What Marston Lakes means to me.

For many, golf is a sport of frustration, of hindsight and what-ifs punctuated by the occasional good drive, chip in or 30ft putt, and this no different for me.  However, for me golf is also defined by a single location which is so much than a few flags in the grass.  Marston Lakes and Lea Marston as a whole isn’t just where I play golf, it’s where I grew up, its family and friends and over 25 years of my life.

I was 12 years old when I was first introduced to golf.  Like many it was through watching the best players in the world compete in the 1999 Ryder Cup in Brookline USA.  Now infamously referred to as the “Battle of Brookline.”  But at the time it was an introduction to a sport I’d never played before, never even really paid any attention to before, but it was the start of a 25-year journey which is still going strong today.

Following this televised introduction, the next step was to get a club in my hand hit some balls.  The closest driving ranges to my home were The Belfry or Lea Marston.  Assuming my brand of novice golf wouldn’t be too welcome at such an established and world-renowned establishment as the Belfry, my parents opted for Lea Marston.  Balls brought and junior club hired from the shop off I went.  What followed was combination of air shots, duffs, fats, tops, thins, shanks and many more varieties of shots, none of which I saw any of the players hit who were on the TV.  But I was hooked and continued hitting the driving range, then having been introduced to Head Professional Darren Lewis, I joined Lea Marstons junior groups, had individual lessons with Darren and played the Par 3 course.  Then in 2001, 2 years later for my 14^th birthday I got given my very first membership, to the newly built Marston Lakes Golf Club.  Unfortunately, I had broken my arm playing football about 2 weeks prior to this, so golf was on hold.  However, once the cast had been removed, I went and played my first round of golf a member of a golf club.

Due to its limited length and only being 9 holes, many underestimate the course.  Its parkland design and strategically placed water hazards means it’s a course where precision and accuracy is key.  Players simply can’t just “grip it and rip it” here.  None of that matted to 14-year-old me, standing on the first tee trying to emulate some of the players I’d seen on TV.  At that time there wasn’t too many other juniors at the club, so I would join anyone I could, young or old, male or female, I didn’t really matter.  Through this my golf started to improve; my handicap started to come done and by the time I was 16 I had made it almost to single figures.  I was also working part time, on Saturday mornings, in the golf shop.  My duties included cleaning the driving range, sweeping up and tidying the trollies outside and refilling the pop and sweets in the shop.  Through more chats with Darren, I decided to join the shop team full time after I left college and pursue a career in golf, my aim was to get my handicap down to 4, turn professional complete the PGA development programme and develop the next generation of players, just like Darren had done with me all those years ago.

The golfing gods however had other plans and this dream never became a reality for me, however the course, the members and the friends I had developed were still there and this was what really mattered.  Many hundreds of rounds, golf days and trips both home and abroad, competing in Warwick League matches like they were Ryder Cup games.  That was what Marston Lakes Golf Club had become for me.  A place where I started as a little boy and grew into a man.  Celebrating milestones and good times and battling through difficult times.

"Golf is the closest game to the game we call life. You get bad breaks from good shots; you get good breaks from bad shots—but you have to play the ball where it lies."  This is a famous quote from legendary golfer Bobby Jones.  And it really resonates with me and my time at Marston Lakes.

For me, Marston Lakes Golf Club is more than a collection of par-3s and par-4s. It is a landmark of my personal history. It’s where I’ve made lifelong friends, challenged my own physical limits, and found a slice of peace in a sometimes difficult and hectic world.

If you’re looking for a place to start your golfing journey, or if you’re a veteran looking for a course that tests your iron play without exhausting your legs, Marston Lakes is waiting. For me, it will always be the place where the grass is a little greener and the world feels a little more in balance.

I’ll see you on the first tee.