1 Aug
Masquerade Christmas Party Nights at The Drift, East Horsley
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1 Jun
Wootton soars to Virgin Atlantic win
PGA in England (South) 2012 PGA Southern Open Championship May 29th 2012.
Adam Wootton makes Order of Merit debut in PGA Southern Open
After barely two years as a trainee professional, 24 year old Adam Wootton (Oxford Golf Centre) has clinched his first Virgin Atlantic Order of Merit victory by winning the prestigious Virgin Atlantic sponsored PGA Southern Open Championship at Drift GC** with an eight-under-par total of 211*.
Taking the winner’s cheque for £2,000 with three sub-par rounds of 71, 70 and 70, Wootton pipped second round leader Guy Woodman (East Berks) by a stroke after Woodman managed a final round of 72. In third place on six-under-par were seasoned campaigners Bill Hodkin (Performance Golf Studio) and Craig Cowper (Horton Park).
Proving that his qualification for The Open in 2011 was no fluke, Wootton negotiated the tree-lined par 73 course in superb style to win his first major regional title and top the Virgin Atlantic Order of Merit*** standings for 2012.
Wootton was four shots off the first round lead when Cowper shot a 67, but with 141 he was back on the tournament leaders’ tails when the first round leaders fell away. However, it was Woodman that produced the fireworks with a dazzling display of four-under-par over the last three holes comprising a hole-in-one, a par and an eagle to finish in the overall lead after 36 holes. The 24 year old from Oxford knew what he had to do for his final round, and despite bogeys at the first and the seventh, reeled off four birdies to reach seven-under-par by the 10th: “By the 14th I knew I was in the lead by one stroke and I felt if I could get to eight-under, I might be in with a chance.”
A five iron to lay up on the 15th left him stymied by a tree, a mistake that might have cost him dear, but Wootton had other ideas, bouncing back with a superb pitching wedge at the 140 yard 16th to four feet for another vital birdie. Narrowly missing a 20 foot birdie putt at the 17th, Wootton uncorked a 310 yard drive down the last, leaving him a 230 yard three iron to the green. A delicate chip and an 18 inch putt left Wootton in pole position.
“That wedge at the 16th really fired me up again. I was pleased with my drive and second shot to the last green, but I’d played pretty well over all three rounds. My course management was fine, my putting was OK and club selection pretty solid, given the swirling winds.”
“It’s terrific to win a prestigious event like this, and although it’s a long way off at this point and there’s a lot of hard work to put in, I’ve set my sights on one of the top three places to make the PGA Play Offs in Turkey.”
Sam Smith, Secretary PGA in England (South), was pleased with a full field and a course in great condition after a near-impossible early spring: “Ben Beagley and his new Head Greenkeeper of three weeks did a terrific job of getting the Drift GC course into fine shape for our eighth appearance with the PGA Southern Open Championship. After all the rain-soaked events, it was brilliant to get great weather for our first major of the 2012 season, and to see both new and familiar faces rising to the top.”
Link 1*: http://pgagbi.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/pgagbi12/event/pgagbi1293/contest/1/leaderboard.htm?sort=place
Link 2**: www.driftgolfclub.com
Link 3***: http://pgagbi.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/pgagbi12/chapter/south/poy/oom/index.htm
28 May
New Machinery at The Drift
In line with our plan to provide healthier, firmer and faster greens to our members and guests these state of the art Toro machines are the right tools for the job!
Mini solid tining May 2012
New Pro Pass Spin Dresser mounted on our Utility vehicle March 2012
28 May
Ablett posts first win of the season at The Drift Golf Club
James Ablett (Lee-on-the-Solent) shot a terrific 68* to win the Virgin Atlantic PGA Southern Open Championship Pro-Am at Drift GC** by two strokes, and post his first victory of the 2012.
Picking up the £650 winner’s cheque, Ablett pushed Andrew Cloke’s three-under-par 70 (Corhampton) into second place, with former English PGA Champion, Ben St.John (Woodcote Park), coming third with a 71. Anthony Tarchetti (Prince’s) led his amateur partners to victory in the team event.
Ablett made his score on the opening nine, birdying the second, eagling the fifth, and then birdying the sixth to reach four-under-par. A dropped shot at the seventh was immediately put right with two more birdies on the eighth and ninth, and at five-under-par Ablett still had nine more holes to play.
A bogey on the 10th set him back, but Ablett produced a string of pars on the tricky inward half until the last hole, where he finished with a final flourish and a birdie for his five-under-par 68.
Cloke was also five-under-par at the turn, but made three bogeys and one birdie on his inward nine, underlining the difficulties the field was facing on a back nine where a strong wind swirling amongst the tree-lined holes was making club selection particularly difficult. St.John also made errors on the challenging back nine, dropping three shots on the 11th and 12th, but a birdie three at the 13th and a spectacular eagle on the final hole put him back in the frame for third spot.
Ablett was happy with his form as he looked forward to the first Virgin Atlantic Order of Merit event of 2012, the Virgin Atlantic PGA Southern Open Championship: “The course will be set up very differently for the three rounds of the championship, but the gorgeous weather looks like hanging around for a few more days, so that’s very encouraging!”
“The course was in the best shape I have seen it for some years, and I’ve got to know it a little better after this round, so I’m looking forward to hopefully finding three more competitive rounds and posting some decent scores.”
132 competitors tee-off at the testing Drift GC on Monday 28 May, with the leading 36 and ties playing a further 36 holes on Tuesday 29 May to battle it out for a share of the £14,000 prize fund and the coveted trophy for the winner of the Virgin Atlantic PGA Southern Open Championship.
Link 1*: http://pgagbi.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/pgagbi12/event/pgagbi1292/contest/1/leaderboard.htm
Link 2**: www.driftgolfclub.com
Photo courtesy of Getty Images
29 Mar
Irrigation Control System Upgrade – April 2012
UK FIRST FOR THE DRIFT AS SURREY GOLF CLUB
UPGRADES TO TORO’S NEW LYNX IRRIGATION SOFTWARE
The Drift has become the very first golf club in the UK to upgrade to Toro’s brand new Lynx irrigation control system software.
The 18-hole woodland course in Surrey was installed with a full fairways, greens, tees and approaches Toro Golf Decoder Controller (GDC) system last summer. However, the software controlling the irrigation hardware has since been upgraded from Toro’s SitePro system to a state-of-the-art Lynx system for improved efficiency and usability.
The Drift made the investment in Lynx and GDC despite these challenging economic times for golf clubs, with the directors’ commitment to improving course conditions representing their single biggest financial decision since acquiring the club in 2001.
Having joined the club just in time to see the GDC system installed, general manager Ben Beagley is looking forward to seeing the further benefits brought by Lynx when the warmer weather arrives. “It’s very exciting to be managing a club benefiting from this level of investment,” he reveals. “It’s quite remarkable in this current economic climate and shows a great level of commitment to the members. We are eager to see the up-and-coming course improvements as a result of the new Lynx system.”
And with drought forecast for the south of the UK this summer, the new Toro irrigation system would certainly prove its worth. The club’s previous system, which was 30 years old, struggled to cope in the exceptionally dry summer of 2010, prompting the directors’ decision to replace it. Based on the improvements GDC has already brought about, Ben is excited about the additional enhancements the newly upgraded Lynx system will bring.
“There was a great ‘buzz’ amongst members when we held the opening ceremony for the system last summer,” he adds. “There were noticeable differences on the course within just a few months of its completion. We were particularly keen to enhance areas such as greens surrounds, which we’ve never been able to irrigate before. Within a matter of weeks the improvement to these areas was immense and we’ve also had over 100 new members join since making the investment in GDC. And with the Lynx system in place for this summer, the more user-friendly nature of the operating system and increased efficiency will only improve the presentation of the whole course further.”
Robert Jackson, distributor Lely UK’s Toro irrigation national sales manager, says he’s thrilled to see The Drift become the first UK user of Lynx. As he comments: “Lynx software is faster, more intuitive and gives greenkeepers all the information they need to better manage their water and resources. When coupled with Toro’s popular and proven GDC hardware, Lynx makes irrigation and water usage more efficient than it’s ever been, plus it saves time, labour and electricity usage, too.
“With the possibility of severe drought and water restrictions on its way, The Drift will now be efficiently and accurately applying water and making every last drop count. Overall, I’m confident The Drift will reap the rewards of the club’s significant investment in the very latest Toro irrigation technology and achieve superior playing surfaces for its members. I look forward to hearing the club’s verdict on the Lynx system’s full benefits later this summer.”
For more information on Toro irrigation, contact distributor Lely UK on 01480 226858, email irrigation.uk@lely.com or visit http://www.toro.com/lynx.
22 Dec
2012 Open Events at The Drift Golf Club
We’re delighted to publish the dates for our Open Events in 2012.
Ladies Open – Thursday 3rd May 2012
Seniors Open – Thursday 12th July 2012
Mixed Open – Sunday 22nd July 2012
Junior Open – Thursday 16th August 2012
Mens Open – Saturday 18th August 2012
Entry forms can be downloaded in PDF format by visiting www.driftgolfclub.com and following the OPEN EVENTS link.
Drift Golf Club 