El CORTE INGLÉS GOLF TOURNAMENT: 18/05/08
The prestigious Golf Circuit sponsored by El Corte Inglés selected the Indiana Course to host one of its local phase tournaments. The Circuito de Golf El Corte Inglés is a very well known tournament played in many courses in Spain, and the winner of the mens’ and ladies’ categories will compete as a team representing Desert Springs on 31st May 2008 in Antequera Golf, in Málaga. A total of 60 players competed to win the chance of representing Desert Springs on the next stage of the competition, and may be to compete nationally against the best players in the National phase of the circuit, to be held at Almenara Resort, in Sotogrande.
The winner on the men’s side was Bartolomé Sáez Castro, with an astonishing round of 45 points. On the ladies side, Tracy Vincent took the win with 38 points. Both Tracy and Bartolomé will play the Area Phase and will have the chance of playing the National Phase.
The prize presentation took place at the Clubhouse and hosted by Desert Springs Assistant Director of Golf Alfonso Castiñeira.
THE SPRING CUP: 17/05/08
On a beautiful sunny day, Desert Springs hosted the Spring Cup. The Indiana Course was ready to receive all the players that wanted to challenge its layout. A total of 12 players competed this year. Susan Kenny played brilliant golf to score 40 points, followed by Leo Kenny, with 32, and Roger Andrews with 31. The prize presentation was held at The Crocodile Club hosted by Club Competitions Committee Member Phil Lockyer.
COPA DESAFÍO LOCAL: 10/05/08
On its 3rd year, the Copa Desafío Local comprised 30 players representing their golf clubs or golf societies. Lorca, Badgers and Desert Springs were the teams that tried to win the trophy this year. The team with more stableford points on their best 7 scorecards would win.
For the first time since the inaugural Copa Desafío Local, Lorca Golf Society took the win after playing great golf. The match was very close among the three teams and only 5 points of difference between the winners and Desert Springs, who came in second place. Badgers Golf Society came I third place, also 5 points behind Desert Springs.
The prize presentation was held at the clubhouse and hosted by Desert Springs Assistant Director of Golf Alfonso Castiñeira.
OPEN PAIRS TOURNAMENT 03/05/08
A total of 14 teams entered this pairs tournament and enjoyed one more time the beautiful weather here at Desert Springs. This pairs better ball stableford competition was won by Susan Kenny and Leo Kenny, who scored 37 points and took the win by 1 point to Wikkie de Graaf and Freddie Beames, with 36. Francisco Javier Martínez de Lanuza and Lorena López Castañón closed the podium with 35 points. The prize presentation was held at the Deck at El Torrente restaurant and hosted by Club Competitions Committee Member Wikkie de Graaf...
MAY DAY STABLEFORD: 01/05/08
On 1st May 2008 Desert Springs Resort and Golf Club received a field of 19 players who competed on this holiday to win the May Day Stableford.
The Indiana Course was again in immaculate conditions, fact reflected on the brilliant scores achieved by the players.
In first position, Francisco Navarro with 39 points was the overall winner, followed by Susan Kenny, with 37, and Wikkie de Graaf with 35. The prize presentation was held at the Deck at El Torrente restaurant and hosted by Club Competitions Committee Member Wikkie de Graaf.
THE CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP AND HANDICAP SALVER 19 & 20/04/08
The most important tournament of the year took place at the Indiana Course during the 19th and 20th of April, on an individual Medal Play format.
13 players challenged the tough conditions due to a strong wind, present both days of the competition, which was reflected on the scores.
On the Club Championship, Alan Patterson took the win on the men’s side with a total of 171 strokes, followed by Mike Thorpe, with 176, while on the ladies field, Helen Lavis played extraordinary golf to shoot a total of 174 shots, followed by Wikkie de Graaf, with 209.
On the Handicap Salver, both winners of the Club Championship repeated the win: Alan Patterson with a total of a 157, followed by runner up Mike Thorpe with a total of 160 strokes
On the ladies side, Helen Lavis took again the win with a total of 154 strokes, followed by Wikkie de Graaf, who shot 175.
The prize presentation was held at The Club house and hosted by Club Captain Martin Symington.
CAPTAIN’S DRIVE IN 17/04/08
The Indiana Course at the Desert Springs Golf Club today played host to the 2008 Captain’s Drive-In. Last year saw Helen Lavis reinvent the Captain’s Drive-In into a ‘Fiesta In Pink’ and incumbent Club Captain Martin Symington decided to continue the great success and introduced the ‘Flintstones’ as the predominant theme for the day!
The day started at 09:00 hrs with a champagne reception at the Cave Bar where many of the members joined in on the fun and demonstrated their support for the day, they themselves dressed as ‘Cave Men & Women’.
Both former and new Captain said a few words and thanked all the participants for supporting such an important social event in the Clubs’ Calendar.
Past Captain Helen Lavis, dressed as ‘Wilma Flintstone’, introduced and thanked David Fernández from Hipergolf for agreeing to keep the ‘Pink Buggy’ at Desert Springs to assist in the raising of funds for the Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer for another year.
Then the fun began. All members had placed their markers on the first fairway, some in the rough and some behind the 1st Tee!, where they thought Martin’s tee shot would end.
Martin, dressed as ‘Fred Flintstone’, after taking a warm-up drive that went Out of Bounds, hit a beautiful drive in front of the his fellow 64 ‘Cave Men & Women’, leaving the shot just a few inches away from Jean Sheehan’s marker, who won a magnum of champagne.
At 10:00 hrs all 16 teams were ready at their respective tee to start the competition by shotgun. All players enjoyed a fantastic golfing day, on a superb golf course in perfect conditions.
After play, and a very much-needed nap, all the participants and partners attended the Buffet Dinner and the prize presentation held at El Torrente restaurant. Director of Golf Simon Coaker introduced Helen Lavis and said a few words thanking Helen for her great efforts throughout her year of Captaincy and then Helen passed on the Captain’s Jacket to new Club Captain Martin Symington.
Respect to the golfing side, a very tight competition was resolved on count back, the same as last years’ event!
The Team of Alan Patterson, Rory McCartney. Yvonne Barrows and Alfonso Castiñeira took the win with 51 points, the same score as the team of Helen Lavis, Martin Symington, Anthony Brooks and Simon Coaker. The team formed by Freddie Beames, Niall Dowling, Wikkie de Graaf and Pat Clay came in third position with 50 points.
The fun continued long into the evening at El Torrente with musical entertainment from Mark Burns playing the guitar and much, much more!
INDIANA MASTERS 05 & 06/04/08
The Indiana course presented it’s best conditions to welcome all 24 competitors of The Indiana Masters. This tournament comprises two rounds and the player with more stableford at the end of both tournament rounds becomes the new champion. On this occasion, Hugh Mullins played great golf on his second round to score 40 points, for a total of 72, and took the win by 1 point to second Sue Wood. Brendan Sheehan came close as well with 69 points. The prize presentation was hosted at the Deck in El Torrente Restaurant, and hosted by Barry Carver.
DESERT SPRINGS COMMUNITY TROPHY 04/01/08
As usual this time of the year, Desert Springs hosted the Desert Springs Community Trophy. This tournament is open to all members and property owners and their guests.
This year, a total of 6 communities entered this event, and one more year, La Estrella took the win, successfully defending the trophy that had won in 2007. The prize presentation was held at the clubhouse hosted by Desert Springs Club Captain Helen Lavis.
EASTER CUP 23/03/08
Desert Springs hosted the Easter Cup on the 23rd of March. The Indiana Course was ready to receive the 48 players who entered the event.
Officially, this was the first competition to be played under the “play as it lies” rule. From this date, players will not be allowed to lift, clean and place the ball when lying on the hard pan.
The players faced windy conditions, which made them show their best skills to fight the course.
Anne Thorpe won the Easter Cup with 37 points, a great score under the tough conditions. Franciso Javier Quintana was second with 36 points, while Laurence Meldrum was 3rd with 34.
The prize giving was held at The Clubhouse and hosted by Club Captain Helen Lavis.
CAPTAIN PRO CHALLENGE 21/03/08
Club Captain Helen Lavis organised a Charity Event the 21st of March. She teamed up with Desert Springs Golf Professional Alfonso Castiñeira and challenged any team of 2 players who wanted to have a chance of winning Easter prizes. The lowest score would receive the Captain Pro Challenge Cup.
Helen and Alfonso posted a respectable 39 points to set up a high benchmark. Only two teams could defeat that score, and they were Ladies European Tour players Trish Johnson and Becky Brewerton, with 40 points, and Dennis Stafford, who played along Michael Wherlock, with 41 points.
The prize giving was held at the Clubhouse and was hosted by Club Captain Helen Lavis.
ST. PATRICK’S DAY BOWL 17/03/08
One of Desert Springs most typical competitions is the St. Patrick’s Day Bowl, hosted the 17th of March. The competition is followed by a Gala Dinner to celebrate such a special day.
Laurence Meldrum took the win on the Men’s side, with 37 points. Roger Andrews and Brian Chapman completed the podium, with 34 and 33 points respectively.
On the ladies side, Teressa Clements played great golf and score 36 points to win, followed by Catherine Dunphy and Judith Beeton, with 35 and 34 points respectively.
The prize giving took place at the Gala Dinner and hosted by Club Captain Helen Lavis.
THE IRISH INTERNATIONAL 15/03/08
Desert Springs hosted one more year The Irish Internacional. An event in which Ireland challenges The Rest of the World on a team event.
15 players from Ireland, and 18 players from The Rest of the World enjoyed the great conditions of the Indiana Course and competed on a very tight competition.
The best 10 stableford scores from each team were selected to calculate the final team score.
Although the individual winner was Irishman Fergus Smyth, with a great round of 42 points, Rest of the World took the win by just 2 points over Ireland!!!
The prize presentation took place at The Crocodile Club hosted by Desert Springs Club Captain Helen Lavis.
DESERT SPRINGS WALTZ 08/03/08
On Friday the 4th of January Desert Springs Resort and Golf Club hosted the Desert Springs Waltz. 6 teams composed by 3 players entered this competition.
Once again, a beautiful sunny day welcomed all the contestants, who enjoyed the superb conditions of The Indiana Course.
The winning team was composed by Philip Townsend, Mark Robinson and Steve Jones, with a total of 70 points, followed by M. Robinson, A. Corkhill and C. Smith, with 64 points. Right behind, with 62 points, Helen Lavis, Martin McLellan and Yvonne Barrows closed the podium.
The prize presentation was held at the Deck in the Clubhouse and hosted by Club Captain Helen Lavis.
THE ANDALUCIA DAY TOURNAMENT 28/02/08
Desert Springs hosted for the first time, and certainly not the last, the Andalucia Day Tournament. 40 players entered this competition, and enjoyed the beautiful conditions of The Indiana Course.
David Keymer took the win with a great score of 39 points, followed by Hugh Mullins, with 37, and Steve Willingham, who posted a 34 to finish third.
After the competition, all players enjoyed a variety of Tapas and wine at the Clubhouse, followed by the prize presentation, hosted by Desert Springs Golf Professional, Alfonso Castiñeira.
DESERT SPRINGS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 16/02/08
11 players challenged the Indiana Course at Desert Springs on a beautiful sunny day on a two day competition. The score was calculated by combining the Stableford points of both days.
On this occasion, Brian Chapman took the win with 69 points (38+31), on a 4 point advantage over Harry Bird who made a good second round to try to catch the leader, with rounds of 31 and 34 (65). Patrick Wood came in third place with scores of 30 and 31 to finish with a combined score of 61.
The prize presentation was held at the Clubhouse, and hosted by Phil Lockyer.
GOLF 4 ALL PRO AM 7-10/01/08
The II ‘GOLF 4 ALL PRO-AM’ was held on the Indiana course this week. An international field of 42 amateur players, from 10 countries competed alongside 14 of the top women professionals from the Ladies European Tour, including Desert Springs Touring Professionals and Solheim Cup players Trish Johnson and Becky Brewerton, who were joined by a host of top players including Lora Fairclough, Rebecca Hudson, Kirsty Taylor and Dani Masters.
The two day 36-hole event started with a Texas Scramble Tournament, with 4 drives from each player to count. The professional team captains were in charge of the playing strategy as well as being responsible for producing some stunning golf, Lora Fairclough excelled in both areas to lead her team to a score of 51 points, 15 under par.
With all to play for on the second day, the format changed to a best two from four-team event. After a re-draw for professionals, the home team of Desert Springs’ members, Brendan and Jean Sheehan, together with Alan Patterson and team professional Kirsty S Taylor romped home with a massive 93 points, including an amazing clutch of 9 birdies from Kirsty, to claim the championship title for 2008.
Defending champions, also members of Desert Springs, Angel and David del Cerro accompanied by Enrique Mercant and team professional Trish Johnson, put up a gallant defense of their title; a second round 78 points secured them the runners-up position.
THE EPIPHANY CHALLENGE 6/01/08
Desert Springs hosted The Epiphany Challenge on the day of the 3 Kings, such a special date in Spain. Once more, The Indiana course was in superb conditions for the competitors, who played on an individual Stableford format.
The beautiful day at Desert Springs helped the players to perform great and post some good scores!
Sue Anderson took the win with 38 points, followed by Christopher Gray, who scored 37 points. Jean Sheehan played a great round of 36 points to finish 3rd.
NEW YEARS EVE MIXED STABLEFORD 31/12 07
22 teams competed this year for the New Years Eve Mixed Stableford Competition, which was placed on a Fourball Stableford format. A few scratch players such as Kris Gray and Chris Langford participated on the last competition of this year.
In first place, with 42 points, Kris Gray and playing partner Brenda Clark-Whittle played great golf to beat by 4 points to Sir Ian Botham and Chris Langford, who donated their price to Charity. Both Chris Langford and Ian Botham have been very supportive and active with Charities. On the third place, Catherine and Brian Chapman scored 37 points.
CHRISTMAS PAIRS STABLEFORD 28/12/07
The day after Boxing Day The Indiana Course at Desert Springs challenged the 8 pairs who competed on a Fourball Stableford to win the Christmas Pairs Stableford. It was a very tight competition for the first 3 places of the podium.
Patrick and Sue Wood won the competition with 41 points, while James Hudd and Daniel Rooke took the second place with 40 points. On the third place, with 39 points, Paul Taylor and Daryl Kirby closed the podium.
The Prize presentation was held at The Deck in the Clubhouse, hosted by Desert Springs Golf Professional, Alfonso Castiñeira.
BOXING DAY PAIRS MEDAL 27/12/07
Desert Springs received one more year The Boeing Day Pairs Medal on the 27th of December. 8 teams competed to win this special event at The Indiana Course, which once more showed superb conditions to all participants.
Paul and Lynne Taylor took the win with a team score of 66 strokes (-5), and led by 2 strokes to Patrick Wood and Martin McLellan, with 68 shots. Peter and Daniel Rooke closed the podium with 69 strokes, 3 behind the winners.
THE PRESIDENT'S CUP 10/11/07
On the 10th of November, Desert Springs hosted The President’s Cup. For this event, and hoping to use this rule more often, the ball had to be played as it lied, even on the hardpan, which affected the final scores. 17 contestants competed for the trophy on a Stableford competition.
On the men’s side, Hugh Mullins won, on countback, with 33 points, same as Patrick Dunphy, who came in second place. Third, with 32 points was Roger Andrews.
On the ladies side, Rose Dudley took the win on countback with 31 points. Betty Meldrum came in second, andJean Carroll, with 29 points finished 3rd.
SPANISH SENIORS & LADIES PROFESSIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 01/11/07
On the eve before the start of the Spanish Professional Seniors and Ladies Championship, Desert Springs hosted a Pro Am, where the best Seniors and Ladies Professionals shared a beautiful sunny day with amateurs. The teams were formed by 3 amateurs and 1 professional, on a four ball, better ball competition. 26 teams entered this fun and enjoyable competition.
The team of José Maria Garcia Vaillo, Pedro Vicente Buendía & Michael John Davies, captained by professional Manuel Montes Agudo came home in first place with a very impressive score of 53 stableford points.
Two teams were equal on 52 stableford points, only one point behind the winners!
Winning on count back on the second 9 holes were the local team from Desert Springs of Hugh Mullins, Paddy Carroll & John Dudley, captained by professional Juan Rosa Flores.
Third place was taken by Juan Manuel Pérez Moreno, Martín García Pèrez & Antonio Rubio Viciana captained by professional Antonio Garrido.
All competitors enjoyed a buffet lunch in El Torrente restaurant after completion of play whereupon Town Mayor of Cuevas del Almanzora, Jesús Caicedo Bernabé was present to lead the prize presentation.
PINK WEEKEND 26-28/10/07
Desert Springs Resort and Golf Club dressed in Pink to welcome the Pink Weekend.
On the 26th of October Desert Springs hosted the Autumn Trophy. It was the opening of the Pink Weekend.
A field of 38 pink entered this competition on which everybody had to wear pink, in order to avoid a fine.
Brent Clark-Whittle took the win on countback over Patrick Craig with 39 points. Jacob Carver was third with 36 points.
On the ladies side, Sue Garrod took first place with 34 points, followed by Sue Wood and Yvonne Morrison, both with 29 points.
Prize presentation was held at the Courtyard, hosted by Helen Lavis.
On Saturday, the Pink team competition kicked off at 09.00 with a shotgun start. It was a very fun competition, and competitors played a fun pink ball competition, parallel to the main competition.
Lots of pink prizes were given in the evening at El Torrente Restaurant at the Clubhouse.
Closing the activities related to the Pink Weekend, The Pink Eye tournament took place on Sunday. It was a Stableford Competition. A great field of 44 players entered this event. After the competition, the Prize presentation took place at the BBQ, held at the Cave Bar and hosted by Club Captain Helen Lavis. The winner on the men side was John Morrison, with 38 points, followed by Freddie Beames, with 36 and Stephen Wright came in third with 32.
On the ladies side, Sue Wood took the win with an astonishing 43 points, and lowered her handicap from 30,6 to 25,9. Catherine Dunphy was second with 37 points and Helen Lavis finished third with 30 points.
DESERT CLASSIC 26/10/07
Mike Thorpe continued his excellent golfing form with a fine victory in the Desert Classic at Desert Springs this weekend. Mike´s second round score of 41 points gave him an overall score of 75 which was enough to finish 5 points ahead of his nearest rivals Pat Dunphy and Michael Costello.
The leading lady of the tournament was club captain Helen Lavis with 68 points followed by Mary Higgins in second place and Anne Thorpe in third.
There was a record turn out for the event and much fun was had by all. Joe McDaid scored his first ever hole in one at the 12th hole on Sunday. Roger Andrews won the mens´ longest drive with a monster tee shot on the 10th hole. The Indiana Course was in immaculate condition and thoroughly enjoyed by all the participants. The prize giving was held in the courtyard after play.
THE CONSTITUTION CUP 07/10/07
The day after the singles of the annual Ryder Cup match between Desert Springs and Redbourn Golf Club welcomed a field of 24 slightly weary heads to the Indiana course to compete for The Constitution Cup.
The Indiana course was in pristine condition with the weather perfect for good scoring.
The competition was played in a Medal Play format and the players did not disappoint, with some great scores being posted.
On count back, with a Gross score of 75, Nett 67, Paul Vorster piped Martin Streets to victory. Both John and Martin were waving the flag for Redbourn Golf Club gaining respect after their team’s loss in the Ryder Cup.
Great play was also shown by Helen Lavis, who shot a Gross 82, Nett 72 to claim victory of the Ladies section.
The prize giving hosted by Club Captain Helen Lavis was held at the Clubhouse.
DESERT SPRINGS V'S REDBOURN RYDER CUP 5 & 6 06/10/07
For the second year, Desert Springs hosted the Ryder Cup between the clubs of Desert Springs and Redbourn Golf Club.
Desert Springs was the defending champion of the precious trophy, and Redbourn put together a strong team of 12 players, full of low handicap players to try to beat Desert Springs on a 2 day match play competition.
On Friday 5th, the players competed on a four ball, better ball competition. The competition on Friday was very close, with a score of 3 points for each team, everything was left to be decided on the Saturday singles.
On Saturday, both teams had the opportunity to win the Ryder Cup, however, Desert Springs made use of the home course advantage and started with some early victories that decided the winner of this competition. Desert Springs achieved 6 points of the possible 9 on Saturday, for an overall score of 12 - 6 for Desert Springs.
As Keith Davies (Redbourn Team Captain) said, “The Indiana Course was in perfect conditions and the weather during the competition was really nice. It is a really enjoyable competition and we will be back next year”.
The Cup presentation to the winners was held at El Torrente Restaurant, at the Gala Dinner with all contestants, Team Captains and Director of Golf at Desert Springs, Simon Coaker.
SEPTEMBER STABLEFORD 08/09/07
On September 8th Desert Springs hosted the September Stableford on the Indiana course. It was a sunny and warm day, and the course was in perfect condition for the players.
A total of 15 players entered the tournament, prizes were given to the top 3 players on both men and ladies categories.
A very close match was held between Kenneth Lee and Paul Taylor, who finished their round with 39 points. Kenneth Lee finished first due to his great back nine.
On the ladies side, the battle was very close too. Anne Thorpe took the win with 34 points, while Wikkie De Graaf finished second just one point behind.
The prize living was held at the deck of El Torrente and hosted by Club Captain Helen Lavis.
SUMMER CHALLENGE CUP 11/08/07
Desert Springs hosted on the 8th of August the Summer Challenge Cup. A field of 36 players enjoyed the sunny day and the beautiful conditions at Desert Springs.
Some great scoring was seen on this event. 9 players scored 36 points or more. The winner of this battle was Alejandro Ramos Saavedra, with 44 points! A gross score of 66 strokes were good enough to take first place, and lowered his handicap from 3.9 to 3.1. Alvaro García-Hoz Bañares was second on countback with 41 points, same as Philip Lockyer, who came in third place.
On the ladies side, Helen Lavis took the win with 34 points. Brenda Clark Whittle was second with the same points and Elain Gray was third with 33.
Prize presentation took place at The Crocodile Club and hosted by Barry Carver.
DESERT SPRINGS MED-FORD 16/07/07
On July 16th Desert Springs hosted for the first time the Desert Springs Med-Ford tournament. Med-Ford scoring is an unusual format where the front nine holes are played on a Medal Play format, and the back nine are played as a Stableford format. The points from the back nine stableford are then deducted from the front nine medal, thus the winner is the player with the lowest score.
Young Joshua Foy surprised everyone with an astonishing score of 17 points and a great demonstration of his golfing abilities, Joshua won by 3 points from runner-up second Jim Halpenny, who had 20 points. Rory McCartney finished in 3rd place with 21 points,
The prize giving was held in the courtyard and hosted by Desert Springs committee member Phil Lockyer.
DIRECTOR'S TROPHY 02/06/07
A field of 18 players competed over 18 holes of competition golf on the Indiana course in a Stableford format on Saturday June 2nd with the aim to become the holder of The Director's Trophy.
The course greeted the players on another typically beautiful sunny day, with the course as always in superb condition. The ingredients for high scoring were there and the players didn't disappoint. The standard of play was extremely high and even the remodelling of hole 15 didn't keep the players from scoring well!
Young Jacob Carver came in first position with a superb score of 43 points. Ben Nichols played a great round amassing 40 points to finish second, while Patrick Wood, with 37 points completed the podium in 3rd position. Sue Wood was the winner of the Ladies competition with 37 points.
The prize giving was held by Competitions Committee member Barry Carver at El Torrente Restaurant after the tournament.
SPRING CUP - 19/05/07
The Spring Cup comprised a low field of only 6 entrants competing in the Stableford format competition held on Saturday 19th May.
Nonetheless, it was a beautiful sunny day at Desert Springs, the course was in perfect condition and as the old saying goes, 'you have to be in it to win it!'
Roger Butters managed his game to play a very respectable round achieving 37 points, allowing him to win the tournament by 9 points, followed by Roger Andrews in second place and Peter Eldridge in third, with 28 and 27 points respectively.
The prize giving was held at the courtyard, hosted by Desert Spring's Golf Professional Alfonso Castiñeira.
COPA DEAFIO LOCAL - 12/05/07
This event was introduced in 2006 to encourage integration between local golf clubs and societies in the area. This year 4 teams of 10 players entered, the format was stableford scoring with 7 of the 10 scores to count for each team.
Desert Springs successfully defended their title with a fine total of 228 points, congratulations to Helen Lavis, Gerard Ulijn, Roger Butters, Roger Andrews, Freddie Beames, Wikkie de Graaf, Alfonso Sanchez, Pat Casey, Jack Willaarts and Peter Oakley. Peter was the teams leading man with a score of 38 points!
Lorca Golf Society fielded an excellent team and put up a good fight to achieve second place ahead of Cortijo Grande Golf Club in third and finally Badgers Golf Society in fourth position.
Desert Springs Captain Helen Lavis hosted the prize presentation and thanked the teams for supporting the event and assured all players of a warm welcome whenever they return to the club.
OPEN PAIRS TOURNAMENT - 05/05/07
Roger Butters and Dennis Stafford romped to victory in the Open Pairs tournament with a fine tally of 40 points. Dennis, who has been taking a bit of a break from golf of late said 'the rest has done me good and I am delighted to be back playing, the course is in magnificent condition and there is no excuse not to score well'. Club captain Helen Lavis and Alfonso Sanchez tied for second place with 36 points.
The presentation was hosted at the Crocodile Club by Helen and competition secretary Barry Carver and a good time was had by all.
MAY DAY TOURNAMENT - 01/05/07
The May Day stableford tournament was held on The Indiana Course at Desert Springs on the 1st May. 36 players participated in the event, which included a high number of visitors.
Although the sun was shining, a feisty Desert Springs breeze was a big factor contributing to the difficulty to score well on the day.
The winner of the Men's section was Alfonso Sanchez of Desert Springs, with 36 points. Alfonso, who is just 15 years old is now playing with a handicap of 10, however it is reducing!
Rose Dudley played some steady golf to amass a fine score of 31 points and was delighted with her prize - a new Desert Springs Golf Bag.
The prize giving was held in the courtyard on a beautiful sunny afternoon. Club Captain, Helen Lavis commented on the good turnout for the event. 'There is a real buzz at Desert Springs; it is great to see so many visitors as well as guests and members supporting the events at the club.'
DESERT SPRINGS CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP & HANDICAP SALVER – 14 & 15/04/07
At the end of a very busy golfing week only seven men and 3 ladies lined up in an attempt to become the respective 2007 Desert Springs Club Champions. A 36 hole event played over 2 days is gruelling enough but when the course is stretched to its full tournament length and the pin positions are on tucked into the difficult corners of the greens it becomes even more of a challenge!
This was certainly highlighted during Day 1 when half of the players failed to break 100 but 2 players managed to stand out from the group: Chris Doran led the men’s event with a gross 82 whilst Club Captain, Helen Lavis, led the ladies also with a gross 82.
After Day 2 Chris Doran and Helen Lavis were still inseparable as they again recorded matching scores of 92. For Helen, a total gross score of 174 giving a net of 154 was good enough to be crowned Ladies Club Champion 2007 and Handicap Salver Winner 2007. For Chris however, it was a different story as his 174 total fell 3 strokes short of the 171 (88 + 83) recorded by Camillus Muldowney who becomes Men’s Club Champion 2007. The Men’s Handicap Salver Winner 2007 was former Club Captain, Freddie Beames, with a net total of 151.
THE CAPTAIN’S DRIVE-IN – 12/04/07
The Indiana Course at the Desert Springs Golf Club today played host to the Captain’s Drive-In, a tournament where, traditionally, the new Club Captain is ceremoniously welcomed to their new role. This year saw Helen Lavis reinvent the Captain’s Drive-In into a ‘Fiesta In Pink’!
Following her recent battle with cancer and decision to support the Asociación Española Contra El Cáncer, new Club Captain, Helen Lavis, followed in the pink theme of the cancer charity by arriving at the 1st Tee to take her first drive in front of 90 competitors in a brand new pink golf buggy. Stepping out of the buggy Helen was sporting a full length Pink Panther outfit and was accompanied by Simon Coaker, Director of Golf, also in matching Pink Panther outfit. Changing out of their panther suits before teeing off in the tournament for real, Helen and Simon were joined by LPGA Tour Professionals Trish Johnson and Becky Brewerton to complete what many considered to be the ‘Dream Team’ for the Texas Scramble event.
The ‘Dream Team’ lived up to expectations by recording a 16-under par gross score of 55 to give them an incredible 52 Stableford points score. This would have been good enough to take the title but in very sporting style Helen decided not to accept the trophy – partly due to the fact that the team consisted of 3 professional golfers!
This left 3 teams with scores of 51 points to be separated by countback in order to find the podium positions. In third place with 24 points on the back nine holes were Roger Butters, Michael Wherlock, Anne Thorpe and Mike Thorpe. In second place with 26 points on the back nine holes were Christine Langford, Angie Bell, Daphne Lewis, and Jon Jeromsone which left the winning team in the 2007 Captain’s Drive-In to be Robert Long, Mark Cretton, Simon Howard, and Rob Robinson.
The fun continued long into the evening as the Fiesta and Family Fun event in the Crocodile Club kicked into full swing with musical entertainment, clowns, bouncy castle pig roast and much more.
THE EASTER CUP – 11/04/07
The 2007 Easter Cup was very well supported by members, property owners and guests with forty-one players, 27 men and 16 ladies, taking to the Indiana Course.
The top three in the ladies section were each separated by 2 points with Pat Clay taking 3rd place on 30 stableford points, Kay Dunphy was runner-up on 32 points which left Wikkie de Graaf winner of the ladies section with a score of 34 points.
The men’s section was a lot tighter with runner-up places being decided by count-back. With a score of 36 points Christopher Rawlings was squeezed out of the top 3 spots by Pat Craig and Leo Kenny who took 3rd and 2nd place respectively. Playing off a handicap of 2.8, recording a gross score of level par 71 resulting in 38 stableford points gave John Green victory in the 2007 Easter Cup.
THE INDIANA MASTERS – 7 & 8/04/07
24 players entered this years Indiana Masters, a 36 hole tournament which is now in its seven year of existence.
The leader board after Day 1 left two players 3 points clear of 3rd placed Philip Lockyer and the rest of the field on 39 stableford points; Patrick Sweeney and Sue Wood leading the Men’s and Ladies events respectively.
Following Day 2 the same 3 players found themselves still at the top of the leader board with Philip Lockyer adding a score 33 points to his first round 36 points to secure 3rd place. Patrick Sweeney followed his 39 points score with 31 to give a total of 70 and leading male in the tournament. However, Sue Wood maintained her momentum from Day 1 to record an impressive Day 2 score of 37 points (76 points total) and ensure she captured the titles of leading lady and overall Indiana Masters 2007 Champion.
THE ST. PATRICK’S DAY BOWL – 17/03/07
The 17th March, a very important date in the Irish calendar and also the Desert Springs Tournament Calendar - ‘Paddy’s Day’.
Great support was shown for this event as 55 players entered their name in a bid to lift the impressive St. Patrick’s Day Bowl.
In the Ladies section a countback was required to separate Consuelo Lopez Lopez and Francisca Garcia Zafrilla who both had 31 Stableford points; Francisca took 3rd place with a better back nine. With 34 points Wikkie de Graaf secured 2nd place whilst Susana lead the way with an impressive 36 point total.
The Men’s section was a little closer fought with just a single point separating the top 6 players. Counting back to the last 3 holes determined that Leslie Raufer had piped Hugh Mullins I to 3rd place with 36 points. Also with 36 points but with the better back nine score, Jose Manuel Felipe Moreno was declared runner-up. This left Dennis Stafford leader of the Men’s section and overall St. Patrick’s Day Bowl champion with 37 points. This win and subsequent reduction in handicap was made even sweeter for Dennis as after only 3 years of playing golf he achieved a single-figure handicap! Congratulations Dennis.
THE IRISH INTERNATIONAL – 15/03/07
2004 Champions – The Rest of the World
2005 Champions – The Rest of the World
2006 Champions – The Rest of the World
With three defeats in three years the Irish team had a lot to prove in the 2007 playing of the Irish International. With 15 representatives for Ireland, 11 representatives for the Rest of the World and the best 10 individual Stableford scores from each team being combined to give the overall team score, Ireland had the first major advantage. Hilary O’Herlihy returned the best score of the day, 35 points, to give Ireland another advantage. Unfortunately, from there on in the ‘luck of the Irish’ ran out. Strong performances from Betty and Laurie Meldrum and Michael Wherlock saw a trio of 34 points added to the Rest of the World tally and with the remaining players all playing there part the Rest of the World managed a combined score of 297 points. Below Hilary, the Irish players struggled and could only manage to raise 269 points to hand victory, for the fourth straight year, to the Rest of the World team!
HUSBAND & WIFE CHAMPIONSHIP – 10/03/07
The 2nd mixed pairs event in as many months only for this event the pairs consisted of Husband and Wife. Seven teams entered this year’s event and the results were very tight with only 5 points separate all teams.
Third position was taken by Javier Espuela Garcia and Natividad Aroyo Tello with 33 Stableford points who were 2 points behind the runner up pair of Juan Rodriguez Diaz del Rivero and Loli Palazios Jiminez. The 2007 Husband and Wife champions with 36 Stableford points were Desert Springs members George and Marianne Manus.
VALENTINE’S DAY MIXED PAIRS – 14/02/07
The most romantic day of the year saw 6 besotted couples take to the Indiana to contest the Valentine’s Day Mixed Pairs. Playing in a betterball stableford format with each player receiving 3/4 of their handicap, Robert and Judie Barton-Hill carded a very respectable 37 points. This score held the clubhouse lead only momentarily until Christopher and Janet Doran’s score of 38 points was announced. A very shocked Chris and Janet accepted their maiden victory at the Desert Springs Golf club.
DESERT SPRINGS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP – 17 & 18/02/07
In its 4th year and with no previous winners in this years field there would be a new name of the Desert Springs Open Championship Trophy for 2007. Although only 13 players entered the 36 hole tournament the standard of play over the first day was extremely good with 10 players recording scores of 30 stableford points or better. Day 1 leader was Freddie Beames who amassed 39 points to hold a 3 point lead over Roger Butters. Scores on Day 2 where slightly less impressive but it came down to a battle between Day 1 leaders Freddie and Roger. Adding 32 points to his 36 point Day 1 score, Roger recorded a tournament total of 68 points which fell just a single point shy of Freddie’s total of 69, despite only 30 points on Day 2. Freddie was congratulated on his triumph and presented with the trophy by Cub captain Pat Craig.
GOLF4ALL PRO AM – 8 & 9/01/07
The inaugural GOLF 4 ALL PRO-AM, held on the Indiana Course saw an international field of 39 amateur players, from 10 countries, compete alongside 13 of the top women professionals from the Ladies European Tour.
The tournament began on Monday with a Texas Scramble Team event , which resulted in a 3 way tie for the lead, however, with only 7 points separating the 1st and 13th placed teams it was always going to be an exciting finish.
There were some spectacular performances from the professionals, Becky Brewerton holed her second shot on the par 4 10th hole to get to 6 under par whilst players like Danni Masters, Joanne Oliver and Lora Fairclough produced birdie barrages to help their teams’ causes.
Eventual runners-up, Martin Symington, Laura Rushby and Gines Periago Rosa were leaders in the clubhouse for quite some time before being eclipsed by the winners. The Spanish team of Enrique Mercant, David del Cerro and Angel del Cerro were crowned the Pro-Am champions after a magnificent final round. Angel and his son David are both members of Desert Springs and regular visitors to the resort. The team was captained by tour professionals Fame More and Alex Keighley, who were both very impressed by their team’s performance.
Director of Golf, Simon Coaker said of the tournament:
‘This Pro-Am is a flagship event in our Golf 4 Women program and will be one of many events with specific focus on women’s golf. It has been a pleasure to host so many of the Tour’s top players, I am sure that this will become a popular tournament for many years to come. I would like to thank everyone who supported and participated in the event.’
EPIPHANY CHALLENGE – 06/01/07
A good field of 26 players (20 men and 6 ladies) took part in this year’s Epiphany Challenge which celebrates the Spanish festival of Del día de Reyes (the day of the Kings). An individual stableford points tournament played over 18 holes of the Indiana Course.
In third place in the ladies section was Kay Dunphy with 30 points, beaten to second place by a countback by Sylvia Howard. Taking pole position for the ladies with a score of 32 points was Anne Thorpe.
The top three in the men’s section were each separated by a single point. Patrick Dunphy, with 34 points, managed to go one better than wife Kay and take second place, from Matthew Tweddell who had 33 stableford points. Leader in the men’s section and winner of the Epiphany Challenge 2007 with the best overall score of 35 points was 7-handicapper Roger Butters.
COMMUNITY CHALLENGE – 04/01/07
The first tournament of 2007 and with previous winners Desert Drive and Powderhorn being joined this year by La Estrella, the chances of a second win for one of the teams was a strong possibility. La Estrella had a slight advantage from the start by having 7 players compared to 6 players in the other two teams but with only the best 5 individual stableford scores to count towards the overall team score, this was a very small advantage.
As the scores were calculated for each team it became apparent that each would be separated by quite a large points difference. In third position with 140 points (average 28 points per player) were 2005 champions Desert Drive. With an average score of 30 points per player, the 153 points amassed by last years champions left Powderhorn in second place for 2007. That meant that La Estrella had managed to get their name on the trophy for the first time. With a total score of 174 points (35 points average) helped by Alan Patterson’s best of the day individual 42 points, La Estrella claimed the trophy as Community Challenge 2007 champions!
NEW YEAR’S EVE MIXED PAIRS STABLEFORD – 31/12/06
This popular event proved to be as popular as ever with a good turnout of 15 mixed pairs entered in the tournament, along with 5 non-mixed pairs for which a separate prize would be played for.
The highest placed non-mixed pair, with a reasonable score of 36 stableford points, was Kevin Higgins and Paul Cowgill.
As the results were collated, 4 teams appeared well clear of the rest. With 40 points Freddie Beames and Wikkie de Graaf were squeezed out of the prizes by George and Marianne Manus and Steven and Elaine Gray who both recorded 41 points and took 3rd and 2nd places respectively.
With a score of 41 stableford points, putting them well clear of the rest of the field, the 2006 champions were Patrick and Sue Wood.
CHRISTMAS PAIRS STABLEFORD – 28/12/06
Similar to the Boxing Day tournament with the only difference being that scoring was now back to the more familiar Stableford points system.
Late entrants to the tournament, Steve Morris and Peter Barry, returned a better ball score of 36 points to take 3rd position by a comfortable 7 points. However, they were 2 points shy of joining the top 2 teams in a countback to decide the champions. With 38 points, the husband and wife team of Brent and Brenda Clark-Whittle were narrowly beaten to the title by Roger Butters and Michael Wherlock.
BOXING DAY PAIRS MEDAL – 26/12/06
With just 6 pairs overcoming the excesses of Christmas Day it was decided that only the top 2 teams would receive prizes. Playing an unusual format for Desert Springs, it was thought a score around level par may be good enough to take top spot in the better ball medal tournament. Indeed, when Terry Betts and David Lay returned a score of 70 (1-under par) it was expected they would be in the prizes. However, 2 teams then returned brilliant scores of 65 (6-under par). Using a countback, Alejandro Martinez Arasso and Martin Martinez were beaten by the winning pair of Dennis Stafford and Alfonso Miguel Sanchez Garcia.
CHRISTMAS DAY 9-HOLE FUN COMPETITION – 25/12/06
Nine brave golfers rose from their beds on Christmas morning to meet at the Golf Academy at 9am for the pre-golf challenge. Namely, three shots to a target green 100 metres away with the forfeit for each missed shot being at shot of cactus liquor! A bottle of strange green liquid later and some hangovers positively topped up, the 9-hole competition could begin.
Neither the shots of liquor nor the fresh morning temperature dulled the scores of the top 3 players. Tying on 19 stableford points Richard Betts and Paul Murphy were separated by a countback leaving them in 3rd and 2nd places respectively. The winner of the nine hole event, by 2 points, was Paul Taylor with an impressive 21 points.
THE MADERA VERDE CUP - 9/12/06
After being previously postponed, the Madera Verde Cup finally took place on 9th December at the Desert Springs Resort and Golf Club. The 32 entrants were organized into teams of four to play a Texas Scramble competition over 18 Holes of the Indiana Course.
As the results were calculated, the top 3 teams were all very close but were well clear of the rest of the field. In third position with a score of 60.8 were Rosa Perez, Emilio Romeu, Ana Fernandez de Tejada and Francisco Sanchez. Taking second place Hector Llanza, Jose Luis Fortea, Pedro Zugasti (Director of APAS) and Anthony Brooks (Indiana Golf Course Superintendent) recorded a fantastic score of 58.6. However, their confidence of victory was taken away by just 0.6 of a stroke! The inaugural champions of the Madera Verde Cup, with a score of 58.2, were Pilar Perez de la Senra, Silvia Plaza, Jose Luis Cañedo and Rafael Ortiz.
THE PRESIDENT'S CUP - 11/11/06
The 46 players that competed in this years President's Cup included all 3 previous winners, namely Tony Kelly (2003), John Rosenthal (2004) and Paddy Carroll (2005) so there was everything to play for.
As the results were compiled after all players had completed their round, Angel Gomez Agun took 3rd place with a total of 38 Stableford points but it was 2 of the previous winners who held the top two places. With 39 points, John Rosenthal claimed the runner-up spot. The 2006 champion and 2nd time winner with an incredible 43 points was Anthony Kelly who, in the absence of the President Stephen Hitchins, was presented with the trophy by Club Captain, Pat Craig.
PROFESSIONAL’S CHALLENGE CUP – 29/10/06
17 groups queued up to take on the professional pairing of Simon Coaker and Colin White in the 2nd annual playing of the Professional’s Challenge Cup; a tournament where the only objective is to beat the better ball stableford score of the pro’s! In last years tournament only 3 pairings, including overall winners Graham and Judith Beeton, managed to bet Simon and Colin, who this year were determined to keep a ‘clean sheet’.
The consensus amongst most members (especially a certain Mr. Mike Thorpe!) , and the subject of one or two friendly bets, was that the pros would be very lucky to manage more than 38 points. Oh what faith….!
Playing alongside Simon and Colin in the first group, Alan Waldron and Chris Higgins witnessed some great golf shots as the pros recorded 21 points for the front 9 holes. Alan and Chris managed to scramble 21 points to match the pros but faded over the second 9 holes to finish with a total of 39 points which would eventually leave them in a tie for 4th place with Fergus Smyth and Tom Kennedy. Kirby and Sue Garrod took 3rd place with a total of 42 points.
Mike Thorpe and playing partner Laurie Meldrum were very confident as they walked into the clubhouse that their score of 43 points would be enough to take the trophy and seemed a little surprised when it emerged that the pros had managed to gain a further 22 points on the back 9 to also record a total of 43 points.
Splitting the teams on their scores over the last 6 holes, 1 team had 13 points whilst the other, victorious, team had 15 points. Winners of the 2006 Professional’s Challenge Cup and now holders of their own trophy, Simon Coaker and Colin White!
THE DESERT CLASSIC - 21+22/10/06
A strong field of 37 players ventured onto the Indiana Course on Saturday morning for the first round of this 2-day event. Although it is often said that a tournament does not start until the back nine holes on the final day, an ominous sign appeared on the leader board after the first 18 holes; defending champion, Hugh Mullins was in the lead. With a fantastic score of 43 points he led Paddy Carroll by 4 points, with John Rosenthal and George Manus a further 2 points back.
On Day 2, Paddy could only manage to card 34 points to give a tournament total of 73 points which was equalled by 'Mr Consistent' John Rosenthal with a second round score of 36 points. However, the inevitable became reality when the best score of the day was posted by the overnight leader. With a total score of 80 points (43 + 37) Hugh Mullins defended his title in style to lift the Desert Classic trophy for the second time.
AUTUMN TROPHY - 27/10/06
The beginning of the week had seen some of the heaviest rain of the year at the Resort and Friday morning dawned overcast with a little rain still falling. However, as the players made their way round the course the weather began to brighten up and so did the golf of one particular competitor.
Three players returned scores of 35 points but with a better back nine score, Mike Thorpe took 3rd place. Second place was claimed by Alastair Robertson who carded 36 points but the deserved winner was the lowest handicap golfer in the field, Kristopher Gray. Playing off a handicap of 2, Kris shot an incredible gross 64 to give him 44 Stableford points and the title of Autumn Trophy Champion 2006 by a massive 8 points!
THE CONSTITUTION CUP - 08/10/06
With many of the participants of the Desert Springs Ryder Cup being understandable tired after their victory, the field for the Constitution Cup was smaller than usual but still produced some golf results. The prize table had only trophies for the leading man and lady, so for this tournament it really was a case of 'you get nothing for coming second'.
Visiting Pedro Garcia Mora managed to beat all members in the field to claim the Men's Constitution Cup with 33 points whilst club member Lynne Taylor lifted the Ladies Constitution Cup by playing to her handicap and scoring a very good 36 points.
THE DESERT SPRINGS RYDER CUP - 6th & 7th October, 2006
Thursday 5th October saw the arrival at Desert Springs Resort of the Ryder Cup team of 12 golfers from Redbourn Golf Club and they were here on a mission: To take on, and beat, 12 members of Desert Springs Golf Club in the inaugural Desert Springs Ryder Cup! The tournament commenced on Friday 6th with 6 matches, played in a Fourball better-ball format, and concluded on Saturday 7th, with the 12 singles matches. A total of 18 points were available and a score of 9∏ points was required to secure the overall victory.
When both teams met on Thursday evening, the Redbourn team members were not holding back about their confidence that they would win the event, but, come Friday afternoon, they were shocked into temporary silence as the scoreboard showed Desert Springs had taken a comprehensive Day 1 lead by 5∏ points to ∏ point. That evening, both teams refueled in the Crocodile Club, with the low handicap team from Redbourn regaining its confidence that it could turn things around in the following day’s singles matches. This was a big ask, requiring 9 points out of a possible 12, especially when compared to Desert Springs, which required only a further 4 points to claim the trophy!
Redbourn put up a good fight on Saturday, but, thanks not least to the 3 ladies on the Desert Springs team, who did not lose a match, Redbourn could not make up the ground lost on the previous day. Wikkie de Graaf won 9 & 8, Christine Cole won 3 & 2 and Marianne Manus, coming from dormi 5 down to secure a ∏ point, pushed Desert Springs towards their final tally of 14 points.
All agreed that most matches had been very close, but there was no disguising the fact that, with a final scoreline of 14 points to 4, the home team had won the 2006 Desert Springs Ryder Cup pretty convincingly and Club Captain, Pat Craig, was more than happy to lift the trophy on behalf of Desert Springs at the Gala Dinner. Redbourn have vowed to return next year for a second attempt at the trophy, but with the team likely to consist of many of the same players, I don’t think we need to start panicking just yet…!
THE SUMMER CHALLENGE CUP – 13/08/06
The Summer Challenge Cup had been won in its first 2 years by Dennis Stafford who now had the chance to go for the ‘treble’! However, with Dennis unavailable to play this year, 2006 would see a new name on the impressive crystal trophy and with 26 entries competing, it would not be an easy task.
The event was dominated by the Spanish players and the Ladies section particularly so by the younger generation with all podium positions going to girls under 18 years old. A count-back was required to separate second and third place between sisters, Julia and Carmen Alcolea Sanchez, who both had 37 points; Julia just having the edge with a better back 9 holes. The winner of the Ladies section with an unmatchable 41 points was 10-year old Marta Martin Garcia.
In the Men’s section, a 4 way count-back saw Guillermo Julia Nuñez take 3rd position with a total of 36 points. Pablo Ereño Iribarren was clear in 2nd place with 41 points. The winner of the Men’s section and the overall champion, beating Marta by a single point, with 42 points was Kevin Higgins. Kevin saw his handicap drop from 18.0 to 15.8!
DESERT SPRINGS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP – 18 & 19/07/06
The first day of this 2-day event saw some fantastic scores of 39 and 42 stableford points accumulated over the Indiana Course. Father and son, José Arcos Usero and Alejandro Arcos Campillo both recorded 39 whilst Roger Andrews took an early lead with 42 points.
The weather conditions on day 2 remained standard for this area of Spain, hot and dry with just a light wind so it was felt that eight handicapper and over-night leader, Roger Andrews, would ‘run away’ with the tournament. A disappointed Roger could only manage 30 points to give a total of 72 for the event and was joined on this total by Sue Wood who had the best score on day 2 of 40 points. With the champion being decided on the best second round it was Sue Wood who lifted the Desert Springs Open Championship Trophy, her first trophy at the golf club.
SPRING CUP – 21/05/06
Following the previous days’ team event it was a return to individual play for the Spring Cup. With handicaps ranging from 5 to 29 and players receiving their full handicap allowance, the trophy was very much ‘up for grabs’.
Current Club Captain, Pat Craig, returned an impressive score of 36 points but was squeezed out of 3rd place by Yvonne Morrison who, also with 36 points, had a better back nine score. Two points clear of Yvonne and taking 2nd place with 38 points was Michael Neilan but a further 2 points clear of Michael, with a great total of 40 points from a handicap of 8, was the tournament winner Roger Andrews.
COPA DESAFÍO LOCAL – 20/05/06
4 teams!
14 players on each team!
18 holes over the Indiana Course!
Best 10 scores from each team to be combined to find the best local team!
The Copa Desafío Local, or Inter-Club Challenge, was designed to encourage interaction between golfers from local clubs and societies in a fun and competitive event.
As the players from Desert Springs Golf Club, Lorca Golf Society, Badgers Golf Society and Cortijo Grande Golf Club started play at the sound of the 9am shotgun the previously not so important matter of winning suddenly became more important. Team pride was now at stake!
As the players finished their rounds and returned to the comfort of the Clubhouse, the mood was definitely one of friendly rivalry with the usual tales of ‘if only....’ but nothing could change the results now. With a ’10 best’ total of 294 points, Cortijo Grande Golf Club found themselves propping up the leader board. A total of 310 points put Badgers Golf Society into 3rd place to leave the battle for the trophy between Desert Springs Golf Club and Lorca Golf Society. Although both teams had an individual with a score of 38 points, Trinidad Eduardo Fernandez Cano for Lorca and Alfonso Miguel Sanchez Garcia for Desert Springs, there was a huge difference of 31 points between the teams’ total scores.
With 319 points, Lorca Golf Society was named as runners-up, leaving Desert Springs Golf Club to lift the trophy as winners of the inaugural Copa Desafío Local with a total of 350 points.
OPEN PAIR’S TOURNAMENT – 07/05/06
Seven pairs entered the tournament, played in a betterball stableford points format with each player receiving ¾ of their handicap allowance plus the slope rating of the Indiana Course.
This format is all about working well as partners – when 1 partner has a bad hole, the other plays well! One player in particular played extremely well on the 2nd Hole, ‘Gulch’. Wikkie de Graaf recorded a hole-in-one at the Par 3 which gave, with stroke allowance, a nett zero for five stableford points. Congratulations to Wikkie!
Some good team scores were returned for this tournament, with the top 3 teams all managing scores of 37 points and more. 3rd place went to José Ramos Jerez and José Arcos Usero with a score of 37 points, beating Dennis Stafford and Alfonso Miguel Sanchez Garcia with a better ‘back nine’ score 18 points. With 40 points, Graham Jefferies and Kevin Manser stood alone in 2nd place whilst with 41 points, helped by 5 points on the 2nd hole, Wikkie de Graaf and Freddie Beames took victory by a single point.
MAY DAY STABLEFORD – 01/05/06
Bank Holiday Monday, ‘May Day’ in the UK and the ‘Fiesta del Trabejo’ (Worker’s Day) in Spain, attracted 21 players to compete in the May Day Stableford tournament held on the Indian Course. With players from Spain, England, Holland and Italy taking part, the tournament had a very international field.
As the players started to return to the clubhouse, a crowd began to form at the bar, all waiting for one particular player. News had spread quickly that John Fry had managed an ace at the 160 metre par three 12th Hole, ‘Chiquita’, and the tradition of the lucky individual buying a round of drinks was being eagerly awaited.
Unfortunately for John, his hole-in-one was not enough to lift his score into the final top three prize positions. Third place was taken by Diego Garcia Caballero with a score of 37 points, 3 points behind the tournament runner-up Alfonso Miguel Sánchez García with 40 points. The 2006 May Day Stableford was won with 41 points by David Fry who described his round as ‘one of those days where everything came together.’ Congratulations to David!
EASTER CUP – 17/04/06
Easter Monday saw a field of 48 players converge on the Indiana Course with the chance of not only trying to ‘beat the course’ but also to beat the newly crowned Men’s Club Champion, James Patterson.
Playing in the second group of the day and continuing his form from the Club Champion, James recorded a score of 38 Stableford points off his handicap of 2, to set an impressive early lead. In the group behind James, Kris Gray carded 37 points and in a repeat from the weekend finished just behind James. As Richard Betts, another 2-handicapper, added a second 37 point total to the leader board, it appeared that the low handicap players were going to dominate the tournament; more than half the players in the top 20 on the final results board held single figure handicaps.
As the last players finished their round and the results were confirmed, there was one player who had matched James’ total of 38 points, Tony Kelly. Having finished runner-up on Good Friday in the Captain’s Drive-In tournament, Tony was another player on top of his game and with a stronger back nine score today, managed to take the victory from James. With the count back for third place, Richard Betts took the final podium place from Kris Gray.
CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP & HANDICAP SALVER – 15 & 16/04/06
Often regarded as the most prestigious of all club tournaments, the 2006 Club Championship saw some of the best Desert Springs members come together this weekend hoping to prove that the cream really does rise to the top! With the handicaps of the 19 players ranging from 2 to 33, the chance of lifting either the Club Championship Trophy or the Handicap Salver was there for the taking.
James Patterson made the biggest impact on day 1 with an incredible score 69 which launched him into an overnight lead of 9 stokes in the Men’s Club Championship and with a handicap of 2 he held a 6 stroke lead in the Handicap Salver; in both cases pushing Kris Gray into 2nd place.
In the Ladies tournament, Wikkie de Graaf took the lead in the gross and nett competitions with a score of 94 to give her a cushion of 5 strokes and 4 strokes respectively over Elizabeth McCartney.
With the Indiana Course playing a little tougher on the second day Wikkie carded a 96 to add to her 94 on day 1 which gave a winning margin in the Ladies Club Championship of 8 strokes over Elizabeth. Wikkie’s handicap of 15.9 also saw her take the Handicap Salver by a margin of 6 strokes.
James Patterson fulfilled all expectations on day 2 as he fired a 2-over par score of 74 to hold off any challenge from playing partner Kris Gray to take both the Men’s Club Championship and Handicap Salver by 16 strokes and 10 strokes respectively. Defending Club Champion, Rory McCartney, couldn’t quite match the two youngsters for the title but did enough to secure 3rd place whilst George Manus took 3rd in the Men’s Handicap Salver.
CAPTAIN’S DRIVE-IN – 14/04/06
The 2005 Club Captain, Freddie Beames, officially handed over the reigns to the second Club Captain, Pat Craig, on the 1st April but today was pat’s first tournament in his new position; the Captain’s Drive-In.
An extremely supportive 53 members and guests entered the tournament and nine o’clock saw everyone on the first tee to witness the Captain’s Drive-In. It remains undecided whether it was the champagne reception or the pressure of the large crowd that saw Pat’s first swing fail to send the ball as far as the fairway! With two more attempts also failing to reach the fairway, the pressure was put onto the shoulders of young Harry Hitchins to hit the drive on behalf of the Captain. With Harry’s drive safely down the fairway the tournament officially got under way.
Things got a little better for Pat during his round but with a total of 28 stableford points it seemed very unlikely that he would win his own tournament and this proved true as nearly half the field returned scores of 30 points or more. As the final positions were determined, a count-back was needed to decide that Tony Kelly took 2nd place over Martin Symington, with both players having scores of 40 points. The clear winner of the tournament by 3 points with a total of 43 points, meaning a cut of 3.5 strokes to his 21.1 handicap was Kevin Higgins.
Following the Captain’s Drive-In dinner with presentation and raffle it was announced that over 800 Euros had been raised on the day for the Captain’s chosen charity, the Asociación de Minusválidos de Cuevas del Almanzora.
INDIANA MASTERS – 08 & 09/04/06
The Indiana Masters was the first 36-hole, 2 day, tournament on the Desert Springs 2006 Tournament Calendar and 19 players entered the combined stableford points format competition. Day 1 results were fairly consistent, with a number of players on 33, 34 and 35 points which seemed to indicate that everything was to play for on Day 2. That was until Harry Hitchins, playing in the last group, returned his scorecard with a score of 44 points. This gave him a 9 points lead going into day 2 which many seemed to think would be unassailable. At least it might have been if his handicap had not been cut from 19 to 16 at the halfway point and almost everyone else’s was increased!
As second day scores started to come in, Tony Kelly was the first to pose any sort of challenge to Harry; 36 points to add to 34 points on day 1 gave him a tournament total of 70. In the penultimate group, George Manus recorded the days best score of 40 points (to join his day 1 score of 32 points), which gave him the clubhouse lead with 72 points. Harry needed 29 points to win the tournament. As his day 2 score was added, the total was calculated at 27 points, 2 points shy of the winning number. This meant George was the 2006 Indiana Masters Champion, Harry was runner-up with Tony in 3rd place.
IRISH INTERNATIONAL TOURNAMENT – 19/03/06
This tournament was being played for the 3rd year and the Irish Team had some catching-up to do, having been defeated in both previous matches!
The morning was calm and everyone appeared to have recovered from St. Patrick’s Day 2 days earlier, surely the Indiana Course would surrender at least a few good scores today!?
With the ten best individual stableford scores from each team being combined to find the winning team, the Irish Team had the first advantage with 2 more players; 15 to the Rest of the World’s 13. As the results were entered, the Irish took another step towards taking the trophy for the first time as Tony Kelly, recent winner of the St. Patrick’s Day Bowl, produced the day’s best score of 38 points.
However, the other Irish players were not able to back-up Tony’s score and the best 10 results produced a team total of 306 points. The Rest of the World team were able to produce ten scores of 30 points and above to give a team score of 331 points and a winning margin of no less than 25 points.
Maybe it will be 4th time lucky for the Irish Team next year!
ST. PATRICK’S DAY BOWL – 17/03/06
The celebration of St. Patrick’s Day started in the traditional way at Desert Springs with the playing of the St. Patrick’s Day Bowl. As usual a strong field turned out to contest the crystal bowl, donated in 2004 by Peter O’Flannigan.
It is not uncommon for a count-back to be needed to separate 2 of the winning positions but for this tournament it would be needed to separate the top 4 players! Defending champion, Roger Andrews, Richard Dunphy, Anthony Kelly and Jim Kelly all finished with 37 points.
A drop in form on the back 9 holes with only 15 points saw Roger relegated out of the prizes. One point more, 16 points, saw Jim Kelly take 3rd place whilst Richard Dunphy took 2nd place with a back-nine score of 18 points. However, with a fantastic 19 points over the last 9-holes, Anthony Kelly was awarded the trophy as the St. Patrick’s Day Bowl champion, 2006.
GENTLEMAN’S AND LADIES GUEST DAY TOURNAMENTS 19/02/06
With only three pairings entered for the Ladies Guest Day each team were assured of a podium finish, but with the competitive nature of these ladies, winning would be all that mattered. Judith Beeton and Sandra Edwards could not quite match the other 2 pairs and finished in third place. With the remaining two 2 teams scoring 32 points each, a count back was needed to decide that Helen Lavis and Wikkie de Graaf would take 2nd place whilst the better back nine of Jean Carroll and Christine Langford gave them the win.
No count back was needed to separate the winning men’s teams but it was only a single point between 1st and 2nd place. In 3rd place, with 33 points, was the ever-consistent team of Roger Butters and Dennis Stafford who today came up 4 points shy of the second place team of Graham Beeton and Graham Jeffries. With their 1 point winning margin, a total of 38 points, the winners were Club Captain, Freddie Beames, and Martin Symington.
VALENTINES PAIRS TOURNAMENT – 14/02/06
Love was definitely ‘in the air’ as 9 pairs played their way around the Indiana Course in a pair’s betterball format to determine who would become the 2006 Valentines Champions. However, as the results came in and 5 of the 9 pairs had scores of 36 points or better the love started to fade and the glory of being the winners took over. Two pairings recorded 37 points but with the better back 9 hole it was José Arcos Usero and Francisco Rifa who took 2nd place, dropping the husband and wife team of Patrick and Jean Carroll into 3rd. The tournament winners, with a great score of 39 points were Richard Betts and David Lay.
N.B. It subsequently transpired that the tournament winning score was in fact that of John Fry and Harry Hitchins. Their score had been miscalculated on the Royal Spanish Golf Federation program, as a result of Harry’s handicap having been input as zero, which those who actually witnessed his magnificent par 4 on number 11, “Bones”, might just have concluded not altogether unjustified.
EPIPHANY CHALLENGE – 06/01/06
The Epiphany Challenge, or ‘El Desafio de la Dia de los Reyes’ to give it its true Spanish name, saw a return to individual tournament play. With a stableford format and the previous two years champions, Philip Lockyer and Brendan Breslin, in the field everything was to play for! In only the second group on the course Brendan recorded an impressive 37 points to set an early clubhouse lead. This lasted until Rafael Cardos, playing in the very next group carded 38 points. Philip, playing in the following group, could manage only 33 points so the trophy would definitely have a new name engraved on it for 2006. As more scores came into the clubhouse no-one was threatening Rafael’s score until Brian Chapman handed in his card, another 38 points which pushed Brendan into 3rd place. Count back to decide the winner showed Brian had 18 points on the back 9 holes, Rafael had 22 points.
THE COMMUNITY TROPHY – 04/01/06
Community pride was at stake today as golfers came together to represent their own communities within the Desert Springs Resort. Players would compete in an individual stableford format but the best 5 scores from each team would be combined to give a team total and decide which community has the best golfers! Four communities were represented; defending champions Desert Drive (8 players), Las Sierras (6 players), Powderhorn (8 players) and Buena Vista (6 players). Always going to struggle with only 6 players, Buena Vista played the supporting role propping up the results table with 146 points, whilst hot favourites, Desert Drive were stunned into 3rd place with 149 points. 17 points clear in 2nd place with a total of 166 points was Las Sierras whilst at the top of the tree with 173 points, including the best individual score of 41 points by Richard Wootton, Community Champions 2006 were Powderhorn.
CAPTAIN’S DAY TROPHY – 02/01/06
At 9.15am on Monday 2nd January 2006, the claxons sounding across the Indiana Course signalled the ‘shotgun’ start of the first ever Desert Springs Captain’s Day Trophy tournament. Eighty-eight players, the largest field for any club tournament, began what would turnout to be a fantastic day, not only for the golfers but more importantly for the ‘Associaciòn De Minusvalidos De Cuevas Del Almanzora’, the chosen charity of Captain Freddie Beames. With a 10 Euros donation being made from each entry, the charity fund had a healthy start before the first ball was even struck!
Amazing support for this charity event was shown by members, suppliers and local companies with each hole on the course being sponsored and a large array of prizes being provided for best scores on the day and also for ‘nearest the pin’ competitions on each of the Par 3 holes and ‘longest drive’ on the Par 4 10th Hole, ‘Eagles Back’. At the signature Par 3 hole, Nº 14 ‘Tiburon’ a special “hit the green gamble” awaited each player. Ten Euros from each player was optionally gambled on whether or not they could hit the green; a shot of 140 metres entirely over water. Those that hit the green would win 3 golf balls, those that missed would have their 10 Euros donated to the charity. With 3⁄4 of the field taking the gamble and only 16 players actually hitting the green, another sizeable sum was added to the charity fund.
As the players started to return to the clubhouse the scores were processed and the results could be announced and with prizes in two handicap categories for both Men and Ladies, everyone had a good chance of picking up a prize. As the results were given, three players were tied for the overall winner’s position with 38 stableford points; Ian Botham (Men’s Category 1), Dennis Stafford (Men’s Category 2) and Wendy Wooton (Ladies Category 2). A count back showed that 20 points over the back nine holes was good enough to beat Dennis’ 16 points and Ian’s 19 points and give Wendy the title of Captain’s Day Trophy Champion 2006
With family and friends joining the golfers in the evening, over 100 people enjoyed the Gala Dinner held in the El Torrente restaurant at the clubhouse with Guests of Honour, Juana Molero Navarro, Presidenta de la ‘Asociación de Minusválidos de Cuevas Del Almanzora’, her husband Ignacio López Barrigan and son Ignacio López Molero. At the conclusion of his ‘Captain’s Speech’, Freddie invited Juana to the front of the room for the presentation of a cheque for all monies raised during the event for the Charity. Everyone in the room seemed momentarily stunned and Juana was lost for words as the value of the cheque was revealed as 10,415.62 Euros.
Freddie remarked at the end of the event, “I could not be more thrilled at the terrific response from our members and guests. I feel honoured to have been elected the first Club Captain by such a generous group of people”.
NEW YEARS EVE MIXED PAIRS BETTER BALL STABLEFORD TOURNAMENT – 31/12/05
Maybe the thought of a little exercise before the parties of the night ahead was the reason for the large field of 27 pairs turning out to compete in the Mixed Pairs event. Whatever the reason, the talk in the clubhouse before the first pairs headed to the tee suggested no one had come to lose! Again, as scores started to come in the leader-board was looking very tight. With all scores returned, yet another count-back was needed to separate the winners. With a 41 point total and an amazing 27 points on the back 9 holes, Jessica Estrela and Richard Pons took 3rd place from Helen Lavis and Ian Botham who managed only 19 points on the back 9. Runners-up were Carole Taylor and Brian Eccles with 42 points and the winners by 2 points with a total of 44 stableford points were Philip and Shona Lockyer.
CHRISTMAS PAIRS BETTER BALL STABLEFORD TOURNAMENT – 28/12/05
The 28th December saw 14 pairs compete in the more familiar stableford format. A different format for this pair’s tournament but still very tight amongst the top teams! A count-back was needed to decide the 2nd and 3rd place pairings who both had 43 point totals. 22 points on the back 9 holes meant a 3rd place finish for Philip Townsend and Michael Robinson whilst 23 points gave Jose Arcos Usero and Jose Ramos Jerez the runners-up position. However, finishing out in front with a great score of 45 points was the young pairing of twins Kevin and Andrew Higgins.
BOXING DAY PAIRS BETTER BALL MEDAL TOURNAMENT – 26/12/05
Boxing Day brought out 12 pairs to compete in a Better Ball Medal. With handicaps ranging from 2 to 36, a low score was expected to be needed to win this event and with 6 out the 12 pairs recording scores of level par or better this turned out to be true. Third place was secured with a better ball net score of 67 by the lowest handicap pair in the field, James Patterson (2) and Alan Patterson (6). The top two positions had to be decided by count back as the pairings of Roger Butters and Dennis Stafford and Ray and Gary Charles both finished with scores of 64. With a net 30 on the back nine against a 34, Ray and Gary were declared the champions.
CHRISTMAS DAY 9-HOLE FUN TOURNAMENT – 25/12/05
A sunny Christmas morning saw 16 die-hard golfers making their way to the practice area for the target golf challenge, which was to precede the 9-hole ‘fun’ tournament. The challenge was easy; 3 shots to a green 75 yards away. Each shot that missed the green meant a ‘for-fit’ of a chupito of port. With more than a few shots suspected of being missed on purpose and with alcohol levels topped-up it was onto the course!
Although the first couple of holes were a little blurry for most players, some respectable scores were posted for the 9 holes. With 17 points Clive Darwin and Wikkie de Graaf shared 3rd place, Colin White took 2nd with 18 points but with 19 points the winner was David Henman.
Tournament Scores 2008
Please click on the links below to view in Adobe PDF format.
Top of page & Home Selector 
