Last month, Bay Club members welcomed Wine and Cheese Educator Adam Centermore.  Adam is currently a Portfolio Administrator at Bin Ends Wine and also the author of the book Tasting Wine & Cheese – An Insider’s Guide to Mastering the Principles of Pairing.

First, I will say this.  I am the opposite of a wine and cheese connoisseur.  Cracker Barrel is my “fancy” cheese and Sangria is my “wine,” so it’s safe to say I don’t have a profound interest or knowledge in either of these areas.  However, listening to Adam speak about both wine and cheese was incredibly fascinating and educating.  Did you know you should NEVER store cheese in plastic? There is something called “cheese paper” that works best.

Adam’s knowledge went much deeper than how to store cheese. He spoke about the various histories of the cheeses and of course how they paired with the wines and why. This included the type of animal’s milk the cheese was made from and the country it originated.

Adam articulated with an obvious passion and humor and all who attended the seminar were thoroughly engaged.  The five wines and cheeses chosen for the evening were well received and everyone enjoyed the ease in which he spoke.

For more information on Adam Centermore, visit his website, http://www.adamcentamore.com.

 Last month, Bay Club members gathered and welcomed fellow member Jeannie Smith as she spoke about her five-year experience as a bee keeper. The lecture, “The Miracle of Bees: Honey Bees 101,” highlighted Jeannie’s own honey bees and four hives.  She shared her extensive knowledge of the bees by helping listeners understand the role they play in their hive community along with information about bees in general.

The evening also featured a honey-themed cocktail and snack concocted by the Golf House team.  The cocktail, “Jeannie’s Honeybee Sweet Tea” and Finikia, George’s Greek Christmas cookie, were both made using honey from Jeannie’s hives and were very highly praised throughout the evening.

We also want to welcome the newest family to move into the Bay Club – a hive of 15,000 honey bees. Situated on a knoll well to the left of the 11^th hole, the hive is the latest addition to the Bay Club’s commitment to protect and promote ecological diversity. Although the resident honey bees are very gentle, the hive should not be disturbed as it goes about its task of pollinating the flowers and making honey to be shared with the chefs in our kitchen.

This month on the Golf House Dinner Menu members will find two of Executive Chef Jim Mercer’s favorite winter cravings.  The first item is the French White Bean and Meat Casserole, Cassoulet. There are many versions of the recipe, however Chef Mercer leans towards the one from Toulouse.  This variety features Tarbais Beans, Duck Confit and Garlic Pork Sausage.  Cassoulet is not a difficult dish, especially if you spread out the preparations over a few days. You will however need to know how to make Duck Confit, a skill Chef Mercer says  you will not regret.  This method yields a most delicious, at the ready duck meat for a fast appetizer or pasta filling.  Having enjoyed Cassoulet with a glass of red wine at Hamersley’s Bistro in Boston some 25 years ago,  Chef Mercer quickly learned how to prepare this dish and it has been a part of his winter menu repertoire ever since.

Another item he can’t go without during the cold winter months is Raclette Cheese from Switzerland. This extremely pungent and tasty, cow’s milk cheese is likely considered the original fondu.  All one needs to do is to hold the cut side of a wheel of cheese in front of a fire and “rake” it off onto bread or boiled potatoes.  The popular Raclette machine is the Swiss counter part to the American toaster.

Both of these dishes are fine and satisfying items during the chilly winter months.  Bon appétit!

Congratulations to Assistant Golf Professional, John “Pi” Paesani who shot a 73- 69 totaling 2-over 142 at the NEPGA Senior Championship/PNC Qualifier held August 7 and 8 at the Woodstock Inn & Resort in Woodstock, VT.  His performance resulted in a 4th place tie and qualified him for 2013 Southworth Senior PGA Professional National Championship, October 10 – 13 at Creighton Farms, Aldie, VA.  This is the second year in a row Pi has qualified for the championship.

The 264-player field will be composed of senior PGA Professionals representing the 41 PGA Sections, and will compete for a total purse of $285,000 on both courses over the first two rounds of play.

Way to go Pi!

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is chock full of special events this December; many of which have become family traditions.

The Holiday Wreath Workshop starts off the holiday season when local favorite Chad Michael Peters offers his assistance and a vast assortment of materials for members to create their personalized holiday masterpiece for doors, mantles or tabletops.

The young members of the Bay Club are treated to an incredible Gingerbread House Workshop. Willie Wonka himself could not provide a more elaborate spread of confections used to adorn the prebuilt houses. Generations of family members gather to enjoy the process and welcome Santa to the Bay Club!

Traditionally, a group of Bay Club members plan a trip to Boston to attend a Boston Holiday Pops performance. This year, however, the venue has been revised and the group heads to the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra as two of the young members of the club will play in the Family Holiday Pops performance!

Nestled in between the family events is a member holiday party where Chef Mercer outdoes himself each year with an amazing offering of holiday fare.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via email or phone, 508-758-9543.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett recently announced the issuance of a limited number of Off-Season Dining Memberships for the 2010/2011 season.

This membership extends dining privileges at the Club’s charming Golf House restaurant between October 1, 2010 and May 15, 2011, including special dining events.  Previous dining events hosted by Bay Club Executive Chef Jim Mercer include: Palm Beer Dinner, La Cucina Italiana Dinner, Wines of the World Dinner the popular Dinner and a Movie Night Series, and the Julia Child Dinner.  Additionally, members are entitled to take-away menu items, as well as the enormously popular option of ordering a home cooked Thanksgiving Dinner.

Those who wish to join this program must be sponsored by a current Bay Club member and are charged a flat rate, of which seventy five percent is credited for food and beverage. Details on the Off-Season Dining Membership, including a FAQ sheet and application, can be found by clicking here.  Or, if you prefer, please contact Dave Andrews directly at 508-758-9543.

The Bay Club is a golf and country club community with 625 acres of wooded and gently rolling terrain, that includes 200 acres of open space and 175 home-sites in Mattapoisett along the SouthCoast of Massachusetts. To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

Bay Club of Mattapoisett Director of Fitness, Dave Maloney, works with members on their golf and fitness conditioning to improve their overall strength and lower their golf scores.  Certified by the Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) Dave offers this exercise to develop core stability and strength.

1. Set the functional trainer arm to be level with your chest height while sitting on a stability ball.

2. Lift one leg off the ground and rotate as far as possible across your body.

3. Perform 2 sets of 15 repetitions with your left leg elevated and repeat with your right leg elevated.

4. You just want enough weight, so that you feel your core is needed to stabilize you on the ball.

The Bay Club is a golf and country club community with 625 acres of wooded and gently rolling terrain, that includes 200 acres of open space and 175 home-sites in Mattapoisett along the SouthCoast of Massachusetts. To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

This Fall the Bay Club at Mattapoisett is exploring healthy lifestyles through the food we eat by offering presentations for the members.  Dr. Lilian Cheung will be at the club to discuss her new book Savor – A Mindful Approach to Fitness, Eating and Life which she co-authored with Zen Buddhist master, Thich Nhat Hanh. Dr. Cheung is a Public Health professional and will discuss new ways of coping with competing demands on your energy, thoughts, and time as well as new ways to maintain wellness.  A renowned nutritionist and co-author of various books on nutrition, Dr. Cheung is also the Director of Health Promotion and Communication at the Harvard School of Public Health’s Department of Nutrition.

Also this month, in the Sports and Activities Center at the Bay Club at Mattapoisett, there will be a special viewing of Food, Inc. This documentary film examines corporate farming in the United States, concluding that agribusiness produces food that is unhealthy in a way that is abusive of animals and environmentally harmful. Although difficult at times to watch, it will certainly change the way that you look at food and enlighten you about where our food is really coming from.  This documentary is a must see film for everyone!

The Bay Club is a golf and country club community with 625 acres of wooded and gently rolling terrain, that includes 200 acres of open space and 175 home-sites in Mattapoisett along the SouthCoast of Massachusetts. To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett kicks off the 2010-2011 Book Club season with the Abraham Verghese novel Cutting for Stone.
“Masterful . . . Verghese’s gripping narrative moves over decades and generations from India to Ethiopia to an inner-city hospital in New York, describing the cultural and spiritual pull of these places. . . . Even with its many stories and layers, Cutting for Stone remains clear and concise. Verghese paints a vivid picture of these settings, the practice of medicine (he is also a physician) and the characters’ inner conflicts.” –W. Ralph Eubanks, The Washington Post Book World

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett Book Club meets once a month and is followed by an optional dinner at the Golf House Restaurant, where both book club members and non-members converge for a lovely meal prepared by Chef Jim Mercer.

The Bay Club is a golf and country club community with 625 acres of wooded and gently rolling terrain, that includes 200 acres of open space and 175 home-sites in Mattapoisett along the SouthCoast of Massachusetts. To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

The Mental Golf Workshopâ„¢ Profile is now available through Dave Maloney, Head Fitness Professional at the Bay Club.  This 37 page booklet was developed by Bobby Foster, formerly a teaching professional and golf coach at the University of South Carolina.  His coaching career included both Men’s and Women’s NCAA championships.

Bobby has spent the last fifteen years building a successful management consulting practice and is a Certified Behavioral Analyst specializing in the DISC Behavioral Style Model.    Bobby explains,  “I built the golf profile system so that golfers and golf instructors could enjoy the same benefits we’ve experienced with work related profiles. I wanted to build a profile system that would give golfers a framework for  understanding the “what’s and why’s” of their mental golf traits, and our DISC based golf profile does just that. I also wanted to provide improvement ideas tailored to each person’s individual golfing personality and ideas they could implement right away”.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

Bay Club Head Professional, Greg Yeomans recently shot 1 over to capture the Cape Cod Pro Am held at the Golf Club of Cape Cod in East Falmouth, MA.  Yeomans teamed up with bay Club members Ron Dias, John O’Connor and Dick Reilly finishing 13 under par to place 2nd in the Best Ball of the Foursome Net event.

Bay Club Base Camp (BCBC), new this summer to the Bay Club at Mattapoisett, was offered for children between the ages of  9 and 15.   This sometimes-mobile program ran for three afternoons each week and in addition to the primary theme of the week it included a cooking class, fitness with Bay Club Fitness Director Dave Maloney and a free swim.

Week one focused on sports taking advantage of the amenities of the club including a championship golf course, Junior Olympic sized swimming pool and four Har-Tru Hydo Tennis Courts.  Week two focused on moving making which began at the club learning TV production, set design and visual conception.  The group then traveled to a local TV studio where the children worked in small groups with expert technicians and completed a video montage.

Week Three was for the fish in the family!  Day one included learning about professional snorkeling, gearing up and being fitted to a wet suit. The second day was spent in the club pool with a professional dive team getting officially certificated in snorkeling and day three was spent in Barnstable for an outdoor dive with a team of expert divers at Hathaway Pond.

The teens at the club have also enjoyed Friday Night Teen Pool and Pizza Parties this summer.  The response to this event has been impressive to say the least.  The teens enjoyed a couple of hours in the pool with a casual dinner and a lively ping pong tournament.  It has been a pleasure for the staff and parents to watch so many young people enjoying the facilities and building friendships and summer memories that will certainly last a lifetime.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

The Cape Cod Chapter of the New England PGA holds a combination of Pro Am, Pro Junior and professional only tournaments from late April into early November.  This past week the Bay Club at Mattapoisett hosted a Pro – 3 Amateur with twenty-four teams competing from the South Coast area including several courses from the Cape.  Last year, Bay Club at Mattapoisett Head Professional, Greg Yeomans captured the title of 2009 Cape Cod Player of the Year.

Yeomans was recently profiled in an article in the New Bedford Standard Times talking about the Cape Cod Chapter of the New England PGA.  He is quoted as saying:

“It’s fun to be able to play in a competitive environment against some great players and bring some members along,” said the head pro at The Bay Club in Mattapoisett. “I work with a lot of our members and it gives me a measuring stick to see how I’m doing with my students. I also like to see how they respond to playing in a tournament.”

Yeoman’s foursome fared well on their home course finishing in a tie for 7^th place. Fellow Bay Club professionals, Tracy Djerf and Ryan Payne also participated with each of their teams also sharing in 7^th place.  In the individual professional competition, Yeomans finished tied for 3^rd at even par with Djerf finishing at plus one. The event was shortened to 13 holes due to lightning and darkness.  Tom Tobey from Bay Pointe earned medalist honors at 2 under par through 13 holes.

Congratulations to Peter Uihlein!

Bay Club Member Peter Uihlein captured the 17th Sahalee Players Championship on Friday, July 9 at The Home Course in DuPont, Washington.  Peter fired a final round 4-under par 68.  Shooting a tournament record 17-under par 271 to win by seven shots, he was under par in each of his four rounds this week.   For complete results, please click here.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.

The Fourth Annual Bay Club at Mattapoisett Sprint Triathlon and Kid’s Run takes place on Saturday, July 31 on the grounds of the Bay Club. Hosted by Dave Maloney, Fitness Director, the day begins with the Kid’s Run, open to children aged 6 to 11, where the participants swim two laps of the Junior Olympic sized swimming pool, bike one mile and finish with a half mile run. Following this race is the Sprint Triathlon open to those 12 and older. In this event, participants swim 16 laps of the pool (1/4 mile), bike for 9.6 miles and end with a 3 mile run. Both events include many individual competitors; however teams are also encouraged to join in with members sharing the various legs of the race.

This event has become an annual tradition at the Bay Club with many members training in advance to win the title of Champion! Regardless of their final place or time all participants are cheered along the way by the members of the Bay Club community.

The Bay Club at Mattapoisett is a country club with an eighteen hole championship level golf course and residential property located in Southeastern MA.   To arrange a private tour please contact Dave Andrews via e-mail or phone, 508-758-9543.