April showers were the order of the day at Mont-de-Marsan during the first round of Roy Sherwin's annual Matchplay tournament. Sixteen of us kept alternating between waterproofs and dry weather gear. The golf was almost as mixed as the weather — flashes of brilliance followed by dull periods.
Roy had devised some interesting 'side' competitions. There were two par 3s where we had to hit the green and measure the distance to the hole and add the two together — the shortest combined distance being the winner. The problem was nobody managed to hit both greens, so that prize will be held over to the semi-final day at Lourdes where the prize will be open to all players, not just those left in the matchplay. Roy also had a novel idea for another prize — nearest the pin with the second shot. The chosen hole was a dog-leg par 4 with a lake on the right and bunkers guarding the green. Unfortunately the wind got up and was directly against so even a good drive and second shot was always going to be short of the green, so that prize too goes forward to Lourdes. All the more reason to have a good turnout for semi-finals day.
The individual match results were as follow: Fergus O'Neill beat Mark McNulty; Ian Kennedy beat Richard Gibson; Pete Giles beat Paul Wilding; Roger Barton beat John Wilkinson; Mike Matthews beat Phil Faiers; Jean-Marc Doré beat Gérard Bouchet; Rob Jones beat Martyn Hayward and Clive Robinson beat Nick Trantom.
Eight winners and eight losers on the course, but all winners in the clubhouse afterwards where we had an excellent lunch accompanied by banter and laughter. On a cold and showery April day of golf there can be few things better than a warm clubhouse with a cosy bar, blazing log fire and a long table set for lunch. The 3-course meal was a joy to eat, the 18-hole course a joy to play. Our Captain, Martyn, congratulated the winners and thanked Roy for his organisation and generous sponsorship.
Some headed home pondering what might have been, others were already thinking about their next round match to be played at Pallanne. One thing is sure, all will want to return to Mont-de-Marsan to sample again its challenging course and welcoming clubhouse.
Roy had devised some interesting 'side' competitions. There were two par 3s where we had to hit the green and measure the distance to the hole and add the two together — the shortest combined distance being the winner. The problem was nobody managed to hit both greens, so that prize will be held over to the semi-final day at Lourdes where the prize will be open to all players, not just those left in the matchplay. Roy also had a novel idea for another prize — nearest the pin with the second shot. The chosen hole was a dog-leg par 4 with a lake on the right and bunkers guarding the green. Unfortunately the wind got up and was directly against so even a good drive and second shot was always going to be short of the green, so that prize too goes forward to Lourdes. All the more reason to have a good turnout for semi-finals day.
The individual match results were as follow: Fergus O'Neill beat Mark McNulty; Ian Kennedy beat Richard Gibson; Pete Giles beat Paul Wilding; Roger Barton beat John Wilkinson; Mike Matthews beat Phil Faiers; Jean-Marc Doré beat Gérard Bouchet; Rob Jones beat Martyn Hayward and Clive Robinson beat Nick Trantom.
Eight winners and eight losers on the course, but all winners in the clubhouse afterwards where we had an excellent lunch accompanied by banter and laughter. On a cold and showery April day of golf there can be few things better than a warm clubhouse with a cosy bar, blazing log fire and a long table set for lunch. The 3-course meal was a joy to eat, the 18-hole course a joy to play. Our Captain, Martyn, congratulated the winners and thanked Roy for his organisation and generous sponsorship.
Some headed home pondering what might have been, others were already thinking about their next round match to be played at Pallanne. One thing is sure, all will want to return to Mont-de-Marsan to sample again its challenging course and welcoming clubhouse.
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