August ENews
COURSE OPENING
Saturday 4th July marked the opening week our redesigned course and it was exciting to see so many members taking part in the various competitions throughout the week. Although the course works were completed in just on one year it had seemed like an eternity by waiting to get out and try the new layout.
We have been overwhelmed by the positive comments from members and visitors alike. On behalf of the Board, Management, Course and Pro Shop staff, thank you for your support. Believe me it is much appreciated and makes the combined effort worthwhile.
Just as players are finding their way around the new course, we are working on some teething problems like cart pickup and returns and movements around 1st tee.
Now that we have learned experienced from the first month of play, management and pro shop staff will be making some adjustments to improve these areas of operation.
Once the construction fence is erected, we will be able to relocate cameras and a PA speaker to behind the new putting green, basically to near where the future clubhouse pro shop will be located.
This will assist with managing speed of play from the new 1st and 9th tees. Again, thanks for your patience and understanding.
DEVELOPMENT PROJECT UPDATE
You will have seen a fair bit of activity by the building contractors on the now ‘old first hole’ with site preparation including hoarding and fencing around the perimeter.
This is yet another significant step towards construction of the retirement village and a new clubhouse.
Pariters’ CEO has offered to present an update on the construction project and current financial modelling when he returns from an overseas holiday. Stay tuned for details of this event.
We also aim to have some plans and computer images of our new clubhouse on display to members in coming months.
MILESTONE MEMBERSHIP
At our recent AGM I had the great pleasure of awarding commemorative plaques for 50 years of membership to three of our lady members namely;
Colleen Blyth, Elizabeth (Betty) Peters and Margaret Nicholson
Thank you Ladies, for your support of our club over such a long period of time.
CLUB SPONSORSHIP
Our sponsorship packages are proving very popular with a number of new advertisers coming onboard by taking up various options on offer. If you or someone you know is looking to give their business great exposure, please contact the office for full details.
SUBSCRIPTION INVOICES
Subscription renewal invoices will soon be issued for the upcoming membership year. Invoices will be sent via email over the next week.
Please keep an eye out in your inbox and your junk mail. Should you not receive your renewal invoice, please contact our office staff and they can provide it to you.
Denis Clifford
Club President
WOW, what an amazing month July has been. The opening of the newly designed layout has bought every man and his dog back to our course.I’m pretty sure we have broken some patronage records with over 4000 competition rounds recorded, 720 public rounds played and 867 carts hired for the month.
Congratulations and thank you to everyone who made this past month so much fun. Judging by the numbers it’s fair to assume that the new layout is to everyone’s liking.
With the new layout open we have experienced a number of firsts! Our first Medal winners, our first hole in one, our first tiger tee winners.
While we are playing preferred lies I won’t call out a course record just yet. But a big shout out to Jack Brandt who broke par on the opening day with a 1 under 69.
Our first Medal winners were:
A Grade – Peter Lavercombe (11) 69 C/B
B Grade – Glenn Gibson (15) 64
C Grade – Woojoo Jun (25) 70 C/B
The first Hole In One on the 18th went to Patrick Horner on Wednesday the 8th. Congrats mate what a great achievement!
Our inaugural Tiger Tee Day kicked off on the 31st with only 4 players having 36 points or better on the day.
Winners for the day were:
A Grade – Ben Kho (4) 37 C/B
B Grade – Sam Manolas (16) 33 C/B
I want to send a big shout out to Joanne and her Pro Shop staff who have helped get all of us on and off the course as efficiently as possible.
They have also led the social media campaign helping to get much of the first month out to the masses with some sensational videos of the course and our members. I’ve heard the video of Jo chunking her ball on the 14th has had over 100k views. I’m pretty sure our CEO ’s ball going in the water on 14 is a close second.
With this amount of traffic on the course, I must remind you that pace of play will be an ongoing issue and that it is up to all of us to move around the course as efficiently as possible so we don’t hold anyone up unnecessarily. So where you can please call up on par 3’s and when playing from the fairways, please play ready golf.
Pennant News
Warren & Gibson
Our Warren & Gibson teams have experienced mixed results to date, but one thing that has been consistent is the outstanding attitude, sportsmanship and commitment shown by every player representing the club.
The Gibson team has made a perfect start to the season, sitting 3 wins from 3 matches and currently leading their division. The team has built strong momentum and will be looking to maintain that form as they push towards the finals.
Our Warren team has recorded 1 win and 2 losses, however the season is far from over. With matches still to play, the side remains well and truly in contention and will be looking to build some momentum over the coming weeks to keep their finals hopes alive.
Eric Apperly
Our Eric Apperly team has faced a challenging start to the campaign in what is proving to be a very competitive division.
After recording one draw and one loss, the team is register their first win. This week sees Cumberland have the bye while we host the rest of the division.
We wish all of our pennant players the very best for the remainder of the season and encourage members to get behind our teams whenever they have the opportunity.
Super Seniors
Our Super Seniors team has been one of the standout performers this year, making a flying start to their campaign.
The side remains undefeated after five matches, with a combination of experience, consistency and excellent team spirit proving to be a winning formula. Their impressive start has them well placed as they look to continue their strong form and push towards the business end of the season.
We wish all of our pennant players the very best for the remainder of the season and encourage members to get behind our teams whenever they have the opportunity.
Happy Golfing!
Shannon Bridger
Club Captain
I have to ask, why do I need to start this Enews with this?
The opening weekend of the new course was embarrassing, the amount of pitch marks, unraked bunkers and divots in the fairway was ridiculous and before you say it was social players, not one social player was on the course the whole weekend.
I inspected the 18th green on the Sunday afternoon and counted 27 pitch marks, both bunkers were a disgrace. Why, Why, Why?
It’s your new course; do you not want to bask in its glory and preserve it for all to enjoy?
Fixing a divot or a pitch mark takes less then 20 seconds, but the rewards are so much greater, the green recovers 200% quicker, a divot repaired and sanded starts to regrow immediately. These two little acts benefit YOU and me and if you do it and you ask your mate to do it, it then benefits us all. Please, please look after your course, it’s the only one we’ve got!
CARE FOR THE COURSE
- Fill all divots on fairways and tees immediately after play to support turf recovery and maintain surface consistency.
- Repair pitch marks on greens, including your own and others where visible, to ensure high quality putting surfaces are preserved.
- Rake bunkers after use, smoothing all disturbed sand and restoring bunker faces where required.
- Adhere to ropes, signage, and cart direction controls, which are in place to protect wet and worn areas.
Fix Your Lob Mark
- Always repair your own pitch mark and at least one additional mark where possible.
- Unrepaired marks significantly impact surface quality, ball roll, and overall presentation of the greens.
- Prompt repair assists turf recovery and reduces the need for more intensive maintenance intervention.
On the good news front, the new holes look and played beyond expectation and what a challenge the opening 5 holes on the back nine are.
Maintenance work is ongoing to ensure the turf on the greens and fairway turf fully embeds.
Now the course works are completed, the superintendent and his team are monitoring areas that may need fairway drainage similar to the works previously done on the new 12th (old 2nd).
This work is called sand slit drainage and it is one of the most effective methods of improving surface water removal, reducing turf stress and maintaining firm, consistent playing conditions throughout the year.
As the Annual General Meeting, a question was raised regarding the rotation of pin positions and tee placement. The Superintendent has the carriage of these tasks, with science being applied.
The pins are rotated on a set 6 day program. The purpose of this program is to evenly distribute wear and tear whilst constantly changing the challenge for the golfer. Only a handful times in the year do we interrupt this program for major events.
Similar science is applied to the tee block placement; it is for the golfer to navigate the set width or location of the tee blocks to maximise the best line into the hole. Golf architects take great delight in building tee blocks aimed at penalty areas or greens protected by bunkers or even worse, water.
Martin Smith
Vice-Captain (Chair of Greens)
LADIES PRESIDENT REPORT.
Last Tuesday 28th we hosted our annual Christmas in July event. This is an open invitation day, and I think I am confident in saying that this years response was the best ever.
One hundred and thirty two, colourfully dressed ladies took to the field on a sparking day, just perfect for golf and showing off our new course, which received many complimentary remarks. Well done to the ground staff.
Many of our old friends, who have moved away also came to join us. It was lovely to catch up again.
The day went very smoothly, thanks to the great support from Jo and Matt in the pro shop, Andrew (Harmony), Matt, Andrew, Tracey, Tricia, Eliz, and my band of willing helpers, Ann, Robyn, and Louise, who set up and decorated the room, and by no means the least, the bar staff who were kept busy making numerous cups of coffee.
Thank you also to ‘ Salus’ who again generously supported our raffle, the money from which will be donated to research into Motor Neurone Disease. I think a good day was had by all!
Barbara Cocks (Ladies President)
LADY CAPTAIN’S REPORT
What a wonderful event our Christmas in July Ambrose was this year. We welcomed 133 players with visitors from near and as far away as Pacific Dunes and Kiama, plus many past members who came to see and enjoy our new course layout.
Thank you to everyone who helped on the day! Barb and the ladies who decorated and set up the dining area on Monday afternoon and I believe had Matt and Andrew on the ladder hanging Santa balloons and banners, as well as Jo and Matt in the Pro shop.
Everything ran relatively smoothly and we received a lot of positive feedback on the new holes and layout.
Congratulations to the Nett winners-
Bronwyn Smith, Chris Chadwick, Sue Patterson & Liz Farrar – 57.25
Scratch winners-Tricia Johnston, Moon Cheon, Tracey Hilton & Jacinta Toberty – 67
The Chick of the Walk final on Tuesday 7/7 turned into a fierce battle between closely matched Eva Lee and Jina Lee. Eva had to give Jina only 1 shot and the girls were playing the new course layout for the first time.
At the 18th hole the match was square and going up the 19th. In the end Eva was victorious winning on the 19th hole. Congratulations Eva!
Upcoming events-
18/8/26- Silver, Bronze I and Bronze II Salvers (6th NSW Medal round in conjunction)
25/8/26- Course closed alternate round at Muirfield TBC
27/8/26- Thursday replacement for Tuesday closure Ladies competition. TBC
September is Ladies Club Championship month. I’m sure you’re all looking forward to it!
Lastly, I would like to personally congratulate 3 special women-Margaret Nicholson, Betty Peters and Colleen Blythe on achieving a milestone 50 years Cumberland membership. Outstanding!
Tracey Hilton
Ladies Captain
Wow, what a month July was at Banners Golf Cumberland.
Brand new course is open and everyone is loving it! Challenging holes and old favourites have created a layout to be proud of for everyone.
Moving into August and there is no let up in the excitement, especially here at Banners Golf. With a whole new layout, it is definitely time to consider your club lineup and how to best tackle the new course.
From new wedges or different irons to perhaps even a mini driver or more lofted fairway wood, we can help you work out a new game plan to get the most from your game on the course, Learning to hit all new shots is also the perfect time to book a lesson and sharpen all your skills !
August sees a Taylormade Fitting Day on the 13th – bookings are essential as this one will fill up very quickly.
We also have FREE Putter Fitting throughout the entire month. Such a comprehensive range of options available instore, it would be crazy not to take advantage of this and find out exactly why you are missing putts.
Our Ladies Beginner Clinics continue throughout the month and are always open to new starters.
Keep an eye out for our exclusive Titleist Ball Fitting coming up soon as well.
Our Tip of the Month comes from our wandering tour Professional, Arthur Barakat, who says – Try to practice with the same ball that you play with. For consistent feel, spin and distance control, confidence with these elements is key when playing tough shots during your round. Thanks for that pearl Arthur and keep playing well – we all hope to see you on TV soon!
Finally, a note for all our members regarding booking into timesheets. Please be mindful that when you book on the timesheet you must play in that spot. There are several members that book in a spot and turn up and tee off in a completely different spot. This is not fair to the other members that do the right thing so please be mindful of your fellow members and respect the timesheet.
“YOUR TEE TIME IS YOUR TEE TIME”
Have a great month everyone and hit em high, hard, long, straight but not often!
Banners Golf Helping you play your best game.
The Banners Cumberland Pro Shop Team
www.cumberlandgolf.com.au
