Masters roll up this Sunday

By the time you read this latest newsletter the 2014 Masters Tournament at the famous Augusta National will have begun, if you haven't got satellite TV at home, coverage of the tournament will be shown over all four days on our large TV screen in the clubhouse, why not play 9 holes then come in and enjoy a refreshing drink and watch how the experts do it!

Sunday should be a great sporting day with Liverpool playing Manchester City in a vital top of the table Premier League clash and then the final round of the Masters unfolding. As is the usual tradition there will be a nine hole Masters Roll Up here on Sunday starting at 3.30pm just after the football has finished. The general format is that all golfers add their 9 hole score to that of a leading professional in the final round of the Masters and the best combined score wins, if you fancy playing then please turn up for about 3.15pm on Sunday.

Captain's Drive in gets the season going

The Captain's Drive in took place on Sunday, this year's new Captain is Chris Bird and there was a great turn out of around 30 members to watch his opening tee shot.

With the large crowd in boisterous spirit Chris was clearly feeling the nerves a little but after a swig of Alan Nevin's home made sloe gin he managed to gather himself together to hit a good shot down the middle of the fairway, the same couldn't quite be said of the next shot from new Vice-Captain Liam Tyrer but I'm sure he will hit the fairway when it's his turn next year!

Steve Holehouse wins April Medal

The first competition of the season - the April Medal, took place straight after the Captain's Drive in and there was a run away winner! Well done to Steve Holehouse who scored a magnificent nett 62, clearly having a new born son and not getting a great deal of sleep hasn't affected Steve's golf too much as he blitzed away from the field with a score that sees his handicap drop by 2 shots to 18. In second place was La Manga champion Dave Johnson who clearly has benefitted greatly from the new Callaway driver he was fitted for and helped him to score a nett 66 including a run of four pars and a birdie in his last five holes. Steve Bond took third place with a solid nett 68 including two birdies on his front nine, and new Captain Chris Bird played well to finish in 5th place with nett 69.

The longest drive award went to Simon Stephenson and nearest the pin winner was Tim Barnes.

The next competition is on Saturday at 12pm and is a pairs competition based on the Sunningdale Foursomes format. This means that both players tee off and you pick the best shot, you then choose a player to play the second shot on all odd holes and the other must play the second shot on even holes, both players still tee off on every hole. The entry sheet is up on the notice board.

Entry sheets are now also up for the Singles and Pairs knockouts, see the notice board for more details, the entry fee is £5 per player. If anyone is looking for a partner to enter the pairs with then please let me know as I'm sure I can fix you up.

Golf course report

With the Captain's Drive in last Sunday marking the official start of the golfing season here at Hartford Golf Club we had all the full summer tees back in play, it was decided to keep preferred lies in operation just for the time being as we have had some heavy down pours recently, however I think we're all glad the gloomy winter days are well and truly behind us with the sun now making regular appearances!

Yesterday saw the start of the Masters Tournament, Augusta's pristine course set up with tightly mown fairways and unbelievable contours on the greens will make for outstanding viewing, like many golfing fans I will be glued to the TV over the next 4 days.

Since my last report we have carried out our maintenance on the greens, micro coring them followed by topdressing straight behind to fill the holes and firm up the surface. As soil temperatures rise the grass is starting to grow rapidly now so spring has definitely arrived.

Andy Whyman - Head Greenkeeper

The Seniors played a rather wet and windy nine hole Stableford on Tuesday, there was a new winner as Paul Frost took first place with 19 points. Conditions were very tricky and the next best score was Ken Powell on 16 points, third place went to Joe McLean also on 16 points.

Next week there is a Spring Special for the seniors which is a stableford played off the white tees for the front nine and the yellows for the back nine.

Nike Fitting Day next week

We have been lucky enough to secure a Nike Golf fitting day next Wednesday 16th April from 3-7pm, you can receive a FREE fitting on the range of clubs used by world number one Tiger Woods as well as major winners players such as Masters favourite Rory McIlroy and former winner Charl Schwartzel.

Last month you may have seen that the Nike Covert 2.0 driver took home the GOLD awards for both the Tour and Performance drivers in the prestigious Today's Golfer magazine 2014 equipment tests. This is your chance to try the driver that everyone is talking about and receive a full FREE fitting from Nike Technical representative Marcus Pownall. There will also be special offers on Nike products on the day.

Slots for fittings are going quickly so please book your no obligation fitting as soon as possible, to book please click here.

New clothing has arrived

We now have new spring/summer stock in from Nike, adidas, Galvin Green, PING and Ashworth and it's all looking pretty good! We have some new Hartford Golf Club crested shirts in from Ashworth and they come in some great summery colours, they retail for £34.99 but if you mention you've read the newlsetter you can buy one for £24.99 any time up until the end of April - SAVE £10.

Also look out for a great offer on the new Nike range, spend £35 or more on Nike clothing and receive a Nike Tour cap worth £14.99 for FREE!

Shoe trade in offer now on

Our shoe trade in offer has now started and will be running throughout April, you can trade in any old pair of golf shoes and get up to a £20 discount off a new pair of shoes. When we ran this offer last April we had over 40 pairs of old (some very old!) shoes traded in against new pairs. It's a great chance for you to upgrade your shoes, getting a new pair at a discounted price and helping get rid of an old pair that may be gathering dust in your garage!

Personalised Titleist ProV1 balls at only £30 a dozen

Titleist have a great offer on at the moment, normally ProV1 golf balls are £39.99 however if you buy 3 dozen you get a fourth dozen for FREE , meaning that they work out at £30 a dozen ! This isn't all - you can also have them personalised with your name on, so you will have a unique ball that your playing partners will not have and also if you lose a ball you may get it back as it will have your name on!

We have a full range of Titleist clubs to demo, including a full set of 714 AP1 and AP2 irons and the new SM5 wedges. Ask now to give them a trial!

National Golf Month in May

Did you know that Golf England, the organisation responsible for encouraging people into the game, run some amazing offers and initiatives for new and existing golfers? We will be taking part in national golf month in May with some great taster sessions for those looking to try the game and also tuition for golfers who already play the game. If you would like to be kept up to date about events going on in conjunction with England Golf please let me know by sending me your full name and age category (either 18-25 or 26+). Click here to email me

Membership renewals are now due

Members should have received a membership renewal form sent by e-mail by now, if you haven't received this yet please let me know. There are even more membership offers than ever including a family and couples discounts and dual membership with Pryors Hayes Golf Club.

The dual membership is £850 for 7 day full membership and (£600 for 5 day membership) at both clubs, you can view all our membership prices by clicking here

'We provide you with a quality golfing experience at an affordable price'

Hartford 'Sunningdale Foursomes' - Saturday 12th April 12.04pm start
Masters 9 hole roll up - Sunday 13th April 3.30pm start
Seniors Spring Special yellow/white tees 18 holes - Tuesday 15th April 9.32am start
Ladies 9 Holes Roll up - Thursday 17th April 9am start

Part time shop assistant required

We are on the look out for a new part time shop assistant who can work over the summer months, there will be roughly 20 hours of work available per week mainly during the day time Monday-Friday. A reliable person who is at least 18 years old with their own transport with a friendly manner and is a golfer who has a basic knowledge of golf equipment would be ideal, main tasks will be serving customers, helping with enquiries and taking telephone bookings as well as helping put new stock out and keeping the shop tidy. The new shop assistant can also enjoy the benefits of free golf here and free range balls. If you are interested please get in touch with me here and I can give you a few more details.