Monetcastillo, Spain

Sometime back in July we decided, we would like to go to Spain to play some golf at the end of the holiday season. That being the case, we asked a couple of friends if they would like to join us and they said that they thought it was a great idea and would love to come.
So we searched the interweb and found what we thought was a fantastic deal, which turned out to be around 50 euros a night, full board and unlimited golf in a 5 Star hotel in Jerez, Spain, brilliant.
With such a great deal on offer, the word spread and our couple of friends turned into a dozen and a dozen soon turned into 20, that was when we had to close the door and say no more.

Unfortunately the time we chose to go away was about the time that the golf club captain has his golfing trip away, and we were being dubbed by some as the "Alternative Captain's Away
Weekend", but the original 6 were never joining that party anyway and it was never meant as an alternative, my apologies to Mr Captain if it was ever seen that way.


Just 2 days before we were due to leave, the tour operator Golf da la Luz, emailed us to inform us that the hotel had doubled booked and we would not be staying in a 5 star hotel but in the 4 star hotel, part of the Montecastillo resort next door. This turned out to be a total rouse, I later found out from the hotel manager, that we were never intended to stay in the 5 star hotel, we were always staying in the 4 star one and Golf da la Luz knew this all the time. Strangely, Golf da la Luz did this to us 2 years ago at a different resort, again using the same ploy. So if you choose the same company to organise any trip for you, beware, Dan the man at Golf da la Luz is about as much use as a bike in San Francisco and not to be trusted.
However, away we went, all 20 of us to Montecastillo near Jerez, Spain. I had been there twice previously about 10 years ago and at the time the course was on the European Tour as part of the Volvo Masters series and obviously was in fantastic condition. Today, perhaps due to the economic climate, the course and the whole area is a shadow of its former self.







Allan Pooley offering Lynette some advice, yeah right

Having said that, everyone played some good golf, some better than others, some found the course very long, which it is. The greens were lightening quick, which suited me, but obviously didn't suit me enough as I could only manage second place in the better ball with my partner, Gloria Pooley.

This is me with Gloria, can you spot the village idiot.

Winners of the pairs better ball competition,

Linda Anthony & Dave Bredo

...............and if all else fails, try table tennis.


David Haddon & Steve Collingwood closely watched by the net cord judge and umpire, Glynis Bredo.