On June 19th we played our traditional match against Piltdown Golf Club and the photo of both teams appears above. We have been playing a match against Piltdown since 1974 and before that we used to hold our Spring Meeting at Piltdown. The association between the clubs therefore extends to 60 years. Ted Rose, this year’s Captain, and Gerald Woods, our Chairman, actually predate the association with Piltdown having first played for Bluemantles Cricket Club in the mid-1950s. It was good to see them at Piltdown with the Club’s President Nigel Wheeler and hopefully they can all be spotted in the photo.(Nigel is the winner for hair retention!)

This year we lost 4-1 but as ever the match was played in an excellent spirit and Piltdown proved to be excellent hosts. As was fitting, cricket seemed to be the dominant topic at lunch! The golf course has undergone a number of changes over the last few years and the heather-lined fairways make it a severe test but still a joy to play. We are very much looking forward to our 51st encounter in 2025.

Richard Musson

Upcoming Golf – (all welcome)

Wednesday 10th July 2024 – vs XL Club at Royal Ashdown (old course) – am foursomes followed by lunch for the Herbert Hunter Cup.

Thursday 5th September – Match vs Royal Ashdown – am foursomes followed by lunch.

Tuesday 8th October – Autumn Meeting at Hever GC – singles stableford 11am start – late lunch to follow.

To join any of these days, please contact Richard Musson: 07798 526033

’The Bluemantle golfers completed their 60th season with the Autumn meeting at Hever Golf Club. Nigel Herbert took the honours with an excellent score of 39 Stableford points with Jonathan Wheatley finishing runner-up with a very respectable 35 points. To the secretary’s knowledge, this is the first time the same player has won both the Spring and Autumn meetings in the same year, all the more creditable as Nigel plays off a low handicap and has a suspect knee!

In addition to the two meetings we also played matches against traditional opponents Piltdown, the XL Club and Royal Ashdown. Although not successful in two of the matches we did manage a draw against the XL Club thus preserving our unbeaten record against them going back to 2000. Matches against the XL Club have been played every year since 1963 so they are our oldest opponents.

In between all the above we managed to fit in a Summer meeting playing the Princes course again at Hever. This was a foursomes competition for the Hosford Tankards and was won by Peter Morris and the secretary.

Currently our numbers are around 25 so there is plenty of room to accommodate some more Bluemantle cricketers either still playing or retired. In addition to having two of our founding members, Gerald Woods and Ted Rose, still playing we have a good spread of players of all ages. Jamie Bebb has been our Captain in our 60th year and his enthusiasm has really ensured that all the meetings and matches have been well-supported and, more importantly, great fun.

The Golf Section is open to all members of the Bluemantle’s so if you are tempted to join us please contact Richard Musson on 07798 526033.