Birthday boy Blair drives off at double
BRAMHALL Golf Club’s new Captain Blair Marriott had a double celebration at his beloved club as he drove into office on his 60th birthday.
Blair said: “Bramhall is just a great golf club to be a member of and a lovely course to play with all 18 holes being different, all of them with a challenge and all with USGA standard greens providing a good but fair challenge to golfers of all abilities.
“The clubhouse is a comfortable homely place to relax in before and after a round being modern and fresh while maintain the strong traditional feel of a private members club and the members -you couldn’t wish to meet a more friendly crowd who welcome all new members and enjoy great parties and banter.
“I joined the club ten years ago and now play off my lowest handicap of 16 and my favourite hole at the club is the 9th – a long, straight par 4 with a fairway that breaks both left and right giving an opportunity to go for the green over the stream but with any wind against it has to be a lay-up and with the green having two levels walking off with a bogey is not a bad result.
“My other favourite courses are Callander GC in Perthshire where I first started playing golf 17 years ago when I was working there – it is short but tricky to play and my other favourite is San Lorenzo in the Algarve – a great course played as golf should be in sunny weather with good friends.
“With playing golf and being the club’s House Chair for the last four years I have little time for other hobbies but when I get time I enjoy tracing my family history or anyone else’s in the wider family and I also support Sheffield United – Come on You Blades!
“My joint charity with the Lady Captain is The Princes Trust as we both had similar desires to pick a charity that helped either young people into sport or homeless young children. We feel that the Princes Trust covers many of these eg helping young people who might not have had the best start in life or who are at risk of being on the wrong track in life.
“My own personal golfing highlight came not long after starting at Bramhall when I posted a nett 59, maybe assisted by a high handicap but it was a great round of golf that I am still proud of.
“Finally the three players I would chose to play with in a four-ball would be Rory McIlroy, what a great player, Phil Mickelson, with a short game second to none and Bronte Law, Bramhall’s very own champion now making her way on the Ladies professional circuit.”
Marple’s men played a Texas Scramble and the hot trio of S Walker, J Platt and I Power led in with 55.0 just ahead of J and S Needham, J Sullivan and M Shipperlee 55.1 and I Richardson, S Gregory, K Robison and R McAuley 56.2 and R and D Newton, M Chapman and R Ridley 57.5.
A Wednesday Stableford at Reddish Vale was won by Junior Captain Daniel Myers with a great haul of 45 points taking him clear of Richard Capener 42 and Mike Thompson, Ryan Jackson and Anthony Phillips, all 40.
A Greensome Stableford at Avro was led in by John Wetherell and club legend Alan Brandwood with 40 points ahead of Derek Jones and Mark Brookes 39 and Don Millington and John Langan and Bob Holt and FrankMills, both 37.