Welcome to my final Captains Corner.
The weather has been fantastic, and the course continues to be in peak condition. My sincere thanks go to all the greenkeeping and maintenance staff for their hard work keeping the course at the highest standards. As always, the service provided by everyone at the club is greatly appreciated.
It has been an action-packed period with several high-stake matches played across all our competitions.
Costa del Sol Seniors League
We played our latest fixtures against La Duquesa, securing memorable victories both home and away.
First up at home where Mark Sheldon made his debut for the Marbella team. It was a fantastic day, with the team delivering a convincing 6–3 victory, followed by drinks and a delicious meal in the restaurant. A special well done to Stephen Gilks and Roger Williams for taking the maximum 3 points.
A few days later, we made the journey to La Duquesa and dug deep to secure a tight 5–4 win. This victory was heavily anchored by Stephen Cullen and Marwan Tarazi, who secured their maximum 3 points, a brilliant achievement away from home.
Thank you to everyone who played across these 2 fixtures, Stephen Cullen, Marwan Tarazi, Stephen Gilks, Roger Williams, Mark Sheldon, and myself. With only four games remaining in the season, competition for places in the squad has never been stronger. We look forward to our next fixture against El Candado at the end of October.
I am delighted that Higueron Marbella Golf Resort will be hosting the year end Gran Final for the Seniors League. This will be held on 1st December and is a doubles better ball competition followed by lunch, presentation of prizes and finally the crowning of the new league champions.
Matchplay Knockout Competitions
The hugely popular Singles and Doubles Matchplay competitions are reaching their final stages.
In the Singles Matchplay both semi-finals are now complete. In one of the most eagerly awaited games in recent times, I managed to overcome the highly fancied Andrew Farrant. Andrew suffered a slow start and, despite producing some tremendous golf later on he was unable to make up the deficit. The match was finally settled on the 17th green, and I was delighted to seal the win. In the second semi-final, John Collins delivered a surprisingly dominant performance in overcoming this year’s President’s Cup winner Roger Williams 6 & 5 and continues his incredible run in this competition. He will now play myself in the high-stakes Final with the date TBC.
In the Doubles Matchplay we have had some equally thrilling action with Joe Horvath and Sue Keenan using all their skills to edge past Brian St. John and Tony Humphries which set up a mouth-watering semi-final against Lee Twyman and Jimmy Robertson. This tie was played in great spirit but Joe and Sues run came to an end after a close-fought battle on the 17th against the highly fancied Lee and Jimmy, who now progress to the final. On the other side of the draw, John Collins and Alan Richardson secured a big win over ex-President Ray Norris and Matt Farrell, setting up an exciting semi-final against Roger Kemp and Chrissie Wills.
Club Championship
The main event of the year was played over two days on September 14th and 16th. The overall Champion and the pre-tournament favorite and former winner Lee Twyman fully deserved to be crowned Club Champion once again after two outstanding rounds of golf.
In the Handicap category Alan Richardson persevered through a strong field to claim the prize, playing admirably consistent golf over both rounds. Congratulations to both champions.
My time as Club Captain over the past two years has flown by, and it has been an absolute honour and privilege.
I will be officially standing down at the AGM on October 14th. I am delighted to hand over the reins to Joe McKelvey. Joe has been a marvelous Vice Captain and a huge support to me, and I wish him every success in his new role.
My sincere thanks go to Stephen Cullen (Club President) for his guidance and support throughout my tenure.
Christina Fernandez (Ladies Interclub Captain), who is also stepping down, has done a fantastic job leading the Ladies team to great success across some of the finest courses on the Costa del Sol.
Thanks also to Monty, Satu, Francesc, Toñi, Rocio, and the entire team at Higuerón Marbella Golf Resort for their help and hospitality over the last two years.
Thanks to all the members for your support, sportsmanship, and friendship. I look forward to seeing you all around the club and out on the course.
Jan Zadruzynski
Club Captain
