It's was a bit like a school outing - everyone gathered in great anticipation of an exciting day out, the chatter was casual and chirpy and the rain kept falling. The Seniors were off, Derek Bath was taking them back to his ancestral home, joyful at the thought of the welcome awaiting him and looking forward to showing his mates his name illuminated on the board in the great ancestral hall. As they entered the clubhouse, there was great excitement as they very quickly picked out the only Bath on the list of esteemed past captains at the Rolls of Monmouth. Lo and behold a number of the retinue bowed before him and some even deigned to shake his hand or hug him, such was the affection in which he was held. In typical Derek style, every aspect of the organisation had been anticipated and the day became one of wonderment and disappointment. Wonderment at the expansive and regal nature of the stately mansion and the course, as well as Derek's influence with those above to stave off the rain and even provide glorious sunshine. There was disappointment, by some, at not being able to match the golf to the course and the surroundings. The rolling hills and expansive fairways provided a contrast to the dunes of Tenby, and most seniors found it difficult to chip or putt up to the hole on the slower greens. A couple of the par three's enabled players to achieve a semblance of normality, except for the 18th, which Derek had decided was the 'nearest the pin' hole and was 220 yards involving a water hazard just in front. Three players hit the green baize. Stan Hudson's ball caught the edge, while the last group in were even closer. Geoff Aston's ball plopped into the soft green some 30 feet behind the pin, while Dave Morgan stole his thunder by slowing his ball down when it caught the leaves of an overhanging tree to land inside that distance. Stan Hudson was also involved in the longest drive on the 11th. His was the furthest drive until the penultimate group lined up to tee-off. Des Stone was pleased with his drive and more than surprised to discover his ball had travelled beyond Stan's, all the more so since they were not aware that the 11th was the longest drive hole. Everyone enjoyed the day -those who had played the course before had some idea where to drive the ball, while those who were playing it for the first time were on a voyage of discovery. All agreed that they wanted to return to see if they could do justice to this magnificent course. The locker room was filled with laughter and excuses as the group prepared themselves for the feast. Geoff remarked that he had driven well all day, to which Hywel replied: "I assume you are referring to the buggy!" Someone else asked him if he wished he had brought his bucket and spade, as he was frequently seen in the bunkers. Barti Ddu (alias Bart Youll) filled the air with pirate language and he was ably assisted by Clifton John as they miss-hit the 'occasional ball' or found the long grass of the fringes. Following the meal, Des congratulated Derek on his commitment and organisation in providing a grand day out. The following were presented with their just rewards for achieving some success in their round. Individual - Des Stone 34 pts; Dave Morgan, Martin Neilan, Brian Morgan 29. Team - Ken Gouldsbrough, Alan Yates, Hywel Probert 107 pts. Nearest pin - Dave Morgan (Geoff Aston). Longest drive - Des Stone (Stan Hudson).

Club report

MONTHLY MEDAL

There was some good scoring in the recent June monthly medal, with several players receiving handicap cuts as a result of their efforts. Leading the way in Division One was Roger Schooling, who carded a superb gross 73, net 63, and will no longer being playing off double figures, his handicap being slashed from 10 (9.5) to eight (8.1). Following him in, two shots adrift, was Stephen Davies with a net 65, and it was that score which was also good enough to earn the medal in division two for Matthew Adams. In fact, he was five shots ahead of his nearest rivals and as a result, his handicap will now also be cut by two shots, from 17 (16.6) to 15 (15.1). Prize winners on the day were as follows: Division One: Roger Schooling 73-10-63 (medal and £30); Stephen Davies 77-12-65 (£25); Michael Seal 79-12-67, last nine (£15); James Moffat 74-7 -67 (£10). Division Two: Matthew Adams 82-17-65 (medal and £30); Dafydd Evans 88-18-70, last nine (£25); Michael Wainwright 87-17-70 (£15); David Skyrme 87-16-71 (£10). Twos (£4.60 each): David Cope, Jack Guerreiro, John Helliwell, David Henry, Paul K. Heywood, Ralph Johns, Matthew Jones 2, Steven Keating 2, Samuel Morgan 2, Richard Morton, Ray Muskett, Andrew Pouton, Peter Rossi 2, Michael Seal, David Skyrme, Michael Wainwright. Bag draw (£17.20 each): M. Williams, M. Tucker, S. Amos, C. Beecher, P. Rossi.

MIDWEEK MEDAL

Due to poor weather conditions - which improved as the day progressed - only 22 competitors entered the midweek medal, 12 from Division One and 10 from Division Two. One again there was some useful scoring with prize winners being as follows: Division One: Alan E. James 78-10-68 (medal and £20); Samuel Morgan 71-2-69 (£10). Division Two: John Gillespie 83-14-69 ( £10). Twos (£4.20 each): Paul K. Heywood, David Webb, Alan E. James, Samuel Morgan 2. Bag draw (£10.50 each): Chris Hughes, David Morgan. Footnote: The prizes were allocated as one division.

NEXT MEDAL

Members are reminded that the next Monthly Medal on Saturday, July 7, will also incorporate the HSBC Bank qualifier.

Ladies' Section

Not surprisingly, the inclement weather which seems to have been with us for months has dampened any enthusiasm for golf among many of the ladies and entries for weekly competitions have been generally lower than usual. The May LGU Medal was combined with the qualifying round for the Neath Rhian Pearn annual competition and the qualifier was Rhian Walters with nett 72 and she also won the Silver Medal from Heather Morgan. In the Bronze Division, Pat Fox was the winner and Mary Lewis runner-up. Three players shared first place for the second Hill- Lowe Bogey of the season - Anita Davies, Mary Lewis and Heather Morgan, all on +1. The following week, when the weather was again not at its best, Anne Morris won a Stableford competition with 30 points, Rhian Walters was second on 29 and Heather Morgan third on 24. The weather improved for the Yorkshire Cup and this was won by Rebecca Naden with 35 points and Rhian Walters was second on 34. It was good to see Rebecca again after several months, when work commitments kept her away - mainly in the Caribbean! The weather for the June LGU Medal was quite awful and, not surprisingly, the only two entrants, Heather Morgan and Denise Edwards, were first and second, respectively. Away from the usual weekly competitions, a number of events have taken place. On quite the best day since some time in April, the senior ladies visited Derllys Court, Banc-y-felin, and had a most enjoyable time. The course was in excellent condition, the views from the first nine were spectacular, the food as usual was excellent and some members managed to play quite well too! The Senior Trophy was won by Anne Morris, with Jeanette Leeke a close second. Pat Fox and Liz Storey came up against a very strong pair from Ashburnham in the Daily Mail Foursomes and gracefully bowed out of this year's competition. The Three Counties League has continued to be played as four ball better ball matches and this does not seem to be a format suited to Tenby members, since we have managed to beat Ashburnham 3-2 home, but lost 3-2 away to South Pembs and recently 3.5-1.5 away at Haverfordwest. Finally, the Welsh Team Championships, probably the most important event we are involved in each year. This year it was held at Carmarthen and on Monday afternoon last week our team of Holly Watkins, Heather Morgan, Gillian Roberts, Emma Guerreiro and Anne Morris played Creigiau, regarded as one of the stronger clubs. They all played well and the team won 3-2, which put them into the second round on Wednesday against Maesdu. The wind and rain were quite awful and even spectating became a battle, let alone playing or caddying. They all did their best, but against some very promising potential international players it was not to be and the team lost 3-2. We were all delighted Emma was able to play in the first of, we hope, many team championships and we also hope Georgia Thomas will be able to join the team next year at Nefyn. We wish to congratulate the team on their efforts and know they would all say how much they appreciated the commitment and expertise shown by their caddies. B.M.S.