Autumn Meeting at Liberton

No, these happy ladies haven't heard their syndicate has picked up the jackpot .  Better than that.  They've just been told today's Autumn Meeting at Liberton was a non-counter.  So it's quite understandable they are raising the roof.

Today was quite difficult owing to the high winds.  At least there had to be some reason for a distinct lack of sparkling scores.  Plenty smiley faces handing over the completed scorecards but pretty much all accompanied by rueful expressions and tales of woe - missed putts (isn't there always), lost balls in the semi-rough, bunkers (and not coming out) and absolutely no distance into the face of the wind at all.  Oh, and the fox.  Yes a lovely cuddly baby fox on the short eleventh who was tearing up and down the bunkers, doing roly-polies on the grass, sitting being adorable and trying to help out generally by lifting balls and dropping them nearer the hole. Well he was a baby fox and hadn't quite learned about never lifting a ball until it was marked.

But there were one or two quite good scores, one especially good nett score and one pretty respectable indeed scratch score.  The last mentioned, the scratch score, was produced by Anne Brownie who had succeeded in bringing in a 77, five strokes better than the nearest score.  She modestly put this down to a fairly successful day on the putting green. Which just goes to prove how funny golf is when most people said it was impossible to putt because of the wind!

The best net score came late in the day.  Vivien Mitchell was over the moon to bring in a net 68, but the CSS had gone up to 71 and was 'reduction only' so Vivien is in for a different kind of reduction!  Very well done indeed.

Results CSS 71 Reduction Only
Scratch results
77   Anne Brownie (Gullane)
82   Linda Grieve (Musselburgh)
83   Kate Johnstone (Baberton)
84   Elinor Blair (Gullane) Noreen Fenton (Dunbar)
85   Dulcie Barnes (Gullane)

Division 2
96   Christine Reid
99   Irene Campbell, Maureen Stewart

Handicap Results
Silver Division
68   Vivien Mitchell (20)
71   Anne Brownie (6)
72   Kate Johnstone (11)
73   Isobel Halliday (15), Katy Gillies19), Alice Jack (13),  Christine Clarke (16),
74   Dulcie Barnes (11),
75   Sally Brian (18), Elinor Blair (9),
76   Ellice Cackett (12), Linda Grieve (6)

Division 2 Handicap Results
74   Christine Reid (22)
76   Irene Campbell (23)
78   Senga Grant (29), Maureen Stewart (21), Sandra Simpson (24)

Thanks to all who helped administratively on the desk and in particular Katherine.  Thanks also to Liberton Golf Club who looked after us so well.

East vets do not wrestle the Asp Trophy back from the West

Sadly it is true.  The East has yet again failed to win back the Asp Trophy from the West and this year, it was on home ground at Gullane No. 2.  Unquestionably they did their best - our team - but still no trophy.  Clearly some sort of  review body or Quango or at best, questions, should be asked.  Why are we so unlucky?  And the worst of it is, the West are totally uncaring.  A very sad situation indeed.

There was of course quite wonderful and in many cases, par golf.  Kate Johnstone and Denise Mitchell fought back with terrier- like tenacity from being four down at the tenth to only one down going into the eighteenth.  Good drives from both favouring each side of the fairway, produced quite special irons on to the green, one 20 feet short and one fifteen feet too high.  Both sides putted to within about a foot.  Clearly no hope of winning back that vital hole, but an excellent match..

However -  and there is usually a 'however' - everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and wins or losses quickly forgotten in the clubhouse later on.  An excellent repast awaited all, which sounded most mouth-watering and clearly raised energy and hydration levels after playing on quite the most wonderful evening.  It was warm, no, let's be frank here, it was hot, windless (yes, at Gullane) with stupendous views over the Forth to Fife as the sun started to sink, and if it hadn't been for the dastardly flying ants in their millions landing on pastel coloured shirts and getting everywhere they shouldn't,  it would have been quite perfect.  Vice-captain Marjory(seen above) was overheard to say that she could hear them landing like raindrops on  (luckily) the outside of  her demure pink umbrella under which she was sheltering against the hot sun.  One wonders if the flying ants were on the side of the West?

Ah well there is always next year!

Results (East first)
Carole Ross and Maureen Woodward lost to Maureen Stewart and Annabel Laing 4 and 2
Fiona Ford and Liz Simpson beat Morag Key and Anita McMillan 2 up
Sandra Simpson and Ros Thoresen lost to Sandra Gilchrist and Karen Maxwell 6 and 5
Kate Johnstone and Denise Mitchell lost to June Irons and Anne Aitken 1 hole
East 2 West 3

PS The observant and mathematically superior will notice a slight discrepancy here.  Don't ask!

Autumn Meeting Draw - at Liberton

Here is the draw for the East Vets Autumn Meeting at Liberton Golf Club on Tuesday the 28th August.

 9.30   Carol McLeod, Alice Jack,  Noreen Fenton
 9.38   Carole Ross, Sally Brian, Libby Campbell
 9.46   Dulcie Barnes, Liz Simpson, Christine Clarke
 9.54   Denise Mitchell, Betty Redwood, Thelma Dey
10.02   Marjory Lauder, Linda Grieve, Dorothy Thomson
10.10   Sydena Cullen, Mary Richardson, Sandra Ashurst
10.18   Margaret Thompson, Christine Simpson, Nancy Gow
10.26   Isabel MacDonald, Irene Campbell, Eleanor Stewart
10.34   Isobel Hastings, Patricia Rose, Rita Veitch
10.42   Margo Blair, Sylvia Cunningham, May Hardy
10.50   Ellice Cackett, Hilary Forbes, Beth Freedman
10.58   Seonaid Stewart, Vivien Mitchell, Katy Gillies
11.06   Ray Lynch, Frances MacFadzean, Elinor Blair
11.14   Nook Weir, Judy Fordyce, Christine Reid
11.22   Ros Thoresen, Kate Johnston, Cynthia Guthrie
11.30   Liz Smith, Liz McLelland, Pam Stephenson
11.38   Moyra Loughran, Senga Grant, Anne Beedie
11.46   Amelia Taylor, Margaret Dalrymple, Sandra Simpson
11.54   Pam Townsend, Anne Brownie, Isobel Halliday
12.02   Joan Marshall, Vickie Sandeman, Fiona Ford
12.10   Molly Woolgar, Maureen Stewart, Ann Hanna
12.18   Margaret Magson, Jackie Squires, Judy Cuthbertson
12.26   Catriona Shedden, Margaret Campbell

There will be £15 to pay for this competition .  Should anyone wish to make a late entry, please contact Katherine who will possibly be able to slot them into a cancellation or even at the end of the draw.  Distance Measuring devices are of course now allowed.  Enjoy your game..

Despite the Weather, at last - the Ramsden Cup Final

Two ladies have  survived the challenge of our Scottish weather and are now ready to face each other with pistols drawn, in the final of the Ramsden Cup.  In an effort to ensure complete fairness we have been endlessly muttering something about finding neutral courses for the semis and the final and when done, the final will not be on a neutral course after all, because both our finalists are from the same course!  Hurrah. Money saved and champagne on the captain's table at the AGM - just kidding.  The two finalists are Denise Mitchell and Isobel Hastings,  preparing to play on Murrayfield of course.  Denise eliminated Dulcie Barnes in the first semi-final and Isobel put paid to Sandra Simpson's hopes.  Bad luck to both but good luck to Denise and Isobel.