Many thanks to David Spears for organising The David Trophy for it’s fourth year!
In advance of reading this story, there are two NET patients called David Lockwood. The David Lockwood in which this day is in honour of, passed away in 2018.
We are incredibly grateful for the that $1,040 was raised on the day amongst all the David’s that took part, in honour of their friend David Lockwood.
Please enjoy this coverage of the day that has featured in the Manly Golf Club Newsletter:
It’s all about one particular Dave
Last year’s runner-up takes out The David Trophy 2025
Traditionally we have started the David Trophy report with details of the weather, but with excitement and admiration bubbling over, our headline feature must take precedence. After 35 years’ membership, David Hughes has finally taken out the big one. The David Trophy. But this is a tale of eight days. On Wednesday February 12 he won the main competition AND the Grandfathers Trophy with a massive 46 points. On Sunday February 16 he celebrated his 80th birthday – in style, we hear. And four days later, on Thursday last week, and despite the loss of three shots off his handicap, he won the David Trophy with 38 points.
So, while many of us provide clear evidence that the application of the phrase “built-in obsolescence” should not be restricted to washing machines and electric toothbrushes, here is our hero, in his ninth decade, showing a clean pair of cleated heels to the rest of us.
Apart from his trophy and assorted prizes our Dave earned the 12 month tenure of the David Lockwood putter, a 25 year old Ping. This must sit on his mantelpiece for the duration and must be used in his defence of the trophy in 2026.
Our charity of choice is NeuroEndocrine Cancer Australia (previously known as The Unicorn Foundation). The late David Lockwood was a Manly Golf Club enthusiast who loved the David Trophy idea and agreed to play in the inaugural event. Sadly, he was diagnosed with neuroendocrine carcinoma in January 2018 and died just a few months later. David was a young man, with a young family and was well liked by all who knew and played with him. Our event is dedicated to David’s memory and it is fitting that we can remember him in this way.
Second place and the Unicorn Trophy went to David Gregory of Monash who scored 37 points.
Third place went To Dave Lorentz of The Lakes with 36 points. Dave is GM at Cherry Tree Hill Wines and kindly donated a bottle of “Dave” Cabernet Merlot to be awarded to the winner. (Unfortunately too late for the 80th birthday celebration.)
The Goliath Trophy (our version of the Bradman prize) went to Dave Kelly Jnr. Also known as Matthew David Kelly. Yes, the secret’s out, we now accept entries from secondary Davids.
We are truly grateful to our kind and thoughtful prize donors, Drummond Golf Dee Why, Phil Baird and the Golf Shop, Dad & Dave’s Brewery, Cherry Tree Hill Wines, and Ian David Taylor -also a secondary David – who donated two bottles of Mudgee’s finest. All their contributions enabled us to increase the cash amount we donated to NeuroEndocrine Cancer Australia to just over $1000.00. NECancer have expressed their great appreciation to Manly Golf Club and the Daves.
The course condition was a highlight and a major talking point. A formal thank you goes to Brendan Benad and his team for the wonderful presentation of the course – despite all recent weather disruptions. We had guest Davids from Avalon, Cromer, Long Reef, Monash, Northbridge, Oatlands and The Lakes, one of whom commented that he felt as though he was teeing up on the fairways.
Mention should be made of a brief intrusion into the rhythm of the afternoon. Taking advantage of the earnest concentration of one group of Davids coming up the 10th fairway (your scribe being one of those Davids), a certain Assistant Professional and Resident Comedian, we shall call him Ricky, momentarily abandoning the young person he was coaching on the adjoining practice range, shouted across “How’s it going, Dave?” Being closest to him I responded “Not too bad.” His response , “I wasn’t talking to you!” (Good one, Ricky.)
And finally, the weather report…last year’s David Trophy was played under a cloudless sky. This year’s was sunless. In fact, it was a rainy day with heavy downfalls in the morning and evening. But the Davids, given their biblical connections, were truly blessed. Not one drop of rain fell during the 4 hours they were on the course. So, while enjoying their hard earned post-round beer, the Davids were able to reflect on their mastery of the weather, if not their game of golf.
FOOTNOTE
It came to the writer’s notice, a few years ago, that our hero’s wife, Josephine, is a gifted artist and that one of her earlier paintings depicts Michaelangelo’s David. We invited ourselves to the Hughes household to capture this photograph, which clearly demonstrates the power and grace of the David dynasty. Jo and David were coy when asked whether the Michaelangelo statue, or David himself, was the model.
