Aldwickbury Park Early Birds

Another hot day on the course both with the weather and the scoring, well at least for one person! As you can see from this overhead shot of the 4th Green the fairways are scorched but we are not alone all courses in the area are suffering the same fate. The following article from the Times shows more overhead shots from around the area. No let up insight over the next two weeks looking at the weather forecasts. Scorched golf courses across country as heatwave takes toll — in pictures So back to the golf, a depleted field this week with only eight players, the CBL took four of our players this week although Steve Reynolds had to pull out at the last moment due to injury. Hope you get better for the Autumn cup in a few weeks Steve. Well done to the bookers this week especially those that don't normally book but stood up and had a go. As we now have only sixteen player it is quite difficult to ensure we have enough each week so please put your name forward, it's not that difficul...

Another hot day on the golf course as the drought continues. Fairways are dry, brown with cracks,  greens are still green fortunately. Some very good scoring this week with Martin and Steve tying for first, Steve winning on countback for a change. Eight birdies which must be a record also each birdie was made on a different hole. Stories from the course From Roger Gibbs "I know it’s not swindle But Jason and I saw the greatest ever birdie on 18. The lead guitarist from ZZ Top was about 130 yards out. His shot flew the out of bounds posts and smashed into the buggy of the group in front in the car park. It bounced back, went through the rough, rolled onto the green, just missing the pin and leaving a 2 foot birdie putt. He nonchalantly holed it as if nothing had happened!!!!" The average gross score today was 94.00 and the average Stableford score was 31.50. Best gross of the day was from Steve Reynolds with 79. There were 0 Eagles or better today. There were 8 birdies to...

Excellent weather today, light wind, hot but not as hot as it has been. Course looking quite good considering the amount of heat we have had this week. Greens slow but they are probably being saved for the Club Championship next weekend, expect them to be much quicker. Today was more than golf but the farewell to three of the Swindle, Peter Williams moving to another club and Peter Laurence and Tony Froud moving to 5 day members. Peter Laurence has been with us since 2006 so twenty years, Tony Froud since 2010 so sixteen years and Peter Williams 2021 so only five years. They will all be missed as they all added something to the group. We will see Peter L and Tony around the course and no doubt occasionally grace us with their presence on our away weekends. Peter Williams is also welcome to join us as once a Early Birds always and Early Bird.  First and second was tight today with Martin Lythgoe taking the spoils with 36 points, well done Martin. A solid 35 gave Richard second. That...

Gardner Masters the Course While the Rest Master the Excuses Another week, another gathering of golfing optimists assembled with dreams of glory, tales of miraculous practice sessions, and a variety of brand-new excuses already prepared for the clubhouse afterwards. Fifteen players teed it up hoping for a place among the prizes, but by the end of the day there was one clear winner and plenty of stories involving unlucky bounces, missed putts, and "the best round I've played in years despite the score." Gardner Produces a Masterclass While the rest of the field spent the afternoon alternating between moments of brilliance and moments best described as "character building," Paul Gardner quietly went about compiling the round of the day. His winning total of 39 Stableford points was built on consistency, smart course management, and a remarkable ability to avoid the sort of catastrophic holes that featured prominently in many of his competitors' scorecards. A...

Great weather today fairways were running fast and greens less so. Excellent win for Martin Lythgoe this week with a solid 38 points and two birdies. Andy a commendable 37 points to grab second, poor bunker play scuppered a win for Andy. Praise must go to Roger Gibbs who was the only player to score a par on the 6th hole, the hardest hole on the course, well done Roger. Paul received rapturous applause from the patio when he hit his second onto the green to within 10ft and score a fine par, Paul didn't think it was that good when he hit and threw his club to the ground in disgust before seeing the ball land on the green, forever the optimist Paul, not. Next week is the Swindle Challenge, a competition we have never won. We have 11 players participating, could this be our year! The average gross score today was 90.13 and the average Stableford score was a very respectable 32.38. Best gross of the day was from Richard Hyne with 83. There were 0 Eagles or better today. There were...

Great weather this weekend heading into the bank holiday, somewhat rare as it normally rains. A great win for Martin Lythgoe with 38 points, closely followed by Richard on 37 points. Thanks for the contributions from a number of guest writers this week From Steve R Sighted, the rare occasion of Tony hitting a wood, it went straight and true, must have been lucky. A very dapper hat. From Richard The weather was lovely which lead to a fight to get a shady seat on the patio. Golf was good in parts with Jock keeping up his recent form. Roger not so much. But Roger did excel with his impressive command of Anglo Saxon. If Jock and I were younger, less worldly wise, men we might well have blushed. Guest writer this week was ChatGPT! The Unfortunate Case of Andy’s Round Subject: A catalogue of avoidable misfortune, suspicious circumstances, and general golfing injustice during Andy’s round. Andy’s latest golfing outing provided compelling evidence that there is, in fact, no shortage of things ...