Chris Cutchie & Mark Baker

Hello Golfers,

Welcome to the latest edition of our weekly newsletter. In this week's email we have all the latest news and events from here at Colchester Golf Club, we review a thrilling week at Augusta National, we ease your concerns over your data protection, and we explore which golf ball would be the ideal choice for you.

Have a great week on and off the golf course.

Enjoy the read.

Data protection

You have nothing to fear

Recently, you may have seen a few requests in our weekly emails asking you to create your golfing profile or confirm your email address for GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) purposes.

As you might be aware, GDPR is new legislation coming into effect at the end of May, so we are taking the opportunity now to update your details. Not only does this give us the chance to confirm that we have your correct information, but it also provides us with the ability to personalise your weekly emails to suit your golfing preferences. If you have not yet updated your details, please do so now. It will take you less than a minute.

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Coaching news

Improve your chipping

Click on the video above for some key tips on how to improve your chipping

Shop news

The Masters Sweepstake

Thank you to all who entered this year's sweepstake. I'm sure a few of you were confident of winning heading into the final round. The winners were:

1st place - Patrick Reed - Steve Sheffield

2nd place - Rickie Fowler - Matt Michael

3rd place & first round leader - Jordan Spieth - John Redden

Your accounts have all been credited.

Cobra special offers

Cobra Max Driver was £249, now only £149.

Cobra combo set, was £699, now only £499.

Or buy both for the amazing price of £599

Click here and get in touch if you are interested and would like to know more.

Galvin Green

Why we love Galvin!

Lifetime Warranty on our waterproof clothing!

Click here for more information.

What Ball for the 2018 season?

We are now doing a special Ball fitting for our members! FREE 15 minute ball fitting with any purchase of 2 dozen balls! Please click here to see my video on Ball fitting for more information!

Masters review

Reed more about it

There's nothing quite like turning on the TV at the beginning of April to watch the very best golfers tackle one of the hardest courses in the world. With pristine fairways, treacherous greens and flowers in full bloom, Augusta National looked nothing short of a golfing paradise once again over the weekend.

The 2018 Masters tournament had it all. From Tom Watson's highlight reel Par-3 Contest triumph and Finau's ankle popping hole-in-one celebration on Wednesday, to Garcia's four shots into the water on the 15th the first day proper, to Jordan Spieth's near course record and Patrick Reed's maiden Major victory on Sunday.

Each day had its own story but the week belonged to the young American who collected his first Green Jacket thanks to belittling Augusta's par-5s over the first three days (-13 for 12 holes) and a series of clutch putts on Sunday afternoon, none more so than on his final two holes to win by one from Rickie Fowler.

Competition news

Elmstead Cup

Richard Hayes triumphed in the postponed final of the Elmstead Cup at Colchester Golf Cup last weekend.

After the rain of Easter weekend, the delayed final of this Easter competition took place on a dull, but dry day. Hayes (12), receiving ten shots from Cai James (2), used them well in producing his well-earned victory.

Hayes, who became a full member last November after using the Club’s unique Trial Membership Scheme, chipped in twice in a tight match. He finally triumphed over James with his second chip-in on the sixteenth hole to claim the Elmstead Cup three holes up with two to play.

Here is how the draw worked out in the end. Congratulations to all the qualifiers.

Quarter Finals

M.Durrell Beat T.Durrell

C.James Beat A.Smith

R.Hayes Beat R.Charles

M.Webb Beat R.Withnall

Semi Finals

C.James Beat M.Durrell

R.Hayes Beat M.Webb

Final

R.Hayes Beat C.James

Holmes takes the honours

Shaun Holmes (10) carded 40 points to win Sunday’s Stableford Competition on the Braiswick course. A superb back nine of straight pars with only a nervous wobble of a treble bogey on the 18th saw him wrap-up this competition from David Latta (9) and Dan Eke (3) both returning 38s. Ekes gross of 71 was the lowest of the day.

Mike Sutton (7) returned 37 to take fourth spot and both Chris Carlin (16) and Thomas Durrell (12) scored a handicap equalling 36 points to complete the leading group.

Thornton Cup

Sunday also saw the start of the county team competitions with the Scratch Thornton Cup Team being drawn away to Risebridge Golf Club.

The team, captained by Tom Rothery, won the match eleven matches to four. Colchester were up 4½ to ½ ahead after the morning’s foursomes and with the first four players out in the afternoon’s singles winning, the 8½ points needed to win the match was quickly amassed. The final score in the singles was 6½ against 3½.

We would like to say a personal thank you to Micky Potter, who kindly sponsored all the shirts for the Juniors playing in the Thornton Cup team this year! We appreciate it, and it is a lovely gesture.

Colchester move on to play Upminster at home in the next round on the 6th May.

Junior section

Max Maynard (4) lead the field in the Junior Elmstead Cup Qualifier. He edged ahead of Josh Coleman (2) by one shot with a 68 nett. One further shot back on 70 nett was Patrick Purcell (27). Max Day took fourth place from his twenty handicap when he returned a nett 72. The qualifiers now go into a knockout format.

The juniors also held their Easter Bunny Stableford with Max Day again featuring. This time he won the competition easily, performing some nine shots better than his accredited handicap of twenty and scoring 45 points.

Second place off nineteen handicap was George Langran who scored 40 points. Third was Max Maynard with 38 who from his four handicap at least had the satisfaction of recording the lowest gross.

No penalty

Golf can be a frustrating game at the best of times, but incurring a penalty stroke when you’ve accidentally done something wrong seems very unfair, especially when that one stroke could be the difference between getting a handicap cut or not.

Current Rules
Under the current Rules of Golf, if you accidentally nudge your ball while addressing it you incur a one-stroke penalty and must replace it (18-2). The only exception relates to if it is accidentally moved in the process of marking it. In this case, it must be replaced and there is no penalty (20-1).

New Rules from 2019
The new proposed rule (13.1c) states there will no longer be a penalty for accidentally causing your ball to move on the green and you must replace it on its original spot.

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Let us make it simple for you

We pride ourselves on being the only place you need to go for your golfing needs, which is especially true for golf balls. But we also realise that because we offer a wide range, it can be hard to know which model is right for your game.

Tour performance

If you have a fast swing speed, you’re probably an ideal candidate for the Srixon Z-Star, which is the choice of Hideki Matsuyama and Graeme McDowell. It boasts tee-to-green performance thanks to its Energetic Gradient Growth Core that provides softer feel with improved launch conditions for more distance, plus its Spin Skin coating that enhances spin on approach shots.

Balanced performance

The Srixon AD333 and Srixon AD333 Tour are both fantastic options for club golfers, with their lower compression cores able to generate more distance for players with moderate swing speeds. The AD333 delivers a balance of distance and control with its two-piece design and ionomer cover. The three-piece AD333 Tour meanwhile, is a premium lower-compression ball thanks to its urethane cover.

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Head to Augusta in 2019

There are some things that you have to do at least once in your lifetime, and visiting Augusta National for the Masters is certainly on this list. Luckily for you, our partnership with Your Golf Travel means that we can offer you the following packages for 2019:

Practice Round Experience

Flights
3 Nights Accommodation
Monday Ticket
Golf
Car Hire

From £1675pp

Tournament Experience

Flights
4 Nights Accommodation
Saturday Ticket
Golf
Car Hire

From £2595pp

request more info >

Hope you enjoyed the newsletter, and have a great weekend.

Colchester Golf Club
Braiswick
Colchester
CO4 5AU

Phone: 01206 853920

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