"And now it`s time for the main event! LET'S GET READDDDDDDDYYYYYYYYY TO RUMBLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLE!!!"
Yes, Saturday night was fight night and all eyes were over the pond in the U.S of A with Sky Sports turning their spotlight on this clash-of-styles Belterweight scrap!
In the Blue Corner, the Challenger, weighing in at 183lbs, wearing the Navy Cashmere, Mick Hucknell ponytail, burgundy patent wingtips and the Cuban Cahoona! All the way from Malaga, Spain! Miguel "I`m no"Angel Jimenez! And in the Red Corner, weighing in at 190lbs, wearing the black zipper, oversized rappers cap, and a-typical American Smugness! All the way from Vermont, USA! Keegan "Men Behaving"Bradley!
Forget the Mayweather/ Pacquiao Dance off! (Not that I saw any of that as I was trying to catch a few hours sleep before the Sunday shift, but I hear there were more punches thrown at Snakes wedding and that Elvis took more jabs in Vegas than either fighter! Not quite the "Thriller In Manila" or the "Rumble in the Jungle!", more like the "Flamenco in a Casino!") No, the real square up/tear up was at Golfs World Championship Accenture Matchplay. Jimenez spat his Cuban dummy out when he questioned the legality of the drop Keegan Bradley had been awarded, in the subsequent exchange of un-pleasantries that followed the situation escalated when Jimmy Ness told Keegans Caddy to `hud his wheesht`. Bradley took umbrage to that and `got right up in his grill` (aka - came in fur a square go!!) But Miguel needn`t have worried because fortunately, Bradley being Bradley, his fighting style is like his Pre-Shot Routine and he burst forward right up to him, then backed off, then came forward on to his right foot, then back onto his left, then forward on to his right foot, then back onto his left, he then did the hokey cokey and he turned around! Meanwhile Miguel was thinking "What the hecks this all about!? Ok, well I`ll roll another stogie, I`ll roll another stogie, I`ll roll another stogie! (Then he did his trademark warmup!) Knees bent arms stretched, R-io- ja!
Anyway, it was definitely more a storm in a tea cup than the Royal Rumble. Meanwhile there was actually a Tournament going on and Rory McIlroy triumphed in the Sunday final over Gary Woodland. I`m sure it made the perfect Birthday present for golfs King of the Swingers.
There was of course more Royal Birthdays last weekend with the arrival of William & Kates second born and 4th in line to the throne, the Princess of Cambridge. I know that Prince William was delighted it was a girl, and he played a large part in choosing the name. Apparently after realising that he now had one boy and one girl he turned to Kate and said "Right, that`s yer lot!" to which the exhausted and slightly drugged Kate replied "Aw, I love that name too! She`s definitely a Charlotte!"
They also paid homage to her Granmother and Great Grandmother with the middle names Elizabeth Diana. There were rumours that as now William`s brother has hee haw chance of getting to the throne that they were going to give him an honourable mention and call her Charlotte Diane Harriot but they realised that CDH would`ve handicapped her for life!! But it just shows you the society we live in, no sooner had the Little Princess been born was it not all over Facebook & Twitter, apparently she`s already got her own site. It`s called Charlottes Web page and someone`s already spied`er making status updates! "What`s one to do when ones just done a number two in ones onesie!" #whoopsiepoopsie"
Ok, ok! I know you`re probably thinking this week's blog is also a lot of shhhhh……..owbiz gossip so I`ll get back on track with some news from closer to home. It`s been another busy week at Palace Portlethen with the plethora of Competitions and Medals. I think it`s fair to say that the place has been awash this week, because if it`s not been streaming with golfers that`s because it`s been teeming with rain!!
Wednesday saw over 100 players take part in the Midweek Competition. This week it was Stableford from the White Tees with 3 players tying for the low round total of 39 Points.
WED WALK ON, Wednesday 29th April `15
Division 1 (10 & BELOW)
1st: Craig Will = 37 Points ACB
2nd: Johnny Montgomerie = 37 Points ACB
3rd: Keith Horne = 37 Points ACB
Division 2 (11-15)
1st: Bruce Fraser = 39 Points ACB
2nd: Derek Craigie = 39 Points ACB
3rd: Scott Livingstone = 36 Points
Division 3 (16 & ABOVE)
1st: Bob Horne = 39 Points
2nd: James Edwards = 37 Points
3rd: Bruce Johnston = 35 Points
Saturday saw the first of our 6am starts, but unfortunately no one had told mother nature and we were delayed 35 minutes due to a surface frost. That didn`t stop us getting the 212 strong field out and round. (There were also 20 ladies and 36 Juniors playing but we`ll get to them later!) The battle from the Black Tees wasn`t made any easier by a strong and testing wind that whipped across the course all day and in the main it proved a tough day for most. The CSS climbed to 74 which made the two rounds of Nett 66 even more impressive. Derek McCann & David Kernahan not only won their Divisions and Monthly Medal with those rounds but now also have the opportunity to go and represent Portlethen in the Belhaven Trophy later in the year.
MONTHLY MEDAL/BELHAVEN QUALIFIER, Saturday 2nd May`15
Division 1 (10 & BELOW)
1st: Derek McCann = 76(10) - 66
2nd: Johnny Montgomerie = 74(5) - 69
3rd: Ryan S Penny = 72(2) - 70
Division 2 (11-15)
1st: Lee Stewart = 82(13) - 69
2nd: Jake Legge = 85 (15) - 70
3rd: Jim Cruickshank = 83(13) - 70
Division 3 (16 & ABOVE)
1st: David W Kernahan = 82(16) - 66
2nd: John Cormack = 87(16) - 71
3rd: Gary Duncan = 90(17) - 73
There is another "Add On" event to this Saturdays Medal too. As well as the normal Club Competition this Saturday will be used as our Qualifying Event for the Lombard Trophy. The Lombard Trophy is a National Pro-Am Event where the winner of the Clubs Qualifier and the Club Professional (Moi!) go to play in a Regional Qualifier - Our venue this year is Crieff GC. There they will play as a Pairing in a Best Ball Format, and the Pro-Amatuer Pairing with the lowest total that day go on to the Grand Final which will be held at one of my old stomping grounds, The Gleneagles Hotel! This event has been running in the UK for many years under various Sponsorship Names. A few years back, whilst I was still at Eastwood GC, I was extremely fortunate to win the Regional Qualifier two years on the bounce (with 2 different Amateur Partners! The tournament them was Sponsored by Virgin Atlantic and the Grand Finals were held in Las Vegas(2011) and Mexico(2012) which were both trips of a lifetime. It would be great to make it a Hatrick with one of my Portlethen Members this year!
But remember "You`ve Got To Be In It To Win It!!" so 
here are the details of this Saturdays Qualifier and subsequent Tournament Details.
To be eligible this Saturday there is an additional £2 Entry (over and above the normal Sweep & Twos)
The Regional Qualifier @ Crieff GC is Tuesday 16th June
The Grand Final @ The Gleneagles Hotel is Tuesday 1st & Wednesday 2nd September played over the Ryder Cup - PGA Centenary Course
2011 was a memorable year for me actually! On top of the trip to Las Vegas I was also selected to play in The Ashworth Cup at the Grove Resort in London. The match saw Professionals from the 2 big Buying Groups, Foremost Golf & TGI, square up in a mini Ryder Cup. A Win and a Half saw me return undefeated but all round it was just a great fun event with lots of laughs and new friendships made. And keeping on that theme it was 2011, sandwiched in between those two trips, that I launched the first Cappro Cup Match in the Autumn of 2011.
Saturdays May Medal was the 2nd Qualifying Event for this years Cappro Cup Match. We got a few more people to sign up to the Qualifying Race who had missed out on the April Medal so there is a reasonably healthy competition for the top 4 places in most Categories. However as you`ll see from the current Standings Category 4 (19-28) only has a Top 4 (and 2 of these guys have actually reduce their Handicaps to 18 so effectively drop into Category 3) So just to reiterate this event is NOT just for the elite or lowest handicaps and those higher handicaps who do make the Teams will be playing against players of a similar standard. It really will be a fun weekend, and trust me, for golfers of any standard the chance to play this extremely individual of sports in a Team environment is great experience.
Here is how things stand after Event 2.
For Full Standings and to find out where you are click here.
The weeks are flying in fast and May has rocked around. A new month means time for a new promotion as I aim to bring you guys the very best, unrivalled Value & Service. As the curtain falls on my Trade-Up Trade-In Offers I am now offering some incredible Value onto my Woods & Irons proposition! In my first few months here at Portlethen I`ve been fortunate that some Members have chosen to come and be Fitted for new Equipment by me. But I quickly realised that the logistics of my new environment compared to the convenience of my old walk in Studio didn`t suit the Fitting Technology I was using. My Flightscope Launch Radar was a mains powered unit which also had to be hardwired into a laptop. All in all the set up time, portability and energy life of all that wasn`t conducive to providing the very best experience for you. So I`ve invested in a different system, and one I`m really excited about getting to grips with.
It is the GC2 Launch Monitor from Foresight Sports. This is the same system they use as a simulator in the Sky Sports Golf coverage when the Studio experts demonstrate aspects during the breaks from play. The main benefit is obviously it`s wireless, smaller, quicker to set up and more portable. The main difference in the systems is that this a Camera Based Unit as opposed to the Flightscope which was a ball tracking Radar. In other words the new GC2 will be analysing and evaluating what the Club is doing, where before the Flightscope was focusing on the Ball. Not only do I feel this will enhance the Fitting Process I offer, but I`ll now be able to integrate this piece of equipment into my Lessons as well. Not only will this help me make a more detailed diagnosis of your technique but will help you understand the principles of how you are going to improve that technique.
In conjunction with this arriving I am going to be running a May Promotion which will allow you to not only get FREE and comprehensive Custom Fitting but also a FREE Golf Lesson (See T`s & C`s) on TaylorMade, PING & Wilson Equipment. The combination of an important tweaks to your Technique & Technology could be the secret to unlocking your golfing potential.
There is certainly a lot of potential in the Junior Section at the moment. Saturday saw them out in their droves again for both the "Get Golfing Gang" Session up on the Driving Range and also in the 18 & 9 Hole Medals.
For the 18 Holers it was the first round of their Club Championship Qualifiers and, like the men, the weather conditions proved testing.
Junior Championship Qualifier, Saturday 2nd May
1st: Ashley Wallace = 94(22) - 72
2nd: Sam Locke = 74(2) - 72
3rd: Brandon Simpson = 87(14) - 73
4th: Findlay Wallace = 94(20) - 74
5th: William Lloyd = 97(21) - 76
6th: Ewan Brown = 90(14) - 76
7th: Lewis Sinclair = 90(14) - 76
8th: Louise Cook = 98(22) - 76
9th: Pranav Maganti = 101(24) - 77
10th: Katie Robson = 90(11) - 79
11th: Scott D`Agostino = 90(10) - 80
12th: Murray Sinclair = 125(24) - 101
If Saturdays weather was `testing` then Sundays was just plain `terrible` as the heavens opened and the rain was `torrential` I know because I was meant to be playing my first round in the SPGA Championship at Gleneagles that day but it was rained off with the course unplayable! Back here it didn`t turn into Port Lethen until much later which meant the Juniors got their Pennant League campaign underway in pretty horrendous conditions. The match was against Aboyne and I think they wanted the match Aboyn-doned but it went ahead and Portlethen recorded a 4-1 victory. Their next match is away to Inverallochy on 17th May.
The Seniors were on their travels too again this week. 10 representatives who could afford to go to Alford were selected to make the trip on Tuesday! But given another day of downpours I`m sure these guys wish they`d saved their money for a rainy day!!
We also had the Seniors SGU Stableford last Thursday and there were some standout performances.
SGU Stableford, Thursday 30th April
1st: Robert Read - 41 Points
2nd: Harry McBain - 40 Points
3rd: Ian Anderson - 38 Points
"All the Golfing Gossip from the Powder Room" by Aileen McVey - The Pro Shops 1st Lady
The weather has had its effect on the Ladies Fixtures this week too. Sunday saw the scheduled Revell Trophy - 2 Ball Matchplay Qualifier cancelled due to the weather. Fortunately there were the exact number of pairs entered for the Matchplay stages anyway so the draw was able to be made.
Saturday was just a Counting Medal. Conditions proved just as tough as they did for the men and Juniors! And interestingly enough it was the Bronze Division that faired better in them.
Ladies Medal - Saturday 25th April
Results:
Silver
1st: Rowena Keith = 92(14) - 78
2nd: Kate Craig = 93(14) - 79
3rd: Barbara Tait = 100(20) - 80
Bronze
1st: Liz Smith = 96(25) - 71
2nd: Denise Roberston = 100(26) - 74
3rd: Kathleen Johnston = 96(21) - 75
My attempt to play during the week was scuppered by the rain! I`m going to use the excuse that it`s difficult to play when it`s raining when you wear glasses, but the fact that I did nearly 70 miles on my bike on Monday probably had more to do with it!
Midweek Walk On, Tuesday 5th May
Results:
1st: Kathleen Johnston = 96(21) - 75
2nd: Barbara Tait = 100(20) - 80
3rd: Alison Bruce = 106(23) - 83
It`s been a challenging week on the golf course with the erratic weather conditions. We`ve had frost delays, flooding, ferocious winds and frequent forays into sunshine! All in all though the course is slowly taking shape and is standing up well, especially to all the rain.
The soggy ground conditions sometimes mean we have to make the unpopular decision to prohibit the use of Buggies. It`s not something we like doing because we realise that for some people they are essential to allow them to play. But we have to make the decisions we feel best to protect the course. We`ve heard it mentioned that "Why are the buggies off but the Greenkeepers can go out in their machines!?" The maintenance of the course is essential, travel by buggies isn`t. Plus with the exception of cutting fairways & greens the movement of the Greenkeepers around the course is typically by specific and designated routes, well away from the main parts of the course, and unfortunately many Buggy users tend to have an "Access All Areas" attitude when driving them.
The subject of the golfers responsibility to protecting the course again came to the fore over the weekend when it became apparent that someone took offense to something the 16th green did to their ball (or score, or round) A substantial scuff mark was made on the putting surface only a few feet from the hole in the early part of Saturday mornings draw.
As I`m sure many of you will know by now a large part of what I am trying to offer is the ability to make you perform better. We have the very best Green Grass Trial & Fitting Service you`ll find in the area. To reinforce that Service for the next Month I will be adding some incredible value to that service by offering not only FREE Fitting on Equipment* Purchases but also a Performance Enhancing Lesson ABSOLUTELY FREE as well! For more details of my Complete Equipment Solution then keep reading!
*On Featured Brands/Products
But I`m confident that I can help you guys Improve so much so that I`m going to introduce the following Promotion.
My search is on to find the "GAME IMPROVEMENT CHAMPION!"
Here`s how you qualify to be I the running for this Award.
For the Months of May & June I will be offering this exclusive Lesson Package.
"The Game Changer" - 4 x 45 Minute Lessons
Lesson 1 - Full Swing Analysis
Lesson 2 - Pitching & Chipping
Lesson 3 - Bunkers
Lesson 4 - Putting
ONLY £120! (That`s A £20 Saving!)**
**Top Up Lessons will be given at the equivalent reduced individual price!
Everyone who signs up for this Package will have their Handicap Progress recorded until the end of August (Lessons are recommended to be taken over the maximum of 2 week intervals and are only Valid until the end of this period) The Player who achieves the BIGGEST PERCENTAGE IMPROVEMENT on their Handicap will be crowned my "GAME IMPROVEMENT CHAMPION" and receive a Commemorative Sweater, Certificate and an All-Expenses Paid Away Golf Day with myself. (If the Promotion attracts enough interest I will offer 2 Runners-Up Prizes to join the All-Expenses Paid Away Golf Day with myself)
That lasting improvement to your Golf Game is just one Click away! Book your first session up today!
If you think you know of other Members (or golfers!) who would like to receive this then I'd appreciate if you forward it to them and encourage them to subscribe using the relevant link! Once in the database you/they will then be able to receive regular contact (oh no I hear you cry, not daily doses of his pathetic patter!!) through my Broadcast Messages that go straight to your email. I also have my SWING Studio Facebook page where I post and Tweet daily with anything from course updates to shop promotions! So why not like my FB Page or Follow Me on Twitter by clicking the links below.
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Now while these are great communication vehicles for me, the Newsletter/Website especially can offer a great Tool for you to get your message out there as well! As you can see if you scroll down there are a few "ADVERTISING BANNER" opportunities that provide great exposure to my ever growing database. So if you have a Company, Brand or Product that you'd like to Advertise then contact me here and I'll happily talk you through the Advertising options.
