East Midlands – Kilworth Springs, Leicestershire
Thursday 28th July
Kilworth Springs Golf Club
South Kilworth Road
North Kilworth
Leicestershire. LE17 6HJ
Our first Disabled Golf Society (DGS) event in the East Midlands to attract new members and generate awareness that disabled people can enjoy and play golf was held at Killworth Springs Golf Club on Thursday 28th July 2011. It was a beautiful sunny day, rare in summer 2011, and after tuition with DGS Pro, Keith Williams at the driving range, we set off for the first tee. The course was in fantastic condition, and really interesting to play on – possibly one of the best so far! Members travelled from far afield and many different physical abilities. New members included one-arm golfer, Mark Smith from Derbyshire, double-knee-replacement Gina Collier from Northampton, and David Cooksley, amputee from Nottingham. Regular members travelled from Huddersfield, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, and Gloucestershire.
The competition was split into two, 9-holes and 18-holes (for the more able). The winner of the 9-hole Stableford competition was amputee Dave Wilkinson from Oxfordshire and the 18-hole winner was Brian Parsons who suffers with Parkinsons from Leicester and attended the day with his son Callum. The results were as follows:
9 Hole Competition
1st -Dave Wilkinson (Stableford score- 26 points)
2nd – Mark Smith (21 points)
3rd – Kevin Booth (20 points)
18 Hole Competition
1st -Brian Parsons ( Stableford score- 48 points)
We had a couple of special guests attending the prize-giving. Tom Philbin, former President of Oadby GC was in attendance with his daughter Maggie Philbin (of Tomorrow’s World and Swap Shop acclaim amongst others). The Disabled Golf Society are very proud to be associated with Tom who has been involved in arranging disabled golf days throughout his long career. Tom donated trophies for the day and Maggie kindly presented the winning trophies.
Tom donated the prize for the 18 hole competition as well as :
Longest drive on the 9th – won by Chris Smith
Closest to the pin on the 6th – won by Kevin Booth
Thanks to Jeremy Wilkinson, Darren, Lucy and all the staff and members at Killworth Springs for their help and patience on the day.
About Kilworth Springs Golf Club
Kilworth Springs was built in 1993 but despite its youth, the course has matured quickly and is now widely regarded as one of the Midlands premier courses. Situated in rural Leicestershire and offering extensive uninterrupted views of beautiful rolling countryside, Kilworth Springs is also one of the best drained courses in a hundred miles of the area due to it being on an oasis of sand and shale, giving the course a superb quality of turf too.
Kilworth Springs is a superbly sculptured links style course offering all the best features and facilities for a great days golf. The greens are built to USGA construction standards. The front nine offers a traditional links challenge, whilst the back nine, with its numerous lakes, adds water to the equation. The championship course measures 6718 yards, par 72. Certainly Roger and Ann Vicary, the proprietors of Kilworth Springs, hope that your experience is one which will bring you back time and again to enjoy the delights of an interesting and challenging test of golf.
