DRINK!!!

Greetings Golfers,

It is with some trepidation that I announce that the Bar will re-open on Wednesday, September, 23rd. Trepidation as every time we have tried this we have had the rug pulled from under us. Therefore I announce that the bar will re-open on Wednesday 23rd with the caveat to watch this space in light of constantly changing Government Guidelines.

It will be great to have the bar open again but there are strict guidelines that we all must follow in order to get up and running, but most importantly, to keep all of us safe. These guidelines have been devised in accordance with the national guidelines. (see below) I will circulate the guidelines to all members via email.

Layout and usage of bar area.

In order to have as minimize the chances of contamination in the bar area the following guidelines have been agreed:

· There will be no bar service, table service will only be provided, patrons are asked to show consideration to Wendy Hegarty/bar persons during this time.

· 2 metres between tables has been achieved in the bar area, therefore no time limits or bookings for patrons is necessary under the current regulations.

· Patrons using the bar area will be asked to remain in the same seat for the duration of their visit.

· Furniture must not be moved.

· Care must be exercised on the stairs when entering and leaving the bar. If this area is congested patrons should follow social distancing protocols. Do not congregate on the stairs.

· Patrons will be required to give a name and phone number per table for contact tracing purposes on their arrival into the bar area.

· Television remote controls are removed for the time being.

· Televisions are to remain switched off for the time being.

· Reading materials such as brochures, rule books and pamphlets are removed from the bar area.

· Charity boxes are removed from the bar area.

We ask all of you to respect these guidelines. They are there to ensure that we can open and stay open, but most importantly, they are to ensure that we all can stay as safe as possible. It will be nice to be able to gather socially in the clubhouse again. Many thanks to Wendy, Brian, Gerry and Eugene who have worked hard to get to where we are now. Here’s hoping!

With the re-opening both Lady Captain and I hope to present our Captain’s Prizes on Wednesday 23rd beginning at 7 p.m. Due to restrictions on numbers we can’t have more than 50 in the bar. So, unfortunately we will have to manage the numbers accordingly. Again, it won’t be prize-giving as we know it but we’ll make the best of it.

Many thanks and congratulations to all the hardy souls who ventured out to Greencastle for our Captain’s away Day. Conditions were tough but I hope that everyone enjoyed the outing. Prize winners who have not already had their prizes can collect them in the shop. Thanks must go to Greencastle Captain, Damian Harkin, and his team of staff for the friendly welcome and hospitality.

After several hiccups our club lotto has begun. Lucky dip winners for the first two weeks were Damian Griffen and “little old me!” Hopefully all will run smoothly but we need more people to sign up to the scheme. At present only 55 people have registered. The more we have, the faster the jackpot builds and the more beneficial it will be for North West. Please, if you haven’t already, sign up to the scheme and encourage others to do likewise. For anyone who is still having difficulty contact me and I will take it up with the techies. The log-in address is www.ourfundraiser.ie/org/northwestgc

September 27th sees the hosting of Majorcoo Golf Event. This is the first in what is hoped to be a series of events throughout Donegal. We were honoured to be selected to launch the event thanks to the insistence of Sean Meenan. Golfers are travelling from all over Donegal and beyond, so, hopefully they will have a great day, be suitably impressed by our links and go and spread the word. If anyone is available on the day to help out with spotting/ starting then your help would be greatly appreciated. Greens Convenor Kevin has planned a ‘divot-filling,' session at 4 p.m. on Saturday 26th in order to ensure that the course is presented at its very best. There may be a few spaces left on the time-sheet so if you haven’t signed up and wish to do so you should log on to asap… majorcoo.com/donegalopen or phone James at +44 (0)7816 826618.

Commiserations to all our members who represented the club with pride but alas, fell short of ultimate victory. It has created a great buzz about the place and given us something we can build on in the years ahead. Hopefully, some of our new members will work their way onto teams and perhaps we’ll get some young members who progress well enough through Brian’s coaching schemes and raise the bar even further. Should we consider revitalising our team uniform? All good folks! Congratulations to Lorraine McGettigan and Sheila Reid on winning the regional final of the Granard Cup. Best wishes for the final at Balbriggan Golf Club on October 9th. (I know where you can get some Imodium cheap!)

Finally, thank you to all the members who have been so co-operative and understanding of the difficulties we have been managing over the last while. Support for Competitions has been outstanding. Thank you. We still have a lot to do so there’ll be no resting on laurels. I feel I must thank and congratulate the council members who have been tirelessly beavering away behind the scenes ensuring that things run as smoothly as possible. Thank you!

And with that I’ll sign off, take my medication and wish all of us a safe and enjoyable experience at North West.