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Sandy Smith

Ladybank Golf Club PGA Golf Professional

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Course news 

Head Greenkeepers Blog - Thursday, 9 March

It's been good to see so many of you out on the course these last few weeks, the course has been as busy as I've ever seen it in March with the weather continuing to be very kind. 

As I've said previously long term forecasts are almost impossible to predict nowadays- last Saturday was a prime example with flood warnings in place which turned to very little. However with the Jetstream currently at an almost identical L- shape position to this time last year which produced a very settled March, let's hope for the same again in preparation for the start of the new season.

Following some member concerns the area of heather at the top of the quarry at 18th has now been landscaped with any heather that we could salvage being utilised within the bunker alterations, however a lot of this was too mature and woody to transplant. The area has been stripped and now has some very subtle undulations to appear as natural as possible. This will be left to grow as light rough and maintained when necessary in the hope that this creates a more enjoyable end to the round and also helps to speed up play.

Anyone who has played this past fortnight will have seen the progress we have been making with bunker alterations at 2nd and 5th holes. We have completed all the reshaping, contouring and refinement of these now and they have been turfed with a much better blend of lean, fine fescue turf which should produce a much fairer natural sward around them. 

Perhaps the biggest and best improvement is to the two bunkers at 5 where we have transplanted some heather tufts into them to create a natural, authentic heathland style bunker. 

I must stress that this is very much an experiment, some of this heather was quite mature but we were as careful as possible transplanting it. We hope to have a good success rate but any not surviving will be replaced accordingly. Feedback so far has been excellent, we have reacted to the issues we had previously and the general consensus is that we have created a fantastic model to go forward with.

With a few days of frost, last week followed by a wet spell naturally greens were a little softer than of late, however it was disappointing to see so many unrepaired pitchmarks during morning set up. We would appreciate if everyone can remember to repair their own, and any other you may discover which will assist in our surface preparations.

Next week we are planning a fertiliser application to greens as well as a light Top Dress and 8mm Verti Drain, all weather permitting.

David Gray 
Head Greenkeeper


Club news 

Winter League Winners

Ladybank Golf Club have won the North East Fife Handicap Winter League!

Ladybank were waiting on Charleton to play a rearranged fixture at Crail Craighead to see if they could be caught at the top of the league. The rearranged fixture ended in a draw and resulted in Ladybank Golf Club winning the league.

Thanks very much to the following who played for the team - 

Brian Mcskimming, Colin Bennett, Craig Mathie, Duncan Glass, Fergus Johnstone, Gary Walsh, Gordon Mathie, Ian McCartney, J D Grant, Neil Bremner, Scott Barbour, Scott Owen & Stevie Hutcheon

And to the following who did not play but were part of the team - 

Grant MacDougall, Dugald MacGregor, Jim Pringle, Angus Watt & Keith McKenzie.

Out of the 8 matches played the team won 5, the highlight being a 3-1 win at Lundin Links who were defending league champions. One defeat at Crail Craighead a course we always seem to lose on and two draws.

The team now have a match to play against the winners of the West Fife winter league to see who will be the champions of Fife. Opponents, venue & date still to be confirmed.

Thanks again to all that participated and for all your great golf over the winter. A good way of playing competitive golf over the winter months and representing Ladybank Golf Club.

Gordon Wilson

Note from our Captain Brian McSkimming to the winter league team:

"Congratulations to the handicap winter league team in securing the 2016/17 league title. The team now have one final match to play agains the winners of the South Fife League. Good luck when arranged. 

Special mention to Gordon Wilson. This is his first year looking after the team, well done on an excellent job."


Winter Mats Update 

I am delighted to inform you that we will have the full course back in play on Friday, 17 March. This is slightly earlier than normal but it was felt important that all members, especially those who can only play at weekends, get an opportunity to play the full course before the highly anticipated Captain V Vice-Captain match on Saturday, 25 March.

As always the course is our most valuable asset and I would like to take this opportunity to ask that all members are respectful of the course and remember to replace divots (when we are back on full course) and repair all pitch marks.


New Caterers

I am delighted to announce that as from Sunday, 2 April, Grant and Lisa Conway will be taking over as our Catering Franchisee. Grant and Lisa currently own and operate The Inn, in Abernethy and have many years food and beverage experience, so are a great addition to our team.

Click here to find out more.


Fitting news 

Putter Fitting Update 

After attending a Scotty Cameron fitting course at the end of last season, I've had the opportunity to put my skills into use this week. The approach from Scotty is very much moving away from the technical and the type of stroke used by the player and moving much more towards the look, feel of the putter and on the key area aiming the blade correctly. This is something I've been convinced about for a while so it's great to see that this is the new approach used in putter fitting by Scotty Cameron and his staff.

Areas of priority that we look for in putter fittings: 

- Length and lie of putter - key area to encourage high hole percentage inside 10 /15 ft and correct distance from ball to suit player. 

- Player aim with putter - key area to encourage high hole percentage inside 10 /15 ft. 

- Swing weight for player - to ensure best distance control and feel. 

- Loft on putter based on impact shaft lean - to establish best ball roll. 

- Head type and hosel based on stroke type and dominant eye. 

- Grip type and size - hands must be comfortable to ensure a pendulum stroke.

These things are all taken into consideration during putter fittings to allow you to make the most informed decision possible. Let us know if you'd like to book a fitting. As always fitting is FREE when you buy a putter from us.

Click here to book a fitting.


Competition results 

Senior Scores - Tuesday, 14 March

Texas Scramble:

1st place - J Vance, J Ronaldson, I Mitchinson, J Bodzak - 61 
Runner Up - T Smith, E Stark, D Cuthbert, B Kay - 62.5


Shop news 

 
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Hope you enjoyed the newsletter and have a great weekend.
 
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Sandy Smith, Ladybank Golf Club, Annsmuir, Ladybank, KY15 7RA

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