The team at Stover Golf Club are looking ahead to the England Golf Awards with a mixture of optimism and pride after being nominated for a prestigious prize.
Stover Golf Club General Manager Simon Bawden said winning Tournament Venue of the Year at the England Golf Awards would be “the icing on the cake”.
The Devon venue welcomed six finalists for the English Women’s County Finals in September last year, providing an exceptional experience for the players and visitors.
A large pool of volunteers were on hand to aid the in-house team and ensure things ran smoothly, with a spectator guide providing key information.
Even amid a weather delay on the final day, the catering team sprung into action and provided lunch for 70 people at very short notice.
The team at Stover are now looking ahead to the England Golf Awards in April, with Simon hopeful it will signify another step forwards for this ambitious club.
“We have good support travelling to the Hilton, Manchester in the hope that the club’s name will be called out,” he said. “It would be the icing on the cake and a huge achievement for a club which has ambitions beyond its present standing.”
Simon moved to Stover from Thurlestone in February last year, taking up a role at the club he joined as a junior and where he was a member for 20 years. He arrived at an interesting time, with the club undergoing an enforced rerouting of the front 9 to accommodate the widening of the adjacent A382.
That work started in 2021 and was still ongoing when the club was offered the opportunity to host the English Women’s County Finals. Work on the revised course layout was completed in June 2024, just a few months out from the tournament, and it was all hands to the pump to show the club and facilities in their best light.
“The whole club bought into this opportunity, and it was apparent we needed an organising committee to liaise with England Golf Tournament Staff and the organising committee needed an experienced lead,” Simon explained.
“The club were able to call on the expertise and services of Sarah Arnold, our Lead Organiser. In a previous life Sarah had overseen significant event management and had been involved first-hand at past women’s national finals.
“Although we had a raft of volunteers doing all sorts of tasks and staff worked really hard on delivery (during the week the Club’s F&B team produced just shy of 800 meals, through breakfast, lunch and dinner) it was really Sarah’s attention to detail which stood out as a highlight and was the driving force behind the very successful staging of this event.”
Simon also paid tribute to Course Manager Jason Brooks and his greenkeeping team for providing playing surfaces in keeping with the quality and prestige of the tournament.
“Two months out Jason started putting a programme together to ensure the course was presented in the best possible fashion,” he said. “Jason and his team worked tirelessly in the run-up to the event and this continued during the tournament week itself.
“On a reciprocal basis, Jason called on other local greenkeepers to assist during the week. Everyone said the course was a picture and was a real credit to Jason and his team.”
But the highlight for Simon was the overwhelmingly positive feedback Stover received from visiting dignitaries, players and spectators, who were united in their praise for the club.
“They all said how friendly the club came across,” he said. “It was a real pat of the back for everyone involved.”
