This week I caught up with long standing men’s club captain Steve Hanham and asked questions about the club’s involvement and development within the Waikato Pennants Golf programme.
What is Pennants Golf?
An inter-club golf competition played between Waikato Golf Clubs.
How has the Raglan Golf Club developed teams over the last 5 years and how many teams participate in the Pennants Competition?
The Waikato Region has 42 Golf Clubs where they all have teams in the Pennants Competition. There are multiple divisions with 8-10 teams per division. Raglan has gone from having 1 team competing in Championship Pennants (off the stick) Division 5, and 1 Handicap Pennants team. The teams are made up of 6 Players, where 4 players played in both competitions 5 Years ago. This Year Raglan will be having 2 x Championship Pennant Teams: Division 2 & Division 4 plus the Handicap Pennant team, made up of 18 players in total with a couple of reserves for each team.
How is a team member chosen for a particular team?
The Raglan Golf Club runs a Pennant Trials competition during the Club Day Sundays through January ahead of the competition starting in February.
Describe the attributes needed to compete at Pennants level.
Competitive competition takes commitment (you need to be available every second Sunday and play in whatever the weather presents on the day). A can-do attitude with camaraderie and a team supporting vibe are what we look for. It not only represents the golf club but also Raglan.
Having teams playing in this competition brings what rewards for Raglan Golf Club?
Raglan gets its name on the map in the mighty Waikato. The club representatives do all of Raglan proud with their friendly and generous attitudes, always promoting the Golf Course, and inviting players to visit with their family and friends. Hosting tournaments at the Raglan Golf Club has seen many of the Waikato Pennant Players attend, with Raglan’s legendary hospitality ensuring they come back.
Teams are playing for what trophies?
Each Championship Division has its own trophy to play for. Winning a championship division trophy means the Club will move up into the next division. It is a great accomplishment for the Raglan Golf Club to have a team in the Championship Divisions 2 and 4. The handicap pennants have round robin matches and the finalist winners move on to the Waikato Regional Finals to play for the Trophy.
What’s your vision around Pennants Golf for Raglan Golf Club?
We are hoping to enter another Handicap Pennants Team in the ‘24 season. With our membership steadily growing and the Sunday Club Day allowing us to create fun competitions, we can get a larger pool of players to encourage to try out and select from.
off the tee…Pete Aim.
