The Cypriot Golf Club in Melbourne has put a call out looking for new members.
Started as a amateur club by a group of friends with Cypriot heritage two years ago, the club has blossomed into a friendly but competitive group of people from all nationalities.
Secretary of the club George Dimiotis says the club is hoping to open its doors to the wider Australian Cypriot community and find some talented golfers to join the ranks.
“We are a social club and we play different venues,” George tells Neos Kosmos.
‘We’re hoping to generate more interest in the club from the broader Cypriot community.”
Currently the members meet every third Sunday of the month to play, and have a number of tournaments throughout the year to spice up the competition.
“There are four rounds where you can win a medal and then those four medal winners will go into the medal of medallists, so that’s the best of the best,” George says.
Each month the members play for points, hoping to cement their place on the leader board by the end of the year.
President of the club, Peter Chrisanthou says most of the members have a family connection to Argos in Cyprus, and come together thanks to a common migration story.
“The origins of the Cypriot Golf Club for me go back to the ’50s and ’60s when our families and friends would gather together for Christmas, New Years Eve, weddings, christenings, birthdays,” he says.
“Roll the clock forward to 2015 and now the young descendants of those families have rekindled that bond in the form of the Cypriot Golf Club.”
Captain of the team Chris Georgiou-Dymotis says one most rewarding thing about the club is being able to play with a Cypriot flavour surrounded by relatives and friends.
“And the great advantage of our Cypriot Golf Club is being able to play at some world class courses with an official handicap,” he says.
One of the newest members of the club, Russell Inserra, says he joined to get more exposure to new courses and to improve his game without feeling pressured.
“The guys are a great bunch and while there is the competition, there is really no pressure and the aim of the day is some exercise, enjoyment and improvement in playing golf,” he says.
The club plays at a mixture of private and public courses, giving everyone access to some of the best greens in Melbourne. After each course, members gather for lunch and drinks.
Golfers keen to join the club can email cgc@cypriotgc.org.au or visit www.cypriotgc.org.au
To keep up to date with club events, add them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CypriotGolfClub
Membership fees:
Joining fee: $50.00
Yearly fee for members who already have GolfLink: $25
Yearly fee for members who need GolfLink: $110