2010 is the Club's Centenary year - please click here for the CENTENARY INDEX & EVENTS

The West Hove GC website tonight received a visit from its 60th country. Tonight's visit was from someone in Cote D'Ivoire or as we prefer to call it the Ivory Coast in West Africa.

Michael Phillpot has today been elected to the Sussex County Golf Union Committee.
The Club is very pleased to report that at the Annual General Meeting of the S.C.G.U., held at East Brighton GC today, Michael Phillpot was elected to their main Committee. He will hold office for a period of 3 years commencing 1st January 2009. Michael is currently the South Regional Organiser for the S.C.G.U. Junior Committee, a position he has held since January 2007 and was our Club Captain in 1986/87.    http://www.sussexgolf.org

Tickets for the New Years Eve 'Black & White' Dinner Dance are nearly sold out.
If you wish to attend this function book now as the last date to buy tickets will be 14th December if not sold out earlier.

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Lewis Jackson wins both a Golfing and Academic Scholarship in the United States.

Following an eight day trip across ‘the pond’ to the USA with his father Steve, Lewis returned home today to announce that he had been awarded his dream golf scholarship at Harding University in Arkansas.

Scholarships such as this are not awarded without sound backing. So it was with great pleasure that dad Steve and mum Lindsey were able to rely on fantastic support from Lewis’s mentors - people such as Alan Covey (Sussex County Golf Union), Stuart Simpson (Course Manager at Chichester College), Tim Barclay (Headmaster at Hove Park School), Jason Gilroy (Lewis’ short-game coach), James Wilmott (Lewis’ swing coach) and our own Megan Bibby. They all provided references and testimonials which assisted in the process which enabled the University to grant a 50% funding, for the first time in their history, for both a golfing and academic scholarship.

Speaking from his home today, Lewis said he cannot wait to get started and follow in the footsteps of Stacey Rodger, another West Hove junior to win an American golf scholarship. He reported that his parents were absolutely thrilled – as are everyone at West Hove GC. We will, of course, follow Lewis’ progress in the years to come.

Please click on the url below to view the Harding University Press Release announcing Lewis’ appointment to ‘The Bisons’ golf team for 2009/10.
http://www.hardingsports.com/index.asp?path=mgolf

Click here to read the full report about Lewis' scholarships.

click here for photos

The new Club Captain, Andrew Macgregor-Boyle, had his official ‘drive-in’ today.
The early morning snow and subsequent very heavy rain played havoc with the Captain’s Charity Better-ball competition, but the weather cleared in time for the traditional drive-in.  Andrew (unsuitably dressed in a kilt in such cold conditions!) was escorted to the tee by his wife Sue and niece Sam and accompanied by a lone piper. Andrew invited the Juniors’ Captain Jonny Ingram to drive off and he arrowed his shot 216 yards 2 feet followed by the Seniors’ Captain, Peter Mills, who hit his drive 114 yards 2 feet.

Andrew has been unable to play golf for the past 2 or 3 months because of a very painful tendon injury to his right arm. He should be having keyhole surgery in the next few days but will still be unable to play for many weeks. It was therefore a surprise that he should attempt to drive, but he did and achieved a creditable 80 yards with a 4-iron under the shadow of a magnificent rainbow.

Andrew’s two charities for his year of captaincy are the Martlets Hospice and the Lymphoma Association. Further information about these worthy causes can be found on these websites.
http://www.themartlets.org.uk                          http://www.lymphomas.org.uk

click here for photos

Congratulations to Andrew Macgregor-Boyle on being elected the Club Captain at tonight’s Annual General Meeting which was held in the 'Keith Haste Memorial Suite'. Following the nomination of Gordon Eaton as Club Vice-Captain elect by a committee of Past Club Captains in September, he was tonight formally elected as Vice-Captain for 2008/09. The full list of Golf Committee members for 2008/09 can be seen by clicking here.

The outgoing Captain Dennis Baker presented cheques to his chosen charities, The Martlets Hospice and the Hillside School in Portslade. In addition, he announced that the balance of his charitable fund had been used to purchase a defibrillator for the Club. A defibrillator is a machine that can restart the heart by giving an electric shock in some cases of cardiac arrest. Research shows that applying a controlled shock within five minutes of collapse provides the best possible outcome. This indicates the need for defibrillators to be deployed strategically in areas of greatest need, for example a golf course where it is difficult for an ambulance or paramedic to get to quickly.

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Congratulations - and let's keep it in the family!
All but one of the 2008 men's knock-out competitions have now been completed and the winners are to be congratulated. Apart from the obvious family connection for the Father & Son Trophy, we also had a father and son win separate pairs competitions and brothers winning two of the singles events.
Congratulations too must go to Hugh Rifat whose friends witnessed his hole-in-one today with a  5-iron on the 193 yard third hole. Hugh says this is his second 'ace', the first having been achieved whilst playing on his own at our thirteenth hole! Yes, we do believe him.   

Club Captain Dennis Baker and the Ladies' Captain Shirley Blount say goodbye.
The annual Captains' Farewell dinner & dance took place this last weekend at the Clubhouse. As usual a large number of members and guests bade goodbye to the outgoing captains and enjoyed a lovely meal and the statutory dancing afterwards. A presentation was made to the Club's President, Don Thatcher, who will be 80 next weekend. Please click here for the photos.

The Brighton & District Golfing Society has created a new blog site.
Most members at West Hove will be aware that we are one of 4 local clubs that comprise the Brighton & District Golfing Society. The other three clubs are Brighton & Hove, East Brighton and The Dyke. Don Weston, the current Secretary has informed us today that a new electronic journal has been created for the Society and members may view this by clicking here.
We have also created a permanent link which you can find at the bottom of our "Links" page.

click here for photos

The new Ladies’ Captain, Josie Knight, “drove-in” today in front of a sizeable crowd. Josie was pleased and surprised that her drive measured 107 yards and 1 foot. As usual, the retiring Ladies' Captain (Shirley Blount) had earlier 'putted-out' on the 18th green. Megan Bibby, the Club's General Manager, announced that £290 had been raised for Josie's chosen charity the Martlets Hospice.  http://www.themartlets.org.uk

Wednesday 5 November 2008

Both the Ladies' and Seniors' Annual General Meetings were held this week. On Monday the new Ladies' Captain Josie Knight was elected and today the new Seniors' Captain Peter Mills was installed.We wish them a happy and successful year in office.

Wednesday 5 November 2008

The Christmas 'Music' Lunch will be held on Sunday 21st December 2008. This popular annual event is bound to be fully subscribed so members are asked to please book early to avoid disappointment. 

Congratulations to Damon Raikes for his outstanding performance in the Wighton Cup. Damon, who has been a member for 16 years, scored an “ace” on the 193 yard par-3 third hole with a 7 iron in yesterday’s Wighton Cup competition. This ‘eagle’, together with ‘birdies’ at the 6^th, 14^th and 18^th holes, helped him score a remarkable gross 67 (net 62) in breezy conditions to win the Cup by two strokes. In customary fashion he treated his fellow members to a drink at the ‘19^th’. Well done Damon.

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Brian Port, the Seniors' captain, believes the team ran out of steam having started the season so well with 10 straight wins but then not winning any of their last 7 matches. Of the 26 matches played 15 were won, 3 drawn and 8 lost. The seniors beat West Hove Ladies' section 5 - 1 but lost to our very good Juniors 2 - 3.   

click here for photo

A team from West Hove wins the Sussex County Golf Union's Hatton Trophy yesterday. Three of our Juniors, Lewis Jackson (handicap 1), Jonny Ingram (4) and Sophie Kennard (22) partnered our professional Darren Cook at Seddlescombe GC in the S.C.G.U. Junior Am-Pro. This was a medal competition with the two best nett scores to count and they acquitted themselves very well scoring a 12 under-par total of 132 to win the Hatton Trophy.

The Club is very pleased to announce that with immediate effect the joining fee for our 5-day, Country & International membership has been reduced from £250 to £100.
click here for the Membership page

Today's Charity Greensomes has been postponed because of the inclement weather. Club Captain, Dennis Baker, has announced that it will now be held on Sunday 16th November.

The WHGC Juniors’ Section Annual General Meeting and prize-giving was held today. As usual it was very well attended and the Club Captain, Dennis Baker, was very pleased to welcome so many junior members and their parents before moving on to present the prizes. At the meeting Jonny Ingram was elected as Juniors’ Captain and Adam Hatcher as Vice-Captain for 2008/9.
The Club has been advised of further recognition of our juniors. Dan Milligan has again been selected by the English Golf Union's South Region to receive coaching at their headquarters at Woodhall Spa between 24-26 October and will play in a match against the South West Region. Lewis Jackson and Jonny Ingram have also been chosen to form part of the SCGU's Junior elite squad which will receive intensive training at La Manga in Spain early in 2009. More to follow!

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A Junior Autumn Golf Camp is being held this half-term for 6-16 year olds - Check it out!
 
Following the very successful Summer Camps, our team of Professionals are to hold an Autumn Camp from 27-31 October 2008, with coaching by PGA Professionals, Russell Cronin & Ronnie Clark. You do NOT need to be a member of West Hove Golf Club to participate -

The French Connection
Brian Hazelgrove, our Centenary Committee Chairman, reports that as part of our Centenary celebrations contact has been established with a golf club in northern France that will also reach its centenary in 2010. That club is Le Golf du Sart, which is located 3km to the east of Lille, and the response from that club has been extremely positive and enthusiastic.
So, 12 golfers from Golf du Sart travelled to England last weekend to start the process of liaison between our two clubs. Nine of those golfers travelled over in the early hours of Friday 26 September and that afternoon played golf at Copthorne GC. They then moved on to their accommodation at the Sussex Pad Hotel where they were joined by their 3 other colleagues.
On Saturday all 12 players were invited to play in the George Shepherd Memorial Bowl and, not having played our course before, they naturally found it somewhat difficult. However, a meal and some drinks following the golf ensured that everybody went away in high spirits.
On the Sunday 12 West Hove members played the 12 golfers from France with West Hove narrowly winning 3½ - 2½. The matches were played in a great spirit and all the players and guests then sat down to a meal in the clubhouse.
The Golf du Sart President, Jean-Francois Toulemonde, presented the West Hove team members with gifts of wine, foie gras and cheese. He then delivered a speech in his very best English that ‘brought the house down’ and he received a standing ovation. One of the French golfers was celebrating his birthday so our Bar Manager Lynn Stoner found a cake and candles to mark the occasion. But all good things must come to an end and the French team left around 5pm to travel to Dover and catch the ferry.
They all arrived home safe and sound and have since said how much they enjoyed their trip to England and to West Hove. An invitation has been extended to West Hove to go to their club during 2009 for a return match. Watch this space…….
The real star of the weekend was the weather - it was wall-to-wall sunshine for each of the three days…Magnifique!      Click here for photos.

Members are advised to book early for our forthcoming social events.
The Men's Dinner referred to below is rapidly being booked - so don't leave it too late to buy your tickets! In addition there are 2 other events where tickets may now be purchased from the bar. The first is the Captains' Farewell Dinner on Saturday 15 November 2008 and the second is our New Year's Eve Dinner & Dance.

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This year's Men's Dinner is now only a month away! Book now.
The 2008 Men's Dinner is to be held at the Sussex County Cricket Club on Friday 24 October (and not on 17 October 2008 as originally advertised). Members are invited to arrange a table for 6, 8 or 10 by booking over our Clubhouse bar.

click here for a photo of Gordon

Gordon Eaton is West Hove's prospective Centenary Year Club Captain.

A committee of Past Club Captains met on 8th September 2008 and approved the nomination of Gordon Eaton as Club Vice-Captain elect for 2008/9, ultimately to be the Club's Centenary Year Captain. His nomination will be put to the membership for ratification at the Annual General Meeting in November. In the meantime, Gordon has accepted invitations to join both the Golf Committee and the Centenary Committee with immediate effect.

56 year-old Gordon has been married for the past 27 years to Penny, a senior midwife at Worthing Hospital, and they have 3 daughters aged 20-25. He was the managing director of Brighton Sign Company until a few weeks ago when he sold the company in order to spend more time with his golf clubs!

Gordon has been a member at West Hove for seven years and currently plays off 10. He says he is greatly honoured to have been nominated and looks forward to starting his year as vice-captain and working closely with Club Captain elect Andrew Macgregor-Boyle. Andrew, incidentally, has proposed that Richard Daughtrey who is the managing director of Brighton Fire Alarms be Gordon's vice-captain in our centenary year.

The Seniors continue their good form against other Clubs
The results for August were as follows:

Would members note that the link to the 'old' How Did I Do web site is to be removed.
On our Welcome page we currently show links to the 'old' and the 'new' How Did I Do web site but from 14 September we intend to remove the 'old' link and only show the link to their new site.
Please note:
You will need to register with How Did I Do and sign in by entering your email address and password to use most of the new site, such as access to competition results & handicap lists.

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Snakes alive!
A number of adders (the common viper, vipera berus) have been seen recently around the course and Clubhouse. They are Britain's only venomous reptile but are not aggressive and will only attack if harassed or threatened. They use their venom to immobilise prey such as lizards and it is of little danger to a healthy adult human. However, the bite is very painful and requires urgent medical attention.

Members and guests are reminded that adders are probably more scared of you (than you should be of them) and you are advised to give them a wide berth. Under no circumstances should anyone harm them – they are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 from being killed or injured. Click here to see an adder outside the men’s changing rooms today.

Reciprocal golf booking form

New reciprocal golf arrangements have been agreed for WHGC Members.
The Club is very pleased to advise all WHGC Members that from 1st September 2008 they are now able to play 10 other golf courses without the need to pay a green fee. The four new Clubs that have joined our scheme are Knighton Heath in Bournemouth, Rowlands Castle in Hampshire, and two Surrey Clubs, Guildford and Purley Downs. Full details including a list of all the clubs in our scheme, and a link to the booking form, may be found by clicking here.

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Lewes GC prove too strong for West Hove in the PAV i.t. Trophy semi-final today.
In the semi-final of the SCGU’s PAV i.t. Trophy, held today at Pyecombe GC, our scratch team were well and truly beaten 10½ to 1½ by Lewes GC. Unfortunately the team were unable to win any of the 12 games although 3 games were halved.
The writing was on the wall after the morning foursomes. We lost 3 games quite heavily but Simon Tiplady and Chris Lind earned a well deserved ‘half’ after being 2 down with three to play. In the afternoon singles the matches were generally closer but Chris’s result is misleading as he had to retire after injuring his hand in the morning. Simon was unlucky to lose 2 down as his opponent, Tom Hilton, birdied the last 2 holes. Steve Nielsen and Tony Humphrey halved their matches with Tony winning the 18th with a birdie. Lewes now go on to play East Sussex National GC in the final – they beat Pyecombe GC 9 – 3 at Lewes today.
The results were as follows:-

Lea Cooper is the new Sussex Professional Golfers Union Champion.
After yesterday’s storms the weather relented a little today for the second round of the SPGU Championship at West Hove. Today’s frequent heavy showers didn’t dampen the spirits of the 30 finalists. Lea Cooper, attached to Foxbridge GC, who led overnight on 72 today shot a level par 70 to win the Bill Watts Trophy and become the new Sussex Professional Champion with a 2 over par total of 142. David Mills (Seaford GC) put up a spirited fight with a 2 under-par 68, following yesterday’s 75, to finish second just one shot back. In third place was Charles Giddins (Beauport Park GC) on 145. For the second year running, the Leading Assistant in Registration (i.e. trainee assistant professional) was Arron Trott (Singing Hills GC) who shot 148 (77 + 71).

Lea Cooper the new champion and some of the other pro’s said that the greens were the best they had ever played on at West Hove – and Cliff Pluck, the SPGU Secretary, correctly pointed out that the scores were displayed on his (mobile) ‘Tournament Office’ and not a caravan as reported yesterday!

The Sussex Professionals blow into West Hove for their annual Championship.

The Sussex Professional Golfers Union (SPGU) held the first day of their 36 hole strokeplay Championship today in the most appalling conditions. Unseasonal winds gusting to over 50mph meant that the course was barely playable. There were reports of balls being replaced on greens only for them to be blown over 10 feet away. The wind was so strong that it even affected the administration of the event with Cliff Pluck, the SPGU’s secretary, having to remove the scoreboard from the outside of his caravan!

The conditions meant that nobody was able to beat par and unusually there were 9 nil returns. The best score was 72 and the cut for the top 30 players, who compete in round 2 tomorrow, was made at 86, some 16 over par! Our professionals Darren Cook (83) and Russell Cronin (81) both made the cut but Ronnie Clark unfortunately failed. The leading contenders for the Championship (and the Bill Watts Trophy) at the halfway stage were:-
Lea Cooper (Foxbridge) 72, Charles Giddins (Beauport Park) 73 and Sam Gayler (Dyke) 74.

More results from the Seniors – and bad weather postponements in July!
Our Seniors’ Captain, Brian Port, reports a mixed bag of results for July.
The results were as follows:

The two away matches against Mid Sussex GC and Cottesmore GC were postponed because of bad weather and have been re-scheduled for October.

Lewis Jackson, the Juniors’ Captain, wins the West Hove Junior Club Championship. Today, in wet and windy conditions he beat Tom Coppard and Dan Milligan into 2nd and 3rd place respectively. In the nett competition Luke Giles retained the trophy he won last year.

In the Mid Week Open Stableford where all categories of golfers are allowed to play, Stacey Rodger scored an incredible 44 pts playing off of a handicap of 3. This gives her a new course record for the ladies of 65.
(Editor's update 13 November 2008 - the record is unofficial as it was achieved in a Stableford competition - see page 534 of the R&A's "Decisions on the Rules of Golf 2008-2009").

click here for photo of Megan

The B&DGS Captains' Putter, Secretaries Cup, Presidents' Cup and Professional Cup, took place at Brighton & Hove GC today.
In the Captain's Putter, West Hove was unfortunately not able to put out a full team of 6 Captains and ended up in 4th place with only 5 scores counting. The dependable Captains that made up the team were Dennis Baker, Maurice Grange, Norman Milburn, Don Thatcher, Kevin Heanen and our Vice-Captain Andy Macgregor-Boyle whose score was not allowed to be counted.

For the second year running, Megan Bibby won the Secretaries Cup with 36 pts.
Michael Phillpot came 2nd in the Presidents' Cup with an extremely hard worked for 21 pts.
Russell Cronin came joint 3rd in the Professionals' Cup with a gross 70.

News Year's Eve Dinner & Dance at West Hove GC.
Once again we have arranged a New Year's Eve party which will include complimentary champagne or wine on arrival, a gourmet 4-course dinner and live entertainment from a male vocalist.
Arrangements are being made for transport to and from the club which will be available at a substantially lower cost than taxis (subject to numbers wishing to utilise this facility).

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The 2008 West Hove GC Junior Open today attracted 41 competitors in windy conditions.
All players who compete in our Open are automatically playing for an entry into the Daily Telegraph National Competition where the boy and girl with the 'best gross' go forward. This year, Dan Milligan (West Hove) and Tiffany Hewetson (East Brighton) were the two qualifiers.
The results of the West Hove Junior Open are as follows:

Twenty teams participated in the Pro-Am competition in dry conditions today.
The Team event saw our Chairman, Richard Simmons of UHY Hacker Young, win, with Carl Rota from Brooklands Golf Course as his professional. The team managed a remarkable score of -22.

The Club Captain raised approximately £2000 for his charities, the Martlets Hospice and Hillside Special Needs School. Out of the money raised he also very kindly donated £250 to the Junior Development Fund.
The results for the day were as follows:

Nominations for our Centenary Year Club Captain - Final notice to West Hove Members.
Members are reminded that they now have less than 2 weeks to submit nominations for our Centenary Year Club Captain. The full procedures are on display in the Clubhouse.

click here for photos of winners

click here
for photo of Jonny Ingram

Tom Coulson wins the Club Championship for the fourth time.
Reigning champion Tom Coulson (+1) retained the Club Championship title today with a two-round total of 135 (5 under par). In the morning he shot a 4 under par 66 to lead from the Club’s 16-year-old Juniors’ Vice-Captain, Jonny Ingram, on 70. In third place on 71 was veteran Nick O’Byrne who made his annual pilgrimage to West Hove. Nick no longer lives in Sussex but was Club Captain in 1985/86 and 5 times the Club Champion on our old course in the 1970’s & 80’s.
Conditions were not so easy in the afternoon but both Tom and Jonny maintained their form to win the Club Championship and Nick O’Byrne Trophy respectively. The top five players from each competition are shown below:

click here for photo

The Carl Haydon Shield is won for the third time by Mike Gleeson.
Every year the past Club Captains play an 18-hole Stableford competition for the Carl Haydon Shield. Carl is our longest serving past captain having ‘reigned’ in 1965/6. In today’s event 16 past Captains competed and Mike Gleeson (Captain 1994/5) won with 38 points on count-back from David Nealer (2003/4) with Jim Winson (2000/1) in 3rd place with 36 points. Mike has previously won this event in 2001 and 2003.

The Sussex Schools’ Golf Association Championship was held today at West Hove GC.
The 34th annual championship of the Sussex Schools’ Golf Association was contested today by 68 competitors (aged between 11 & 18) from eleven schools.  

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West Hove are beaten by Brighton & Hove GC in the third round of the Cyril Blake Cup.
Our over 55’s found it tough going today over the 9-hole Brighton & Hove course in the 3rd round of the Cyril Blake Cup. Team Captain, Terry Pinker and his partner Don Shepherd did well to earn a half point having been 3 down with 3 to play. Local knowledge was too much for our other pairings with Eddie Allen & Martin Emery losing 5 and 4 to tough opponents, whilst Maurice Grange & Dave Nealer and the final pair of John James & Adrian Drake both lost on the last hole. John and Adrian did particularly well having had to give their opponents 9 shots.
Brighton & Hove won 3 ½ - ½. In the quarter-finals they have been drawn to play at home against either Ifield GC or Crowborough GC – we wish them well.

A note for your diary - one of our cup competitions is to be brought forward by 2 weeks.
Would Members please note that to avoid clashing with the PAV it Trophy semi-final match against Lewes GC at Pyecombe on Saturday 16th August, THE ADASTRA CUP WILL NOW BE PLAYED ON SATURDAY 2nd AUGUST 2008.

It had to happen! – our Seniors are beaten for the first time this year.
Only 3 matches were played by our Seniors this month and the Seniors’ Captain, Brian Port, reports that they lost their first game of the season playing away at Worthing GC. Today, however, they sprang back to winning ways with their biggest win of the season, 7-1 against West Chiltington GC. The results of the matches in June were as follows:

In the year to date, the squad has won 11 of the 12 matches played, winning 60 games and losing 34 in the process.

click here for photo of
Stacey Rodger
receiving her awards

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Stacey Rodger excels at the Brighton & District Golfing Society’s Championship at the Dyke GC.

Recently back from America, Stacey won the B&DGS Ladies’ Championship by 8 shots from Deborah James of the home club with a splendid two round total of 155. In the Juniors’ Championship Dan Milligan came second with 167 to the champion Jamie Chapman of The Dyke GC. Our Men’s team of Steve Nielsen, Neville Hudson, Chris Lind and Don Shepherd Jnr. did not do so well in the tough conditions. B&DGS Secretary, Don Weston, reported that the CSS went out to 75 in both rounds, the SSS being 72.

The winning scores are shown below:

“TakePART Day” kicked off the Brighton & Hove International Festival of Sport

The inaugural Brighton & Hove International Festival of Sport started today with a spectacular opening event in Preston Park, when thousands of visitors attended the largest exhibition of sports and physical activities ever seen in the city. The festival, which runs until 13 July, was set up by the Brighton & Hove School Sport Partnership, the City Council and the local NHS Teaching Primary Care Trust with the simple aim of getting people “to be more active, more often”.

West Hove GC has played a significant part by providing free golf lessons today to both adults and hundreds of children in 2 inflatable driving ranges and on 2 small putting holes. These proved extremely popular with queues of children all day! Between 1^st and 9^th July the Club will be hosting a dozen “one-hour taster sessions” at our driving range for adults, ladies, girls and juniors (aged 10 and above). There is a registration fee of £1 but thereafter everything is free, including the use of golf equipment and balls. Most of these sessions have now been fully subscribed but if any non-member is interested please ‘phone our Professional Shop (01273 413494) to check availability. Those attending the taster sessions will also be invited to participate in a “Texas Scramble” competition on our course on 11 July.

The Club would like to extend a very big thank-you to the English Golf Union and Huxley Golf for their considerable help with the inflatable driving ranges and the modular putting greens.
Please click here to view today’s photos.

The West Hove Ladies Open attracted 54 competitors today.
In very blustery conditions 27 pairs competed in our Ladies Open and the winners were inevitably from another ‘downland’ course where the wind is a feature. Congratulations go to Ann McNamara and Biddy Guildford from East Brighton GC who amassed 39 points.  

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West Hove were the ‘runners-up’ yet again in the Dyke Challenge Bowl.
The Dyke GC hosts the Dyke Challenge Bowl which is played annually between many of the Sussex golf clubs. They are represented by their current officials and this year our team comprised our Club Professional Darren Cook, our Vice-Captain Andrew Macgregor-Boyle, the immediate past Ladies’ Captain Roseanne Rees and our General Manager/Secretary Megan Bibby. The competition is a four-ball better-ball with the best 2 scores on each hole counting. In very windy conditions our team scored a creditable 79 points to come second for the third year running!
The first 3 places were: Worthing GC 80 points, West Hove GC 79 and The Dyke GC 76.

Members are reminded that two significant events are now less than a month away.
The Club Championship is to be held on Sunday 13th July 2008 over 36 holes and the entry sheet has been on the notice-board in the foyer for some time. All single figure handicap players may enter so don’t miss your chance as the field is limited.
On Friday 18th July 2008 the Club holds its annual Pro-Am with a shot-gun start at 12 noon. Eighteen teams have already registered but we can accommodate a few more if necessary. If you or your company would like to raise a team of 3, to partner a pro’ golfer, please contact either Dennis Baker or Andrew Macgregor-Boyle. The cost for the team is £250.

Latest news from the Sussex County Golf Union (SCGU)
The SCGU has announced the venues for the semi-finals of the PAV i.t. Trophy to be held on Saturday 16^th August 2008.
Our scratch team will be playing at Pyecombe against Lewes GC whilst the other semi-final between East Sussex National GC and Pyecombe GC will be held at Lewes. Copthorne GC has apparently agreed to host the final which will be on Saturday 13^th September 2008.

The 2008 Sussex County Amateur Championship was played from 13^th to 15^th June at Eastbourne Downs Golf Club. On Friday, 72 of the best Sussex amateur golfers competed over 2 rounds to qualify to play in the KO stages at the weekend. Our two entrants just failed with Tom Coulson shooting 152 (76+76) and Dan Milligan scoring 155 (77+78). The worthy 2008 champion was Joe Doherty from Worthing GC.

New dates for your social diary are announced.
Would Members please note that to avoid a clash with another golfing function our annual Men’s Dinner will now be held on Friday 24th October 2008 (instead of 17th October). Further details will be published on the ‘Notice Board’ page of this website in due course.
In addition, it is proposed to hold an inaugural “Captains’ Autumn Ball” on 26 September at the Thistle Hotel in Brighton – the host clubs will be West Hove, The Dyke, Brighton & Hove and East Brighton. Again, further details will be published later.

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Our Seniors’ section continues their amazing unbeaten run against other Sussex clubs.
On 24th April we reported that our Seniors had won their first 5 matches. We can now report that this remarkable run has continued during May when all 4 matches were won! The results of the matches in May were as follows:

click here for photo

The Brighton & District Golfing Society’s “Wentworth Smith Trophy” was held at West Hove today.
This BDGS competition, between teams from West Hove, The Dyke, Brighton & Hove and East Brighton Golf Clubs, comprised teams of 22 players with the Trophy being awarded to the Club with the best Stableford points total from their top 5 scorers. Home advantage helped West Hove win with a total of 188 points to The Dyke’s 183, Brighton & Hove’s 176 and East Brighton’s 171. Our best 5 scorers were;
Mark Pollington 40 pts., John Mercer 38 pts., Terry Pinker 37 pts., Steve Nielsen 37 pts. and Tony Humphrey 36 pts.
The ‘individual’ winners on the day were: Bruce Anderson (The Dyke) 40 points and with the best gross score, Steve Nielsen (West Hove) 71.

West Hove beat Waterhall GC 3 - 1 in the second round of the Cyril Blake Cup.
West Hove were drawn away to Waterhall and the match was played in dry, blustery conditions.
Our practice round the previous Friday proved beneficial as the greens were considerably slower than West Hove and being foursome play several tee shots required accurate placement to avoid placing a team partner in serious trouble.
Our first pairing of Terry Pinker & Don Shepherd (Snr) had an emphatic win 7/6 starting with a birdie win on the 1st hole and then only requiring a single putt on each of the next 9 holes!
This was followed by a surprise 4/3 loss by Brian Hazelgrove and Tony Tilbury who had both been on sparkling form in the practice round.
Adrian Drake and John James produced a solid performance to win 2/1 but then it was a long wait before our last pairing of Eddie Allan and Martin Emery reached the 18th tee. An earlier report had them 2 down after 9. However on meeting them half way down the 18th we were very pleased to hear that they had ground it out and were now 1 up and that was how they finished.
The result was a good win to West Hove 3-1.
Our team is now through to the last 16 with the 3rd round to be played by 11 July 2008 (draw to be announced).

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Amy Lovelidge and Sophie Kennard, two West Hove Juniors, excel in very difficult conditions at Bramshaw GC.
A team of 4 juniors (Jonny Ingram, Greg Andrew, Sophie Kennard and Amy Lovelidge) enjoyed some success today by being the runners-up in Bramshaw Golf Club's Reciprocal Junior Team competition. Six clubs competed and the best two stableford scores on each hole counted towards the team total. West Wiltshire GC won convincingly with 87 points and West Hove were runner-up, on count-back from the host club, with a creditable 74 points. The event was played in testing conditions, being very windy with fast greens, and this was borne out by most of the scores. So the girls did particularly well to both score in the 30's – Sophie with 30 points and Amy with 32 points to win the girl’s individual prize. Very well done to the whole team.

West Hove GC failed to perform in the Brighton & District Golfing Society’s Senior Cup today at The Dyke GC.
The B&DGS's Senior Cup was played today and 3 key players, Tom Coulson, Simon Tiplady and Mark Gully were unable to play. In the morning round we played Brighton & Hove GC and lost 3-2, whilst East Brighton beat The Dyke. In the afternoon Plate competition we played The Dyke and lost 4-1, whilst Brighton & Hove beat East Brighton to win the BDGS Senior Cup.
Our foursomes teams were as follows:

West Hove beat Haywards Heath GC in the quarter finals of the PAV i.t. Trophy today.
In their 4^th and toughest round of the competition so far, the West Hove GC scratch team narrowly beat Haywards Heath GC to reach the semi-finals. After the morning foursomes we led by 2½ to 1½ but then we lost the afternoon singles 3½ to 4½ to tie the match at 6-6. However, three big wins (Dan Milligan & Lewis Jackson by 7 & 5 in the pairs, together with Mark Gully and Tom Coulson both winning by 7 & 6 in the singles) saw us comfortably win on count-back by 27 holes to Hayward Heath’s 16. Today’s scores were as follows:

In the draw for the semi-finals we will play Lewes GC, whilst the other semi-final will be played between East Sussex National GC and Pyecombe GC. Both matches will be played on a neutral course on 16 August 2008, but the venues have yet to be announced.  

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Lewis Jackson, our Juniors’ Captain, nearly ‘holes-in-one’ on the 17^th at TPC Sawgrass.
It has just been brought to our attention that on 13^th April (unlucky for some!) the Jackson family had a remarkable experience whilst on holiday in Florida. Father Steven, and his son Lewis, played at TPC Sawgrass and on one of the most famous holes in the world, the 17^th island green which has ruined many professional golfers’ cards, Lewis nearly achieved a hole-in-one. He chose a 9 iron for the 138 yards from the championship tee and saw his tee shot lip-out of the hole – he duly got his birdie. Younger sister Annabel, also a West Hove junior, watched whilst mum Lindsey filmed the proceedings.
Click here to see a video of the reactions on the tee – and click here to see photos of Lewis on the 17^th and 18^th tees, perhaps the toughest finishing holes on any championship course.
(Warning: the video clip is a large file so please be patient whilst it loads!)

New scorecards expected from Sunday 1st June 2008.
Members are advised that, subject to delivery, new scorecards will be in use from Sunday 1st June 2008. For the first time they will reflect the increased yardage from the white tee on the 7th hole AND, in particular, they will introduce changes to the stroke indices on 6 of the holes. Members are advised to watch the notice-boards carefully to see when these new stroke indices are introduced, especially if they are to participate in any matchplay competitions over the coming weeks.

West Hove finished as runners-up in the BDGS Intermediate Cup today.
The Brighton & District Golfing Society's Intermediate Cup was played today at Brighton & Hove GC. In the morning we played East Brighton GC and won 3 - 2. In the afternoon final we were drawn against the hosts Brighton & Hove who took full advantage of local knowledge to record a magnificent 5-0 win. Our foursomes teams were as follows:

click here for photo

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West Hove comfortably won the Jubilee Cup today over their own course.
Nine clubs from around Sussex competed today in West Hove’s Jubilee Cup. The format for this team competition is particularly tough as every one of the 6-man teams’ net medal scores count towards the team total – so everybody has to play-out every hole.
The team scores were:

Congratulations also go to Steve Stark (Brighton & Hove) for the lowest gross score of 70 and to Kevin Woolley (West Hove) for the lowest net score of 68.

The inaugural West Hove President’s Dinner was held this evening in the clubhouse.
In celebration of over 15 years as the Club’s President, Don Thatcher was this evening presented with a new president’s jacket by Club Captain Dennis Baker. The dinner was attended by 21 past Club Captains from West Hove including Les Gibbs who was installed way back in 1964. Guests for the evening were Roy Bowerman (President of the Brighton & District Golfing Society), Tom Grogan (President of Brighton & Hove GC), Niall McCabe (President of The Dyke GC) and Richard Simmons (West Hove GC’s Chairman).
Organiser Norman Milburn, Club Captain 1997/98, hopes this will become an annual event.

West Hove have been drawn to play Haywards Heath GC in the quarter-finals of the PAV i.t. Trophy on 10 May 2008.
The draw for the quarter-finals of this prestigious Sussex County Golf Union competition was brought forward to today and conducted by the County Secretary, Anup Vasant at the Dyke GC. West Hove have been drawn to play Haywards Heath GC at home on Saturday 10 May 2008. Further details, including some shock results yesterday, may be found on the SCGU’s website.

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West Hove beat Mid Sussex GC 8½ - 3½ in the 3rd round of the PAV i.t. Trophy today.
West Hove GC now go forward to the quarter finals.
In the morning foursomes our fancied pairs of Tom Coulson & Tony Humphrey and Mark Gully & Steve Nielsen both lost but Lewis Jackson & Dan Milligan won 3 & 2 and Chris Lind & Simon Tiplady won handsomely 5 & 3.
The afternoon singles were much closer than the final score suggests with half of the matches going to the 18^th. Simon Tiplady did well to earn a half having been 2 down with three to play and Steve Nielsen, Tony Humphrey and Dan Milligan all came from behind to win at the last hole. There were more comfortable wins for Tom Coulson, Mark Gully and Lewis Jackson. Today’s scores were as follows:

The 10th AGM of the Company and an EGM were held this evening.
At the 10th AGM of the Company, the report of the directors and the accounts for the year ended 31 August 2007, the reappointment of Parkers as the company's independent accountants and the reappointment of Brian Hazelgrove and John Lane as directors were unanimously agreed by those present. At the EGM that followed, an equitable procedure to select the Club Captain for the Club's Special Centenary Year in 2010 was unanimously agreed. Full details are included in the Club's Procedures Manual which is on display in the Clubhouse lounge.

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West Hove Seniors start their season on a high.
Our senior golfers hold matches against other Sussex clubs throughout the summer months. The format for these matches is four-ball better-ball with each side represented by 16 players. In the first match away to Lewes GC on 11 March we were leading 2-0 before heavy rain brought an end to the proceedings. Brian Port, the Seniors’ Captain, reports that since then they have won every match, a remarkable achievement. The results of the matches to date are as follows:-

West Hove fail in their bid for a hat trick of wins in the BDGS Junior Cup today.
Having won the Brighton & District Golfing Society's Junior Cup for the past two years we had high hopes of achieving a hat-trick of wins. However, in the morning match against the hosts, East Brighton GC, the match finished 2½ - 2½ but we lost on countback after Tony Tilbury and David Nealer were thrashed 6 & 5. In the afternoon Plate competition West Hove were beaten 4 - 1 by the Dyke GC. In the final for the BDGS Junior Cup, East Brighton GC beat Brighton & Hove GC 4½ - ½. Our foursomes teams and results were as follows:

West Hove beat Lindfield GC 2½ - 1½ in the first round of the Cyril Blake Cup.
The Cyril Blake Cup is an inter-club foursomes knockout competition, played over 18 holes on handicap for players who are aged 55 years or more and members of the Sussex County Golf Union. This afternoon our team narrowly beat Lindfield GC (formerly Paxhill Park) by 2½ to 1½ . The results were as follows:
Eddie Allen & Don Shepherd Snr. won 5 & 3
Mike Whitty & Martin Emery lost 2 & 1
Maurice Grange & David Nealer halved
Adrian Drake & John James won 2 up
Terry Pinker, the team’s captain, reports that we have been drawn to play away to Waterhall GC in the 2nd round – to be played by 6th June 2008.

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The draw for the third round of the Sussex Inter-Club Matchplay Championship (sponsored by PAV i.t.Services) took place this lunchtime at the Dyke GC and West Hove have been drawn to play at home against Mid Sussex GC on Saturday 26th April 2008.

Dan Milligan and Jonny Ingram come third in the Phillpot Salver at Ifield GC.
On Thursday 10th April 2008, 16 Clubs competed at Ifield GC for the SCGU’s Parsons Trophy, Phillpot Salver and the Andy Beer Trophy. This annual pairs event for Junior teams of four got off to a bright, crisp start and although the course was in good condition it was quite wet. The format was Fourball in the morning and Foursomes in the afternoon. West Hove’s only success was Dan Milligan and Jonny Ingram who came third in the Phillpot Salver (for the best scratch pairs’ score over the 36 holes). And for good measure Mick Phillpot, past Club Captain and Junior Organiser, was there to present the Salver for the first time since donating it in 1985!

click here for photo

West Hove GC beat Singing Hills Golf Course in the 2nd round of the PAV i.t.Trophy.
Despite the initial tee-time being unexpectedly brought forward to 8.30am, and Lewis Jackson being unavailable, our scratch team beat Singing Hills 6½ - 5½ in a very close match.
In the morning foursomes Damon Raikes and Dan Milligan thrashed their opponents 9 & 7 to help give us a 3 - 1 lead. In the afternoon singles matches, wins from Tom Coulson and Mark Gully, together with halved matches from Tony Humphrey, Steve Nielsen and Simon Tiplady saw us scrape home by 1 point. Today's full results were as follows:
  Foursomes
Tom Coulson & Tony Humphrey won 2 & 1        Steve Nielsen & Mark Gully lost 1 down
Damon Raikes & Dan Milligan won 9 & 7           Chris Lind & Simon Tiplady won 1 up
  Singles
Damon Raikes lost 1 down        Dan Milligan lost 2 & 4          Tom Coulson won 4 & 3
Mark Gully won 2 & 1               Steve Nielsen - all square       Tony Humphrey - all square
Simon Tiplady - all square         Chris Lind lost 1 down
The third round will be held on Saturday 26th April - and as soon as the draw is made it will be displayed on this page.        

Unseasonal April snow storms halt the Eagle and Keeling Cups. Today saw the worst April snow-fall in nearly two decades when 4” of snow caught the whole field napping. The day started cold and bright but, at around 9.30am when nearly all of the competitors had started play, the snow storm arrived and play became impossible within a few minutes. These two competitions have been postponed and will be played on Sunday 27th April 2008.
Click here to see the conditions experienced.

Congratulations to Brian Clarkson on his ‘ace’ today.
71 year-old Brian Clarkson has been playing golf for over 45 years but had never recorded a hole-in-one before. He achieved his lifetime ambition in the Mid-Week Stableford using his new ‘rescue club’ on the 207 yard 17th hole. Apparently his playing partners were surprised he got on the green, let alone down the hole! Well done Brian.

Click here for team photo

West Hove beat Mannings Heath GC 9-3 in the first round of the PAV i.t. Trophy.
In cold and very blustery conditions at West Hove, our scratch team won 9-3 against Mannings Heath GC in the first round of the PAV i.t. Trophy.
Today’s results were as follows:
 FOURSOMES
Tom Coulson & Tony Humphrey won 4 & 3         Steve Nielsen & Mark Gully won 6 & 4
Lewis Jackson & Dan Milligan lost 1 down          Chris Lind & Simon Tiplady won 1 up
 SINGLES
Lewis Jackson lost 4 & 5        Dan Milligan won 4 & 3            Tom Coulson won 3 & 1
Mark Gully won 4 & 3             Steve Nielsen lost 1 down        Tony Humphrey won 3 & 2
Simon Tiplady won 4 & 2        Chris Lind won 5 & 3
We now have to travel to Singing Hills on Saturday 12th April and the team would welcome support from our Members.

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Congratulations to Lewis Jackson, our Juniors’ Captain, on winning a Faldo Series Qualifier (Under 17s) at Royal St. Georges GC, Kent with a magnificent gross 73 in very trying conditions. We wish him luck in the next series event to be held at Royal Ashdown GC in June.

The Match & Handicap Committee (M&H) has decided to amend the stroke indices
on the men’s card and wish to give advance notice to all Members. A number of our Members have said that the current stroke indices do not reflect the relative playing difficulty of some of the holes on the course. Whilst this is not a major factor in determining the indices according to CONGU (the Council of National Golf Unions), M&H felt that some minor changes were desirable and they will therefore be making the following changes;
Hole number 8 will be stroke index 12  - and hole 9 will be stroke index 4
Hole number 14 will be stroke index 15 - and hole 15 will be stroke index 7
Hole number 17 will be stroke index 11 - and hole 18 will be stroke index 5
(the stroke indices on all other holes will remain the same)
These new stroke indices will be implemented when the Club introduces an updated scorecard in the next few months. Members will be given adequate notice of the implementation date.

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West Hove's new website received its 20,000th 'hit' just after 6pm this evening.
Our new website was launched less than a year ago and we are pleased to report that we have now received our 20,000th visitor, many from other countries around the world.
      see here... West Hove Golf Club - 2008 News Photos
The website is regularly updated and now has over 70 pages of news and information. If you have any comments, suggestions or ideas we shall be pleased to hear from you.
Please contact the General Manager, Megan Bibby here - info@westhovegolfclub.co.uk

Congratulations to Archie Heath who won the raffle for the extra large Easter Egg.
The Club Captain would like to thank the Members for their continued support and reports that over £130 was raised for his charities.

Members should note that the Leigh Wainwright Putter and Sir George Dance Bowl competitions have both been postponed until Sunday 30 March 2008.

The draw for the first round of the Sussex Inter-Club Matchplay Championship (sponsored by PAV i.t.Services) took place this evening at Willingdon GC and Club Captain Dennis Baker and Andrew Macgregor-Boyle, Chairman of Match & Handicap, attended. They report that West Hove were drawn to play at home against Mannings Heath GC on Saturday 29th March 2008. The winners of that match will play away to Singing Hills Golf Course on Saturday 12th April.
No-one has been excluded yet, but our team is likely to be selected from the following twelve members (listed alphabetically): Ronnie Clark, Tom Coulson, Mark Gully, Neville Hudson, Anthony Humphrey, Lewis Jackson, Chris Lind, Dan Milligan, Steve Nielsen, Damon Raikes, Paul Sayers and Simon Tiplady.
 

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The draw for the first two rounds of the Sussex Inter-Club Matchplay Championship will take place this Wednesday at Willingdon GC. For the past 15 years this has been affectionately known as the Davies & Tate Trophy after the company that sponsored it. This year sees new sponsors PAV i.t. Services.
Check here later this week to see who we have drawn in the first round and to see the squad of players from whom our team will be selected.

Stacey Rodger, our current Ladies' Champion, has been back home with her family over Christmas and the New Year but will soon be returning to America to continue her 4 year golf scholarship. Stacey is studying Exercise and Movement Science at the Missouri State University in Springfield, near St. Louis, for a BS degree. This degree will enable her to become a personal trainer, physiotherapist or a strength conditioning coach. She has the opportunity to play golf 6 days a week and has represented her University all over the States. Shortly after her return she will be the envy of us all by having being chosen to play at Kiawah Island in South Carolina. In these University tournaments Stacey has to play off scratch and has acquitted herself very well over some difficult courses.

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Now that it is 2008, the Club’s Centenary Year in 2010 gets ever nearer. A small committee, chaired by Brian Hazelgrove, has been helping the Board and the Golf Committee plan for this milestone in our history. This group has been working on the plans for some time and the following list shows some of the matters currently being considered:
 
   A centenary book of the Club’s history
   Matches against other Clubs who will also be celebrating their centenary in 2010
   including one French Club
   An exhibition of Club memorabilia
   County championships and other special events at West Hove GC
   Centenary merchandise
   A period costume event
   A Grand Ball
 
In addition, the Club has commissioned ceramic designers Stephen and Caroline Atkinson-Jones to supply nearly 200 special commemorative prizes for the winners of most of the Club’s competitions in 2010. The pieces include deep footed bowls, mantle clocks, large and small coupes (plates), commemorative beakers or loving cups and footed card boxes.
click here for photo

The Club has also purchased an Edwardian hand-made silver bowl, made in Sheffield and hall-marked 1910 (the year we were founded). This will be called the Centenary Bowl - further details regarding the qualifying event will be published in due course. click here for photo

If any Member has any other suggestions and/or contributions of memorabilia they will be greatly appreciated – please contact the office.