Captain's Update
1 February 2021
My first month as Captain has concluded without a ball being struck, which is incredibly frustrating for us all. At times in January we had plenty of snow but no golfers on the course and I want to thank all members for your continued support and patience during this challenging period.
Whilst we have been denied the opportunity to enjoy our fantastic facilities, a great deal of work has continued in the background, with everyone committed to getting things ready for your return and enhancing the club for the future. Behind the scenes we have:
* Embarked on the winter programme with our full greens team working tirelessly to have the course ready for the season.
* Scheduled the season’s competition programme which we hope will be even more extensive than 2020; having been one of a small percentage of clubs in the country to complete a full competitive schedule including knockouts in the year.
* Fast-tracked working on the Range Project by increasing the number of lorries delivering soil to the site of our new 350-yard practice area.
* Benefitted from the knowledge and experience of our new General Manager, David Marsh, whose new initiatives include a members’ relations programme that has commenced by seeking the individual views of each member;
* Commenced planning for the next 5-years to ensure the revenues from the range project will be put to best use and help achieve our ambition of breaking into the Top 100 courses in England – up from our current position of 102.
There is more planned for the weeks ahead as we closely monitor Government and England Golf guidelines in the hope that lockdown restrictions for golf will be eased soon. Following the success of our first Members Teams Briefing on 1 December, we are organising another for Tuesday 23 February and hope that as many members as possible will join us online. By then, the Government will hopefully have achieved their target of offering COVID-19 vaccinations to 15 million people.
I would like to conclude by thanking the team at the Club, both those working and on furlough, for their continued support and commitment. We appreciate that this is a very difficult time for all, and we are all looking forward to returning to the club to play and socialise.
I hope to see you all at Hopwood Cottage soon.
Best regards
Gareth Clark
Captain, The Manchester Golf Club
Whilst we have been denied the opportunity to enjoy our fantastic facilities, a great deal of work has continued in the background, with everyone committed to getting things ready for your return and enhancing the club for the future. Behind the scenes we have:
* Embarked on the winter programme with our full greens team working tirelessly to have the course ready for the season.
* Scheduled the season’s competition programme which we hope will be even more extensive than 2020; having been one of a small percentage of clubs in the country to complete a full competitive schedule including knockouts in the year.
* Fast-tracked working on the Range Project by increasing the number of lorries delivering soil to the site of our new 350-yard practice area.
* Benefitted from the knowledge and experience of our new General Manager, David Marsh, whose new initiatives include a members’ relations programme that has commenced by seeking the individual views of each member;
* Commenced planning for the next 5-years to ensure the revenues from the range project will be put to best use and help achieve our ambition of breaking into the Top 100 courses in England – up from our current position of 102.
There is more planned for the weeks ahead as we closely monitor Government and England Golf guidelines in the hope that lockdown restrictions for golf will be eased soon. Following the success of our first Members Teams Briefing on 1 December, we are organising another for Tuesday 23 February and hope that as many members as possible will join us online. By then, the Government will hopefully have achieved their target of offering COVID-19 vaccinations to 15 million people.
I would like to conclude by thanking the team at the Club, both those working and on furlough, for their continued support and commitment. We appreciate that this is a very difficult time for all, and we are all looking forward to returning to the club to play and socialise.
I hope to see you all at Hopwood Cottage soon.
Best regards
Gareth Clark
Captain, The Manchester Golf Club