For his opening match of the summer season, Idwal decided to lay on some sunshine. The Glynhir boys decided to chip in with some good weather of their own, so the combination made for a great day of competitive, friendly golf on a well presented course. In all the excitement, however, they both forgot to cancel the gusty wind, so there was a challenge for all to contend with.

Idwal had chosen Mike Whale as his opening partner and a good choice it turned out to be. In their match against the Glynhir captain, Emrys Wilcox, partnered by the evergreen Gerald Davies, the Tenby pair got off to a good start. The adrenalin was flowing through Idwal’s veins as he was determined to set an example for his team. Mick’s anxiety showed in the first few holes, but he was determined to follow his captain’s example. They were in front after nine holes, but not as far ahead as they would have liked. Gerald Davies had shown that he knew the course over years of experience and did his best to keep the pair honest. Idwal and Mick managed to talk him off his game over the back nine and Mick’s game came to the fore, allowing them to romp home in style.

Another pair to get off to a flying start was that of Ross James and Roger Barton. They cruised into a comfortable lead as they showed Hugh Lewis and Terry Gorringe how to master the course. Roger’s birdie on the challenging third hole was a particular highlight as the pair extended their lead. Complacency set in and the Glynhir duo took advantage to retrieve a few holes. Not wanting to disappoint their captain, they rallied and had their chance to finish this match on the 14th. Ross birdied the 14th which meant they did not have to cross the line.

There were two other pairs who did not have to cross the line, the first of which was Dudley Williams and Steve Decosimo. Steve may have had a long and successful weekend’s golf in Hampshire, but it did not stop him supporting Dudley in their match against Peter Morrison and Arnall Evans. Dudley made the most of his 14-shot allowance, as he does, and this gave the pair a good edge.

The match was not without its mishaps, however. On the sixth, Dudley had laid his putter on the green and went on to chip his ball up to the hole. Steve, meanwhile, putted up from the other end and hit Dudley’s club with his ball. Hole conceded.

Again on the 11th, Dudley asked if the ball was his before hitting it. It was not his - two shot penalty.

Despite all this, they still managed to end their match on the 14th.

The match behind them was the one with Adrian Palmer and Gareth Davies up against Dave Simpkins and Mel Leech. Although they were the last to enter the clubhouse, they were not the least in their efforts. They had enough course knowledge to overcome the Glynhir challenge and managed to save themselves a walk across the bridge.

This all seems to suggest that matches were one-sided. Not so. Allen Watts and Des Stone were up against two 13-handicappers who showed a great deal of consistency. Des set the tempo with a birdie on the first. His second shot flew wide towards the hedging. Somehow it found its way across the path on the left ending up 20 yards from the green. A quick up and down somewhat surprised the opposition, Gordon Elliott and Bob James. However, Des’s par on the second couldn’t match Bob’s birdie so they knew they had a game on their hands.

Des went walkabout leaving the hard work to Allen who stepped up halve a number of holes. After nine holes they found themselves two down. Des joined in again winning 10 and 11, with Allen winning 12 and 13. That should have been enough, but Gordon and Bob hit back, winning 15 and 16. Allen’s two on the 17th and Des’s three net two on the last was enough to bring this match to its conclusion.

Just behind them were Paul Bradley and his golfing Guru, John Hancock. They were four up after eight holes, but then gave away the next three. Digging their heels in, they managed to redeem themselves as they showed Philip Evans and Derek Locke where the good spots were on this great course and closed their match out on the 16th.

Tom Askew and Robbie Roberts had played Ashburnham last week and they told Stan Hudson and Derek Cole that our course more than matched up to it, given the time of year. In this match, Stan and Derek had started well with a three-hole advantage after four played. They dovetailed well and were particularly effective on the putting surface, so were able to maintain their lead. They failed to finish this match on the 14th, they had to wait until the 15h before they could claim victory.

Peter Williams had a good chat all the way round as he and Canadian, Bob Boyer, discussed places they had both been to. In particular, they talked about ‘no-seeums’ - a vicious little insect that is almost microscopic. However, Peter and Robin Hagley played well as a pair as they tried to outgun Bob and Andy Poulter. They took an early lead and stayed in front, though never by more than four holes. They played some good golf in some good company and some good weather.

David Rees putted in from off the green on the eighth to give him and Brian Waters the advantage as they played to two up after 11 holes. However, this was a match with loads of halves, enabling the opposition, Eddie Bowen and Ian Roderick, to stay in the game. It was a game of nip and tuck which they managed to close out on the16th.

Standing to address the gathering after a sumptuous meal, Idwal set another precedent - he told a joke. Now he will have to search out more for the forthcoming matches. He did have a smile on his face as he invited Emrys to inform the teams of the result.

The raffle was concluded with prizes being shared four to three in favour of Tenby.

Results: I. David/M. Whale beat E .Wilcox/G. Davies 6 & 4; D. Stone/A. Watts beat G. Elliott/B. James 2 up; J. Hancock/P. Bradley beat P. Evans/D. Locke 3 & 2; S. Hudson/D. Cole beat T. Askew/R. Roberts 4 & 3; B. Waters/D. Rees beat E. Bowen/I .Roderick 3 & 2; R. Barton/R. James beat H. Lewis/T. Gorringe 6 & 4; D. Williams/S. Decosimo beat P. Morrison/A. Evans 6 & 4; A. Palmer/G. Davies beat D. Simpkins/M. Leech 6 & 4; P. Williams/R. Hagley beat B. Boyer/A. Poulter 4 & 3.