Huntercombe Golf Club

News

24 March 2026 - Huntercombe

v St John's Cantab

Adrian Haxby's Match Report:

I'm delighted to report that we opened our account in the 2026 season with a resounding win vs St John's Cambridge. On a chilly, breezy day at Huntercombe The Hall romped home, turning the tables after a number of years in deficit, with our top 7 golfers (the "Magnificent Seven") compiling a total of 255 points against St John's (how does one write the possessive of St John's? St John's's?) 232, an average score of 36.4 points. Of particular note were Jerry Gray, Tony Moore, David West and Peter Smith on 37, and David Jones with a superb 39 points!

Your fearless leader trailed in with a modest 27 points, having left his driver at home in error and inter alia airmailing his "approach" to the 18th out of bounds onto the putting green. No excuses, just how it was.

We were most graciously hosted by the opposition, led by big hitting Nigel Snaith, who took their defeat manfully. Of particular note on the hospitality front was the excellent Ruddles Best Bitter, which, having travelled all the way from Rutland, bolted down the throats of the assembled thirsty Hallmen faster than a fox pursued by the Cottesmore hunt.

All bodes well for the season with the team having clearly wintered well. The Spring Meeting is perfectly teed up to be a highly competitive event.

16 April 2026 - The Berkshire

Spring Meeting

Adrian Haxby's Report:

Sixteen golfers plus Collers gathered at noon on 16th April, in the splendidly refurbished Berkshire clubhouse for beer and sandwiches. A short extraordinary meeting of the Society was held and Chris Atkinson was unanimously elected Life President. A suitable presentation was made to mark the occasion and our gratitude to him. Collers kindly agreed to act as starter, a role he adopted with great charisma, and play began on the notoriously difficult first of the Blue Course at 13.20 prompt. We enjoyed a bright and breezy afternoon with the course in good, dry condition.

Full statistics are attached but here are some of the highlights:

Of a total of 288 holes played we recorded 6 birdies (Beardmore 2, Durrans 2 (back to back!), Gray 1 and West 1) , 67 pars, 110 bogeys and 105 best described as “other”.
Our best hole was the par 3 13th, with 1 birdie and 7 pars (half the field therefore scoring par or better), perhaps motivated by the proximity of alcoholic relief at the halfway hut and the nearest the pin prize on offer.
3 bogeys and 12 best described as “other”. Your Secretary sank a wonderful 60 footer for the lone par. Enough said.Our worst hole was the long par 4 16th, with no birdies, 1 par,

David McCammon played magnificently, out in 42 gross (4th equal), back in 49 to record a score of 91 in total, four better than his handicap, yielding 39 points. Comfortably the best performance of the day. He wins the (absent) Atkinson Trophy subsequently tracked down in deepest Sussex care of Richard Grainger to be delivered in due course. Messrs Hockey and Lever in joint second recorded a very creditable 36 points each with Messrs Jones and Penwarden hot on their heels with 35 points in joint fourth. Nearest the pin was won by David West and the longest drive, in somewhat controversial circumstances, by your Secretary, albeit with a very fine shot apparently out of sight of the rest of the field. The team prize went to Group 4 comprising Messrs McCammon, Jones, Smith and Advani with a massive 94 points. Our congratulations go to all our winners.

20 May 2026 - Berkhamsted Fitzwilliam/Oxbridge Alumni

Adrian Haxby's Report:

We fielded two pairs: your fearless leader with David McCammon and late entrant Chris Hockey (something to do with his brother in law and whose father he tells me was a club professional) with the redoutable star of our combined efforts, David Jones. It was a blustery day up in Berkhamsted, certainly not the weather for "golf as nature intended". Having now played the course, it's still not clear to me what that means, but there was little risk of intentional exposure given the weather on the day.

Having taken sandwiches and ale in the modern but comfortable clubhouse (also very good cappuccinos) we set out. Haxby and McCammon were paired with Colin Dunkley, the impressively detail focussed Secretary of the Fitzbilly gang and his partner Steve, a retired HR professional with a habit of coming in with a shot whenever his partner faltered. Net result we bought the drinks and submitted a paltry 24 points on our card, which was probably responsible on its own for the overall outcome (see below). Meanwhile Hockey & Jones notched up an impressive 36 points, with the latter slotting a birdie on the last, a tricky hole with a long carry over a road, which he professed to hate in the bar before we teed off.

By the way, in case he hasn't told you, Chris Hockey also got a birdie on the 11th at The Berkshire, which I failed to include in my match report. There you are Chris. I apologise, which as in politics, I assume means all is forgotten and I can remain in office or come back once the dust has settled to do yet further damage...

Meanwhile, back at Berkhamsted, we were served shank of lamb for dinner, which I took rather personally given my lamentable showing on the course.The overall result was a win for the Tabs by something like 37 to 34, with our combined average of 30 probably doing a lot of the damage to the Oxonian tally. Anyway, everyone was far too polite to point that out and the Fitzbilly team left rubbing their hands at the thought of lining up another pasting for us at Stowe on July 16th, of which more anon.

17 June 2026 - The Richmond GC

Summer Meeting