March 2024 Newsletter

Dear Member,

It has been a month since the last update, and during that month, we received the very sad news that we have lost two longstanding members, Pete James and, most recently, our immediate Past, Captain Graham.

Graham was looking forward to starting work with the Greens Team, and indeed, they were looking forward to welcoming him on board. Both these sad losses show us all how precious life is and put many things into context.

In his farewell speech, Graham spoke about how the club is moving forward and would be the first to say this must continue. Graham was an active member of the Working Party, and the Course Development Team, and both of these teams will miss him greatly. However, they are more determined than ever to keep the momentum going, or Crossy would be giving us one of his famous frowns.

RIP, Peter and Graham, you will be missed by all.

The New Officials

Steve Olive is our new Captain, his Vice Captain is Kevin Speight. Angela Wilkinson is Lady Captain supported by her Vice Captain Sue Warrington. Dave MacIntosh and Barbara Jack continue in their roles as Presidents. We wish them all the best for the coming year.

This year, the Captain's Drive-In will be on March 30th, and the Lady Captain will hold her drive-in on Tuesday, April 2nd. Please come along and support them.

The Board

Four Board Members were elected at the AGM: Tom Cooney (Club Development Director), Mark Howarth (Business Strategy Director), Barbara Jack (HR Director), and Ian McGloughlin (Finance Director). At the first meeting of the Board, Mark was elected as Chair. No doubt Mark will bring his own style to proceedings, and he recognises that the role of the Board is to run Bury Golf Club's “The Business.” The golf will be run by supporting teams.

The Clubhouse

Exciting times are ahead in the Clubhouse with the introduction of Pebble Green Catering, which will be in full swing by the time the season starts in a little over four weeks. Beth has some really good ideas, and we should all look forward to sampling the offerings very soon.

The new digital screens have been well received, and further screen(s) will be added soon.

Please speak to Charlie Hendrie should you wish to advertise your business on the screen; Charlie offers preferential rates to club members.

The Swing Room

The Swing Room is now operational, and in the next week or so, James and the Board will meet to decide how to make maximum use of this new facility. Once this has been decided, it will be communicated to all members. Thanks to the Working Party, Dave Richardson, and Ian Morris for their help in getting this room operational.

The Locker Rooms

The final work has now been completed, and the newly plastered areas on the ceilings have been painted.

A huge thanks once again to the Working Party, who repaired and painted the ceiling and gave the walls a freshen-up. Special thanks must go to Mike Lonsdale for stepping out of his comfort zone and skimming the ceiling and to Ted Hall for the loan of tressels

A Memorial Day

We recently had two memorial events, one in memory of Barry Samuels and one in memory of Dave Boyle. The Board recognise that all past members are special and deserve to have their lives celebrated. The Board has agreed with the families who already sponsor memorial days that one single Memorial Day will be held annually on the first Bank holiday in May from this year onwards. This will make the competition open to all members. It will be a Board Prize, and the trophy played for will be “The Barry Samuel’s Trophy”. The details and the format are still being finalised, but we will keep you informed.

The Course

Dave and his team continue to work very hard in extremely difficult conditions. They recently prepared the course for a Manchester Alliance Pro-am tournament and received high praise from a large number of the Pros for the way the course was presented. Manchester Alliance also praised all connected with the Club who made the day successful. Indeed, they have booked again for next year, so well done to all concerned.

The work on the third fairway is thankfully reaching its conclusion. Further drainage work is necessary on the 11th, 13th and 18th holes, following which work must begin to prepare the course for the season. In the next couple of weeks, the Greens will be “star slit” and top dressed with Fen Dress and Lawn Sand.

The Joker

The Joker continues to evade us all, but equally, it continues to raise funds for the Club. Thanks to everyone who continues to buy tickets. He must be found soon!!!

We remain keen to hear your suggestions on using the Joker fund to enhance your experience at Bury Golf Club. Please feel free to provide your ideas by speaking to Raffa, Tony or Colin Stephenson.

It is now only four weeks to the Captain’s Drive-In and, hopefully, some better weather.

Good golfing, and Best wishes to you all
The Board