MIXED OPEN PROVES A HIT

Muirfield’s Golf Club’s continuing ban on women members may reinforce the widely held view that the game is full of chauvinists but Sheffield Union is showing the way with the introduction of a mixed event.

Sheffield Union of Golf Club, historically the organisation that arranges matches for the region’s male golfers broke all conventions last weekend when it staged its first competition for men and women at Wath Golf Club.

While it attracted only a small field, there are high hopes that the annual fixture will build into a major event over the coming years.

Sheffield Union president Dennis Clarke said: “We held a mixed open event in our centenary year in 2010 and while it went well it was not continued. This year we, with the Sheffield & District Ladies Golf Association, decided to relaunch the competition as an annual event.

“In our view both the men’s and ladies’ associations need to get together to promote the game of golf and we think this is a good way to do it.”

The event was sponsored by Sheffield based Westcourt Financial Services whose managing director David Bullock is a former president of the Sheffield Union of Golf Clubs.

He said: “We are delighted to support the mixed event which we believe is an ideal way of bringing both men and women together to promote the game we all enjoy.”

The inaugural event attracted a field of 32 players from around the Sheffield and District region.

Played as a betterball stableford competition, the claret jug was won by Arthur and Sally Mellars, of Bondhay Golf Club with 43 points (pictured below.)

The runners up salver went to Nick Poppleton (Wath) and Gail Bisatt (Bondhay), pictured below.

Sheffield’s decision to integrate men and women flies in the face of Muirfield which is becoming increasingly isolated.

A poll conducted in Scotland last week said the Edinburgh club’s stance was to be damaging to Scotland’s reputation while 80 per cent surveyed also believe women should have an equal standing to men in the country’s golf clubs.

Muirfield has been dropped by the R&A from The Open Championship roster.  “The Open is one of the world's great sporting events and going forward we will not stage the Championship at a venue that does not admit women as members,” said R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers.

* Sam Bairstow (Hallowes) became the Sheffield Union’s first Champion of Champions shooting 73 over the Hallamshire course beating runner up Rob Andrews (Wortley) on the back nine. Players selected by their home clubs to represent them in the final contested the event.

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