The course is looking an absolute treat at the moment with the stripes on the fairways enhancing the appearance of these surfaces. There is some growth starting to happen on the tees which is improving these surfaces as well. Full credit to the course team for the work they have put into preparing the course, not just this past week but since renovations, as the renovations of our playing surfaces is what sets the platform for how well the course is at present. We have been short staffed for most of this period, like all Clubs across Sydney and Australia, but the course team are still producing what is expected on a weekly basis.

Renovations of collars and aprons begun this week and will continue into next week with coring and fertilising completed on holes 1, 2, 7, 8, 9, 11, and 13 so far. The spraying of pre-emergent herbicide and residual insecticide on fairways and roughs has been completed this week, with these applications protecting these surfaces against insect attack and weeds for the next 6 months. There are some existing areas of broadleaf weeds (Clover, Oxalis and Pennywort) and these will be sprayed out over the next few weeks.

Applications to greens have been completed this week with insecticide applied for Argentine Stem Weevil adults on Tuesday morning, fungicide for Pythium control on Thursday morning, and growth regulator applied on Friday morning. These applications will be more regular now as we head into summer to keep the greens in the great condition that they currently are.

We are planning to topdress, aerate and fertilise the blue line areas on fairways 7, 8, 11, 13 and 14 to improve these areas so that the blue lines can be removed. David, our Thursday volunteer, is doing a fabulous job filling in divots on fairways each week and is also spreading this green sand over thin areas to encourage turf growth over or through these areas. Members can also help with this as they play, by filling their own divots and any others they see and repairing pitch marks on the greens.

Members will notice some autonomous mowers either parked near the path at the front of the clubhouse, or out cutting the 12^th and 18^th fairways or the 18^th green surrounds over the next few weeks. These units are part of a trial offered by Husqvarna and their agent Western Mowers at Pendle Hill. Representatives from these companies spent Thursday on the course setting up the mowers and mapping out the areas that they will be cutting. The units will be cutting these surfaces from 4am up until 8pm at night, with sensors attached so that they stop if someone or something is in their way. They are GPS tracked so should someone decide to take them, police can track them down. Notifications are also sent to our phones if a problem arises with either of the units. Autonomous mowers are positioned to complement, rather than replace staff members with many Golf Clubs facing challenges with labour shortages. These machines will fill the gap of routine mowing so staff can focus on more skilled tasks on the course.

Our ever reliable volunteers were on course Monday morning completing a bunker run in front of the competition, trimming the hedges at the 6^th tee, lifting sprinkler heads on the 16^th fairway so that their buggies don’t tip over anymore, and continued working on the simulator studio in the Pro Shop. Thank you gentlemen for another great mornings work with your assistance on the course always appreciated!

Greens will be cut on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

Happy Golfing!

The Course Team.

October Bettington Menu – Wednesday 30th October

While our new Friday Night Bistro 94 has been a great success, we will continue our Bettington Restaurant on the last Wednesday of each month, with the next instalment scheduled for Wednesday 30th October. All Members and Guests are welcome!

Bookings are required and are available for 2 to 10 diners, with a two course menu for $55 or three course for $69.

Seating times are available at 6pm, 6:30pm, 7pm and 7:30pm, so grab some friends and join us for another great night of food and friendship.

MENU 

On Arrival

• Prosciutto basil and bocconcini skewers
• Bread and Butter

Entrée

• Blue swimmer crab croquettes, black garlic, smoked roe and finger lime
• Chicken liver and foie gras parfait, pumpkin, fig & walnut bread
• Baked scallops, nduja butter, crispy prosciutto and hazelnuts (gf)

Main

• Steamed Spring Bay Mussels, sauce Americaine, shoestring fries
• Wagyu Beef bourguignon en croute, Paris truffled mash
• Pork chop, spiced corn, broccolini, caramelised onion and basil oil (gf)
• King salmon, asparagus, shimeji, mussels and vermouth (gf)

Side – $12.00 each

• Roasted potatoes, rosemary salt (v, gf)
• Green oak lettuce, honey vinaigrette (v, gf)
• Skin on fries, truffle mayonnaise (v)

Dessert

• Chocolate souffle, chocolate sauce, whipped cream (gf)
• Russian honey cake, honeycomb, candied walnut
• Formaggi, crackers & condimenti

Men’s Club Championships – Round of 16

The Round of 16 of the 2024 Men’s Club Championships were played on Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th October with some great golf, close matches, and a number of upsets setting the respective grades up for a great set of quarter-final matches.

Click here for a list of Round of 16 results and Quarter-final matches.

Ladies Club Championships – Second Round Qualifying

The second round of qualifying for the Ladies Club Championships commenced on Thursday 17th October with the Sunday nominated competitors to complete the qualifying on Sunday 20th October.

Click here for a list of scores with Sunday qualifiers (to play their second round on Sunday 20th October) highlighted in Yellow.

The top 8 qualifiers from each grade will make the matchplay component of the Championships.

Men’s Champions Dinner

Reigning Men’s Club Champion, Grant Lomas, organised a Men’s Champions Dinner on Friday 4th October, with nine past champions in attendance boasting a total of 12 championships across 56 years.

Those in attendance are listed below with the year/s they won the Club’s premier Men’s trophy.

• 1967 John Fisher
• 1973 Richard Granger
• 1991 Mark Robinson
• 2015 Brad Doherty
• 2016, 2018 & 2019 Tim Frazer
• 2017 Young Park
• 2020 & 2021 Brad Hooper
• 2022 Luke Mason
• 2023 Grant Lomas

John Fisher Beats his Age 

Longstanding member John Fisher has achieved the incredible feat of beating his age on the golf course.

John, a member of almost 65 years, and referenced in the previous article as the 1967 Club Champion, played the course in 78 shots on Wednesday 16th October, beating his age by two shots.

Well done John, let’s hope we all have the same success at beating Father Time both on and off the course!