SPORTS

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SPORTS

Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League

Bavaria moved back into first place after winning all four points from Canada. Leo Kretscher bowled games of 192, 183 and 178, 553 series for Bavaria. Canada dropped from second to sixth place. Franz, who sponsors Bavaria, bowling as a Pacer had a 229 game and 550 series.

200 Bowlers: Jang, Franz & Kran.

All three bowlers for Indiana bowled over 500 as they took two and one half points from Café Kronborg. Pao Orawan led Indiana with a 524 series, La Montgomery

had a 529 and Tao posted a 501. Indiana moved up from third to second place. Kran Nielsen was best for Kronborg with a 201 game and 572 series and Ooy Pluemkamon bowled a 527.
Brother D took three points from VFW Post 9876 who dropped from first to third place. David Shaw bowled a 530 series and Antero Ronkainen had a 513 for Brother D. Tue Pettae bowled a 207 game and 517 series for VFW.
Tea Party moved up from sixth to fifth place after winning three points from Green Tree. Joe Ferral bowled 206 and 233 games, 577 series and Aht Johansson had a 506 for Tea Party. Jang Shaw bowled a 201 game and 567 series for Green Tree.

Results & Standings Sept. 6 (week 4)

Pos. Team Score Standings

1 Bavaria 4 - 0 11 – 5

2 Indiana 2.5 – 1.5 9.5 – 6.5

3 VFW Post 9876 1-3 9-7

4 Brother D 3-1 9-7

5 Tea Party 3-1 8 – 8

6 Canada 0 - 4 8-8

7 Green Tree 1-3 5-11

8 Café Kronborg 1.5 – 2.5 4.5 – 11.5

WKD Tuesday Darts League

Results & Standings Sept. 3 (week 17)

Team P W L B/legs Pts.

I-Rovers 17 16 1 12 32

Londoner 17 16 1 12 32

Mee Chew Sports Bar 17 13 4 12 26

Buffalo Jack’s 17 12 5 12 24

Shoot Pool Roxy 17 12 5 11 24

W. Tankies 17 10 7 6 20

Shoot Pool 17 6 11 9 12

Mai’s Bar 16 6 10 8 12

Jantha Coffee House 17 6 11 7 12

Yates Bar 17 6 11 7 12

Crazy Eddies 16 6 10 6 12

Nervous Wreck 17 3 14 9 6

Scandalic 17 3 14 6 6

Cum On Inn 17 3 14 1 6

Results: Buffalo Jack’s (8-1)-(4-0) v Crazy Eddies, I-Rovers (11-1)-(2-0) v Scandalic, Jantha Coffee House (4-0)-(5-1) v Yates Bar, Londoner (6-1)-(5-0) v Cum On Inn, Mai’s Bar (5-1)-(4-0) v Nervous Wreck, Shoot Pool Roxy (3-0)-(6-1) v Mee Chew Sports Bar, W. Tankies (5-0)-(7-1) v Shoot Pool

Crumpton Oaks Dry Cider Wednesday Darts League

Results & Standings Sept. 4 (week 4)

Team P W L Bonus Diff. Pts.

Mee Chew Sports Bar 4 4 0 3 18 8

Legends Darts 4 3 1 3 12 6

I-Rovers B 4 3 1 2 10 6

I-Rovers A 4 2 2 3 4 4

W. Tankies 4 2 2 1 0 4

Jantha Coffee House 4 2 2 3 -2 4

Yates Bar 4 0 4 0 -16 0

Mai’s Bar 4 0 4 1 -26 0

Results: I-Rovers A (6-1)-(3-0) v I-Rovers B, Legends Pool & Sports Bar (4-1)-(5-0) v Mee Chew Sports Bar, W. Tankies (9-1)-(0-0) v Mai’s Bar, Yates Bar (4-0)-(5-1) v Jantha Coffee House

PSC Sea Fishing News

Paul (left) catches a nice Yellowtail for his supper.

Saturday Sept. 7 saw much quieter conditions than on recent trips and this enabled the boat to venture further out from the shelter of Ko Khram and we were rewarded with some decent fish.
John H. landed a Grey weighing in around 1.5kg. However, fishermen’s tales are rarely complete without something about the “One That Got Away”, so here is Colin’s ... “It was that good it took a whole squid and ran off into the wilderness before spitting the bait out, but believe it or not, it came back for more, and was determined not to let go. It stripped almost 100% of the line. It didn’t let go, but the chances of actually landing it were very remote. It took off the second time and eventually broke free leaving me with tears in my eyes and a real slack line. It looked like the 40lb braid snapped at the swivel!” Our September pursuit of such monsters of the deep resumes on Saturday 21st, with a further trip planned for Thursday 26th. In October we plan trips on Saturday 5th, Thursday 10th and Saturday 19th. There are currently vacancies for all these dates.
For further details and bookings visit www. pattayasports.org/ or phone John O’Neill on 085 391 7045

John Kepplers Cider Pool League

Results & Standings Sept. 5

Team Pts. For Against Diff.

Brasshouse 63 204 134 70

Panitas 51 188 150 38

Ice Bar 45 172 166 6

Smarty’s 42 166 172 -6

Barking Frog 39 182 156 26

Siam Country Res 33 165 173 -8

Lucky Bar 30 148 190 -42

Pats Bar 27 160 178 -18

Sweet Dream 21 140 198 -58

Happy Day 3 34 70 -36

Results: Lucky Bar 5-8 Panitas, Barking Frog 9-4 Happy Day, Sweet Dream 6-7 Brasshouse, Siam Country Res 7-6 Pats Bar, Ice Bar 6-7 Smarty’s

Dolly Dalton Jomtien Pool League

Results & Standings Sept. 5 (week 14)

Team Played Won Lost Bonus Pts

Party Girls 14 13 1 1 40

Country Road 14 12 2 2 38

Winners Bar 14 12 2 2 38

Jimmy’s Den 14 9 5 5 32

Simple Simon 14 9 5 5 32

Woaw’s Bar 14 9 5 4 31

Flying Dolphin 14 8 6 5 29

DK bar 14 6 8 7 25

Shenanigans 14 6 8 5 23

Windmill Bar 14 5 9 7 22

Rioja 14 6 8 3 21

Aussie Ally’s 14 4 10 9 21

Take Care Bar 14 3 11 9 18

Lion Pub 14 3 11 7 16

Wombat Bar 14 0 14 6 6

Results: Rioja 10-5 Wombat Bar, Simple Simon 14-1 Windmill Bar, DK Bar 1-14 Winners Bar, Shenanigans 8-7 Aussie Ally’s, Jimmy’s Den 5-10 Party Girls, Flying Dolphins 6-9 Woaw’s Bar, Take Care Bar 4-11 Country Road

Legends Wednesday 9-Ball Pool League

Results & Standings Sept. 4 (week 11)

Team P W D L +/- Pts.

Easy R-Con Bar 9 8 0 1 32 24

Shoot Pool 9 7 1 1 48 22

Pook’s Bar 11 7 1 3 34 22

Legends Pool 9 7 0 2 22 21

Links Bar 9 6 2 1 34 20

Mata Bar 9 6 1 2 42 19

George & Dragon 11 3 1 7 -28 10

Legends All-Stars 8 2 1 5 -36 7

Wet Bar 11 1 3 7 -42 6

Queen Vic 9 1 2 6 -32 5

FCUK Inn 10 1 2 7 -36 5

Buffalo Jacks 9 0 2 7 -38 2

Results: Easy R-Con Bar 13-7 George & Dragon, Legends Pool P-P Links Bar, Pook’s Bar 16-4 Legends All-Stars, Queen Vic 8-12 FCUK Inn, Shoot Pool 15-5 Buffalo Jacks, Wet Bar 5-15 Mata Bar

Wayco & Grunter on top at the Mountain

PSC Golf from The Growling Swan

Kev Waycott, Niall Stuart & Graham Buckingham.

Peter Blackburn
Monday, Sept. 2, Mountain Shadow – Stableford
Time to return to one of our favourite golf courses, Mountain Shadow and its popularity was proved by the excellent field of 23 golfers that were signed up to play.
As we assembled at The Growling Swan welcomes were handed out to Paul Kennedy from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and also Pat Roche from Surrey in the UK. We got away from the GS a couple of minutes ahead of schedule at 8.28 am in 2 mini vans and headed up number 7, making good time and arriving at the course 45 minutes later to find the venue practically deserted.
After leisurely going through our preparation we were invited to tee off and after choosing the blue tees we sent our first four ball away 15 minutes early at 9.45 am. The weather was hot and humid & the golf course was in excellent conditions with lush fairways and well kept greens but perhaps more attention should be paid to the bunkers as some of them were fairly ordinary.
We proceeded at a cracking pace, with Grunter showing us the way with some good golf and the full round was completed in the good time of four hours on the dot. The company had been great, the golf not too bad and the course as mentioned previously was very good.

Paul Hack, Peter Grey & Alain Taddei.

We had 2 Grades - A Grade for handicaps 0 to 17 and B Grade for handicaps 18 & over with 4 places in each grade. There were also rewards for nearest the pins on the four par threes and longest first putts on the 9th & 18th greens.
The winner of the A Grade section was Kevin “Wayco” Waycott with a fine 36 points, followed by your writer, Peter Blackburn (18 point back nine) who in a count back for second & third just pipped Martin “Toddy” Todd (16 point back nine) with both having 33 points. Another count back was required to decide fourth place with two on 32 points and it was Ebrahim (17 point back nine) who prevailed over John Pierrel (16 point back nine). Graham “Grunter” Buckingham was the winner of B Grade with a very good 37 points and Dave Neal was second with 33 points.
There was a three-way count back to decide third and fourth spots with the three having 27 points and it was Max “Corsets” Bracegirdle (16 point back nine) who took third place from Pat Roche (14 point back nine) with Patrick Poussier (10 point back nine) just missing out.
A Flight (0-18)
1st Kevin Waycott (11) 36pts
2nd Peter Blackburn (11) 33pts
3rd Martin Todd (8) 33pts
4th Ebrahim (16) 32pts
B Flight (19+)
1st Graham Buckingham (23) 37pts
2nd Dave Neal (22) 33pts
3rd Max Bracegirdle (25) 27pts
4th Pat Roche (18) 27pts
Near Pins: 5th – Gerd Riedler, 8th – Kevin Waycott, 15th – Ebrahim, 17th – Martin Todd
Long Putts: 9th – Martin Todd, 18th – Mark West
The Growling Swan NAGA Award, (awarded to the golfer who has the worst score on the day and discreetly their score is not made public) was won by Niall Stuart (two in a row) and he accepted & wore the award with pride.
Thursday, Sept. 5, Crystal Bay C & A – Stableford
Well, they came out of the woodwork for this one as 36 golfers were signed up to play another of our favourite courses, Crystal Bay. We assembled at The Growling Swan and handed out warm welcomes to Adrian Zamell from Melbourne, Gavin Garfield from Sydney and the returning Frank Donnelly after a month in Vietnam and Jason Schembri back from Melbourne for a couple of weeks. It was sadly time to say farewell to Brad “Bad” Todd who is returning to Perth after a month’s holiday here in Pattaya.
Three mini vans plus were required to transport the group and we departed the GS 5 minutes behind schedule (Peter Grey slept in & was running late) and headed North up Sukhumvit. 45 minutes later we arrived at the golf course to find it not very busy and were allocated the C & A nines in that order. The weather was overcast but fine although very humid as our first of 9 four balls teed off on C1 10 minutes ahead of schedule at 9.50 am and with groups in front of us we proceeded at a steady pace.
The condition of the golf course was super and there was absolutely no excuse for good golf and as the results came in later that was indeed the case. We did slow down somewhat due to the heat, taking a couple of drink breaks and the round was completed in four hours and twenty minutes after a very enjoyable game with excellent company.
We had 2 Grades - A Grade for handicaps 0 to 17 and B Grade for handicaps 18 & over with 7 places in each grade. There were also rewards for nearest the pins on the four par threes and longest first putts on the A9 & C9 greens.
A magnificent 43 points gave Paul “Hacky” Hack first place in A Grade with Kevin Waycott second on 40 points and Peter Bye third with 39 points. In fourth spot came Sal Brizzi on 38 points and with 3 golfers on 37 points a count back resulted in Martin Todd (21 point back nine) finishing fifth from J.J. Harney (17 point back nine & 12 points on the last 6 holes) in sixth place with your writer Peter Blackburn (17 point back nine & 11 points on the last 6 holes) finishing seventh.
Alain “Inspector Clouseau” Taddei took out the B Grade with a fine 41 points, 2 points ahead of Fred Dineley in second place. With 2 players on 37 points a count back was required which resulted in Tom MacMahon (19 point back nine) finishing third from Frank “Woody” Donnelly (18 point back-nine) in fourth spot. Graham Buckingham was fifth with 36 points and Thientong Charoenrung finished sixth on 33 points with Max “Corsets” Bracegirdle in seventh spot on 31 points.
A Flight (0-17)
1st Paul Hack (11) 43pts
2nd Kevin Waycott (11) 40pts
3rd Peter Bye (14) 39pts
4th Sal Brizzi (7) 38pts
5th Martin Todd (8) 37pts
6th J.J. Harney (13) 37pts
7th Peter Blackburn (11) 37pts
B Flight (18+)
1st Alain Taddei (18) 41pts
2nd Fred Dineley (26) 39pts
3rd Tom MacMahon (18) 37pts
4th Frank Donnelly (20) 37pts
5th Graham Buckingham (23) 36pts
6th Thientong Charoenrung (19) 33pts
7th Max Bracegirdle (25) 27pts
Near Pins: A5 – Jason Schembri, A8 – Gerd Riedler, C4 – Kevin Waycott, C7 – Adrian Zamell
Long Putts: A9 – J.J. Harney, C9 – Ron Gillett
The Growling Swan NAGA Award was well won by Growling Swan Mine Host, Peter Grey and he accepted & wore the award with pride. Max then kindly paraded Deefa the Dog and of course collected many donations for the needy in Pattaya from our generous Growling Swan Golfers.
Note: Growling Swan Golf, the home of friendly golf in Pattaya welcomes golfers of any persuasion – low & high handicappers alike, female golfers and beginners. We generally play Mondays & Thursdays, meeting at The Growling Swan (formerly The Bunker Bar) in Soi Chaiyapoon at 8.00 am with transport departing at 8.30 am. For bookings or more information please contact Peter on 0806 351 386 or email to [email protected].
We also play bowls out of the Growling Swan every Wednesday and Sunday. Sunday is Lawn Bowls and Wednesday is Indoor Bowls. All are welcome and for anyone that is interested the transport leaves The Growling Swan at 10.00am on each of those mornings. For more information please contact Paul Rennison on 0843 454 005.

Paddy comes good at Emerald

PSC Golf from Siam Country Resort

Tuesday, Sept. 3,
Pleasant Valley - Stableford
We travelled to Pleasant Valley on Tuesday where we played from the blue tees at about 6300 yards. Teeing off on Hole #10, we found the grass on the greens on this nine to be a little on the long side, while the front nine were running faster and truer. Overall the course looked a picture, with the weather combining to make for a good day of golf.

Paddy Devereux.

Best of the day was Martin Hayes (13) who scored 36 points, closely followed by Willem Lasonder (21) with 35. Near pins went to Owen, Jeff & Martin with 2.
Thursday, Sept. 5,
The Emerald - Stableford
The Emerald was our venue for Thursday, playing from the white tees at a tad over 6000 yards. Paddy Devereux (25) found some form today to record a well compiled 39 points after getting away to a flying start. Jonathan Pratt (11) who has been finding ways to lose a good score of late, kept his round together to sign for 37 points and a runner-up finish. Near pins went to Jeff, Willem & Brian.
Note: Siam Country Resort, Restaurant & Bar is located just off Siam Country Club Rd, after going under the arch past the 7/11, turn right after 50 metres, with the venue on the left another 200 metres along. Golf from here is generally played on Tuesday & Thursday, with the Resort hosting prompt presentations on both days. As a PSC affiliated venue we welcome ALL golfers, including ladies & seniors who have opted for the “Silver” tee option. Call 089 094 1841 for scheduling or enquiries. Hope to see you there, cheers & good golfing!

Bob - the Guru of Green Valley

PSC golf from Lewiinski’s Golf Society

Colin Davis (left) with Yui Bietry (center) and ‘player of the month’ for August, Peter Henshaw.

Sunday, Sept. 1, Green Valley - Stableford
A Flight
1st Yui Bietry (13) 40pts
2nd Barry Copestake (11) 37pts
3rd Kevin Rogers (12) 37pts
B Flight
1st Bob Lindborgh (21) 42pts
2nd Peter Henshaw (18) 40pts
3rd Jum Karagit (17) 38pts
Near Pins: No 4 Pat Regan, No 9 Bob Newell, No 12 Claude Harder, No 16 Colin Davis
The ‘Guru of Green Valley’ received his moniker during a phenomenal run way back in the year 2003 when he won or tied the winner of the monthly medal four times! Of course, he has shown mastery of the society’s tacit home course on many occasions in between the monthly events. Bob needed every stroke to take the man of the match and B Flight top spot, as he edged two 40 point hauls by B Flight mate Peter ‘the silver server’ Henshaw and A Flight winner Yui Bietry, by 2.
Not to be outdone, B Flight also had a lady on the podium in the form of Jum Karagit with a very impressive 38 points.
Yui’s sparkling performance in A Flight was followed up the podium steps by the inform Barry ‘the boot’ Copestake and Aussie Kevin Rogers. Barry took the silver as Kevin settled for the bronze.
Colin Davis a brace, Pat Regan and Alain DeBude shared the 2’s pot.
Peter Henshaw‘s spectacular month of golf earned him the lead crystal golfer of the month award for August 2013.
Tuesday, Sept. 3, Phoenix Mountain & Lakes - Stableford
A Flight
1st Kevin Rogers (12) 38pts
2nd John Pierrel (12) 37pts
B Flight
1st Marlene Prudden (23) 34pts
2nd Alaine Taddei (18) 33pts
Aussie ace Kevin Rogers, third on Sunday, took no chances and no prisoners today with his man of the match and A Flight top spot 38 points that was a stroke clear of John Pierrel and a further one clear of Freddy Starbeck’s even par round that was good for nothing, except a “hard luck pal”.
The top spot in B Flight went to the delightful Aussie starlet Marlene Prudden with 34 points. Alaine Taddei took the silver a shot in arrears, as Marlene’s other half Brian tried to help out with the week’s groceries a further shot back but the same applied to Brian as it did to Freddy, and he accepted it gracefully.
A bunch of seven players shared the 2’s pot
Wednesday, Sept. 4, Burapha A&B - Stableford
A Flight
1st Jimmy Day (18) 42pts
2nd John Cunningham (6) 39pts
3rd Peter Henshaw (18) 39pts
B Flight
1st Bob Lindborg (21) 39pts
2nd Ivan Plunkitt (25) 39pts
3rd Bill Broschart (20) 35pts
Who was that masked man of the match? None other than the wee Irishman Jimmy ‘good’ Day with a tremendous 42 points (Christy will be over the moon). That total was three clear of Scotland’s John Cunningham and Jimmy’s fellow Irish mate Peter ‘the silver surfer’ Henshaw -the Jock took the silver as the Mick was allotted the bronze.
That leaves only the B Flight unexplained and nothing could require less explanation than a victory by Bob ‘the Guru of Green Valley’ Lindborg. He had it by way of a count back over Irishman Ivan Plunkett, both with solid 39 point returns and in so doing removed any controversy over his choice as the man in the bold print.
Bill Broschart and Jimmy ‘two shots’ Elphick knotted it up for the bronze with the former enjoying the count back pay day.
John Cunningham, Peter Henshaw and John Pierrel shared the 2’s pot.
Friday, Sept. 6, Crystal Bay C&A – Stableford
A Flight
1st Colin Davis (15) 37pts
2nd John Pierrel (12) 35pts
3rd Nick Shaw (12) 35pts
B Flight
1st Christian Boysen (32) 52pts
2nd Peter Henshaw (18) 40pts
3rd Bruce Walters (32) 38pts
Note: Lewiinski’s is situated on Pattaya land Soi 1, Beach Rd Soi13/13 near Walking Street. Anyone wishing to play with us just pop in and add your name to the list or call Colin on 089 826 0764. Transport is provided.

The Capt gets a cut

The Billabong Bar Golf Society

(Left-right): Owen Walkley, Bob Philp, Jeff North and John Player.

Monday, Sept. 2, Eastern Star - Stableford
We had three groups today at Eastern Star, and it was off to an early start, all gone by 9.30 a.m. and it was played at a cracking pace, the first group of three walkers and Waldo in a cart were finished in under 3¾ hours.
The course is in great condition at the moment, with really only the 13th green they are still having a little bother with but the rest were fast and true.
Mark Allen had a bad day with the blade on a few holes much to the chagrin of his playing partner who was giving him some banter, however he won some money on the first six. Welcome back to JJ Harney, just back from Ireland, and even playing off the wrong (lower) handicap he still came in third today.
Warren Galbraith won the day with 33 points ahead of Peter Nixon in second on 32 and the aforementioned JJ, also with 32.
There were no ‘2’s recorded so all the money went in prizes.
Friday, Sept. 6, Pattana - Stableford
We played Pattana golf course today for the first time in months, it is great value for the money and is in fantastic condition. The greens were just terrific and the only thing we had to grumble about was the marshall directing us to start on the tough B1, with many errant first tee shots finding a watery grave.
The rain stayed away until the 17th but it was our own fault as we stopped for a beer and it caught up to us. It was millionaire’s golf with nobody in front and nobody pushing from behind and we were finished in about 3½ hours.
There were nine of the sixteen players that beat 30 points, which was surprising as you couldn’t get a bad lie if you were on grass, I mean the short stuff. Once again there were no ‘2’s recorded, so all the dosh went to the winners.
Coming if fourth place was John Player on count back over JJ Harney, both returning with 33 points. Third place went to Jeff North on 34 and taking second was Owen Walkley on 35, but in first place was the Capt himself with 40 points, and a handicap cut that went with the score!
Note: If you are looking for a game with some friendly golfers, give Bob a call on 082 204 3411 or call into the bar; we are 200 yards off Siam Country Club Road looking straight down Lake Mabprachan.

Just two under par in the week

IPGC golf from The Haven

Monday, Sept. 2, Eastern Star - Stableford
CSS 73
1st Mike Dabanovich (13) 37pts
2nd Terry Hodgkiss (23) 33pts
3rd Mike Hill (20) 28pts
4th Shuichi Kodaka (17) 27pts
5th Alwyne Burley (16) 26pts

Bruce Hilde.

Due to the progressive outlook of the management at Eastern Star they are currently one of if not the best value golf destinations on the Eastern Seaboard and although the scores do not show it, the course is in very good condition considering all the rain that has fallen in the area over the last three to four weeks. But even with carts being allowed on the course, the general conditions were still quite wet which had a negative effect on the day’s results.
Mike Dabanovich showed what could be achieved, especially over the inward half where he accumulated 22 points, even with managing to include a zero pointer. A slow start saw him take just five points from the first four holes that restricted his end total to one under handicap but it was still good enough by four shots for him to chalk up a win and his best score for over a year.
Terry Hodgkiss slipped into an easy second place with a solid round that was also enhanced by the last nine where he collected twenty points, but it was still better by five than the next nearest player, Mike Hill, who took third spot.
Shuichi Kodaka took fourth and Alwyne Burley fifth as many other hopefuls fell by the wayside on a very difficult day for golf.
Once again there were no 2’s in either division.
Prior to the presentation of the day’s prizes there was farewell for Don Everett returning to Perth carrying pictures of the urn to show around Gosnell’s Golf Club and the local cricket club for those who were unable to travel to Pattaya or England this time.
Wednesday, Sept. 4, Greenwood A & C - Stableford
CSS 71
1st Jon Batty (8) 38pts
2nd Kevin Townsend (12) 35pts
3rd Phil Groves (8) 34pts
4th Phil Cass (20) 33pts
5th Mike Hill (20) 33pts

Jon Batty.

After the trials of Monday, all were hoping for a slightly gentler day at the always popular Greenwood 27 hole course where the challenge for the day was the A and C nines and where for once, on balance, the back nine played a little easier than the front.
The day started fair but the rain swept in halfway round which put some of the players out of contention as they struggled to keep a grip on their clubs and their rounds. In the end the elements were the easy winners, although Jon Batty showed some flashes of brilliance on his way to yet another win out of Soi 13, which amazed one pundit who having watched his swing from a distance was then told he was watching a single figure handicapper swing replied, “Damn, he must have a hell of a short game”.
John put together a two under handicap round that got better and better as it progressed, finally winning with a three shot margin over returnee Kevin Townsend who has been playing regularly back in the UK and showed that practice definitely helps.
Phil Groves, another of the usual suspects when the going gets tough, took third putting in a strong finish after what for him was a very average outward nine. This left Phil Cass to win a count back over Mike Hill for fourth, with a better 18 to 15.
Once again there were no 2’s in either division.
Back at The Haven there was a welcome back for Kevin Townsend.
Friday, Sept. 6, Pattana B & C - Stableford
CSS 73
1st Bruce Hilde (17) 34pts
2nd Phil Groves (8) 32pts
3rd Hal Hart (19) 30pts
4th Jon Batty (8) 30pts
5th Kevin Townsend (12) 30pts
6th Mike Hill (20) 29pts

Mike Dabanovich.

If the players thought that the previous outing was a bit wet then they were a lot sadder and wiser after finishing as many holes as the course management would allow them after the sirens for lightning had blared their mournful drones out across the course following the onset of a huge thunder storm. This rolled in across the course and was accompanied with driving rain and later spectacular flashes across the leaden skies.
Mike Hill was particularly upset as he thought he was well in contention when he was called in from the 18th fairway just as he was about to put his second shot to the green, eighteen inches from the pin. As it transpired this magnificent feat would only have placed him second, after adding the resultant four points to his accumulated total. In any event the day’s winner had already been decided, he having holed out before the real weather took a hold of the day’s proceedings.
That winner was the now famous Walking Street Soft Shoe Shuffler (WS4) and performer to the pole stars, Bruce Hilde, whose two over handicap round owed much to the groupings and timing of the tee off as his three-ball led the field by at least a couple of clear holes when the weather started to seriously set in for the day.

Mike Hill.

There was no surprise to find that Phil Groves was once again on the podium in second spot another two shots back as the third place went to a multiple count back. This was won by Hal Hart with a best 16 on the C course as he managed to squeeze in a couple of points on the last hole whilst Kevin Townsend with 13 and John Batty with 11 had to settle for nil points on the last.
For the fourth time in succession there were no 2’s in either of the divisions underlining just how difficult golf is at all the golf courses currently being played at the present time.
A note to all Pattaya golfers, please spare a thought for Richard Livingston who has been operating in Pattaya as one of the local teaching golf professionals for many years, and who is currently lying in the ICU department of the Bangkok Pattaya Hospital in a coma after suffering what has been diagnosed as a stroke around the 22nd of August.
Note: If you would like to play with The Haven group, you can contact mobile 082 219 0965 or call in to The Haven Hotel, at 185 Soi 13, between Beach Road and 2nd Road. All transportation to the course is arranged and you do not need to sign up prior to the day, but you should be there by 8.15 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on the days that you wish to play. A schedule of courses to be played can be found on our web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.

Purdie’s power show

The Pattaya Golf Society (IPGC) at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar
And so September started for the Pattaya Golf Society. Pleasant Valley would be appropriate, a testing course, well maintained and at a most modest price. Shame about the slowest greens encountered in months, but the course runs afoul of seasonal rains more than others so it may have been expected. Thus it was on Monday, 2nd September when the day was at its most humid and thunder was never very far away.
Starting well the group began to put some good scores together but slowly the power and distance of Aussie miner Andrew Purdie began to take effect. One under after nine he pummelled the back nine to go a further three shots ahead and finished on forty points for the second time in three months. His the nearest challenger was Mr Len finishing strongly for 34 points and one point further back was Jean Morel.
There were no birdie ‘2’s and the boss’s non-winner’s beer went to Garry Hookey, under par physically after a heavy night’s exertions.
To cap it all the storm eventually arrived after sixteen holes and an extended stay in a nearby watering hole reminded the field of the inconvenience of wet season golf. But who would seriously swap it for work?
Walker walks it
On Wednesday, 4th September the Pattaya Golf Society visited Eastern Star to play a stableford round on the course which has improved significantly over the last twelve months. A virtually empty course saw the golfers struggle to stay comfortable in the high humidity and it had an inevitable impact on performances.
Sharing third place were old comrades Masashi Iizumi and Mr Len with, ahem, 29 points each, whilst the returning Greg Gawron went one better with 30 points for second. The winner was old soldier Alan Walker, occasionally poetry in motion but often a limerick in limbo. This day he was on top form and his short game was as solid as the rock from which he was hewed. His 34 points shattered the field and there could be no more popular winner than Mr Alan.
There were no birdie ‘2’s again and Rabbi’s non-winners beer went to Ken Grimes whilst the Booby Bevy went to soulmate Robbie Taylor after his fall from grace only ten days before with his low score.
Eastern Star is now a tough call and a stern test of golf at all levels, and the lads will be back to poke and prod at its weaknesses in a couple of weeks.
Good day for Greg
On Friday, 6th September the Pattaya Golf Society visited Crystal Bay to play a stableford competition on the C and A nines which were in excellent condition with well paced greens. The weather remained fine, if a little humid and the occasional far off thunder rolled away at a safe distance.
As usual on this course, scores were good with Ken Grimes joining Wichai Tananusorn in second place with 37 points, Wichai posting the day’s best gross figures of 78. The winner was Aussie Greg Gawron who followed a good performance two days previously with 39 points here for a fine win.
Greg had also sponsored a near-pin prize and it was won by Bryan Brown on A8, which also saw the only birdie ‘2’ of the day a few groups earlier when Khun Wichai chipped in from the fringe.
Rabbi’s non-winners beer went to Andrew Purdie and the Booby Bevy went to Garry Hookey after another round of “two halves” with split figures of 18 and 11.
Everyone had enjoyed the excellent day at Crystal Bay, with good weather, a fine course and competitive yet friendly comradeship.

Great Scott tackles tough Khao Kheow

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Derek Brook
Tuesday, Sept. 3, Khao Kheow – Stableford
Well, we were off to Khao Kheow to play the B & C Nines. The B Nine had been closed for several months for renovation and has only just reopened so we were looking forward to playing it. I am told the A Nine is being rested and the areas that are in need of repair are in hand.

Max Scott (left) with Rita Zoebelli.

Naturally, as we were going to test out the new B Nine the list was more than full, and we were pleased to see we were to have several ‘good’ players with us. It seemed like the near pins were to be put under pressure. So we jumped into cars, and of course the van, and got underway.
Arriving at K.K. it was a quick change and out to the first tee, that just happened to be B1. The first thing we noticed was that it was still a bit wet, so ‘lift, clean and place’ was in operation. I remember this 9 holes being torn up for months while it was re-laid, and there are still many areas where G.U.R. is laid out, but you can see the improvements that have been made.
Given time the B Nine will mature and become a fine test. For now, some of the fairways have a little growing to do and the grass needs to thicken up. Still, a fine test and the greens are also growing in so are not fast enough yet but still challenging.
Then it was onto the C Nine, which was as we all remember, and I have to say it is my least favourite of the three nines, probably because I play it so badly, as I indeed did on this day. A great front nine and an abysmal back nine left me quite disappointed. Call it a meltdown … or old age! Still, we had a great round and really enjoyed the day.
Back at Bert’s it was soon time to get the results underway and we were to find that once again the course had given the golfers a real good clobbering, except for one.

Max Bracegirdle

In the B Flight we had the lower results, however the winner was that delightful lady, Rita Zoebelli with 33 points on count back over Max Bracegirdle in second. In third was Barry Oats with 30 points.
In the A Flight, 0 to 18, we had the best score as the winner was Max Scott with 39 points, a good round indeed off such a low handicap. Then in a count back on 34 points, Robert Prineas came second over your scribe Derek Brook in third.
Near Pins: Paul Smith (2), Derek Brook, Tom Harrington
Friday, Sept. 6, Eastern Star – Stableford
This is a fine course with a very tough reputation, so it was not a surprise that the fear of a drive back on Friday night also had some effect on the numbers. However, after a late muster at Bert’s it was a good drive down to the course with relatively light traffic.
Eastern Star was very well presented and is well worth a visit. So it was a quick book in and onto the first tee. As said, the course is in great condition at the moment, so not much to say negative, however a course in great condition is not always one that produces great results.
If my memory serves, I always remember this as the most difficult place to play a good round on for me. During the early years the par 5’s used to destroy me and it was very rare that I did not return a 7 on all of them. You have to hit constant good shots and a bad one will destroy you. It’s a really fine and testing course.
Back at Bert’s for the results and as is usual, apart from one player, the course thumped the rest. The winner with 37 points was Max Bracegirdle ahead of Dick Warberg in second with 31 points and Mashi Kaneta in third with 30 points. T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Max Bracegirdle (2)

Greig seals monthly award in style

PSC golf from the Bunker Boys @ The Ranch

Colin Greig (seated center) receives the August Golfer of the Month trophy, with the Edinburgh contingent in support.

Monday, Sept. 2, Crystal Bay A & B - KPK Stableford
It was a beautiful bright, sunny morning as we travelled to Sri Racha and arrived at the course to find that we were the only players there. Our three groups set off a few minutes ahead of our scheduled tee time, and the first group were back in the clubhouse three and a half hours later – certainly a perfect example of the joys of low season golf.
The course was in good condition and the greens were running true, so conditions were perfect for someone to produce a good score. It was no surprise to anyone that the in-form Colin Grieg was the player to produce the best round of the day, returning a gross score of three over par, giving him an unbeatable 42 points.
Three players were tied on 38 points, with John Graham taking second place on the count back ahead of Peter Habgood, and course specialist Takeshi Hakozaki being the unlucky player to miss out on the prizes.
Colin Greig was playing in the first group and had his name on all four near pin markers, but Raleigh Gosney took two away from him to prevent the clean sweep.
Over refreshments back at The Ranch, Colin was presented with the first KPK voucher of the month, and hopefully the bacon sandwiches will soon be forthcoming for all his fellow competitors!
1st Colin Greig (9) 42pts
2nd John Graham (9) 38pts
3rd Peter Habgood (19) 38pts
Near Pins: Colin Greig (2), Raleigh Gosney (2)
Wednesday, Sept. 4, Treasure Hill – Stableford
Another bright breezy morning as we travelled up the 331 to Treasure Hill. Once again the clubhouse was deserted and our first group headed off without delay.
There are still extensive works being carried out on the course, and two or three holes were almost a lottery, with extensive GUR around the greens. However, the course generally was in good shape, so there was no reasonable explanation for the low scores on the day. Midway through the round a large storm appeared to be heading towards us, but it passed us by, and the round was completed without a drop of rain being felt.
Geoff Cox took first place with a modest 30 points, and was heard to say he almost gave up, when after scoring 19 points on the outward nine, the wheels began to fall off on the back nine, but he managed to scramble 9 points including a par on the final hole. John Graham took second place, beating Colin Greig on the count back.
Following the presentation, Colin was presented with the Golfer of the Month trophy for August, with his son Murray and friends from Edinburgh providing plenty of support.
1st Geoff Cox (15) 30pts
2nd John Graham (9) 29pts
3rd Colin Greig (9) 29pts
Near Pins: John Graham, Steve Durey.
Friday, Sept. 6, Eastern Star – Stableford
The Eastern Star course isn’t one of the most popular venues on our schedule, and just two groups turned out today. Whilst the layout is always tricky, the course is currently in good condition and offers great value for money. The management have had many problems with the greens over recent years, but they are currently in good condition and their previous reputation for being painfully slow is now undeserved.
The weather was once again almost perfect, but for the second game running the scores were generally disappointing. It was a good day though for Ken Young, who recorded his second win of the year, finishing two points clear of perennial winner Colin Greig.
Raleigh Gosney was playing his final game before returning to work in Japan, but he failed to break his sixteen game streak without a win, and will no doubt be spending a few months on the Japanese driving ranges, before returning at the end of the year.
1st Ken Young (28) 33pts
2nd Colin Greig (9) 31pts
3rd Gerry Cooney (13) 29pts
Near Pins: Geoff Parker, Colin Greig.
Note: The Bunker Boys are a PSC affiliated golf society, who now play out of The Ranch bar on Pattaya 3rd Road (in front of the fire station, and almost opposite the Buffalo Bar). We play three times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, so if you enjoy a fun day out, and a friendly but competitive golf competition why not come and join us.
We meet at The Ranch at 9 a.m. for breakfast and transportation, and new players are always welcome. Contact “Buff” on 086 046 5091 or 080 605 5663 for all enquiries. You can find all the news, schedules and results on our website at www.bunkersociety.com.

Sugar Ray tastes sweet success in 2-day tourney

PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar

Sugar Ray Handford (3rd left) holds the Frank O’Neill Memorial decanter as he celebrates his win with his wife & kids plus second placed Joachim Oestreicher (2nd right) and third placed Howard Marson (far right).

Monday, Sept, 2, Burapha C & D - Stableford
Thirty-one Outbackers played at Burapha on the C and D loops, once again in perfect weather but in contrast to the previous week when 38pts in Div A wouldn’t even guarantee a podium place, this week the same score would have won by three.
Surprisingly, 35pts was enough to win today, scored by New York Steve just one point ahead of Fidge Button, who was soon to be heading back to Broome after his holiday here and in Hua Hin. Regrettably for Fidge, we may not see him back in Thailand playing golf for quite some time but have a good trip mate and keep in touch. Muzza took third place with 31.
The best score of the day came from Mark Kembrey in Div B with 39pts, beating the in-form John Stafford by five and course specialist Bob Lindborg (33) was third.
Div C was won by the very ordinary score of 32 by an embarrassed Tim Knight, beating Andy Makara (29) and Jim Payne with 28pts.
Finally, welcome to Andy Whitton, a friend of Chris Smart’s, and was having his first game with the Outback.
There were only two ‘2’s, both on D2 from Peter Stonebridge and Andy Makara.
Div A (0-14)
1st Steve Poznanski (12) 35pts
2nd Fidge Button (13) 34pts
3rd Murray Hart (13) 31pts
Div B (15-22)
1st Mark Kembrey (19) 39pts
2nd John Stafford (15) 34pts
3rd Bob Lindborg (21) 33pts
Div C (23+)
1st Tim Knight (23) 32pts
2nd Andy Makara (24) 29pts
3rd Jim Payne (27) 28pts
Tuesday, Sept. 3, Phoenix M & L - Stableford
We had 8 Outbackers today playing the Mountain and the Lakes as Ocean remains closed for renovation.
Steve Poznanski joined us today, rolling up to our four-ball with a bag of cold beers as just a little warm up session, hardly the forerunner to a great game of golf but it works for many and can be a lot of fun. Muzza had a plan in mind to have a dry day but that was quickly scuppered as he found himself in the Poz group and John Lawton doesn’t need much encouragement anyway but he may have just met his match! I managed to miss the beer gang but never too far away to hear the laughter.
The course was in great condition and the greens were fast as per usual with tricky pin positions making our putts even harder and it’s still a great deal on a Sports Day. Our winner today was Steve Kerr with a fine 38pts from a very happy Steve Poz with 33.
There were two ‘2’s from Steve Kerr (8th) and Murray Hart (11th).
1st Steve Kerr (10) 38pts
2nd Steve Poznanski (12) 33pts
Wednesday, Sept. 4, Siam Plantation - Stableford
With Steve Mann back in Aus for about three weeks, it remained Jack’s job to get the early starters off at Siam Plantation today: just the three very select groups, consisting of 11 players on the brilliant A & B nines.
There’s only another three weeks or so of low season left here at Siam so take advantage of the excellent rate here whilst you can; it seems unlikely to be repeated and no high season rate has been agreed yet but were working on it.
Geoff Stimpson totally adores this course and demonstrated it again with an excellent 38pts to take first place ahead of Jim Bell (welcome Jim) with 36, while third place went to Jim Bryan on 35.
There were three ‘2’s from Steve Poznanski & Geoff Stimpson (3rd) and Jim Bell (16th).
1st Geoff Stimpson (8) 38pts
2nd Jim Bell (15) 36pts
3rd Jim Bryan (15) 35pts
Friday, Sept. 6, Green Valley - Frank O’Neill Memorial trophy
It was six years ago to the day that the Outback Golf Bar started at the old Junior Bar just round the corner in Siam Country Road; moving to its current location in February 2010. Formerly, this two-day tournament which started today at Green Valley was known as The Decanter but the name was changed last year to The Frank O’Neill Memorial. The format is 36 holes of stroke-play if you make the cut which is the top half of the field. If you don’t, you play in the plate competition which is 36 holes of stableford. There are also the usual daily comps, near-pins and ‘2’s.
46 players lined up at the earlier than usual time of 9.04, to try their luck at winning this prestigious tournament. The weather was great, not too hot and the course once again in perfect condition, amazing considering the amount of play it gets.
As the cards were returned, it was quite apparent that the scoring generally was higher than average with the best being a net 68. There were no less than four players on that mark, with three of them being in Div B and the usual count back sorting them out.
Suzi Lawton was perhaps the surprise overall winner on Day 1; playing in one of the last groups out with General Jack, husband John and New York Steve. The whole group was once more subjected to Steve’s beer presentation pack which pretty much set the tone for the day but whilst Jack and John buckled under the pressure; Steve just hit the ball better and better and thoroughly enjoyed himself and Suzi, who had resigned herself to playing in the Stableford comp on Monday after a front nine 49, couldn’t miss a putt on the way back, coming home in 43. This gave her a gross 92, net 68 with a brilliant back nine. Well done lass!
John O’Keefe won Div A with 70 from Dennis Pelly (71) and Steve Poz’s 73, with both John Cunningham and Paul Bourke on the same score.
Peter Stonebridge headed the three players on 68 in Div B, with Sugar getting second and Aussie visitor Tom Bayley third. Whilst we’re on the subject of Aussie visitors, welcome to John Mills, Howard Marson, Stewie McKeown, Barry Thompson, Jim Graham, Tom Bayley and Chris Van H.
In fact it was another Aussie visitor, Howard Marson, who won Div C with a net 70 from a very happy Tony Aslett with 71 and also Bob Lindborg on the same score.
The cut came at net 77 with 24 players going forward to another 18 holes of stroke-play on Monday and the leader in the plate stableford comp Jim Graham starting off on 34pts after he failed to make the medal cut as a result of his 14 on the first hole. Andy Makara was in second place on 33pts and he missed out as he had a 10 on the third.
There were five ‘2’s; four of them on the 12th from John Cunningham, Ian Heddle, John Mills and Suzi Lawton the final came from Pete Stonebridge on the 16th.
Overall
1st Suzi Lawton (24) net 68
Div A (0-14)
1st John O’Keefe (14) net 70
2nd Dennis Pelly (11) net 71
3rd Steve Poznanski (12) net 73
Div B (15-20)
1st Pete Stonebridge (16) net 68
2nd Sugar Ray Handford (17) net 68
3rd Tom Bayley (16) net 68
Div C (21+)
1st Howard Marson (22) net 70
2nd Tony Aslett (22) net 71
3rd Bob Lindborg (21) net 71
Monday, Sept. 9, Burapha - Frank O’Neill Memorial trophy
The second half of the Outback’s 6th Anniversary Tournament was played from the white tees on the A & B nines at Burapha. 45 players today, one less than on Friday but of those, 40 played on both days.
With the benefit of a two tee start, we were all quickly away, which proved to be a tremendous advantage as heavy rain began to fall as the final groups on both nines were playing their last hole, so nobody got really wet, except NY Steve, who didn’t seem to really care after three triple bogeys ruined his round!
John Cunningham played some impeccable golf on his front nine, with a level par 36 (nine straight pars, no birdies or bogeys) but he let a slip a little on the inward nine but still did enough to win Div A with 38pts from Tony Pike (9) on 37. Gary Saunders took third, also with 37.
A great round from Sugar Ray, 43pts, gave him the Div B win from newcomer Manoj (41) with John Mills in third on 37.
In Div C. Joachim paved the way with a fine 40pts from Aussie visitor, Howard Marson (37) and Bob Lindborg on 36.
The presentation took place at the Outback at about 5.30pm but not before an excellent spread of food was served up in the new a/c restaurant. General Jack welcomed everybody before moving on to the results starting with the day’s as above. After those came the two day plate event for all who didn’t make the top 24. This went to Bob Finley with 66pts from Gary Saunders on 65, followed home by three players all with 64; Rosco, Jim Payne & Andy Makara (finishing in that order after c/b) with the final place going to Tony Pike on 62.
500 baht near pin vouchers were won by Tom Bayley (4th), Robert Ford (9th), John Cunningham (12th) and Pete Stonebridge (16th) at Green Valley on Friday and today by Manoj (A3), Sugar Ray (A6), Steve Poznanski (B3) and Geoff Stimpson (B8)
There were five ‘2’s today; Paul Smith & Manoj Singh (3rd), Sugar Ray Handford (6th), Tony Pike (12th) and Manoj Singh again (17th).
So moving on to the main event; a comfortable win for Sugar with 133 to take the Frank O’Neill Trophy, eight shots clear of second placed Joachim. Aussie visitor, Howard Marson who finished third in Hua Hin back in March, had to settle for third again on 142, beating his compatriot Tom Bayley on the same score. John Cunningham headed a three-way count back on 143 for the last two podium places, as Dennis Pelly got sixth as Bob Lindborg just missed out.
Div A (0-14)
1st John Cunningham (6) 38pts
2nd Tony Pike (9) 37pts
3rd Gary Saunders (14) 37pts
4th Dennis Pelly (11) 36pts
Div B (15-20)
1st Sugar Ray Handford (17) 43pts
2nd Manoj Singh (18) 41pts
3rd John Mills (19) 37pts
4th Rosco Langoulant (15) 36pts
Div C (21+)
1st Joachim Oestreicher (21) 40pts
2nd Howard Marson (22) 37pts
3rd Bob Lindborg (21) 36pts
4th Ivan Plunkett (25) 35pts
Overall Medal (2 Days)
1st Sugar Ray Handford, net 133
2nd Joachim Oestreicher, net 141
3rd Howard Marsonm, net 142
4th Tom Bayley, net 142
5th John Cunningham, net 143
6th Dennis Pelly, net 143
Overall Stableford (2 Days)
1st Bob Finley 66pts
2nd Gary Saunders 65pts
3rd Rosco Langoulant 64pts
4th Jim Payne 64pts
5th Andy Makara 64pts
6th Tony Pike 62pts
Finally, Nigel Cannon stepped up to say a few words in Frank O’Neill’s memory, as well as the memory of last year’s winner of this event, George Bishop and more recently Barry Chadbourn; everybody raising their glasses to absent friends and then went on to thank Jack for the day and to wish the Outback continued success.

Jim Boy wins the day

Phoenix Members Golf Society

Tuesday’s winners pose with staff at The Relax Bar.

Mike Gerrard
Before I report on the Tuesday game, Sept. 3, I would like to start with congratulating Bill Hewiit who after the previous Friday’s game cemented his place at the top of the Blue Olive player of the month league table. His combined best three scores of August totalled 111 points, winning by a margin of 2 from David Lusha & John Clift, each with 109 points.
The Blue Olive owner is also sponsoring an annual prize for the player of the year which will be decided by the best two scores of each month adding up to a grand total at the end of January each year. At present, with 3 months scores entered, yours truly is just in the lead by one point only. Still, plenty of time for someone else to take the lead!
So, on to Tuesday’s golf and Jim Neilson played very steady to notch up 38 points and take the week’s prize. Shame Richard Baldwin was not here. He normally donates a voucher on the first Tuesday of the month for the winner to go and have a day in his ladies beauty salon. Believe me, Jim could do with it!
In second place was Joris Goetschalckx with 37 points and I know Joris was disappointed as normally at Phoenix 37 is enough to win. Third place went to Patrick Browne, who said he had been away for so long he would not be able to play well for some time, but today he came in with 36 points. Well done you three guys!

Bill Hewiit (left) receives the player of the month prize for August.

The near pins were difficult to achieve with some of the tees being a little back and the flagsticks being in difficult positions. However the greens are the same size and it’s amazing how many amateur players think they are professionals and try to hit the ball right next to the flagstick, and throw their club in disgust because they are 2 feet off the short side of the green. So, only two near pins were won outright today with the other two going to an open lucky draw. Recipients of these prizes were Colin Gregg and David Lusha (proper winners) and David Lusha (again) and Tim Dalton in the lucky draw.
Other lucky draw winners today were the scribe (free massage), Rod Gregg (free drink), both of these prizes donated by our hosts The Relax Bar, and Werner Scharz (50 baht).
There is still no news regarding the new ownership of Phoenix G.C. but I can tell you that the Ocean course has undergone major landscape and tee/greens work and is due to open early November. At this point in time things are the same in terms of green fees etc. with Tuesday at 900 baht and Friday at 1,000 baht green fee. High season starts 1st November (I think?) and it is envisaged that there will be updated rules set by the new owners by then. We wait with baited breath.

Webber wows them at Emerald

Travellers Rest Golf Group

Alun Webber (left) with friend.

Andy Rich
Monday, Sept. 2, The Emerald – Stableford
It didn’t take long for Welshman Alun Webber to make it to the top of the pile after he returned yet again on another visit to Pattaya. The Casanova of the Valleys took time off from wooing the ladies to completely dominate the rest of the field at Emerald this week.
On Monday morning, the stalwarts of the TRGG set off to play Emerald all believing they had a chance of winning. Only a few hours later they all learnt the error of their ways and became aware of the truth - that being that when Alun Webber is in the groove nobody can live with him. The old rascal knocked up 41pts and walked off with the prize money leaving the rest of us to weep.
My playing partner Yoshiya Ebina came in second after playing an excellent round which included scoring 11pts in just three consecutive holes including a 2 on a par three hole. Roger Wilkinson took time off from his Thai lessons to take third place.
1st Alun Webber (20) 41pts
2nd Yoshiya Ebina (19) 37pts
3rd Roger Wilkinson (11) 34pts
Tuesday, Sept. 3, Crystal Bay - Stableford
On Tuesday at Crystal Bay (A and B courses), Fergus Brennan returned from having his recent dental work done and played a fantastic round of golf to rack up 39pts. They used to call Jack Nicklaus the “Golden Bear”, well Fergus is now known as the “Gummy Bear” but he assures us he will get his film star good looks back in a few weeks when he gets his implants put in. Despite his excellent score it was only good enough for third place.
A new player at the TRGG, Purangsal Rungratree, now that is a name you don’t hear very often, just managed to pip Jim Cooper on count back for top spot, both returning with an incredible 40pts each.
1st Purangsal Rungratree (18) 40pts
2nd Jim Cooper (13 40pts
3rd Fergus Brennan (13) 39pts
Thursday, Sept. 5, Phoenix - Stableford
On Thursday it was back up to Phoenix as usual to once again play Mountain and Lakes and Fergus Brennan, old “Gummy Bear” was at it again. Playing as consistently as Jack Nicklaus he headed the field and walked off with first place. Yoshiya Ebina and Mod Chaviraksa finished in second and third respectively only being separated on count back.
1st Fergus Brennan (12) 35pts
2nd Yoshiya Ebina (18) 34pts
3rd Mod Chaviraksa (12) 34pts
Good luck to all you golfers for the coming week and if you would like to play a round of golf with the TRGG, please phone Fergus Brennan on 086 056 7019 or pop into the Ned Kelly Bar in Soi Lengkee and add your name to the weekly lists which are posted on the notice board.

Barnet tops high scoring day at Burapha

Jomtien golf with the IPGC

Monday, Sept. 2, Plutaluang – Stableford
As I have mentioned before, we alternate our courses every three weeks we were here today to play probably everyone’s favourite two nines at Navy, the North and the West. There were a few clouds hovering over the course as we approached the turnoff on the 332 but these soon dispersed as we stood on the first tee.

Bryan Rought.

The split was 6-20 in division 1 and 21 plus in division 2 for the stableford competition and the best score recorded came in the first division from the Bristol boy Bob Poole with 36 points. Bryan Rought placed second on 34 and in third place was Kari Kuparinen, playing off 6, who beat Lindsay Phillips on an 18/17 back nine count back for third after they both scored 33 points.
Rod Howett topped division 2 with 35 points ahead of Andy Crabb on 34 and David Phillips on 33.
Near pins went to Lindsay Phillips, Bryan Rought (3), Rodney Howett (2) and Glen King. Lindsay Phillips birdied the 3rd hole on the West course for the only ‘2’ in division 1 and in the second division there was a rollover to Burapha on Wednesday.
Wednesday, Sept. 4, Burapha - Stableford
Seven groups out today with a field of 28 players and we were playing the A and B courses. Last time we were here three weeks ago we played off the blue tees with a yardage of 6733 yards and there were many moans on that occasion, so this time we selected the white tees at 6218 yards and after the round there were many grumbles regarding how short the course was, especially in division 1 with the scores coming in so high.
We have decided in future when we play here that irrespective of the number of players, Division 1 will always be 1-16 off the blue tees and division 2 off the whites in a separate competition as always.
Jason Barnet, playing off 4, shot a gross 70 to win division 1 with 42 points while Kari Kuparinen (off 6) returned a score of 41 points (gross 73) to take second and Lindsay Phillips beat Iain Usher on an 18/15back-nine count back for third after they both came in with 40 points each.

Anna Marie and Ian Usher.

The division 2 winner was is Gordon Everingham with 34 points, one ahead of Jimmy Johnson in second, and Ian Wilson was third with 32.
Near pins were claimed by Jason Barnet, Mike Chatt, Karl Flood (2), Bruce Gardner, Rod Howett and Anna Marie Usher (2).
Karl Flood birdied A6 for the only ‘2’ in division 1 while Jimmy Johnson had a ‘2’ on B8 and picked up two rollovers from the last two matches in division 2.
Friday, Sept. 6, Eastern Star - Stableford
There have been a lot of improvement to this course over the past few weeks, and quite a few mentioned this in the clubhouse afterward today’s round. The greens were better than we’ve seen for awhile, the fairways with running stripes were good and the semi rough around the water holes has been improved.
The equal cut today was 4-14 in division 1 and 17+ in division 2 and the best score came in division 2 from Paul Hartley with 37 points. Iain Walsh followed Paul onto the podium in second on 34 and the organizer took third with 31.
Tony Oakes topped division 1 with 34 points, beating Frank Kelly on a 17/14 back-nine count back, and Jason Barnet was third one point behind after edging Kari Kuparinen on an 18/15 count back.
Kari was not too upset as he birdied the 6th for the only ‘2’ in division 1 and the ‘darkside’ boy Andy Baber got a ‘2’ on the third from around six feet away from the pin for the only one in division 2.
Near pins were won by Jason Barnet, Marty Rock (2), Andy Baber, Paul Hartley and Iain Walsh.
We had to say bon voyage today to Anna Marie and Ian Usher - we hope to see you again soon!

Golfnutter: What really makes golfers happy?

Khao Kheow’s signature hole: the par-3 B8.
Laem Chabang at Bt.2800, Khao Kheow at Bt.1000 or Century Chonburi at Bt.500 – which one?
Pattaya golf organisers and local golf courses share one thing in common – a desire for happy customers. When golfers walk off that last green, if they feel good they will be back. So what really influences how they feel?
Are we golfers so insular as to evaluate a golf experience based solely upon how we play? Or does the value-for-money equation play the major part in determining satisfaction? And what about the pace of play, practise facilities, locker and shower amenities, food and beverage or quality of service?
Pattaya golfers will decide from which society they will play their golf based upon a variety of factors. This article is not about those factors. Rather, it is about which golf course the society chooses to play – which may or may not amount to the same thing.
Some of us have spent many an hour debating this very issue in an attempt to arrive at a list: a top-10 that determines which courses will feature in a rolling three-month playing schedule. And in so doing, organisers will be mindful of what their punters prefer. But what if these same punters don’t know what they actually want, or worse, when giving reasons why a particular golfing experience was good, tell untruths?
In a recent survey commissioned by Golf Digest, two well-qualified researchers quizzed some 2,400 US respondents in an attempt to determine what golfers really want. They were asked to recall their last away game – a round not played at their home course. The median profile of these respondents was that of a 58yo male who plays seven rounds per month, which is not too far removed from our average Joe Blow, here in Pattaya.
Questions asked fell into one of two broad categories; satisfaction across a variety of issues such as pace of play, quality of practise facilities, weather, score and so on, and the importance attached to each issue rated.
Social scientists have long told of the contradiction between what people say and do. In this study, for instance, many respondents said pace of play was their top driver of satisfaction, when in actuality it was the least. One of the researchers explained that this is an aspect that assumes great importance only when others are constant. At your home course, for example, pace of play matters a lot because you already know what to expect in the other areas.
Another point to consider is that while a slow round has a large effect on causing dissatisfaction, a fast round has minimal effect on increasing satisfaction.
Results: What golfers say makes them happy – first to last: Pace of Play, Green Fees, Course Conditions, Ease of Booking, Course Layout, Weather, Practise Facilities, Score, Quality of Carts, Service, Food and Beverage, Locker Room and Merchandise; thirteen in total.
What actually makes golfers happy – first to last: Course Conditions, Course Layout, Score, Green Fees, Food and Beverage, Service, Locker Room, Ease of Booking, Quality of Carts, Practise Facilities, Merchandise, Weather, Pace of Play; thirteen in total.
Analysis: First, to put these results into a Pattaya context, out comes Weather, Merchandise and Quality of Carts as issues I believe wouldn’t or don’t overly concern us. Replace these and one other with Caddies and you may have a Pattaya-related top-10 of issues.
Second, the huge disparity regarding Pace of Play – from first to last – needs clarifying. The article partly explained it by saying it is a hygiene factor, a dissatisfier rather than a motivator. It also notes that golfers playing away are normally on tour with mates, so are not likely to be in a rush to get home, or attend an evening meeting.
Third, and by far the most telling, course conditions proved the most important driver of satisfaction when golfers travel. Specifically, in ascending order, golfers value the conditions of the bunkers, the tee boxes, the fairways and, most of all, the greens. In short, more than anything golfers want to play courses where they feel they have a reasonable chance of getting their fair share of putts.
If the results of this survey are to be believed, golf organisers need place course conditions first when determining their playing schedules. As regards slow play, it appears not to matter providing everything else is fine….umm…. I’m not too sure about this.
Personally, the major determinants for me are cost, course conditions and the people I play with, but the latter is not a course-related issue so doesn’t feature here. Rather, this has more to do with the venue a golfer chooses, which will be the subject of a future article.
Happy golfing,
Golfnutter

Double pole and victory for Stuvik at Spa Francorchamps

Sandy Stuvik (center) celebrates victory on the podium after victory in race 1 at the Spa Francorchamps racetrack in Belgium, Saturday, Sept. 7.
The European Formula 3 Open Championship leader Sandy Stuvik from Thailand stormed into pole position in an exciting qualifying session at Belgium’s Spa Francorchamps last weekend. The race meeting marked the sixth of the eight rounds in one of the largest Formula 3 grids in the world. The young Thai racer blitzed the field with a time of 2:16:777 to finish a full 7 tenths of a second ahead of his RP Motorsport team mate Alexandre Cougnaud in second place.
As the first of the two races in the Belgian Ardenne Mountains got ready to start, a light rain made conditions tricky for the 30 car strong Formula 3 grid. As the lights illuminated, Stuvik had a good start and narrowly survived a high speed off at the famous Eau Rouge corner at the slippery first lap. He lost the lead to UAE’s Ed Jones in the process, but on the following lap regained first place after slipstreaming Jones along Kemmel straight.
The lead would change again as the two championship contenders fought for position, but in the end the Thai driver managed to open up a small advantage over the Emirate driver and would eventually claim the race win.
Stuvik enjoyed the podium and the Thai National anthem played over the Belgian circuit, before again strategizing with the Italian racing squad RP Motorsport for Sunday’s second race.
Sandy again managed an incredible and dominating pole position in very wet conditions for Sunday’s qualification, before coming off the track and hitting the wall hard at Les Combes. The times already set by the Thai driver were though unbeatable and he maintained pole position without driving the last 5 minutes of the session.
The Italian RP Motorsport mechanics did an amazing job repairing the Thai driver’s severely damaged formula car in time for the second race start. The circuit dried up before the start of the second race and Stuvik had a good getaway as the lights turned green, but he was slipstreamed and lost the lead to UAE’s Ed Jones along the long Kemmel straight and the two would once again trade places several times before the race was halted due to a huge accident that saw 10 cars in the back of the field eliminated.
After the safety car restart, Stuvik could maintain his position but did not get close enough to mount another attack on Jones and eventually took the checkered flag in 2nd position. This leaves Stuvik still in the lead of the championship on 202 points as the teams start preparing for next month’s race at Italy’s famous Monza Circuit.

Ward wins at Navy

PSC golf with I-Rovers

Thursday, Sept. 5, Plutaluang E & W - Stroke
1st Ray Ward (13) net 74
2nd Mark Ward (20) net 75
3rd Bruce Minasota (16) net 76
Back to Navy on Thursday, cheap, cheerful and seriously must have the best caddies in Pattaya. The course had a competition on Wednesday so the condition of the West course was superb, fast greens (really, I can’t believe it either, fast greens at Navy) and the fairways were great. The East course was not as good, but still in tip top shape for this venue.
We had a medium size group of players today and got away on time off the white tees. The course was a little busy because they were coring the greens on the North nine, but we still moved along at a good pace.
We saw a couple of good scores today with Ray the overall winner on 87 gross (74 net). He was closely followed by Mark, Bruce and Gary.
The scribe’s group at times looked like they we were playing with earth moving equipment more so than golf clubs - never seen so much sand move around the place. An example of this was Dave who thinned it out of one bunker into another on the other side of the green. He then commented that he didn’t like this bunker, so what does he do? He blades it back into the first bunker! This was followed up by a shank to finally escape the sand.
We welcomed back Henry today but had to say farewell to Gary off to Australia, Mark back off to work, and Bjorn off to Bangkok before returning home. Thanks for the good times boys and see you all again when you get back.
Note: We are playing Phoenix on Tuesday 10th Sept and will be leaving the bar at 9.15a.m. Places are still available so contact Paul for details on 087 189 5250 or call into the bar on Soi LK Metro.

Arm wars returns to Pattaya

Local strongmen will be on show this weekend at the Pattaya International Arm Wrestling Championships.

The annual Pattaya International Arm Wrestling Championships will take place on Saturday, Sept. 14 at the fountain stage, ground floor of the Royal Garden Plaza shopping mall.
This arm wrestling tournament is the biggest competition of its type in Thailand and this year will have three weight divisions: under 75kg, 75-85kg, and 85kg+, with 250,000 baht in prize money available to the winners.
Entry into the event is free of charge and those wishing to take part can sign up on the morning of the championships at the Royal Garden Plaza (download an entry at www.royalgardenplaza.co.th) or register by calling Tel. no. 086 331 3009.

United on a roll - score another late winner

Pattaya United’s Kriangkhai Pimrat (right) takes a shot on goal during their Thai Premier League fixture against BEC Tero Sasana at the Nongprue Stadium in Pattaya, Saturday, Sept. 7. (Photo courtesy Pattaya United FC).

Three wins in as many games and 12 points from the last 18 have seen Pattaya United rise almost like a Phoenix from the flames and give themselves a fighting chance of avoiding the drop this season.
With Sisaket FC now officially consigned to second tier football following the team’s well-documented off-field legal problems, there remains just one relegation spot still to be decided, with up to six or seven teams now battling for Premier League survival.
United’s latest victory came last Saturday against BEC Tero Sasana at the Nongprue Stadium in Pattaya. The Dolphins had to wait until 10 minutes into the second half to make the breakthrough; Pimrat feeding the ball into the area for Dyachenko to run onto and provide a fine finish to give the hosts a valuable and deserved lead.
United’s advantage would last less than 10 minutes however as their opponents pushed forward from the restart and Brazilian striker Lucas Gaucho was given too much room by the United defence as he converted with a fine left foot strike after United keeper Kang Bon-jun had done well to save his initial effort.
Once again United left it until the dying seconds to secure the win, and this time the hero was Nigerian forward Ajoku Obinna. United won a free-kick in the final minute of normal time out on the right touchline and when the ball was lofted into the BEC area, the visiting defenders made a hash of clearing it and Obinna pounced to fire a low shot into the bottom corner of the net and send the home fans into raptures.

Joyous Pattaya United fans celebrate after the victory over BEC Tero Sasana, Saturday, Sept. 7. (Photo courtesy Pattaya United FC).

United have now pulled six points clear of the relegation spot, a place currently filled by Chiangrai United, but with the two teams below Pattaya having a couple of games in hand, the Dolphins need to continue their current winning form for the remaining eight games of the season.
United’s next match is this coming Saturday, Sept. 14, away at Bangkok Glass. Kick off for the match is scheduled for 6 p.m.
At the top of the table, Buriram have pulled out to a five point advantage over Muang Thong United after the latter could only manage a 1-1 draw last weekend at home against Chonburi FC. Buriram meanwhile consolidated their lead at the top with a 3-2 away win at Chainat.

Thai Premier League Standings (Sept. 8)

Team P W D L +/- Pts.

Buriram United 25 18 7 0 39 61

Muang Thong United 25 17 5 3 22 56

Chonburi 26 14 8 4 15 50

Suphanburi 26 11 9 6 9 42

Bangkok Glass 26 11 7 8 3 40

Army United 25 11 6 8 10 39

BEC Tero Sasana 25 10 8 7 6 38

Osotspa 25 8 10 7 0 34

Police United 25 8 9 8 5 33

Chainat 25 7 7 11 -2 28

Songkhla United 25 6 9 10 -11 27

Bangkok United 26 7 6 13 -16 27

TOT 26 6 7 13 -21 25

Ratchaburi 26 5 9 12 -6 24

Pattaya United 26 7 1 18 -22 22

Samut Songkhram 24 4 8 12 -15 20

Chiangrai United 24 2 10 12 -16 16

Sisaket 0 0 0 0 0 0

Results: Ratchaburi 0 - 0 Army United, Pattaya United 2 - 1 BEC Tero Sasana, Bangkok United 0 - 0 Osotspa, Muang Thong United 1 - 1 Chonburi, TOT 0 - 0 Samut Songkhram, Suphanburi 2 - 5 Police United, Bangkok Glass 2 - 0 Chiangrai United, Chainat 2 - 3 Buriram United