As always a keenly contested day for those brave club members who chose to ignore the dire weather forecasts - as it turned out we were very lucky with the weather - indeed, on occasions sun-hats were needed. After the initial wait for the missing 2 members who entered and failed to turn up we witnessed the draw and then the handicap process. Both David Beak/Glenda Midson and Peter Worby/Melanie were swiftly awarded a minus 15 handicap and a volatile Gaynor saw her and Colin's handicap changed from minus 15 to scratch - well negotiated Gaynor - your impassioned plea of "...........but I'm useless" succeeded. 

The 10 pairs were split into 2 groups and after all matches were completed the 4 semi-finalists emerged. There were some highlights for me - the overhead smash from Gaynor which saw the ball bounce off her head, the powerful volley from Barry Cox which nearly decapitated Liz Burch, Doug screaming "run" at his partner Jackie, Gaynor's shot into the bowls club coming just seconds after a bowls person had returned a ball hit over a little while earlier, Colin laying prostrate on the ground after losing a volley rally, Melanie's countless trips to the toilet (was it six visits?), Pat's insistence that we all eat 3 bacon butties each so that we all had the same weight handicap........the list goes on.

The final never quite lived up to its billing after a lengthy start delay (due to yet another Melanie toilet trip) but with the crowd on the edge of their seats due to a combination of the threat of rain and the need for more tea and cake it was David and Glenda who edged a nervy affair beating Melanie and myself by 6 games to 4.

Additional awards: 

Most successful family - the Yardleys (both semi-finalists).
Most competitive person (never previously seen) - Melanie.
Assistant caterer - John Pryse.

Thanks to Pat (assisted by Zoe) for catering duties - wonderful stuff.

Group A