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This week’s Enews covers the following topics:

• Membership Renewals – Due 31st March 2021
• From the Course
• Easter Long Weekend – Club Operating Hours
• Staff Profile – Kathy Drosos (Accounts)
• The Bettington Greek Night – Saturday 17th April
• Tees of the Day – Take your Pick
• Oatlands Pub Trivia Night – SOLD OUT
• Dine & Discover Vouchers – Available for Use Now
• The 18th Hole – Dick Peet
• Karah’s Cocktail Masterclass – Friday 23rd April
• Pennant Update
• Photo Gallery – Rain, Rain Go Away!

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Membership Renewals – Due 31st March

Members with outstanding membership subscriptions are reminded that they are due no later than 31st March.

Members with unpaid subscriptions as of 1st April will be unable to access the timesheet bookings.

The administration office will be open leading up to and including the 31st March as follows;

• Saturday 27th March: 9:30am – 2pm
• Sunday 28th March: Closed
• Monday 29th March: 9am – 5pm
• Tuesday 30th March: 9am – 5pm
• Wednesday 31st March: 9am – 5pm

Payments made online or via EFT may take up to business days to be received.

Members paying their subscription by the month will automatically be renewed on 1st April unless alternate advice has been provided to the Club.

If members who haven’t yet renewed and are planning to resign, we ask that you please inform the Club formally via admin@oatlandsgolf.com.au to expedite the process of offering new applicants on the waitlist a membership position. 

Thank you for your co-operation and understanding.

Sam Howe
General Manager
Oatlands Golf Club

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From the Course

Rainfall for the Week: 309.5mm,  Rainfall for 2021: 537.5mm   Dam: 100%   Green Speed: 9.0 feet

I don’t think I have ever seen our golf course so wet in the 11 years that I have been working at Oatlands. What makes this period different to last years major rain event, is the fact that last year we hadn’t had any rainfall all summer so the ground was rock hard and the heavy rainfall ran off surfaces and didn’t get a chance to soak into the soil profile. Last years event only lasted the 2 days whereas this year it has rained for 6 consecutive days.

Another difference this year is the fact that our summer hasn’t really been a summer, with milder temperatures and above average rainfall. This has meant that our playing surfaces already had high moisture levels to start with, and this large amount of rain has only added to this and really softened up all areas.  

The team has only been able to get mowers back out onto the course on Thursday, with special care being taken to limit damage to surfaces. In some areas of the rough wheel marking from mowers has been unavoidable but mowing of these areas has been essential for when play resumes.

Members will have noticed the tree behind the 14^th green that was on a lean towards the 15^th championship tee. This tree lost its balance during Friday night – Saturday morning, causing some minor damage to this tee pad as it came down. The team has managed to cut most of this tree up and placed it on either side of the roadway. Our tree contractors are will be here during the upcoming course closure for greens renovations and will mulch it all up for us. We did have plans for the removal of other dead trees on the course, but this has changed to avoid the contractor’s trucks causing further damage to the course. We have removed several dead trees from around the course ourselves, cutting them up and moving all the pieces over to the 14^th green/ 15^th tee area for mulching. Some damage occurred to the 16^th fairway when we dropped a dead tree near the 17^th tee, but this should repair with some attention from the course team. There is plenty of firewood for any members wishing to come and collect it. Please contact the club to arrange a pick up time.

The team has taken advantage of the course closure to spray all the collars around our greens for Winter Grass that has emerged recently. This was an opportune time to perform this task as staff had a free run with no interruptions from players, and the risk of this chemical being walked onto the green from players was also removed. 

Our new bunkers on holes 3,4 and 5 (some photos below) got through the rain event unscathed with very little wash out of faces, and no contamination of the sand at all. Our older bunkers are a different story with all of them full of water and contaminated with silt once again. The new Zoysia turf that was laid around the 7^th and 15^th bunkers wasn’t impacted at all by the rainfall. The same can’t be said for the turf farm that this turf came from, with it currently being at least 5 meters underwater from the flood waters in the Hawkesbury region.

Our volunteers had a week off from the course due to the rain, with only clubhouse maintenance tasks being performed. However, they are all rested now to tackle the greens renovations this coming week.

Good Golfing!

The Course Team

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Easter Long Weekend – Club Operating Hours

With the upcoming Easter Long Weekend only 7 days away, members are advised of the following Operating Hours for the various sections of the Club;

Course: As per website timesheets

Pro Shop: Normal hours

Clubhouse: Normal hours

Administration: Closed for the Easter Long Weekend

Sandwich Hut: Closed Friday 2nd April, Sunday 4th April, Monday 5th April (Open: Saturday 3rd April)

Daily Blackboard Menu: 11am – 2pm each day of the Easter Weekend

We hope you all have a wonderful Easter and can get some golf in after the week we have just had.

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Staff Profile – Kathy Drosos (Accounts)

This weeks staff profile is on the Clubs greatest unsung hero, Kathy Drosos. Kathy works in our Administration Department in a role that by its nature does not receive any public notice, however is one that the Club and most businesses can’t do without.

Kathy Drosos – Accounts

I have worked in the Office at Oatlands Golf Club for over 5 years now. Prior to that, I was a long standing employee within the Electricity Industry, initially as an accounting trainee and moved up the organisation into the Finance Department as a business analyst.

In 2015 my family and I decided that I would take a step back from corporate finance and spend more time at home. The plan was to be a stay at home mum but that soon was not an option as the boredom truly set in. I found this perfect job at Oatlands Golf Club which suits my work/life balance and I absolutely love it! It makes it easy to come to work when you work in beautiful surroundings, with great staff and wonderful golf members.

Outside of work hours I love entertaining family and friends at home by cooking up a storm. I was born in Greece so I tend to cook a lot of Greek cuisine. You can call me a soccer mum as I spend many hours on soccer fields and I also don’t mind a competitive game of tennis with the family.

 

The Bettington Greek Night – Saturday 17th April

Members and guests are invited to join us for our next monthly themed dining experience.

This month, Dirk Podro will be preparing a Greek feast for you to enjoy.

Bookings available online or via the Club’s Reception.

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Tees of the Day – Take your Pick

Members are reminded that the USGA Handicapping System allows for competition play for different players from different sets of tees in the same competition.

What this means at Oatlands is that members may choose to play from the tee markers that most suit their game on most competition days.

For example:

The golf course has 18 green tees. This “Green Tee” golf course has its own set of ratings. A member may choose to play from these tees in a Monday competition and still be eligible for the competition of the day prizes. The same is true for Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday competitions.

Competition of the Day means the standard daily competition for the daily prize vouchers and ball rundown. This differs from Trophy events which stipulate the in the Conditions of Play that eligibility requires play from the tees as prescribed in these conditions.

This feature of the USGA handicapping system is designed to give golfers of varying age and ability the opportunity to choose the course that is most suited them and therefore provide the best golfing experience possible.

Note: Due to the necessary management of teeing grounds through tee rotation, ladies playing in Monday and Thursday competitions can not utilise tees that are further back than the tees of the day. 

Playing from tees that are not stipulated as tees of the day requires notice to and confirmation from the Pro Shop prior to commencing play.

If you have any questions relating to this or would like more information, please see the Pro Shop. 

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Oatlands Pub Trivia Night – SOLD OUT

Members are advised that the Clubs upcoming Pub Trivia night is sold out. While this is a great result we know some members will be disappointed. As such we will scheduled a second Trivia Night later in the year.

 

 

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Dine & Discover Vouchers – Available for Use Now

The NSW Government has launched Dine & Discover NSW to encourage the community to get out and about and support dining, arts and tourism businesses. Oatlands is pleased to advise members that the Club is now able to accept these vouchers. Details of the initiatives are outlined below;

NSW residents aged 18 and over can apply for 4 x $25 vouchers, worth $100 in total.

• 2 x $25 Dine NSW Vouchers to be used for dining in at restaurants, cafés, bars, wineries, pubs or clubs. 
• 2 x $25 Discover NSW Vouchers to be used for entertainment and recreation, including cultural institutions, live music, and arts venues.

The vouchers:

• can be used 7 days a week, including public holidays
• can be used at participating NSW businesses that are registered as COVID Safe
• are valid to 30 June 2021.

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The 18th Hole – Dick Peet

Former Club President, Club Captain, and Life member Dick Peet is well known to our membership through his significant contributions to the Club over many decades. Dick is also known to his friends as someone who has a love a hate relationship with the Clubs 18th hole. Basically, if he misses the front bunkers he loves it and if he finds the bunker……..well, you get the picture.

Dick has not only received attention for his bunker prowess from his “so called” mates, but in a version of the Clubs weekly course report late last year he received a gentle dig from Course Superintendent, Dom Yates.

So in the interest of balance, we are pleased to have captured Dick playing the hole like a PGA Professional Tour on our new CCTV camera on the 18th hole. The video, kindly produced by fellow Life Member John Carey, is available below;

The only question now is;

WHAT WERE YOU THINKING WHEN HE WAS STANDING OVER THE PUTT?

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Karah’s Cocktail Masterclass – Friday 23rd April

OGC Bar Manager Karah Chapman will be hosting a Cocktail Masterclass on Friday 23rd April.

This boutique event will give members the chance to learn how to make 3 cocktails, learn the history behind them, and enjoy a grazing platter and some nibbles with your friends (and you get to drink the cocktails).

Pennant Update

Mens Major Pennant

Relegation final postponed – Date TBC

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Photo Gallery – Rain, Rain Go Away!

Longstanding members of OGC have indicated it has been at least 30 years since the Club experienced a rain event as large as that of last week. Below are some images provided by course staff and members. A couple of these photos are of Lynwood Country Club which for the second time in 13 months was submerged in up to 10 metres of water (last 3 photos). In this instance the only part of the golf course property above the water line was a small section of their putting green.