2016 Ryder Cup
THE 11th TORREBLANCA RYDER CUP 13th TO THE 16th SEPTEMBER 2016
September is the time for our major event of the year. So with our wives, husbands and partners we travelled away from the Costa del Sol for our annual version of the Ryder Cup. Not the USA versus Europe, this is far more important than that. The North of England verses the South. On a bright and sunny morning we boarded our big purple coach and headed for the Costa Ballena staying at the fantastic Hotel Elba and playing golf at the Costa Ballena Ocean Golf Club. As is the norm now this is a three night event giving everyone a chance to unwind on the first day before the competitions begin. This was our 11th Ryder Cup with the North currently ahead by 6 matches to 4. The South having lost last year so they needed a win. Whilst the Northern Captain Bill “The Weatherman” Giles was confident of a win to continue their winning streak the Southern Captain Bob Sawyer was determined to reverse the current trend and win the 11th Ryder Cup. Will the South be able to do it, only time would tell? This year with both sides having some new and untried members it was going to be difficult to forecast who would win.
Once the teams were given out on the coach the two captains spent the rest of journey to the Costa Ballena prepping their teams and explaining the tactics for the next few days. They didn’t really, but it sounds better than they both sat on the coach swapping jokes.
Once we arrived at the hotel and checked in some of us rested with drinks and tapas on the terrace around the hotel pool. However the more adventurous and fit members played 18 holes or maybe they were be strategic and trying to gain an advantage by practicing on the course?
The next day after a superb meal in the hotel restaurant and a quiet night in the hotel bar, believe that if you can, it was time to start the competition. So after a hearty and healthy breakfast, the non-golfers headed off to collect the coach for a trip to the Osbourne distillery, whilst the golfers headed for the first tee. Both Captains were on the first tee to see their teams off give them a final pep talk and to go through the tactics for the day.
The format for the first day was Fourball Matchplay on the front nine with Foursomes on the back nine. So with the weather sunny and warm and with the course in good condition it was time for the competition to begin. Things did not start well for the South. The Southern Captain Bob Sawyer sliced his first tee shot into the drainage ditch. To make matters worse he injured his back trying to hit the ball out and unfortunately retired after 6 holes. Whilst the South battled valiantly without their captain is was a resounding win on the first day for the North. They ended the day winning by 7 points 13 to 6. So after a few drinks at the club house it was time to return to the hotel to get ready for the evening party and what a party it was.
That night the hotel had arranged for us to unwind at their beach club with a BBQ and music for dancing. To get everyone in the party mood we again decided to have a theme for the night. This time it was the 60/70’s. What a fantastic night it turned out to be with everyone getting into the party spirit by dressing up. There were some superb outfits. A real assortment of costumes and ideas, there was Bobby Charlton from the 1966 world cup, complete with comb over. An assortment of hippies, although it was apparent that we had all used the same shop on EBay. However we noticed a couple of the guys were enjoying their costumes and characters a bit too much namely John Yuill as a “bovver” boy complete with orange hair was seen swaggering around the beach club most of the night. Then there was Ken, now known as “Katrina” Tabner as Mary Quant complete with miniskirt and white boots. The mind boggles. Not forgetting Jerry Halford as Rod Stewart. Well done to everyone.
The food and the drink was superb and to the delight of us all it just kept coming. The music had everyone up dancing getting us all into the party mood, including the hotel staff who all joined in the fun. Especially Oscar who became the unofficial master of ceremonies. We were also entertained by our own singing cabaret stars. Sue Cobb, John Shiels and Catherine Shiels. Catherine then gave us a superb exhibition of Irish dancing. We never imagined we had so much talent in our midst. The dancing and especially the drinking went on late into the night with nobody wanting to go to bed.
The next day there were two very important competitions. For the golfers it was time for the singles competition. For the non golfers the golf club had arranged a croquet competition.
So as you can imagine after the party the night before there was a quite a few bleary eyes and blank stares. Despite our condition we golfers were all determined to win our games. The weather was again very sunny and warm. Unfortunately as with yesterday the day started out badly for the South. I am sad to say things got steadily worse for the South as the day wore on. The South put up a spirited fight but alas is was not to be. They were soundly beaten. The North once again were triumphant winning the 11th Torreblanca Ryder Cup 25 to 15.
Whilst this epic battle was being fought on the golf course our lady non golfers were being tutored in readiness for their own croquet competition. Once they had been taught the finer points of croquet is was time for their competition. There appeared to be no outright winner so they all agreed that trophy went to Dawn Lumb as she was the most improved player. According to the non golfers the day was a resounding success with everyone enjoying themselves.
So with both games over and everybody relaxing on the golf club terrace with drinks and tapas watching the sun go down, it was time for the usual inquest about what went wrong. Although in the North’s case once again what went right. There were the usual “what ifs” echoing around the terrace. Some of the players were reliving every shot and wondering what might have happened if only they had used a different club, or possibly more to the point had not had that final brandy or beer the night before.
After another great meal in the hotel restaurant it was time for the speeches and prize giving. Everyone, especially my wife Vicky, was pleased that I only made a short speech. It was then the turn of the two captains to give their speeches reliving the two days competitions and praising their team’s performance. I am pleased to say that in his speech the winning Northern team captain was very gracious to the Southern captain!!!!!!! It was then time to hand out the winners and runners up medals. This was also a sad occasion as both the captains were retiring. A big thank you goes out to Bill and Bob for their efforts over the last few years. On a happier note it was time to welcome the new captains for the 2017 Ryder Cup. Sue Cobb for the South and Catherine Shiels for the North. With the formalities over the celebrations went on very late into the night, some of us having a small drink or two, celebrating or drowning our sorrows, depending on which team you played for.
The next morning with the North still celebrating, although much quieter due mainly to their sore heads, we boarded our big purple coach for the journey home. Our thanks to Uta, her caramel vodka on the coach gave us a much needed hair of the dog. The perfect end to a fantastic four days.
On a special note I must say a big thank you to everyone at the Hotel Elba for looking after us so well, everything was superb. The service from their staff was first class, they were always smiling and could not do enough for us. A very special thanks to the Hotel Elba and Ocean Golf Club Managers Monica, Julia, Carmen and Salvador who went out of their way to make sure that everything was perfect. We will be back
Of course and not forgetting our lovely coach driver Gloria.
Everybody agreed, whether their team had won or lost, it was another unforgettable trip. So where to next year? All polite suggestions are welcome.
September is the time for our major event of the year. So with our wives, husbands and partners we travelled away from the Costa del Sol for our annual version of the Ryder Cup. Not the USA versus Europe, this is far more important than that. The North of England verses the South. On a bright and sunny morning we boarded our big purple coach and headed for the Costa Ballena staying at the fantastic Hotel Elba and playing golf at the Costa Ballena Ocean Golf Club. As is the norm now this is a three night event giving everyone a chance to unwind on the first day before the competitions begin. This was our 11th Ryder Cup with the North currently ahead by 6 matches to 4. The South having lost last year so they needed a win. Whilst the Northern Captain Bill “The Weatherman” Giles was confident of a win to continue their winning streak the Southern Captain Bob Sawyer was determined to reverse the current trend and win the 11th Ryder Cup. Will the South be able to do it, only time would tell? This year with both sides having some new and untried members it was going to be difficult to forecast who would win.
Once the teams were given out on the coach the two captains spent the rest of journey to the Costa Ballena prepping their teams and explaining the tactics for the next few days. They didn’t really, but it sounds better than they both sat on the coach swapping jokes.
Once we arrived at the hotel and checked in some of us rested with drinks and tapas on the terrace around the hotel pool. However the more adventurous and fit members played 18 holes or maybe they were be strategic and trying to gain an advantage by practicing on the course?
The next day after a superb meal in the hotel restaurant and a quiet night in the hotel bar, believe that if you can, it was time to start the competition. So after a hearty and healthy breakfast, the non-golfers headed off to collect the coach for a trip to the Osbourne distillery, whilst the golfers headed for the first tee. Both Captains were on the first tee to see their teams off give them a final pep talk and to go through the tactics for the day.
The format for the first day was Fourball Matchplay on the front nine with Foursomes on the back nine. So with the weather sunny and warm and with the course in good condition it was time for the competition to begin. Things did not start well for the South. The Southern Captain Bob Sawyer sliced his first tee shot into the drainage ditch. To make matters worse he injured his back trying to hit the ball out and unfortunately retired after 6 holes. Whilst the South battled valiantly without their captain is was a resounding win on the first day for the North. They ended the day winning by 7 points 13 to 6. So after a few drinks at the club house it was time to return to the hotel to get ready for the evening party and what a party it was.
That night the hotel had arranged for us to unwind at their beach club with a BBQ and music for dancing. To get everyone in the party mood we again decided to have a theme for the night. This time it was the 60/70’s. What a fantastic night it turned out to be with everyone getting into the party spirit by dressing up. There were some superb outfits. A real assortment of costumes and ideas, there was Bobby Charlton from the 1966 world cup, complete with comb over. An assortment of hippies, although it was apparent that we had all used the same shop on EBay. However we noticed a couple of the guys were enjoying their costumes and characters a bit too much namely John Yuill as a “bovver” boy complete with orange hair was seen swaggering around the beach club most of the night. Then there was Ken, now known as “Katrina” Tabner as Mary Quant complete with miniskirt and white boots. The mind boggles. Not forgetting Jerry Halford as Rod Stewart. Well done to everyone.
The food and the drink was superb and to the delight of us all it just kept coming. The music had everyone up dancing getting us all into the party mood, including the hotel staff who all joined in the fun. Especially Oscar who became the unofficial master of ceremonies. We were also entertained by our own singing cabaret stars. Sue Cobb, John Shiels and Catherine Shiels. Catherine then gave us a superb exhibition of Irish dancing. We never imagined we had so much talent in our midst. The dancing and especially the drinking went on late into the night with nobody wanting to go to bed.
The next day there were two very important competitions. For the golfers it was time for the singles competition. For the non golfers the golf club had arranged a croquet competition.
So as you can imagine after the party the night before there was a quite a few bleary eyes and blank stares. Despite our condition we golfers were all determined to win our games. The weather was again very sunny and warm. Unfortunately as with yesterday the day started out badly for the South. I am sad to say things got steadily worse for the South as the day wore on. The South put up a spirited fight but alas is was not to be. They were soundly beaten. The North once again were triumphant winning the 11th Torreblanca Ryder Cup 25 to 15.
Whilst this epic battle was being fought on the golf course our lady non golfers were being tutored in readiness for their own croquet competition. Once they had been taught the finer points of croquet is was time for their competition. There appeared to be no outright winner so they all agreed that trophy went to Dawn Lumb as she was the most improved player. According to the non golfers the day was a resounding success with everyone enjoying themselves.
So with both games over and everybody relaxing on the golf club terrace with drinks and tapas watching the sun go down, it was time for the usual inquest about what went wrong. Although in the North’s case once again what went right. There were the usual “what ifs” echoing around the terrace. Some of the players were reliving every shot and wondering what might have happened if only they had used a different club, or possibly more to the point had not had that final brandy or beer the night before.
After another great meal in the hotel restaurant it was time for the speeches and prize giving. Everyone, especially my wife Vicky, was pleased that I only made a short speech. It was then the turn of the two captains to give their speeches reliving the two days competitions and praising their team’s performance. I am pleased to say that in his speech the winning Northern team captain was very gracious to the Southern captain!!!!!!! It was then time to hand out the winners and runners up medals. This was also a sad occasion as both the captains were retiring. A big thank you goes out to Bill and Bob for their efforts over the last few years. On a happier note it was time to welcome the new captains for the 2017 Ryder Cup. Sue Cobb for the South and Catherine Shiels for the North. With the formalities over the celebrations went on very late into the night, some of us having a small drink or two, celebrating or drowning our sorrows, depending on which team you played for.
The next morning with the North still celebrating, although much quieter due mainly to their sore heads, we boarded our big purple coach for the journey home. Our thanks to Uta, her caramel vodka on the coach gave us a much needed hair of the dog. The perfect end to a fantastic four days.
On a special note I must say a big thank you to everyone at the Hotel Elba for looking after us so well, everything was superb. The service from their staff was first class, they were always smiling and could not do enough for us. A very special thanks to the Hotel Elba and Ocean Golf Club Managers Monica, Julia, Carmen and Salvador who went out of their way to make sure that everything was perfect. We will be back
Of course and not forgetting our lovely coach driver Gloria.
Everybody agreed, whether their team had won or lost, it was another unforgettable trip. So where to next year? All polite suggestions are welcome.