Frilford Heath International – September 2024

Huge credit must go to all at Frilford for a faultless day enjoyed by golfers and non-golfers alike at the Frilford Heath Invitational. As the clouds continued to empty what were to be the last drops of rain for the golf day, 72 golfers from over 40 Oxfordshire businesses gathered for a wonderful breakfast buffet including freshly prepared pastries, smoothies, pancakes, fruit or you could of course chose the obligatory bacon roll before a briefing from Managing Director, Russell Stebbings.

Whilst the teams made their way to their starting positions for the shotgun start at 10am, the wonderful team at Frilford prepared to welcome the non-golfing networkers from B4 who had opted for the significantly drier option!

Natalie Jezzard-Bedwell of B4 Platinum Members, Global CTS, commented. “What a cracking morning networking with B4 at Frilford Heath Golf Club for Global CTS Recruitment with Lucy Kiddier CertRP! I’ve been laughing my (checkered golfing) socks off in the ‘PERFORMANCE CENTRE’ golf simulator as the only golf I know is PUB GOLF from my days at university. The food was 10/10 and our hosts Russell Stebbings CCM & Sarah Barter CMDip were so friendly & welcoming. Thank you everyone! Did you know anyone can just pop in for client meetings, coffee, full English breakfasts and Sunday Roast dinners too? I had no idea!”

Golf has long held a reputation for being open to golfers only but one of the key aims of this event was to change that perception and Frilford can put a huge tick in that box! The club is open to all and for B4 Members that are registered on the B4 HUB you can get additional benefits on meeting rooms, but, as Natalie mentioned, ANYONE can pop in for meetings and a coffee. With ample parking you’d be hard pressed to find a better location and a great alternative to trying to get into the centre of Oxford.

Back to the golf, the weather behaved and at times the sun even shone as everyone enjoyed the challenging but stunning Red course with quality greens, recently refurbished bunkers and acres of glorious, well manicured fairways. With Frilford pulling out all of their hospitality stops, golfers were welcomed at the 9^th by the hugely welcoming hospitality team with freshly prepared canapés and a wide range of refreshing beverages. As B4’s CEO, Richard Rosser commented. “We couldn’t have asked for more. I think all of us felt thoroughly spoiled today and for many it will have opened their eyes to the incredibly high standards that run throughout this hugely friendly and welcoming golf club. To illustrate this, two of the hospitality team overheard one of the guests (at the 9^th) mentioning another golf club that had treated them to a drink  at the penultimate hole to prepare them for dinner. As our fourball made its way up the 17^th green we could see a white tableclothed table, two wine glasses and a bottle of red wine waiting for the next group. It’s that attention to detail which sets Frilford apart. On behalf of my guest Jarl Severn, I would also like to thank Chairman, Kevin Murray and incoming Lady Captain, Sally Adams for not only scoring the majority (if not all!) of our points and tolerating two ‘wanting’ golfers but for being such wonderful hosts and great company. Thank you.”

As the clouds began to circle, the golfers made their way off the course to a welcoming drink in the bar courtesy of Frilford followed by a superb meal in the dining room accompanied by wines supplied by The Oxford Wine Company. VPAR also supported the day and the live on course scoring really added to the dynamic of a professional, first-class event with a real tournament feel. Once VPAR had confirmed the winners, Russell introduced outgoing Director of Golf and Clubhouse Operations, Daniel Blesovsky, who announced the prize winners as follows:

Frilford Heath Invitational 2024 Results

Team

1^st  Howden –    90pts | -18

Ben Blank, Sam Plumb, James Jones & Jason Thomas

2^nd  M&M Waste Solutions –    87 pts | -15

Matt Wright, Kevin Bowerman, Rob Fluckiger & Warren Kerley

3^rd  EDI Golf –    86 pts | -14

James Edwards, Murray Whelan, Warren Bailey & Anthony Mocklow

On-Course Competitions

Nearest the Pin – 9^th hole: Chris Bovey – VPAR

Nearest the Pin in two – 18^th hole: Harry Thomas – BWT Alpine F1

Richard Rosser closed by thanking everyone at Frilford for their unbelievable hospitality and a superb day with a plug for the April 25^th Golf Day that Frilford are hosting with all proceeds going to Raise’24 – see more below.

On behalf of all of us at B4, thank you to Russell, Dan, both Sarah’s and the entire Frilford Heath Team for an excellent day of golf and non-golf!

Please see more information below:

Frilford Heath Golf Club

See more here: www.frilfordheath.co.uk

For all membership, golf day, ormeetings and & event enquiries, please contact Russell Stebbings at russell@frilfordheath.co.uk or Sarah Barter at sarah@frilfordheath.co.uk.

Raise’24

To find out more please visit www.raise4charity.co.uk or contact Richard Rosser at richard@b4-business.com.

Raise’24 Golf Day, April 25^th, 2025

Please contact Richard Rosser or Russell Stebbings for more information about entering a team with all proceeds going to the ten charities that are being supported by Raise’24.

Oxford Wine Company

Please visit: www.oxfordwine.co.uk/owc/

VPAR

Please visit: https://vpar.com/

Please contact Andrew Lane if you are interested in using VPAR’s services at golf events in the future: Andrew@vpar.com