PGA Pro Simon Byford delves into the background of a golfing festival

This is something that Mr Myhill was extremely good at, engaging his classes with sport, and providing wonderful learning opportunities for those blessed with talent or not. I feel very lucky to have been taught by him, and to help cement his legacy after his untimely death is a real honour.

Tim Myhill was a PE teacher at County Upper School in Bury St Edmunds, and would always be the first to bring a team to any sporting event. He was a father to extremely sporting children, and in later years as ‘grandpops’ he would often support his grandchildren’s sporting endeavours.

The Bury St Edmunds School Golf Festival was set up in Tim’s memory, with his golfing friends donating a trophy and prizes. However the festival’s main aim was to bring together eight local primary schools for an afternoon of fun skills challenges and an introduction to golf. Delivered by the PGA Professionals at Bury St Edmunds GC, 48 children attended. There was much excitement in the room as the children achieved successes in the various challenges, with many parents watching on.

The event was won by Westley Middle School, which felt so fitting. Westley is closing in August 2023 but has maintained a long tradition of sporting involvement. This filters from the Head and Deputy, both highly acclaimed sportspeople, through the dedicated PE staff. Westley famously held live PE lessons for its pupils during lockdown 2020.

GOLF SIXES

mpu1

The Junior Golf Sixes league also got under way this week. An inter club competition aimed at junior golfers who haven’t yet achieved their first handicap. The Texas Scramble format over 6 holes in teams of 2 is a perfect entry to competitive golf. Bury St Edmunds and The Suffolk will be representing West Suffolk in this year’s competitions, with Bury just edging out The Suffolk in the first matches. Congratulations to the BSE team of Max Balaam/Buddy Cross, Lewis Jones/Bella Douglass and Rafa Richardson/George Bailey.

SUFFOLK GOLF DEVELOPMENT HUBS

Continuing the theme of golfing opportunities, the Suffolk Golf Union (Men’s) and The Suffolk Ladies County Golf Association (SLCGA) have combined to create The Suffolk Development Hubs. These are aimed at male and female Junior golfers under 14 years old who have shown enthusiasm at their local club, to bring them together to help increase their skills and social circles. These hubs are regionalised and Culford School are hosting this in the west of the county. A fun morning of skill discussions and short game exploration meant that those who attended really got to test out different shot types and take their newly honed skills back to their clubs.

The hubs run monthly and if you know of anyone who would benefit from this type of additional development, please feel free to email me on the above address.

SUFFOLK BOYS UNDER 18

All of the above opportunities help to create some amazing golfers, and this is personified by the current crop of county talent at every age group. We will be covering other teams in future weeks, but today the focus is the Under 18 Boys Suffolk team who are one victory away from winning the South East Anglian league. Barnham Broom was the latest venue as Suffolk, Norfolk and Bedfordshire went at it. The triangular match format means that one player from each county goes out in a threeball, and it is a real test of concentration to try and defeat two opponents simultaneously.

mpu2

Suffolk however came out on top against both Norfolk and Bedfordshire. Special mention to Charlie Goodridge (BSE) for winning all his matches, and to Ben Mason (Flempton) and Lucas Britten (Stowmarket) for representing West Suffolk in the 8-man team. The team will hope to secure top spot in the league and qualify for the Anglian league final in their final round of matches on July 9th at Halesworth GC.

The Under 16 Boys start their league campaign at Bungay on 4th June, and the Under 14 Boys have a match vs Norfolk on 30th May. The Suffolk Junior Girls team also has an important fixture as they compete against the Suffolk Senior Ladies at Halesworth on 28th May. All of which will be a great way to get their respective seasons started. Good luck to all these teams next week.

Hopefully that gets you up to speed on the junior scene in the area. Next week we will reveal an exciting new service open to golfers in the Bury St Edmunds area, so make sure you stay tuned for that.

Until then have a great golfing week.