Run of pars clinches prize for Maura

Editorial Department • Published 6 Aug 2009 15:05 0 Comments

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Maura Newman drives off at Castle Hume on Saturdayon her way to victory at Lady Captain’s Day.<<

Lady Captain Finola Higgins was at Castle Hume Golf Club from early morning on Saturday to welcome members and guests to her Lady Captain's Day.

They arrived to a clubhouse filled with an array of flowers, beautifully arranged as always by Doreen Frazer and Ida Evans. With such a sunny disposition, it was very appropriate that the flowers of choice for Finola were sunflowers.

Lady Captain Finola enjoyed light refreshments with visitors, family and friends before the visiting golfers ventured on to the course. Among the visitors, there were dignitaries from all the local golf clubs, who had come to enjoy Finola's special day.

It was mostly male members on the course until after 11am, when the lady members took to the fairways, hoping upon hope that they would be on the winner's podium come the prize presentation in the evening.

Golf over, everyone got showered and dressed up, ready for the evening's celebrations. It was agreed by all that conditions on the course had been tough, and that a few drinks were well deserved. Everybody sat down to enjoy a fabulous meal, while whisperings were going about as to who could possibly be the lucky champion as there didn't seem to be any decent scores in the clubhouse. The Lady Captain herself was busy 'ear wigging' for news, but those in the know weren't for telling. There weren't, however, the usual post mortem reports being discussed as, due to the inclement weather, players just wanted to forget about the golf and enjoy the 19th! The highlight of every Lady Captain's Day is her speech and the presentation of her prizes. Finola thanked Jim and Eileen Treacy, Kevin and the greenstaff, and Roy and Jeanette together with the bar and restaurant staff. Thanks also went to Club Professional, Shaun, with special mention to Golf Shop Manager, Pat, who has assisted her considerably this year. Finola also paid tribute to her team captains, her committee and all the lady members, but the biggest thanks was saved for husband Gerald and her family. Finola praised all her family members for their support throughout the year and said how delighted she was that they could be with her for this very special occasion.

Finola listened expectantly as Ann Monteith read out the competition results. In the Men's section, it was Finola's brother, Adrian Ward, and Pat Duffy who collected the visitors' prizes, while another brother, Dermot Ward, picked up the Family prize. The main first and second prizes to the male members went to Barry "Woods" McCauley and Michael McCauley respectively. Claire Moohan and Pat Alston from Blacklion Golf Club were the winners of the visiting ladies, and Claire, in her thanks to Finola, remarked that she was maybe at a slight advantage having played at Castle Hume as a member for many years.

The Visiting Friend's prize went to Patricia Tierney, while the nine hole prize was collected by Colette McCauley. Both these ladies have been off the fairways for a while and Finola was delighted to 'welcome' them back and present them with prizes. This year it was lovely to see a Juvenile Girl collecting a prize, and there was great applause for Laura Wheeler as she was presented with her Animal head cover and golf glove. Her Mum, Dad and sister were there to congratulate her.

Front and back nines of the day went to Doreen Frazer and Mary McGonigle, while Mary Fee was delighted to be announced as the winner of the Committee prize. Category One winners were Kathleen Moran and Jenny Boyd, with Roisin Parke and Florrie Dundas thrilled to be lifting Category Two prizes. In Category Three it was another returnee to the fairways, Daphne Gibson, who collected first place, pushing Roisin Henry into second by one point.

Surprise, surprise, Gross prize went to Ann Monteith but only thanks to her three birdies, and, had she not dinged the final hole, she may have been in with a chance for the two main prizes!

Runner up on the day was the very steady Julie Blair with 32 points. A poor front nine meant that she reached the turn with only 14 points but a par on the 10th hole gave her a boost, and she came round the back nine with 18 points. Considering the awful conditions Julie said she was pleased enough with her score, although she was undoubtedly thinking back to 'those missed putts' on discovering that she was only one point away from winning the first prize.

Everybody waited in anticipation for Ann to announce the winner, and there was much deliberation at the 'Jury's bench'! Finola, along with everyone in the clubhouse, was genuinely delighted to hear that it was the very popular Maura Newman who had won Lady Captain's Prize for 2009. It was Maura's run of pars at the end of her round that bumped up her score and gave her a total of 33 points, enough to claim top spot. Maura was chuffed to bits to be presented with her treasure chest, and was the envy of all when she opened it up to discover a beautiful wallet and a gift voucher for The Glasson Golf and Country Club. It was amazing how many 'new friends' she made in a very short time - all wanting to go with her on her weekend away! In her speech, Maura thanked Finola for her wonderful prize (her first ever Lady Captain's Prize), and for being such a fantastic Lady Captain. She thanked everybody who had been involved in making the day so successful, and wished Finola all the very best for the remainder of her year as Castle Hume's Lady Captain.

The packed clubhouse enjoyed the remainder of the evening, with great music and dancing. Finola was in her element, with her family around her, and it was the early hours of Sunday morning before the clubhouse emptied. A wonderful end to a most enjoyable Lady Captain's Day.

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 06 Aug 09

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