JUNIOR GOLF IN GULLANE 2009

There is a long tradition of junior golf in Gullane and, currently, much interest in the village and the various golf clubs in seeing this tradition being enhanced and extended to produce more fine young golfers - both girls and boys. Gullane is one of the best places in the world to play golf and the facilities we have here are fantastic. Tiger Woods + Co will be back in Gullane in 2013 for the Open - lets try to show the golfing world that we have the very best set up for junior golf when they come.

KIDS' COURSE

There is a 6 hole kids course situated in the heart of the village which is now maintained to a high standard by Gullane GC Course Manager Stuart Duff and team. It is free and accessible to play on for residents and visitors alike and gives all kids the opportunity to have a go with minimum fuss - no membership, green fees or handicap required! Adults may only play if accompanied by a child. The course is used local groups such as Gullane Primary School and local Cubs and Scouts as well as for competitions during Gullane Games Week. It is also an excellent facility for clubgolf and we hope to see continued good use of it over the years to come. This summer it will be used for some clubgolf events for kids from different parts of East Lothian as well as, hopefully, some more fun competitions for younger local kids. ( Volunteers welcome - e-mail ir.mclean@yahoo.co.uk !! )

There will be a Girls in Golf Fun Competition on 26th July 2009 and an Open Fun Competition for boys and girls on Sunday 30th August 2009 - both run by Kate Green of East Lothian Council ( see below )

A card of the course is now available from clubgolf coaches.

GOLF IN GULLANE PRIMARY SCHOOL

The Primary School supports golf for kids and it is part of the curriculum for P5 kids through the clubgolf scheme which has been enthusiastically backed by both the school and Gullane GC / Gullane Ladies GC.

Long before the Scottish Executive decided that introducing golf to primary school kids was a good idea in preparation for the 2014 Ryder Cup bid, Gullane Primary School has been running two annual competitions for its pupils. The Honor Bright Trophy is an annual matchplay event introduced in 1922 by the then retiring headmaster and The Babe Zaharias Trophy is a strokeplay event which started in 1964 with the trophy being donated by George Zaharias after the death of his wife Mildred "Babe" Zaharias who was arguably the greatest female athlete of all time, being a double Olympic gold medalist and a professional baseball and basketball player. She was one of the founders of the LPGA and the first woman ever to play in a professional male golf tournament - long before Annika Sorenstam and Michelle Wie! In 1947 she played and won the British Ladies Amateur Championship in Gullane and was so taken by the village that she returned on many further occasions.

The 2009 Babe Zaharias Trophy has just been played producing , we think, the youngest ever winner ! The Honor Bright competition is
also underway.

Many well known names who now feature in Dirleton Castle GC and Gullane GC have their names on these trophies! For further details of these competitions please contact Maureen Tremmel at the school (01620 843455).

CLUBGOLF

The clubgolf coaching programme has been running in Gullane for 4 years now, enthusiastically backed by a band of 12 volunteer coaches and both Gullane GC and Gullane Ladies GC who provide support and facilities. It is introduced through the school with every child in P5 taking part in firstclubgolf with plastic clubs and then those who are interested progressing to the real thing with regular coaching from the volunteers as well as from Gullane GC pro Alasdair Good and team. Coaching take place on Sunday at 4.15 pm for those in P5 / P6 with the pros taking over for those in P7 and beyond and running sessions on Mondays and Friday afternoons. We currently have nearly 50 children in the programme aged from 9 -14 with just as many boys as girls . Various competitions and trips are also organised including events at Craigielaw South Course, North Berwick Kids Course, Dalmahoy, Gleneagles and Muirfield for the Senior's Open last summer. East Lothian Council fully supports this initiative and employs Kate Green as Junior Golf Development Manager. For further details please contact Su Bryce who is the Gullane clubgolf Convenor (subryce@tiscali.co.uk) or Kate on 01875 619071 or kgreen@eastlothian.gov.uk or Iain McLean ( ir.mclean@yahoo.co.uk). or visit the clubgolf sites detailed below

Further volunteer coaches are welcome but need to go through training and disclosure procedures. Contact Sue or Kate for details.

COACHING FROM PGA PRO ALASDAIR GOOD AND TEAM

There is an excellent team at Gullane GC led by head pro Alasdair Good with 4 enthusiastic Assistant and Trainee pros - Ian, Mark, Olly and Heather all with excellent golfing pedigrees. Full details can be found on www.gullanegolfclub.com. Alasdair has been recognised at one of the Top 50 Junior coaches in the world and his team are keen to do more coaching with kids. Individual and group sessions can be arranged for boys and girls. There is an excellent swing studio with video analysis.

Summer group sessions for kids are being organised by Mark Bruce - pop into the shop or phone 01620 843111 for further details or e-mail proshop@gullanegolfclub.com. Lessons are not restricted to members.

The shop is well stocked with a range of equipment for kids, especially US Kids Clubs which are the leading clubs specifically designed and weighted for kids.

JUNIOR PERMIT FOR NUMBER 3

All kids between 8 and 14 resident in Dirleton Parish may obtain a junior permit which allows play on No 3 (subject to certain limited time restrictions) and use of the excellent practice facilities. The cost is only £25. A great place to spend the summer evenings after school and the summer holidays!! No 3 is a fantastic course maintained to a high standard and very enjoyable to play on - an ideal place for kids to develop their skills. Please contact the office at the Visitor's Clubhouse to obtain a permit - no proposer or seconder required.

JUNIOR MEMBERSHIP OF GULLANE GC

There are 125 Junior members of Gullane Golf Club. Full details of all the facilities at can be found on www.gullanegolfclub.com. Boys can apply to join aged 8 and can become a member aged between 10 and 16. Any applicant needs to find a proposer and a seconder who are full adult members of the Club to propose him. Any member may only propose or second one junior in any two year period. The annual cost of membership is currently £94 and there are spaces just now

clubgolf is providing the pathway into Gullane Golf Club for keen new junior golfers, well versed in the traditions and etiquette of the game and now possessing all the basic skills.

The benefits of membership include coaching from the pros and extensive opportunities to play on all courses as skills develop and handicaps decrease. There is a full competitive programme involving medals, knock-out events, the Biggart Baillie LLP Order of Merit and Under 14 and Under 18 Championships. The Team play in the very competitive East Lothian Junior League and were the winners in 2007 beating off stiff competition from Craigielaw. Boys participate in a variety of Lothians and SGU events including LGA squad coaching, the Lothians Boys Championship, the Scottish Boys Championships ( Under 18, 16 and 14 ) and a host of Junior Opens around East Lothian and Edinburgh.

There are matches against the Men and the Seniors - as often as not won by the boys -as well as the Calcutta Cup in mid-August each year - which involves the juniors with a suitable relative playing stableford foursomes on No1 - a very sociable but challenging occasion!

Juniors are encouraged to use both the Members' and Visitors' Clubhouses.

The Gullane GC Junior Convenor is Gordon Swan ( gfswan@btinternet.com ) and the Assistant Convenor is Iain McLean ( ir.mclean@yahoo.co.uk )

JUNIOR MEMBERSHIP OF GULLANE LADIES GC

Girls may apply to join Gullane Ladies Golf Club from age 10. There are currently 30 girl members - a number which has increased as a result of the clubgolf initiative. Separate competitions are held for the girls and they also participate in medals alongside the boys as well as in the annual knock-out Morrison Trophy. Girls also take part in East Lothian and SLGA competitions. Some of the girls play very competitively, playing in SLGA events and representing Scotland, while others just play for fun with friends.

For further details please contact either of the Joint Convenors , Grace Gilhooley ( gilhooleys @hotmail.com) or Nicky Black ( black.nicky@googlemail.com ).

It is hoped that girls doing clubgolf will progress into membership of GLGC - one of the very best Ladies Clubs in the UK !

Keen girls also participate in the East Lothian County Junior Girls which is organised by Lesley Nicholson - with a variety of events for serious players and those who are just starting out or playing for fun. Contact Lesley on lesleynic@live.co.uk or 0131 665 5738. Lesley is a former Scottish amateur champion, Curtis Cup player and Professional on the LPGA tour.

GULLANE JUNIOR OPENS

The Gullane Golf Club Junior Opens for both Girls and Boys take place in July each year ( 24th July 2009 ) - further details obtainable and entry forms can be downloaded from www.gullanegolfclub.com Details of other Junior Opens and heaps of further information can be found on www.eastlothianjuniorgolf.org.uk

JUNIOR MEMBERSHIP OF DIRLETON CASTLE GOLF CLUB

Juniors who are members of Gullane GC and who live in Dirleton Parish may apply to join Dirleton Castle Golf Club and are able to participate in the Castle competitions. Contact John Taylor, Secretary, Dirleton Castle Golf Club for further information (taylor.pines@hotmail.com)

NORTH BERWICK CHILDREN'S GOLF COURSE COMPETITIONS

These very successful competitions for under 14s take place every year at the Kids' Course in North Berwick which is to be found adjacent to the Marine Hotel. Kids can play on this course for an annual fee of £10 / £20 depending on age - contact the pro shop at North Berwick. It really is an excellent course for kids and is a good next step from the Gullane Kids' Course with small greens, real rough, bunkers, out of bounds and, typically for North Berwick, walls coming into play! Many North Berwick and Gullane kids have honed their skills here before taking on the bigger courses. Catriona Matthew, now one of the best women golfers in the world played in these competitions and Nick Dougherty who is challenging for a Ryder Cup place this year traveled up from Liverpool to compete. The course is no Mickey Mouse challenge though - the best kids can shoot under par scores and would happily take on even the best local adults - be warned! All kids ( boys and girls ) are welcomed although those under 8 are not usually allowed into the knock-out competitions.

The competitions in 2009 are:-

Saturday 12 July - July Cup ( Stroke Play )
Friday 17 July - Balfour-Melville ( Knock-Out )
Saturday 1 August - Cree Medal ( Stroke Play )
Saturday 8 August Esmond Cup ( Knock-Out )
Saturday 15 August Malcolm Cup ( Strokeplay / Knock-Out )

For further details / entry form please contact Iain McLean ( ir.mclean@yahoo.co.uk)

PEEL CUP

This is a long running Under 16 Junior Competition for local boys and girls run by Dirleton Castle Ladies GC which takes place each year on No 3 at the start of August. The date for 2009 is Tues 4th August. Younger kids play 8 holes and the older ones 18. Watch for an entry list in the Starters Hut on No 2 / No 3.

GULLANE GAMES WEEK

There will be junior competitions on the kids course as well as the famous long driving, chipping and pitching championships for old and young alike.

WEE WONDERS

This was the brainchild of Alasdair Good who is the head pro at Gullane GC and is now a national UK competition for over 4500 kids aged 5 -12 sponsored by HSBC. There are 100 local qualifying events throughout the country followed by regional finals and a grand final at St Andrews in August. It is a flag competition with each child trying to get as far as they can round the course with a maximum allowance of 36 shots. The local qualifier was held at North Berwick Kids' Course in June and a couple of Gullane kids in different age groups qualified for the regional final in Troon at the beginning of July. One to enter again in 2010

US KIDS EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS

At the end of May 2008 the inaugural US Kids European Championships were held at Gullane, Luffness, Craigielaw and Kilspindie for kids aged between 5 and 14. Over 450 kids from no less than 34 countries, accompanied by their families, came to play. 6 kids from Gullane GC entered. Again this event was the inspiration of Alasdair Good working closely with the US Kids company from Atlanta, Georgia. They are the leading makers of kids clubs and equipment and they run a series of similar events in the United States. This was the first European event and it was a great success with some astounding golf being played by the kids despite challenging weather conditions and thick rough ! It is hoped that the event will become a fixture in Gullane and that many local kids will participate in years to come, enjoying their first tastes of international tournament golf at a young age. www.uskidsgolf.com contains all the details.