At the Warwickshire Schools Championship at Stoneleigh Deer Park GC on 30th March, there will be a new format for providing the Warwickshire Schools Team Champions, who will then qualify to play in the new English Schools Team Championships.

There is no entry fee or entry form. Any school that provides three or more players (boys, girls or a mix of boys and girls) who gain a place in the 2005 Warwickshire Schools will be included as a team in the qualifying competition. Where there are more than three entrants from the same school, the three lowest handicaps will be taken as being the team from that school unless a member of the teaching staff from that school contacts the organisers of the 2005 Schools before the 30th March.

The competition will be played of full handicap with handicap limits of 28 for Boys and 36 for Girls

The Warwickshire Schools Team Championships will be won be the team with the best aggregate stableford score on the day. The School which wins the team Championship will have the first option to take up the place available to the Warwickshire Schools Team Champions in the English Schools Team Championship. That School does not have to include the same players who won the qualifying competition.

The English Schools team Championship will be held at John O’Gaunt GC on 3rd August 2005, with Practice Day on the 2nd August. The Warwickshire Team Championship School will have until 1st May 2005 to confirm that they want to take part in the English Schools Championship. If that school has not done so by then, the 2nd placed Team in the Warwickshire Schools will be offered the place – and so on until a Warwickshire Schools Team is able to take part.

The English Schools Team Championship will be organised by the EGU. The organisers of the Warwickshire Schools cannot be responsible for managing the participation of a school in the English Championship. The participating Warwickshire School or parents of the players will have to organise travel and accommodation as required. Warwickshire Schools will give £60 towards the costs of participating in the English Championships.

THE MCPARTLIN TROPHY

This is an inter County competition for mid range handicappers – Boys of handicap 10-18 and Girls of handicap 15-30.

Boy’s teams are of 6 players, Girls teams of 3 players. Off full handicap, each County will produce a team score of the best 5 nett scores (from the boys team) and the best 2 nett scores (from the girls) for 18 holes.

There are separate Trophies for Boys and Girls and the players on winning teams will each receive shields.

The event for each County must take place between May and September with the team score(s) submitted by the last Saturday in September.

For 2005, Warwickshire Schools will ask the Club of the lowest Nett Boy and Girl if their club would like to host the respective event for Warwickshire. The Boys team can include a maximum of 3 players from the host club for a Boys team and two players from the host club for a girls team. The remaining members of each team will be invited to play by the host club.

If the Club of the lowest respective scores do not want to host the event, the opportunity will be offered to the club of next best scoring player and so on until a Warwickshire Team is able to take part in the McPartlin trophy.

If a player ‘wins’ the opportunity to hold the McPartlin event for Warwickshire at their club, they must still be within the handicap limits for players when the event is held.