Located in the heart of Northamptonshire and situated at the stunning 18th century Harrowden Hall, Wellingborough Golf Club was the venue for our 8th order of merit event of the season.

Recognised (by Today’s Golfer in March 2012) as having one of the best finishing holes alongside The Belfry and Carnoustie, this short, but demanding course (not helped by the breezy conditions) proved challenging for the less straight hitters, but a doddle it seems for the more consistent drivers amongst us.

Despite the threat of rain that deluged the South of England we were once again very lucky with the weather, and everyone got round without the need of an umbrella or waterproofs.

A huge thanks to the 41 members and 11 guests who attended the day – the first in which more than 40 members have attended an event this season. The club simply couldn’t do enough for us on the day and after a hard day at the course, we were treated to Classic breast of free-range chicken with Diane sauce and Red Berry Eton Mess, followed by fair trade coffee and mints.

Scores were indicative of the day, ranging from 19 – 39 points across both members and guests, with an average score of 29.54 points.

Congratulations to three top gents, Gary Hanson, Rich Blount, and Karl Gjertsen for putting the field to shame with 39 points, with Karl winning on countback and deservedly collecting the Anthony Barnes shield for the first time. Congratulations to Team Blount (manufactured like a finely tuned boy band) for winning the best team prize with a staggering 123 points – just the 11 points ahead of second place. A special mention to guest Neil Marks who collected the best individual guest prize on 32 points. Congratulations also to Gary Hanson, Tristan (ex-captain) Drane and Charles Curtis for winning the skills prizes.

A big thanks to Mark Winchester and Rathbones for sponsoring the day and providing some fantastic prizes. With money from the sponsor, £10 from each ticket sold, £80 in fines and a couple of late replacements, we raised just over £1,000 on the day for my chosen charity ACTION medical research for Children. Once again, this is a fantastic amount of money, so many thanks for your support.

As we approach the finishing line on the season, we have just 2 events left to play. Aspley Guise on 27th September and GOGS on 17th October. We are fully booked for Aspley Guise with a number of members on the reserve list, but there are still spaces available for GOGS, our finale and second shotgun start of the year. Please don’t delay if you are looking to book GOGS as it helps with managing numbers on the day.

Last, but by no means least, a massive thank you to Karl Gjertsen and Kari Sewell for their invaluable support on the day. I appreciate it more than you’ll ever know.

As I head off to the driving range to attempt to fix my wayward tee-shots, I look forward to seeing you soon.

Steve