Content

This week’s Enews covers the following topics:

• From the Course
• Ladies Update
• US Masters Breakfast and OGC Green Jacket – Monday 12th April
• Staff Profile – Kathy Bright (Membership and Admin)
• Junior League
• Over 80’s Australian Golf Championship – Harrington Waters
• House Account Docket signing required at the Bar, Pro Shop and Sandwich Hut
• Kiosk Bookings have returned for Wednesdays and Saturdays
• Barbara Koch Raffle – In Support of ANZCOG
• OGC NRMA to the Rescue
• Dine & Discover Vouchers
• Oatland’s Bridge – Starting back Wednesday 10th March
• Club Strategic Planning – Member Workshop Group Sessions
• Pennant Update
• Upcoming Event

From the Course

Rainfall for the Week: 3.5mm,  Rainfall for 2021: 168mm   Dam: 100%   Green Speed: 10.0 feet

The team has been able to allocate many hours this week to the rejuvenation of the 3^rd greenside bunkers. New turf has been laid around the LHS bunker, with new drainage and lining also being installed in this bunker during the week. On Thursday, 30 tonnes of new sand has been tipped and spread in this bunker. This sand has also been compacted once by rolling over the entire bunker area with one of our course utility vehicles. This wheel rolling will be performed several more times to ensure the sand is compacted enough to avoid the dreaded fried egg lie. The two RHS bunkers are ready for turfing, which will be completed on Monday. The same process will follow with these two bunkers to be filled with sand by the end of next week.

Our green surfaces have firmed up with no significant rainfall and milder temperatures and this allows the team to dry these surfaces down to suitable levels for the current weather conditions. As a result, the green speed has increased without the need to cut and roll surfaces to achieve this result.

To keep our greens in healthy condition, we will be needle tyning all greens over the next week, with as little disruption to play as possible. A root hormone will be applied to greens in the following week in an effort to gain as much root development as possible when greens renovations are performed. Autumn and Spring conditions are the most favourable conditions for the grass species which we have on our putting surfaces, being a bent and winter grass mixture. This is why renovations are performed during these seasons, so that maximum benefit can be obtained.

All tees have been fertilised this week to gain a nice thick coverage on these surfaces before the cold winter months cause these areas to go into dormancy. The new turf areas on the 10^th, ladies 11^th, 14^th and 15^th tees have again been cored this week to get these areas as level as possible to the surrounding turf.

Our volunteers were on course Monday morning, preparing bunkers before play, and laying 200m² of turf on areas they had prepared on holes 3, 4, 8 and 11. Thank you gentlemen for all your efforts this week! This repairing of bare areas is certainly making a great improvement to the overall appearance of the course.

Good Golfing!

The Course Team

Ladies Update

Barbara Koch Day is fast approaching on Thursday 18 March. The timesheet is open so put your name down. Teams of 4 for a Single Stableford event; 8am shotgun start; pre-order lunch and monster raffle with money raised going to our chosen charities. Please wear pink or purple as these were Barbara’s favourite colours.

Gardening volunteers are wanted for Monday 29th March when the course is closed. If interested please write your name down on the sheet in the ladies locker room.

Remember to check the upcoming Veterans events – the notice is in the ladies locker room. The next 2 events are March 15th at The Coast and April 22nd at Penrith. Let Mary Lantry know if you are interested.

Finally, former Ladies Captain and now Director has won the Ladies Presidents Cup from runner up, May Kim. This just goes to show that the toughest role at OGC is Ladies Captain, with Amanda’s form on the improve since handing over this role!!!

Well done to both ladies!

US Masters Breakfast and OGC Green Jacket – Monday 12th April

After a disjointed 2020 that saw the US Masters postponed and then played in November, at a timeslot that did not allow for our popular breakfast and 18 hole stableford to proceed, we are pleased to announce that the Masters and the Club Breakfast are set to proceed as planned on Monday 12th April.

The coverage will commence in the Clubhouse from 6am, breakfast served from 7:30am and a shotgun start after the completion of the Masters final round at approximately 9:15am.

The Club runs two events over the 18 holes;

• 18 hole single stableford
• Two ball aggregate stableford with each players drawing a tournament player from the Masters and using their final round score to create an aggregate.

Bookings are available via the Club website or by contacting Reception or the Pro Shop.

MEMBERS AND GUESTS ARE WELCOME

Staff Profile – Kathy Bright (Membership and Admin)

Over the next few months, we are going to be profiling a key member of staff in each week’s Enews to help new and long-standing members get to know the people who help run your Club a little better.

This week, and with membership renewals upon us, it seemed fitting to start off with Kathy Bright, the ever smiling presence in Reception who looks after membership and admin enquiries.

“I started my career working in large corporations and came to Oatlands 6 years ago. It was such a change working in a smaller environment but my role allowed more customer contact and I love that!

Working at Oatlands gives me a great work/life balance. I consider Oatlands my 2^nd home being amongst great friends!

Outside of work I am an exercise “junkie” and love the gym, yoga, pilates and I particularly enjoy walking my dog “Hugo Boss”.

I come from a large Italian family and have 3 sons of my own, the last of whom landed me in intensive care post birth. Needless to say, we stopped at three!! That experience taught me to enjoy every moment and take one day at a time. I am a firm believer in living my life the way I want to be remembered.”

Junior League

Over 80’s Australian Championship – Harrington Waters

After being cancelled in 2020 due to Covid, the Over 80’s Australian Championships will again be held at Harrington Waters from  27th to 29th April 2021, and OGC would like to encourage eligible members to take part in this great event and support this regional Club.

Registrations are available through the online registration form below.  Please read the introduction and then just click on the green“FILL OUT ENTRY FORM” button and simply answer the questions. If you are having any difficulties, please don’t hesitate to contact Harrington Waters on 02 6556 0404. The Conditions of play and Program of events are also included below.

FILL OUT ENTRY FORM

2021 CONDITIONS OF ENTRY

House Account Docket Signing required at the Bar, Pro Shop and Sandwich Hut

With the easing of restrictions around Covid, the Club has re-introduced the requirement for signing of dockets for purchases that are placed on a members House Account.

This requirement was in place pre-Covid (over 12 months ago) and was implemented to increase the accountability around House account charging and assist admin staff on following up on account queries.

We thank members in advance for their understanding and patience while we all get used to signing dockets once again.

Kiosk Bookings have returned for Wednesdays and Saturdays

Kiosk terminal bookings for Wednesdays and Saturdays are now back in place and we thank members for their patience while we work through any bugs in the new timesheet configuration required to facilitate this.

To view the full list of timesheet release times and locations, please click here.

Barbara Koch Raffle – In Support of ANZCOG

On Thursday 18th March 2021, the Ladies Barbara Koch Memorial Day will take place.  This is one of the largest fundraising events we conduct throughout the year and this year we will be having a raffle with some very exciting prizes including a Travel Golf Bag, a Rangefinder and Oroton Handbag, to name a few.  The ladies will commence selling tickets for the raffle on Saturday 13th March and also on the day of the event.  The price of tickets will be $5.00 for 1 ticket, $10.00 for 3 tickets and $20.00 for 7 tickets.  You will be able to use cash or credit card to purchase tickets. All monies raised from this raffle will go to our major charity ANZGOG  (Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Oncology Group).

The Oatlands Ladies have been supporting ANZGOG for over ten years now and during that time, have made donations in excess of $30,000.00.  I would like to thank you in anticipation for your generous support of our raffle.

Lesleigh Perkins

Lady President

OGC NRMA to the Rescue

Two of our Lady Members (Cheryl Petersen and Deb Lawton) experienced some difficulty with a cart on the golf course on Monday (see picture) and required the assistance of the OGC NRMA (in this case Pro Shop staffer Grant Lomas) to resolve the problem.

Thanks ladies for being good sports and providing the photo.

Dine & Discover Vouchers

Members may be aware of the NSW Government’s Dine & Discover initiative that is currently being trialed in parts of the State.

Oatlands Golf Club has registered and been accepted as an approved venue for the programme once the state wide rollout occurs in March.

The details of the Dine & Discover initiative are outlined below:

Every NSW resident aged 18 and over will be eligible for 4 x $25 vouchers worth $100 in total. The vouchers can be used at participating NSW businesses who are registered as COVID safe.

The Dine & Discover NSW vouchers will be divided into two categories:

• 2 x $25 vouchers to be used for eating in at restaurants, cafes, bars, pubs and clubs from Monday to Thursday, excluding public holidays (available for use at Oatlands Golf Club).
• 2 x $25 vouchers to be used for entertainment and recreation, including cultural institutions, live music, and arts venues, available 7 days a week, excluding public holidays (use subject to live music which is under consideration and subject to confirmation once the programme is rolled out).

How do I apply for the vouchers?

To participate in Dine & Discover NSW, you must have a MyServiceNSW account.

You can download the Service NSW app now and register for a MyServiceNSW account ahead of the vouchers becoming available.

We hope that members will take advantage of this opportunity and use the vouchers at Oatlands. Vouchers will be available for use on the majority of catering services offered including:

• Club Dining Events
• Sandwich Hut
• Daily Blackboard Menu

Note: Takeaway menu items are not available as the vouchers are for dine in use only under NSW Services T&Cs.

Oatlands Bridge – Starting back Wednesday 10th March

Members and their guests are invited to take part in Bridge at Oatlands Golf Club which starts again on Wednesday 10th March at 10:30am.

New players are welcome. 

If you need a partner, please contact Anne Cummins on 9440 4863.

Club Strategic Planning – Member Workshop Group Sessions

Update from 12th February: Members are advised that the Workshop Group sessions being conducted will all follow the same format. Members may put down their availability for any or all dates available however, will only be allocated to one session to give the Board the opportunity to engage with as many members as possible. 

In Mid 2019, the Club’s Board and Management commenced the development process of the Club’s next 5 year Strategic Plan. This process included a number of facilitated Board strategy sessions, a members survey, and the development of the 8 key Strategic Pillars that require planning and action over the 5 years of the Strategic Plan.

Unfortunately, the Covid pandemic forced the postponement of the planning process, with the previous 12 months fluctuating from great uncertainty (Clubhouse and Course closure), to increased confidence (a full membership and 50% growth in golf participation).

With 2020 behind us, the immediate future looks positive and more stable however, the shadow of Covid is still present and economics head winds are still ahead for us all.

Despite this, the Board and Management are committed to continuing the planning process to ensure the medium to long-term security of the Club.

With this in mind, the next step is to engage with our membership to ensure the Strategic Planning outcomes to date are in line with member expectation and to utilise the wisdom and experience of our membership to guide the next stages of Strategic Planning development.

Therefore, the Club will be holding a series of Member Workshop group sessions in March to engage our members in this planning process. The Workshop dates are listed below and all playing members are invited to take part (more dates can be added if required). Each Workshop session will run for approximately 90 minutes and have 12-16 members in each group.

• Mon 22/3: 6pm – 7:30pm
• Tues 23/3: 6pm – 7:30pm
• Wed 24/3: 6pm – 7:30pm 
• Thurs 25/3: 6pm – 7:30pm
• Sat 27/3: 2pm – 3:30pm
• Sat 27/3: 5pm – 6:30pm
• Mon 29/3: 6pm – 7:30pm
• Tues 30/3: 6pm – 7:30pm

To register to take part in the Workshop sessions, please complete the form below.

Pennant Update

Mens Major Pennant

What a fantastic morning of golf played last Sunday!

I do not think I have seen closer rounds of golf played before. The luck just does not seem to be with us as all the games …. Yes, all the games ,8 of them (Including the reserve) went to the 18^th hole!!!

It could have gone either way with just a putt to win between most of the games. Unfortunately, we went down 4.5/2.5.

There was some awesome golf played and so proud of the Oatlands guys and the way they all played. Again, Sean came home with a great win at number 2 and Tim, Luke & Rowan all coming away with a hard fought halve! The rest of the team fought hard the whole way.

This week we are away to Cumberland, which will be a great game!

Again, both the course & catering were superb…. A big “Thank you!” to all involved. It is so great to hear the constant compliments we get from the opposition on both above.

To the caddies…Well as said before, you are such an important part of the team and myself & the squad so appreciate you not just caddying for us and giving up your time! But also, for taking the abuse …As we all know, it’s your fault if your player plays a bad shot …hahaha !!!

Thanking you,

Ken Doolan, Team Manager.

Upcoming Events