HOME WIN FOLLOWS AWAY DEFEAT
Trefloyne travelled to the delightful course at Carmarthen for a Dyfed League fixture with Carmarthen 'B' on Saturday, August 20, with a good result important as the quest for promotion to Division Three gathered pace. Fixtures were running out and with Carmarthen in the frame, every point gained was of vital importance. Commitments were again to deprive Dyfed League captain Steve Wedlake of some quality players, but the line-up still had a strong look about it. The mature parkland course, which had a links wind blowing, was in stunning condition, with lovely sunshine greeting the players on the first tee. The first hole has out of bounds running all the way up the right, and the slightest hint of a slice would cause big problems, before the round had even started. There was much light-hearted banter on the first tee, with strains of 'We'll Meet Again', as balls headed over the white posts, towards the practice area. With Chris Thompson unavailable to partner his captain, Steve Wedlake sent out the dependable Meurig Evans and Scott Davies to try and put the first point on the board. It was a mighty tight encounter all the way round, the 15th was won to bring the match level, but they found themselves one down on the 18th tee. Scott took the last hole by the throat for a birdie to halve the match. Whilst this valiant effort was taking place, the following four matches were being lost and a big defeat was on the cards. The last two matches out featured John James and Ben 'Little Tiger' Price - who for the first time this season wasn't playing with his regular partner 'Tiger' Davies - and Garfield Price and Bernard Bradley. These two partnerships were to be the heroes of the hour, as they came home with two valuable points. In the context of a 4-2 defeat, which was looking like a whitewash by mid-afternoon, Trefloyne came back home with two unexpected points, which could prove to be very valuable at the end of the season. Glynhir B were the visitors to Trefloyne Park on Saturday, August 27, for Trefloyne's last home match of a thrilling season. With warm sunshine, and virtually no wind, Trefloyne Park was in magnificent condition, the greens were running true and the greenkeepers had set some posers on the greens, with some challenging pin positions. The atmosphere and the tension could be felt all around the course. This, without question, was a must win match; this one afternoon could signal the end of any promotion hopes, or set the team back on course following the defeat at Carmarthen. With the return of regulars Chris Thompson, Dean Rawlins and Adam Thomas, captain Steve Wedlake had a selection headache of who to leave out. While there was understandable disappointment for some, Steve had to go with what he thought were the pairings which could get him the points. Captaincy can sometimes be an unenviable position. With 'Tommo' back and playing off his new handicap of plus-one, he once again joined up with Steve Wedlake to lead the team off. Second off were the regular pairing of the steady and reliable Meurig Evans with the talented, but sometimes erratic youth of Scott Davies. Together they have formed a remarkable partnership and recorded some vital wins for the team this summer. Barry Harrison has been scratching around for some form of late, without a win since the match at South Pembs. It was decided to once again give him a new partner, and Graham Blum was charged with the responsibility of bringing the best out of the much talented Barry, who had ditched his r7 'Launch Control', for what he hoped would be a more penetrating Titliest 905. Adam Thomas and Dean Rawlins were paired together again, as were Richard 'Tiger' Davies and his cub Ben 'Little Tiger' Price - Tiger had a smile from ear to ear that lit up the whole of Trefloyne. James Maxwell and Graham Harrison, who know each other's game so well, were again paired together, as were 'Chic' Brown and Tom Burkat. The talent and commitment weren't in question; it was who could handle the pressure that would count; it was going to be four hours of almost unbearable tension. Steve Wedlake and Chris Thompson were off to their almost customary slow start, and lost the first two holes. The par-three third saw the recovery begin by winning seven holes on the bounce; fatherhood has certainly had a good effect on Chris Thompson, with some imperious driving and magical iron play. The 536-yard par-five seventh saw his drive fly to within 130 yards of the green; a wedge had the ball through the green, but the recovery shot and the result were never in doubt for a moment. The green at the 11th is blind and 335 yards from the tee, but the super confident 'Tommo' asked his captain what the pin position was, before unleashing another mighty drive, which disappeared straight and long towards the unsuspecting green. Glynhir delayed the inevitable with three halves, but it was all over at 'The Quarry' for a 6 and 5 victory. The first important point of the day was on the board, the standard had been set, now it was up to the rest to follow suit. Meurig Evans and Scott Davies had an extraordinary start to their match, with the first five holes being halved to a high quality Glynhir pairing. The fourth looked like being lost but for a superb recovery shot from deep rough, followed by a 'Seve' like chip onto the green from Scott Davies. Glynhir were under pressure with a mighty Scott Davies drive down the fifth, but they again hung on for a half. The pressure was beginning to tell and the Evans- Davies pairing eventually came good and won three holes on the bounce. Glynhir came back to take the ninth, but the response from Trefloyne was to win the 10th and 11th, with a half at the par-three 'Glorious' 12th, a delicate chip from Meurig almost registering a birdie-two for a win. The frustrations and pressure began to tell on Glynhir at the 13th with an out of bounds shot, followed by a flying driver, which almost went as far as the ball! What had started out as a tight match was finished on the 14th with a comfortable 6 and 4 win. Meurig and Scott had once again shown what a reliable and important partnership they are; it is now vital for Trefloyne for this pairing to remain together for the last match of the season at Glyn Abbey next week, where Scott's confident long driving is going to be so important to the team's cause. As a golfer, Barry Harrison has just about everything, stylish good looks, immaculate presentation, the trademark cigar and a new Titliest 905 driver. The pairing with Aussie Graham Blum was surely all that was needed to kick-start Barry's wayward Dyfed League form. Alas, this 'dream pairing' was to find themselves three down after three, which could well have been four, had not Graham won the fourth in fine style. By the eighth they had pulled it back to two down, and it was thought that Glynhir were starting to wobble, the hole was halved, with putts lipping out of the cup. A magnificent putt on the 10th from Graham Blum rescued a half, and there was still all to play for in what had become a pulsating match. By the 13th, the deficit had been reduced to one- down. Barry had just missed out of bounds at the top of the bank and an explosive second iron shot had the ball screaming to the green, but when it looked like a win was there for the taking, the hole was lost to a monster putt from Glynhir. The Trefloyne pairing somehow managed to put the disappointment behind them and won the 14th and 15th, with a quite magical second shot from Barry Harrison onto the green, to bring the match all- square. All the hard work was undone, with sloppy play losing the par-three 16th, the 17th was there for the taking, but the putts wouldn't drop and the hole was halved. A win was now needed on the 18th to secure a half, but with shots being given, it was too much of an ask, and the match was lost two-down. Dean Rawlins and Adam Thomas had played and won together in the corresponding match at Glynhir earlier in the season, so captain Steve Wedlake was hoping for much of the same this time round. With Dean looking fit and tanned following a visit to Spain, and Adam, who is due to jet off on holiday, playing his last Dyfed League match of the season, there was an air of supreme confidence about this pairing. It was a tight match on the front nine, the highlight being a magnificent pitch from Adam Thomas onto the green, which hit the pin and stayed out to six inches. The turning point, as with most matches at Trefloyne, was the 13th 'Quarry Hole', where both Glynhir drives were deposited. After going one-up on the 14th, steady play saw a win at the 17th by two-up. After playing with different partners at Carmarthen, it was a big boost to see Richard 'Tiger' Davies and Ben 'Little Tiger' Price back in harness. Ben was looking in ominous form following a trip to Wexford with Pembrokeshire Boys. The match was off to a flyer with a solid par from Tiger to win the first hole; the second and third were halved and the fourth won with a classic putt from off the green by Tiger. Ben was clearly inspired by his senior partner, and sent a ripping drive down the fifth, to put pressure on the Glynhir pairing. Tiger had a birdie at the par-five seventh, and this 'Little and Large' pairing were playing some inspired golf, to be four-up going down the eighth. Tiger found himself in bunker trouble following a good approach shot on the ninth, taking two to escape the greenside bunker; 'Little' Tiger saved a half with a long putt to spare his partner's blushes. The turn did little to inspire the Glynhir pairing, which included their captain, and the match was won convincingly 6 and 5. It is always comforting to have a pairing at the bottom of the order, who have played together on a regular basis, rather than a partnership that has been hastily put together. In Graham Harrison and James Maxwell, Trefloyne not only had a regular pairing, but an undefeated one. It was almost business as usual as they stormed the first to go one-up. It then all went a bit sloppy, with the second being lost, which was followed by three halves. Graham Harrison then won the short sixth and birdied the par-five seventh, with the eighth being won in imperious fashion by James Maxwell; it was three on the bounce to go three-up, but approaching the turn, the ninth was lost and the nerve ends were starting to jangle. Although the 11th was won, they then contrived to lose the 12th and 13th, which put the match back in the melting pot. James Maxwell then brought his undoubted talent to the fore with sparkling wins at the 14th and 15th. Graham Harrison played the par-three 16th to perfection for a half, and the match was in the bag with a well-earned 3 and 2 victory, which maintained their undefeated run in Dyfed League matches. The final match out featured the redoubtable 'Chic' Brown and Tom Burkat, which was a fine mix of youth and experience. At the seventh it looked as though this match was in for an early finish as Trefloyne found themselves three-down to a very consistent Glynhir pairing. 'Chic' and Tom, however, were not going to give up without a fight, and by the 14th they had brought the match back to one-down. This was followed by a wonderful 15th which had the match back to all-square. The short 16th had Tom Burkat playing a delectable chip from the bank of the bunker, which rolled up to the pin for a simple putt for a win, to go one-up with two to play. Tom Burkat unleashed a mighty 300-yard drive down the 17th, which would have gone further had it not landed in the light rough; the wrong choice of iron had Tom playing through the green, much to his annoyance -the arrogance of youth demands that every shot should be perfect. Glynhir seized the initiative to win the hole, which had the match going up the last level. As with the Harrison-Blum match, the shots that were given proved too much and the hole was halved. The match finished as it had started almost four hours earlier, all level. The final result had Trefloyne winning 5-1, which took them back to the top of Division Four, and in the mix for promotion. Trefloyne's final match, of what has so far been a wonderfully exciting season, is away at Glyn Abbey this Sunday. This is possibly going to be the most important match Trefloyne Golf Club has ever been involved in. A massive supreme effort is now needed from everyone for one last big push for promotion, which would be a memorable way to celebrate Trefloyne's 10th anniversary in 2006. Dyfed League captain Steve Wedlake has worked a minor miracle this season with his dedication, loyalty and enthusiasm, supported by a nucleus of players who have made themselves available for selection. Now is the time for that loyalty to be repaid in full. A coach is being provided for the trip to Glyn Abbey for both players and supporters, which will be leaving Trefloyne Park at 9.30 am.
SATURDAY STABLEFORD
Whilst all the excitement of the Dyfed League encounter with Glynhir was taking place, there was a closely contested Saturday Stableford being played. Barry Turner, who should surely have been part of the Dyfed League team, won with 39 points, Simon Arthur came a close second with 37 points. Andrew Evans had a birdie-two, but at time of going to press, it was unsure which hole it had been achieved at. Congratulations to Julie Jenkins, who is such an enthusiastic supporter of the Ladies Section, for winning the Dorritt Parry Silver Salver in fine style on Tuesday, August 23.
Sunny Sunday scramble
One day, Linda Kromrei, lady captain at Trefloyne Golf Club, woke up with the idea of holding a members' fun day as part of her captaincy year. On Sunday, this little idea came to a successful fruition with a well organised Texas Scramble for 80 players in 20 teams of four. The weather was perfect (again organised by Linda), the play inspired at times by some teams, and the setting positively Mediterranean! Linda, ably assisted by her partner Brian and our super efficient and hard-working professional Christine, ran the day like clockwork and the results were a testament to the standard of golf played at the Trefloyne club. First place went to the well-balanced team of Chris Hicks, Di Neale, Mel Neale and Joan Beynon with a cracking score of 547/8ths. They were closely followed by Rob Evans, Tom Burkat, Danny Brown and Barry Turner with 555/8ths and third were Dominic Subbiani, Anthony Griffiths, John Broomhead and Dylan Lawrence on 56 7/8ths. The men's longest drive was won, despite his incredulity, by Barry Thorne, the ladies by the mighty Michelle Richards and the juniors by Matthew Mcmann. After the early shotgun start, we were all ravenous for the tempting delicacies filling the marquee on the terrace and were joined by many guests and family members to enjoy the wonderful food, brilliantly prepared by Kim, Joan and family and their staff, led by Sarah, who worked like a Trojan! Much demand was apparent in particular for the gorgeously 'moreish' honey and mustard sausages! Linda bravely then went out to drive the first hole once again, watched by many of her fellow golfers, who were very glad that it was Linda and not them who was attempting this feat (in particular after the amount of food we had all enjoyed). It fell to Mel Beely to come up with the most accurate guess to match Linda's drive, which was dedicatedly measured by Graham and Kristalle with their trusty wheel at 137.63. Linda and Brian then ran through the many prizes for those not so lucky with their golf, in the raffle and bag draws. All in all, a great day and one that sums up what golf is all about at Trefloyn - good golf, the best company and delicious food of course!
JUNIOR CLINICS
Christine Burton will be starting her popular 'Junior Clinics' on Saturday, September 10, with another taking place on Tuesday, September 13. For further information, contact Trefloyne Pro Shop on 01834 845639.
COMMITTEE MEETING All committee members are reminded that the next general committee meeting will take place in the Meeting Room on Wednesday, September 7, at 7.30 pm.