The Mike Amos Letchworth Golf Foundation (MALGF)

MALGF helps our young members to discover just how good they are.

Supporting individuals

Our main aim is to help young individuals to become the best golfers they can possibly be. First, we encourage them to step out of their comfort zone, by competing in county events. These events give them valuable experience, competing against their peers and away from the familiarity of their home course. Next, we push them on to compete in regional and national events, some lasting two days or even longer, and some with half-way cuts. This is serious exposure at a much higher level, and is a real test of skill and attitude.

Once approved, we make allowances towards an individual’s entry fees, travel costs and subsistence, and we also make contributions to coaching fees. To gain MALGF support, individuals must agree a plan for the year with the Trustees: competitions must be of a suitable standard, and expenditure pre-agreed. We work closely with the applicants to ensure this.

If you are interested in knowing how you might benefit from this form of support, please contact Mike Slattery on 07747 865695 or  slatterymichael172@gmail.com

Supporting the Junior Section

Since MALGF was formed, in 2007, we have invested a grand total of £100000 in Junior Golf at Letchworth. £84000 of this has helped individuals in the various ways described above. More recently, we have also started investing in the Junior Section itself, and additional funds of £16000 have already been provided to help fund recruitment and development enterprises.

In 2020, for example, we are focusing on:

• A Winter Programme to keep juniors involved and to improve their handicaps during the close season.
• An Outreach Programme by which Darren Close, LGC’s new Assistant Professional, will engage with local schools. The purpose of this is twofold: to introduce starters to golf, and then to welcome them to our facilities and demonstrate the benefits of being a Letchworth Golf Club member.
• Inclusiveness: it can be expensive for parents to fund the initial costs of introducing children to golf. Malgf will support the Section as it seeks to make its offering truly inclusive.

Our aim is to help the Section to broaden its recruitment programme, and to build a strong base for future progress.

We work closely with the Junior Section on these activities and, if you would like to know more, please contact Mark Clark, Junior Convenor, Letchworth Golf Club.

Performance

Over the last 12 years we have supported more than 120 young golfers, aged between 7 and 25, with handicaps 36 to scratch (or even better!). Many of these have simply learned to be better golfers. Many more have dipped their toe in the water and competed in club opens and county order of merit competitions. A number have gone on to achieve great results at county and regional level, and some have achieved results they could only have dreamed of.  

During the last decade, MALGF-supported youngsters have become winners of both the Men’s and Ladies’ County Championships, The Hertfordshire Orders of Merit (Men’s, Ladies’ and under 18, net and gross), the Herts Open, the Sir Nick Faldo Commemoration Welwyn Jug (twice) and the Herts Colts Trophy. And the majority of the club’s current Men’s Scratch team came of age during that period and many have received major support from MALGF during that time.

In 2018 the club’s elite started to set new standards. By winning the London Amateur Scratch Foursomes, Laurie Owen and Jack Slater have put LGC firmly on the amateur map. Having LGC engraved on the enormous trophy, alongside the great London Clubs - Sunningdale, Wentworth, Walton Heath, The Berkshire, Moor Park, Woking and others - represented a great achievement and reflected the improvement in standard of golf at the club in recent years.

Then 2019 was an extraordinary year: never before has Letchworth Golf Club featured on the starting sheets of so many top national and international amateur tournaments.

At the Portugal Open, Italian Open, English Open, Irish Open, British Amateur Open (the world’s most prestigious men’s amateur event) and even the USGA mid-amateur championship in Denver, USA, Letchworth Golf Club was proudly represented by Laurie Owen. Laurie played in many other national events in the UK and finished the season in the top 25 of the England Men’s Golf ranking. And finally, just before Christmas, Laurie finished third in the Alps Tour Q-school tournament in Malaga. As a result, he will be turning professional in 2020 and joining that Tour on a regular basis.

MALGF has supported Laurie since he was fourteen years old, and we are delighted to have played a significant part in his development over the years. He has been a fantastic representative of Letchworth Golf Club, and we wish him every success in his professional career.

Meanwhile, Anna Collis flew the flag for Letchworth in the top ladies’ UK tournaments. She registered very good finishes in the English and Welsh Women’s Open Championships. The highlight of her year was 4th place in the Critchley Salver at Sunningdale in a very strong field featuring many Curtis Cup and international players.  Anna achieved a top 50 place in England Women’s Golf ranking and is now going on to set up a sports coaching business which will take up much of her time in 2020. She intends to continue to play golf (off a +1 handicap!) but with a less busy national schedule.

What an honour for Letchworth Golf Club to be represented by such fine ambassadors.

As we say goodbye to Anna and Laurie, new talent is emerging from the Junior ranks.  The Sangha brothers had a very good season, with Kesir winning the Herts County u14 championship and older brother, Kiertan, winning the Chesfield and Essendon Scratch Junior opens and finishing 3rd in the Herts Boys Scratch Order of Merit.  The Akpans, Ixie and Ethan, continue to make remarkable progress. The Clark brothers, Billy and Joe, also had a good season, and Oscar Earle won the Club Junior Championship. Grace Cranston won the Redbourn Girls Open, and Danielle Storton Sey tied 5th in the Ladies’ 2019 East Region Strokeplay Championship at Hadley Wood – a superb result in a very strong field.

MALGF liaises closely with Darren Close, assistant Professional at LGC in 2019. He has worked enthusiastically and successfully with new young golfers, and with more advanced juniors during the year. MALGF has supported Darren by funding the latest golf training equipment, which makes lessons more enjoyable and productive for children of all standards. The new Swing Studio, opened in 2020 at the club, will provide further opportunities for our juniors to develop their abilities. A Winter Training Programme for juniors at the Swing Studio will be subsidised by MALGF.

While MALGF funding helps all our juniors to take full advantage of the coaching and fantastic facilities available at Letchworth Golf Club, in 2020, plans are in place to fund an outreach programme to local schools.  The idea is to promote golf to children who might not otherwise have that opportunity.  We hope that this will be good for local children, good for LGC Junior Section and, ultimately, good for the future of Letchworth Golf Club.

Letchworth is clearly a club where talented golfers can develop and thrive, and MALGF will do whatever it can to help this continue.

Help needed

But this is heavy expenditure and it cannot continue without a regular inflow of funds. At present we rely almost exclusively on our Annual Golf Day to provide the money for these activities. This is a risky activity which depends on the continued support of the club, local businesses, and sympathetic individuals, and we are very grateful for the loyal band of supporters and participants who have made this a successful event so far.

Nothing in life can be guaranteed, however, and we constantly need to refresh our approach, add new supporters, and find alternative sources of income to ensure that MALGF can continue its activities well into the future.  If you are interested in playing any part in what we do, please contact us.

The Trustees

Tony Parker                              parke_t@msn.com

Mike Slattery                           slatterymichael172@gmail.com

Paul Shadbolt                          paul@thpl.co.uk

Stuart Guyton                         stuartguyton49@gmail.com

Charles McKay                       mckayc@sky.com