EDINBURGH 2024
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The 24th Calco Challenge Cup
“ Och Aye The Noo “ gents, it’s time for Scotland and some proper links golf!!! Known as Scotland’s golf coast it’s the greatest concentration of Championship links golf courses in the world. From one of the oldest golf courses in the world to some of its most revered and true hidden gems, Scotland’s golf coast has an un-paralleled selection of golf courses to suit golfers of all ages and abilities…….. and that’s why we are going there. 🙂
This year we will be staying in Edinburgh, the vibrant capital city of Scotland which is brimming with history and culture, but more importantly the city centre and New Town are absolutely bursting with cocktail bars and cosy pubs. Head to George Street to enjoy a classy cocktail or Rose Street to enjoy some famous Scottish hospitality. For example there’s the Three Mary’s Bar where Foz can order his three pizzas! Or there’s the Brewdog for Big Dog and MWS or even visit the Last Word Saloon where Mr Callaghan will be frequenting 😉
This year we are down to a field of 22 players competing to win the coveted Calco Cup, the smallest field we have had since 2007. Think the hard test of links golf and no guaranteed sunshine has scared a few off this year, however we look forward to seeing them back in Turkey for the 25th Anniversary of the best golf competition in the world!
Due to work commitments/situations and a couple of other misdemeanours we have had six late withdrawals this year in Steve McHugh, Paul Rich, Jimmy Holiday, Damien Thorngate, Doigy and Stuart ‘The Mooose’ Kiltie. Mr Kiltie will be paying his dues at some time in the future 😉 . They will be missed and we look forward to welcoming them back next year. On the plus side we have a large southern contingent challenging for the title this year. After a few years absent we welcome back Big John Clements ( Who is back in the building ), Paul ‘Pokerface’ Ephremsen who’ll be looking to play his best hand and our very own treble winner the one and only Mr Peter Burke. Can he make it an unprecedented 4th Title! Great to have these characters back in the mix.
For the first time we won’t have a returning Golden Goose or Mr Mooose from the previous year. Will this open the competition up for a new name on the trophy whilst at the same time create some real pressure at the wrong end of the leader board!! Messrs Copley, Bell and Callaghan may have an extra bead on their brow teeing off on the first day, but who knows may be they are fully prepared.
Now is the time boys, be prepared, focussed, relaxed and enjoy the ride!
Good luck to one and all and we will see you over the border on the 3rd September.
The SAS
The Courses
Golf was first played on the East Links, North Berwick in the 17th century, although a nine hole course did not come into being until 1894. It was extended to 18 holes in 1906 with a design provided by five times Open Champion, James Braid and his design partner Ben Sayers.
Suiting players of all abilities the course is challenging, but fair. It is 6,275 yards (Par 70) for men off the medal tees and a 5,773 yards (Par 73) for ladies.
Inspired by the great links courses of Britain, particularly those on land which are less dominated by dunes, Craigielaw is equal to many of the finest examples of such courses; some of which are conveniently located nearby in the East Lothian area.
Designed by Donald Steel & Co. the course opened in 2001 and in this short period has been host to many national events, including the 2006 Scottish Amateur Strokeplay Championship and was a qualifying course for the 2007 British Seniors Open at Muirfield.
With challenging greens, cavernous bunkers and spectacular views over the Firth of Forth, Gullane Hill and out towards Edinburgh and Fife, Craigielaw Golf Club is an experience not to be missed.
Laid out by the two time Open championship winner Willie Park Jr in 1898, Gullane No. 2 runs alongside No. 1 for the first seven holes before sweeping down to a nature reserve next to Aberlady Bay. The course turns towards home from the 13th tee with the prevailing wind, down Gullane Hill back to the new Gullane Links Clubhouse (opened June 2021). The beauty of the East Lothian coastline and the challenge of the layout create an unforgettable round that epitomises links golf in Scotland. In particular, Gullane No. 2 is renowned for the challenge of its short holes embodied by the 215-yard, par three 11th with its wonderful views, testing downhill tee shot and tricky club selection.
The Warm Up
Well what can I say obviously the sun shone on the Calco boys once again. What a perfect day for golf and a fantastic turnout from the lads for this year’s Calco warm up and also for our very own ‘Joker in the pack’ Mr Mark Wallis (South) 60th birthday celebrations.
This year we ventured back to Howley Hall GC due to a change in secretary who was much more accommodating to our needs. First of all can I give a big shout out to the Southern boys for making such an effort to join in with the warm up and draw shenanigans, very much appreciated. Also a massive thanks and plenty of Calco LOVE to MWS for his generosity with money behind the bar for the Calconians and the fantastic prizes he put up on the day.
Mr Wallis chose a four man team event for the days competition, which proved very competitive and kept everyone interested till the end, not wanting to let their team mates down. With one hole to play there was only 4 points separating the top 5 groups, Pete Burke’s team leading the way at this point. But with only two points scored as a team on the last hole they fell away down to fourth place. This let MWS’s team in to take the spoils scoring seven points on the last hole, with four points coming from the inform Gav Whitworth with a great gross birdie. Great format which ended up being very tight, full team scores below.
With a team competition individuals can hide behind their playing partners, however Mr Wallis had this covered running an individual event alongside on the day. So let’s have a quick look at the individual scores to see if there is a stand out Golden Goose or a nervous Moose amongst them!!
Gav Whitworth carried on his last couple of years form with a fantastic 37 points to win the day and take the cash. His form has been consistently good now for several years and I’m sure this result will catch “ Bell’s Bookies “ eye and he could very well be the pre-tournament favourite once the handicaps have been announced. Other good results came from Big Rob with 34 points off 9, great scoring and good to see him hitting some form at the right time. Some very solid performances from the bulk of the field this year, just a quick acknowledgement to Paul ‘Siggy’ Sykes on his comeback trail with a very STEADY performance 🙂 . This should give him some confidence coming into the big event. We do, however, have some participants attending this year who will have a nervous twitch travelling up to Scotland. Moose droppings could well be following two of our southern favourites up the A1!! MWS and Elvis both scored a below average 25 points, improvement needed here before they can sleep easily in the Village hotel. They do however have a comfort blanket with a couple of serial moooses feeling the pressure as we come to the business end. Our Ginger moose Mr Copley had a poor score of 21 points. This has slightly come as a shock due to the effort Graham has put in over the last couple of seasons and with having some good scores over the last couple of months. I’m sure it’s just a blip 😉 . Slightly more concerning was the performance from our very own rare breed “ The Callamooose “ with just 11 points!! This after joining a club this year, although I’m not sure he’s actually played there yet!! He’s also employed a personal trainer to get him into peak fitness for the ultimate test. Not sure Calla realises a bit of natural talent is also needed. I’m sure he will have those clubs finely tuned when needed and as we all know Mr Callaghan has never moosed abroad, but is this really abroad!! I’ll be having a couple of quid on him 😉
I’d just like to say thanks again for all your efforts in making the ‘Warm up’ a great day, especially our southern friends. All’s left to say is this is the time boys, but is it your time! Focus the mind, Identify your problem areas and visualise that winning putt – Dare To Dream.
All the very best to our Calconian friends, see you in a couple of weeks
The Committee
The SAS, Foz & PLB
Warm Up Results
Team Leaderboard
Four man team – 3 to score – all 4 on the 18th hole
| Position | Team | Points |
| 1 | Mark Wallis (S) Micky Baldwin Gav Whitworth Steve Hardwick |
100 |
| 2 | Chris Ramm Damien Thorngate Stuart Kiltie Graham Copley |
98 |
| 3 | Robbe Fleming Jimmy Holiday Adam Davison Steve McHugh |
98 |
| 4 | Peter Burke Phil Richards Phil Lister John Clements |
96 |
| 5 | Craig Lightowler Paul Rich Jeff Wind Paul Sykes |
94 |
| 6 | Peter Forster Martin Crossfield Ben Yeadon Stephen Callaghan |
91 |
Individual Leaderboard
| Individual Stableford | Points |
| Gav Whitworth | 37 |
| Robbe Fleming | 34 |
| Steve Hardwick | 31 |
| Chris Ramm | 30 |
| Ben Yeadon | 30 |
| Paul Sykes | 29 |
| Jeff Wind | 29 |
| Peter Forster | 29 |
| Peter Burke | 28 |
| Phil Richards | 28 |
| Phil Lister | 28 |
| Adam Davison | 28 |
| Damien Thorngate | 27 |
| Craig Lightowler | 27 |
| Martin Crossfield | 26 |
| Mark Wallis (South) | 25 |
| Stuart Kiltie | 25 |
| John Clements | 25 |
| Steve McHugh | 22 |
| Jimmy Holiday | 22 |
| Graham Copley | 21 |
| Micky Baldwin | 18 |
| Paul Rich | 17 |
| Stephen Callaghan | 11 |
Calco Cup 2024 Information
Handicaps
| Player | WHS | The Glenn | Craigielaw | Gullane No 2 |
| Stephen Tatterfield | 5.3 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| Robbe Fleming | 7.1 | 8 | 7 | 8 |
| Peter Burke | 7.4 | 8 | 7 | 8 |
| Stephen Hardwick | 9.1 | 10 | 9 | 10 |
| Gavin Whitworth | 9.7 | 11 | 10 | 11 |
| Philip Lister | 10.3 | 11 | 10 | 11 |
| Scott Frazer | 10.9 | 12 | 11 | 12 |
| Martin Crossfield | 11.4 | 12 | 11 | 12 |
| Peter Forster | 12.3 | 13 | 12 | 13 |
| Paul Ephremsen | N/A | 14 | 13 | 15 |
| Christopher Ramm | 14.3 | 16 | 15 | 16 |
| Craig Lightowler | 15.1 | 17 | 16 | 17 |
| Paul Sykes | N/A | 17 | 16 | 18 |
| Benedict Moyle | N/A | 18 | 17 | 19 |
| Terry Saunders | N/A | 18 | 17 | 19 |
| Gregg Linnell | 17.6 | 18 | 18 | 19 |
| Adam Davison | 19.3 | 19 | 18 | 20 |
| Ben Yeadon | N/A | 19 | 18 | 20 |
| Mark Wallis (South) | N/A | 20 | 19 | 21 |
| John Clements | N/A | 20 | 19 | 22 |
| James Curley | 22.4 | 25 | 24 | 25 |
| Graham Copley | N/A | 25 | 24 | 26 |
| David Bell | N/A | 28 | 28 | 28 |
The Draw
Paul Sykes
Peter Burke
Craig Lightowler
John Clements
Steve Hardwick
Mark Wallis (South)
Terry Saunders
Chris Ramm
Martin Crossfield
Paul Ephremsen
Ben Yeadon
David Bell
Scott Frazer
Phil Lister
Steve Tattersfield
Adam Davison
Robbe Fleming
Ben Moyle
Peter Forster
Gregg Linnell
Graham Copley
Jimmy Curley
Gavin Whitworth
CALCO CUP 2024 Form Guide
SCOTLAND
Field – 23
VENUES – The Glen Golf Club, The Craigielaw Golf Club, The Gullane Golf Club
PREVIOUS CALCO CUP WINNERS TAKING PART – Ben Yeadon, Ben Moyle (2), Gav Whitworth, Steve Tattersfield, Peter Forster, Jimmy Curley, Pete Burke (3)
PREVIOUS CALCO CUP MOOSES TAKING PART – David Bell (4), Graham Copley (2), Mark Wallis (S), Gav Whitworth
WHEN & WHERE TO BET – Bells Bookies via any form of communication
WEATHER – fairly decent & Sunny Weds/Thurs with a possibility of light rain Friday afternoon, just a gentle breeze all three days
COURSE GUIDE
Day 1 – Glen
Stunning course with views to die for in the beautiful North Berwick. As always with these links courses the weather plays a strong part in its defence. At just over 6,000 yds it will provide both a test but also should have plenty of scoring opportunities if you can keep it on the fairways and avoid straying into the strategically placed bunkers. The par 3 13th is the signature hole alikened to the famous par 3 at Pebble Beach!
Day 2 – Craigielaw
Built more recently in 2001 Craigielaw has quickly become a real gem and hosted the British Seniors open in 2018 & 2019. It has all the usual Scottish links attributes & difficulties. Only players right on their ‘A’ game will come back with a decent score and on moving day we will find out who’s teeing it up for Calco glory or who’s going to be having a sleepless night worrying about wearing the antlers.
Day 3 – Gullane No 2
Each course will be magical but I can say we have saved the best until last! A truly spectacular links course that has millions of bunkers and huge greens that I have no doubt will see a few 4 putts! It’s a test but good course management will be the key to deciding the Calco champion 2024.
Key Attribute – All 3 courses – Accuracy & course management
STORY OF 2023
Day 1 – Calanova
Another superb event where 31 Calconians descended upon Fuengirola in Spain. On day 1 play began at Calanova which was a lovely testing course with the weather being exceptionally hot. It certainly got the better of a few players with the likes of Ben Moyle, Jimmy Curley, Craig Lightowler and surprisingly 2020 champion Stuart Kiltie all scoring 23 points. Nobody was detached and all were only 12 points off the leading score of 35 points, which fell to the strongly fancied Martin Crossfield, though the post round drinks in the bar were dominated by Mark ‘Coco the Clown’ Wallis who was chirping away to all that would listen to him with a majestic 34 points!
Day 2 – Santana
Another stunning course that felt a bit more open than the previous day and scores reflected that with 23 of the now 30 players (Jack Horner w/d) scoring 30 points or more. Even so ‘rookie’ Sean Forster’s 43 points has to be one of the all time great scores on the Calco! This was also closely matched by another rookie in Ian Warren who scored a magnificent 41 points. From nowhere on day 1 this propelled the two of them up the leaderboard but with day 1 leader Martin Crossfield also scoring a brilliant 39 points Sean Forster was 4 points adrift of Martin. After missing a golden opportunity In Cork was this Martins big chance to erase those memories? Joining them in the golden goose group was the ever reliable Steve Tattersfield but he was 6 points off the lead and the Calco winner looked like it was between the leading 3.
Now at the bottom and someone was hitting the ball a country mile as usual but sadly in a million different directions except straight. This was ex-champion Stuart Kiltie, he mustered just 22 points and was now plum last and staring the antlers right in his face. He had some hope as none other than Steve Callaghan was the one just in front of him but 8 points ahead which of course gave Calla enough to spare to get right inside Mr Kiltie’s head!! Looking over their shoulders for sure were two former champions in Peter Forster & Jimmy Holiday on 55 points while also on the same score were Jimmy Curley and 2 times moose Graham Copley, this was going to be fun!
Day 3 – Los Lagos
Los Logos was a brilliant course to finish on but very tough, it was also incredibly warm again and many who had not recovered from the previous two rounds , as well as a heavy night in Fungerola were going to pay the price. Quite a few had no chance of winning or being moose and a lot of scores reflected that, as usual generous par 3 prizes did get everyone’s attention!
Starting at the bottom end there was just no coming back for our 2020 champion Stuart Kiltie much to the delight of Callaghan and he became the 3rd member of the elite club of Calconians who have both won the title & been moose (Gav Whitworth & Mark Wallis North). His final tally of 67 points would not have moosed in many other years but such is the quality of play these days. A desperate 17 points from Ben Moyle certainly had him waiting for news behind but Kiltie’s woes saved him but a Moosette for Moyle all the same!
A good last day for the likes of Whitworth, Fleming, Wind & Linnell which propelled them up the leaderboard, but after nine holes it was clear the title was now between Martin Crossfield & Sean Forster as they pulled clear of Warren & Tattersfield. Only a point or two separated them with 2 holes to play but it was rookie Sean Forster, who for the second day running hit the days top score with a brilliant 39 points giving him a magnificent 109 points over the three days. Martin Crossfield played as well as he could and can hold his head up high and certainly never threw this one away and was a well deserving runner up on 106 points while Ian Warren (103 pts) & Gav Whitworth (102 pts) made the frame.
Wallis South’s first go at doing the handicaps were roundly applauded though he was secretly kicking himself seeing a rookie win but to be fair Sean Forster played fantastic and was a deserving winner of the 23rd Calco Cup!
1st – Sean Forster ..109 pts (30/1 to win)
2nd – Martin Crossfield ..106 pts (40/1)
3rd – Ian Warren …103 pts (30/1)
4th – Gav Whitworth ..102 pts (20/1)
Fav – Andy Fearnside (6th) & Stuart Kiltee (last) ..14/1
27th – Mark Wallis (North) ..79 pts (100/1 to moose)
28th – Davis Bell … 75 pts (2/1 fav)
29th – Ben Moyle .. 72 pts (20/1)
30th – Stuart Kiltie ..67 pts (100/1)
PLAYER PROFILES
Summary
The Calco goes up North to Scotland’s East Lothian this year which is an absolute golfers paradise. We are playing 3 cracking courses finishing with the world renowned Gullane 2. For various reasons we are missing regulars like Fearnsides, Doig, Baldwin, Wind, Wallis (North), Rich, Holiday, Kiltee, Woolridge, Kensitt & Mchugh but all look to be back for Turkey and the 25th anniversary in 2025. It’s great to welcome back Paul Ephremsen & John ‘Elvis’ Clements after a few years off, sadly co-founder and co-organiser Steve Callaghan has had to withdraw at the last minute as his father passed away this week, all the Calco LOVE goes out to him & his family.
So this year we have a fine group of 23 players and two Rookies are on board who need no introduction. Southern Ryder Cup stars Scott Fraser & Terry ‘Big Tel’ Saunders are joining us, Scott lives a stones throw from all the courses and will undoubtedly give us some local guidance on our best eating & drinking places after the golf. He can play a bit as well and rightly earned the nickname ‘Seve’ at the Belfrey. Big Tel has gone through a nightmare operation at the start of the year and was lucky not only to just make the Ryder Cup in May but actually still be here on the planet! Now stripping fitter he & ‘Seve’ are live contenders for outright glory!
As you can read from my Formguide I have a few at decent prices that can make a mockery of their odds. Linnell & Sykes look way too big and I fancy one of them to contend, many will think Lightowler & ‘Elvis’ are ideal Auction buys as both could contend or be looking over their shoulders, personally they are top 10 + for me. At the head of the market we have some real class in Fleming, Burke, Whitworth & Tattersfield and of the four you have to be impressed with Whitworth after his warm up demolition job and he should go close.
Our two Ryder Cup captains Ephremsen & Crossfield are both proper golfers on their day and are more than capable of lifting the trophy. No one would begrudge Crossfield this victory after coming so close last year. Ramm, ‘Foz’ Forster & Davison all look quite well handicapped and it would be no surprise to see one of these three make the frame at least. Hardwick & Lister are talented players but really need to play their best to contend and again are more than capable, Lister could be another Auction star as it could go either way. This leaves Yeadon, Moyle, Copley, Bell & Curley, a couple will surprise I’m sure but realistically keeping away from the moose group will require their very best golf possible, mainly because it’s a smaller group and the quality is higher than ever!
Who’ve I forgot? Of course Mark ‘Coco’ Wallis (South), well he might just let the golf do the talking this year and save all the talking s***e until after he lifts the trophy!
FORMGUIDE’s idea of the winner is Rookie SCOTT FRASER who can show his quality play & local knowledge to take the title, another Rookie Terry Saunders along with Gavin Whitworth & Greg Linnell can all make the frame.
At the bottom end I can see Mr David Bell escaping the Antlers though I think 70 + points are needed. A big name will be in that moose group (don’t forget Kiltie was 100/1 to moose last year) I’m sure but after a disappointing performance in the last couple of Calco’s veteran JIMMY CURLEY might well be the value at the prices (16/1) to wear the Antlers. Sorry Jimmy someone had to be my choice!
Well there you go, apologies for the late write up this year but hopefully this gets the juices flowing for what I’m sure will be a memorable few days!
MWS