There may be someone out there wondering where the Divots reports have been for the past two weeks. There are probably far more hoping that the reports had finished - don't worry, only a couple to go! Two weeks ago I was experiencing Arctic conditions, no, not skiing in the Swiss Alps, not following the British team's progress at the Winter Olympics in Italy, not even getting locked in overnight in our local Iceland store, but in Minehead. Yes, Minehead, some place far colder than all of the above. The second week was spent thawing out! This week we were treated to sunshine with very little wind. A fresh frosty start would soon turn into temperatures warm enough for tee-shirts, and that's not just for the Walrus. With the league still not decided and three in contention, the last week promised to be a good finish, with some high scoring required from Gareth Phillips and Nigel Ayers if they were to catch Clive Law. First away, and just playing a supporting role, were Steve Davies and Richard Chapman. Playing as a two-ball they were to shoot around in just over three hours, giving them time for a quiet drink and to reflect on a great score of 40 points. With a run of eight straight pars on their cards, they must have thought 40 could be the best of the day. In fact, the conditions were so good on the day that 40 points should be achievable for any decent pair of golfers. Next away were two of the contenders, Gareth Phillips playing with Don Sigsworth and Clive Law playing with the straight-hitting Martin Morris. It was a close thing on the front nine, with only a point separating the pairs. A two on the eighth gave Don and Gareth a useful four-pointer and 21 on the front nine, with Clive and Martin just ahead on 22. A couple of slip-ups on the back nine from Clive and Don, with two single pointers, gave Gareth a chance to pull back some points. A steady back nine of 22 points by Gareth and Don meant an overall total of 43, but would it be enough to overtake Clive, who, with Martin, produced a creditable 40 points - hopefully good enough to stay ahead. Last away was captain Rob Hall playing with long- time buddy, Gavin Field-Thomas, while title contender Nigel Ayers was fortunate enough to draw Gareth Rees - probably the draw he was wishing for to be able to challenge for the silver ware. Rob and Gavin were to start strongly with a three- pointer on the first hole, but threw it away with only one point on the next two. Level points on the remaining front nine meant 17 points so far. It was only one better by Gareth and Nigel, with Gareth having to do the damage, while waiting for Nigel to warm up. There were decent scores by all on the next holes, until a bet was placed by the Walrus of a pound each for nearest the pin on the par three 12th. Yes, you've guessed it, no-one hit the green and both pairs were forced to scramble for a point. The next hole, being a short par four and with Gavin and Nigel having shots, provided a chance to recover the dropped point. But wait. Who are those golfers playing down the fifth hole? They must be county players or even better, they must be the elite of the elite, because they are able to tee-off and play from the middle of the fairways without using the mats. The mats that we have all had to endure during the winter months to protect the course in preparation for a busy year with a couple championships being held at our course. We will have to check when we get back to the clubhouse to see who the up-and-coming stars are. The dropped point was recovered by Nigel with a par, net birdie, but only two points for Rob and Gavin with net par. A chip-in birdie by Gareth was the highlight on the back nine and a three-pointer net birdie on the last gave Gareth and Nigel the edge over their playing partners, 22 points on the back nine and 40 overall - maybe the number needed by Nigel to snatch the spoils. A couple of single pointers on the back from Rob and Gavin resulted in 36 points during an unusually normal round of golf by the Walrus. I have played with or in the same group as Gavin on many of the weeks and he has given me plenty of ammunition to help try and entertain the many who read this report, sporting to the end and a laugh a minute on and off the course, mainly on the course! You will see from the league table that both Nigel's and Gareth's gallant efforts were just not good enough to stop Clive becoming this year's Divots Winter League Champion. A winner two years in a row, he has been very consistent over the 17-week period and deserves the spoils! More spoils on offer for Clive and others with the up-and-coming end of league trip and the famous Tucker Trophy on Sunday, March 19, to conclude the season. Anyone wishing to play for the trophy will find the sheet on the Divots board at the clubhouse. On offer as first prize on this year's trip, donated by this year's captain, Rob Hall, is a long weekend for two at the 2005 Masters, Augusta, including tickets, accommodation, travel and spending money. Best of luck to all those taking part! As to the mystery elite group of up-and-coming golf stars, they turned out to be a society from Gloucester who had already been caught playing without the mats the day before. Thanks a lot guys, hope your course looks good for the whole year too!

LEAGUE TABLE

Played Total Clive Law 8 337 Gareth Phillips 8 333 Nigel Ayers 8 331 Don Sigsworth 8 322 Rob Hall (capt) 8 319 Steve Davies 8 319 Gareth H. Rees 8 318 Richard Chapman 8 300 Gavin Field-Thomas 8 299 Loz Phillips 8 298 John Stevenson 6 224 Scott Davies 6 205 Adam Joseph 5 189 Rob Wilcox 5 184 Chris Davies 5 182 Andrew Morton 4 151 Richard Morton 4 151 Alan Morton 4 149 Julian Thomas 3 109 Terry Picton 3 95 David Ayers 2 77 Martin Morris 2 72

Best pairs score overall: 45 points by N. Ayers and A. Joseph (November 6), by N. Ayers and R. Hall (December 18) and by Steve Davies and C. Law (January 21).