Le Touquet Pro-Am 

Last week myself and Tom were away with the Essex PGA on their annual Overseas Pro-Am, where we played 3 rounds at Le Touquet La Mer, Hardelot Les Pines and Belle Dune GC. I have been on this trip for many years now and still really enjoy the courses, all be it in some testing conditions at times! This year was no different, with winds averaging around 15-20mph and some driving rain for good measure on Day 1 at Le Touquet La Mer! 

However weather aside, the golf was pleasingly steady with myself and Tom finishing joint 3rd on a +8 total for 3 days, which considering the strength of the field and speaking for myself, I was pretty pleased with!


Farewell to Tom 

As I'm sure some of you are already aware, sadly at the end of this week we will be bidding farewell to one of my assistants, Tom Clements. Tom has worked for me for 2 years now, starting his PGA training here at Eaton GC and I know from feedback received he's been a popular person in and around the club. 

However his circumstances have changed and new pastures await him, so I'm sure you'll all join me in wishing him the best of luck for the future. I'm sure this won't be the last we see of him at the club, as no doubt he'll be back demonstrating his golfing expertise that we've all had the pleasure of witnessing!


 

Golfing Holidays 

After the feedback received from our Captain's excellent away trip to Woodhall and previous conversations with members, we've been doing some research of our own in the Pro Shop into running some away trips. 

We feel this an excellent opportunity to provide another service to you, the members and what better way to do it than to head away somewhere nice! 

We're currently in the planning stage of our first trip which will be towards the start of 2017, but we don't as of yet have the exact details pinned down. 

However...please watch this space as we will be releasing these in the next couple of weeks!!!


  

Get your game in to shape this winter 

With the golfing season coming to and end this is the perfect time to evaluate your season and put a plan in place to work on and improve key areas over the winter. 

With this in mind the Pro Shop team have come up with a Winter Coaching Package to make sure you are working on the right areas of your game. This package is to be taken between October 1 and 31 March and comprises of six 1/2 hour lessons and three 1/2 hour practice sessions in the Swing Centre using our GC2 Simulator. 

This package is available with myself, Michael or Tom and we are taking bookings now. 

Cost on the Winter Coaching Package is as follows: 

- Mark Allen - Head Professional - £150  

- Michael Skipper - PGA Qualified Teaching Professional - £120  

- Tom Clements - PGA Registered Trainee - £90  

With the light fading don't forget that you can practice in the warm and dry this winter in our Eaton Golf Club Swing Centre. Get all the benefits of the instant feedback given by our GC2 Launch Monitor with Simulator that you cannot get at the range. A 1/2 hour session costs only £15 with an hour costing £25 , remember that this can be used on the GC2 range or on one of our 11 courses. If you are really committed why not take advantage of one of our Winter Practice Packages which represent exceptional value. 

Bronze Practice package - 4 hours practice in the Swing Centre - £80  
Silver Practice Package - 8 hours practice in the Swing Centre - £140  
Gold Practice Package - 12 hours practice in the Swing Centre - £180   


 

It had been a while, but it was fantastic to see Padraig Harrington win again on the European Tour, his first Tour title for eight years at the weekend's Portugal Masters. 

He's won three Majors of course, but you could tell this one meant a lot, and his gritty up-and-down at the final hole summed up what he's all about. 

"It's a big win," said the 45-year-old. "I tried to be really aggressive. The golf course really suited me and I just tried to go after every pin I could. 

"I have a pretty good short game that was on form this week. No matter where I hit it, I felt like I could get it up and down." 

That short game helped him get to 23 under par, but it was his chip on the 18th that secured the title after his final approach had cannoned into the grandstands. 

The impressive Andy Sullivan watched on with interest - as a playoff looked on the cards - but the Irishman's chip to five feet was right out of the top drawer, and he cleaned up for the win. 

The moral of the story? Hard work and perseverance pays off! Well done Padraig. 

If you want any help with your game, don't hesitate to get in touch.