2025. A brave new world.

Our first game back. And we were playing the Levante course. This time, it was all change. They say we are suffering from an ageing population. That there are not enough youngsters to support the growing number of Seniors. It's a big problem for Governments everywhere. Not so for the White Coast Committee. The obvious solution? Get rid of Seniors! Visionaries!

So, out goes SPOTY. In, comes PO1Y and PO2Y. Two divisions. At individual competitions we will be playing to win, or finish runner up, in our respective division. There will be a bonus prize for the overall winner on the day. At the end of the year, our divisional table toppers will receive player of the year awards. A brave new world indeed.

Which Division are you in? Check out the table below.

There was one other change made by the "Visionaries". Players aged 80+ would be allowed to play from the blue tees. We do have a small number of players in this category and they are in remarkably good shape. Time will tell if, in fact, they should be playing from the whites.

So, what happened? First of all, we should have been a full house of 28 players. Our Captain had organised an additional tee-time to accommodate everyone. Unfortunately, two players had to cancel late in the day, and two others that did turn up, didn't make it to the end of the round. The common denominator here, being the Levante GS game at El Plantío on the Friday before. There, the lurgy was passed around. Our Captain assured us this would not be allowed to happen at a White Coast game. Anyone suspected of having the lurgy would only be allowed to play in a mask and full forensics.

To cut a long story short, here are the results:

Overall Winner

Roger Miller - 36.

Division 1

Winner. Dave Collie - 34

Runner Up. Jordan Duffy - 31

Division 2

Winner. Roger Miller - 36

Runner Up. Ray Stone - 32

NP's

Hole 3. Dave Smith

Hole 14. Tony Bowers

Neither chaps managed their birdie. Tony got his par, but Dave three putted. It is a tricky green tbf.

LBS

Mick Callanan worked this out perfectly, again. 26 players x 2 = 52. But, the Richardsons were not looking well and he figured they may not make the back nine where they would have lost two balls each. So, 52-2-2 = 48. Another €27 in the bank. His rate of return on LBS is far greater than any crypto.

Back in the clubhouse, our Captain summarised and concluded the day with his usual aplomb. Hats off to him, because he had had a major medical procedure carried out just the week before. "Indestructible".

Our next game is at Poniente on Wednesday 22nd January, where we are expecting another full house.

As ever, this game will be sponsored by Blevins Franks, International Tax and Wealth Management. peter.hodgkinson@blevinsfranks.com

Licence to Play

We expect Members to obtain the appropriate Federated Licence valid in Spain. This licence grants permission to play on all the Courses on our schedule and includes the liability and accident insurance required by Royal Decree 849/1993.

As a general guide, resident Members should be looking to obtain an Annual Licence with handicap from their corresponding Spanish Regional Federation. In the Valencia Region the cost is €105.70. There is a one off joining fee of €15.

Non resident Members can also obtain an Annual Licence if they wish. If not, they should purchase a One Day Licence at each course which affiliates them to the Federation for that day's play. A One Day Licence costs €2.