The ‘Cookie Jar Masters Friday’ not only coincided with the Bank Holiday Good Friday, but also the best day of weather Britain had seen so far this year. Our 6th event and 4th ‘Mixer’, Masters Friday event saw 44 golfers from all over the country make a pilgrimage to Blackwell Golf Club for a traditional jacket & tie club lunch, 18 holes of golf and an evening of watching trees fall down at Augusta National.
Everyone congregated outside the clubhouse to take in their first healthy dose of Vitamin D, mingle and enjoy some drinks. The course was looking sharp following a dreadful month in March which saw a truly biblical amount of rain fall. The normal anxiety about how people will mix and get on with one another quickly faded for the hosts, and seeing people come to their first Cookie Jar mixer on their own, strike up conversations and make friends remains the best part of our events. A few stalwarts (Grace Hill, Dave Allen, Sam Skelton, Cal Wing and Sam Clapham) all working the room, each yet to miss a mixer!
from left to right: Marc Breitkopf, Joanna Nicholson, Grace Hill, Richard Cresswell & Josh Marks
The ‘curtain raiser’ for the season ahead felt like the perfect time to bring people together for our first event of 2023, whilst also noting an important part of the history of Blackwell Golf Club. In 1930 during Jones’ legendary Grandslam year he visited Blackwell the day after winning the Claret Jug at Hoylake, honouring a commitment made to his opposing Walker Cup captain in 1928, friend and Blackwell member Dr William Tweddell. He would go on to build his dream golf course with the help of Dr Alister MacKeznie at Augusta, GA a few years later.
‘It’s a piece of history our club are very proud of’, said Sam during his rousing speech at lunch which also touched on some of the Blackwell traditions and the formalities for the day ahead which would see the winner of this event receive a Taylormade driver to their own custom spec.
As golfers spilled out onto the first tee, clutching onto their wine glasses from lunch, a mix of those still in jacket & tie who had the luxury of a later tee-time now eyeing up some Kummel and loitering around to watch the first few groups head out, and those who needed to get moving swiftly, kicking their shoes on whilst still wiping the Eton Mess from their mouth.
Cookie Jar Event Head of Security: Cal Wing drinking on the job with Jasper Miners (Evalu18)
After handing out some of the TM limited edition Azalea emblazoned balls, Michael Verity was the honorary starter and hit the opening tee shot. Responsible for many of the online in-play golf betting markets he needed to be back in time to load the laptop and shorten Koepka’s odds later that evening. A fairly agricultural swing which was roofed over mid-wicket and towards the trees on Blackwell’s intimidating first tee meant the event was officially underway. Players would be playing gross stableford with their playing handicap added to their score at the end to create a slight twist on the normal stableford scoring system with the Blackwell members receiving a further 20% handicap reduction to balance things out. It’s still not clear whether this format favours the higher or lower handicapper, but it certainly helps speed up proceedings.
Honorary starter: Michael Verity
A tradition like none-other; The Blackwell spike bar is an integral part of the course and stopping off after 9 with groups heading out from the 1st & 10th tees meant that people could reconvene in the bar for stories and drinks at the turn. People were all very cagey about their score on the flagstone spike bar, with no clear favourite emerging. One person who seemed to be out of the running early doors however was – outgoing Golf Monthly editor and much loved golf media mogul – Mike Harris who took to buying champagne at the turn to celebrate his par 4 on the fairly benign 288 yard 7th hole, an indictment of his lacklustre front nine score.
Drinks at the turn
Suddenly, a roar was reverberating around the course with murmurings about a hole in one on what was believed to be the 11th. Tom Mortimer from Reigate Heath canning an imperious 6 iron from 180 yards that never left the flag before falling into the cup, his maiden ace. All of a sudden the coveted Saunders & Long MVP award (another mixer tradition like no other) had two front runners emerging in Harris & Mortimer.
With Sam & Tom now well stocked for footage of the event, a decision was made to erect a temporary Pimms station on the adjoining 7th and 15th tee with the bar staff shuttling jugs of the summer nectar out in buggies which attracted golfers like moths to a flame. With newly appointed Blackwell club manager Adam Riddle bringing up the rear of the field (joined by messers Haines, sock magnate Chris Stott & recently announced course architect at St George’s Hill Jasper Miners of Evalu18) to find another bar had been erected out on the course led to him questioning whether this was a good use of the clubs resources. No decision was made at the time on any disciplinary action for Mills, Williams or indeed Cal Wing who was the ringleader.
Anyone familiar with Blackwell will imagine the sight on a sun drenched summer evening with golfers making their way into the iconic 18th, played out in front of a braying crowd who stand on the greens edge. A narrow green sat under the watchful gaze of the clubhouse only 5 yards beyond there is never any shortage of drama and today would be no exception. With Mark Edwards & Rob Griffiths now in the house at -2 as our clubhouse leaders, Simon Haines was going along smoothly at level par until a bad club choice following his Pimms stop left him short sided on 15 and his round soon unfolded from there.
With the scores in, and a tie at the top of the leaderboard a playoff was agreed over the 18th until a winner emerged with Edwards & Griffiths mic’d up and both selecting their caddies. Despite DP World Tour, Kingsbarns & Tara Iti looper Dan Lane in the field, both players selected someone from their own group. Edwards & Sam Clapham, with Griffiths and ‘ace-man’ Tom Mortimer.
The shot that marked the end of Simon Haines’ run at the leaderboard
A laser-like drive from Edwards into the setting sun was backed up with a solid wedge over the flag into the larger part of the awkward 18th green with Griffiths out behind the trees on 18 following a flared drive to the right. Accounting for adrenalin, a heroic ‘Seve-esque’ wedge shot finishing 10 feet behind the hole quickly turned the tables with a make-able putt for birdie. Neither could muster a birdie however and once again the players were walking back up 18. This time after near-identical drives from the pair, Rob Griffiths failed to produce the same wizardry after nearly decapitating half of the crowd long of the green with his approach. After a few failed chips, the playoff was conceded and Mark Edwards was crowned the winner.
A few words to congratulate the winners and anoint Mike Harris as the Saunders & Long MVP winner having doubled down on this new tradition, buying a further three bottles of champagne back at the house after 18 to mark his 3 pars on Blackwell’s back 9.
A caraway-infused evening of curry and Kummel was the perfect ending to a perfect day. Blackwell was without doubt the perfect canvas for this event, but the people in attendance and the camaraderie was once again the secret sauce for what makes these events so special.
