Content

This week’s Enews covers the following topics:

• Covid Update – Change to Mask Requirement
• 12th Hole Closed on Monday 1st February for the Anniversary of the tragic 2020 car accident 
• From the Course
• Ladies Opening Day 2021
• Paige Stubbs – Upcoming Group Clinic Programme
• Lost but Found
• Rules Corner – Drop or Place
• Oatlands Takeaway Meals – Updated 29th January 2021
• Renaming Bistro on Bettington – Result to be announced in next week’s Enews.
• Upcoming Events
• Local Rules from wartime era

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Covid Update – Change to Mask Requirement

On Wednesday, Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced changes to COVID-19 restrictions across the Greater Sydney region.

From 12.01am on Friday, January 29th, the below change comes into effect:

– Masks not compulsory at supermarkets, retail or hospitality venues 

What this means for the Club and its members is that anyone entering the Pro Shop (which is classified as Retail), will no longer be required to wear a mask. 

Masks will remain compulsory for front-of-house hospitality staff only.

We will continue to update you as further changes are made.

Sincerely, 

Sam Howe

General Manager

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12th Hole Closed on Monday 1st February for the Anniversary of the tragic 2020 car accident 

Monday, 1st February will be the one year anniversary of the tragic car accident that occurred on Bettington Road killing four children.

As a mark of respect and to ensure safety for any mourners attending the site of the accident throughout the day, the Club will be closing the 12th hole for the duration of the day.

Members are also advised that the families have organised a vigil at the site in the evening and as such, the section of Bettington Road between the Ellis and York Street roundabouts will be closed from 7pm – 8pm.

We ask that any members leaving the Clubhouse during this time plan an alternate route to avoid traffic congestion. 

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From the Course

Rainfall for the Week: 5.5mm mm, Rainfall for 2021: 40.0mm   Dam: 80%   Green Speed: 9 feet

 

The course made it through the recent hot spell unscathed, with just some smaller areas on fairway edges showing signs of the stress that 5 days above 30 degrees will generally cause. The team really focussed on moisture levels in greens with thorough probing of greens surfaces performed each morning. This hot spell has now been replaced with cloudy/ showery weather with increased humidity which are ideal conditions for disease development, so it’s a knife edge situation managing greens in these conditions at this time of year.

Our fungicide program on the greens to control any disease in these surfaces remains strong. For the past week, we have had to provide a wetter than ideal soil profile to the plant roots for them to cope with the constant hot temperatures. This reduces air in the soil pore spaces and creates an environment beneficial for soil borne diseases which attack the plant root system. To alleviate these conditions, we will be needle tyning all greens to allow air movement into the soil. This practice has very little disruption to our putting surfaces once each green has been rolled afterwards. 

The preparation work behind the 4^th green has continued this week with final shapes nearing completion by the weekend. We are hoping to be able to lay turf down on this area on Tuesday. We will be covering the section of this area designated for cart access to the 5^th tee immediately with the green plastic mesh material that we have used in other areas of the course. Couch will be laid beneath this green mesh which is the ideal grass type to use in conjunction with this protective product. Kikuyu turf will be laid on all other parts of this site so that it blends into all the surrounding turf areas.

The 9^th pond received a small amount of runoff water from Wednesday afternoon’s rainfall, and so far our patch up work on the spillway wall seems to be working. Hopefully the weather predictions for the next few days comes true and this pond gets filled right to the top and the new aerator can operate correctly.

Our volunteers returned to official duties on Monday, preparing bunkers before play, tidying up the nature strip along the 12^th hole and further preparation work on the bare patches on the 12^th and 13^th holes, in readiness for the new turf this coming Monday. Many thanks for all your efforts gentlemen, with this work on the 12^th and 13^th holes to be a great improvement for the course.

 

Good Golfing!

The Course Team

 

 

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Ladies Opening Day 2021

 

Oatlands’ ladies enjoyed a cool summer day with the odd shower for their 2021 season opening event on Thursday 28 January. Lunch was enjoyed after golf where we welcomed a number of new members to their first Opening Day. Our monster raffle raised an amazing $1,320 for our two charities – Children’s Medical Research and the Australia NZ Gynaecological Oncology Group. Our President, Lesleigh Perkins, Captain, Paula Skelton, and Veterans Rep, Mary Lantry, highlighted the following for the coming year:

• Don’t miss next Thursday 4 February, which is the start of the ladies’ competition season for:
• Medal Round 1
• President’s Cup qualifier
• Point Score and Birdie Competitions
• Most Reduced Handicap reference day
• Veteran Medal Round 1
• Lexus Cup Round 1
• The monthly calendar of events will be displayed in the ladies’ locker room and on the website
• 2021 will see 13 veteran’s events including 2 team days on 3 May 2021 and closing day on 25 October 2021
• Barbara Koch Day is scheduled for 18 March 2021
• The conditions of play for each scheduled event will be displayed in the ladies’ locker room prior to the event
• All members wishing to qualify for match play events are required to have their names marked off the time sheet held by staff in the pro shop (This replaces writing a “Q” on the scorecard as done previously)
• Ladies Hole-in-One winners will receive 2 bottles of champagne or a bottle of scotch which will be opened by staff and shared with the members
• The Golf NSW Medal is a competition contested over 6 rounds prior to October 1^st. These rounds are scheduled with the Oatlands Club Medal rounds. The winner in each division is the player with the best 3 rounds. The $5 entry fee will be charged to your account unless you opt out by contacting the office.
• The Pennants teams for 2021 will be selected based on form and availability. The full draws with minimum handicap requirement are on display in the ladies’ locker room. An email and invitation will be sent to those who are eligible to play.
• The Committee will be putting their names on the timesheet each Thursday to ensure we play with different ladies and we encourage all members to do the same.
• Please ensure you arrive 20 minutes prior to your tee time and remember to care for our course by repairing all divots through the fairways and on the greens.
• We look forward to a great 2021 of golf and friendship

OPENING DAY RESULTS

Team event winners: Eileen Stratford, Jilly O’Flaherty, Carole Blonk and Diana Goss

Team event runners up: Linda Bestford, Vanessa Chivers, Linda Gyzen and Judith Leeds-Roberts

 

 

 

Nearest the Pin:	Straightest Drive:	Super Pin:
Leoni Guthrie – A Grade	Lesleigh Perkins – A Grade	Clara Jun
Margaret Furini – B Grade	Michelle Hannaford – B Grade	Sophia Shin
Latika Phadke – C Grade	Susan Boyd – C Grade	Myeong Seon

 

 

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Paige Stubbs – 4 Week Game Improvement Programme

The Club’s newest PGA Professional, Paige Stubbs, is pleased to offer a 4 Week Game Improvement Programme for members and guests as outlined below:

Paige Stubbs 4 Week Game Improvement Clinic

Come enjoy the opportunity to learn from Oatlands Tour Professional/Golf Coach Paige Stubbs where she will simplify your game to improve your score as well as help you with your mental game and pre shot routine.

Limited to 4 people per clinic – $220pp

Programme A

Week 1 – Tuesday 16^th February 10am: Putting (1 hour)

Week 2 – Tuesday 23^rd February 10am: Chipping/Bunkers (1 hour 30 mins)

Week 3 – Tuesday 2^nd March 10am: Driving Range (1 hour)

Week 4 – Tuesday 9^th March 10am: On Course Playing (Mental Game/Routine Included) (2 hours)

Programme B

Week 1 – Tuesday 16^th February 2pm: Putting (1 hour)

Week 2 – Tuesday 23^rd February 2pm: Chipping/Bunkers (1 hour 30 mins)

Week 3 – Tuesday 2^nd March 2pm: Driving Range (1 hour)

Week 4 – Tuesday 9^th March 1pm: On Course Playing (Mental Game/Routine Included) (2 hours)

Please feel free to contact Paige on 0416421677 to book or for more information.

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Lost but Found

While it was very unfortunate to have a car broken into last week, the Club was provided with a polar opposite good news story during the week relating to a lost item of personal value (please note that names have been removed for privacy reasons);

Dear Sam and Your Team,

Last week whilst in Oatlands GC car park hosting a guest for a day’s golf he lost a very valuable gold ring – we searched, couldn’t find it so we did advise the Club staff but really gave it up for lost.

Several days later the Pro shop called me to say that it had been found and had been handed in by a member. Needless to say we were astounded – not only that it had been found but also the homework that went into finding me and then backtracking and follow up.

This not only reflects on the quality of the staff but also the membership and visitors.

Both my guest and I should be most pleased if you would pass on our sincere thanks to your team for a job well done.    

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Rules Corner – Drop or Place

A common question when putting a ball into play is:  Do I drop or place the ball?  These are important things to consider, as some of them changed with the new rules in 2019.

Rule 14 covers the procedures for marking, lifting, placing and dropping a ball.  It also tells you who may lift a ball (14.1b), and who may replace (14.2d) or drop (14.3b) it.  The quotations in italics are from The Rules of Golf.  You can find the full rules and definitions in searchable form here: https://www.randa.org/en/rog/2019/pages/the-rules-of-golf

The rules use the term Replace which is defined in the Definitions as:

To place a ball by setting it down and letting it go, with the intent for it to be in play.

If the player sets a ball down without intending it to be in play, the ball has not been replaced and is not in play (see Rule 14.4).

Whenever a Rule requires a ball to be replaced, the Rule identifies a specific spot where the ball must be replaced.

Note that you cannot roll your ball back onto the spot with your club.

Interpretation Replace/1 – Ball May Not Be Replaced with a Club

For a ball to be replaced in a right way, it must be set down and let go. This means the player must use his or her hand to put the ball back in play on the spot it was lifted or moved from.

Here is a list of situations where the ball must be placed or replaced:

Rule Number	Action
4.2c(2)	Another ball substituted for original ball that is cut or cracked, replace on spot.
5.7d	(1) Replace ball after suspension/resumption of play. (2) If ball or ball marker moved – replace on spot or estimated spot.
6.2	When playing or replaying a ball from the Teeing Area of the hole being played, the ball may be placed, teed, or dropped.
6.3c(2)	When ball played by another player as a wrong ball, replace on spot or estimated spot.
7.4	Ball accidentally moved while trying to find or identify it, replace on spot or estimated spot.
9.3 Exception 13.1d(1) 13.1d(2)	Ball on Putting Green must be replaced if it moves after having already been lifted or replaced or is accidentally moved by player, opponent or another player.
9.6	Ball lifted or moved by outside influence – replace on spot or estimated spot.
11.2c	Place from where deliberately deflected/stopped ball must be played. (1) Stroke made from anywhere except putting green and ball would have come to rest on putting green – place ball on estimated spot where ball would have come to rest. (2) Stroke made from putting green – cancel and replace on original spot.
16.1d	Relief for Abnormal Course Condition for ball on Putting Green.  The ball is placed even if the nearest point of complete relief is off the putting green in the general area.
Local Rule – Preferred lie	Place within the Relief Area specified in the local rule.

In all other cases, the ball must be dropped.  This covers relief from Penalty Areas, Abnormal Course Conditions (GUR) except on putting green (see 16.1d above), Immovable Obstructions, and Unplayable Ball.

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Oatlands Takeaway Meals – Updated 29th January 2021

 

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Renaming Bistro on Bettington – Winner to be announced in next week’s Enews.

Throughout November and December, the Club has been running a competition to rename the popular Bistro on Bettington evenings. The response to this competition has been fantastic with almost 70 suggestions received. 

These suggestions were narrowed down to 6 finalists which have been voted on by members over the last month.

The result of the vote will be announced next week once a thorough scrutineering process has been undertaken by the Club’s General Manager.

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Upcoming Events

Bistro on Bettington

• Saturday 13th February
• Wednesday 24th February

VW Scramble – Tuesday 23rd February

OGC Brazilian Night – Friday 26th February

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Local Rules from a Wartime Era

A member provided the image below from Richmond Golf Club in the UK from 1940.  

The copy below relating to the Local Rules was taken from the Richmond Golf Clubs website;

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