledge) for their support in launching our first ever measured Winter Course.

The great teamwork and hard work paid off and everything went to plan.

We are keen to single out Steve Williams in particular for his leadership and guidance - absolutely invaluable.

A reminder - and in short - From January 1, 2024:

PRGC Course was re-rated as more difficult:

1. The course was remeasured and its difficulty rating adjusted by England Golf
2. Because the course has been rated 'more difficult', you get more shots awarded on your existing handicap index - you were better than you thought!
3. Over time, as you submit cards into the Club V1 system, your handicap will normalise at a new lower  level

...And Coming Soon in Spring 2024 (when the main tees re-open)

Our new courses will become available!  In the old world, in casual or general play, men could use the Yellow Tees to score on.  Ladies could score on their Red Tees and a hybrid Yellow course.

From the Spring, Men and Ladies will, in regular play, be able to choose to play on one of 5 new measured courses

Brown: Mats to Main Greens (winter)

Green: A new short course designed for golfers who have lost a few yards on their drive but their short game and guile keeps them competitive (also good for Juniors)

Bronze: A new short, relatively quick course; a chance for men and ladies to play competitively together on the same course, without distance being a hurdle.

Silver: Longer than the Bronze but still accessible for men and ladies to compete on.  Interesting Tee positions and par 5's for the ladies on longer holes.

Gold: Again, a new course iteration, making PRGC still more versatile and interesting.  Also accessible for men and women to play and score on.

In addition to the above new Casual / General play courses there will of course be additional competition courses, for example the Whites, which will be restricted to certain Club Competitions.  More on those in a future release!

Importantly, there will be no such thing now as a ladies' tee or a men's tee - there are now 5 different Casual / General play courses and you (men and women) simply check the handicap tables, the SI's and the pars and choose from the available courses.

For key competitions, you will as ever, be directed to specific courses.

More information to come ahead of the launch - but just to whet your appetite!! Can't wait!!

How wonderful to welcome so many more visitors to the club this spring.  As you know, at PRGC we are blessed with a sponge like chalk base which creates the most sustainable, natural drainage system possible.  Combine that with Jack's greenkeeping expertise and we have been able to keep our greens and course open when other local clay based courses have been forced to close.

The feedback from our visitors has been fantastic  - particularly for the fairways, greens and and customer service in the clubhouse.  A real buzz for the teams and a lovely reward for all the hard work!

Some quick calendar updates

PRGC Captains Monthly Message - February 2024

Well, thank goodness "dry January" is over, probably one of the wettest months in recent times.

However, our course is looking in great shape for the forthcoming Spring, due to the expertise and hard work of Jack, Chris, and Matt. I hope everyone is enjoying using the new course cards - they are like a "breath of fresh air".

And as Spring approaches, many of us will begin to think about all the various competitions and activities that either have already been arranged or will be shortly.

The Seniors CBL competition restarts in February, away to Aylesbury Vale. (Steve Sergeant is the contact)

The Seniors "friendly" competitions begin in March, with three away matches in March and April. (Seniors captain David Orford is in charge now)

Barry Woledge has kindly put up all the entry sheets in the male changing room, for the five main Mens Board competitions and I would ask you to put your names on these sheets as soon as possible in readiness for the draws. The entry fee for each competition is £5.00 and will be collected by Al Bowyer (treasurer) shortly.

We have entered the Hillman Trophy again (low HCP competition) and Phil Sloan is the contact.

Now to a couple of "Save the Dates":

Wednesday 3rd April - WAGs i.e. Wednesday Afternoon Golf society begins (run by Dave Mackenzie), a regular Wednesday nine-hole competition with both ladies and gents welcome. This will be followed by something that I gather has not happened for some time, i.e. the Mens Presentation Evening, where the trophies won in 2023 will be presented to the individual winners, so all welcome, and I trust the Ladies will indulge us on this one occasion. Food is to be provided by Natalie, at the usual competitive prices.

Tuesday 23rd April - St. Georges Day. This is a regular Seniors day, but for this very "special day" (Celts, you always celebrate yours!!!) we will open the day up to both ladies, gents and seniors, with a celebratory lunch afterwards. Details of the type of competition to follow, but I will be putting a "sign up" sheet in both changing rooms.

In conjunction with Jack, I will organize another work party morning for repairing divots and assisting with any course maintenance that we as members are able to do. (Probably early March). The bunkers are regularly raked now, but there are other jobs as well.

Monthly Winners.  Well done to John White for winning the Seniors Monthly Stableford.  And well done to Steve Williams for winning the January Club Stableford.

Coaching.  Our very own Bruce Loom will return to the UK around the end of March/early April, but if you want some lessons, he will take email bookings now.

Pro Shop. Please remember to utilize this facility for tees, hats, polo shirts, sweaters, balls, gloves etc etc. Luke Viney will be delighted to serve you.

Once again, my thanks, on your behalf, to all the folk that make our course so friendly and enjoyable to play.

Best Regards to All

Dick Pooley, Club Captain.

mob. 07785 996511, land. 01494 269615, email "richardpooley5@gmail.com"

A short message from Jack, the greenkeeper regarding protecting the fairways.

First, thank you to everyone who has been so supportive in protecting the fairways, either through responsible buggy driving or electric trolley use.

Whilst the course is prone to becoming muddy, he is keen that the fairways are protected through the use of hedgehog wheels where possible please.  If you need to hire a healthy push trolley with hedgehog wheels they are available at reception.  If you would prefer to use your electric trolleys without hedgehog wheels, please can you use the rough.

Thank you once again for your support, your course will be the better for it.