Greetings golfers,
I want to start this week with a great achievement from an up and coming young star, Michael Saunders. Michael shot an awesome 8 under par, 63, to win the Midweek Medal last Wednesday and equal the course record! He followed it up with a gross 66 on Saturday in the Atkin Challenge Cup, which has now got him down to a handicap of +5, a tremendous achievement and one of the lowest handicaps in the country!
Shop Initiatives
Throughout the past 6 months myself, Mike and Jerry have ventured a little into the unknown. We have brought in some new initiatives here at Rochester & Cobham and, to be completely honest, we had no idea how they would fair. We have tried to implement new ideas to help improve your golf games, your equipment, and ultimately your scores. From grip upgrades, to shoe re-spikes, MOT’s and various coaching packages, we have seen tremendous results from a number of golfers… none more so than over the last week.
In the Atkin Challenge Cup we had winners across both divisions by players who have taken on some of these initiatives throughout the winter. Their goals, albeit slightly different in their own way, were based on either reducing their handicap this year or winning big tournaments.
In Division 1 Chris Hassell won with a nett 65. Chris had an MOT of his game back in February with Mike, and a video analysis from Warren, which gave Chris an insight into areas of his game he could improve to achieve his goal this year, which he has now done.
So congratulations Chris!
Also in Division 1 Elliott Phillips came 2nd, after purchasing the new PING Ketsch putter following a fitting with Warren using the iPING putting app only a couple of days before.
Pictured right is Elliott’s results from the iPING putting app, showing his new putting handicap of +0.4 with the Ketsch putter.
This was an improvement of almost 2 strokes from the start of the session with his old putter.
In Division 2 John Garner won with a nett 67. John only recently had a custom fitting session with Warren with his woods.
We found John a driver and 3 wood perfect for his game with the TaylorMade Jetspeed driver and SLDR 3 wood.
Pictured below left is John with his new purchases!
Also in Division 2 Paul Board (above) finished in 2nd place, with a nett 69. Back in February Paul had an MOT of his game with Warren to identify any weaknesses or changes that could be made to his swing or equipment to improve his game. From there Paul has had lessons with Warren almost every week to develop those weaker areas. And about a fortnight ago Paul purchased a brand new set of TaylorMade clubs, custom fit by Warren, to be perfectly suited for his game. Pictured above is Paul with his new bats!
We also have another success to write about for John Grace, pictured below, who has been working with Warren since January. Last weekend John won the Vets over sixty’s Knockout and the week before won the Winter Five Club knockout. Commiserations to the unlucky finalist Stuart Retour who made it to the final in both knockouts but in his own words admitted John was just too good in both finals.
Battery Trade In – Fancy £25 OFF a brand new lithium battery for your trolley? So far we have had 10 customers upgrade to a Lithium battery! Come in store to find out more.
TaylorMade fitting day!
We now only have one 30 minute slot left with the TaylorMade Custom Fitter at 1pm. Due to the popular demand we have created a further three appointments with Warren from 10-11am, 12-1pm and 1-2pm. If you would like one of these slots please contact us as soon as possible. Phone us in the shop or click here to reserve your spot.
FlightScope - LIMITED SPACE AVAILABLE!
We are now operating a reserve list for FlightScope fittings and lessons between Monday 28th April and Friday 9th May, as, due to popular demand, all appointments are fully booked. This is a great opportunity to learn so much more about your golf game so if you are interested in trying out the FlightScope please contact us as soon as possible so we can put you on our reserve list. Click here to be put on the reserve list.
All lessons with FlightScope are at no extra charge, however a custom fit with FlightScope will cost: £50 for a full fitting, or £25 for a driver, fairway wood or iron fitting. This cost will be discounted off any purchases following your fitting.
Already this week David Ferrers, pictured right, found an extra 20+ yards on average with a TaylorMade JetSpeed.
I’m sure you may find this hard to believe but check out the data, below, collected from FlightScope.
The first line of data was with his old driver, the TaylorMade R11, and the second with the new JetSpeed.
As you can see there is a huge improvement in carry and overall distance gained!
Club crested clothing for club matches
We have noticed several players not dressed in club colours when representing the club in matches. It really gives a positive edge when teams turn up here to play Rochester and Cobham and see all of our team dressed in matching team colours. It is a privelege to play for Rochester and Cobham and look the part, and we want to help as we understand the cost involved in playing for your club.
Therefore we will be offering a 5% discount on all club shirt and jumper purchases when representing the club this year. We are currently putting an order together for white club crested shirts and green club crested jumpers, so if you are representing the club this summer and need a club shirt or jumper please contact us as soon as possible to add your sizes to the order. Due to the costs involved in embroidering a crest onto a garment, manufacturers require a minimum order of at least 3 shirts, or 6 jumpers. As a result this can sometimes mean a long wait for an order if we don't already have the minimum requirement. So we strongly recommend placing your order with us as soon as possible to avoid a potentially long wait, and subsequently not having your shirt or jumper in time for a match.
Barry's Bulletin
“This Friday, weather permitting we are double verti-cutting all the greens. This is essentially scarifying of the greens, which thins out the grass on the surface and significantly speeds up the pace of the greens. We had hoped to carry out the verti-cutting last Friday however the weather was not in our favour.
You will notice the new bunkers on the 1st hole are now in play meaning all new and renovated bunkers are back in action.
We have also completed the work on the tee box steps on holes 3 and 7.”
Haines and Colegate in Scotland
This week Matt Haines and Jack Colegate head to Scotland with the EuroPro Tour, playing “The Eagle Orchid Scottish Masters” at Montrose Golf Links. To follow their progress click on the following link:
http://europro.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/europro14/schedule/index.htm
Junior coaching
Saturday 3rd May: 1-2pm - ONLY 1 SPACE LEFT AVAILABLE
Saturday 17th May: 1-2pm
Saturday 31st May: 1-2pm
Saturday 7th June: 1-2pm
Saturday 14th June: 1-2pm
Saturday 21st June: 1-2pm
Saturday 28th June: 1-2pm
All sessions will cost £10 per person. For safety reasons I can only coach a maximum of 8 juniors per session, so spaces will be allocated on a first come first serve basis. Please contact the pro shop on 01474823658 or click here to book each individual session. Golf clubs can be provided, but please contact us in advance so we can make sure all equipment is available for the day.
Pro-Am
We now have over 18 teams registered for this year's Pro-Am on Thursday 3rd July! If you wish to enter a team please print off and fill in your entry form by clicking here, or alternatively register your details with us in the pro shop. We have VIP entries and individual hole sponsorship available. Contact us in the pro shop for more details.