Despite COVID and lockdown rules doing their best to stop anything going ahead, the CSC Golf Society still managed to get out for its traditional winter golf day which took place on 02 January 2021. Phil Parry & Mike Wells report:

It is not the Masters or the Open, and frankly to some it is more important. In a year when so many sporting events have not taken place due to COVID-19, we were fortunate to find a venue that could accommodate us. The tournament took place at Stockwood Park. It has long been the case that the golf society play within an hour’s drive of the club, so this met the criteria. Players were all advised of COVID rules – keeping distance, no touching, flags, each other’s balls, or anything that was not your own.

So with the year end fast approaching the shout had gone out for attendees at what has now become the traditional Christmas holiday golf event. Regretfully the only refreshments would be bottled drinks and confectionery, no bacon rolls, sit down lunch etc. This was after all the week that we were in lockdown tier…. who can remember, it changes so often!

Weather conditions were not ideal in the build up to the day with much rain. In fact, I was surprised that trollies were permitted. Half the players used a trolley the others choosing to carry, as they call it. Players assembled for booked tees and went off in pairs. Some good golf shots, and some poor, in the conditions scores were probably as good as they would be But winter rules (obviously) applied and if you could find your ball, you could “unplug, clean and place”.

This is a woodland course. So, players defied the odds, a tree is 90% air. So you have to be pretty accurate to hit the wood and so observing on another fairway one of our players hitting a tree and seeing his ball end up 30 yards behind him was quite something. More so as at this point my ball lay in a temporary lake at the bottom of a deep bunker (yes, I know, you can place at a dry spot no nearer the pin). Two shots later I was out the bunker. My playing partner and I picked up on this hole having failed to score. The problem with playing a tournament at 1pm in the winter with sunset at 16.09 is that you run the risk of not finishing, so without hurrying shots, all were urged to get around quickly. If you can’t score pick up and move on, we all agreed. This worked well to the 16th by which time there some bunching and delays at tees. But long story told short all who played finished though the last pair were in the last light on the 18th. A review of the cards showed that it was awfully close and might have been different. The winner by a point, on 25, not too bad in the conditions. So, despite the cold and the mud the two of us really enjoyed being out and playing a round of golf. The annual dinner in the Plough did not take place, there were no prizes. There was a benefit that there was no Chairman’s speech. Hopefully, with vaccines administered and lockdown tiers gone we will be able to play again this year and have more turn out.