Paul Steer Away trip to Cardiff Bay

This year’s annual Seniors Away Trip took us across the Severn Bridge and into Wales, with Cardiff Bay providing the base for three days of golf, good company, plenty of laughs and, inevitably, a few tales that may become more exaggerated with time!

Tuesday – Newport Golf Club

Our first challenge was Newport Golf Club, a tough championship course that certainly lived up to its reputation.

The course provided a stern test for our Seniors, with some players finding the longer par 4s and par 5s particularly demanding. For a few, simply reaching the green in regulation became something of an ambition rather than an expectation!

The par 3s were well protected by bunkers, while on several holes the carry required to reach the fairway added another challenge. It was certainly a course where accuracy and course management were rewarded, although there were probably a few occasions when neither was quite as effective as planned!

Despite the difficulties, everyone battled on and the first team competition was won by:

Martin Taylor, Dev Jathoul, Paul Steer & Steve Haresnape

Wednesday – Glamorganshire Golf Club

After Tuesday’s stern examination, Wednesday brought a welcome change of pace at Glamorganshire Golf Club.

The course proved to be much more enjoyable for most of the group and, with the weather and company also playing their part, the mood was noticeably more relaxed.

The day’s team competition was the ever-popular Yellow Ball, which inevitably added an extra element of tension to proceedings. Each team had to keep the yellow ball in play, with the player using it effectively doubling their score for the team.

There were plenty of discussions on strategy and perhaps a few nervous glances whenever the yellow ball was handed over!

One team, however, managed to mysteriously lose their precious yellow ball somewhere during the early part of the front nine. Exactly how and when this happened remains the subject of considerable speculation. Needless to say, once the ball had disappeared, so did their opportunity to double the score of the player carrying it.

The official investigation is still ongoing.

The Yellow Ball winners were:

Keith Bultitude, Martin Cole, David New & Steve Haresnape

Thursday – Woodlake Park Golf Club

Our final round was at Woodlake Park Golf Club, a quirky course that produced a variety of opinions, but was enjoyed by most of the group.

The greens were particularly quick, much to the disappointment of some of our Seniors who perhaps prefer their putting surfaces with slightly less enthusiasm!

Nevertheless, it provided an entertaining final round and another opportunity to enjoy the golf and, more importantly, the company.

The final day’s team winners were:

David New, Martin Taylor, Rod Bird & Andy Platt

Overall Individual Competition

After three days of golf, the overall individual results were:

1st – Andy Platt
2nd – Martin Taylor
3rd – Chas Gerty

Congratulations to all three, and indeed to everyone who took part.

Another Great Seniors Trip

As always, the golf was only part of the attraction. The three days were filled with good humour, friendly competition, plenty of banter and, no doubt, a few stories that will be retold (and possibly embellished) at Kingsdown for some time to come.

A great time was had by all, and the trip once again demonstrated what these Seniors Away Days are all about: good golf, good friends and plenty of laughs along the way.

A huge thank you to Paul Steer for all his hard work in organising the trip and making it such a success.

Until the next one…