I will continue with my hole-by-hole guide of how to play Heswall this week, focusing on the second hole.
Hole Two - 393/370 yards (Par 4)
A relatively short par four providing the tee shot finds the plateau fairway, anything falling short of the bunkers on either side will make the green unreachable for most. The left hand tee box requires a tee shot that hugs the left side as the land kicks the ball off towards the right semi. From the right side the marker post is an ideal line.
My advice for the second shot would be to use the slope to kick the ball forward, this approach allows you to hit up to 3 clubs less making the shot easier to be accurate with. Once on the green it is predominantly flat but the odd subtle break that there is is towards the river. The most common 'miss' on this hole is right of the green, leaving a very difficult shot to a now narrow green, when hitting this chip, take your medicine and make sure your next shot is a putt!
The contractors have now finished all drainage works with the 2nd hole remaining closed leaving plenty of time for it to recover for the spring. The temporary par three will remain in play and with the 3rd hole now open we have 18 greens in play again.
On Saturday, 31 January, we are having a launch day for the eagerly anticipated Nike Vapour range of woods and irons. You can either book yourself an appointment on TrackMan for a custom fit or just come down to the range to try them. You won't be disappointed.
We are running a FootJoy promotion at present. Come and try on a pair of 2015 Contour shoes, pick up a scratch card and have a chance to win some FootJoy apparel, waterproofs or even the shoes themselves. All participants will be entered into the draw to play for team FootJoy in the Pro-Am of the PGA BMW championship at Wentworth later on in the year.
Ever really needed a lesson but can't find the time? I am now using a new app which allows me to review your swing online. Send me a video via email, I can import it into teaching software, review it and send it right back to you. Here's the best bit, is HALF the price of a regular 30 minute lesson, just £10 for members!
Thursday was the first Seniors' Stableford of the year and despite freezing conditions we had some hardy participants. The winner with a score of 36 points was Martin Higby, pushing Rick Austin's 36 points into second on a card playoff.
Saturday's Winter Leagues went ahead and some good scores were posted on what was a very frozen playing surface. In the Blair Salver, Mark Dewhurst and Brian Edwards were first and second, respectively, with 38 points. In third with 36 points was Peter Rogers. In the Kenrick Cup, John Reid brought home an impressive 39 points with Jamie Powell swapping a low score of 30 for a 38 to come in second and Shaun Holgate having the best of the 36's for third. Past Captain Chris Kenrick would be proud of the commitment shown over the winter as people battle to win his trophy.
Ladies' Day on Tuesday was another cold one for the 12 hole singles Stableford but we had a full field nevertheless. In Division One Clare Palmer was the winner with 24 points, two ahead of Kath Milligan in second and three ahead of Ros Osborne in third. Division Two was won with the same score of 24 by Wendy Smith, runner-up was Chris Lloyd on 23 and in third was Sheila Scott a shot further back. The only sub-par rounds of the day were in Division Three with Anne Maria Kitchen's 26 winning from Marg Nicholas' 25, third on 24 was Hazel Ridge. There was a welcome return to the winners' circle for Theresa O'Neill in Div Four with her 24 points on a countback from Jaqueline Walker in second with Helen Billington one back in third. Well done, ladies.