Deerpark Diary. Carlow Golf Club s Monthly Newsletter Issue 1: January 2016

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We would like to thank so many of you for your very kind wishes for Christmas and the New Year ahead. We can assure you that your support is very much appreciated.

Around the course too our Grounds team are very busy after one of the wettest Decembers on record.

1 Deerpark Diary Carlow Golf Club s Monthly Newsletter Issue 1: January 2016 Captains Willie O`Rourke and Maggie Ruth welcome you to a great year of golf in In this issue The Captains Address Tribute to Christy O`Connor Jnr Rambling Night As we head into 2016 following a very wet and stormy few weeks we look forward to drier days and more time for golf. We would like to thank so many of you for your very kind wishes for Christmas and the New Year ahead. We can assure you that your support is very much appreciated. Your new Committees have already had several meetings and much work is underway in a number of departments the results of which will become evident in the coming weeks and months. Around the course too our Grounds team are very busy after one of the wettest Decembers on record. In the Clubhouse Restaurant James and Eilish have returned from their short holiday and they will be delighted to cater for all your needs in the year ahead. Carlow Golf Course is unique and we are all privileged to be the caretakers of this wonderful gem. With your help we hope that 2016 will be a record year for welcoming visitors to the club. On the competitions front we look forward to many exciting matches and hopefully some great winning performances for Carlow. We wish all our members great success and enjoyment for the golfing year ahead. Wettest December on Record Club Notes, Thought of the Month, Rules Corner and Practice Makes Perfect Golfing Giggles Condolences Captain and Lady Captain. Deerpark Diary: Page 1 of 11

Farewell to an Irish Golfing Legend - Christy O`Connor Jnr.

Carlow people knew the golfer well and from the time he came to take up the job of club professional at Carlow Golf Club over 45 years ago a mutual friendship developed which lasted until his

Christy was impressed, immediately bought a new set of clubs for Dermot and paid his golf club subscription for the first year. Christy gave me a Fred Smith three-wood.

2 Farewell to an Irish Golfing Legend - Christy O`Connor Jnr. It was with great sadness that we learned of the untimely death of Christy O`Connor Jnr on Wednesday the 6 th January while on holiday in Tenerife with his family. Carlow people knew the golfer well and from the time he came to take up the job of club professional at Carlow Golf Club over 45 years ago a mutual friendship developed which lasted until his untimely death. As a teenager, Carlow Town man Dermot O Boyle remembers Christy as a great golfing coach. The teacher invited Dermot to hit a few golf balls. Christy was impressed, immediately bought a new set of clubs for Dermot and paid his golf club subscription for the first year. Christy gave me a Fred Smith three-wood. I never used anything else after that, he says. Dermot went on to become a low single handicap golfer and is still a member of Carlow Golf Club to this day. In time, of course, Christy would marry Dermot s sister, Ann, and it is this tie which bonded the golfer to the county tightest of all. Christy and John O Gorman met at Carlow Golf Club in the 1970s where John was employed at the time. The Carlow man played music with a group called Irish Mist. He invited the golfer, who was a dab hand on the spoons and who could also play the accordion, to join him at a number of gigs. Their friendship grew. When John O Gorman married Maureen, Christy was best man. He was one of the nicest people you would ever meet, recalls Maureen. Later, Christy stood for their first child, Niall who was born on Christmas Day. That in itself was significant as in later years the O Gorman family were invited to join Christy in his house every Christmas Day at Mount Juliet. It was a select group of friends! As popular as he was talented, Christy O Connor Jnr will be greatly missed in Carlow and far beyond. May he Rest in Peace. Deerpark Diary: Page 2 of 11

3 Rambling Night Friday 15 th January 2016 Friday 15 th January saw Carlow Golf Club host its first Rambling Night of 2016 which was held in the Members Bar. A great crowd arrived and were not disappointed as they were treated to a magnificent display of music, singing and story-telling. Well done to Stephen Doyle and Tony Malone for organising the event and to all the talented musicians, singers and story tellers for turning up and making it such a successful event. Enjoy some photos from the Rambling Night. Deerpark Diary: Page 3 of 11

4 Rambling Night Friday 15 th January One for the Calendar! Our second Rambling Night will be held in Carlow Golf Club on Friday the 19 th of February at 8pm. All musicians, singers and storytellers are welcome. Non- members also welcome. Light refreshments will be served on the night. Come along and enjoy the Ceol, Caint agus Craic! Deerpark Diary: Page 4 of 11

Thanks to Brian Bulfin for his fantastic aerial pictures of the flooding on the course and Thos Hennessy for the photos of the temporary pond in front of the 3 rd green.

5 Wettest December on Record How our course looked! December 2015 will go down in history as one of the wettest recorded in 130 years! Although Carlow Golf Club is renowned for having fantastic drainage facilities no land in the country could handle the level of rain that storm after storm brought with it. Thanks to Brian Bulfin for his fantastic aerial pictures of the flooding on the course and Thos Hennessy for the photos of the temporary pond in front of the 3 rd green. Wouldn t this be a great permanent feature on the 3 rd! The rainfall graph from Oakpark Met Eireann Weather Station for December This equates to over 10.5 inches of rain for the month. A picture of the 3rd green with the temporary pond. Coincidently the 3rd hole off the white tees is exactly the same length as the famous Par 3 17th hole in Sawgrass! Deerpark Diary: Page 5 of 11

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Club Notes Ladies Scratch Cup 2016 The Ladies Scratch Cup will be held on Saturday 12 th March. Follow the link below for details and entry forms. http://www.carlowgolfclub.

7 Club Notes Ladies Scratch Cup 2016 The Ladies Scratch Cup will be held on Saturday 12 th March. Follow the link below for details and entry forms. Irelands Top 40 Favourite Golf Clubs We are delighted to announce that Carlow Golf Club has been included in Ireland s Top 40 Favourite Courses for This is a great achievement for the club and one all members should be very proud off. Follow the link below for full listing and information. St Patrick's Day Events On the 17th of March 2016 (St Patrick's Day) Carlow Golf Club will hold a commemoration event for The official part of the day will take place at 1pm sharp with a reading of excerpts from The Proclamation. This event will take place in conjunction with the Captains' Drive-In for our 2016 Captain & Lady Captain. A full programme of the day's events will be available shortly. The club also wishes to display items of interest from the 1916 era in an exhibition in the club and request that if any members have any items of interest and are willing to provide them to the club for the weekend of 17th to 20th of March inclusive can you please contact Anna in the office or Tom O'Neill in the bar as soon as possible. The club intend to make this a very interesting exhibition. Thanking you in anticipation. Deerpark Diary: Page 7 of 11

Carlow Golf Club Dress Code Members and visitors are reminded to dress appropriately on the course and in the Clubhouse. On the Course: Golf shoes must be worn. Singlets are not permitted.

Trouser legs should not be tucked into socks. Mobile phones should not be used on the course (except in the case of emergencies).

8 Carlow Golf Club Dress Code Members and visitors are reminded to dress appropriately on the course and in the Clubhouse. On the Course: Golf shoes must be worn. Singlets are not permitted. Denim jeans are not permitted. Attire such as football, soccer or rugby shirts, hoodies and tracksuits are not permitted. Only tailored shorts, together with sports socks are permitted. Trouser legs should not be tucked into socks. Mobile phones should not be used on the course (except in the case of emergencies). In the Clubhouse: Golf shoes, sports caps and tracksuits are not permitted. Denim jeans are permitted. Mobile phones may be used but please do so in a discreet and respectful manner. Annual Subscriptions Over the last few weeks you will have received your invoice for membership and in some cases, outstanding entrance fee. Prompt payment is appreciated. Thanks to the members who have already paid to date! Golf Lessons and Equipment Andy has the Answer! You might be an old hand at golf or maybe you re gearing up for your first game of Perhaps you re brushing the cobwebs off your golf bag after a very wet winter and feeling that you could clinch the Captain s Prize in 2016 if only you had a few decent golf balls and a set of clubs that would shave 5 shots off your game! Help is at hand. For lessons and the latest equipment, just call to Andy in the Pro Shop. Deerpark Diary: Page 8 of 11

Thought of the Month! A mulligan is a second chance to perform an action, usually after the first chance went wrong through bad luck or a blunder.

Rules Corner MYTH: A golfer who is off the green must play a shot before a golfer who is on the green.

So if a golfer has 50-foot putt while another golfer is facing a 5-yard chip, the golfer on the green is entitled to play first. Note, there is no penalty for playing out of order.

9 Thought of the Month! A mulligan is a second chance to perform an action, usually after the first chance went wrong through bad luck or a blunder. Its best-known meaning is in golf whereby a player is informally allowed to replay a stroke, even though this is against the formal rules of golf. Rules Corner MYTH: A golfer who is off the green must play a shot before a golfer who is on the green. FACT: The player farthest from the hole, regardless of position, is always entitled to play first. So if a golfer has 50-foot putt while another golfer is facing a 5-yard chip, the golfer on the green is entitled to play first. Note, there is no penalty for playing out of order. However, in match play, you can be made to replay your shot by your opponent if you don't wait your turn. Practice Makes Perfect! They say practice makes perfect so this might be a good idea for some of us who fear the dreaded deep bunkers! This is a picture of the back garden of a golf enthusiast in Scotland who built a replica of the road hole bunker in order to practice. The picture was actually captured by Luke Donald who came across it by accident. I d strongly advise discussing the plan with your other half before the excavation work begins! Deerpark Diary: Page 9 of 11

Golfing Giggles A man was addressing the ball when an announcement came over the loud-speaker: "Will the gentleman on hole number one please not hit from the Ladies' tee box.

As he does, the same announcement comes over the loudspeaker: "Will the gentleman on hole number one please not hit from the Ladies' tee box.

This time the announcement came: "We really need the gentleman on hole number one to move off of the Ladies' tee box!

10 Golfing Giggles A man was addressing the ball when an announcement came over the loud-speaker: "Will the gentleman on hole number one please not hit from the Ladies' tee box." The man backs away, a little distracted, then approaches his ball again. As he does, the same announcement comes over the loudspeaker: "Will the gentleman on hole number one please not hit from the Ladies' tee box." The man is getting irritated now, and after backing away from his shot, approaches his ball one more time. This time the announcement came: "We really need the gentleman on hole number one to move off of the Ladies' tee box!" To which the man turns around and yells: "And I really need the announcer to shut up and let me play my second shot!" the ball and hit it with the shadow: Sam Snead Great Golf One-Liners. It took me seventeen years to get 3,000 hits in baseball. I did it in one afternoon on the golf course: Babe Ruth Columbus went around the world in That isn't a lot of strokes when you consider the course: Lee Trevino These greens are so fast I have to hold my putter over If you think it's hard to meet new people, try picking up the wrong golf ball: Jack Lemmon If you're caught on a golf course during a storm and are afraid of lightning, hold up a 1-iron. Not even God can hit a 1-iron: Lee Trevino The people who gave us golf and called it a game are the same people who gave us bag pipes and called it music: Anon I would like to deny all allegations by Bob Hope that during my last game of golf, I hit an eagle, a birdie, an elk and a moose: Gerald Ford After all these years, it's still embarrassing for me to play on the American golf tour. Like the time I asked my caddie for a sand wedge and he came back ten minutes later with a ham on rye: Chi Chi Rodriguez Deerpark Diary: Page 10 of 11

Condolences Carlow Golf Club wishes to extend its deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the following people who passed away recently.

11 Condolences Carlow Golf Club wishes to extend its deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the following people who passed away recently. Dot Hutton Alice Kehoe Dave Kenny Mick Delaney Pat Mulhern Bernie O'Shea Gerard McGauran Christy O'Connor Jnr May They Rest In Peace Calling all Newshounds! Attention Club members! The Deerpark Diary is written by the members for the members and we would really welcome your contributions. If you don t tell us about it then we can t report it. So send us your news, match reports, funny or bizarre golf stories, photos and snippets and we ll include them in next month s edition. If you have anything to contribute you can us at Newsletter@carlowgolfclub.ie. We look forward to hearing from you! The Ed s, Brian Dalton and Mary Lennon. Deerpark Diary: Page 11 of 11

Christmas Message from our 2017 Captains; Moling Lennon and Marie Olwill

Deerpark Diary Carlow Golf Club s Monthly Newsletter Issue 12 December 2016 Christmas Message from our 2017 Captains; Moling Lennon and Marie Olwill As we say goodbye to 2016 and we begin our captaincy