Peter Phillips launched his new year as captain at Worlebury Golf Club at the traditional drive-in.

IT HAS been a big weekend at Worlebury with the annual meeting and new club captain, Peter Phillips, taking up office.

The meeting reflected on a highly successful year on and off the course, with the club going from strength to strength. This was achieved, in part, by a hard working, effective council, under the leadership of chairman, Keri Allchurch, but also the contribution of countless members giving willingly of their time, skills and experience for the benefit of the club.

Outgoing captain, Paul Gardiner, thanked the members, his wife and current lady captain, Maxine, and vice-captain Peter, for their support throughout his year. The highlights included playing with the club professional, Gary Marks in the captain/pro challenge and raising an incredible £7,560 for his chosen charity, Cystic Fibrosis.

When combined with the sums collected by the ladies and seniors’ captains, a total of more than £13,600 was raised by the generous membership in 2014.

The following morning saw the traditional captain’s drive-in, with Maxine and seniors’ captain Mike Williams, hitting steady shots more or less up the middle. Junior captain Charlie Camper, smacked one a long way and Peter stroked his shot into the trees, a semi-respectable 182 yards.

Peter is a popular choice and has been a member at Worlebury for 37 years, having joined the club as a teenager. His current handicap is 12, although at the peak of his game he represented Somerset, is a former club champion and first team captain.

He will be supported by his mother, Jill, who is the club’s lady president, father John and sister Amanda, who are both active playing members.

Although he is a trained horticulturist, for many years Peter has earned his living as a successful local entertainer. He started off as a Pontin’s Blue Coat and has never looked back. He is a founder member of the Songs from the Shows summer season in Weston and recently appeared on the same billing as the Three Degrees.

Peter’s chosen charity is Above and Beyond, which he shares with Maxine and Mike. They plan to collectively raise money for an item of equipment for the Cardiac Unit at Bristol Children’s Hospital.

Our picture shows the four captains on the tee.

Our picture shows Peter and Paul at the AGM when the captaincy changed hands.

A COLD winter’s day greeted the Weston Seniors 666 competition.

The rules require each three-man team to score Stableford points based on one player scoring the first first holes, two players the second six and all three on the final six holes.

The winners with 71 points were Michael Dyer, Dennis Chilcott and Gerald Taylor. Runners-up with 71 were Dennis Longden, David Andow and Ron Kelley, having beaten the captain’s team of Roy Schubert, Allan Tucker and Fred Donbavand on countback.

THE semi-finals of the prestigious West of England Winter Foursomes takes place this Sunday at Burnham & Berrow Golf Club.

Local interest is maintained with Burnham pairs in both halves of the draw, setting up the possibility of an all-Burnham final. In the top half, Troy Crandon and Andy Fisher take on Mitch Waite and Jonny Doidge from Filton Golf Club, with one of Burnham’s professionals Shane Kaye and his partner Dave Pearce taking on David Gover and Nigel Wilson from The Kendleshire Golf Club in the bottom half.

Geoff Clifford won Division 1 of the Stableford with 37 points. Scoring proved difficult with a cold north westerly wind blowing across the course and was reflected in the CSS which worked out as reductions only.

Second place went to Neil Darby with 35 and Rob Humphries and Will Crandon in third and fourth places respectively with 34. Division 2 was won by Martyn Milverton with just 31 points, one ahead of Jon Marshfield, proving how tough the conditions were.

Up and coming star of the future, Harriot Lockley, who is just 10-years-old and playing off 19 handicap, led the way by winning the ladies’ Stableford.

Twenty sevenpoints was good enough to take the honours on a cold and windy day. Liz Biddle was second with Kate Charles and Jean Booth in third and fourth places.

STEWART Garrett produced the best round of the day to scoop the monthly medal and also the Presidents Putter at Brean.

His nett 66 was the only sub score on another bitterly cold day and this was four clear of the next best score. Garrett took the top spot in Division 2 ahead of Kevin Davies, while the overall runner-up in the Presidents Putter was Tom Broom, who won Division 1.

His gross 81 was also the lowest of the day and his nett 70 relegated long-time leader Steve Jones into second place. Scoring in Division 3 did not reach those heady heights as nett 77 was good enough to take victory for Dai Wood, ahead of Mike Smith on countback. Rhea Isom continued her good form as she won the ladies’ event with a steady round.

A day earlier it was Garrett’s fellow Scot Graham Foy who scored an emphatic win in the latest round of the Winter League.

On a day when most of the players struggled to get close to playing to their handicaps, Foy was superb and ended well under his. The 45 points he accumulated saw him seven better than his nearest challenger, his son Mike Carter, with Brian Read in third on 36.

THERE were just two competitions at Wedmore and both suffered from less than perfect weather conditions.

The seniors played a yellow ball bowmaker, but the weather put a few players off and some three man teams turned into pairs.

This did not put off John Viney and Gordon Summers who, with the equalising impact of being allowed full handicap, scored 75 points, a clear three points better than any other groups.

The second placed team of David Robertson, Terry Simpson and Martin Easton only had the benefit of three players for part of the round, as Robertson was taken ill on the front nine and had to stop.

Geoff Fisher, Jim Sims and Tony Ireland also scored 72 points, losing out on countback. Calvon Poulton-Sadler, Ellis Nearn and David Adams were a further shot back with the final prize going to Tony Glover, John Cutter and David Dams, who totalled 70.

The weather was even worse for the ladies, who reduced their Stableford to just nine holes. With wintry showers occurring throughout the morning, Eunice Bond did particularly well to score 19 points to win by a single point from a group of three players.

Leading the way on countback was Caroline Patterson, ahead of Trish Phelps and Gaye McWhinney. Saybria Sims was a further sot back on 17, with Linda Roberts taking the final prize with 16 points.