After a long, empty, three year hiatus, the great and the good of Jewish golf descended on Bonnyton Golf Club, the testing Dr Mackenzie masterpiece in the hills south west of Glasgow, for the resumption of the annual Glancy tournament. 

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Oli Rawlings, an old head on young shoulders, captained a strong and formidable UK&I JGS team. Three former Bonnyton members, Jamie and Richard Goldberg, sons of the Glancy chairman Tony (no nepotism here folks) and Gavin Kramer made up the Scottish backbone of the team. The ever reliable Richard Land was here again, a Glancy veteran making his 28th appearance for his 4th different team. Another of Finchley’s finest, Howard Bentwood, its former assistant pro and new daddy, Joey Carr, and former (or just old?) Finchlean Scott Wilson made up the eight men and good.

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The wind blew gently and the sun shone bright and warm for the practice session on Friday, shining a spotlight on the magnificent vista of lush fields, wind farms (of course), ubiquitous sheep and purple hills surrounding Glasgow. The greens were sluggish but word in the clubhouse was that the mowers were primed, the heavy rollers were ready and the weather for the weekend was not going to be kind. Richard Goldberg, unburdened by a card in his back pocket, stood on the 18th tee of the warm up round 4 under par, having, in the words of his former club colleagues, a worldie. But even on this relatively benign of days, Bonnyton bared its teeth, a reminder that your guard can never drop. A double on 18 saw him finish with a 2 under par 69. Could he repeat the feat when putt comes to shove? Quiet confidence simmered through the team. 

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And so, after the traditional Friday night dinner, without the Song Contest but with the same sense of excitement and anticipation, tinged with the ever present fear of a pulled drive here, a thinned wedge there, and in the dead of a dusky, never quite dark Scottish night, the rain began to fall, the breeze turned into a bluster, and the waterproofs were immediately donned come morning. Saturday saw a switch from the usual format, with the singles on day one so that when all was played out, flights could be caught come Sunday evening. They didnae consider in the easyJet factor, but nea bother.

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As the morning wore on, the rain eased a little, possibly favouring the high handicap players with a later start. But it soon became apparent that the backbone of the UK&I team were grinding it out, that net 75 or 76 would be a very good score, and Messers Kramer, Goldberg and Land would lead the way with gross scores of 79, 79 and 81 respectively, and respectfully. Younger brother Jamie came in with a commendable 82 after starting with a nine (remember that number), closely followed by Captain Oli with an 83 and Basher Bentwood with an 85. Six brilliant scores, even better when compared to an unnamed 1 handicapper from Hartsbourne who shot 88, and a plus 2 golfer who shot 77. The magnificent 6 did enough to secure the Lee Park Trophy for best net in the singles.

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On Sunday, for the tricky foursomes format, the wind blew again, with occasional rain. Confidence was high amongst the UK&I team, knowing that the combined net trophy was within reach. Land and Wilson went out first, off the first, and after a wobbly start, came in with a gross 83 for net 74, and then sat in the clubhouse, watching and waiting whilst the others battled Bonnyton. The Goldbergs, looking golden after the night before, managed to grind out another 83 for a net 78.5. Alas, the testing conditions, the previous day’s efforts and possibly the weight of an excellent Glasgow curry took its toll on the remaining two pairs. The combined was not to be, but this was, on any view, a fabulous result. A huge result, with a slightly warped trophy (that Joey Carr will polish and re-shape to perfection) that is the society’s for the next year. 

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The well deserved winners of the Glancy Trophy (with lowest Gross score of 716) were Moor Allerton breaking the Hartsbourne stranglehold at last and the Edmonton Cup was won by hosts Bonnyton with a net score of 675. Well done to both.

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UK&I finished with a gross score of 744 and net score of 683 which was 3rd place for both categories. 

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Thanks go to the Association for putting on such a great weekend of golf and to Bonnyton, its officials, members and all the staff for the use of their fabulous course, the wonderful hospitality, the Irn Bru and the square sausage.

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Bring on the Metropolitan in September and next year's Glancy at Whitefield.

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The UK&I JGS Glancy Team of 2022

4th July 2022