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Beech ParkGOLF CLUB

Issue No.1 www.beechpark.ie

MA

RCH

201

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News from the Captains Ladies News Gents News General Club news Course news New members corner

BEECH PARK RATHCOOLE

NEWS FROM THE CAPTAINS

CAPTAIN KARL

LADY CAPTAIN CATRIONA

Issue 1 March 19 www.beechpark.ie

Greetings Fellow Members and a warm Beech Park welcome to all those new members who joined the Club since beginning of October last year. We would like to express my deep gratitude to those of you responsible for introducing new members to the Club and it continues to be the best source for recruitment. Please keep up the good work in this area.

Our Captain’s Drive in on Sunday 27th January 2019 was a huge success for both of us - and our thanks goes to all who made that day a special one with lots of memories to treasure. We were overwhelmed by the numbers who turned up and 155 played in the 9 Hole competition. Well done to our Junior Captain Theo who played his part on that day. Special thanks to Pauline Kearney and her husband Peter who drove us from Knocklyon to the Club in that beautiful vintage Bentley. There were plenty of heads turning on the Naas Road. We would like to thank all those who made the day such a success in particular Noreen Palmer, John Keogh, Tricia Nolan, Dave Callanan, Roberta Coakley and our Catering team.

Spring is upon us and the clock will go forward on Sunday March 31st. Thankfully we did not get the extreme adverse weather that resulted in numerous cancellations last year. We will never forget Storm Ophelia and the “Beast from the East”. Hopefully we will get a decent summer like 2018.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY Friday 12th April Nine & Dine Easter Monday 22nd April Nine & Dine Bank Holiday Monday 2nd May Nine & Dine Friday 24th May Nine & Dine Saturday 25th May Course Development Day (Date Change)

The hardworking Management Committee have met 4 times already and the new members have settled into their roles on the

different Sub Committees. I really appreciate their support and dedication. The Club is very fortunate to have such a strong team along with our staff both on the Course and in the Club House.

To conclude it promises to be a very exciting year in Beech Park and we look forward to meeting and playing with some you during the year. We wish you every success with your golf targets and urge you to support our Bar & Restaurant whenever you can.

Issue 1 March 19 www.beechpark.ie

LADIES NEWS Women into Golf

Beech Park began a new women into golf program in 2018 and it was a great success for all involved.

In total 50 women participated in the program over the summer months which included 4 on course lessons with club professional, Zak Rouiller and 4 nights out on the course with members. Of that total, 35 women have gone on to take up membership of the club for 2019 (at the women into golf rate).

Please do say hello to these new members and give them a typical Beech Park welcome.

2019 looks equally busy for the program. Within 7 days of our application going live, the program was sold out - with 40 ladies signing up to the program. We do have a waiting list in operation also.

The program begins on April 18th in Beech Park and we will be looking for volunteers to help out during the evenings that we have on course activity with members.

An email will issue to members shortly seeking your help with the program.

Thanks in advance…

The ladies section have just completed their Spring League, Well done to all who took part and congratulations to the winners. Our first major took place on March 26th. Many congratulations to Deirdre Malone who won the Shamrock Bowl with an impressive score of 39 points.

Inter Club news Our teams are busy preparing for upcoming ILGU competitions during April. The first rounds are

Intermediate vs Grange Castle Sunday April 14th in Killeen

Minor vs Westmanstown Saturday April 27th in Naas

Challenge vs Kilcock Sunday April 28th in Castlewarden. Please do support the teams and wish the best of luck to our players and managers.

Thanks to all those who helped organise our recent rules night with Patsy McCarthy from the ILGU. There was a great turn out on the night and we’ve all come away wiser!

Competition News

Rules Night

Issue 1 March 19 www.beechpark.ie

GENTS NEWS

BRS Smartphone App

There's an easy way to book your next round of golf. Just download the free BRS Golf by GolfNow app to your Android or Apple device and you'll have the tee times you want at your fingertips.

Simply head to the Google Play or Apple App Store and search for 'BRS Golf', download the app and then search for your club's name to register as a member. After that you'll be able to book tee times at home, work or on the go.

Don't delay, download the app today!

- Auto refresh function Grab tee times as soon as they become available

- Club Messages Be the first to know about competition results and club events

- Tee time calendar Add tee time bookings to your phone's calendar

You can use the app to view your bookings, see forthcoming competitions and add your friends to the Buddy List. Players in your Buddy List will automatically appear at the top of the list when you select players for your four-ball.

App users can also filter bookings by course, date, player name and by number of players (eg three ball/four ball). Members can also easily cancel bookings or change players within their booking.

Our winter championship was a great success here in Beech Park with the final 8 taking to the course on 23rd March to battle it out.

Congratulations to Thady O'Donoghue (pictured below with Captain Karl) who emerged victorious on the final day with a great score of 30 points over the 12 holes played.

Well done to all the competitions team who worked so hard over the winter months running this popular event.

Winter Championship

Over 120 golfers played in the first major of the season in di fficult condit ions. Heart iest congratulations to Eugene Barnwell who emerged victorious with a fabulous score of 42 points in tough conditions!

St. Patrick’s Day Trophy

Our Barton Cup team will take on the K-Club in the 1st round match taking place on Sunday 14th April.  Preparations are also under way for our Mixed Foursomes 1st round match against  Slade Valley which will take place on Sunday 7th April.

Best of luck to all those taking part in inter-club competitions for 2019

Team News

Issue 1 March 19 www.beechpark.ie

GENERAL CLUB NEWSPurse system coming soon

The Management Committee will shortly introduce the PURSE system for members by creating a cashless booking system. This will enable members to book tee times using the normal booking procedures where the competition fee will be deducted from their account.

Each member will be required to open a PURSE account using a debit or credit card for 50, 70 or 90 by following the instructions which will appear on the BRS system. Once your account has been set up you simply book golf in the usual way. Your account will be debited (at a time to be decided by the committee before each competition i.e. 12 hours prior to competition time) by the amount of the fee relevant to the particular competition.

If a member withdraws from the competition after this time he/she will forfeit the competition fee which is non-refundable, except in very exceptional circumstances. Refunds in exceptional circumstances will be decided by the Competition Secretary for both Ladies and Gents Section separately.

Members can top up when necessary by following the instructions on the BRS system when fully operational. Members will also be able to top-up their purse account in the Proshop if required.

We recently completed the extension of the Trolley Shed just off the 18th Green. You can leave your clubs here in a safe, waterproof and secure location for €100 a year (less than €2 a week). There are a limited number of places left so get in early

Contact the office for more details

The Club plans to issue quarterly newsletters and email updates via BRS System. These are sent to the email address which you provided.  If you are having problems receiving emails from us, please contact Ian Lynam at proshop@beechpark.ieThe newsletters provide updates on news relating to the club, including full details of results, teams and upcoming events. Members are also directed towards the club website for bookings and updates about the club.

Communications

Trolley Shed

This new system will streamline our tee time bookings and should free up times on the time sheet. It will also alleviate the need to have cash in the proshop and the security risks attached to this. The twos competition will continue to be paid by cash.

Over the next few weeks, more details will be communicated to members and posted on the notice boards. It is planned that the new system will be operational for competitions taking place from May 1st 2019.

2 Information sessions will be held in the clubhouse on Wednesday 10th April and Saturday 13th April.   More information on these sessions will be emailed  to all members in advance.

Issue 1 March 19 www.beechpark.ie

GENERAL CLUB NEWS

We are publishing our club diary online on the Beech Park website. Make sure to check back ofter to the website as any updates to competitions dates will be published there first.

Our P.G.A. Professional ‘Zak Rouiller’ has a fantastic shop stocking all the latest in Golf Apparel, equipment and accessories. Zak and his staff Sean and Ian look forward to seeing you and assisting you with anything you require. To book a fitting or lesson, you can call into the shop or call 4580522 option 1.

Bon Voyage and best wishes to our members who head away on the annual golf trip to Cadiz in the first week in May. The trip is becoming more popular each year with over 40 members attending this year. We look forward to seeing pictures of happy holidayers on the club facebook page so we can follow your journey.

Club Diary

Pro Shop

Club Trip

If you are unable to play in your booked slot, please cancel out of the slot as early as you possibly can. ‘No-Shows” are an issue in every club and are something we as a committee take very seriously in Beech Park.

Slow Play is a general issue in the game of golf. It is important to enjoy your game at a steady pace which is not rushed but to speed up play, there are little things you can do that will make a huge difference. 1. Play Ready Golf 2. Bring trolleys around to side of green where next tee box is located 3. Walk quickly between shots but take your time over them. 4. Play a Provisional if you are unsure about ball location 5. Let another playing partner who has finished out or is closer to the hole hold or take out the pin.

Please make sure to enter all relevant scores in the computer and place the card, appropriately completed, in the card box. Failure to return cards (even if they contain a NR) distorts the calculation of the standard scratch on the day and makes the administration of the handicap system more difficult. 

In Beech Park we have superb greens all year round. Let’s keep them that way. Repair the pitch marks, replace the divots and rake the bunkers . We would encourage everyone to go that “little bit extra” because Beech Park is worth it, and you and other members deserve to play it in its best condition.

Golf Etiquette - Reminders!

On Course news

UPDATES FROM THE COURSE

Buds bursting and the smell of fresh cut grass are the signs that the main golf season is upon us. The course crew have been extremely busy making the necessary preparations over the winter and early spring weeks. The tee mats will soon be gone with qualifying competitions about to start. Despite the usual winter tribulations, the course has been in excellent condition, especially the greens, and is a credit to the work of the staff.

We are starting a trial of a new style flags and pins this year to; improve flag visibility; reflect climate change (more stormy windy weather); improve playability when putting with the pin in and cost effectiveness. The new flags are 25% larger and are chequered rather than one colour for better visibility. The new pins are more flexible and shock absorbent and will cause less damage to hole edges in windy conditions.

7 new Beech trees have been planted on the right approach to the 17th green to give better definition to the hole. Next winter it is planned to plant up the left approach and tie in this area with the small forest of Scots Pine between the 17th and 13th tee box. A replacement Beech has been planted at the front entrance.

A new tree nursery has been established near the 6th tee and has been planted up with 220 young all native species including Alder, Aspen, Rowan and Scots Pine. This area will be mandatory GUR as is relief from staked trees under local rules.

The tree inventory is ongoing and will be completed later this year.

A survey was recently completed and shows that refurbishment/replacement is now overdue. Follow up action will take place in the next few weeks. This will include updating the distance information which is incorrect on 86% of the information boards on tee boxes.

There are no firm plans in place at this time other than to monitor it’s management & playability during this season. We will closely monitor the management of two specific weeds in that area which can no longer be chemically controlled since January 2019 and the impact that wi l l have on the hazard and i t ’s maintenance.

Two new stone bridges are planned for installation on the new hazard on the 17th in the coming months

Plans are under development to have a more active environmental and bio-diversity policy for our course including raising awareness amongst members and visitors. Watch out for interesting developments over the coming months. The Course Chairman would like to meet any member who is in a professional capacity or has a high level of knowledge in environmental matters including native wildlife, birds and bees etc.,

If you have time on your hands, volunteers are always welcome to help with some easy course maintenance. Contact the Course Committee or watch out for upcoming notices looking for your help.

The Course Commit tee : John Cur ran (Chairman), Bernard Jones, Brigid Dunne, Tom Gavin, Dave Callanan, Zak Rouiller, Peter Russell.

New Flags & Pins

Tree Management Plans

Tee Box Markers

Water Hazard in front of 6th Hole

New Bridges

Environment

Volunteers

Issue 1 March 19 www.beechpark.ie

NEW MEMBERS CORNER

We’re delighted to welcome all our new members to Beech Park. Here you’ll find out some helpful information that will help you settle in to Beech Park

There is a full programme of competitions at Beech Park. Weekend competitions on Saturday and Sunday and Midweek on Wednesdays (GUI 4 Man Team) and Thursday (GUI Open Single Stableford). Tuesday is ladies day with a full calendar of competitions also. Major Competition dates such as Medals are printed in the Club Diary. For weekly competitions, check the online diary on the club website.

Booking for competitions and all casual tee times is through the Club Website using BRS log in details.

Timesheets open for competitions 10 days in advance at 9.30am sharp.

Just to let you know that there is a waiting list facility on the booking site if you don’t succeed getting a slot at your preferred time for the weekend competition. 

Club Match-Plays (Club Championship , Men’s M at c h p l a y , M e n ’s Fo u r s o m e s , M i xe d Foursomes, Ladies Club Championship, Ladies Foursomes) are organised in late March/early April so keep an eye on Club noticeboards, email reminders will also be sent out.

The costs for entry into the normal weekly competitions is €6. Watch our for the purse system coming soon

Competitions

There several practise facilities open to members use in Beech Park, the putting green and chipping area near the car park, there is also a net to warm-up in before your round. There is a practise ground for iron shots between the 6th and 7th Hole, we recommend that you use the mat in this area during Winter months and to lay divot mix when you are finished so that the next player can enjoy the facilities!

Beech Park is an active participant in all the major GUI/ILGU team competitions. As a new member, there is no better way to get to know fellow members and feel part of Beech Park. Details of the teams and qualifying criteria are on the noticeboard outside the pro-shop and we encourage you to put your name down and get involved.

Beech Parks boasts an excellent Food and Drink service catered for by ‘MH Cuisine’ led by Chef Monir and Bar Manager Pamela. They offer a great selection of dishes and we encourage you to avail of this fantastic service.

The Bar opens at 12pm Monday, Tuesday, Th u r s d a y a n d Fr i d a y a n d 1 1 a m o n Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.

There is a fantastic Sunday Lunch menu which provides for 4 courses at €21.95. Booking is required.

Practice facilities

Teams

Weekly Competitions

Bar/Restaurant

Beech Park

a hidden gem that needs to be played with a fantastic amen corner…

Issue 1 March 19 www.beechpark.ie

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