Posted under Stan's Blog
Having past it the day before going to Dolgellau, looking at the local landscape and with the literature saying it was an upland course, and listening to some of my members who have played it in the past, was I in for a surprise!
The first surprise was the welcome that we got on arrival. The Honourable secretary Mr. Rhys Jones was there to greet us in the car park where we were greeted and ushered into the clubhouse to meet the Captain Mark Wood, Lady Captain, and past Captains. After the formalities, refreshments were laid on by the steward prior to, and after our game, which far exceeded our expectations, and after a brief history of the club, it was off the 1st tee.
My only words standing there on the 1st were “Oh my goodness” or words to that effect, I was looking up at a mountain, and some 200 yards carry to the crest, raising some 100 feet above the tee.
The first shot of any game can be daunting, never mind having a mountain to climb, literally. Well, as you can imagine, I didn’t reach the crest, so I watched it slowly roll back down to a patch of fairway that held it up, thankfully, otherwise I could see it coming back to me on the tee. This might I add was off the white tee, the other tees were on the crest of the hill.
Once you get up to the 2nd tee the views over the surrounding area is breathtaking overlooking the town of Bala, the lake and Berwyn Ranges.
The greens being small, and undulating fairways, makes for a very interesting round, as well as the windy conditions which you will invariably encounter.
I will say that one couldn’t get a warmer more appreciative welcome than we got here. All be it a small club of 150 members, it is one with a great big heart, and which makes me proud to have had the pleasure of meeting so many generous people. From the time we set foot in the car park the hospitality was second to none, refreshments before going out, on the 10th tee, and a hearty meal to finish, but that wasn’t the end of it.
I was presented with a club tee shirt and a giant Dragon who is called Eurig. He will be the mascot to the end of the challenge. I was also given a donation from the members of £200 as well as participating in the ongoing “penny challenge”.
The kindness here showed sincerity that will stay with me forever, to say “We’ll keep a welcome in the hillside” is the absolute truth, actions speak louder than words.