Gala Dinner. Old Course Hotel. St. Andrews. Society of Liverpool Golf Captains.

PRESS RELEASE - SOCIETY OF LIVERPOOL GOLF CAPTAINS CENTENARY EVENT AT THE HOME OF GOLF - ST. ANDREWS.

Press Release


During the week of 17th August, 2008, the Annual Society of Liverpool Golf Captains Event will convene in St. Andrews, Scotland as part of the centenary celebrations for one of the most prestigious golf organisations in the country. More than 300 society members are expected to attend this gala golf and entertainment event, which has been organised on an unprecedented scale by the St. Andrews based company, St. Andrews Golf Vacations.

Hundreds of red-coated captains from golf clubs across Merseyside are coming to St Andrews, the Home of Golf, where they will be photographed on the steps of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews. The Society has become very special and popular. Its membership includes the captains and past captains, more than 700 men from 27 clubs, and its status and popularity is so great that it is impossible to accept the captains from other, more recently established clubs.

Many Society members will stay in the fantastic St. Andrews University facility, the David Russell Apartments, which were opened in February 2007 by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

On Sunday 17th August, the event kicks off in grand style at the Old Course Hotel, Resort & Spa where the captains have been granted a civic reception, and will be formally welcomed by the Provost of Fife, Councillor Frances Melville.

One of Scotland’s best known entertainers, Joyce Falconer, of BBC1 Scotland River City fame, will also be on hand with her accordion to welcome the captains in traditional Scottish style. Young Falkland piper, John Heaton- Armstrong, aged 13, will play the bagpipes before and after the evening’s festivities.

Over the next three days, the captains will play three of Fife’s finest and historic golf courses – Ladybank, Crail Balcomie and The Duke’s.


Steve Cooke, Managing Director of St. Andrews Golf Vacations, helped the captains select the premier St. Andrews links venues. He suggested the The Duke’s St. Andrews (newly refurbished) as one of the three courses/ He is so impressed with this heathland championship courses that he has become corporate member there.

“Since Herb Kohler bought the Old Course Hotel, Resort & Spa, inheriting The Duke’s as part of the deal, it was obvious that he sought to deliver the same professionalism and quality that are associated with his Whistling Straits courses in Wisconsin (USA). Most of my clients who have played The Dukes are blown away by the experience. Mr. Kohler has left no stone unturned—the staff are magnificent on all levels, and the catering is second to none,” explained Mr Cooke.

Richard Pinn, VisitScotland Regional Director added: “St Andrews is renowned as the home of golf and it is therefore extremely fitting a group as prestigious as the Liverpool Society of Golf Captains should choose this location as part of the celebrations in their centenary year.

“This visit will create an ideal opportunity to showcase what Fife has to offer in terms of golf with three different courses being played; it will also highlight the breadth of accommodation, restaurants and fantastic conference facilities Fife has. Hopefully this will encourage return visits for years to come.”

The second course the captains will enjoy is a true links course, which is a “must” when visiting the area. The Crail Golfing Society - Balcomie Links, established in 1786 and the world’s 7th oldest golf course fitted the bill perfectly.

The third course, guests will play another ‘Links with History’ course, Ladybank Golf Club, established in 1879. Ladybank is used as an Open Qualifying course when the British Open comes to St. Andrews.

Once the golf is completed on Wednesday, at about 7.00pm, one of the most spectacular sights will be seen outside the Royal and Ancient. More than 300 Society members, wearing their long-tailed red jackets, will be photographed by Campbell Savage from the Royal and Ancient, which is believed to be the largest ever group photograph taken outside golf’s most famous building.

The award winning ‘Fife Constabulary Pipe Band’ will be on hand to lead the captains beside the 18th hole of the Old Course, all the way up to the Old Course Hotel, Resort and Spa, where they will be looking forward to pre-meal drinks.

The week will come to a convivial close with a centenary gala dinner, which is the largest ever society dinner ever held in the ‘Hall of Champions’ at the Old Course Hotel.

-Ends –

Notes to Editors

PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES:

• Scottish Celebrity Joyce Falconer will be available to photograph at the Old Course Hotel after 7.00pm
• The largest ever organized photograph outside the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, St. Andrews, will take place on 20th August at 7.00pm
  

For more information, please contact Steve Cooke on golfgroups@aol.com, +44 1337 858888 or +44 7968034414.

The recent weather in St. Andrews. Fife Scotland

Back in 2006, we had the summer to dream of, continuous lovely, hot, sunny weather! Why do the hoards have to go abroad when we can enjoy such climates here. Its this global warming you hear so much about many were saying, but the downside was that it burnt up a lot of golf courses and damaged many greens


In 2007 in the early season, I was looking into getting a sprinkler system sponsored to Falkland Golf club, to save potential damage to the greens. April 2007 was glorious, and in May the heavens opened, and they pretty much have been open ever since, with the odd splidging of good weather in between

Now with the Captains event less than a week away, I am into the lap of the gods as to if 2 years of work pays off and the Captains get a bit of calm, nice and dry, sunny weather

Here is the 10 day weather forecast from weather.com . Leuchars is the RAF base just across the water from St Andrews


Over the weekend we have had what only can be described as a monsoon. The local paper, the Courier describes it quite nicely here

fingers crossed that carts are allowed onto the fairways at the Dukes, or we are going to have fun and games.....

yikes!

Kind Regards

Steve Cooke

MD St Andrews Golf Vacations
134 South Street.
St Andrews.
Fife
Scotland
Telephone +44 1337 858888

90th US PGA Championship - Congratulations to Padraig Harrington

Well done to Padraig Harrington, what a grand fete, eyes popping out like a man possessed, celebrations reminiscent of Seve all those years ago when he slotted one home on the 18th at St. Andrews and pumped his fist in a sheer explosion of relief and adrenaline pumping out of his ears! How it must feel, us average golfers can only imagine and dream!


Myself and Robbie were fortunate enough to meet the great man after his Open Victory at Carnoustie last year. We have a friend who manages the Titleist wagon at Pga European Tour events and had invited us to take a look at during last years Annual Dunhill Cup at St. Andrews, Kingbarns and Carnoustie

We had a coffee, and it was like a who's who, of the golf and entertainment world from each passing minute, discussing Arsenal with Ian Poulter, and Hugh Grant cracking a joke the next.
Padraig entered the vehicle and we got talking about our beloved Leeds United. I had heard he was a Leeds fan like the best of us, however my heart sank as he told how he used to be a big Leeds fan, but the Bowyer and Woodgate scandal had tainted his support and he had changed allegiances! The man has no shame!

Having dealt with Colin Montgomerie in the past, I asked him also about his love for Chelsea, and where this left Leeds, and told me not to worry, he still supported Leeds, and only had a soft spot for Chelsea as he used to live near the ground, and they also gifted him a shirt with Monty on it!
The man has no shame part 2!

Kind Regards

Steve Cooke

MD St Andrews Golf Vacations
134 South Street.
St Andrews.
Fife
Scotland
Telephone +44 1337 858888

www.golfgroups.org

People to thank for their help in making this event come together

Its only a few days left till the big Captains event kicks off....

It all started about 2 years ago when I received a call to see if I could cater for 350 or so golfers!

I've said it before, and no doubt I will say it again....

This has been all about teamwork

I'll start off with my mates Robbie Harrison and John Lambton spending hours putting golf courses into our database to boost our rankings in Google (shameless!) but that's whats allowed us to cut back on costs, we didn't have the budget some of these 'super golf tour ops' seem to have, more than likely because they like to charge ridiculous amount of money.... if people want to throw away silly amounts of money to see a plastic version of Scotland, then feel free! For those that want value for money then contact us at golfgroups@aol.com

Robbie has become the Sales and Marketing Manager and is enjoying learning the industry with each passing week, a more honest guy you are not likely to meet

Without the help of David Morris from the Society of Liverpool Golf Captains, and his team including Eddy Hampson, Dennis Boardman and Derek, with some cameo players in between, this would have been a very difficult job to organise, they have been a pleasure to work with, although at the beginning, we realised it was going to be quite a task organising something as massive as this event

I'm going to mention this here, David Morris has been to St. Andrews about 10 times in the past 2 years, working directly with me, sometimes he's travelled from Liverpool and not even brought his clubs to the home of golf!
He stayed in the Russell Hotel several times, and did a couple of trial stays in the David Russell Apartments! Basically, David has spent a small fortune as have others making this happen for over 300 Captains and Past Captains, if David ever walks into one of the 26 other clubs in the Society, I'd suggest they have a beer waiting for him, or I'll stand the drop of York!!

Another strange twist of fate has come in the form of Mr Campbell Savage, who I kind of met all at once in several ways!

He is the Junior Convener at Ladybank, and is doing a terrific job, always with a smile, and always got time for the kids, the next generation of the game, something myself and Lorna Henry hoped to achieve at Falkland Golf Club during my eventful reign as Captain last year, alas. due to draconian attitudes by a select few on the Committee, this will see the Club eventually fold, as the next generation of golfers get restricted beyond belief and got a bit annoyed with the whole state of affairs, its a vicious circle that needs repairing before the disease becomes terminal
Well done Ladybank, take heed Falkland Golf Club! Its not rocket science and everyone is allowed to have an idea and move with the times, its not something exclusive for other people!

Campbell also happened to be a very good friend of David Morris's, when this is all over, I'm hoping that the 3 of us and Robbie can have an evening in Campbell's back garden, chimenea going strong, and the odd mixture with Pimms! Not an occasion for the faint hearted
Campbell is also in charge of taking the photograph outside the Royal and Ancient on the Weds evening, still trying to find him a megaphone, as the police don't have one, I'm sure the Society must have some former Generals who could do the job without the use of a megaphone

My good mate Bill Murray from Mac Mur Tours must also get a mention, not only a professional, but a damned good bloke, who leaves his mark on all those people he meets, and are fortunate enough to meet him, he knows me well enough to know that this is sincere. hey Bill look what I managed to get for you thanks to my friend Alan Pryke


Alan Pryke, well actually, Alan's going to get a whole page of his own sometime soon! The words Thank You don't do this gentleman and multi talented man any justice!

A few thank you's to:

The staff at the University have been excellent, the Golf Courses and their staff have been accommodating and polite, special mention to Sandy Smith Golf Professional at Ladybank
There have been so many people we have dealt with over the duration of the build up to this event, Scotia Carts, the catering staff at each club, stagecoach, Margaret Mackie at the St. Andrews Citizen, Levenmouth Printers, Kate Hughes from Fife Council, Provost of Fife, Cllr Frances Melville and her staff. My staff at the Barber's Pole, Jo, Marie, Christina and Allison.
Tracy Logan from Visit Scotland, Iain and John from Blue Crags

The staff at the Old Course Hotel, Resort & Spa and the Dukes deserve mention. Jason Schelenberg helped me with the BIG bits of the event right at the start, and it was quite good fun negotiating the contract. I've pretty much dealt with Phyllis Wilkie hands on since the contract was signed and understood, again its been an excellent learning curve for all concerned! Lisa Parker, Clare Cochran, and Richard Ellison have been introduced to us over time as we are putting the garnish on the event. Ron the Professional at the Dukes and his staff who are always helpful. Martin in the kitchen at the Dukes, Alan McColm always helpful

Last but not least, my wife who has put up with me and been very supportive over the years I've been looking forward to getting involved with something as grand as this

I'm chuffed to bits chuck, as Cilla would say.... to be sitting on the top table with some very accomplished people is the icing on the cake for me

one last thing.... please please please rain gods, no crappy weather between 17th and 20th August!

Steve Cooke. MD
St. Andrews Golf Vacations
134 South Street.
St. Andrews.
KY16 9EQ
Scotland. UK

W : http://www.golfgroups.org

E : golfgroups@aol.com
T : +44 1337 858888
M : +44 7968034414

Booking a golf vacation in Scotland. St. Andrews. Even non golfers will find this helpful

I've covered this subject before in this blog, and now the Worlds economy is in meltdown, and less disposable income out there, people want a good deal.

We offer FREE help and advice to people who choose to use this service. Just email us at
golfgroups@aol.com

I can't emphasise enough times that a trip to Scotland, and in particular St. Andrews/ Fife, that all the things you require are already there.
Its a jigsaw puzzle, and by following this post you'll save you, your friends, family, golf group, golf society hundreds, if not thousands of pounds or dollars.

Most Golf Tour Operators insist that you play those ''Trophy'' Courses, insanely making the visitor travel hundreds of miles in true ''Wacky Races'' style in a short period of time.



If the golfer has travelled from America/ Canada, they have already lost a nights sleep, are jet lagged to hell and are accommodated in places that bear no resemblance to what this great country has to offer.

So lets look at the pieces of this vacational jigsaw puzzle, piece by piece

1. Flights
2. Transportation including Airport transfers
3. Accommodation
4. Golf and trips

The Internet has made the World a VERY small place. Just think, 15 short years ago, for most, to do this was almost impossible, now all you have to do is put your cursor over the link and click it!

We have a wealth of golf and things to do in the St. Andrews area. It is stupidity in my opinion to spend so much of your holiday on the road when you can be bashing the fairways in one area. It doesn't make sense, we Brits DO NOT, and WOULD NOT do it ourselves if we were going away, so why do the vultures that are Golf Tour Operators make you do it? Simple, they make lots of £$£$£$£$ by making you think that you cannot do it yourself and adding on commission

Lets start helping you to SAVE money, the dummy's guide to booking a Golf Trip to St. Andrews and pay homage to the Home of golf. If you have any questions, as I've mentioned email us at golfgroups@aol.com

Flights

If you are flying in from overseas, these are the usual suspects - Do shop around, and its worth noting that group bookings can save money with some companies.

a) http://www.cheapflights.com/book-flights-online/?fromdeals=1

b) http://www.vayama.com/

c) http://travel.priceline.com/flights/

d) http://www.opodo.co.uk/

e) http://www.ebookers.com/shop/home

f) http://www.expedia.com/

Please also remember to include Travel/ Medical Insurance, it wouldn't be the first time someones golf clubs, or luggage has gone missing, or worse still, someone has needed medical assistance.
Excuse me for being blunt, but during my time in the Forces I was taught a saying that has lived with me ever since ........

''Prior planning prevents p*ss poor performance!''

Transportation

I have my own personal preference on what I would do, and I'll explain why.

I'd book the services of the likes of our Transportation Director, Bill Murray and his team, from Mac Mur Tours who will pick and drop you from the airport, and take you to the golf courses, or on day trips


1/ We drive on the other side of the road over here
2/ Vehicles here are mainly gears & clutch and not automatic
3/ The price of gas/ petrol is extortionate!
4/ Local knowledge, knowing all the places to go, eat and avoid!
5/ Flexibility
6/ Bill wears a kilt, is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet and is a real Scot!

The other option is to hire a vehicle from the ''usual suspects''. Like everything on here it can be booked online.

Here are a few for you to choose from, but the one I have found the best by personal experience is http://www.expedia.com/ which is a website you may find that can kill 2 birds with one stone, as they tend to have excellent deals on flights too, but both can be booked individually

www.hertz.co.uk

www.avis.co.uk

www.ArnoldClarkRental.com

http://www.alamo.co.uk/

www.enterprise.co.uk

http://www.europcar.co.uk/

www.thrifty.co.uk

Accommodations

Having flown in, and found your way to St. Andrews, you need to decide what type of accommodation you require. If you have a good budget, we can get the best rates at the Old Course Hotel, Resort and Spa. However, take a look at the choices here, in and around St. Andrews to suite all budgets.

Our personal choices would be the likes of Kinburn Guest House a 9 iron from the town, or if you want a little bit of history, Ladywell House in Falkland, 20 miles outside town, and a place that was the former residence of Frances Shand Kidd, the mother of Lady Diana.

Golf, Golf and more Golf !

We know our golf, we play it, live it breathe it, we enjoy seeing people playing these courses...

• The Old Course **Open venue** New Course, Eden Course, Jubilee, the new Castle Course (all these are St. Andrews Links Trust Courses)

• The Dukes. St. Andrews
  
• Kingsbarns
• Links with History such as (Crail Balcomie Worlds 7th Oldest Course 1786), Lundin Links, **Open Qualifying venue** (1868), Scotscraig **Open Qualifying venue** (1817) , Ladybank Golf Club **Open Qualifying venue** (1879)
• Carnoustie Championship**Open venue**
• Monifeith, Panmure, Royal Montrose - **Yet more Open Qualifying venues**

You can of course pay a premium rate for an Old Course GUARANTEED time, we also work with the Old Course Experience who offer this service and can get you one, but as we have proved having got dozens and dozens of Golfers onto the Old, there really is no need to pay over the odds... Just follow these simple instructions.......


1/ Adavanced booking via the Links Trust

2/ The daily Ballot - the lottery. We are more than happy to help you put your name in

3/ Get up early and wait by the first tee - and I mean about 5am! It does work

It is important that you check for busy dates on the Old, if the Course has an event on, forget it, choose different dates to come!

The New, Jubilee and Eden Courses can also be booked directly by yourselves online, saving you lots of dollars!

Things to do in and around St. Andrews

Have a look at this page, which we hope may help. If you want any further help or suggestions, please email us!

Last but not least, we also own the World famous Barber's Pole which gives clients ''a free nip of whisky with every haircut'' as featured on ABC Sports and National Press!

WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU AT THE HOME OF GOLF!

http://www.golfgroups.org/

Society of Liverpool Golf Captains Centenary event - Organised by St. Andrews Golf Vacations

In 2006, Steve Cooke, Managing Director of St. Andrews Golf Vacations had a phone call asking a mysterious question, ''Can you organise a golf outing for 350 people?'', it was a chap called David Morris, who was from the Society of Liverpool Golf Captains, and an ex Captain of Dean Wood Golf Club

David went on to explain that in 2008 it was the Societies Centenary and it was only fitting that it be held at the ''Home of Golf''.

The Society is steeped in History, it comprises of Captains and Past Captains from 27 Golf Clubs in the Liverpool area, two very famous ones, Royal Liverpool (Hoylake) and the 2008 Open venue, Royal Birkdale.

The requirements seemed simple enough on paper, but the logistics were not quite as simple as that, however as Steve explains, there are no such things as problems, only solutions!

• 3 Golf Courses of excellent standard in the St. Andrews area.
• Extra carts at Golf Courses.
• Lunch/ food at Golf Courses
  
• Accommodation for 350 people.
• A venue for a welcome reception.
• A venue for a gala meal for 350 people, to include top table.
• A venue for the Captains to utilise as a scoring room
  
• Restaurants in St. Andrews for evening meal
• A photograph of 350 people outside the Royal and Ancient.

The first thing to be done was to look at the ''busy dates'' in the area for 2008, so not to have any major conflicts. Steve created ''St. Andrews Golf Vacations'' after falling in love with the Golf Courses in the area as a young lad when holidays in the 1970's were spent in St. Andrews, a distant cry from industrial West Yorkshire where he lived in Wakefield.
Steve joined the RAF in 1983 just so as to get posted to Leuchars, a long par 4 to reach the famous Links across the Eden River!

This enabled him to represent the RAF at golf and play all the great local Courses and fall in love with them.
Having visited 3 ''links with History Courses'' with David Morris and members of the Society, it was decided to approach Ladybank and Crail, 2 of the Worlds oldest golf courses to check availability, and to see if they could cater for such large number. These things have to go through committee's and a nervous wait was had by all to see if we could be accommodated

Meantime, Steve Cooke had approached Jason Schellenberg from the Old Course Hotel, to see if he could kill 4 birds with 1 stone!

His idea was :

1. To utilise the Old Course Hotels ''Hall of Champions'' for a welcome reception, which he hoped could be eventually granted ''civic reception'' status given the magnitude of the occasion.
2. To utilise the Old Course Hotels ''Hall of Champions'' for the prize-giving meal
3. The Old Course Hotel was purchased in 2005 by Herb Kohler, and came with its own Golf Course, the St. Andrews Dukes. Mr Kohler has spent millions of pounds on an already great Course, and is one of the best in the area, it seemed fitting that this be requested as one of the 3 courses
4. To request a scoring room for the Captains to peacefully (if not painfully!) go through over 300 cards a day

The dates were pencilled in for Sunday August 17th to Wednesday 20th August 2008

After a few weeks wait we had secured the big pieces of this gigantic jigsaw puzzle

Sunday - Welcome reception - Hall of Champions - Old Course Hotel, Resort and Spa

Monday- Wednesday - Golf at Crail Balcomie, Ladybank and the Dukes

Wednesday Evening - Prize giving meal at the Hall of Champions - Old Course Hotel, Resort and Spa.

The Tom Morris Junior room at the Hotel was also to be used for the Captains to score in on Monday- Wednesday

The next small problem we had was where to accommodate over 300 people.
Gordon Brown had just been in St. Andrews and opened the newly refurbished David Russell Apartments, part of the St. Andrews University accommodation, and during term holidays would be open for the general public to use.
Linda Richardson & Kim Malherbe (Conference and Group Services, University of St Andrews) were approached, and this was seen as the ideal location to house the majority of the group.

All that was left to do was to put the garnish on the whole occasion.
Here is what else has been achieved

• On Sunday 17th August, the reception has indeed been given a ''Civic'' status, and the Provost of Fife, Cllr Frances Melville will open up proceedings by welcoming the Captains to the Home of Golf. Joyce Falconer, from BBC1 Scotland Soap ''River City'' fame will also be giving the Captains a Scottish welcome. A young piper by the name of John Heaton- Armstrong will be piping in the Captains at the Old Course Hotel
• The staff at each of the Golf Courses have been nothing short of fantastic, helping to sort out Carts and food on a daily basis. Special mention must go to the Professional at Ladybank, Sandy Smith who has gone above and beyond the call of duty on several occasions

On Wednesday 20th August, it appears that this group are going to break a couple of records

1. Campbell Savage (Royal and Ancient) will be in charge of what is believed to be the largest every group photograph outside the Royal and Ancient, which it is hoped will include the Captain of the R&A, Mr David Harrison. What will make this more spectacular is the fact that the Society will all be wearing long tailed red jackets (see picture below) Having obtained a temporary road closure from Fife Council/ Fife Police, the Captains will be piped by the Fife Constabulary Pipe Band to the Old Course Hotel for pre meal drinks


2. It is believed that the meal will be the largest ever meal sitting in the ''Hall of Champions'', guests invited Gavin Hastings OBE, Provost of Fife, Cllr Frances Melville and the Captain of the Royal and Ancient

www.golfgroups.org

Society of Liverpool Golf Captains event being organised by St Andrews Golf Vacations

Over 340 Golf Captains will be coming to St. Andrews in August 2008 which will see some record breaking fetes achieved and never seen before at the Home of Golf

More news coming soon...




www.golfgroups.org

Golf: Society of Liverpool Golf Captains to celebrate their centenary with St Andrews trip

Event proudly orhanised by St. Andrews Golf Vacations


THE RED-COATED captains from across Merseyside are going to St Andrews, where they will be photographed on the steps of the famous old clubhouse, as part of the centenary celebrations for one of the most prestigious golf organisations in the country.

The Society of Liverpool Golf Captains is 100 years old and events planned for this year will also recall its early beginning at Woolton Golf Club when secretaries, captains and treasurers of selected clubs were invited for a game of golf followed by a dinner.

The Society has developed to become very special. Its membership includes the captains and past captains, more than 700 men from 27 clubs, and its status and popularity is so great that it is impossible to accept the captains from other, more recently established clubs. Quite simply, no more could be accommodated at the annual dinner and golf competition.

The society may not be the oldest but as Geoffrey Leece, past captain of Huyton and Prescot who is now writing a history of the society, says: "We are the envy of many in other areas because of the strength of our society and we traditionally wear red coats. Others do not do that, but some are now following us."

So, as usual, the society’s annual dinner in Liverpool last month was a red-coated evening and for the three-days autumn meeting at St Andrews the society members will be in red coats at the old clubhouse before they go to dinner at the Old Course Hotel. Between 250-300 are expected to be there.

It is not clear who at Woolton invited the captains, secretaries and treasurers to that first get- together in 1908, although a J.F Clegg was a prominent figure at Woolton and indeed in the Society.

"Cleggie," as he was called, was in turn Woolton’s secretary, treasurer, captain and president, a naval architect by profession and, according to a Woolton history, a "very masterful personality."

In addition to Woolton, the clubs represented for the 1908 match and dinner were Royal Liverpool, Formby, Birkdale, Bromborough, West Derby, Heswall, Wallasey, Huyton, Ormskirk, West Lancashire, Chester, Leasowe, and one among the lost courses of Merseyside, New Brighton.

The evening was obviously a success because the idea was repeated before and after World War One, in 1911, 1912 and in the early 1920s. Then the golfers were known as the Liverpool and District Captains, Ex-captains, Hon. Treasurers and Secretaries Competition.

The Competition was renamed as the Society of Liverpool Golf Captains in 1938 and the secretaries and treasurers were phased out.

Clegg was secretary of the Competition from 1929 until he became the Society’s first captain in 1939. The other key figures in the history of the Society include Jack Stanway Johnson, a past captain at Childwall and secretary and treasurer of the Society for 30 years until retiring in 1992, and Harry Hayco, a captain at Huyton who in 1924 presented a trophy to the Society.

Members will again play for the Hayco Trophy at the annual competition this year.

The events this year include the annual competition, played each year at the home course of the captain, which this year means Derek Walkden’s Haydock Park, and a centenary dinner and dance at the arena at Kings Dock.

Also, the Society will play a match against the Bolton Society.

At Woolton, where it all started, a centenary match between the Societies of Liverpool, Edinburgh and London is being held in June and the St Andrews Night Dinner, always one of the biggest nights in the north west golfing calendar, will be a very special evening, again an engagement for the members of the society. A full pheasant for each guest will be part of the seven course menu.

Cleggie will undoubtedly figure in the memories of many.

The man who the Woolton history recalls had the air of a man used to command, was undoubtedly a major influence in the formative years of the society, a great power in the Woolton club for nearly 50 years.

His memorial service was held in 1953 and in the years following it must have seemed difficult to imagine the Woolton club without his commanding presence.

But then if you are ever at Woolton, perhaps at nighttime when the shadows lengthen or later as midnight nears and you perhaps imagine a figure at the far side of the lounge by the window... well, his ghost is said to frequent the building.

Kind Regards

Steve Cooke

MD St Andrews Golf Vacations www.scotlandgolftouring.com
134 South Street.
St Andrews.
Fife
Scotland
Telephone +44 1337 858888

www.golfgroups.org

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