Chairman’s Message
Justin Sythes, self-appointed MADJIC Chairman
Welcome to the official website of MADJIC golf.
Bonjour mes amis!
I write from the boardroom of MADJIC HQ, here in the heart of deepest Enfield. As I pad around this leather-walled inner sanctum in my mink jumpsuit (financed by a remarkably fortuitous winning spree at the Gresham Mill Supercasino Complex in Woking), a vast array of electronic gadgetry whirs, bleeps and drones.
‘Gamebook’ keeps me updated as Baz Bailey starts his 153rd round of the year (it’s June). Michael Probert is on ‘WhatsApp’, imploring me to reveal whether I know if the MADJIC ‘Star Fairy’ is headed to Epsom any time soon. An email exchange between Anthony Chenery and I debating the merits of various ‘Urban Dictionary’ terms is played out to the soundtrack of a Chris Stokes mixtape (DJ Aural Faeces as he is known) in the background. ‘Ping’ goes the MADJIC 17 fund management online calculator as David Frost makes an utterly random fiscal contribution. A text is received from Oadby urging me to consider an end of season tour to Thailand to film a ‘documentary’. I hear nothing from David Chilvers.
And yet, and yet…..
What is remarkable and ironic about MADJIC in 2015 is that in this age of increased means of communication, we actually communicate less. This a brave new Digital Era, that has in recent months, seen an outbreak of sweet silence. A sudden calmness and serenity has broken out in a hitherto turbulent (and flatulent) organisation.
What led us to this point?
Well of course, we had had the infamous ‘WhatsApp Wars’ that broke out in early March. Tears, tantrums and tiaras abounded as increasingly bitter and acrimonious handicap observations were made. An epidemic of flouncing ensued, with members leaving and reappearing like some kind of golfing Fleetwood Mac.
Golf Shake, the handicap tracking tool, was a website of wonder. One of its biggest enthusiasts (let’s call him Chryss Jokesy for the sake of anonymity) went so utterly and delightfully bonkers, that a duplicate persona/tribute act was created. We still, to this day, don’t know which ‘Jokesy’ it was who scorched around Addington Court in just 78 strokes.
As Your Chairman, I hold my hand up and admit to online communication failings of my own. The many responsibilities of chairmanship, funds supervision, online content production and handicap management took its toll in early May, in what will forever be known in MADJIC folklore as the ‘Arthur Fowler moment’. In a bid to become some kind of ‘Fiscal Equalizer’, I threatened the sanctity of the MADJIC 17 Fund.
It was a momentary lapse of judgement, yet it received not vitriol or scorn or disdain. Instead, I was met with a wall of compassion, a tsunami of empathy and forgiveness*
(*of course that didn’t happen. I was hounded and vilified to the point where I had to seek refuge in the relative safety of the Damascus branch of Starbucks)
This outbreak of calm and serenity has given Your Glorious Leader the chance to reflect and muse on what I, and we all, value so dearly about this venerable organisation. So, as we head into our decennial celebrations, let us celebrate the cornerstones of MADJIC –
The sheer Wonder and Awe of this golfing tour of duty. Encapsulated by the diversity of sights such as a Scottish beach sunset, an Irish buggy disappearing backward through a hedge, to a breath-taking traversal of the hills of Dartmoor.
Dune climbing in Le Touquet. Welsh-baiting in Neath. Crab hunting in North Berwick and extreme buggying in Ireland. More Adventure awaits as we negotiate three international borders in 2015.
And of course, the white heat of Competition. So ferocious and molten in its intensity in North Berwick in 2015, that it made Baz’s trousers fall off.
Finally, as we head toward MADJIC X (2005 – 2015), a period which will surely one day become regarded as a golfing ‘Belle Epoque’, let us not lose sight of the legacy we collectively create. We welcome Scarlet and Nathan to The Junior Section, taking this very special group of MADJIC progeny to 8.
Let us leave them a legacy to be proud of. In the words of the one-time King of Pop
“We are the world, we are the children
We are the ones who make a brighter day
So lets start giving (gimmees)
There’s a (handicap) choice we’re making
We’re saving our own lives
Its true we’ll make a better day
Just you and me (and Chryss)”
Details and the itinerary of this year’s event can be found elsewhere on this website but it goes without saying that I cannot wait
See you in the bar in Knokke. Mine’s a Leffe top!
Regards
Justin Sythes
Chairman – MADJIC (self-appointed)
Treasurer – MADJIC 17 (acting)
Co-Director Editorial Board – www.MADJIC.org