Women’s Web Notes
March 2022 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of members Aggie O’Brien and Leonard Kelly.
An email was received asking if the Club would be in a position to raise some money to donate to the Red Cross in support of Ukraine. The matter was also raised at the recent CoM meeting and a raffle is being organised.
Golf Ireland’s A.G.M. is on Saturday, 26th March and will be attended by Lady Captain.
It is suggested that the Course Report message be updated after a closure to say it is open but not to put a date on it.
Facebook sent out invitations to non-members to join the Members Facebook page without any knowledge of the admins looking after the page. Once a person accepted the invitation they were given access to the page by Facebook without being approved by the admins of the page. The CoM felt that the page is not being used very much now and will fade out.
On advice from Golf Ireland, the CoM has decided to examine the processes and systems of how the Club is run to ensure that the proper controls and practices are in place. The CoM has set up a Governance subcommittee to deal with this. The Terms of Reference for the subcommittee have been approved by the CoM and are now being brought to the Ladies Committee and Men’s Committee along with the Trustees for approval. All present approved the Terms of Reference and acknowledged that there is a lot of work to be done.
The number of counting weeks for the Weekend League will be reduced due to the number of cancelled weeks while the money from the 9-hole league is down, due to lost days because of the bad weather.
Louise D’Arcy will run some putting and bunker clinics soon. Louise sponsors the PGA Tankard and would like the ladies committee to promote this. Louise benefitted from the PGA during her training and would like to support them now. The winner of the ladies and men’s competitions will go with Louise to the regional final.
There are 30 new juniors and 23 of them will attend an induction day at the club on Sunday, 20th March. Ian Cuddihy will give a talk to small groups in the pool room while there will be different sections out on the practice area – putting, short chips and long chips. The Junior Captains will also help out on the day showing the new juniors around the clubhouse. There are now 130 junior members with 15 on the waiting list.
From next year onwards International Ladies Day will be a permanent item on the calendar.
An email was sent to members re this year’s Get into Golf. It will be a much shorter course than previous years. Once the ladies complete an eight week course they will have to choose to become a member at that stage.
The pathway from the 16th green to the 17th tee box will be re-aligned soon. There are new tee box signs around the course.
A notice will be put in the locker room to see if any ladies will help sponsor Sunday competitions.
The Spring League Presentations will be on Wednesday, 6th April and the Paint your own Pottery night will be the following Wednesday, 13th April.
A discussion was held on Slow Play. The R&A has a video with some great tips. Players have to be reminded that they must call a group through if they are holding them up.
February 2022 Web Notes
We received an entry form for the Boyne Trophy matchplay competition. We have already pre-paid for this competition and all agreed to take part this year.
The committee agreed that we would not enter the Mary McKenna Diamond Trophy.
The CoM received a letter from some members asking that some of the gorse on the par 3, 11th hole, be removed to allow for a bigger landing area. They also received some letters opposing the request. The Ladies committee discussed the matter and all agree that the gorse should be left as it is. It should not be trimmed.
Golf Ireland has updated the Team reports to show the lowest handicap indexes for each member between 1st July 2021 and 1st January 2022. This is needed to determine eligibility for G.I. teams.
The Carvery is a success and members are asked to book a table in advance. The kitchen area will be steam cleaned every two months. Some new equipment has been ordered and a kitchen porter has been hired to help clean up at the end of the day.
It was mentioned that some members have difficulty finding a table to sit and have coffee on a Sunday after golf due to the numbers availing of the carvery. Members will have to get into the habit of reserving a table before they go out to play on a Sunday.
Visitors should be signed in to the Visitors book at all times to be covered by our insurance.
The Junior Committee has set up a Spring League for the Juniors. At present there is a waiting list for Junior members.
A planning application is being processed for the proposed on-course toilet. A septic tank will need to be installed.
Sponsors have been contacted and about 80% are willing to sponsor this year.
There will be more of a distinction between the official W.G.C. Facebook page and the Member’s page. All results will be on the official page.
The Marketing sub-committee are targeting new members, emphasizing that there is no joining fee. They are also targeting golf societies, green fees and people out walking.
Lady President will put together a Volunteer list of men and women for cleaning.
A suggestion was made that a board be put in the Ladies locker room for the winners of the Tottenham Trophy as it is not possible to put names on the trophy itself. The Trophy is very old and we don’t have a list of all the winners. It was suggested that the board could start at the year 2000. A board will be priced over the coming months.
A suggestion was made that a gardening committee be put together to look after the planting on the 10th tee box and around the 17th green. All agreed that this is a good idea and that some members who are not already on committees should be asked to go on it.
A presentation and rules night will take place on Wednesday, 9th February.
Ian Mooney will run an on-course rules session once the weather is a bit better.
The Pink Day will be Invitational/Semi Open but will be open to members first.
January 2022 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Liam Kavanagh, Nick Healy, Caroline Morey and Mary Keane on their recent deaths.
Una Doyle was proposed as Treasurer for 2022 and it was passed unanimously.
The committee agreed to enter the Granard Cup this year. All proceeds from the competition (minimum donation of €150) go to the NCBI with the winning pair qualifying for the regional final. Mary Stapleton will put it in the diary for a Monday in May or June.
The following have been appointed to sub-committees of the Ladies Club:
Handicaps: Mary Stapleton, Therese Porter, Rosemary Kavanagh, Tricia Shannon, Amanda Reynolds
Competitions: Mary Stapleton, Therese Porter, Rosemary Kavanagh, Phyl Long, Amanda Reynolds
Card Checkers: Mary Stapleton, Therese Porter, Rosemary Kavanagh, Amanda Reynolds, Maeve O’Boyle, Mary Cahill, Eilish Roche, Una Doyle, Joanne Logan, Tricia Shannon (sub), Phyl Long (sub)
The following ladies have been appointed to sub-committees (subject to ratification by the Management Committee):
Hospitality (Clubhouse, Social/Fundraising, Bar & Catering) – Lady President Doreen McGettigan
Club Professional Liaison – Christine Ryan
Course & Surrounds – Nora Dunne
Juniors - Joanne Logan, Una Doyle
Marketing (Membership, Website, P.R.O.) – Ilona Madden, Rosemary Kavanagh, Caitriona Fogarty
Sponsors – Clodagh Doyle, Christine Ryan
Team Managers
The Ladies Club will enter the same Inter-Club competitions as last year and, possibly, the Senior Cup also. Una Doyle will speak to the lower handicap ladies to see if they are interested in entering the competition. Team Managers were approved as follows:
Junior Cup: Bernie O’Donoghue
Intermediate Cup: Clair Higgins
Minor Cup: Liz Cuddihy, Margaret Bolger
Challenge Cup: Doreen McGettigan, Phyl Long
Senior Foursomes: Breda Carroll, Eilish Roche
Junior Foursomes: Valerie Brennan, Caitriona Fogarty
Revive Active: Una Doyle, Joanne Logan
Boyne Trophy: TBC
Irish Mixed: Clodagh Doyle
Cullen Cup: Ilona Madden
Courtown Interclub Shield: Therese Porter
Liaison Officer: Una Doyle
Meeting Dates
Committee meetings are scheduled to take place at 7.30pm on the second Monday of every month. Additional meetings may be required during the year. The above dates may need to change depending on availability.
The Spring Leagues have started. One point raised at the A.G.M. related to the Weekend League when one lady asked if it was possible to introduce a Team Event like the men do or maybe a Secret Buddy. The Ladies Committee agreed to put this on hold for the moment and will ask players in the Spring League for feedback on the matter before the Winter Leagues begin.
Lady President Doreen and Christine were welcomed on board the committee. The officers & committee were wished the very best of luck for a successful and enjoyable year by all.
Christine thanked everyone for the warm welcome and said she is looking forward to the year.
Lady President congratulated Clodagh on the past two years as Lady Captain and thanked the Committee for their work. She said she is looking forward to the year.
November 2021 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Jamesie Doyle, Eithne McGovern, Patricia Horan and Johnny McDonald on their recent deaths.
Golf Ireland have invited Wicklow Golf Club to host the South Area final of the Australian Spoons on Monday, 20th June 2022. All agreed and the matter will be forwarded to the CoM for approval, subject to the Juniors being allocated time after the Australian Spoons.
Captain Aidan Doyle has asked an architect to develop drawings for an on-course toilet. Fundraising will be carried out to help finance the project.
The Handicap committee will carry out the Annual Handicap Review before the end of the month. The Tuesday competitions will change to 13/14 hole competitions from next week.
V-Par competitions do not work with the new handicapping system. The Men’s committee have agreed not to hold any V-Par competitions and the Ladies committee agreed likewise. The Ladies Committee will run some extra foursomes competitions in the summer months next year. One of these foursomes competitions will be used as a qualifier for our Foursomes matchplay.
The Junior Committee was disappointed that the Junior Play in Pink day was cancelled due to bad weather. A Winter League has been set up for the Juniors.
The Sunday Carvery started yesterday and was a big success.
The Ladies A.G.M. will be held on Wednesday, 24th November at 7.30pm. Notice has been sent to all relevant ladies by email. Notices are in the locker room and on the website also. There are no Matters for Discussion and as no other names were entered on the sheet for Nomination to Committee or Office there will not be a vote on the night. Due to the recent high COVID numbers the A.G.M. will be held by Zoom call.
The Annual Handicap Review took place and the report will be sent to G.I. within the week.
The committee agreed that we will proceed with our plans for the Winter League presentation on Friday, 10th December as we are within government COVID guidelines. However, should the guidelines change before then we will make alternative arrangements and will notify ladies then.
October 2021 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Roisin O’Neill, Noel McGrath, John Glynn and Val Carroll on their recent deaths.
Louise will post the rules of the Wednesday 2’s competition in the shop for all to see.
The committee agreed to restrict the handicap index to 36 for Tuesday Opens for all players, members or visitors. Higher handicap players can still play in the competition but off the lower handicap limit.
The distance marker is incorrect on the Ladies 13th tee box. An official measurement will have to be done. This has been requested but delayed due to COVID.
The Junior Committee has nominated Kayleigh Doyle and Emmet Ronan as the new Junior Captains for 2022. All present congratulated Kayleigh and Emmet and complimented this year’s Captains, Caitlin Logan and Liam Delaney, on a job well done.
A presentation night will be held on Wednesday 27th October.
Lady President Ann and Lady Captain Clodagh would like the theme of this year’s Ladies Christmas Dinner night to be one of Glamour. They hope to have a prosecco reception at the start of the night as a thank you for all the support they received over the last two years.
Next year’s major dates will be approved at the next CoM meeting. Lady President’s prizes to Ladies, Men and Juniors will all be on the same week and likewise for the Lady Captain’s prizes. Lady Captain’s week will not be the same as the Men’s Captains week.
The sign-in method for the Winter League is in the Ladies locker room but sometimes this is not open. Ladies can enter after the 4th hole or when they finish. Ladies can text Mary Stapleton to let her know they are entering and the locker room is closed.
The locker room is very messy with a lot of baskets and decorations lying around. The baskets will be used soon for the Christmas league prizes and then the whole area can be cleaned properly.
Although we are not taking part in the One Club pilot programme it will happen at some stage and a conversation around this matter needs to be started in the Club. It was felt that the CoM should do this.
Lady Vice Captain Ilona announced Christine Ryan as the incoming Lady Vice Captain. Christine was congratulated by the committee.
September 2021 Web Notes
Emails were received requesting that the Ladies Committee consider bringing in Category prizes for our weekly competition. One lady asked that if it is not possible to bring in categories for our competitions that we would reduce the handicap range for competitions to 36. She also asked that a Best Gross prize be awarded in Monthly Medal competitions and if the Best Gross is within the first three prizes that the second best gross be awarded the prize.
The Competitions Committee reviewed all the Ladies Wednesday and Weekend competitions from the end of April up to the beginning of September. The Committee discussed all matters raised in the emails and is satisfied that the results in most cases have been spread across the handicap ranges (0 – 20, 21 – 36 and 37 – 54) and there is no need to introduce categories.
In regards to the Committee reducing handicaps back to 36, this would be completely unacceptable within the WHS. The new handicap system was brought in to make the higher handicap players more competitive. Now with the new system all players, regardless of handicap, have a chance to feature. The inclusion of a gross prize is under consideration for next year.
The play-off for the Lesley Hopkins Silver Salver will be held on either Saturday, 25th or Sunday, 26th September depending on timesheet availability.
The Foursomes competition was a great success and another one will be held on Wednesday, 29th September. The format will be 14-holes Scotch Foursomes.
Amanda’s Hair Salon is delighted to sponsor the Pink Day again. The Junior Committee will be asked about holding a 9-hole Junior competition during the school mid-term.
The Competitions Committee is considering the return of the Saturday mixed. They will look for volunteers to run it each week, with a rota in place so that each volunteer will only be called upon every five or six weeks.
The GIG and SIG programmes are being reviewed and we might abandon these programmes and adopt a shorter version next year. While Golf Ireland recommend the two year programme of GIG and SIG it is very difficult for a small club like ours to run the programme.
The Little and Large competition was a great success with 104 participants and the Wicklow People newspaper took some photographs. The U20 Wicklow Cup team played their final match recently. The Junior Committee gave a lot of juniors a chance to play on the team which will stand to them in future years.
The Chef is considering a Carvery for Sundays.
The role of Handicap Secretary was discussed and how it has changed over the last few years. Handicaps need to be reviewed on a daily basis for some people and the number of Ladies competitions has also increased. A suggestion was made to split the role into two areas – Handicaps and Competitions. The person looking after Competitions need not necessarily be on the Ladies Committee but could send in a monthly report.
It was suggested that the ex-officio head up a sub-committee to look after Sponsors. The sub-committee would arrange collection of the prizes from the sponsor, look after the prizes until they are presented and arrange presentation nights.
A discussion was held on new members and how we can include them within the Ladies Club. Lady President meets them when possible but it has been difficult with COVID. A presentation night will take place soon and Lady Captain and Lady Vice-Captain will contact the new members to invite them to the presentation and to meet some other ladies.
A request was made that Louise post the rules of the 2’s competition in a prominent area of the Pro. Shop.
The Ladies Christmas dinner will be held on Friday, 10th December
Lady President Ann announced Doreen McGettigan as the incoming Lady President. Doreen was congratulated by the committee
August 2021 Web Notes
The One Club Pilot Programme was discussed at last month’s CoM meeting. The CoM have taken into account the Ladies Committee views and are not going ahead with it.
The internal Out of Bounds stakes are treated as Immovable Obstructions when playing the 5th and 18th holes and relief applies. It is not possible to have a local rule prohibiting chipping on any green but the Club asks that players refrain from doing it.
New score cards are being ordered soon and the rules on the card will be reviewed if the CoM so wish.
At the end of July the Junior committee proposed Kayleigh Doyle, Caitlin Logan and Aisling Patton for approval to play in Ladies competitions on Wednesdays. This was passed unanimously.
Handicaps continue to fluctuate wildly for some players who don’t have the full 20 cards in. These are monitored continually, sometimes on a daily basis and adjustments made where necessary.
The Mixed Matchplay competition was a great success. It was agreed that the Ladies committee run a similar competition for both the Ballycurry Cup and Ladies Foursomes Matchplay competitions. There will be no additional fee and anyone that doesn’t want to take part in the matchplay competition can let the committee know. The Competition sub-committee will organise the dates.
The Head Greenkeeper will be asked if anything can be done to make the bunker on the front left-hand side of the 10th green less punishing to players. It is very small and players often have to stand outside the bunker when playing a shot.
James is looking after the Pro shop while Louise is away. All present agreed that James is an asset to Louise and the Club. He is always pleasant with a smile for everyone and always works very hard. He is very reliable and never forgets to pass on messages.
The Chef now has an assistant and the Catering hours are being extended. Catering will be available for Juniors on Mondays. Three new staff have been taken on to help in the Bar.
The competitions committee might look at doing category prizes in future. They will continue to monitor competition results to see what the handicap spread is.
The Intermediate Cup team was congratulated on their recent win and were wished the very best of luck in the district final.
July 2021 Web Notes
An email will be sent to the Ladies section asking ladies to be more considerate of others and to contact them if they have to take their name off the timesheet or move to a different time. The email will also remind ladies that if anyone is left on the timesheet on their own that they can join with another group or a group can split to accommodate the single player.
One lady played with a number of junior girls recently and was impressed with their abilities. She was wondering why the juniors are not allowed play in the adult competitions. While the Ladies Committee will allow junior girls to play in Wednesday competitions the juniors must first be proposed by the Junior committee and approved by the Ladies committee. The Chair of the Junior committee said that they review the Juniors (girls and boys) on a regular basis and they are not putting forward any names for approval at the moment.
An email was sent to all members re General Play guidelines. There was one reply asking why do they need to hand in a card when Golf Ireland doesn’t say you have to do this. Questions were also asked as to why you need to register your intention to play a counting casual round and why the men are allowed use the computer terminal and ladies are not allowed. The card is needed because many ladies make mistakes when entering their scores in the App and the card is used to verify scores entered on the App. The Lady card checkers wish to continue limiting the use of the computer terminal due to COVID.
Lady Captain will run a 9-hole competition over two days for 5-day ladies, SIG ladies and ladies who are no longer able to play 18 holes. The entry fee will be €8. It is hoped that by doing this it will give the ladies a taste of a two day event and encourage some to become full members. It may be helpful to remind 5-Day members and the SIG ladies that payment of membership can be spread over the full year.
As there are many outstanding prizes to be presented a presentation be held on Saturday, 24th July after play in the Captain’s Prize to the Ladies. An email will be sent out to all, listing the winners and asking winners to attend or nominate someone to collect their prize for them.
The rose bed outside the office is in need of attention. A course tidy-up is usually done before the Men’s major competitions. Lady Captain said she will bring this to the attention of Captain Aidan.
Junior lessons have finished and competitions are in full swing now.
The Marketing committee are looking for more people to help out with the social media platforms. Ilona Madden, Rosemary Kavanagh and Lady Captain Clodagh were all congratulated on the fabulous jobs they are doing.
Catering is going well at the moment and notices have been put around the course asking players to ring in their orders.
One Club Model Pilot: Golf Ireland is looking for 25 clubs to take part in a One Club Model Pilot programme. Wicklow GC has applied for this but may not take part if accepted. In this model Clubs will have Ladies and Men’s Sub-Committees, there will only be one Club AGM, one Handicap Secretary, one Competitions Secretary, etc. A discussion was held and many felt that our Ladies Club is a very active, friendly section and we don’t want to lose our identity within the general Club. The general feeling with the Ladies committee is that we should leave it to other clubs to take part in the programme, let them make the mistakes and we can learn from them. There are still many problems with Golf Ireland and the transition from ILGU and GUI. Communication from Golf Ireland on queries are taking up to 9 weeks presently.
June 2021 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Mary Kennedy and Gaye McGettigan on their recent deaths.
Draws took place to determine the entrants for this year’s Australian Spoons and 9-hole Mixed competition. Five pairs entered the Australian Spoons draw and only two pairs entered the 9-hole draw.
Golf Ireland directed that the Ladies Committee decide on the entrants for the Silver and Bronze Medal competitions. The choice is to send 2019 winners or run Medal competitions in June & July and pick from these competitions. All agreed to send 2019 winners.
The Valerie Doyle competition takes place on the first day of the Lady Captain’s competition. As a result Wicklow GC will not enter the competition this year.
We will not enter the Granard Cup this year. The minimum entry fee for the club is €150 and it is unlikely that we would have enough entrants to cover the cost.
Timesheets are now open from 7am daily. Lady Captain asked for some of the new picnic benches to be moved away from the 5th tee boxes.
We will continue to use category draws for our major competitions as it worked well in the President’s Prize to Ladies. The entries will be divided into categories with a low, medium and high handicap player on each line.
The lady card checkers would prefer that the computer terminal continues to be used only by them due to COVID even though the men are allowing all men and juniors to use their terminal. The card checkers will continue to enter the scores for those ladies who don’t have/are unable to use the app. The average number of ladies playing in the weekend competition has risen to around 30 ladies.
Weekly competitions continue with a 9-hole competition on Mondays for SIG ladies, an 18-hole Open competition on Tuesdays, our usual 18-hole competition on Wednesdays as well as a 9-hole competition for SIG ladies and those who are unable to play 18-holes on the day. We also have our 18-hole weekend competition run over Saturday and Sunday.
The Junior section is now very busy. Lessons are continuing for 73 juniors with fortnightly lessons for each junior. Parents are helping out with each group.
The recent Little and Large competition was a great success with 44 juniors taking part. €84 was taken in on green fees for parents playing with their child. It was a great showcase for the course.
The Junior Captains drive-in took place on the same day as the Little and Large competition and was attended by the Ladies and Men’s Presidents and Captains.
There are 116 junior members presently with 3 more waiting for approval. 30 junior members are new this year.
Ilona Madden is working on setting up a schedule of sponsors for the social media pages. Ciaran Doyle has done up a spreadsheet with both men’s and ladies sponsors and this will be put up on the website.
Lady Captain said that kitchen will remain open on Wednesdays until 4pm. Ladies playing late in the afternoon can phone in an order and there are signs on the course to remind people to do this. There is not enough business in the later afternoon to keep the chef on any longer.
May 2021 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Owen Malone and Maeve Flannery on their recent deaths.
At the last meeting the Committee were asked to think about the stipulation that three completed 18-hole competition cards are required to be eligible to win a Major competition. It was agreed that this will be reduced to two cards for the President’s Prize to the Ladies and for the Lady President’s Prize. It will remain at three cards for the Captain’s Prize to the Ladies and the Lady Captain’s Prize.
President Declan Long will hold his prize to the Ladies on Monday, 7th June, the first day that Major competitions are allowed. The draws for all major competitions will take place at least 10 days before the competition to allow unused lines to be released. The competition sub-committee will look at the entries for each draw and will divide them into three categories. The Best 36+ prize will now be the Best 31.4+ H.I.
We will try to schedule at least one Wednesday Open competition a month with the reserved slots for members only. The Tuesday competitions are all Opens.
Members can now play Casual Rounds for handicap purposes by pre-registering their intention to play. We are allowed charge an administration fee for this.
GOY will start this week and a text will go out to all to let them know.
This year only the Medal competitions from June and July will qualify for the Bronze and Silver medals. We will also run Medal competitions in August and September with the best three each month to qualify for the Lesley Hopkins Silver Salver playoff.
There are a two new Club sponsors this year – O’Dwyer’s Pharmacy and the EBS. Both will sponsor competitions from Tuesday to Sunday for men and ladies.
As the timesheets are going to be fairly full during the summer months Gerry Doyle recommends for the Mixed Matchplay competition that a qualifying competition is run some Saturday with the top 8 pairs qualifying for matchplay. All agreed with this.
The 6th green is now open and is being well received.
Juniors will have competitions on Mondays and Fridays once the schools close for the summer. Louise D’Arcy is putting together a lesson plan for them which is included in their membership fee.
The Marketing committee would like us to include a link to the Club website when we send texts/emails/WhatsApp messages. More traffic on the website will move Wicklow GC higher up on Google searches. Rosemary Kavanagh was congratulated on all the great work she does behind the scenes.
We are not sure yet when the Pink Day will be held this year. It is unlikely that we will be allowed a Saturday as the Club needs all income from competitions and societies. We hope to get a Monday early in September.
Clodagh, Ilona, Sinead Nolan, Caitriona Fogarty and Joan Morton are looking at the possibility of producing a cookbook as a fund raiser for the Club.
April 2021 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Jimmy Fitzpatrick on his recent death.
The Committee are aware that there may be a problem fielding some teams this year as a result of COVID. All agreed that if 3 or 4 out of 5 players (2 out of 3 for foursomes matches) are available for a match then the match will go ahead. It will give some of the newer players vital matchplay experience. Team managers will be informed of this so that they can inform their players of the Committee policy.
Golf resumes on Monday, 26th April with play limited to two households only and we are not allowed to run formal competitions. We can, however, run Activities for handicap purposes where we charge an entry fee, record scores, etc. We cannot post results to social media and can’t promote the activity. There will be no sponsors and no presentations. At this stage we don’t know when restrictions will be lifted fully and if we will be able to play Club matchplay competitions or if we will be able to run GOY. Lady President is hoping to hold her competition in June. We may need to amend the stipulation that three 18 hole singles competitions are played before then to be eligible to win first prize.
Volunteers have continued to do great work around the course and clubhouse and have planted flowers around the carpark and men’s first tee box.
Joanne Logan and Una Doyle have done a Safeguarding Refresher course.
Louise D’Arcy was happy with her Fitness class and all agreed that they were excellent. Maeve will pass on the Ladies Committee thanks for the Fitness classes and for the mention on local radio.
David Stapleton was thanked for the great article on Wicklow News. The Marketing committee are trying to get members to comment on social media posts rather than just like them as this will increase traffic on the sites.
Some new outdoor seating has been provided for when the bar and catering are allowed to open again.
Notices for the Ladies 2020 AGM have been issued to all eligible to attend and vote at an A.G.M. Ladies who do not have email addresses were sent text messages instead. The relevant documents are posted on the website and will be updated if necessary.
The competition fees taken in for the Christmas Leagues will be re-imbursed onto the players cards.
Mary Stapleton was congratulated on her new roles in the Leinster Regional Handicap sub-committee. Mary will now be advising both men and women within each club assigned to her and she is the Zonal leader also.
March 2021 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Eily Griffin, Pat O’Rourke, Josie Vickers, Cecil Byrne, Shane Kinsella and Cathleen Scanlan on their recent deaths.
It was agreed by committee that due to the uncertainty from COVID we will not run the Get Into Golf programme in 2021. The committee also agreed to wait a few months before we decide on whether we enter the Granard Cup this year. All competition fees go to the charity and while it is a good cause the Club needs all the competition income it can get.
The Social Information night will take place this Thursday. A reminder will be sent out to all. Ciaran Doyle will chair the night and the following will speak on various matters; Lady Captain Clodagh, Lady Vice Captain Ilona, Clair Higgins, Louise D’Arcy, Tony McKeever, Pat Stapleton and Captain Aidan Doyle. All are encouraged to log in to the meeting.
The trees that were cut down on the side of the 1st hole were done by the residents of the apartments with the approval of the CoM.
The Junior sub-committee is presently getting back the safe-guarding forms from the Juniors so that they are ready once golf resumes.
Louise is ready to start her Fitness class this Wednesday and it will continue on Thursdays for 3 more weeks.
Ilona Madden thanked Lady Captain for putting together the video for International Women’s Day.
It was suggested that once competition golf resumes we use members sponsorship first and give sponsors the choice of reduced sponsorship this year.
February 2021 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Brendan Cottrell (Phil Laverty’s brother), John Kavanagh (Billy Kavanagh’s brother), Tricia Frost (Pat Roche’s daughter), Louise Kavanagh (past Lady President) and Denis Scanlan (past member) on their recent deaths.
The email from Golf Ireland on Interclub Handicap Information will be forwarded to team managers once the dates for matches become available.
Some vouchers still have to be distributed which will happen once COVID restrictions are lifted.
Three new lady members were approved at CoM. Lady President would normally have met them in person but due to COVID restrictions she was unable to do so. She has, however, written to them to welcome them to the Club.
Work on the 6th green is going well; the green was sodded during the last week.
The Junior sub-committee is working on plans for the year.
Louise D’Arcy will be launching her new app within the next week or two. The app is called Xpos Caddie. Louise is considering doing Zoom keep fit classes while Ilona Madden said she has spoken to Alex Silva about the possibility of doing Pilates classes.
Members are asked to continue to post photos on the Facebook pages. Ilona and her sub-committee were congratulated on the great job they are doing behind the scenes. A suggestion was made that the Club do the Jerusalem Challenge. This was discussed and most thought that it was a good idea, especially if we could get ladies, men, grounds staff and bar staff involved. While it is not possible to meet in large groups it is hoped that people could send in videos and maybe Shane could put them together with the music. Lady Captain will mention it at the next CoM meeting.
The team managers are the same as last year with the exception that Lady President Ann will co-manage the Irish Mixed.
Junior Cup – Phyllis Kavanagh
Intermediate Cup – Siobhan McEntaggart & Mary Cahill
Minor Cup – Maeve O’Boyle & Mary Stapleton
Challenge Cup – Doreen McGettigan & Phyl Long
Senior Foursomes – Breda Carroll & Eilish Roche
Junior Foursomes – Valerie Brennan & Clair Higgins
All-Ireland Fourball – Una Doyle & Joanne Logan
Boyne Trophy – Rose Kelleher-Cox & Anne Hollingsworth
Irish Mixed Foursomes – Lady President Ann Nichols
Cullen Cup – Ilona Madden
Courtown Interclub Shield – Therese Porter
Team Liaison – Una Doyle
The Ladies club was congratulated on coming third in the Play in Pink photo competition.
January 2021 Web Notes
As Teresa Scanlan and Liz Cuddihy both resigned from the committee at the end of the year Lady Captain proposed that the committee co-opt Joanne Logan onto the committee. Lady President Ann seconded the proposal and it was passed unanimously. All present welcomed Joanne onto the committee.
Condolences were extended to Áine Kavanagh on the recent death of her grandmother Nanette Barlow.
All correspondence received was forwarded to the committee throughout the month. Lady Captain Clodagh and vice-Captain Ilona will attend the ILGU (Zoom) EGM on 28th January.
Golf Ireland emailed the Inter-Club Competitions Entry Form. The committee discussed whether we would enter these competitions this year. It was agreed that we would enter the four singles matchplays, the two foursomes matchplays and the fourball matchplay, the cost of which is €375.
An email will be going out to all members asking for early payment of this year’s subs if possible. Work on the 6th green has started. A decision on AGM’s will be made soon. Clair Higgins and Gerry Doyle were both co-opted onto the CoM following the resignation of Ian Mooney and Ian Cuddihy at the end of the year. Clair will be the Junior representative on the committee.
Ilona Madden said a number of people stepped down from the Marketing committee at the end of the year; Brendan Hickey who looked after the Facebook account, Ian Mooney who looked after Twitter and Sean who looked after Instagram. Ilona, Shane Doyle, Rosemary Kavanagh, Mary Cahill and Bo McKeever will take over these social media accounts. Ilona asked that if anyone has or takes good photos of the course that they send them on to one of the sub-committee members.
The Ladies Zoom Christmas Party night was very successful. Once we know what restrictions will be in place at the end of the month the committee may run another fun night. We will discuss this at February’s meeting.
Everyone was wished a happy and healthy year.
December 2020 Web Notes
The Junior Committee have put forward two proposals – one for casual golf and one for competition golf. The CoM will decide on the casual golf proposal while it is up to the Ladies and Men’s Committees to decide on the competition golf proposal.
A lengthy discussion took place. All present want to do what is best for Junior’s and encourage them to stay in the Club. However, all agreed that the Ladies Committee will allow Junior girls to play in Wednesday competitions but not in the Tuesday or weekend competitions due to the large number of Full members who have to go on the Waiting List each weekend. The Ladies Committee will not set a limit on handicaps but will take advice from the Junior Committee. The Junior Committee will assess each junior individually, taking into account age, maturity and ability before forwarding the name to the Ladies Committee for approval. Any Junior Girls accepted by the Ladies Committee to play in Ladies competitions will only have access to the timesheet the week before the competition and will be limited to after 11.30am on Wednesday’s.
November 2020 Web Notes
2 Meetings were held in November
5th November 2020
Condolences were extended to Maeve O’Boyle on the recent death of her brother-in-law.
Phase 1 of the voting process for Golf Ireland Regional Executives is completed with two ladies from the ILGU Mid-Leinster committee being appointed as Chairperson and Secretary of the Leinster committee.
The auditors Cooney Parle are now doing a review of the Club accounts. Una Doyle, Treasurer, was thanked for all her hard work during the year.
The CoM are getting guidance from the GUI on the running of the AGM’s. The Ladies and Men’s committees have agreed to be guided on the matter by the CoM.
The Hon. Sec. Frank Scanlan is looking at procedures for closing the course in bad weather.
The Competitions committee are not sure what golf will be allowed once COVID-19 regulations are relaxed. The two Winter leagues have now been cancelled. If possible 9-hole or 14-hole competitions will take place on Wednesdays for the month of December.
The new WHS has come into effect. There are some teething issues but hopefully these will be sorted soon.
Louise hopes to start the group lessons in Gormanstown on Tuesday, 2nd December. The lessons will take place over three nights in December and three in January at a cost of €10 per night plus €4 for golf balls. Louise will send out an email to all nearer the time.
Louise is in the process of setting up an App for the Pro shop so that people can purchase items online and collect from the shop. It is hoped to go live next week.
The Super Sixes team event was a great success with over 40 juniors taking part. The juniors received prizes and sweets on the final day. The Junior committee are putting together a proposal for on-course junior coaching over the next three weeks and will seek approval from CoM.
Information about the 6th green will be going out to all soon. Discussions are still taking place about the new practice area and how to safely screen it off from the Ladies 1st tee box.
Lady Captain said that both Teresa Scanlan and Liz Cuddihy are stepping down from the committee at the end of the year. She thanked them both for all their hard work and wished them well.
Ilona was congratulated on her Zoom PowerPoint presentation on Course Etiquette last night. There was a great turnout, and it was very enjoyable. There will be no Ladies Christmas dinner/social this year, but another Zoom night might be held in December.
All present agreed that our next meeting will be held on Monday, 30th November at 8pm to discuss what regulations are coming into force, decorating the Clubhouse and a quiz night.
30th November 2020
Ian Mooney brought a proposal to the CoM re course times for Juniors throughout the year. Ian said he would email it to the Ladies and Men’s Committees but so far, no email has been received. It was agreed that another Ladies meeting would be held next Monday, 7th December at 8pm to discuss the matter.
Mary Stapleton said that the WHS still has some issues, but these are being worked on. Mary, Rosemary Kavanagh, Therese Porter and Tony McKeever attended a webinar recently. There is no agreement between ClubV1 and WHS so when you log on to ClubV1 it is no longer possible to see a player’s playing history. ClubV1 recently came to an agreement in Scotland so hopefully an agreement will be reached in Ireland soon.
When setting up competitions on ClubV1 only the Handicap Index appears on the card. The Course Handicap and Playing Handicap should also appear. A WhatsApp message has been sent to all ladies to let them know this. The Competitions sub-committee will be lenient on this for a couple of weeks. New cards with space for Handicap Index, Course Handicap and Playing Handicap will be ordered in the new year.
We will run 9-hole Wednesday competitions throughout the month of December with play on the Back 9 where possible. An overall prize will be awarded, and we will have category prizes also, depending on the numbers playing. This will be reviewed weekly. We hope that by having category prizes it will encourage more players.
Over 40 juniors had three lessons during lockdown. The first one took place in the Driving range while the others took place on the course over two weekends. All COVID protocols were followed.
Louise is postponing the group lessons for Ladies until the new year.
Nora Dunne thanked all the volunteers who have been working hard around the clubhouse and course. Pathways have been improved around the course which will make it much easier to use buggies. The Ladies 10th tee box has been raised.
Ilona Madden has been promoted to Chair of the Marketing sub-committee. A sub-committee is looking into whether the Club Membership is full or if we have space for new members.
A new chef, Kieran, is taking over from Philip when the Clubhouse and restaurant re-open. A planned power outage means the Clubhouse will be closed all day next Sunday.
The Ladies Zoom Christmas Party night will be held on Friday, 4th December. Lady Captain Clodagh and Ilona will arrange it and reminders will be sent out during the week. There will be a prize for the best dressed lady, best decorated house as well as some bingo prizes.
October 2020 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to Pat Smullen on the recent death of his brother.
The Level Par grant to promote Junior Girls was applied for and the grant of €300 was received.
The Club’s Liaison Committee for Golf Ireland, consisting of Lady Captain Clodagh Doyle, Mary Stapleton, Therese Porter, Captain Aidan Doyle, Pat Stapleton and Frank Scanlan will meet during the week to discuss the first round of voting for the Regional Executive AGM.
The CoM are looking into dates for the AGM’s. These may be moved from the traditional dates.
Lady Captain emailed the CoM re training for Rosemary Kavanagh, Mary Cahill and Ilona Madden on the new website. It is unclear at the moment if a training day went ahead and if any ladies were informed of this. The Ladies Committee agreed that ladies should be heavily involved in all stages of the website, including training. Lady Captain will bring this matter to the next CoM meeting.
An email went out about the Winter leagues starting. However, should COVID-19 regulations restrict playing of golf/competition golf the Committee agreed that the two Leagues will be suspended.
The Ladies Competition document was reviewed, and the Committee agreed that the numbers required for sponsored competitions be increased from 16 to 18 players for Wednesday competitions and from 8 to 12 players for weekend competitions. The numbers required for GOY points is increased from 16 players to 18 players and the numbers required for Sunday GOY points will increase from 5 players to 10 players.
The WHS is due to start in November but little information is being passed to the Handicap committees within the districts. There may be more information available once the Golf Ireland Regional Executive committees are in place. Wicklow G.C. is in Leinster, Zone C. The course has been measured for Ladies from the red tees and the certificates will be placed on a notice board in the Locker room. There was a plan to measure the course for Ladies playing from the white tee boxes, but this hasn’t happened yet.
Ilona Madden attended the Failte Ireland marketing event for golf clubs with Tour Operators and the feedback was very good.
The Juniors are halfway through the Super Sixes team event and it’s going very well. The adult walkers are teaching the Juniors etiquette as they play. The Junior committee are nominating Caitlin Logan and Liam Delaney as Junior Captains for 2021. This is an important role for these young golfers. Both sets of parents are willing to assist them throughout the year. The Ladies Committee approved the nominations.
Nora Dunne said the Ladies markers on the 4th tee box have to be moved from time to time to rest the tee box. Lady President Ann Nichols and Joe Vickers were complimented on the flowerpots at the front door.
Maeve O’Boyle said Louise is considering offering lessons in Gormanstown to the more experienced lady golfers over the coming months. All present agreed this is a good idea.
Lady Captain Clodagh said the Clubhouse will be closed on Monday’s. There will be soup, sandwiches, muffins and scones available Tuesday to Friday and a limited menu on Saturday and Sunday.
The current procedure for closing the course states that if someone is concerned that the course may be unplayable for reasons of safety or otherwise one of the following should be contacted; Club Professional, Bar Manager or Office Administrator. On Sunday mornings the Office Administrator is not available, the Bar Manager is not available until at least 10am and the Club Professional may not be working. Therese Porter asked that this procedure be reviewed and asked that someone should be available to come to the club to assess the course conditions. Lady Captain will bring the matter to the next CoM meeting.
Ilona will do a Zoom PowerPoint presentation on Course Etiquette on Wednesday, 4th November. An email will go out to all ladies and WhatsApp reminders will be sent nearer the date.
President Declan Long is reviewing the BRS timesheet over the winter. Mary Stapleton (Ladies Competition secretary), Gerry Doyle (Men’s Competition secretary) and Ian Mooney (Juniors) are assisting Declan. The four major prize dates for Ladies are booked for early Saturday mornings next year. The Pink Day will probably take place on the May Bank holiday Monday next year. Declan has a difficult job trying to fit in Ladies, Men, Juniors, Casual golf, societies and green fees. The CoM who will have to agree the timesheets for next year.
Lady Captain thanked everyone for their help with the successful Pink Day.
While the meeting was taking place news broke that the clubhouse will have to close for three weeks due to the new COVID-19 regulations.
September 2020 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Michael “Turkey” Doyle, Yvonne Kelly’s brother and to Phyllis Behan and family on the recent death of her brother Oliver Padden.
The flag poles have been replaced and are working well.
As a result of new COVID restrictions all indoor staff must wear masks when in contact with the public.
The CoM have appointed a Course Ranger who will operate on Saturdays and Sundays.
The new website is up and running but work on it is still in progress. Mary Cahill will be trained on using it to update the Ladies results and documents. Ilona Madden offered to do the training also.
Overseas society bookings have been cancelled for this year.
Mary Stapleton said that the competitions are going well with only one competition being postponed due to bad weather. The Golf Sure competition will take place over 2 weeks and an email has gone out to all about it. There are two more Wednesday sponsors left and if these competitions have to be postponed, the sponsorship will be moved to Sat/Sun competitions.
There are two more Wednesday 18-hole competitions left and the Winter Leagues will start then. It was agreed to cancel the Ladies Christmas dinner this year, which was due to take place on Friday, 4th December. As a result of this the 9-hole Winter League can run from Wednesday 7th October to Tuesday, 8th December – 9 weeks in total. Six weeks will count for scoring and anyone that plays four weeks or more will receive a prize. The Weekend League will run from Sat 3rd/Sun 4th Oct to Sat 12th /Sun 13th December – 11 weeks in total. Eight weeks will count for scoring and anyone that plays four weeks or more will receive a prize. The entry fee will be €10. SIG ladies who have handicaps are allowed to play in the 9-hole league. The prizes will be given out on Wednesday, 16th December.
Many ladies have lost shots over the summer months. The WHS is due to start in November and handicap reviews will be done around then also.
Una Doyle said that there are now 6 girls playing 18-holes – the first time in six years that we’ve had so many. The Junior committee are working on a plan for Super Sixes and will meet with Louise about coaching. The Junior committee are also considering setting up some of the lower handicap members as mentors for the juniors. Congratulations were extended to Una and the Junior committee on the great work they have done this season.
Maeve O’Boyle said Louise played in Birr Golf Club recently and they had signs on every second or third hole reminding members to keep social distancing. Louise thought it was a good idea and asked if the Club would consider it. A discussion was held but it was agreed that the signs could become a litter problem due to the wind and that most members like to have a break from constant COVID reminders while they are playing golf.
Lady Captain Clodagh said Philip O’Sullivan, the chef, is working well but members must be reminded to book a table if they wish to eat in the restaurant. Lady Captain will thank the staff for all the hard work they are doing – constantly cleaning, serving, generally helping out. It was agreed to wait until next year to clean the silverware in the foyer.
Nora Dunne said the stone marker for the Ladies 13th tee box has been put in place as has the wiring around the ladies 14th tee box to stop members walking over it.
Ilona Madden said that Failte Ireland is running a marketing event for golf clubs with Tour Operators. The event takes place online on 15th/16th September and will be similar to speed dating. The committee are putting a mailing list together for societies, but it is hard to plan with COVID. The 6th hole, “The Nose”, has featured in the Independent newspaper Top 50 holes in Ireland. The committee will promote this as much as possible starting with the Play in Pink Day where all players will be allowed a Mulligan from The Nose.
The inside door on the Ladies locker room will be closed over from now on due to the possibility of small animals entering. The keypad will be disconnected, and hand sanitizer be provided for ladies inside the door.
An email on Course Etiquette will be sent to all. Ilona will look into the possibility of doing a Zoom PowerPoint presentation on Course Etiquette.
A question was raised as to whether the Saturday Mixed will be scheduled this year – this will be looked into.
Lady Captain will find out if the chef will be available for the Wicklow date for the Alliance.
A question was asked about this year’s GOY and if it is being played for. Could it be amalgamated with next year as some ladies are playing very well this year? It was pointed out that it was agreed at the July meeting that GOY would not be played for this year as it is usually played over the months April to August and we had already missed competitions in three of the five months. It was also unclear how COVID restrictions would affect competitions as the summer progressed.
Maeve O’Boyle said her son joined the Juniors this year and she has seen first-hand all the work that has been done for the Juniors. She complimented Una, Teresa and the Junior committee on their hard work and on making coping with COVID restrictions as easy as possible.
Lady President Ann will get new plants for the flowerpots at the front door.
August 2020 Web Notes
Condolences were extended to the family and friends of Mary Kavanagh (sister-in-law of Margaret Kavanagh and aunt of Rosemary).
Emails were received over the last few weeks from the ILGU and GUI regarding Golf Ireland 2021 and the launch of the Women in Golf Charter Guide. Wicklow Golf Club will have to sign up to this if we wish to apply for some small grants.
Emails were received about Play in Pink Day. It was agreed that we will hold a Singles competition on Monday, 14th September. It will be a 9-hole Open competition, open to ladies and men, with a €5 entry fee.
An email from a member was forwarded to the Ladies Club from the Hon. Sec. of the CoM. A group of ladies held up the member and his guest and did not invite them through. A discussion was held on the matter and an email will be sent to the ladies’ club regarding Slow play. All agreed that it is very hard to do anything about Slow Play without a Course Ranger.
The Committee was asked to consider changing the Conditions of Competition rule that play in Wednesday competitions is limited to 3-balls max. The reason for the change is to facilitate visitors playing in Open competitions and ladies who play outside of the reserved competition slots. A discussion was held, and it was agreed that 4-balls will be allowed for all Ladies Wednesday competitions. The reserved competition slots on Wednesdays will remain at 3-balls in the mornings and afternoons, reducing to 2-balls later in the season due to light restrictions. Ladies will be encouraged to continue to play in 2-balls and 3-balls if possible, to encourage a good pace of play.
Una Doyle said the numbers playing in Junior competitions continues to be good. Lessons are being held on Wednesday evenings at the moment and also before the Juniors played their competition on 10th Aug.
Louise has the shop well stocked now despite huge delays in shipments from China. She has put prices on her stock as requested.
A question was asked as to whether it is possible to get the bushes by the 11th tee box cut but it was pointed out that there is a sheer drop there and special machinery would be required. The stone marker for the Ladies 13th tee box is lying on the ground. Nora Dunne will mention this to the sub-committee and also the possibility of getting wiring around the ladies 14th tee box to stop members walking over it.
The Business Directory has been completed and it will hopefully be on the website soon. A Mailing List is currently being compiled of societies.
Lady President Ann Nichols asked if the Club should be accepting bookings from other countries during these times? It was agreed that this is a matter for the CoM and she will raise it at the next meeting.
Maeve O’Boyle pointed out that the majority of staff are not wearing masks and asked if it is now mandatory to do so. Lady Captain will check this out, but she believes it is not mandatory.
Ilona Madden congratulated the Competitions committee on arranging the 9-hole matchplay competition. Most ladies will play three matches, and all are encouraged to play their matches as soon as possible. Buddies will be arranged for any of the higher handicap ladies if needed.
All those involved in organising the Fundraising weekend were congratulated on a job well done and thanked for their hard work.
The Open Day will be on Wednesday, 26th August. Posters have gone out to 14 clubs and ladies are asked to encourage others to play.
July 2020 Web Notes
The CoM continue to monitor Covid-19 regulations, the resumption of competitions and the reopening of the bar and restaurant. Membership is ticking over.
Competitions have resumed and nearly all the sponsors are delighted to continue with their sponsorship. They really appreciate the support from the members at this difficult time. Some sponsorship has been moved to Sat/Sun competitions as there is not enough Wednesdays available for all sponsors.
The Competitions sub-committee decided, with the approval of the Ladies committee, not to run Medal/Strokes competitions this season.
The Ladies GOY competition will not run this year as we have already missed three out of the five months of competitions.
The Ladies Competitions sub-committee have requested that scorecards are used at all times and that the HowDidIDo app replaces the need to use the computer. Scorecards must be verified by playing partners and the name written on the card. Mary Stapleton and Therese Porter will be the only ladies processing competition results to reduce the numbers involved for Contact Tracing.
A new system is place now for Juniors where they must give their names in advance if they wish to enter Junior competitions. They are then given their tee time so there is no need to wait around in groups. Vouchers are given out at the next competition.
Louise was spoken to about the lack of pricing on items in the shop and she will look into it. Louise thinks that the notice on Slow Play in the Ladies Locker room is extremely negative and asked that the committee consider changing it. A discussion on Slow Play took place and the committee agreed that the notice remains as it is.
Philip O’Sullivan, a member, has taken on the role of chef on a temporary basis.
A question was asked as to why the ladies’ marker on the 4th tee box is not at the stone and if we can play from the men’s 8th tee box when playing the 11th hole. It was pointed out that many areas of G.U.R. are not marked as such. Nora Dunne will look into these matters.
The issue of the lack of tags for Green fees was raised. Lady Captain will bring the matter to the attention of the CoM. It may also be a form of advertising for the Club as many people leave Green fee tags on their bags.
Some members are not aware that they may use the clubhouse for tea/coffee, scones, etc. Many thought they had to purchase substantial food. A message will be sent to all Lady members.
Presentation nights will take place on Wednesday, 22nd July for all outstanding Wednesday competitions. A second Presentation night will take place the following week, 29th July, for all other outstanding competitions.
Plans are in place now for the fund-raising weekend. A semi-Open team event will take place on Friday and Saturday with play allowed on both days. The cost per player is €20. A member’s singles competition will be held on Sunday and the entry fee is €10. An Open singles competition will be held on Monday with a €5 entry fee for members and probably €10 for visitors. Timesheets for the competitions will open on Monday, 13th July. A fun event is being planned for Monday afternoon. There will also be events over the weekend for the Juniors and SIG members. Ian Cuddihy will set up a pop-up shop on the course and burgers will be sold at the 18th. Damian Glynn of Orchard Print & Promotions has kindly offered to sponsor prizes for the whole weekend. There will be a raffle with the hampers that should have been for the Easter raffle being used as second and third prize. Damian is also sponsoring first prize in the raffle. A Go Fund Me page will be set up and an email will go out to all members with this information.