Status: Completed

This year the annual Bandits Tour is going to the Costa del Sol
Based on personal experience of these tours, I can thoroughly recommend this one - Great company and some serious golf on some super courses combined with some (not compulsory) serious drinking. All inquiries to the Tour Manager Ray Fisher please (rayfisher77@btinternet.com)

News and information from this event

Bandits Trip 2021
 

The Bandits trip 2021 has successfully run to its conclusion after two years of having to cancel this trip due to Covid. The twelve stalwarts met up from various locations, three were already in Spain and waiting for us, sipping their cold white Vedejo wine and nibbling their tapas, Peter Featherstone, Vipen Khanna and Frank Whiffin. The other nine flew into Malaga airport, Ian Hill from Luton, David Manchester from Bournemouth, Gerry Lynch from Edinburgh, Paul Newman from Bristol and the other five, myself, Paul Healy, Ray Fisher, Lee Cooksey and John Wake from London Heathrow.

We finally convened at the Senator Marbella Spa hotel after picking up the hire cars, and met up at 7 o’clock for some well earnt drinks before going off to our first meal at a lovely Argentinian steakhouse just round the corner. After of course Paul Healy relieved us all of 140 euro’s for the weeks prizes.

We all took to bed quite early after a nightcap having been up since 3am !

The following day woke us clear and bright, no wind and a temperature of 21c, at which level it stayed all week I am delighted to report. We departed for our first venue, Valle Romano, where we met up with the three locals. It was a good test of golf with greens running at a speed we were not used to in November in the UK. Paul Healy played a blinder with a magnificent score of 39 stableford points for which he earnt a cut of two shots for the rest of the week . Oh what a shame I hear you cry !!

The second day was at La Reserva, a magnificent course whose greens and bunkers take no prisoners. It was won with another magnificent score from Vipen with 39 points, again earning him a two shot cut for the rest of the week. Oh what a shame I hear you say again ! We also played here on the Thursday and Saturday which were won by the resident members with Peter getting 38, another two shot cut,  and Vipen a net 74 in the final Saturday medal round.

Day three was played at Torrequebrada and won by Ray with 30 points and day five at Los Flamingos and won by myself with 34 points.

All the courses were in good nick and in their own ways each presenting difficult challenges, with most people losing several balls each round, two of our group even taking four to get out of a bunker at different courses. I must not mention Paul N or Rays name, it would not be fair !

As always on these trips it was very convivial with some great golf played, good food eaten and fine wines drunk, our resident somellier Gerry Lynch made sure of that. We ate out each night with one of the group delegated to find a restaurant. We had a whole variety of meals including Agentian steaks, Italian, a typical Spanish bodega, and nearly had a Mexican meal, but that’s another story. Again, as always on these trips there were some hilarious moments, well for most of the group anyway and I will mention just two of these :-

We had a frantic phone call from John Wake whilst waiting for him at Los Flamingos, he has inadvertently turn into a residential commune through security gates which would not then let him out, he got out the car and managed to get out through a pedestrian gate, which then shut firmly behind him locking him out with the car still on the other side !!

The other was when one of our group, Ray, decided to do an aboriginal walkabout on the third evening, we all left the hotel at turned right into town to find our pre booked Mexican restaurant, only to find out when we were nearly there that Ray was missing, after some frantic phone calls we eventually tracked him down. He had gone out of the hotel and went left instead of right, lets be kind and just call it a senior moment !   

There were other moments but I will leave the others to relate those to you over a few beers, maybe at The RAC club in a couple of weeks time. I hope to see many of you there.

Our two bandits virgins, Lee and Ian, thoroughly enjoyed themselves and I am sure we will be seeing them on the trip again.

Our thanks go to Peter and Vipen for them allowing us to play at their magnificent La Reserva course and to Paul Healy for managing the daily tally and payout out of prize money each day and sending out the daily results sheet.

Vipen is now our Chief Bandit and his name will be engraved on the trophy with all those other well known bandits. He will be nicknamed El bandito until next year. Peter too has earned the nickname of Pedro as he just been granted a residency permit. Don’t forget the names for when you next meet them.

For next years trip we will be honouring our commitment to our travel company who have rolled over our 2019 deposit to next year, we will be going to Turkey and will be restricting the trip to 16 people. It will be based at the Sueno golf hotel on an all inclusive basis, including transit to and from the airport, so no hire cars needed. It has two magnificent 18 hole courses attached to it which we will obviously be playing. This years bandits Group will have first refusal as usual, but there will be room for 6/8 more. Please let me know asap if you are interested in going, it will be on a first come first served basis. The dates are 6^th November to 13^th November, put them in your diary now.

Finally attached is the final results sheet showing the weeks winners and losers for those who are interested.
 
John Smith
Bandits tour organiser 2021