Captain’s Corner – July 2025

Golf as a Team Sport – More Than Just an Individual Game

While golf is often seen as a solitary pursuit—and there is nothing quite like seeing your name atop the leaderboard at the end of the day—some of the most memorable and rewarding moments in the game come from playing as part of a team.

Whether it’s a friendly fourball, a social side match for coffees, or our ever-popular summer Twilight Ambrose events (a fantastic introduction to the game for family and friends), team golf has a special way of bringing people together and increasing participation in club life. It adds a layer of camaraderie, fun and healthy competition that keeps players engaged, builds lasting friendships and, quite often, improves your game.

It’s great to roll in a birdie putt in the quarterly medal, but knowing you rolled it to lead your club to victory in a pennant match is something else altogether.

Team events can take you to unfamiliar courses where the challenge, variety and shared success make it all the more rewarding.

Look no further than the professional level: events like the Ryder Cup, Solheim Cup and Presidents Cup show just how much even the world’s best players value team play. The pros enthusiastically vie for places in these teams, which are a welcome change from the weekly grind of tournament play.

Celebrating Our Club’s Recent Team Successes

This month, we’ve had plenty to celebrate with our pennant teams achieving fantastic results—wins that are a testament not just to talent, but to the years of mentoring, support and friendship that have developed across our Club.

• A special mention goes to our senior members of the men’s pennant team, whose guidance helped some of our youngest players produce truly remarkable performances. Our youngest member of this team, Tom Hyland, has contributed to My Favourite Hole this month.

• The women’s Sunday team earned their first-ever pennant win—a result built on over a decade of playing and growing together.

• Our Division 2 women’s team combined cheeky fun with steely determination to pull off a memorable victory.

• These successes reflect more than just skill. They reflect a strong Club culture of support, connection and pride in representing BHGC.

Strengthening Bonds Beyond Our Club

Team golf doesn’t stop at our first tee. We’ve proudly continued our reciprocal relationships with clubs, hosting and attending invitationals that blend competitive golf with great socialising.

• Our annual men’s reciprocal event here at BHGC drew a fantastic crowd once again—even without a clubhouse! Over three days, teams of four from 14 clubs shared golf in the wind, laughs, stories and a love of the game. The strong attendance was a reminder that what makes these events truly special is the friendships, both within and between clubs.

• Our annual match with Royal Melbourne remains oversubscribed every year, proof of how lucky we are to be part of such a tradition. The women’s “Flash in the Pan” is likewise a popular event.

• A team of 16 men represented BHGC at the Royal Adelaide event over the long weekend, where alongside the competition, we exchanged ideas on everything from timesheet management to course development and club governance. Events like this help shape our future by learning from others.

• Mark and Bec Bain proudly flew the BHGC flag at the Kooyonga Invitational, continuing to strengthen our presence and connections on the national stage. Bec said the event was a “very, very well-organised event. The club demonstrated the magnificent South Australian food and wine as well as excellent golf events. Kooyonga executed it beautifully and the staff were tremendous. We feel we are very aligned as clubs and our type of membership.” She also said, “The only win I had was a NTP – a Kooyonga beanie!”

• Usually held in May but coming up in September 2025, the Club is very excited to be hosting the very first major event in the new Clubhouse, the Marrum Cup. This year sees a celebration of 100 years of the event and it will prove to be a very popular event for club teams both nationally and from across the ditch.

 

Get Involved – Wear the Logo with Pride

If you haven’t yet represented BHGC in a team event, now’s the time to consider it. Whether it’s an invitational, a bowl or a district competition, there are so many ways to get involved. Entry lists are available on the website, or you can have a chat with our Golf Operations team about upcoming opportunities.

Team golf is where memories are made, skills are sharpened and friendships flourish. We look forward to seeing even more of you out there representing our Club.

 

My Favourite Hole – Tom Hyland

 

The ninth hole.

A hole where you think you can make a birdie or a simple par, but it always seems to catch you out. A miss left is dead and a miss right isn’t good either off the tee. What really makes the hole difficult is hitting a 7-iron in, or a 4-iron depending on where your tee shot ends up.

Wherever the pin is, it always sucks me in to go at it. A bunker left and a bunker right gives no room for error, which is why the hole is so difficult. Anywhere on the green is a great shot, but par is not given with the tough green that can always lead to an easy three-putt.

 

See you on the first tee,

Jen Carden

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