Pinheiros Altos Members - News

Issue 141 - JAN16

Tue, 19 Jan 2016 17:11:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

December 2015 was a busy month with many Christmas competitions. I would like to thank Ross, Kenny and Roger for running the Turkey Flutter and the Boxing Day event, as well as running the roll ups. I would also like to thank Cristina for running the office, which allowed me to take some time off with the family over Christmas.

New Year's Day Scramble was a very special one this year with a record 160 players. The "Brian Evans New Year Scramble Trophy" was presented to the winning team; David Adamson, Andrew Adamson, Mark Adamson, Constantin Schmidt and Ali Scott with a score of -10.

The 4th Algarvian Invitational will be taking place between the 17th and 23rd January and there is already a field of 103 players confirmed. While our main event in February will be the St Valentine's Trophy, which will be played over two days; one round at Pinheiros Altos and the other round at San Lorenzo.

I am delighted that David Ford has accepted to be the candidate nominated by the committee to be the future Vice-Captain as from the next A.G.M, while Zoe Pirret will be the Lady Vice-Captain. I am sure that both of them will be a great credit to the Golf Committee and I look forward to being able to work with them in developing the golf club over the next few years.

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Ladies Section

Cathy Harper

Firstly a Happy New Year to all. It was good to see so many ladies over the Christmas period and enjoy some fun golf with you all. Our Christmas competition on December 16th was a great success with all the ladies entering into the spirit of the competition. We played in festive red or green; the red team, led by myself, won, while Linda Bentley won the prize for the best outfit.

The December medals were won by Cathy Harper in Division One and Lisa Burns in Division Two. While, the Stablefords were won by Hilary Jessup in Division One and Vera Watkins in Division Two.

The Turkey Flutter on December 20th was rained off, but the lunch was enjoyed by all; especially those who won the prizes on a card draw. It is impossible to reschedule when rains stops play in a competition so close to Christmas.

The Boxing Day American Foursomes was great fun, although too early a start for some, but New Year's Day saw 160 players turn out to "Scramble" round the course. Well done to the winners, who had a rookie in their team with Alexandra Scott playing in her first ever competition.

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Issue 148 - AUG16

Mon, 22 Aug 2016 16:07:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

July was all about the Sunshine Classic Gala Week, which was a great success. It had the best entry for over 10 years, with 45 teams and additional members taking part in the individual events. The very popular winners were Karl and Jordan Markey - congratulations to them on a fantastic win!

The Gala Week raised over €8,000 for charity! Congratulations to both Captains and especially all the hard work our Lady Captain has put in to secure such a great amount for the two nominated charities; the Lions Club Loulé and the Portuguese Salvation Army.

On the Wednesday of the Gala Week, we had our usual fancy dress shoot out and this year's theme was 'Disney'. Everyone made a real effort to come dressed-up and made the day a huge success. The theme was perfect to attract more families and children to take part in the festivities. It was great to see families back in Pinheiros Altos, and it was, without a doubt, the most family orientated shoot out we had had for many years.

On the Sunday, we had a Flag Competition and Bernie Barrett was the only player who managed to play to the 18th green, and won the practice round. Not bad considering she had not played for over a year!

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Ladies Section

Mai Markey

Summer is in full swing (pardon the pun) and the temperatures are high. As always, our July Medal was played on the first Wednesday of the month. A good field in 1st Division but only two in 2nd Division. Many thanks to Pat Murrish for allowing the Lady Captain to win her 3rd Medal Glass (Pat doesn't need any more… she already has 12)!

On the 13th, we played a team game, which was one to score on the par 5's, two on par 4 's and all on par 3's, which everyone enjoyed. Our friendly team played in Quinta da Ria on the Thursday, but alas we were beaten by the hosts. It was an early start for our team but a great day was had by all.

The following week we played the Monthly Stableford and the winner of the Casa da Quinta voucher this month was Christine Soden, with an amazing score of 41 Pts....well done Chris! On the 20th, our friendly with Vila Sol resulted in a very fair all square. They were a lovely group of ladies and we all had a great day.

As always, towards the end of July we had Gala Week. It was great fun both on and off the golf course. Everyone embraced the Disney theme. I would like to thank all the staff at P.A. for making the week such a success. Our Charity Auction raised in excess of 8,000€. A big thank you to all the members who donated their home clubs and all the successful bidders.

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Issue 142 - FEB16

Wed, 17 Feb 2016 16:31:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

The highlight of January 2016 after the New Year's Day Scramble was the fourth Algarvian Invitational Senior Tournament. Simon won the €7,000 prize money with a score of 13 under par for the four day tournament...even with Juan Quiroz shooting 65 on his closing round to tie in second place at 12 under par with Paul Wesselingh. The tournament was a great success with 105 players, 80 of which were professionals, and would not have been possible without support from the joint-sponsors John Waters and Denis O'Brian.

Prior to the Algarvian Invitational, we also organized the first Algarvian Charity Pro Am in Partnership with Quinta do Lago, San Lorenzo and Dona Filipa hotel. The winners were James Murphy's team with Eric McNichol, Blake Norton and Sam Prince as his three amateurs. They scored 34 under par for the four days, while the individual Pro score was won by Simon Brown for shooting four under par.

On a personal note I would like to thank all my staff involved in organizing the tournament and especially the Greens Staff with the help of the Greens Committee. They have made a tremendous effort to recover the golf course and presented it in a fantastic condition.

Winter Medal was won by Fiona Thomson with a score of 71, while the January Stableford was won by Melody Cotterill with a score of 40 points. Congratulations to both ladies on their win!

I wish you all a great start to the Golf Season and look forward to seeing many of our members during the Easter break!

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Ladies Section

Cathy Harper

January has flown by and the ladies competitions have been well attended for the time of year - excellent weather conditions helping to bring out the fair weather golfers. We also welcomed Amanda Stretton as a new member and she has already featured in the winning teams in both January 'fun' competitions!

Our January Medal competition was won in Division One by Zoe Pirret with a good score of 76 nett. Well done Zoe, especially as her handicap had just been reduced at the annual review. The same for Melody Cotterill whose handicap had also been cut, and she won Division Two with a nett 75. Susan Russell won the Division One Stableford with an excellent score of 39 points, while Yvonne White won Division Two with 29 points. Well done ladies.

The Algarvian Invitational Seniors took place over four days in the middle of January and I'd like to congratulate all those who took part, as well as Christophe and all the staff who worked so hard to make the event a success.

On March 9th we will be holding a charity sale of second-hand handbags, belts, scarves, shoes, and first-hand cakes! The sale will take place in the Clubhouse after the Lady Captain verses the Lady Vice, and will start at about 12.30. All the monies raised will go to the children's homes in Olhao and Alvor. I look forward to seeing as many of you there as possible.

Happy golfing to you all throughout February.

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Issue 143 - MAR16

Mon, 16 Feb 2015 15:03:00 GMT

Introduction from the Captain

by Mr Stewart Harper

This is my last report as your Captain and I am sure you will warmly welcome your new Captain, Knut Pedersen, who takes over at the AGM on 24th March.

I hope members will file any questions relating to the club, well in time for the AGM and for Christophe to prepare his replies. I can confirm that at my invitation Ruben Paula the new COO of JJW Portugal has agreed to make a statement at the AGM and to answer questions relating to the future plans for the club's development. This is, I believe, a first for JJW and I hope bodes well.

As previously reported, Ruben is highly qualified and experienced in managing both hotels and resorts. I am optimistic that real changes may be in our sight with his backing.

Members will see that the work to the new extension in the dining area has commenced and the contractors have promised to complete their work before the AGM. This reflects well on the new regime as I made it clear that in my year I wanted to see some evidence of new investment - a sentiment that I am sure
Christophe shares!

The course still needs to improve, to present itself in a better light. I can confirm the company has appointed a gardener to keep the area around the club house and access to paths in better condition. I hope we will see the improvements very quickly.

Read the Newsletter in full here...

Issue 149 - SEP16

Tue, 27 Sep 2016 14:46:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

As expected, August was very calm, and gave us time to reflect on the Sunshine Classic Members Gala Week, which was a great success. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the players who took part and made it such an enjoyable week for all, with one of the biggest entries for 10 years.

On 2th August, we had our annual Junior Open with 25 juniors taking part in a great day organized by our Pro Peter Ashdown. The event was sponsored by Mr. Malcolm Helder, and there was also assistance from past Captains and members on the day. The Champion was Alexandre Castelo - congratulations to him!

Autumn will be busier as the golf season is now underway - a particularly important event will be Pink Day on 5th October. It will be open as it was such a success last year and a great cause to support. We are hoping to raise over €5,000 to exceed last year's achievements.

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Ladies Section

Mai Markey

August is always a quiet month at Pinheiros Altos, as the temperatures go up and families come to visit. We started it with a Medal round on 3rd August - many congratulations to the winners Denise Reed and Wendy Evans! Meanwhile, our monthly Stableford was won by Melody Cotterill, who was awarded the Casa da Quinta voucher.

On the following Wednesday, I decided to add a fun team competition - Portuguese Caddy. We had teams of four with two to count and we all adjourned to the terrace for nibbles and drinks. The ladies present all raised their glass in fond memory of Paul Dixon... a fun loving man, who will be sadly missed by us all at PA. Our thoughts are with Linda and family at this time.

The highlight of August was our Away Day at Palmares on the last Wednesday of the month, which was a great success. The course is well worth a visit and scoring was high. Luncheon on the beach followed and a good day was had by all!

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Issue 150 - OCT16

Tue, 18 Oct 2016 15:35:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

Firstly, I would like to wish Rui Tomé well - he has been working with us in our catering department for over 15 years, but is no longer with the company. I would like to thank him for all his input over the years.

I would also like to take this opportunity to welcome the new manager, Renato Vairinhos, who will be starting on the 15th of October 2016, and wish him well with his new challenge.

I'd like to congratulate the Captain on winning the Hillbillies Vs Sanddancers Trophy for the Hillbillies! While our ACCA Pro-Am raised over €10,000 for a very worthy cause on the 15th of September. Thanks to everyone who participated for their support - the winners of the day were our home pro Kenny Fairbairn and former PA pro Eddie Charnock. They both achieved a score of 71… and Kenny and his team also went on to win the team event!

We hosted our President's Day and the Senior Championship on the 18th of September, which was well supported with 80 players. It was a very enjoyable day that was followed by a lunch in the clubhouse, which was largely sponsored by the President Mr. David Markey. Rosie Agnew won the President's Prize and became the new Pinheiros Altos Senior Champion 2016. Congratulations Rosie!

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Ladies Section

Mai Markey

September's fun started with the Hillbillies Vs Sanddancers ... many congratulations to Knut and his team on a great win. While our Medal on the 7th of September was won by 1st Chie Crowdey and 2nd Wendy Evans ...both having a 73 nett.

We had the Matchplay Championships on the weekend of the 9th, and Sue Georges beat Hilary Jessup in the final on Sunday. We played 666 on the 14th of September; teams of four with two to score on the first six, then three on the next and the final six all to score. It made it challenging, but everyone enjoyed the fun day.

A wonderful score at the monthly Stableford from Barbara Fletcher made her the outright winner of the Casa Da Quinta voucher. However, September was also the month for friendlies and we had four to play! Thank you to everyone who played our home and away games.

We had our charity day on the 27th and raised over 1,000 euro. Card making followed by afternoon tea was a great success. The money raised is going directly towards school books for children in the local area. Many thanks to Amanda, her sister Alison and everyone who sponsored, baked, served and helped make the day such a success.

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Issue 151 - NOV16

Wed, 23 Nov 2016 15:15:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

I would like to thank the Club Captain, Knut Pedersen, for his kind words on the massive loss that Linda Bentley is to our Club. She was the spirit of any party we held at the Club and we will miss her dearly. Linda, wherever you are, I am sure the dance floor will be all yours.

On behalf of all the staff at Pinheiros Altos, our most sincere condolences to Alan.

October has been the busiest month we have had for many years on the golf course. On 5th October we had Pink Day, which raised the very good amount of €5,550. Thank you to all the sponsors, Shirley Griffiths for her important input and all the members who supported the event and the charity.

The Wooden Spoon has been handed to the men for the fourth year in a row. I think our Captain Knut was expecting it, as with Mai Markey as the Lady Captain and Zoe as the Lady Vice Captain, he was fighting a very competitive pair who would do anything to win!

The October Stableford was won by Steven Crowdey and the Autumn Rosebowl saw Melody Cotterill winning the trophy.

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Ladies Section

Mai Markey

As we go to press, I have lost a true friend. Linda Bentley has passed away after a short illness. She will be sadly missed by us all at Pinheiros Altos. She is now dancing with the angels in Heaven. Rest in peace Linda, hugs and kisses.

The Ryder Cup weekend at PA was a great success and having a win for Europe made the Sunday a celebration for all on the team. Many thanks to Melaura for all her work and signage throughout the course.

Our first Wednesday was Pink Day, which raised over 5,500€ for the oncology department in Faro. Well done to everyone for your support. Many thanks to the organising committee of Shirley, our Director Christophe and Mr President DM.

The Wooden Spoon was one of the highlights of my captaincy, as it gave me great pleasure to hand over the spoon to Knut. The two Knuts beat Rie and I in our match, thankfully not a dog license (they both dovetailed very well together), but we still had fun. Knut came back down to earth very quickly, as the ladies worked hard to get the right result. Everyone stayed on the terrace supporting the teams coming in and great atmosphere followed in the dining room.

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Issue 152 - DEC16

Fri, 16 Dec 2016 16:58:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

November saw the usual Foursomes Championship played over two days and congratulations go to Paul and Meg Black on becoming the new champions with a score of 150 net. Tony and Paula Hickey won the Gross. Congratulations to all participants for taking part in what is the most difficult format of golf.

Stella Jeffrey won the November Medal, while Steven Crowdey managed to beat Stella on the back nine holes in the St Andrew's Stableford, which was also our Memorial Members Day. We also hosted two Pro Tournaments as part of the Portugal Algarve Pro Tour in early December; we had 60 players playing in some very wet weather, but all were very impressed on how well the course presented even with very difficult weather conditions.

The Christmas board is now up in the clubhouse for all to sign in for the many forthcoming events. I hope to see as many of you as possible at these competitions and social activities.

On behalf of all the staff at Pinheiros Altos I would like to wish all the members and their families a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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Ladies Section

Mai Markey

The Medal was played on the 2nd of November... Zoe kindly looked after the day as I was home for a short visit and she played so well she won the Medal Glass in the 1st Division... well done! We won our mixed friendly with Benamor at home on the Saturday, while the Stableford competition was won by Kay Ford.

As a mark of respect of the passing of our esteemed member Linda Bentley, we cancelled our team event on the 23rd.

On the last Wednesday, we had a team competition called 'String' as we all needed cheering up after the passing of Linda. Everyone had fun and we celebrated Linda's life with pizza and a glass of rose. The Friday girls have bought a star in her name - thank you to Yvonne for organising it. May Linda rest in peace.

Christmas is on its way and the clubhouse is looking very Christmassy. A big thank you to Angela Roberts who kindly organised all the Poinsettia's around the club.

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Issue 153 - JAN17

Wed, 18 Jan 2017 14:41:00 GMT

Director of Golf

Monthly Report

December 2016 was a busy month in the calendar with many Christmas competitions. I would like to thank Ross, Kenny and Roger for running the Turkey Flutter, the Boxing Day and the Roll Ups... and Cristina for running the office, which allowed me to take some time off with the family over Christmas.

The Turkey Flutter was won by our new member Andy Wheeler, who had a score of 39 points, while Boxing Day was won by Kay and Rhys Ford with a score of 37 points (BB9). Ross Sutherland and Robert Moss won the Pro Prize with a great score of 38 points.

The Eclectic Competition sponsored by Florida Golf (thanks to Chris Hales) was won for the men by Tim Russell with a score of 66, and by Sally Evans for the ladies with a score of 67. The nett prize for the Eclectic for the men was won by Alberto Nicoletti with a score of 55, while Stella Jeffrey won for the ladies with a score of 57 tied with Sue Georges, but better back two holes.

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Ladies Section

Mai Markey

On the first Wednesday of December, we played a combination of the Medal and the Wainwright Trophy.

Unfortunately the rain came on the 14th, so we cancelled our Elf Christmas Challenge and adjourned to Susan Russell's home for luncheon and some bubbles. Paul Cotterill and Barbara Fletcher kindly prepared a wonderful selection of fare, followed by mince pies from Zoe and Stollen from Lisa. Cathy followed up with coffees and chocolates, kindly given by Melaura. A special thanks to Santa for coming as we all know how busy he can be at that time of year...

The Stableford and more Wainwright matches were played on the 21st December, while the winner of the Casa da Quinta voucher for this month was Molly Wainwright.

Zoe was delighted to announce her Lady Vice for 2017 - Lisa Burns, who has accepted the role and we all wish her well.

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