Amended TMGC Management Committee Minutes 25/10/23

1                   Welcome and Apologies. The meeting was opened at 1.15 pm with the President in the Chair. Present were Gerry Moloney (President), Kevin Arnold (Vice President), Simon Briggs (Captain), Ross Barnes (Treasurer), John de Jersey (Secretary), Katy Hewitt and Kristo Bradley. Guests: Andrew Revie and Graeme Andrews.

2                   Professional’s Report. Andrew noted that on Melbourne Cup Day (November 7), there will be a 9-hole event in the morning, followed by lunch at St Bernards and viewing of the Cup. This event is for visitors and members and Andrew will publicise it. As previously agreed, Road to the PGA and Jared Lyle events are upcoming. Andrew is running another club fitting day for interested members on November 21 from 12-5 pm, using the fourth hole. Andrew asked that the dates on which the course will be required for pennants early in 2024 be confirmed. Gerry and Peter McDonnell to reply.

3                   Greenkeeper’s Report. Members appreciated receiving Graeme’s report before the meeting. Graeme told the meeting that the new tractor is expected to be delivered in the next week. He informed the meeting that the Vets Sub-Committee is proposing to erect a memorial plaque in honour of Ian Grimsey, behind the second green which Ian designed and constructed. It was agreed that any signs to be erected on the course required Management Committee approval (as required by the Constitution) and that erection of such a plaque would set a precedent. It was also suggested that a memorial plaque might be better located in the Clubhouse. Gerry/John to write a letter to Stephen Berry along these lines. Kevin will also talk to Warren Castledine about this.  Graeme was asked about the amount of sand in the bunkers and replied that there was a need to redesign the bunkers so that more sand would be retained. Graeme noted that the remaining new tee signs would be erected soon.

Discussion of the “Strategy for Australian Golf” process which TMGC is participating in. The meeting was joined for this discussion by Di Lilley, Stephen Berry, and Peter McDonnell. Earlier in the year, Club members had completed a survey, which was subsequently analysed by Golf Australia (Andrew Leventis). Members of the MC had also submitted details to GA on Club activities and policies under a number of headings. Gerry had prepared copies of the GA report for members and guests to review, which was done in pairs. Ideas were submitted to Gerry for him to summarize and send to Chris Kenward, CPR Group, who will facilitate the next step which is to discuss the future direction of the club and prepare a strategic plan. Chris has been appointed to this role by Golf Australia. Gerry and John to discuss a suitable date for the meeting with Chris.

Return to MC Meeting.

4.      Confirmation of Minutes. The Draft Minutes of the MC meeting of September 20 had been pre-circulated and were confirmed unanimously. The Minutes of the 2023 AGM had been confirmed by the Chair as required by the Constitution and pre-circulated to MC members, They will be placed on the website.

5.      Business Arising from Minutes. Keys for the Greenkeeper’s Shed and Rental Tower surrounds. Kevin will provide a new lock for the shed, required because a significant amount of fuel appears to have disappeared, presumed stolen, and new keys will be provided for mowing volunteers as required. Kevin will also provide a lock and keys to allow access to the rental tower area for spraying of weeds. Other items dealt with were the Hope Island Golf Simulator sponsorship, the downpipe in front of the meeting room, payment for the tractor/spreader, painting of doors and door frames in the annex building, and updating of the Local Rules Board. Still to be addressed are Liquor Compliance signage, Compliance Plan for OLGR 203-24, Psychosocial Hazards Code of Practice, EFTPOS and Alinta point of contact and Website update.

6.      New Membership Approvals. The following membership applications were received and all were approved. Full members: Ron Calvert; Jean Meakin; Luke Granton; Terry Quigg; Lifestyle members: Paul Campbell, Bob Woodberry; Country: Mike Roberts, Barry Mullen; Young adult: Michael Sherlock, Justin Frehner, Emilli Scott,; Junior: Jon-Henry Joslyn; Kohen Aueb; Oscar Conoley, Rian Warwick. The following rejoining membership applications were also approved: Full: Steve Lancaster, Mike Adams, Darren Glenn, John Hands: Junior; Noah Patterson. The total of new and rejoining members was 20 and the total membership was now 264.

7.      Financial Report. Ross had precirculated the monthly financial report for September. The balance at the start of September was $262,490.56 and the closing balance was $168,546.90. The Course Manager’s Financial Report was also provided, showing that the account was showing a favorable balance compared to budget. Ross noted that an anonymous donation of $500 had been gratefully received for the koala tree project. The GCDGA will provide $200 to clubs who provided food for pennant players when they visited. Ross will apply on behalf of TMGC. Ross noted that the accounts held by the Vets subcommittee should be in the name of the TMGC and that the TMGC treasurer should be a signatory. John to write to Stephan Berry and Peter McDonnell on this matter.

8.      Workplace Health and Safety. Ross had asked about the bill for fire safety system inspections (essentially the fire extinguishers). The company servicing our needs is Cicada Fire Safety/ARA Fire.

9.      Competition Report. Simon reported that he has been making progress with checking and entering the results of the Saturday competition into MiClub, with help from Ross H. He noted that ideally, the Committee should appoint an assistant captain, especially to fill in when Simon was unavailable. Katy agreed to help with data entry on Sunday mornings as required.  The MC agreed that people who repeatedly put in incorrect or incomplete cards should be disqualified. Gerry noted that MiClub is soon to be replaced by a new system which hopefully will streamline the operation. Simon will work on the programme for 2024 and bring it to an MC meeting for consideration. Simon told the committee that a large number of eagles were being scored on the fourth hole especially in Ambrose competitions. It was agreed that eagles scored in Ambrose competitions should not qualify for prizemoney. As a general comment, Simon suggested that a comprehensive lists of duties and responsibilities be prepared, which was accepted as a good idea which should be acted upon.

10 and 11.  Correspondence. Gerry wrote to the GCDGA in response to a request for feedback on Interclub, Senior Pennants and Super Seniors. A letter was received from the TM Show Society asking if we wished to advertise the Club on the showground fence using a sign or banner. MC members thought that a permanent sign might be a good idea, depending on cost. Katy agreed to follow this up.

12 and 13. General Business.

·       MC Committees. Gerry suggested that it may be timely to re-introduce sub-committees of the MC, namely House, Match and Course Sub-Committees. After discussion, it was felt that we could perhaps undertake these functions as a full committee, now that it has been streamlined to seven members, to avoid further meetings.

·       Support for Simon. See above.

·       Front deck update. Kevin has made good progress on getting quotes for the decking (Merbau or Modwood), balustrading and vertical skirting boards. It was felt that we could use a garden bed around the deck with mature plants and so not require skirting.  A decision will be needed soon so that the grant of $18000 can be spent and acquitted. Kevin also obtained quotes for a flyover roof. It was agreed that the redevelopment and improvement of the front deck was the current highest priority for capital expenditure.

·       Cart shed update.  Kevin has obtained quotes for a line of buggy sheds parallel to the double line of sheds adjacent to the fourth tee but on the practice green side.  The quotes are for concreting and shed building separately. It was agreed to pursue this as soon as financially sensible. It may be appropriate to fund the concreting this year and the cart sheds next year.

·       Greens Roster. Gerry has done the Greens Roster up till the end of November. This is more difficult at present because Gerry is currently unable to do any mowing. Further options need investigation.

·       Practice area options, signs for back deck and practice area options on hold.

·       AGM Minutes and Financial Report have been provided to Andrew Leventis of Golf Australia, as requested.

·       Honour Board Updating. Kevin will look after this after conclusion of this year’s competitions.

·       Course signage. Katy is looking into options for completing the sign on Golf Course Road.

·       Rubbish bags. There has been a rat problem outside the kitchen area. It is suggested that the problem would be alleviated by putting the black plastic rubbish bags directly into the skip bin.

·       Café screens for back deck. On further consideration, Kevin considers that the wind is frequently too strong for café screens to be effective and will investigate other options.



·       Toro Blower. Kevin suggested that a Toro blower (cost $15,500), seen at work on the course when Graeme borrowed one from Sanctuary Cove, would be a great acquisition for the Club, given the amount of leaves generated by the trees.

14.    Closure and Next Meeting. The Chair closed the meeting at 3.50 pm and the next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, November 15.

Minutes prepared by John de Jersey, TMGC Secretary.