Hello Everyone

Club Champs and the SA Open:

Our first weekend of Club Champs is over and by most accounts, it was a tough 2 days! The course was pristine from the SA Open (as it always is) and the greens were quick, getting faster as the wind rose on Sunday afternoon. Well done to you all for sticking it out over the first 2 days. We are only halfway and a LOT can happen with 2 rounds still to play (Look at what happened at the Arnold Palmer over the weekend – I would have bet on Stenson winning after round 2 and instead we saw glimpses of the old Tiger Woods returning and the putting from Rory McIlroy defied belief!). I am sure there are still lots of twists in the Westlake Story this year too!

Good luck to each and every competitor for the second weekend. Your tee times will be mailed to you by the time you read this. Don’t forget to attend prizegiving on Sunday evening after the final round. (Please advise us if you can’t make it for catering purposes). My initiation into Westlake was at last year’s function and it was an eye-opener. The chipping competition from the Member’s Bar onto the 18th green deserves special mention! It will be amazing and we hope every competitor can attend.

The compliments for the SA Open continue to pour in. Organisers, competitors who say this is the best tournament they have played in (Seriously!), members and the public. The feedback has been fantastic. The highlights package was a wonderful advert for this magnificent club and we as the staff are all so proud to have been a part of it! So many people did so much, but I would very much like to make special mention of 1 person this week. Brendan Mackay-Leslie put in countless hours to ensure we were compliant and met all the organiser’s requirements and he managed the security and parking functions with professionalism, knowledge and patience. It was a pleasure to work with him and we would all very much like to say thank you for all his efforts. Also a final word of thanks to all our volunteers too, who did a sterling job.

Similarly, this past weekend’s Club Champs ran like clockwork. Nic, Carmen and Emelia put in so much time and effort and really need to be commended. Similarly, Maureen Weimar and Geoff Tuck gave up their weekend (and a chance to compete in Geoff’s case) to ensure everything ran perfectly. To all of you, a big word of thanks for all you have (and will be) doing. It is greatly appreciated!

Staff news:

We would very much like to use the newsletter to periodically inform our members of key staff and how they fit into the operations of the club. This will start soon. One change you will notice is Clint being very involved on the forecourt. He has proven himself time and time again with golf days and functions, taking the initiative and getting the job done, quietly and efficiently. We are proud to announce his promotion to the position of Forecourt Supervisor. We wish him every success and are in the process of interviewing candidates for the receptionist position.

Bookings – NB:

Please note that you need to book 2 weeks in advance this Friday and coming Monday, due to Good Friday and Easter Monday the following week. Bookings for respective dates are open as follows:

· Friday 23rd March - Bookings open for Friday 6th April (08h00) as well as Saturday the 31st March and 7th April (17h15).

· Monday 26th March - Bookings open for Wednesday 4th and 11th April (17h15) as well as Monday the 2nd and 9th (08h00).

Friendly reminders:

A reminder that there is once again no 9 holes on Friday and Saturday afternoon this weekend due to preparations for Club Champs.

We would like to ask players on Wednesday afternoons to assist us with writing their jackpot hole results on their scorecards please. This will assist us in the scoring and speed up preparation for prizegiving. The jackpot holes are displayed on the electronic board next to the starter’s hut before your game. Thanks for your assistance.

Harry Solomons League:

Lists for the Harry Solomons League will be put out in the foyer from Friday 23rd March. If you would like to play, please put your name down.

Toyota Yaris Raffle:

Tickets are available in books of 5 at R200 per ticket or R1 000 per book. If every member just sells one book, the club will be able to renovate the locker rooms and be transformed. Please assist us by selling your 5 (or more) tickets. They are available in the office or from the manager on duty over weekends. Get yours today and let’s make this project a massive success!

Rule of the week:

To help avoid some confusion about when a provisional ball should be played, and when it becomes the ball in play or needs to be abandoned.

Under Rule 27-2 Provisional Ball - A provisional ball may only be played if the player thinks their ball may be lost outside a water hazard or may be out of bounds. This helps save time – as the only option a player has once it is established that his ball is either lost or out of bounds (as above) is to play a ball as near as possible to the spot from which the original ball was made, therefore the provisional ball becomes their ball in play under penalty on one stroke.

Should the original ball be found i.e. not lost outside a water hazard or out of bounds – IT is the ball in play and the provisional ball must be abandoned.

However, if the orginal ball is found but is lying in an unfavourable position at any place on the course except a water hazard, the player may choose to either play the ball or declare their ball unplayable and use 1 of the relief options:

1. Drop a ball within 2 club-lengths of the spot where the ball lies, not nearer the hole.

2. Drop a ball behind the point where the ball lies, keeping that point directly between the hole and that spot, with no limit to how far behind.

3. Drop a ball as near as possible to the spot from which the original ball was played.

The provisional ball must be abandoned. If the provisional ball is played the player will be playing a wrong ball and incur a 2-stroke penalty.

Our Local Rule for the 7th and 8th hole allows for the playing of a provisional ball if there is doubt to whether a ball is in or list in the water hazard.

These are the relief options:

1. If the original ball is found outside the water hazard – the player must continue play with it. The provisional ball must be abandoned.

2. If the original ball is found in the water hazard – the player has the option of either playing the original ball as it lies or continuing play with the provisional ball (under penalty of 1 stroke).

If the original ball in not found or identified with-in 5 minutes of search the player must continue play with the provisional ball (under penalty of 1 stroke).

Have a great week and to all our competitors in Club Champs, good luck and see you all at the party on Sunday evening!

Best wishes,
The Westlake Team