Welcome to the very first The Drax Journal, the new newsletter that will be circulated periodically around the club to keep you, the members up to date with what is going on.
On Tuesday 21st February, we held our Annual General Meeting. Initially we would like to thank those members who attended and posed questions to the committee. Below you will find some key highlights from the evening.
First of all, after 7 years of having a vacant position, we are very proud to announce that we have a new Junior Captain. Samuel Blackham of Thorne takes up the mantle after being a Junior Member at Drax for the past 2 years. Samuel is said to be “ecstatic” about the news, his dad Paul Blackham who is a previous Captain at Forest Pines, North Lincolnshire and now current Drax member says Samuel is looking forward to be representing the club at such a young age.
Off the back of this appointment, we will be looking to expand the Junior Section over the coming years and to try and improve junior membership we have introduced a scheme whereby all adult members be entitled to two FREE associate junior members with their membership.
Competitions Update
With the new season rapidly approaching, we are getting in the mood for competition play. To kick start the new season, our annual ‘Captains Drive’ will take place on Sunday 19th March. All members and guests are invited to join our incoming Captain, Senior Captain and Junior Captain to open the season. Bacon Sandwiches will be provided on arrival thanks to Senior Vice-Captain, Allan Palmer and Ken Williams. Tea and Coffee will also be provided thanks to Club Captain, Kevin Harrison. Players are asked to meet in the club between 07:45 and 08:20 for a 09:00 tee. A ‘Guess the distance’ competition will also be running on the day for you to guess the distance of each Captain’s drive with a prizes on offer for the person who guesses the most accurate distance.
19th March will also see the winner of ‘The Grand Draw’ announced. Tickets are still available to purchase for a chance of winning 1 Years Free Membership! Tickets can be purchased at £5 each or 3 for £10.
The season’s first competition will be the Monthly Medal on April 1st. To further ease the flow of your round, a ‘gap’ will be introduced in the tee times between 09:20 and 10:30. This will be monitored throughout the season.
Following last season’s trial of the new layout, we have now carried out our annual stroke index review. Some changes will be coming into play as of 1st April so please ensure you check your card during your round to make sure you have no surprises. A copy of the new scorecard will be posted before the start of the season for all to see.
Continuing the theme of competition entry, you will notice a new colour system on the entry sheets. This has been designed to help differentiate between Club Competitions, Senior Competitions and Ladies Competitions. Full details can be found below:
Maroon Logo – Club Competitions such as Monthly Medal, Midweek Medal, Club Matches
Gold Logo – Major Competitions
Blue Logo – Senior Competitions such as Seniors Cup and Seniors Medal
Purple Logo – Ladies Competitions
Greens Committee Update
Please be aware that as of Wednesday 22nd February until the end of March, the greenkeepers will not actively rake bunkers on a daily basis. It will be the responsibility of players to rake the bunker after they have taken their shots.
This new rule means that should you end up in a bunker, you are allowed to pick up your ball, rake the bunker, place the ball back, play your shot and then rake the bunker as you leave.
In total, this will free-up around 5 hours per week for the greenkeeper to spend time on more pressing work around the course. Again, this is a temporary ruling until the beginning of the season.
Following the AGM, a new Greens Committee is being formed. The new committee will come into effect as of April 3rd along with our new Head Greenkeeper, Mark Sneap who will be joining us from Doncaster Golf Club. We welcome Mark and wish him all the luck going forward. Further information will follow in the coming weeks.
We wish the outgoing Head Greenkeeper, Ben Rutter all the best in his new business venture.
Club Matches
Throughout the season, Drax will play host to a number of clubs from around the Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Areas. Saturday 8th April sees Drax play host to The Lincolnshire Golf Club from Crowle.
Entry sheets will be posted well in advance of matches so team selection can be made. A full club match fixture list can be found in the changing rooms on the new notice board (located between the two windows).
Membership Offer
Our recruitment drive continues through March with 15 Months membership for the price of 12 being offered to all NEW members who sign-up before the 1st April. Full details can be found in the below photo.
That concludes the first Issue of The Drax Journal. We hope it has proven to be useful in passing on club information thus ensuring we remain clear and transparent. Remember the journal is not a monthly publication and will only be issued as and when there is a need to circulate the latest news, so keep your eyes open for the next issue.
Should you have any suggestions or good news to publish, please email me on liam0409@hotmail.co.uk
Liam Ridgill,
Marketing Subcommittee Chairman