Club news 

From Albert Sinfield, General Manager: Firstly, welcome back everyone! We have all been waiting patiently for the gates to open again and our fairways to be filled with Members enjoying some well-deserved golf. I hope if you have not already played golf you are set to do so in the coming days.  

For those of you that have been to the Club since re-opening you will have seen the refurbishment work on the entrance has now been completed and the area looks fantastic. We will now move onto the clubhouse bar, repairing the damage caused by the flood earlier this year. Until we can move back into the clubhouse, we will be running the business from the outdoor golf check–in/bar located at the rear of the clubhouse, looking out over the putting green.  

With the warmer weather around the corner, you will see our food and beverage team out on the golf course most days with refreshing beverages to keep you topped up during your round.  

Captains’ update 

From Peter Huntley, Club Captain, 2020: It has been an enormous privilege for me to be able to represent Redlibbets as Captain during 2020. This was most certainly not the year that any of us expected, but I think that how you progress in trying times is a better benchmark than how you progress when everything is in your favour. 

In this most trying of years, I received support from so many of you: the management team and all of the staff at Redlibbets, Members, past and present, my Lady Captain Elaine, my hard-working VC Darren Read, the Competitions group, Kevin and Lydia, the ever–cheerful and keen–to–help Clive Young, plus invaluable support from all of my “Red Lodge Swindle” friends. A massive thank you to all of you. 

We were not able to have a “normal” Captain’s year but, with your support, we did deliver a very successful Major Competitions year. Participation in all competitions increased, we ran a control desk for all of the Majors, we introduced clear terms for all of the Majors and we started a direction of travel, increasing each individual competition prize fund that will continue into 2021. 

For me it has been truly heart-warming to see so many of you come forward to assist me in your different ways to support both Captain’s charities this year. The success of The Charity Day held in early October was nothing short of miraculous, given the circumstances, and on the day we raised nearly £5,000 for both charities. 

Together we raised a final sum in excess of £6,500 for the charity that I’ve supported this year, Ruby’s Ride. This is something that I know will be a massive help for this wonderful local charity. 

Thank you again to all of you and my warmest best wishes to Darren and Lynn for 2021. 

Ladies 

From Elaine Commber, Lady Captain 2020: After our Captains’ Drive In, March 1st, 2020 marked my inauguration as the Ladies’ Captain. Sadly, after much planning in 2019 as Lady Vice, all plans in the 2020 fixtures had to be cancelled. Thrown into disarray by Covid.

We returned to golf and I played too many games in one week, which led to me being unable to play for many months, that, along with other health concerns, meant I couldn’t always be at our club.

I have been a very supportive member of Redlibbets for nearly 17 years. I have always loved this Club and the people who work here. Now it’s time to hand over to my Lady Vice Captain Lynn Craven. Lynn has worked hard this year and has done so much for me. I thank her and the ladies who have helped me due to me being unable to fulfil all my obligations as Captain.

I would like to thank our Club Captain Peter Huntley for the support he has given to the Club and myself throughout this difficult time. Despite the obstacles, we have both worked very hard behind the scenes. I thank Peter and all of you that  supported the fund raising for our choosen charities, especially my Ladies section and Redlibbets Club.

With your help, along with significant sum donated from the historical Redlibbets’ Members’ competitions fund, I was able to present the sum of £5,726.48.

Good luck and best wishes to the incoming Captains and their Vice Captains.

Course news 

From Damon Kirk, Course Manager: The past month has been an extremely busy period on the course, preparing for the return of golf.  

The greens are recovering well from the spring renovations and, with — hopefully — a rise in temperatures, they should be back to the high standard you all expect. All playing surfaces are now being mown and the new shapes are beginning to stand out. Visually the course is looking slightly different, with the fairways and rough taking on a new pattern. 

During March, we undertook an irrigation audit, which has involved testing all greens, approaches and tees irrigation heads. The project is still ongoing but is well on the way to being completed soon. We have been fortunate to have invested in replacement heads, as some of the older Buckner sprinklers were in need of being switched to ensure the course is properly watered when necessary. 

The plant growth is still quite slow but, as temperatures rise, there will be an enormous impact on the sward quality and playability. Fingers crossed, just as the golfers come out, so shall the sun! We look forward to seeing you all back on the 1st tee and hope that you enjoy the much–anticipated return. 

Competition news  

We have a busy club diary in April with two board competitions being played: 

• Saturday, April 17th: Acorn Cup 
• Saturday, April 24th: St George’s Day Cup (the first Race to Le Touquet event) 

Please be sure to sign up for both events if you wish to play. Alongside these two events, we also have a full diary with various Medal, Stableford and mid-week competitions scheduled.  See the diary located in our Intelligent Golf website for more details.  

Staff news 

We would also like to take this opportunity to welcome Danielle Milton, to our food and beverage team. Danielle has previously worked in the catering and retail sector and is keen to meet you all on the fairways on the drinks buggy in the coming weeks. Please join us in welcoming Danielle to our club with a friendly hello whilst buying your first beer on the course.  

Pro news 

Junior Camps 

From George Lings, PGA Pro: As a collective coaching group, we will be hosting a series of Junior Camps in April. These will cater to all levels of golfers, including complete beginners. We would love to use these camps as an opportunity to get your children or grandchildren into the game, showcase how much fun the game can be and, hopefully, this will progress them into our Junior Academy on Saturday mornings!  

The camps will run from 10am till 2pm, so please provide your child with lunch. Both myself and PGA coach Olivia Cooke will be hosting the sessions. Olivia will be hosting sessions on Thursday, April 8th and Thursday, April 15th. I will be hosting on Friday, April 16th.  

If you would like further information or to book your child’s place, please contact George or Olivia via email [email protected] or [email protected]. We look forward to hosting the next generation of Tour Pros! 

Redlibbets Junior Academy 

Our Junior Academy is picking up and as summer arrives, it would be great to be filling out the sessions each week. These sessions allow juniors to meet other like–minded young golfers, enjoy some outdoor activity and become better golfers.  

The sessions are run by DBS-checked PGA Professionals. The coaches create sessions that allow the juniors to not only get better at golf but learn the rules and etiquette of the game too. Please see details below. If you would like to know more, please contact George or Olivia via email [email protected] or [email protected].

Developed exclusively for our members, the Get Golfing Pro Shop has a comprehensive range of golf equipment to cater to all your golfing equipment needs – whether you are a scratch golfer or a beginner, we have the right products for your game.

In addition, as a member of a Get Golfing club, you can pay with your Member Club Card to get the best discount. We will then deliver your purchases to your club for free, so there is no waiting around for deliveries at home and a good excuse for a few holes!

Finally, best of all… every penny of profit the shop makes will be invested back into your club!