John Murray

Some Welcome Rain!!

Thankfully the heavens opened last weekend and the courses finally saw some rainfall which was very much needed.

Things were really starting to dry up fast and with limited staff working it's been very challenging for the boys on the course to try to keep up with basic cutting as well as trying to keep areas of the course from burning out.

Looking good

Here's a few words from our Courses Manager at the end of last week.

"Another week done and another week closer to reopening. Greens and approaches fertilised last week and everything apart from the rough has been cut. It’s been great to get Mark and Coopy back this week as things were getting too much for just 2 staff, it’s starting to look like a golf course again. It remains exceptionally dry but rain is forecast tomorrow and is much needed. Ryan appears a bit miffed he’s no longer Deputy Course Manager but we’re hoping he get’s over it soon. "

Unfortunately this week the staff had to deal with someone driving their remote-controlled car over one of the newly fertilised greens.

It's quite unbelievable some of the things we've seen over the last 6 weeks. We've had picnics, playing bowls, kids in bunkers making sandcastles, football on the fairways and even fly tipping!!

Here's hoping we can get back to seeing our good old members very soon!!

Reckless Driving

I’d like to ask for you all to send in your best old golfing photos. These need to be golf related photos and the older the better. I will include a few of the best ones in next weeks newsletter.

Send your best shots to johnmurraypgapro@icloud.com and the best picture will win a sleeve of the new TM TP5 PiX Balls.

We came across this last week and thought we'd share it with you:

"Last week a friend said to me that the first thing he'll do when it's safe for golf to return is put all his energy into his opening tee shot. The second thing he'll do is hit a provisional!"

Complete this statement. When the golf courses reopen I’m going to.....................

Pro's news

Looking ahead

We’ve added a new feature to our weekly emails called ‘Thoughts for the course’. Each week there’ll be a handy tip that will (hopefully) give you something to think about ahead of your next game of golf. Be sure to scroll down a little further to give it a read.

We are also going to start reintroducing a product or two that you’ll be able to find in the pro shop when we're back open. If you’re interested in finding out more about anything we stock or just want to have a little browse, there’s lots of information and some great videos on our website – simply, click here and head to the ‘Shop’ tab.

Shop Offers

We haven’t got the nod from the government quite yet for the courses to reopen but with the first phase of courses opening in England it’s unlikely to be too far away.

We aren’t sure if the Pro Shop will be able to open at the same time but regardless we will be putting procedures in place to make this as safe as possible.

So maybe now is the time to get rid of that mouldy banana at the bottom of your bag and get your equipment ready for when things restart?

We will be offering a special “Get Back to Golf” Offer. Basically order and pay for a dozen golf balls plus a glove and we will give you a FREE bumper pack of wooden tees (worth £5.99)

Get Back to Golf Offer

Once we are able to reopen we will be trying to operate a cashless system for the safety of both customers and staff so you can either pay by contactless or via your shop accounts.

If anyone would like to top up their accounts ahead of our return to golf, I am offering an additional 10% back as a THANKYOU for your support.

So if you top up £50 then I’ll put an extra £5 into your shop account. If anyone would like to do this then please email me on johnmurraypgapro@icloud.com with your details and I can arrange to contact you to take payment.

Moray Food Bank

The Pro Shop is trying to do their bit for the local area during this difficult time for many.

Derek came up with this idea and has been busy contacting local clubs in the area hoping for a donation of a 4 ball voucher which we could use to help raise some money for the Moray Foodbank

We have set up a just giving page for anyone wishing to donate. 100% of the money raised will go to the Foodbank allowing them to help those individuals and families in most need during this time.

Click here to donate.

The food bank have seen a huge increase in the number of people supported this year with April alone seeing an increase of over 100% compared to 2019.

Click above to donate

Every £10 donated will get an entry into a raffle to win a 4 ball voucher at one of the following courses

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/morayfoodplus?utm_term=M7rgjWNDn

Moray Old & New, Royal Dornoch, Brora, Tain, Kings Inverness, Forres, Hopeman, Maverston, Rothes, Kemnay, Newmachar, Royal Aberdeen, Peterculter and Portlethan

Virtual Golf

Click above to see our final round coverage

Thanks to everyone who took part in our first ‘Moray Masters’ Virtual Golf Event which took place over 4 nights last week.

We eventually had a massive 131 entrants take part which was amazing and as a result managed to raise £125 for the Ladybird Development Group in Lossiemouth.

I’ve had some fantastic feedback from the event and it was great to have a beer and some banter for 45 mins each evening with everyone who watched along with the action

‘Awesome watch John and I wasn't even in it!!

‘It's been fun John, many thanks”

“I had better have a few drams to celebrate my consolation win. Thanks for that John”

Well done John Murray, fantastic crack and entertainment!!!!!!

We also managed to give out some fantastic prizes, with the top 6 in the main event and top 3 in the consolation event picking up something. We also added in an alternate Long Drive & Nearest the Pin event to keep people’s interest right to the very end.

I’ve had quite a few requests to run another similar event. Let me know if you’d be interested in taking part in Virtual Golf 2.0

Moray Masters - Final Scores

1st - Graham Scales (TM SIM Driver)

2nd - Ashley Milne (Odyssey Strokelab)

3rd - Jordan Milne (Vokey SM8)

4th - Tommy Smith (UA Golf Shoes

5th - GazzaBhoy84 (Doz AVX Balls)

6th = Paul Stewart (TM SIM Cap)

6th = Val Pastakia (TM SIM Cap)

Consolation Cup - Final Scores

1st - Billy Stewart (Doz TM TP5 Balls)

2nd - Steven Ramsay (TM Towel)

3rd - Philip Bleasdale (TM TP Glove)

Nearest Pin Day 1

Alan McCann - £40

Longest Drive Day 2

Save the Jambos - £20

Nearest Pin Day 3

GazzaBhoy84 - £50

Longest Drive Day 4

Rory MacEwan - £20

It's quiz time

This week we have a brilliant quiz for you to indulge yourself in.

'Guess Who' Quiz

We will give you three short statements, which you will need to use to work out who the golfer is. It's multiple-choice so if you can't work it out then you can at least have a guess!

From now on, we'll be doing these quizzes in our first newsletter of every month so be sure to keep an eye out!

take our 'Guess Who' quiz >

Thoughts for the course

When you get to hit your next golf shot, it's highly likely that you'll be battling with a little bit of rust that's set into your game during lockdown. So, to help you out when you do get back out on the fairways, here’s something important you might want to pay particular attention to.

Why is alignment important?

When we talk about alignment, we’re referring to where our clubface, feet, hips and shoulders are all aiming. If these areas are disjointed before we start our swing, hitting a straight shot is quite a bit harder.

For example, if a right-hander’s body is aiming left of the target with the clubface straight (as in the image above), it encourages a swing path to the left and will often result in a fade/slice that ends up to the right of where you want it to.

How to perfect yours

Playing lots of golf is something we all look forward to in the coming months, so make sure you have solid foundations at address.

If you ever see professional golfers on the range, they usually lay a stick or club down on the floor between their feet and the ball that aims at their target. By using this as a reference point, it ensures their alignment is spot-on. Try it the next time you practice - you might be surprised!

send us a message >

Visual aids are key

Carrying on with the theme of alignment, it’s really important to get it right when putting too. Golf brands have come up with some clever ways to help golfers on this front, from the original 2-ball putter to today’s intuitive colour-contrast sightlines, but there are also some things you can do on your golf ball to help.

Grab a marker

Lots of golfers draw a line on their golf ball with a permanent marker to use when putting (and driving in some cases).

This has been a popular method for decades as it aids alignment with where the golfer intends to start the ball rolling, taking into account the slope of the green.

Instant feedback

If the line rolls over itself and stays pointing at your target for the duration of the putt, it indicates you've hit a pretty good putt.

However, if the line ends up rolling towards the hole pointing elsewhere, it usually means your stroke was a little off - something we can help with.

Have you seen these?

TaylorMade calls it ClearPath Alignment, which is designed to give you the visual feedback mentioned before.

If this is something that interests you, these balls will be available from the pro shop when we re-open, but you can also find out more on our website.

learn more here >

Video of the Week

The European Tour has produced some brilliant videos in recent years and this is one of our favourites. Wondering what happened to elicit this response from Andy Sullivan? Watch the video to find out! Enjoy.

European Tour: Most frustrating video ever

Moray Golf Club
Stotfield Road
Lossiemouth
IV31 6QS

Phone: 01343 813330

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