Ian Mowbray (left) coaching temporary members, from left to right, John Greaves, Coral Davidson, David Fleming, Mo Burton, Gill Mobsby (obscured),, Beth Perring Evans.

Thanks to a number of new initiatives, described in the Winter Newsletter of last year, we have been very successful in keeping our numbers up to capacity. Part of our future success will lie in the welcome we provide, making temporary and new full members feel that this is a friendly Club. Here are some of the initiatives which have been taken.

The ladies set the pace.

More than two dozen ladies have become members during the past few months. Gail Lloyd and Sonia Meredith have devised various ways to ensure that they integrate happily and that they are able to fix games and find partners for the weekly competitions. On Thursdays, at the 11.15 a.m. roll-up, a special effort is made to find members to mark cards for handicap so they can make the transition from temporary to full membership. The success of the exercise is proved by the number of new people winning prizes in competitions – see the Ladies’ section for further information. Several occasions have been arranged to enable the new people to get to know one another. There have been ‘welcome teas’, a chance to socialise and find playing partners. The winter coffee morning was a very useful opportunity for the main membership to meet their new fellows – name tabs were provided as an aide-memoire. A list of all new members with telephone contact numbers is on display in the Ladies’ room, and of course, their telephone numbers and email addresses are in the members’ section of the Liphook website. There is always a ‘sitter’ on competition days, so that if a new member does not have a partner, she can turn up soon after 10.30 a.m. and be sure of a game. Sonia also ran a fun team competition for members and temporary members which was very well supported and this will be repeated in the late summer. Sonia has made it her business to introduce herself to new people at the earliest opportunity to ensure they feel welcome, and she also acts as liaison by ringing a few people of similar handicaps to help them fix games and become known. This gives them a chance to mark a card with a member to achieve a handicap. All this goes to prove that Liphook is indeed the friendliest club in Hampshire!

Men not excluded

Ian Mowbray has been running group lessons for all temporary members, after one of which in early June there was a game with established members and a few beers in the clubhouse.  There are two men waiting to transfer from Temporary to Full and several more showing all the signs of achieving a significant reduction in their handicaps very quickly.

There is also a special match on 12th August when all new (full) members will be invited to play against a specially invited team.