BOARD MEETING NOTES

Below are notes from the Board Meeting held on Thursday 25 May 2023

1.       BUNKER MASTER PLAN

A comprehensive update is provided in this newsletter and regular updates on the Members Portal.

Construction is currently ahead of schedule and tracking in line with the budget for stage one of the works.

Approvals for stage two of the plan which includes works from holes 9 through to 15 plus 6 and 7 is underway with Northern Beaches Council. The improvements to the waterways between 1 & 18 and 4 & 5 are also being assessed.

Weekly updates, progress pictures and important information will be made available on the Members website as necessary. Please ensure you check for updates prior to your round.

2.       CLUBHOUSE COMPLIANCE WORK

Installation of a walk-in cool room in the Café Kitchen and improvements to the Café storage areas will commence on Tuesday 13th June with an expected timeline of two weeks. Disruption and noisy works during this will be managed to permit the Café to continue to operate.

After completion of the Café cool room, construction will commence in the Function Kitchen, Pacific Room and Reef Room.

Updates will be provided as the work progresses. We would appreciate your cooperation during this period, being mindful of the designated construction zones and the various trucks that will be delivering materials.

3.       COURSE MACHINERY PURCHASE

It was approved to purchase two new TruTurf Greens Rollers, replacing our rollers that were previously purchased in 2016.

4.       LEASE OFFER OF 30 YEARS

Northern Beaches Council have advised the Club the proposed lease will be put out for public notification for a 28 day period. The notification is expected to be published w/c 29 May.

5.       MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTIONS

Membership subscriptions fall due today, Wednesday 31 May 2023. If you have not received your subscription invoice, please contact Kimberley Conaty at membership@lrgc.com.au.

House Accounts and any credit won prior to 1 May 2023 on your Prize and Ball Accounts must be spent by COB today, to avoid losing the credit in the annual purge.

Members who paid their subscriptions in full prior to 15 May will receive an additional 10% credit on their House account which will be loaded this week. The complimentary guests passes and Dine In vouchers will also be loaded on Membership cards in the coming days.  

Cam Gillespie | Vice Captain

C Grade final was Linda Sinclair and Deb Kent versus Kerry McCallum and Colleen Thompson. Sadly, due to illness Kerry and Colleen had to forfeit the match, so Linda and Deb were the winners.

Silver Salver Pennants from Sue Kruse.

Congratulations to the Long Reef Silver Salver Pennant team who finished joint runner-up with Killara Golf Club this year.  The team consisted of Rachel Buxton (captain), Kim Sloane, Karen Smith, Ali Gattas, Sally Hill, Janet Atchison and Sue Kruse.  

The year started with a brilliant 4/1 win in our first match against Ryde-Parramatta.  However, the next week we went down 4.5/0.5 to Monash.  The team then rallied to win their next three matches against Pymble 3.5/1.5, Cromer 3/2 and Pennant Hills 3/2.  With one game left to play against Killara, both Long Reef and Killara were on the same points 8 and same games won 14.  Monash was running a close second on 7 points with 15 games won.  A tight finish was ensured!  After a brave fight by all members of the team with Kim, Ali and Sally all going to the 18th hole we drew with Killara (2.5/2.5), leaving both Long Reef and Killara on 9 points and 16.5 games won.  Monash won their match against Ryde-Parramatta which also gave them 9 points, but as Monash had won more games they ended up winning the Silver Salver and Long Reef and Killara were joint runners-up.  

Sally Hill and Ali Gattas both went through without a loss this year with Sally winning 3 games and drawing one and Ali winning her 2.  

A fabulous year for the Long Reef team ably led by our captain Rachel Buxton who organised practice games at all the courses, ensured we were across the local rules before we played and kept us well sustained with sweets and encouragement.  Thank you to everyone including our reserves Rosemary West, Wendy Millson and Diana Sier for such a memorable year. Bring on next year!

Bronze Plaque Pennant team played their 1st match on Friday 19th May at Manly versus Wakehurst. The team of Jane Hagan, Jeanie Reitzer, Wendy Thomas, Prue Bardsley and Michelle Milsted went down 4-1. The team played well, one match went to the 18th and three went to the 17th. Friday 26th May saw Jane Hagan, Wendy Thomas, Prue Bardsley, and Michelle Milsted play Warringah at Elanora. The wind picked up and with an occasional shower the team thrived in Long Reef type conditions and played exceptionally well to win 5-0. Friday 2nd June is at Warringah playing Elanora.

Sunday 21st May saw the Men versus Women trophy played. Congratulations to the women who won by 19 points. It was a very hard day and the wind got stronger and stronger as the day went on. Thank you to the women who played and we look forward to the event next year.

Scratch winners, Division 1 Kim Sloane 88, Jude Sandvoss 101 and Deb Kent 105. 

The stroke round was also a qualifying round for the Women's President's Trophy, congratulations and good luck to the following players in the first round of handicap match play to be played on Tuesday 30th May.

Division 1 - Kim Sloane v Prue Bardsley, Jenni Brown v Cath Piper, Sally Hill v Sue Smiles and Rosemary West v Sue Kruse. 

Division 2 Deb Kent, v Karen Pethybridge, Jenny Watts v Muriel Dawson, Linda Sinclair v Nan Crump, Michelle Ison v Julie Simpson. 

Gold Tee Stableford was won by Adriana Bowyer (40) with an amazing score of 40 pts, 2nd Diana Muir (38) 36pts and 3rd Libby Cleary (45) 35 C/B.

9 holes was won by Kerry McCallum (42) 19 pts, runner up Wendy Hague (33) 18 pts. 

Saturday 20th May was won by Janet Atchison (15) 36 pts. Saturday 27th May was win by Jenni Brown (15) 33 C/B. 

The Archives are made up of a piecemeal collection of books, photos and things! There is not a complete collection of anything! The Honour Boards are part of our reference material as well as celebrating the achievements of our members for all to see. They are unique. 

A recent question was asked "What was the starting date of the Men's B-Grade and C-Grade Cups?" The Honour Boards we see list them from 1987. This enquiry led to a return to those difficult to read copper plate handwritten books to find the answer. 

The men started playing in two grades in the weekly singles competitions in June 1927. A-Grade was 12 and under and B-Grade anything over 12. As the club prepared to open the 18- hole course a proposal was moved at the 4th June 1930 meeting "that a B-Grade championships be held on the same day as the Club Championships, Carried." I think we are safe to say that the B-Grade Cup commenced late in 1930 or early 1931. If we take out the war years when no Championships were played the present  Honour Board  is missing something like 50 names!

The following names have been discovered starting from 1974 - R. Lanes, C.R. Brown, L.T. Oliver twice, M.E. Glanville, P.J. Newman, W.G. Moore, M.N. Smith, B. Ratcliffe and P McKenzie. Some of our older members may remember these men. This is not a complete 70s and 80s list. 

The 1960 Annual Report shows the result for the first time of the C-Grade Cup played first in 1959. It was won by a J. O'Shea. Throughout the 50s the men had played in three grades. (Although only one medal was presented across all three.) The 1963 Programme book (the only one we have for that decade) describes the divisions as A Grade 12 and below, B - Grade was 13 -19 and C - Grade 20-27 inclusive. 

Since 1974  some of the winners in the C-Grade Cup have been C. Armstrong, K. Stanton, B. Miller, W. Finlay, M. Hanlon, M. P Waters,  H.J. Powell,  J.B. Edwards,  S. Melville and M. Cotton. 

The club has had three types of Honour Boards - the single wooden shields, the gilt script on wooden teak panels completed and hung in 1972, and the plastic versions we have now which were part of the major renovations and extensions in the early 2000s.

It is fair to say that many of our Honour Boards do not tell the full story. The Women's are not complete -but that is a long story! In January Life Member and club historian Ross Lanes helped carry out an audit of names on the current Boards. A list of needed revisions have been passed on to the club's administration and corrections are in hand. 

 As examples, on several boards our very gifted golfer, champion, course record holder, pennant player and NSW team member -  Scott McGuinness has his name spelt incorrectly throughout!  On the Men's Foursomes board  4 times winner E.D. Morton has  Morton and Moreton - twice each! As for the Life Members, two are missing, one spelt incorrectly and a new one invented.  Who was Alderidge? - Mr Alderdice in disguise I assume! and what happened to Widmer, that has turned him into Wildmer? 

Looking at the men's major honour Boards in the Member's Bar we see examples of inconsistency. Two are correct and tell the full story - the A-reserve which did in fact start in 1997 is correct. The Championship recorded from 1923 is also correct since the archive committee had it altered ten years ago because of dates not matching the correct winner's name. The Course Record board starts in 1949 listing only part of the one hundred years story. 

The Long Reef Medal started in 1951, not 1960. There are 9 names missing one of whom is Wally Smith who was the first LR player to win it in 1956. 

It is time in our history to take stock of these things and make corrections before the memory goes altogether! Along the way we have lost lists of names as Boards were discarded without making sure the names were listed  and recorded elsewhere. For example the war time Honour Roll Board was replaced in 1946 by one with just names of those who had perished not all who have served. There is no record of any of these members from the two boards and no chance for us to remember them on Anzac Day or during our Combined Services days.. 

Rule 13.1 applies. 

A practice swing cannot count as a stroke ( Definitions ).