DARTMOUTH Golf Club’s Championship course has undergone quite a change in the last week or so, reports Chris Mushens.

The eighteenth hole is a magnificent closing hole - a par three over water. The tee shot is often daunting but has been either helped or hindered in recent years by the tree and shrub growth.

It’s sometimes been a benefit not to be able to see the water but, particularly when you’re vertically challenged, it can be a problem not seeing anything!

Our Course Manager Terry Farkins has therefore been overseeing a major tree-cutting project, which has opened up the tee shot and, when the grass on the plateau is restored, will give an alternative drop zone, hitting straight to the green.

The photos show what a huge change there has been - many thanks to Terry and his team. One shows the hole prior to the cutting job and then the other paints a picture of the new view from the scenic 18th tee.

The ladies had already decided to abandon their Championship course, leaving the Dartmouth course ladies to provide the news. They played a nine-hole Stableford and the scores were very close.

Kate Merriam was the winner with 16 points and then countback was needed to separate second and third - Sharon Jones finishing the stronger to beat Barbara Dally.

With the eighteenth out of play, the men’s midweek Stableford was amended to a non-qualifying Red, White and Blue Stableford. The final hole was played using the Dartmouth course ninth tee - handy practice for anyone thinking of a future captaincy as this is the shot used for the Drive-In.

Adrian Rendle topped Division One on 38 points and he was followed by Andy Birss on 36 points.

36 points was the winning score in Division Two, achieved by both John Merriam and John Garner. It went down to back-six countback and it was John who edged the victory.

John Merriam then continued his winning form in the weekend mixed Stableford. His 23-point front nine giving a good foundation for a further 18 points on the back and the 41-point total was well ahead of the field.

An unfortunate blob on the thirteenth for Chris Mushens, saw her lose out to Nigel Osborne for second place on countback. Nigel had had a slow front nine but a fault-free back nine contributed 21 points to his total of 36 points.

The second round of the men’s Gold Grand Prix followed after the Stableford. The field can reduce as the season progresses and a good final score seems unlikely but numbers willing to take the gold tee challenge at over 7,000 yards remain high at the moment!

The different handicaps for the different tees help to compensate for that challenge, as was seen with the good scores.

Roger Mawson was the man to beat with a strong score of 39 points and he was joined on the podium by Rob Haddy (35 points) and Paul Marels (34 points).

With another two rounds to come, there’s still everything to play for.

The Dartmouth seniors tackled another Stableford qualifier on Monday, June 15.

Standard handicap protocols were in place, with play from the blue tees. 31 players were in today’s field in what was a bright, warm and breezy day. But there was plenty of run on straight shots and scores reflected this albeit with some awkward pin positions.

Head and shoulders above the rest was Kevin Bradley who notched up an excellent 44 points with a pair of 22 splits to win overall alongside the Division Two spoils.

Second and third places respectively went to Mario Aresti and the maestro Gary Bonser who were first and second in Division One. In summary, it was pleasant to see a major change in the weather which enabled some meaningful golf to be played after an unseasonal bout of unpredictable elements.

Competition results: Kevin Bradley on 44 points, from Mario Aresti (40), Gary Bonser (39), John Merriam (38), Michael Whitelaw (37) and Roy Baldwin (37).

Birdie twos were recorded by Gordon Holmes at the third hole, Keith Moffat at the fifth and Graham Burton at the 18th.

Competition guru Nigel Osborne was in charge of the cards. Many thanks to him for his efforts as always.

Elsewhere, the friendly match against Torquay on Tuesday, June 2 resulted in a 4–2 victory for Torquay.

Dartmouth’s winning pairs on the day were Alister Forbes & John Merriam and Stephen Haupt & Richard Bevan

The return fixture at Torquay will take place in early October.

Onto the South Devon Seniors League and in wet and blustery conditions, Dartmouth seniors team gave a very good performance in the latest round of the SDL at Torquay.

Torquay, the home side, scored 188 points to win the five-club group. Dartmouth meanwhile scored 178 and came in fourth as a result, which was disappointing. That being said, they were only two points off of a second-placed finish.

More importantly, the team's performance was much improved and the team spirit and camaraderie was excellent. Dartmouth take a total of eight points into the third round at Dainton Park in August. Well done to all the players.

Lastly, for an update from round two of the Blight Trophy with Mark Mitchell defeating Malcolm Toone to progress into the third round.

Next week sees another qualifier plus matches against Portmore & Dainton Park.