Another fun (well, not for the Pros) action packed weekend at Dreamland with golf a plenty! Read through for a full round up including some fantastic news from our members competing in the Mercedes Final in Bulgaria. For those looking to flex your golfing muscles this weekend Martin and the team are polishing the Black tee markers for their annual outing. If you don’t see our Golf Professionals this weekend ….. they are still in hiding…. But rest assured all bets will get paid out soon…
2019 Pro's Challenge
Clearly our members have benefited from some great advice from our PGA Teaching Professionals as they triumphed in the annual Pro’s Challenge Scramble. The event kicked off at the Harbour Bar in Port Baku, as teams assembled to speculate whether their net score would beat the professionals gross score the following day. The pros meanwhile were putting the finishing touches to their “Shot Bar” which would be ready to host competitors during their round. With a selection of some of the finest spirits on offer players could re-hydrate in the cool AC away from the warm breeze and summer sun. Sadly – neither tactic paid off as the pros team got off to a slow start at only -1 under par after the first 6 holes, needing to dig deep a run of 6 birdies on holes 8,9,10,11,12,13 allowed them to move up the leader board (slightly). Finishing on -7 gross 65 was not enough with them only claiming victory over 4 teams. Beaten by 13 – meant that the pay-outs were bigger than previous years! Well done to 1st place team Sean Harrison, Ray Jacques, Michael Young and Peter Monahan – 59.2 Net (Gross 69) In 2nd place were the team of Stuart King, Daniel Lee, George Ball and Leo Troup – 60.2 Net (Gross 68) The final podium place was awarded to David Runciman, Greg Barclay, Mark Killoh and Mark Taylor with a fantastic Gross 66 net - 60.3.  The side contests were won by the following, Nearest the Pin Hole 10 Tural Velizade, Nearest the Pin Hole 17 Robert McEwan, Longest Drive Hole 3 Leo Troup, Longest Drive Hole 15 Evgeniy Epifanov.
Well done to all….. it may be the last Pro’s Challenge ever staged in Baku…..
Bewitching Bulgaria – with Andrew Hulston
Last weekend six Dreamland members competed in the Mercedes Trophy CEE & Africa Tournament in Varna, Bulgaria, Andrew Hulston, Steve Baker, David Seo, Dag Andre Moen, Elman Rzayev & Andrzej Jankowski, accompanied by Sevinj Abbasova from Mercedes in Baku, arriving in Varna on Thursday morning, checking in at the Lighthouse Golf Resort Hotel. Thursday afternoon they played a practice round at Black Sea Rama Golf Club, David Seo winning the money with a 79 gross, Friday afternoon they played a practice round at Thracian Cliffs Golf Resort, a stunning golf course with views on every hole across the Black Sea, congratulations again to David who took the money for him and his team.
Saturday was the day of the tournament at Lighthouse Golf Resort, the team at the golf club had prepared the course in good condition, the greens were fast, it was sunny & warm and it was very windy, very similar to a normal weekend at Dreamland...but NOT as windy!!! A shotgun start at 10am, however, play had to be suspended near the finish due to thunder & lightning, all the players adjourned to have an early lunch in the clubhouse, fifty minutes later the remaining holes were completed. The results were announced at the official Presentation later that evening, a good day for Azerbaijan! Steve Baker struck a perfect shot for the straightest drive on the 18th hole which won him a four day all expenses trip to The Open Championship at Royal Portrush in July, well done Steve. In the main awards David Seo won the Cat A Group with 34 Stableford Points, Andrew Hulston was second with 33 Points, & Elman won the Cat B Group with 36 Points, both David & Elman have now qualified for the Mercedes Grand Final in Stuttgart, well played guys, good scoring on a difficult day! All players would like to thank Sevinj & everybody at Mercedes Baku for their support, Anton and the team at Dreamland who organised a fantastic trip.  
Black Tee Challange - Sunday 30th of June
Our 2019 Black Tee challenge will take place this Sunday giving you the chance to play the course at its full 6838metre / 7475yards length. Usual tame holes certainly show their teeth for example the Par 3 10th will stretch to 201metres / 220yards and the Par 4 15th which will play a huge 450metres / 492yards.  You will be pleased to see that from the Black Tee’s the course slopes at 142 and will offer players a few more shots!!! See the attached chart for your Black Tee Handicap. Entry fee is usual cart fee and 10 AZN for prize fund.
Please note, players should book their tee times and events team will prepare scorecards for all registered players.
Dreamland Golf Club Members 2019 Match-play Championship Sponsored by Garmin Azerbaijan
Congratulations all players who have won their second rounds matches in 2019 Matchplay Championship. Please note that Third round games to be played by   Monday 22nd of JULY.  The draw is updated with our Golf Genius software. As you enter the tournament website you will see it presented as a Left Side Draw and a Right Side Draw so you can track your progress. Please Note that for MATCHPLAY it is the responsibility of both players to arrange your match, please feel free to contact reservations to request the e-mail address of your opponent reservations@dreamlandgolfclub.com
 
When booking a tee time, please let us know that your intention to play a match, so our team can prepare scorecards with the number of strokes given or received during the game. 
Saturday 22nd of June 2019 – Saturday Roll Up Results
Due to windy playing conditions only 22 players took part in last week’s Saturday Roll Up last Saturday. Winner was Ian Kelly with his 5 under par 41 points. Michael Paterson took second place with 1 under par 37 points. There was tie for third place, with 2 players, Sang Jun Park and John Salins both scoring level par 36 points. In order to determine third place winner, it required us to look at their back nine scores. Since both players had equal (20) back nine points, it further required us to look their back 6 points. After countback, Sang Jun took third place with 14pts vs. John’s 11 inward points which were not enough to keep him on leader board. No one had a 2 on their scorecard, so we have roll over for this week’s Saturday Roll Up.
Longest Day - Golfing Fundraiser
An AMAZING achievement for the 11 players who took part in the 72 Golf Marathon last weekend.  The early pace was set on Friday as our own PGA Professional Anton Samsonov paired with Bryan Thomas  WALKED  4 rounds in around 11hours. Saturdays challengers Evgeniy Epifanov, Emidio Deramo, John Quinn, Alan Ferguson, Callum Stewart, William Blanchard, Kevin David, George Ball and Luka Ivkovic started at 5.30am playing their 72 holes using golf buggies in similar warm and windy conditions. Managing stamina and strength our side contest winners were Alan Ferguson who won The Longest Drive on first hole and William Blanchard who still had enough power to win The Longest Drive on 72nd hole. Well done – Huge Achievement guys!
For this still wishing to Donate please click on the link below to the Charity page.
2019 Season Calendar
We hope players are enjoying our 2019 season so far, Stay tuned for more events due soon. Please feel free to contact the events team    events@dreamlandgolfclub.com      for further details.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
We would like to wish all our “Birthday Ballers!” the very best wishes as they celebrate in June. Go easy on them out on the course and make sure you treat them to a drink on their special day.
Retail News
Looking for some new accessories or sunglasses this season, we have all in store!  The 2019 PRG accessories range includes new ball marker designs whilst also welcoming back into stock the popular heavier DUO marker. Players who carry alignment sticks in their bag for practise, can keep them in orderly fashion with a dreamland cover and for those miss placing your keys, the new Putter Cover key chain will help you find them.
ACADEMY NEWS
WITB (What’s In The Bag)
In this third week of the WITB series we take a look at the all-important irons that we rely on for boosting our greens in regulation percentage and birdie opportunities. To ensure there are no big gaps between clubs it’s vital to have consistent loft increments. Head Professional Alex Days chosen iron make up consists of the following:
  • Ping I500 3 Iron (18 degree), White dot, +1/2”, KBS Tour Stiff, 114g
  • Ping I210s, 4-PW, White dot, +1/2”, DG S300s
Alex commented – What appeals to me most about the i210’s is they blend the look of the iBlade with the forgiveness of the i200. There’s also now an elastomer port in the back that improves feel and the 431 stainless-steel head is softer than the traditional 17-4.   The thin top line and modest offset give it a great look and option to shape the ball. I chose to put the i500 3 iron in the bag as it’s stronger than the i210. It has just 18 degrees of loft and is designed to reduce spin – a perfect driving iron option to help control flight when playing into the teeth of the Baku breeze.
Par 3 Order of Merit
Why not test your short game skills and join us for the third Par 3 OOM this Friday 28th June from 18:00. All those with official handicaps are eligible to compete around 18 holes of the Academy short course, and with four rounds still remaining in the series there’s still plenty of points and prizes available to play for. Please note the Driving Range shall be closed from 17:30 to accommodate the Par 3 OOM event. However, the short game area and putting green shall still be open for those that don’t wish to participate.
Beat the Breeze Lesson Package
To coincide with the seasons third major at Pebble Beach Links earlier this month, Head professional Alex Day is offering a lesson promotion for the remainder of June covering the following topics:
  • How to play the low punch
  • How to hit the high ball (maximising distance downwind)
  • How to fade and draw the ball
Beat the Breeze lesson package consists of   3 x 50 minute sessions for only 295azn  . To learn how to better control your ball flight in windy conditions, please contact Alex on E:  alex.day@dreamlandgolfclub.com   M: +994 55 333 0507
Junior Summer Camp
Following the success of last year’s inaugural Junior Summer Camps, the Academy team are happy to announce the return of a new and improved itinerary. Dreamland shall be joining forces with Baku Tennis Academy to offer a range of fun activities over 5 days, and with various dates throughout the summer all children have the opportunity to get involved. Watch this space for further information.
Pre-Owned Clubs For Sale – More Stock Needed!
Please find below the link to our Pre–Owned selection of golf equipment which we have on offer with the Golf Academy Team. Alex, Kamran or Emma are delighted to allow you to trial any of the items at the Driving Range, as you can see many of the leading brands are featured. If you have any clubs that you wish to sell the team are happy to prepare valuations.
Dreamland Golf Club | +994 (0) 12 404 7 404 | reservations@dreamlandgolfclub.com |