Solar panels being installed on the cart sheds to help cut costs and reduce our carbon footprint.

Installation of Solar Energy System
Installation of the solar energy system by Gary Phillips of Negawatts Solar & Electrical got underway this month and is now being commissioned. The 5Kva system will soon be operational, cutting the cost of keeping our fleet of 10 golf carts charged and reducing our environmental footprint at the same time.

Purchase and fitting of the state-of-the-art system has been made possible following receipt of a $15k Federal Grant courtesy of Andrew Wallace – the LNP Federal Member for Fisher.

Trading Update and Golf shop
Trading in May was not quite as brisk as April’s due to the impact of Easter –  but golf revenue excluding membership receipts was pleasingly still up more than 18% on the previous May with noticeable gains in visitor green fees and cart hire.

It’s great to see our new volunteers taking on rostered shifts. Many thanks also to those volunteers who have provided longer-range commitments to help collate a roster to cover the entire period while our manager Richard Owen is on leave during July and August.

There are still vacant shifts on the golf shop roster each week though and always someone away on holidays or indisposed for one reason or another creating a vacancy.  So if you have some spare time available and want to lend a hand, why not consider volunteering to work in the golf shop?

Taking on a shift need not be a commitment of more than a couple of hours plus some initial training. If interested in getting involved please get in touch with Richard Owen by phoning 5499 9960 or emailing shop@malenygolfclub.com.au.

Dark Sky Park Update
The golf club has entered into an agreement with the Sunshine Coast Dark Sky Astronomers Group under which they will supply a small shipping container to be installed at the end of the existing cart storage sheds.

This container is to be wired and fitted out to store and charge two golf carts – freeing up one of the existing cart sheds for storage use by members of the Astronomy group.

The next public viewing night for those interested in observing the heavens has been scheduled for the evening of Saturday July 1. Click HERE for more details.

Competition Golf – Monthly Medals

From Left May Monthly Medal Winners: Mike Finley, Peter Gilbert and Geoff Hocking

A record field of 35 players contested the Men’s Monthly Medal and Maleny Mug competitions on Saturday 27 May and Superintendent Mick McCombe’s course set up did not disappoint due to some very tricky pin positions!

Congratulations to Mike Finley who won the A Grade Medal with a net 70 as Runner-up to Troy Edwards from Kilcoy, who again carded a net 70 but could not win the medal.  Similarly, Peter Gilbert carded a net 70 to earn the B Grade Medal as a runner-up to Russ Rylance (Cooroy) who had a score of net 66.

Geoff Hocking was the star of the day winning the C Grade Medal with a net 61 off a handicap of 36 – which was 13 shots lower by the time he reached the carpark. Runner-up was Chris Pottinger with a net 67.

Nearest the pins went to David Killeen on the 12th after putting a 210m tee shot 1.5m from the hole, and Rex Clark on the 14th.

May MPR Monthly Medal winner Liz Mellish.

The winner of the Maleny Property Rentals May Ladies Monthly Medal and glassware, run earlier in the week on Wednesday May 24, was Liz Mellish who carded an impressive score of Net 66 from 87 off the stick.

Liz also won nearest the pin on the 3rd and a $20 prize voucher donated by Margaret Goodger who came 3rd with a net 74.

Our Runner Up was Christine Lemon (73). Nearest the Pin on the 5th went to Anne Devane.

Junior Golf
The club, in conjunction with the Glasshouse Mountains Zone Junior Golf Association, held a tremendously successful Parent and Child golf day on Sunday May 28 with 56 players taking part in the 9-hole, 2 Ball Ambrose event followed by a BBQ lunch.

The gross winners were Steve & Matthew Comer and the Runners Up Greg and Chase Randell (pictured in our feature photo) while the nett winners were Michael & Sophie Thompsen with Brad and Joseph Drinnan the Runners Up.

Special thanks to Shaun and Sharon O’Hara and Mal Ewing for their organisational efforts and to the volunteer catering team of Michele Retschlag, Paul Lowe, Mandy McCosker, Ralph Ding and Anne Devane.

Sponsors Golf Day

Peter Gilbert – member of the winning MPR team

Maleny Golf Club held its inaugural Sponsors Golf Day on Sunday 21 May which proved to be great fun for all involved. We played a 9-hole 4-ball Ambrose and the gross winner was the team of Peter Gilbert, Dave Nielsen, Tom Kennedy and Jimmy Byuan with a 5 under Par score of 30 representing MPR Maleny Property Rentals!

The net winner was the team of Noela Cowell and Avrelle, Dan and Jason Montagnat with a score of 22 representing Trilogy Tax Maleny!

In 3rd place was the Team of Liz Mellish, Richard Owen, Bob Whiteley, Scott Alexander of Mountain View Day Lily Nursery and Michael Kors with a score of 22 for Maleny Golf Club. We also had teams representing Maleny Bookkeeping, Maleny Smash Repairs and Lattice & Shutters – Sunshine Coast.

President Max Whitten thanking sponsors.

Longest Drive on the 6th went to Jason Montagnat on the 6th and Dan Montagnat on the 7th. Nearest the Pin on the 3rd went to Kerrin Tytherleigh.

Quite a few Sponsors were unable to be with us today for one reason or another but we will be holding another Sponsors Day later in the year. Thank you all for your wonderful support.

Thanks also to Paul and Leslie Lowe for their superb catering effort as the club layout and food were fantastic and to Liz Mellish for her organisational input. President Max Whitten was also on hand to thank our sponsors on behalf of the committee and members.

Captain’s Corner with Margaret Trigger
Firstly, I would like to thank our Superintendent Mick McCombe, Mark Kearney and the band of volunteers who have the course looking so magnificent at the moment.

Our first ever Ladies Invitation day on May 22 was a huge success. Many favourable comments were passed on to me from visiting ladies about the wonderful condition of the course and the quality of the food we prepared and served on the day.

Many thanks to the men who manned the bunkers on the day and helped the ladies pull buggies up the hill from the Ninth. Our only problem on the day was a computer glitch, mainly due to MiClub upgrading their system the previous week. This was all a great learning experience from which we can benefit when holding future tournaments.A big thank you also to those who provided prizes for the raffle.

Aida Lavings, with playing partners Penny Edwards, Margaret Trigger, Joy Hatton and Liz Mellish on the Signature Par 3 Third Hole.

Congratulations particularly must go to Aida Lavings from Nanango Golf Club. Aida will go down in the Club’s annals for her perfect tee shot on the Par 3 3rd Hole as the first visiting golfer (male or female) to score a Hole in One on the course during competition. Her feat also helped generate some welcome publicity to further promote awareness about our great golf course which is certainly a gem in the hinterland!

Competition fields seem to be improving weekly, especially on Monthly Medal days. The Ladies day on Wednesday is popular as is the weekly Chook Run on a Friday afternoon.

With several key members taking holidays in the following months (including myself) those with MiClub administration rights will be called on to help fill with competition management.

Margaret Trigger – Captain

Course Update – Superintendent Mick McCombe
No the greens aren’t dead! As we come into winter the greens turn brown and will become much quicker than they do through the summer. However, they have been aerated recently which has made them a little more receptive to approach shots. Consequently, I’ve noticed an increase in the number of pitch marks on them and ask that members please help me out by taking care to repair their own pitch marks as well as any others they see while time permits.

Our new driving net with a view will soon be ready for use to help hone your swing off the tee.

Construction of the second new bunker on the 3rd hole is now well advanced and should be completed towards the end of the month. The rock gully below the 3rd tees to slow the water flow down the hill is also nearing completion thanks to the efforts of our volunteer crew.
Members will also note that we are constructing a driving net at the end of the buggy sheds and I expect this to be completed quickly and in use.

The most frequent question I’m being asked by members relates to the start of work on the next three holes. And the answer is that work has already started. A lot of work has already been done on the irrigation design and planning and obtaining quotes for product and materials. Consequently, I expect construction work to get underway later next month.
Mick McCombe