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reported by Matt Hadfield

Having played some of the best golf courses in Northern Ireland, the Aldergrove team arrived at China Fleet with the confidence that they could produce the goods, what the goods were at this point none of us knew. A team captained by John Dodds along side him Hadders Hadfield, Magic Danials, & Arry Renton had arrived on the Mainland to compete in the Dave Wall Golf Tournament.

Heading off to the start and the first hole on practice day in our matching attire, that John kindly ‘requisitioned’ from Thales Air Defence (Shorts of Belfast, for the older readers) we were hoping to put off the opposition, only to find that it wasn’t our dress sense but Magic’s ability to find the driving range, Doddsy’s cunning plan to hit it into the trees and Hadders legendary banana shot which was the secret weapon that we had brought over from the Province. Arry was the only member of the team to find the fairway. This had a somewhat adverse effect on our plan and things were looking a little woeful. However after the shaky start we carried on and started to appreciate the finer points of the course such as the dense woodland and the beach area around every hole. Hadders should know as he spent more time in there than the local squirrels. Finishing off the day with an excellent Meet & Greet in the bar within the complex, we were reminiscing on the day’s events, whilst continuously staring into the bottom of many an empty pint pot whilst doing so.  

The following day brought the first round of the tournament and the near 30 Degree sunshine with it, resulting in a quick visit to the Pro shop by Hadders & Magic to purchase a couple of  hats and Hadders getting himself a new driving iron, ditching the driver method. Returning to the apartment, imagine our horror to find Doddsy wriggling around on the floor trying to fit into a new pair of shorts. He eventually gave up and donated them to [a much leaner] Magic.  

Hitting off the first in our respected groups, good scores were had by all bar Hadders, who pulled in a measly 28 points, a score only achieved because of the trees that just kept getting in the way. By the end of the afternoon the scores were totted up and showed Aldergrove to be marginally in front. After a well played first day we headed for the bar [again] and after a quick change, and then later a move on down town, only to wake up the following morning having found the Swedish Chef from the Muppets had paid us a visit; a lot had to be said for Doddsy’s culinary skills after that night. 

The final day started with a few sore heads and off we all went again for more punishment on the fairways, Arry again being the consistent player scoring well, also pulling out the hat his shot of the day by getting within 6 feet from the hole awarding him nearest the pin. Magic started off not in the greatest of form on the front 9 but stormed the back 9, giving a performance anyone would be proud off. Hadders went on to amend his first days performance with a steady score throughout the round, amazingly getting longest drive on a hole where almost all players found it difficult to stay on the fairway. By the time Doddsy turned up on the 18^th he had his excuses ready, after swinging at thin air on the first was just the start of things to come for him but still hobbled in with his crooked back and a well earned 26 points. 

The final scores were then all handed in to JJ, who true to tradition, kept a tight lid on the positions until the presentation that evening. A cursory visit to the bar before dinner, and then to our delight an abundance of trophies were presented to the Aldergrove team and lads from the Province also took home the coveted Dave Wall Trophy. 

A most enjoyable and successful competition for the Aldergrove team, who would like to take this opportunity to pass on their thanks to Duncan Metcalfe and his assistants for organising the event.

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