Minutes of TMGC MC Meeting of May 17, 2023. (Redacted)
Draft Minutes of TMGC Management Committee, May 17, 2023.
1. Welcome and Apologies. The meeting was opened by the President in the Chair at 1.25 pm. Attendees were Gerry Moloney (President), Kevin Arnold (Vice President), Ross Barnes (Treasurer), John de Jersey (Secretary) and Katy Hewitt. Also present as guests for the first part of the meeting were Andrew Revie, Club Professional, and Graeme Andrews, Greenkeeper. Apologies: Kristo Bradley, Greg Kearney.
Greg sent a letter to members of the MC indicating that he is resigning from the office of Captain and from the MC, due to work pressures. Greg’s resignation was accepted with regret, and the major efforts made by Greg in recent months were acknowledged with thanks.
2. Professional’s Report. Andrew noted that Sunday is a busy day for visiting golfers. If members wish to play a round, they should check available times and make a booking by phoning the pro shop. If members wish to only have a practice or play a few holes, they should report to the Pro Shop before playing. The MC agreed with Andrew that this is the correct procedure for members to follow.
Andrew noted that the Eagle Tee Challenge on the last Thursday of each month had not attracted strong fields and was having the unwanted effect of turning some members away from playing on that Thursday because they did not wish to play from the black tees. It was therefore decided to put the Black Tee Challenge on hold.
There are two competitions for members on Thursdays, a 9 hole Chook Run organized by the Pro Shop (for which members have handicaps decided by previous performance in the Chook Run) and an 18 hole single stableford which is an official competition with Golf Australia handicaps. Andrew noted that recent statistics show that golf is the second most played sport in Australia after soccer.
3. Greenkeeper’s Report. Graeme noted that the greens renovation in the first week of May had gone well. He advised that the new selective herbicide had arrived (as mentioned in the previous minutes). The Committee approved payment of a bill for mower blade sharpening which slightly exceeded Graeme’s delegation for a single invoice.
Wantima Golf Club has expressed interest in purchasing our old 3100 Reel Motor which is surplus to requirements. The MC agreed that the mower could be sold as is for $8500 but Wantima want us to fix the flat tyre, replace the battery and fix a small hydraulic leak.
Other matters involving the course are as follows:
Upcoming tasks are to level and turf the 17th tee; to finish preparation of the new putting green, which should be complete within three months; and to use glyphosate to kill weeds under trees.
It was noted that the Vets Committee has agreed to cover the cost of five replacement seats on the course and that Stephen Berry will be purchasing them from Bunnings.
There was discussion on provision of new distance markers. It was agreed that a long-term solution would be to set steel stirrups in place and bolt H3 treated posts to the stirrups so that the posts are above the ground. Numbers indicating 100 and 150 metre distances would be attached near the top of the posts. Approximately 10 markers are required. Kevin to organize.
It was noted that no more buggy sheds were available for rental, all of the spaces in the new machinery shed having been allocated. There was a discussion on what type of buggy shed would be cost effective (possibly a shed without individual units separated by partitions) and possible locations. To be discussed at the next meeting after Kevin investigates possibilities, including what the Council will allow.
The possibility of purchasing a Workman/spray unit combination from Toro or John Deere had been raised at a previous meeting. In the meantime, Graeme has been able to return the current Workman to reasonable operating condition. Graeme will keep on the lookout for a second-hand spray unit which may become available when one comes off lease from one of the big courses.
4. Confirmation of Minutes. The Minutes of the April 19th MC meeting were confirmed without amendment (moved Kevin, seconded Katy, carried unanimously).
5. New Members, Membership Renewals and Financial Statement
Ross had circulated a list of new member applications and updated the list at the meeting with some additions. The new members are as follows:
1. Danny Bakay = Full = dannyzdenko@gmail.com
2. Nick Cristiano = Full = nickcristiano71@gmail.com
3. Garry Shead = Full = garryshead@gmail.com
4. Rodney Shead = Full = rodneyshead@icloud.com
5. Sam Weeden = Junior = sweed13@eq.edu.au
6. David Fischer = Country = david81fischer@gmail.com
7. John Guesdon = Full = jguez1@icloud.com
8. Virgoe Buckland = Country = virgbuckland@outlook.com
9. Graig Pickering = Full = craig@hirr.com.au
10. Patricia Pickering =Full = craig@hirr.com.au
Each member was accepted by the Management Committee unanimously. Ross will send an email to each one saying that their membership has been approved and requesting pro rata payment until the end of the financial year. It was agreed to continue with the welcome letter and $50 allocation for Club House purchases as a welcoming gesture. It was agreed that applicants for membership who provide Andrew with a completed application form and pay the relevant subscription can start playing as provisional members. In the unlikely event that their membership application was rejected, the moneys paid would be refunded.
Ross circulated an updated Application for Membership (2023-24) and an updated Annual Membership Fee Renewal. Renewal forms are to be emailed to individual members via the Newsletter with a link to the website and also made available in hard copy at the Pro Shop. Annual subscriptions have been increased by the Brisbane CPI increase for the last 12 months. There has also been a slight adjustment of relative amounts payable by weekday and country members. It was noted that weekday members are not eligible to play in Club competitions. It was noted that the revised membership categories had been approved at the last meeting. These would be included in a new By Law to be voted on at the September AGM.
Ross also circulated the monthly financial statement which showed a balance of $165,731.04 at the end of April 2023, compared with $162,341.59 at the end of March 2023 and $100,520.03 at the end of April 2022. The MC agreed to reimburse Katy $28 for two bags of potting mix from Mitre 10 (used in the front garden) Moved Ross, seconded John, carried unanimously.
6. Workplace Health and Safety. No matters were raised.
7. Captain’s Report.
Greg had circulated the Captain’s Report. As noted above, Greg has resigned from the Captain’s position but will continue to finalize scorecards till the end of May. There was some discussion about a possible replacement and Gerry agreed to follow this up. The MC can appoint a Captain to serve until the AGM in September when an election will take place. Gerry will ask Greg if the printers for card printing have been ordered, as agreed at the previous meeting. This needs to be done soon.
The six sets of indexes as agreed at the last meeting (M and F for black, blue and white tees) are close to finalization, based on scores achieved during the trial period. Kevin and Gerry will finalize them to allow printing of the new cards.
There was discussion of Honour Board events. Discussion will continue regarding the number of golfers required to form a competition. It was agreed that prizes may need to be adjusted based on the number of entrants as advised by Golf Australia.
Andrew will ask Dave Strong to print two boxes of cards. Note that cards will still be required for visitors after we start printing cards for members.
8. Correspondence. Letter to the Secretary via email from Greg Kearney resigning from the role of Captain. The Secretary will write to Paulette Legge and Mandy Brown about Women in Golf / Equal Opportunity matters related to Club competitions. It was agreed that the review of all of our programs to be conducted under the auspices of Golf Australia (Model Venue Initiative Survey) would provide an excellent opportunity to address a host of matters in the context of best practice. The Secretary will also update Jon Krause’s office on Club office-bearers and contacts. Gerry will ask Bjorn to update photographs on the Club website. Gerry to attend a GA workshop in Toowoomba on June 8. The Secretary advised that the Secretary of the Vets Committee Peter McDonnell had forwarded a copy of the Minutes of the Vets’ most recent committee meeting and a financial statement, as requested. The MC is required by the Constitution to maintain oversight of the Vets and Ladies Committees.
9. General Business (not covered above).
· It was suggested that now is the time to change the fourth hole into the first hole, because we are deciding on new scorecards, indexes and hole numbers. This would have the desirable effect of finishing a round of golf (9 or 18 holes) at the green immediately in front of the Club House, namely the current third green. In his starter’s role, Andrew would be able to see who is on the new first tee using one of the new security cameras. Members felt that it is unlikely that this change would cause more bottleneck problems than currently. It was agreed that this change could be made from July 10 after the Interclub series is completed. It was also agreed to change the par on the fourth hole black course to par 5, so that par would be 72 from all three tees. Note that the change in par rating of the fourth hole from the black tee from 4 to 5 is justified by the scores of A graders during the trial period. Discussion to continue so Kevin can price an electric greens mower from Ben at Toro as it will be quieter than the current greens mower.
· Proposed rules developed by the Match Committee to address the problem of slow play and passed at our April MC meeting will be placed on the website.
· An Exetel technician will be visiting the Club House on 30 May to improve our internet access.
· The working bee required for various maintenance jobs was put on hold (cleaning solar panels, cleaning cobwebs from CCTV cameras, gurneying buggy shed doors, gurneying pathways, picking up sticks )
· It was noted that any email correspondence from Club members received by one MC member should be copied to all members.
· An Insurance claim involving a playing matter is ongoing.
· Practice area development is considered of high priority and will be discussed at the next meeting.
· Psychological hazards experienced by employees. A code of practice will be developed (as required by the Queensland Government; attention Secretary).
· A plan to plant koala trees in certain areas on the course suggested by Bruce Bartle and supported by Leon, Gee and Gerry was supported unanimously with a possible request for members to donate funds and plant the trees if so desired.
· Dave Strong was asked to give a quote to supply a Local Rules board, to cover the two-door space at the back of the Club House.
· Thanks to Tim Kerr for arranging a new hot water system and Mark from Cobra Plumbing for installation.
· Todd is arranging for 5 sets of LED sensor lights to replace those around the clubhouse and Kevin will talk to Tony Cole about placing a new one in front of the cart shed for safety reasons.
· Quotes for rendering and painting of the Club House including the toilet block. It was agreed that rendering the brick work and painting would give a big boost to the appearance of the Club House. A quote of $26,000 (including GST) was obtained by Katy and further quotes are being sought. The original budget for the year provided up to $50,000 for Club House improvements. Even after paying for the improvements already completed and paid for, this quote would bring total expenditure to under $50,000. Katy is getting additional quotes. With a view to expediting the process, the Committee agreed to an expenditure of up to $26,000 on rendering and painting (moved Ross, seconded Gerry, carried unanimously).
Closure and Next Meeting. The Chair closed the meeting at 4.05 p m. The next meeting will be held at 1.15 pm on Wednesday, June 14.
Minutes prepared by TMGC Secretary, John de Jersey.
