SPORTS

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SPORTS

Crumpton Oaks Cider Monday Pool League

Results & Standings Dec. 30 (week 18)

Division 1

Team P W L +/- BP Pts.

Shoot Pool 17 15 2 58 0 45

The Butchers Arms 17 14 3 46 1 43

Smile Bar 17 10 7 12 2 32

Nicky’s Bar 18 10 8 -10 0 30

Legends Pool 17 9 8 -1 0 27

Links Bar 18 7 11 -17 1 22

Sweethearts Bar 16 5 11 -20 5 20

Acorn Pub 18 6 12 -30 2 20

Pook’s Bar 17 6 11 -4 1 19

I-Rovers 17 4 13 -34 2 14

Results: Acorn Pub 10 v 7 I-Rovers, Legends Pool 6 v 10 The Butchers Arms, Nicky’s Bar 10 v 7 Smile Bar, Pook’s Bar 7 v 10 Shoot Pool, Links Bar 8 v 10 Sweethearts Bar

Division 2

Team P W L +/- BP Pts.

Easy R-con Bar 17 16 1 83 0 48

Offshore Bar 18 12 6 24 2 38

Shoot Pool ‘B’ 18 11 7 20 2 35

Cheers Bar 18 11 7 19 0 33

The Caddyshack 15 8 7 10 2 26

Dean’s Bar 18 8 10 6 1 25

Mai’s Bar 17 8 9 -11 0 24

Rabbi’s Elephant 15 6 9 -31 0 18

Wet Bar 16 4 12 -38 1 13

Wombat Bar 18 1 17 -82 1 4

Results: Cheers Bar 10 v 7 Wet Bar, Dean’s Bar 6 v 10 The Caddyshack, Easy R-Con Bar 10 v 4 Rabbi’s Elephant, Mai’s Bar 10 v 9 Offshore Bar, Shoot Pool ‘B’ 10 v 7 Wombat Bar

British Bar Snacks Friday Pool League

Results & Standings Jan. 10 (week 16)

Division 1

Team P W L +/- BP Pts

Shoot Pool ‘A’ 14 11 3 56 2 35

Easy R-con Bar 15 11 4 30 1 34

Mata Bar 16 10 6 15 1 31

Legends Pool 16 8 8 -8 2 26

Acorn Pub 15 7 8 -17 1 22

The Butchers Arms 12 7 5 -5 0 21

Pook’s Bar 15 7 8 -10 0 21

Links Bar 13 5 8 -13 0 15

Sweethearts Bar 16 0 16 -48 6 6

Results: Pook’s Bar P-P Links Bar, Shoot Pool ‘A’ 10 v 2 Legends Pool, Sweethearts Bar 4 v 10 Easy R-Con Bar, The Butchers Arms 9 v 10 Acorn Pub

Division 2

Team P W L +/- BP Pts

Smile Bar 16 14 2 50 0 42

Shoot Pool ‘B’ 16 13 3 49 1 40

Dean’s Bar 15 8 7 17 1 25

Old Thai Angle 16 8 8 -7 0 24

Tie’s R Us 16 7 9 -12 0 21

Crazy Eddie’s 16 6 10 -17 3 21

Offshore Bar 16 6 10 -21 0 18

I-Rovers 16 6 10 -24 0 18

FCUK Inn 15 3 12 -35 4 13

Results: Old Thai Angle 10 v 5 I-Rovers, Shoot Pool ‘B’ 10 v 2 FCUK Inn, Smile Bar 7 v 10 Dean’s Bar, Tie’s R Us 10 v 8 Crazy Eddie’s

Division 3

Team P W L +/- BP Pts

Kilkenny’s Pub 15 13 2 60 0 39

The Rest Stop 16 12 4 43 0 36

Mai’s Bar 14 12 2 33 0 36

The Ranch 14 7 7 5 1 22

Rabbi’s Elephant 14 7 7 -4 1 22

Buffalo Jacks 16 7 9 -10 1 22

Wet Bar 14 4 10 -30 1 13

Connections 16 3 13 -49 1 10

The Queen Vic 15 2 13 -48 1 7

Results: Kilkenny’s Pub 9 v 10 Mai’s Bar, The Ranch 10 v 7 Rabbi’s Elephant, The Rest Stop 10 v 5 Buffalo Jacks, Wet Bar 6 v 10 Connections

Pattaya 8-Ball Monday Pool League

Results & Standings Jan. 6 (week 18)

Team Played Won Lost For Agst Diff. Pts.

Phimai Geordie 18 15 3 178 87 91 48

San Snack Bar 18 14 4 172 98 74 46

Mata Bar 18 14 4 156 114 42 46

The Rest Stop 18 11 7 155 115 40 40

Shoot Pool 18 11 7 148 122 26 40

Crazy Eddie’s 18 10 8 143 127 16 38

Cum On Inn 18 9 9 127 143 -16 36

Mee Chew 18 8 10 120 150 -30 34

Buffalo Jack’s 18 6 12 114 151 -37 29

Rising Sun 18 5 13 115 155 -40 28

Connections 17 3 14 89 166 -77 23

Parrot Inn 17 11 6 83 172 -89 19

Results: Crazy Eddie’s 6 v 9 San Snack Bar, Rising Sun 8 v 7 Connections, Phimai Geordie 10 v 5 Shoot Pool, Cum On Inn 9 v 6 Buffalo Jack’s, Parrot Inn 7 v 8 Mata Bar, The Rest Stop 12 v 3 Mee Chew

Crumpton Cider Tuesday Darts League

Results & Standings Jan. 7 (week 6)

Team P W L B/legs Pts.

I-Rovers 6 5 1 6 10

Londoner 6 5 1 3 10

Mee Chew Sports Bar 6 5 1 3 10

Nervous Wreck 6 4 2 5 8

Yates Bar 6 4 2 5 8

Jantha Coffee House 6 4 2 3 8

Crazy Eddies 6 4 2 2 8

Scandalic 6 3 3 2 6

Shoot Pool A 6 2 4 4 4

Mai’s Bar 6 2 4 2 4

Shoot Pool B 6 2 4 2 4

Buffalo Jack’s 6 2 4 2 4

W. Tankies 6 0 6 3 0

Cum On Inn 6 0 6 1 0

Results: Cum On Inn (1-0)-(9-1) v Buffalo Jack’s, I-Rovers (4-1)-(3-0) v Shoot Pool B, Londoner (9-1)-(7-0) v Crazy Eddies, Mai’s Bar (3-0)-(9-1) v Yates Bar, Mee Chew Sports Bar (10-0)-(2-1) v W. Tankies, Nervous Wreck (6-1)-(3-0) v Scandalic, Shoot Pool A (3-1)-(6-0) v Jantha Coffee House

Buffalo Jack’s Wednesday Premier Darts League

Results & Standings Jan. 8 (week 5)

Team P W L Bonus Diff. Pts.

Mee Chew Sports Bar 5 5 0 4 21 10

Yates Bar 5 4 1 5 27 8

I-Rovers A 5 4 1 3 13 8

Legends Sports Bar 5 3 2 4 19 6

W. Tankies 4 3 1 3 14 6

Mai’s Bar 5 3 2 1 1 6

Jantha Coffee House 5 1 4 1 -17 2

I-Rovers B 5 1 4 2 -25 2

Clinic 5 0 5 1 -23 0

Buffalo Jack’s 4 0 4 0 -30 0

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

Legends Wednesday 9-Ball Pool League

Results & Standings Jan. 8 (week 1)

Team P W D L +/- Pts.

Legends Pool 1 1 0 0 12 3

Pook’s Bar 1 1 0 0 8 3

Easy R-con Bar 1 0 1 0 0 1

George & Dragon 1 0 1 0 0 1

Links Bar 1 0 1 0 0 1

Queen Vic 1 0 1 0 0 1

Buffalo Jacks 0 0 0 0 0 0

Classroom 0 0 0 0 0 0

Crazy Eddie’s 1 0 0 1 -8 0

FCUK 1 0 0 1 -12 0

Results: Classroom P-P Buffalo Jacks, Crazy Eddie’s 6 v 14 Pook’s Bar, Easy R-con Bar 10 v 10 Links Bar, George & Dragon 10 v 10 Queen Vic, Legends Pool 16 v 4 FCUK

Gerd, Buckers & Nolan triumph at the Mountain

PSC golf from The Growling Swan

Gerd Riedler, Volker Buley, Graham Buckingham & Nolan Wise.

Peter Blackburn
Monday, Jan. 6, Mountain Shadow – Stableford
It was another sunny Monday morning in Pattaya and we had yet another excellent field with 34 golfers signed up and ready to take on the challenging Mountain Shadow Golf Course.
We assembled at The Growling Swan in readiness for our 8.30 am departure and there were many welcomes to be handed out including Mark Kobrin from London, Stephen Newton back for a couple of weeks ‘R & R’, Brinco Ivanovic from Brisbane, Eric Black from Geelong, Victoria, Stuart Mann from Canberra, Josef Buchberger from Austria, Karl Lang formerly from Germany but now residing in Pattaya and Graham Buckingham, Rita Zoebelli and Hugh O’Donnell.
As all were on time we departed in three mini vans right on schedule and arrived at the course after a 46 minute drive. It was busy and a tee-off earlier than our booked 10.32 am time was doubtful but we managed to get our first four-ball away at 10.15 a.m.
Watching the groups tee-off in front of us I suspected that it was going to be a slow day and unfortunately I was correct. We were held up on nearly every shot throughout the round but gritted our teeth and tried not to get upset, although I did “chat” to the groups ahead a couple of times but was wasting my breath.
The groups in front of us were not Asian and English was not their preferred language. I guess we have been spoiled when playing golf in the Pattaya area, even during the current high season but this day turned out to be a shocker with the round taking five minutes short of five hours. Let’s hope this was a “one off” and we get back to normal soon and perhaps the members of the groups that were holding us up should consider another sport.

Mark West, Carole Kubicki & Andrew Allen.

Nonetheless the weather was perfect, the company was great and the golf course was in terrific shape with the greens very quick at times.
We had 3 Divisions – Division A for handicaps 0 to 15, Division B for golfers on handicaps of 16 to 25 and Division C for handicaps of 26 and over with four places in each Division. There were also rewards for nearest the pin on the four par 3’s and longest first putts on the 9th & 18th greens.
The winner in Division A was Gerd Riedler with 38 points followed by Mark “Westy” West on 37 points and Steve Truelove was third with 36 points. A count back was required to determine fourth place as there were two on 34 points and it was Mike “Hunter” Gosden (18 point back nine) who prevailed over Frankie “Goes to Hollywood” Sharratt (17 point back nine).
In B Division it was Graham “Grunter” Buckingham who was the winner with 40 points, the best score of the day, and Eric “Judge” Black came runner-up with 37 points. In another count back with two on 36 points it was Jayson Schembri (19 point back nine) who finished third and Alan “Colonel” Sanders (16 point back nine) was fourth.
Nolan “No-one” Wise was victorious in Division C with 35 points, one point ahead of Geri Crilly in second spot and Stephen Newton finished third with 33 points. Veteran Hugh O’Donnell had 32 points and came fourth.
Division A (0-15)
1st Gerd Riedler (9) 38pts
2nd Mark West (15) 37pts
3rd Steve Truelove (8) 36pts
4th Mike Gosden (13) 34pts
Division B (16-25)
1st Graham Buckingham (25) 40pts
2nd Eric Black (16) 37pts
3rd Jayson Schembri (18) 36pts
4th Alan Sanders (25) 36pts
Division C (26+)
1st Nolan Wise (36) 35pts
2nd Geri Crilly (26) 34pts
3rd Stephen Newton (27) 33pts
4th Hugh O’Donnell (32) 32pts
Near Pins: 5th – Gerd Riedler, 8th – Mike Gosden, 15th – Karl Lang, 17th – Stu Rifkin
Long Putts: 9th – Graham Buckingham, 18th – Stephen Newton
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 Volker Buley who accepted the award like the good sport that he is.
Thursday, Jan. 9, Treasure Hill – Stableford
After a couple of last minute cancellations & inclusions we settled for a field of 28 starters to take on the challenging Treasure Hill layout. We assembled at The Growling Swan and handed out welcomes to Richard & Carole Kubicki from Cyprus/UK, Andy Todd from Hartfield Country Club in Perth, Western Australia, Peter Long & Gary Williams from Melbourne, Victoria, Dave Fletcher back again for some R & R and Jack Robertson joining us once again.
Sadly it was time to say bon voyage to dear friend Volker Buley who was returning to Germany on Sunday after 4 weeks in Pattaya, and Mick “Bear” Wilks who was off back to Melbourne.
Once again all were on time so our 3 mini vans got away from the GS 5 minutes ahead of schedule at 8.25 am and after a very good run on 331 we arrived at the course 45 minutes later. It was reasonably busy and another large group arrived just after us so we quickly got ready and managed to get on to the first tee and send our first group away 20 minutes early at 9.40 am.
The weather was great once more and the golf course was looking good although a lot of the greens had residual sand on them but all in all not too bad. Some of the fairways were quite wet as they had the sprinklers on them as we were playing which caused the workers to scurry around turning them off just ahead of us on a few holes.
The pace was quite good with no-one ahead of us until we got onto the green on the “crocodile hole” and lo & behold there were a group of 6 Thais on the 17th green, obviously doing some “hole hopping” as we had not seen anyone in front of us all day. As they left the 17th and proceeded to the 18th tee I wandered over to them and asked where they had come from but received blank stares so a series of gestures from myself seemed to get the message through and they disappeared fairly quickly. It wasn’t one of our quickest rounds but certainly an enjoyable one and we finished in four hours & twenty five minutes.
We had 3 divisions – Division A for handicaps 0 to 17, Division B for golfers on handicaps of 18 to 28 and Division C for handicaps of 29 and over with three places in each Division. There were also rewards for nearest the pin on the four par 3’s and longest first putts on the 9th & 18th greens.
Mark “Westy” West continued his good form and won Division A with a fine 38 points, 2 points ahead of your writer Peter “Blacky” Blackburn in second place with Andy Todd finishing third on 35 points.
Carole Kubicki easily won the B Division with 38 points and in a count back for second & third with two on 32 points it was Stephen Newton (17 point back nine) who prevailed over Tiziano Dal Pastro (16 point back nine) in third spot.
In C Division Andrew “Turtle” Allen was victorious with 36 points and Ian Masterson was second with 34 points. Another count back was required to determine third spot as there were two on 26 points and it went to Volker Buley (12 point back nine) with Vince Romeo (11 point back nine) just missing out.
Division A (0-17)
1st Mark West (15) 38pts
2nd Peter Blackburn (13) 36pts
3rd Andy Todd (12) 35pts
Division B (18-28)
1st Carole Kubicki (24) 38pts
2nd Stephen Newton (27) 32pts
3rd John Davis (18) 36pts
4th Tiziano Dal Pastro (26) 32pts
Division C (29+)
1st Andrew Allen (34) 36pts
2nd Ian Masterson (36) 34pts
3rd Volker Buley (31) 26pts
Near Pins: 2nd – Ken Hole; 6th - Tiziano Dal Pastro; 13th – John Davis; 17th – Steephen Newton
Long Putts: 9th – Richard Kubicki; 18th – Ted Morris
The Growling Swan NAGA Award was won by Growling Swan Mine Host Peter (Pizza) Grey while Andrew 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 welcomes golfers of any persuasion – low & high handicappers alike, female golfers and beginners. We generally play Mondays & Thursdays, meeting at The Growling Swan in Soi Chaiyapoon at 8.00 a.m. with transport departing at 8.30 a.m. 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 10.00 a.m. on each of those mornings. For more information please contact Paul Rennison on 0843 454 005.

Pattaya Sports ClubBowling League

Results & Standings Jan. 10 (week 21)

Results & Standings Jan. 10 (week 21)

Pos. Team Score Standings

1 Tea Party 3-1 53.5 - 30.5

2 Canada 2-2 47.0 - 37.0

3 Café Kronborg 0 - 4 44.0 - 40.0

4 Green Tree 2-2 42.5 - 41.5

5 Brother D 3-1 40.0 - 44.0

6 VFW Post 9876 4 - 0 38.0 - 46.0

7 Indiana 1-3. 36.5 - 47.5

8 Bavaria 1-3 34.5 - 49.5

Heddle holds off Smith in Khao Kheow cliffhanger

Pattaya Sports Club 2014 Golf Championship

Ian Heddle - Men’s Champion

William Macey
The 2-day 2014 PSC Golf Championship was held on 7 & 10 January at the Khao Kheow Country Club with 124 golfers signed up to take part in the event.
We found the course to be in excellent condition and a big thank-you goes to General Manager Suraphol and his staff for letting us play here in the peak of high season and at a great price. He also donated 4 green fees and goody bags for our lucky draw.
The dinner and presentations were held at Dicey Reilly’s pub on Saturday night, 11 January, beginning at 6 p.m. where Tony Oakes, the PSC President, opened the presentation and announced all the winners for the event. He then introduced Joe Mooneyham, the PSC Golf Chairman, who thanked all the players for playing in this event and also thanked Tony Oakes, William Macey, Noi Emmerson, and Wendy Chetland for their help at the presentations. He also stated the great help he received from the Pattaya Sports Club staff, and especially Mai.
Now to the results and the Men’s champion was Ian Heddle playing off H/cp 3, with a gross 154. This also was a real nail-biter as both Paul Smith and Ian had the same gross score, both had the same H/cp and both shot 38 on the last nine holes and also played together. So it came down to a count back on the last 6 holes and Ian just edged it here.

Yuri Bietry - Ladies Champion.

Our Lady’s champion this year was Yui Bietry (H/cp 13) with a gross 161 and it should also be noted that she had a 2 (double Eagle) on a par 5 on the first day. So well done Yui!
The Senior gross score champion was Don Lehmer (H/cp 20) with a 2-day total of 172 and the top stableford score was recorded by Werner Schwarz (H/cp 17) with 86 points.
The individual flight winners meanwhile were as follows: A Flight - Jeff Wylie (8), Net 142; B Flight - Tom Thompson (13), Net 143; C Flight - Tore Eliassen (16), 81 points; D Flight - Ronny Walfridsson (23), 78 points; and Ladies Flight - Ning Neal (11), Net 143.
Day 1 technical prizes were awarded for (Near Pins) to Parie McManus, Collin Greig, Paul Smith, Ian Heddle, Andrew Prudie, Sel Wegner, Tony Robbins, Keith Norman, Tore Eliassen, John Davis, Jasper Rasmussen, Kaj Aabling, Soren Lindquist, Peter Hammond, Joel Flor, Suzi Lawton, Ning Neal, and for (Long Drives) to Max Scott, Steve Poznanski, Tom McMahon, Joel Flor, Ning Neal, and Barry Oats.
The Day 2 technical prizes were allocated as follows: (Near Pins) Max Scott, Gerd Riedler, Ian Heddle, Paul Greenaway, Keith Norman (2), Byran Neal, Russel Birtwistle, Eric Black, Eddie Beilby, Tony Chetland, Jack Robertson, Max Bracegirdle (2), Nolan Wise, Noi Emmerson, Wendy Chetland, and (Long Drives) Keichi Kasami, Frank Sharratt, Tom McMahon, Willem Lasonder, Yui Bietry, and Barry Oats.
A reminder that the Next PSC Monthly tournament will be on 28 February at the Navy Course playing the North & West Nine’s with a two-tee start.

Werner Schwarg - Stableford Champion.

Don Lehmer (left) - Senior Champion

Tournament winners with PSC President Tony Oakes (right) and Golf Chairman Joe Mooneyham (left).

Tom Thompson - ‘B’ flight winner overall.

Golf Chairman Joe Mooneyham (left) congratulates A Flight overall winner Jeff Wylie.

Ning Neal (right) was the Ladies flight overall winner.

Stimpson makes short work of Burapha

PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar

(From left): Michael Williams, Barnie Sheedy, David Davies, John Lawton and Steve Mann.

Monday, Jan. 6, Burapha - Stableford
A cool overcast day greeted the 22 Outbackers who played Burapha A and B from the white tees. With no one in front we once again had an under four hour round but perhaps we should listen more to one or two of the players who reckon the white tees are just a little bit too short.
Was that the case for the day’s highlight? - a level par round by Geoff Stimpson to give him a fantastic 45pts playing off 9, he might agree that it was all too easy today!
John Cunningham, a Burapha regular and often on the top step of the podium had to settle for second place with a mere 38pts and Murray Hart one further back on 37.
Div B was a close finish with a relative newcomer to the Outback, Bob Mattes winning on c/b from Bob Lindborg both with 37pts and Ivan Plunkett’s 36pts got him into third.
There were five ‘2’s from Greg Hill (A3), John Cunningham (A6), Geoff Stimpson (B3) and Mark Kembrey & Bob Lindborg both on B8.
Div A (0-17)
1st Geoff Stimpson (9) 45pts
2nd John Cunningham (6) 38pts
3rd Murray Hart (12) 37pts
Div B (18+)
1st Bob Mattes (26) 37pts
2nd Bob Lindborg (21) 37pts
3rd Ivan Plunkett (24) 36pts
Wednesday, Jan. 8, Bangpra – Stableford
Our third visit here since the start of the high season, saw the numbers increase again to seven groups, one player falling sick early, leaving us with 27 players for the early 8.15 start. A misty and murky morning with no wind to clear it away and tending to get a trifle hot, compared to recent days.
A few moans and groans about the condition of the course, which personally I think were unfounded and one or two also thought the greens were slower than usual. Well that can’t be all bad, at least it gave one a chance of staying on the green for some of the scary downhill putts!
There were few monkeys to be seen, some around 9th tee box and one in particular up a tree adjacent to the 17th tee box, with a dog waiting at the bottom. Very amusing to watch as the monkey seemed to be playing with the dog, quite literally creeping down the trunk away from the dog, then peeping around the corner to see if the dog was watching. When the dog made a move, up the tree scampered the monkey, this went on for some time until we were distracted by an eight foot long monitor lizard and the dog was distracted by a much smaller one (lizard) and the monkey made his escape to another tree. Some minutes later the dog returned to his monkey watch but couldn’t quite fathom out where he (the monkey) had gone.
Wily John White, with far too many shots, topped the day with 35pts winning Div B from Ivan Plunkett on 32 and Barnsey came good at last with 34pts to win Div A from Waldo (33) and Mick Jones (31).
There were three ‘2’s from Stephen Blazsanyik (2nd), Robert Barnes (8th) and Peter Nixon (12th).
Div A (0-18)
1st Robert Barnes (12) 34pts
2nd Stephen Blazsanyik (18) 33pts
3rd Mick Jones (18) 31pts
4th John O’Keefe (15) 31pts
Div B (19+)
1st John White (26) 35pts
2nd Ivan Plunkett (24) 32pts
3rd Scott Wilson (21) 31pts
4th Ed Turner (21) 31pts
Friday, Jan. 10, Green Valley – Stableford
A good field of 40 Outbackers played Green Valley in perfect weather, the course as usual was in great condition but the greens were slower than recent weeks. The pace of play was also slow with the round taking 4 hrs 45 min.
Many of the regulars were up in Khao Kheow playing the second day of the PSC Club Championship but the numbers were buoyed by the Irish lads, who were with us again and also some new guys joined us; namely Mal Owens and Brendan Cope and hello also to cope of strays who found us on the tee box. Peter Erikson also returned from the cold and joined up with his friend Juha.
All three divisions were won with a score of 36pts - David Davies won Div C from Ed Turner on 33, with Michael Wittmaak beating Chris Thompson on c/b into third, both on 32. Surprise package this year, John Lawton notched up another win, taking Div B ahead of Kim Danboise (33) and John Fitzgerald, also on 33.
Three more players in Div A all had 36 pts with Steve Plant winning on c/b from playing partner Steve Mann with one of the Irish contingent, Barnie Sheedy in third. Bob Finley was fourth with 35.
Steve Mann had two ‘2’s (4th & 12th), Kim Danboise on the 9th and Phil Clerehan and Noddy Moyle got one each on the 12th.
Div A (0-17)
1st Steve Plant (13) 36pts
2nd Stephen Mann (10) 36pts
3rd Barnie Sheedy (10) 36pts
4th Bob Finley (16) 35pts
Div B (18-20)
1st John Lawton (19) 36pts
2nd Kim Danboise (20) 33pts
3rd John Fitzgerald (19) 33pts
4th Michael Williams (20) 31pts
Div C (21+)
1st David Davies (25) 36pts
2nd Ed Turner (21) 33pts
3rd Michael Wittmaak (23) 32pts
4th Chris Thompson (24) 32pts
Note: The Outback Golf Bar is situated about 6km from Sukhumvit Road along Soi Siam Country. Call Jack on 081 578 1956.

Sheedy enjoys winning return

IPGC golf from The Tara Court Golf

Sunday, Jan. 5, Green Valley
(white tees)- Stableford
Back at Green Valley for our usual Sunday game. This year it doesn’t seem to be as busy as before and if it stays like that we will be staying on here for the high season. We got off at our allotted tee time and got around in less than four and a half hours, which is good for this time of year.

Barney Sheedy and Fred O’Connor.

A lot of our friends from Ireland are back now and one of them, Barney Sheedy, on his first game, was the winner today with 38 points. Tony Pike was second with 37 points and Ger Lodge, who is also just back, was third with 36. Sean McNamara beat Teddy Lodge and Alec Hoare on a count back to take fourth with 34, while Teddy edged Alec for fifth.
There were four 2’s, coming from Barney Sheedy, Teddy Lodge, John Fetherston and Donal with one each.
1st Barney Sheedy (10) 38pts
2nd Tony Pike (9) 37pts
3rd Ger Lodge (18) 36pts
4th Sean McNamara (11) 34pts
5th Teddy Lodge (9) 34pts
6th Alec Hoare (18) 34pts
Tuesday, Jan. 7, Pattavia Century - Stableford
This course is in beautiful condition and everyone really enjoyed it, so much so in fact that we decided to book it again for next week. Although it is a long course it didn’t seem to be playing long and even the higher handicappers didn’t seem to have a problem with it.
Today we had a large number out so we decided to do two flights and in his second game since he came back, Barney Sheedy was the victor again with 37 points in Div 1. Phil Clerehan took second with 35 and Jack Behan placed third with 34.
In the second division the winner was Leo McCauley, who has also just arrived from my own home town and club in Ireland, with 35 points and in second was Joe Peters with 31. Pat Culloty filled the podium in third with 29.
There were four 2’s from John McGarry, Joe McArdle, Phil Clerehan and Ted Morris.
Div. 1
1st Barney Sheedy (10) 37pts
2nd Phil Clerehan (14) 35pts
3rd Jack Beehan (16) 34pts
Div. 2
1st Leo McCauley (19) 35pts
2nd Joe Peters (23) 31pts
3rd Pat Culloty (20) 29pts
Thursday, Jan. 9, Bangpra (white tees)– Stableford
Again this course is in beautiful condition with very fast greens which caught out most of our players, but everyone still enjoyed it very much and we will be back again soon. We had another large group out so decided to do two flights again.
In the top flight Joe McArdle took the honours, getting a birdie on the last for 37 points and beating Tony Pike in to second by one. John Nicholas, who hits the ball out of sight, took third place on 35 points.
In the second tier the winner was Fred O’Connor, proving that clubs do make a difference as he borrowed a driver for today and then made the podium for what I think was his first ever victory with us. Well done Fred. Don’t forget the person who lent you the driver!
In second place was Ger Lodge with 31 points and third was Leo McCauley with 30.
There were three 2’s from Evelyn McNamara, Sean Connolly and Joe McArdle.
Div. 1
1st Joe McArdle (13) 37pts
2nd Tony Pike (9) 36pts
3rd John Nicholas (8) 35pts
Div. 2
1st Fred O’Connor (23) 32pts
2nd Ger Lodge (18) 31pts
3rd Leo McCauley (19) 30pts
Note: The Tara Court Golf Group play every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday, leaving O’Gara’s Bar and Restaurant in the Tara Court on Pratamnak Rd. around 10.00 a.m. Sign up either in O’Gara’s or ring Joe on 089 249 1364.

Vive la Thierry Petrement

PSC Golf from Lewiinski’s Golf Society

Sunday, Jan. 5, Green Valley - Stableford
A Flight
1st Dermott Flanagan (8) 40pts
2nd Barry Copestake (13) 39pts
3rd JP Gasser (10) 36pts
4th Paul Shaw (7) 35pts
B Flight
1st Brian Wilkinson (17) 42pts
2nd Nick Odnoral (16) 37pts
3rd Gerry Power (16) 34pts
4th Peter Henshaw (16) 32pts
Near Pins: No 4 Claus Birk Thompson, No 9 JP Maffray, No 12 Gerry Power, No 16 Colin Davis.

Thierry Petrement.

After overcoming confusion at several levels, namely arranging to play with a fellow golfer and leaving him waiting at the golf club, retuning back to Pattaya pick up a friend in time to make the last four-ball at Green Valley, then turning in a man of the match winning 42 point performance, I give you the one and only Brian ‘the wireless’ Wilkinson. Brian was five clear today of B Flight friend, Aussie star Nick Odnoral and a further three clear of Gerry’ the Irish rover’ Power. Irishman Peter ‘the silver surfer’ Henshaw and Bruce Berlin went to a count back for fourth as the luck of the Irish held sway. Bruce did however have some consolation as he knocked in a 2.
A Flight had a 40 man in the shape of Dermot Flanagan who topped the man riding a purple patch, Barry ‘the boot’ Copestake, by one stroke. JP gasser took the bronze with a steady even par round and he was chased in by the trio of Paul Shaw, Broadmore Bob and Claus Birk Thompson. Once again Broadmore Bob’s count back woes continued as he and Claus sat the presentation out.
Five players shared the ‘2’s pot with Bruce.
Monday, Jan 6, Greenwood B & C – Stableford
A Flight
1st Leslie Cobban (8) 36pts
2nd Eric Gobert (6) 35pts
3rd Kerr Duncan (6) 33pts
B Flight
1st Bruce Walters (33) 40pts
2nd Yve Godola (17) 35pts
3rd John Ianson (23) 35pts
Bruce Walters, who the scribe finds himself writing about nearly every week, did it again as his 40 points sat him atop of B Flight and also gave him the man of the match honours. Bruce was followed in second place by Yve Gondolas’ 35points, which was weighted to the back nine more favorable than that of John Ianson.

Dermott Flanagan (left) with Brian Wilkinson.

A Flight provided the second best score of the day and the name atop the card was Leslie Cobban. Leslie has a well-seasoned handicap but he does “pop up” up now and again as he toured the course today with a solid even par return. Leslie was one clear of Eric Cobban and a further two clear of Duncan Kerr.
Freddy Starbeck and S Hans split the 2’s pot.
Tuesday, Jan. 7, Bangpra - Stableford
A Flight
1st Thierry Petrement (12) 33pts
2nd Paul Bray (7) 33pts
3rd Eric Gobert (6) 31pts
B Flight
1st Mike Jeffreys (17) 39pts
2nd Werner Pausch (24) 34pts
3rd Peter Henshaw (16) 30pts
A somewhat smaller than usual Tuesday field was expected due to the PSC Club Championship that started today, as the gang took on the lighting fast greens and the marauding monkeys of Bangpra.
Society regular Mike ‘the Welsh Wizard’ Jeffreys took the day and B Flight top spot with an excellent 39 points. Mike was also the only player to better his handicap as he cleared flight mate Werner Pausch by five strokes. Peter ‘the silver surfer’ Henshaw tided up the flight in third.
The accomplished lot struggled a tad as nice guy Thierry Petrement and Aussie star Paul Bray carded 33 points each but Paul’s back nine deprived him of the top rung. He still showed his tail lights to Eric Gobert who added the bronze to the week’s winnings.
Paul Heyward and Peter Henshaw split the 2’s pot.
Wednesday, Jan. 8, St. Andrews – Stableford
A Flight
1st Eric Gobert (6) 36pts
2nd Paraic McManus (8) 35pts
3rd Nadine Goyons (12) 35pts
B Flight
1st Lawrie McBride (14) 41pts
2nd Freddy Starbeck (14) 33pts
3rd Colin Davis (15) 32pts
C Flight
1st John O’Neil (20) 40pts
2nd Espen Kristofferson (26) 35pts
3rd Aiden Murray (24) 34pts
Lawrie McBride was man of the match today with a magical B Flight winning 42 points. Freddy Starbeck was a non-threatening eight in arrears and the count back prone duet of the Donkey and Aussie Nick Odnoral but one more. As is the tradition in this hierarchical society, the GM, i.e. the Donkey, won the count back.
In C Flight, John O’Neil shot the second best score of the day, a very admirable 40 points to take the gold spot. John was five clear of Espen Kristoffersen and one more of Aiden Murray as he closed out the flight.
In A Flight, Eric Gobert only equaled his handicap but that was enough to clinch the gold to go with his week’s silver and bronze finishes. Eric was a stroke clear of the trio of Paraic McManus, Nadine Goyons and Aussie star Paul Bray. Paraic lifted the silver and Nadine the bronze in the resulting count back. Paul for once was left off the podium and satang less at sea level.
John O’Neil made up for his man of the match disappointment with a brace of 2’s as Paraic McManus slotted home the only other 2 of the day.
Thursday, Jan. 9, Mt. Shadow – Stableford
A Flight
1st Thierry Petrement (12) 34pts
2nd Paraic McManus (5) 33pts
B Flight
1st Ian Pickles (16) 37pts
2nd Toni Buerui (28) 31pts
Desmond Muirhead’s monster always seems to intimidate the society as only a modest group showed up to take it on. Ian Pickles, playing his usual steady golf, showed no signs of fear as he bettered the course by a stroke for the man of the match honours and B Flight top spot. Ian was six clear of Toni Buerui.
A Flight was a bit subdued with many of the players finding the greens a little quick for their liking. Nice guy Thierry Petrement took the top spot with34 points for his second flight win in the week. Irishman Paraic McManus came up a shot short for the silver.
JP Gasser and Toni Buerui split the ‘2’s pot.
Friday, Jan. 10, Eastern Star - Stableford
A Flight
1st Thierry Petrement (12) 41pts
2nd JP Maffray (11) 38pts
3rd Peter Henshaw (16) 31pts
B Flight
1st Bruce Berlin (24) 37pts
2nd Mike Jeffreys (17) 36pts
3rd Espen Kristoffersen (26) 35pts
The title spotlight shone on one of the most pleasant people in the society - Frenchman Thierry Petrement - and rightly so as he carded his third A Flight victory in the week. His 41 points was three clear of pay window specialist JP Maffray. Peter ‘the silver surfer’ Henshaw (hold it, Peter in A Flight? well I never) marked his move up to the premier flight with a third place result.
B Flight’s Bruce Berlin, tired of finishing third, carded a very impressive 37 points to lift the flight gold today. Mike ‘the Welsh Wizard’ Jeffreys continued his recent form to grab the silver as Espen Kristoffersen closed the flight with 35 points.
Mike Jeffreys slotted home the only ‘2’ of the day.
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.

A tough week as the wind blows

IPGC golf from The Haven Weekly

Monday, Jan. 6, Khao Kheow A & B (yellow tees) - Stableford
CSS 72
1st Hal Hart (20) 37pts
2nd Adrian Cook (14) 35pts
3rd Phil Cass (20) 34pts
4th Al Rolnik (18) 33pts
5th Markku Tynell (23) 33pts
With the disruption of recent weeks and the promise of more to come in Bangkok, there seems to have been a serious knock-on effect on the Pattaya tourist numbers, even though the problems, such as they are, are confined to the capital. The streets in Pattaya are virtually deserted and the golf courses are generally seriously under populated for this time of year compared to previous seasons.

Hal Hart.

But at least this is a benefit for those that are still making the trips and the locals. The outing to Khao Kheow, usually one of the most heavily played in the area, was as much a pleasure for the players as conversely it must have been a disappointment for the course management.
With all the renovation work now completed, the A and B nines were found to be in tip top condition but, as always, scoring was at a premium on this notoriously difficult Pete Dye designed course, at least for the middle to higher handicappers. Although there was an absurd rumour that one player had scored eleven (11) under handicap later in the week with another group!
The best that could be mustered from a very eclectic group on this day was one under, which was achieved by Hal Hart and that put him two clear of second placed Adrian Cook. Phil Cass took third spot ahead of a count back for fourth between Al Rolnik and Markku Tynell with Al getting the nod with a better 17 to 15.
There were no 2’s in the first division but Markku Tynell and Philip Cass shared the second division rollover pool.
Prior to the presentations there was a welcome back for Alan Hanlon.
Wednesday, Jan. 8, Greenwood B & C (white tees) - Stableford
CSS 73
1st Kevin Townsend (12) 37pts
2nd Brian Libby (9) 35pts
3rd Danny Greer (24) 33pts
4th Allen Raaen (8) 32pts
5th Markku Tynell (23) 31pts
6th Dave Howden (14) 31pts
With the wind picking up to make the 6,600 yard course even longer and tougher, it was no surprise to find that the CSS for the day had moved out to 73 as most of the day’s hopefuls found things just a bit too tough. However, with clear skies and a great course to play it was still a great day out for everyone.

Kevin Townsend.

Kevin Townsend finally made it to the top after a few near misses as he stayed the course well, closing out with a two under nine on the inward half and ensuring the win by two from playing partner Brian Libby, who finished a tidy round at one over. After a slow start that saw him drop four shots, Brian had a great back nine of four under handicap but it was just not quite good enough to unsettle the even steadier Kevin.
Danny Greer returned from the frozen north to take third place two further back and one ahead of Allen Raaen, who has been struggling with a back injury recently. Markku Tynell won a count back for fifth over Dave Howden, carding a better 17 to 15.
With the par threes set up a little easier than the previous outing there were a few more 2’s today, with Dave Howden and Brian Libby sharing the first division rollover pot and Phil Cass slotting in yet another to sweep the second division pool.
Before the presentations were made there were welcome backs for Brian Libby, Shuichi Kodaka, Danny Greer and Patrick Scullion, recently retired as one of Ireland’s ambassadors and taking up residence in Pattaya for a couple of months.
Friday, Jan. 10, Crystal Bay C & A (white tees) - Stableford
CSS 73
1st Mark Lang (8) 36pts
2nd Shuichi Kodaka (18) 35pts
3rd Bruce Kusyk (13) 33pts
4th Adrian Cook (14) 32pts
5th Philip Cass (20) 32pts
6th Patrick Scullion (21) 32pts
Once again the weather conditions had a detrimental effect on the day’s scores as the wind seemed to be blowing from all directions at once but mostly into the players’ faces, making the 6,450 yardage on the card appear to be at least a couple of hundred yards longer. This would seem to be borne out by the CSS that moved out to 73 for the day as more than 60% of the field failed to make 30 points.
The scoring could be partly laid at the door of the greens that were a bit ragged around the edges, needing a good mowing and rolling to get them back to a reasonable condition. But as always in the area this will no doubt soon be corrected and future groups will again be well satisfied with the general condition.
Mark Lang won his last outing with The Haven after a very happy holiday, with an excellent level par round that owed much to his ability to find the middle of the fairway with monotonous regularity and steady play into the difficult greens, with putting being the only weak spot in his game on the day.
Shuichi Kodaka is obviously getting ready to win another one, and see his handicap plummet back down, as he put in a very good one over handicap return for second place ahead of Bruce Kusyk, who was just two more behind him.
Adrian Cook won a three-way count back with a better 17 on the closing nine as Philip Cass took fifth, beating Patrick Scullion on the back six with a better 12 to 10 after they had tied the nine at 15 apiece.
The windy conditions on the day and the length of the par threes determined that there would be no 2’s in either division.
Back at The Haven there was a welcome for new member Johann Kilian-Somer and welcome backs for Takeshi Hakozaki, Bruce Kusyk and Stephen Beard, who was playing his first game that would be counting for handicap for eighteen months. Sadly it was not one that would be remembered for too long.
There was also a farewell for the winner, Mark Lang.
Note. If you would like to play with The Haven group, you can contact mobile 094 567 5726 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.

Murdoch makes his mark at Green Valley

PSC golf from The Caddyshack

Monday 6th January at Green Valley found Ted Gardner (H/cap 7) take yet another win with 37 points. It shows how good you can get when you hit 500 golf balls every day. Peter Henderson (21) was second with 36 points from Ed Horrocks (21) in third on 34 and Jack Butler (14) taking fourth on count back from John Murdoch (13), both with 33.

John Murdoch.

Wednesday was our away game of the week and we took the trip to Pattavia Century which is showing steady improvement after its major revitalisation. The new clubhouse is ahead of schedule and should be finished by the end of February. We also tried a shortcut to get there which took about 15 minutes off the time of the trip on a much better road through millions of pineapples.
Roger Rush (17) took the win with 34 points from Mike Phillips (12) on 33 and Ramsay Smith (21) with 32 in third.
Friday was back home at Green Valley and John Murdoch (13) had the top score of the week, 40 points, to take the win ahead of Tony Baker (23) in second on 38 and a trio of players on 35, namely Ted Gardner, Mel Davis, and Peter Henderson who finished in that order.
Note: The Caddyshack is located on Soi 17 off 3rd Road or soi 8 off Thepprasit. All golfers are welcome and reservations are taken at 081 865 3104.

Ted Gardner.

Roger Rush.

Smets wins again at Emerald

PSC golf from The Beaver Bar & Grill

Friday’s weekly golf outing from the Beaver Bar was greeted with gentle breezes and mild temperatures at the Emerald Golf Club course. Numerous players arrived to vie for the bragging rights and all set off as scheduled.
After the scores were submitted, the following players were deemed to have arrived in the following order. In fourth place with 34 points was Paul Simpson followed by a tie on 35 points that saw Bill Cleal in third on count back and Bobby Clark in second. First place was again won by Paul Smets with 36 points.
Nearest to the pin on hole #7 was claimed by Johnnie Williams.
All returned afterwards to the Beaver Bar & Grill for refreshments.

Macnamara has a day to remember

Travellers Rest Golf Group

Jack Macnamara and Jay Sher.

Andy Rich
It’s January 2014 and the boys are back in town all looking for a round of golf in the sunshine and to get away from all the brass monkeys back home. A large influx came into Pattaya this past week from all over the world and it meant every competition had to be divided into two divisions, such were the numbers. Many old faces were returning and a good number of new faces were here for the first time and all were made welcome at the TRGG.
Monday, Jan. 6, Greenwood - Stableford
On Monday it was off to Greenwood (C and B courses) and in Division 2 Jack Macnamara was having one of those days when everything went right. In fact Jack said he couldn’t believe some of the things he was doing, he was in dreamland. He rattled up 43 pts which was easily the best score of the day.
Jay Sher in Division 1 showed that a handicap reduction of three shots the previous week was not going to knock him out of his stride and he shot 37 points to win his division.

Billy Allan and Kevin Smith.

Div.1 (0-14)
1st Jay Sher (13) 37pts
2nd Neil Wilkinson (13) 36pts
3rd Rocky Jones (5) 35pts
Div.2 (15+)
1st Jack Macnamara (19) 43pts
2nd Ted Senior (15) 38pts
3rd Ross Healey (16) 34pts
Tuesday, Jan. 7, Green Valley - Stableford
Tuesday meant our usual Tuesday visit to Green Valley. In Division 1 Rocky Jones improved on his third place finish the day before and took first place with an excellent 37 points. He was the only player to better his handicap on the day and Brendon McEvoy’s 34 was good enough to win Division 2.
Div.1 (0-13)
1st Rocky Jones (5) 37pts
2nd Mike Rushant (11) 35pts
3rd Kevin Smith (12) 33pts
Div.2 (14+)
1st Brendon McEvoy (17) 34pts
2nd Ken Brehm (19) 32pts
3rd Billy Allen (18) 29pts
Thursday, Jan. 9, The Emerald - Stableford
It was back to Emerald on Thursday and for some the wheels fell off. Jack Macnamara went from first on Monday to last on Thursday, such are the idiosyncrasies of golf, one minute it makes you feel great and the next it just grates.
Michael Jones had a great day amassing 37 pts and winning Division 1 whilst that cheeky chappie Billy Allan did the business in Division 2.
Div.1 (0-13)
1st Michael Jones (11) 37pts
2nd Kevin Smith (12) 33pts
3rd Alan Thomas (5) 33pts
Div.2 (14+)
1st Billy Allan (18) 34pts
2nd Ted Senior (14) 29pts
3rd Jim McNeill (14) 29pts
Saturday, Jan. 11, Eastern Star - Stableford
On Saturday it was off to Eastern Star where dark horse Kevin Smith, already with a third and second place this week, finished in the number one slot in Division 1. The winner for the best score and loudest shirt of the day in Division 2 went once again to Billy Allan.
Div.1 (0-13)
1st Kevin Smith (12) 33pts
2nd Alan Thomas (5) 32pts
3rd Joe Stranks (12) 32pts
Div.2 (14+)
1st Billy Allan (18) 36pts
2nd Liam Keegan (15) 32pts
3rd Joe Kelliher (24) 29pts
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.

A sting in the tail for Neil

PSC golf Bunker Boys @ The Ranch

Would you mess with me?

Monday, Jan. 6, Crystal Bay B & C – Stableford
Thirty four golfers turned out to tackle one of the more reasonably priced courses in the area for today’s KPK Foods sponsored tournament.
Another lovely day in the Land of Smiles saw the field being directed to tee off at A course before then being redirected onto B course, which was a lot less busy. Generally good scores are returned here and today was no exception, especially from A Flight where Tony Berry edged out Gerry Cooney on count back, the latter also just missing out on a hole in one.
In the lower positions, another count back was needed to separate 3rd and 4th places with Tony Scrambler just victorious over Colin Greig.
B Flight was not so tight and 38 points saw “steady eddy” Ken Young take the honours from Jack Robertson. If he’s not careful with his upturn in form we’ll soon be accusing him of being a golfer!
Incident of the day occurred on the fairway of hole number 7 where a 4ft long monitor lizard had managed to get itself stuck head down in a storm drain grating. Neil Griffin took pity on the animal and as he attempted to pull it free by the tail, the animal managed to jackknife 180 degrees to bite the Good Samaritan on the hand. A bloody wound resulted with a ripped golf glove for good measure. Fortunately the damage was minor and with the help of an eight iron the caddies shoehorned the animal into the drain. Bet he doesn’t try that again!
A Flight
1st Tony Berry (12) 39pts
2nd Gerry Cooney (13) 39pts
3rd Tony Scambler (8) 38pts
4th Colin Greig (7) 38pts
B Flight
1st Ken Young (28) 38pts
2nd Jack Robertson (27) 36pts
3rd Daryl Whyte (25) 35pts
4th Dave Keats (35) 33pts
Near Pins: Gerry Cooney, John Graham, Daryl Whyte and Tony Scrambler.
Wednesday, Jan. 8, Green Valley – Medal
The course was busy when we arrived and we had to wait for caddies, but fortunately we got away on time. The weather was hazy but quite a bit warmer than in recent weeks. Fairways were in good condition, but the greens played a lot slower than our previous visit 2 weeks ago.
December Golfer of the Month, Colin Greig (hcp. 7) managed to record his first NR in living memory (Bunker records only go back 15 years!), after carding a 13 on the par 5 eighth hole followed by OB on the 10th.
In A Flight there was a first win for Mark Stanley on his eighth attempt since his return, edging Geoff Parker by a shot, who managed to recover from a 9 on the par 5 first hole. In turn Geoff edged out Keith Norman into third by a count back with all 3 golfers bettering par.
In B Flight the scores were nearly as good with Gordon Melia marching on with a winning 2 under par Net 70 (sure he puts his cards in for handicap?) Keith Hemmings finished a single shot behind and Mike Corner a further shot adrift but still shooting par.
A Flight
1st Mark Stanley (10) Net 69
2nd Geoff Parker (14) Net 70
3rd Keith Norman (13) Net 70
B Flight
1st Gordon Melia (18) Net 70
2nd Keith Hemmings (16) Net 71
3rd Mike Corner (21) Net 72
Near Pins: Patrick Kelly, Keith Hemmings, Keith Allen and Mark Stanley.
Friday, Jan. 10, Pleasant Valley – Stableford
A smaller field than normal of 19, due to a clash with the PSC annual championship, headed out to Pleasant Valley to take on the blue tees. Upon arrival the clubhouse looked very busy and we were wondering if it was due to a lack of caddies. In the end our fears were unjustified as we teed off only a few minutes late.
The course was busy and the first 5 holes were very slow before the field speeded up. Fairway conditions were good but the rough was rough if you erred and the greens were slow. A stiff breeze also contributed to lower scoring.
In A Flight Geoff Parker ruled with front/back nines of 19/17 followed up by Colin Greig and Keith Hemmings separated by a count back.
In B Flight the excitement surrounded Skinny Newton and Neil Griffin who had both decided to leave the beers until after the round. Front nines of 21 and 20 proved they could play unaided but sobriety kicked in on the more difficult back nine and scores of 15 and 13 left Skinny as top dog over Neil. For both it was a first podium finish since their return many moons ago.
Large note of disappointment in the form of signs appearing around the clubhouse warning against bringing outside food and drink, not enforced yet but a worrying trend.
A Flight
1st Geoff Parker (14) 36pts
2nd Colin Greig (7) 35pts
3rd Keith Hemmings (16) 35pts
B Flight
1st Skinny Newton (28) 36pts
2nd Neil Griffin (23) 33pts
3rd Dave Keats (35) 32pts.
Near Pins: Colin Greig, Keith Hemmings, Gerry Cooney and Raleigh Gosney
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.

Richard & Graham share the spoils at Crystal Bay

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s

Richard Kubicki (right) with Graham Buckingham.

Derek Brook
Tuesday, Jan. 7, Crystal Bay – Stableford
With the PSC Club Championship being on today, and many of our players taking part in it, we scheduled a reduced number of golfers to attend the day. These numbers soon filled up so we met at Bert’s on the morning to find we were as usual, very full.
So with a full list, off we went to the course. The drive down there was remarkably slow as the traffic seemed much denser and the road packed. We did however battle on and arrived at the course in time to get to the first tee on time. Surprisingly the tee was empty so off we went a few minutes early on the C Nine. This is a tough nine, but as I have said many times, this used to be my favourite course for many years. It is still up there in my favourite list but has faded a bit for me.
So to the round and the first thing that we noticed was that we had a big wind with us for the day. Whilst it was behind we had good distance on our shots but head into in and problems occurred. I do not like a strong wind, never have and never will.

Alan Sullivan and Tom Cotton with one of Bert’s finest.

The fairways were in reasonable condition today and the greens were very fast, although they were not in the best of condition with many of them quite patchy and difficult to putt on.
Back at Bert’s it was soon time for the results and in the A Flight the winner was Richard Kubicki with 38 points ahead of a count back on 36 points that saw Mark West in second, Landis Brooks in third and Derek Brook just losing out.
In the B Flight the winner was Graham Buckingham with 38 points ahead of Dick Warberg in second with 36 points and a count back on 35 points saw Carole Kubicky in third and John Marritt and Tom Cotton just losing out.
Near Pins: John Marritt, Andre Van Dyk (2), Tom Cotton
Long Putts: Dave Cooper, Mark West
Friday, Jan. 10, Pleasant Valley – Stableford
So we went to Pleasant Valley on Friday. If you have not played here I will try to explain it in general. It is a golf course squeezed, seemingly, into too small a space where the owners, or staff, have tried to make the best of what they have got. The fairways are generally too close but by carefully growing trees in the correct places they have made it safer than it used to be. It has become a fair golf course with a new club house.
This is a course that players hold diverse views on but my thoughts have changed since the first time I went there and overall I think it is now a really good day out. The fairways are fine, the greens are good and the rough can be the next fairway at times.
One thing that has been true for me is that I always seem to get the new, inexperienced caddy who should be sent out under instruction. We all need to learn and have to start somewhere but unfortunately they seem to throw the new caddies in at the deep end. And we have some golfers who are at the deep end and are not sympathetic. Difficult for the new caddy and difficult for the golfer. There must be a solution and the one I see is sending the new caddy out with a seasoned caddy. Nuff said.
Back at Bert’s it was time for the results and in the A Flight, 0 to 20, the winner was Alan Sullivan with 36 points ahead of a count back on 35 points that saw Richard Kubicki in second and Andre Van Dyk in third. In fourth was Dick Warberg with 32 points.
In the B Flight the winner was Tom Cotton with 37 points, with Karen Brown in second on 33, John Marritt third with 32 and in fourth was Graham Buckingham with 30 points. T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Andre Van Dyk, Walter Baechli, Daryl Evans
Long Putts: Alan Sullivan.

Local knowledge does the trick for ‘Lumpy’

PSC golf from The Billabong Golf Bar
The Billabong golf tour to Khao Yai was a great success and with seven groups playing it was a fun couple of days.
Staying at the Rim Tarn Inn in the heart of Pak Chong, the staff were excellent and everything went smoothly, with tables set up down by the river for our usual cheese, wine and bickies after golf. Everything was going well until ‘the Arab’ let some steam off and cleared the restaurant out completely, but he did try to blame Paul for the indiscretion.
On the first day we played the Khao Yai Country Club and the check in went like clockwork, thanks to Nutty and her girls. Whilst the course wasn’t as green as the last time we played here it was still a great test of golf and it was deserted so away we went.
There were some truly amazing scores, I have played this course on a few occasions and have never seen scores to match these ones.
Coming in fourth place was Capt Bob with 44 points (yes, that’s right, 44 points in fourth), being beaten on a count back by Chris Dodd also on 44. Second place went to Kiwi Bill Marsden with 46 points - can you believe that! Meanwhile we were all soundly beaten by the local lad from Pak Chong, ‘Lumpy’ Meyers, with a magnificent 49 points. We will get revenge next time ‘Lumpy’ when we come back in April.
There were two ‘2’s today, coming from Paul O’Mahoney and Barry Copestake.
On the second day we played at Rancho Charnvee and what a great course this one is. The club house and facilities are also tremendous here.
As expected the scores on the second day weren’t as great as the first, due mainly to the previous night’s drink I would suggest - it couldn’t have been the cheese!
It was predicted that 35 points would take the top prize on the second day and that is exactly what happened. There was a four-way count back, all on 32 points, between Richard Steadman, Phil Waite, Barry Copestake and Lumpy Russell with the latter two missing out. Phil took fifth, with Richard coming fourth. Third place went to David Collier with 33 points and in second was Pat Regan with 34. Chris Dodd handled this course best of all and returned the aforementioned 35-point winning score.
There were three ‘2’s coming Richard Steadman with one and Pat Regan the other two.
The overall 2 day scores saw Walter De Pooter in fourth with 72 points, Bob Philp third on 75, second went to Chris Dodd with 79 points and in first place was ‘Lumpy’ Meyers with 80.
Wednesday, Jan. 8, Green Valley – Stableford
We had just 5 groups today at Green Valley and absolutely the weather was absolutely perfect for golf. The course as usual was in great condition and if the greens get any faster you will need to use a cotton wool putter.
Good to see Brad Driffill again up from Aussie to give us a lesson, and also welcome to Kev, Craig and Jay from Perth.
The scores were not particularly good but there were four ‘2’s coming from Auke and John Wood with one each and Sel Wegner had a double. Taking fourth place on the day was John Wood with 33 points, beaten for third spot on a count back by Owen Walkley, also on 33. Second and also losing on a count back with 34 points was Roger Ison and taking line honours was Sel Wegner.

Bill & Bruce team up for victory at Eastern Star

Jomtien Golf with the IPGC

Lindsay Phillips, Max Alabor and Harry Vincenzi.

Monday, Jan. 6, Pleasant Valley – Stableford
It was a 45 minute drive up the 7 from Siam Cats and as we arrived the course looked very quiet. We had 7 four-balls out today with the equal cut at 6-16 and 17+ in the two divisions.
Max Alabor won division 1 with 36 points while in second place Harry Vincenzi beat Lindsay Phillips on a 23/20 back-nine count back after they both came in with 34 points each. There were a few cheers back at the Cats for this result.
Miss Nut, still playing off the white tees, came in with 36 points to top division 2, beating Pepo Frick 8/7 on the back three holes after scoring 19 each on the back nine and 13 on the back six. Chris Reed was in third place on 35.
Near pins went to Max Alabor (2), Lindsay Phillips, Jim Connelly, Ray Gott, Chris Reed and David Taylor.
It was Bon Voyage today to David Taylor, heading back to the UK.
Wednesday, Jan. 8, The Emerald – Stableford
Standing on the first tee there was a lovely cool breeze blowing and this lasted throughout the round today, which was enjoyed by all ten groups.
We had three divisions out with the cut at 6-15, 16-20 and 21 plus and the best score returned was in division 3 with Pepo Frick winning with 38 points. Erkki Pohja came in second on 33 and Jim Connelly took third with 32.
Chris Reed claimed bragging rights in division 2 with 35 points, one ahead of the Welsh boy Curtis Hessler in second and Harry Vincenzi was third with 31 points.
After his return back from the UK, Pete Sumner lost out 14/10 on a back six-count back to Max Alabor in division 1 after they both came in with 35 points each. Mr. Happy, alias Bryan Rought was third with 32.
Near today went to Max Alabor, Dennis Scougal, Volker Suhr, Chris Voller, William Chang (2) and Chris Reed.
Friday, Jan. 10, Eastern Star – 2-person scramble
Another fun game today courtesy of the rollover kitty, a 2-person scramble with one person from division 1 (handicap 1-16) and one from division 2 (17+) making up each pairing. There were 19 groups out today with a 40% combined handicap allowance for the team and there had to be 7 drives counting from each player on the card.
Bill Bertram, playing off 12, and Bruce Gardner off 20 won the scramble event with a fine 49 points, three ahead of Pete Sumner and Jim Sims in second while Andy Baber and Rod Howett beat Dennis Scougal and Jim Connelly 23/22 on the back nine for third after both teams came in with 45 points each, but they were all in the winning pot.
Individual near pins were claimed by Bill Bertram, Wilf Latham, Ron Miller, Volker Suhr, Alan Duckett, Pepo Frick and Ray Gott.
Team near pins went to Wilf Latham & Iain Walsh, Grenville Hill & Alan Duckett, Jin Connelly & Dennis Scougal, Frank Kelly & Joe Kubon, Terry Madsen & Chris Reed, and Bill Bertram & Bruce Gardner while the longest drive prizes were won by Pete Sumner and John Bisceglio.
The pairings of Bill Bertram & Bruce Gardner, Terry Madsen & Chris Reed, Horst Starchl & Pepo Frick and Max & Lee Casey shard the team ‘2’s kitty.
It was another game enjoyed by all and our next fun day is at Mountain Shadow on the 20th, a pairs multiplier.

‘Taxi Driver’ gets lost on way to the bar

The Backyard Golf Society

The Backyard Boys’ outing at Emerald last week produced the usual mix of highs, lows and the downright unbelievable.
First to the high and the winner on the day was Martyn “The Quiet Man” Anderton. 37 stableford points gave him the cheque over Irish John, who beat Golden Trowel’s Boyfriend on a back-9 count back. The near-pin award went to that well known super golfer “Second-hand” Bob, his being the only shot to stay on the par-3, 15th green.
The skins were won by Michelle Chatt (see Taxi issue below also) with 2 but she/he also won the 6 roll-overs from the previous week, 5 to The Quiet Man, 3 each to Irish John and Kit the Pom, 1 to Passport Control and the final 4 holes rolled over to next week.
Armed with his ample winnings “The Quiet Man” forked out for a round down the road. The unbelievable item for the day was that Mike “The Taxi” (Michelle’s alter-ego), who ran a London cab for many years, somehow managed to not arrive at the bar after the game. Rumours abound as to the reason but perhaps he thought he had a fare in the back and took the “long way round” via Pattaya?
The lowlight was the total disregard for the rules by not only some players but also the course marshal, allowing 2 players to join their mates on the 13th tee. Just like that we found additional players on the tee and when we asked how this could happen we were informed by the marshal that “they were late for their tee-time”. Yes, they were, about 3hrs late! One is not likely to see such things happen outside of a Thai golf course but in the end we all know such things occur on occasions.

Jensen scores a weekly hat-trick

The Pattaya Golf Society (IPGC) at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar

The Pattaya Golf Society returned to Pleasant Valley on Monday, 6th January to play a stableford event from the white tees as the fairways are invariably wet from early morning irrigation. They were, and the greens were slow and bumpy again.
Starting from the tenth tee the “newbies” to the course found the “front” nine difficult with its longer carries and limited landing areas and there was little to separate the contenders in both flights. After the turn however things began to move and in the second flight both Henry Mah and Murray Edwards performed creditably to return 36 points each for a share of second place. The winner was Irishman Dave Lehane and his 39 points represented his best return this trip.
In the top flight Wichai Tananusorn and Alan Flynn shared third place with 34 points each whilst Scot Iain Wilson went one better to second place with 35 points and the best gross figures of the day, 76 shots. The winner was Canadian golfer Marc Jensen and his 40 points will help him realise his ambition of becoming again a single handicap golfer after a bad health scare last year.
Marc also took a share of the ‘2’s pot with Mikael Lindberg, Dave Lehane and Brent Nastiuk, while Dave Plaiter took the boozer’s double as both Rabbi’s non-winners’ beer and the Booby Bevy found its way to his table back in Soi Buakhao, the latter coming after he teed off from outside the teeing area on the sixteenth as he mistook his caddies sand bag for a tee marker. Silly boy! Hmmm...or was he?
But there were no mistakes for Marc Jensen as he set the standard for the group on only the second day of the new golfing year for the PGS.
Canada Day
On Wednesday, 8th January the Pattaya Golf Society renewed its acquaintance with the former Century Chonburi, now renamed Pattavia, to play a stableford event in two flights with the cut set at sixteen and under.
The course was a revelation to older hands and the changes have turned an already splendid design into a testing course which more than befits Pattaya golfers. Fairways are lush and well irrigated, bunkers are “proper” bunkers at last and the greens posed a real threat, being very quick. Well done Chang!
With a lot of “newbies” with no experience of the old course ideas were fresh and scores were realistic. In the top flight Andrew Purdie used his power to record 35 points, sharing second place with Chris Smith, the latter again setting the best gross figures for the day, 74 shots. The flight winner was Marc Jensen, winning his second successive event, this time with 37 points.
In the second flight John Chelo and Masashi Iizumi shared third place with 31 points, a few behind Canadian Kevin McConnell on 35. The winner was fellow canuck Henry Mah and his 40 points brought back memories of his exploits on his previous trip when his improved game drew the plaudits from his peers.
The ‘2’s pot was shared by Dave Edwards, Andrew Purdie, John Chelo and Dave Wilkinson and the Booby Bevy went to Larry Ang for some cavalier driving on Highway 7. Rabbi’s consolation beer went to Paul Sturgeon.
The re acquaintance with Pattavia had gone smoothly with praise all round and the PGS Canadian contingent certainly made its mark with representatives occupying all three places in the second flight and the winner in the top group. It’s probably down to the sun on their backs!
Jensen makes it three
On Friday, 10th January the Pattaya Golf Society visited Greenwood to play a stableford competition on the C and B nines which were in good condition throughout.
The cut was at seventeen and under and in the second flight four golfers shared the third place spoils with 32 points, namely Henry Mah, Jim Ferris, Dave Plaiter and the returning Yvonne Earley. One point ahead of them was Pat Murphy with 33 points but the flight was blown away by Murray Edwards who managed his best ever score with the group, forty points.
In the top flight Peter Wilson and Rick Schramm shared second place with 37 points but Marc Jensen pulled out a plum again with 41 points for the win, his second forty plus score in four rounds. ESR will certainly be applied to realise his ambition of returning to single figures. He also shared the ‘2’s pot with Dave Cadwallader and Paul Edgar and the Booby Bevy went to Jesper Hansen after his nine-seventeen split figures.
The week had ended on a high note at Rabbi’s with the return of many old friends and some very exhilarating golf.

Asian stars set to shine at the PTT Pattaya Open

Kimiko Date-Krumm.

Japan’s top four women’s tennis stars, Ayumi Morita, Kimiko Date-Krumm, Kurumi Nara and Misaki Doi, China’s No 2 Shuai Peng and No 3 Shuai Zhang and Taiwan’s Su-Wei Hsieh head a line-up of Asian stars out to create an impact at the 2014 PTT Pattaya Open, WTA tennis tournament, which will be held at the Dusit Thani Hotel, Pattaya from 26 January – 2 February 2014.
The seven Asian stars will take their places in the main draw alongside leading European and Russian stars, Sabine Lisicki, Sorana Cirstea, Vera Zvonareva, Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina.
Of the Asian players Shuai Zhang comes into the tournament with the best form having won 2 WTA titles on home ground in China and reached the final in a third event n Ningbo. Her wins came in Guangzhou and Nanjing.

Ayumi Morita. (AP Photo)

The Japanese quartet have also enjoyed their best results in Asia; Ayumi Morita was a finalist in Nanjing and a semi-finalist in Kuala Lumpur, Kimiko Date-Krumm was a quarter-finalist in Seoul and Kurumi Nara reached the semi-final in Osaka. Su-Wei Hsieh had a disappointing season, with her best result coming with a quarter-final finish in Kuala Lumpur.
In addition to the 7 Chinese, Japanese and Taiwanese stars at least 4 Thai players are expected to compete in the tournament. Luksika Kumkhum has gained automatic acceptance through her ranking and the remainder of the Thai players will compete courtesy of wild cards into the main draw and qualifying rounds.

The stadium at the Dusit Thani Hotel was expanded in 2011 to accommodate more spectators at this popular annual WTA tournament.

The PTT Pattaya Open has become synonymous with “tennis by the sea” and remains unique on the professional women’s tennis tour, in that it is played in a 5-star hotel with a beachside location, where the tennis courts almost touch the sea. The compact stadium was expanded in 2011 to seat a little over 2,500 spectators on finals weekend, this capacity increase was needed as the number of spectators in 2011 and again in 2012 and 2013 has increased year on year.
There has also a surge in print and electronic media coverage and “live” TV broadcasts, not just in Thailand, but in Asia, Europe and the Americas as well. The tournament this year will be televised on Siam Keelah “live” on weekdays from 15.00 and on NBT and T- Sports on semi-finals and finals day from 16.00. In addition, the tournament will also be broadcast “live” internationally each day from the beginning of play.
Tickets for the PTT Pattaya Open are on sale at 300, 500, 800 and 1,200 baht.
For more information on the tournament and tickets, please contact Pentangle Promotions Co., Ltd at Tel: 02-3113414/5 website www.pentanglepromotions.com or at Thaiticketmajor on 02-262-3456, website www.thaiticketmajor.com

Pattaya Windsurfing Comp hit by Bangkok protests

A reduced fleet takes to the water Jan. 10 in Jomtien for the Pattaya International Windsurfing Competition.

Thanachot Anuvan
Continuing political demonstrations in Bangkok took the wind out of the Pattaya International Windsurfing Competition, with five of seven foreign countries dropping out.
Only 60 athletes from Thailand, Myanmar and South Korea were present when the Windsurfing Association of Thailand contest opened Jan. 10 on Jomtien Beach. Sailors from Hong Kong, Malaysia, Oman, Singapore and Sri Lanka dropped out in the days leading up to the three-day meet.
The sporadically violent demonstrations, which climaxed with a complete “shutdown” of the capital on Jan. 13, were responsible for the cancellations, as the foreign governments had placed restrictions on traveling to the kingdom until order is restored.
Thai windsurfers considered the match important as they prepare for the Youth Olympics in China and ASEAN Games in South Korea.
Scheduled races included RS:X (Men Overall), RS:X (Woman Overall), Slalom (Shortboard) Classes A, Slalom (Shortboard) Classes B, RS: One Open, Techono 239 under age 17 and Raceboard Open.

Brass Monkey stay on course for promotion

Bangkok Casuals Football League

Local Pattaya team Brass Monkey FC took big strides last week with two league wins in Division 2 to bolster their promotion chances. Brass Monkey played FC Planet reserves first up and the young Planet side, who play good football, should have opened the scoring with two good chances being spurned early on. Brass settled down and started to get on top, but at half time the score remained 0-0.
After the break both sides were looking for the opening goal and it was Brass who made the breakthrough when Tyralla’s thunderbolt free-kick gave the Planet keeper little chance to make it 1-0. Brass then wasted a golden opportunity to double their advantage when they were awarded a penalty after their forward was brought down in the Planet box, but it was totally wasted as the resultant spot kick was blasted over the bar.
Planet’s keeper made a string of good saves to keep his team in the match and then Planet struck back with a rasping equalizer from just inside the box to make the score 1-1.
With time running out Brass gained a corner kick and a superb cross found the head of centre half Garry Bowden whose header slammed into the back of the net to give Brass a 2-1 lead that they kept until the final whistle.
Brass Monkey second match last week saw them entertain I-play who are lying near the bottom of the league. Chances were few and far between in the first half with the best of these falling to Brass’ Dipita, but the match still remained goalless at the break.
After halftime Brass piled on the pressure and took the lead after a clever exchange of passes between Emanvac and Matveer saw the former break clear and score to make it 1-0 for the Brass. I-play then caught the Brass defense too high up the pitch and broke away to equalize, but a great through ball from Alan Mulberry into the path of earnest Dipita saw the Brass forward restore the advantage and make the final score 2-1.

Pattya CC open new season with 4 wicket win in Bangkok

The Pattaya Cricket Club team pose for a photo at the Harrow International School in Bangkok, Sunday, Jan. 12.

Pattaya Cricket Club, in association with Pattaya Sports Club, played their first game of the new season against the Southerners 2nd team in Bangkok last Sunday, Jan. 12.
The Southerners won the toss and batted first on a newly laid Astroturf wicket at the Harrow School ground. However they found it tough to score runs due to very accurate bowling from the Pattaya opening bowlers, Salman Khan and Thomas Manoj. These were backed up superbly by the rest of the Pattaya attack, who restricted the Southerners to only 119 for 6 wickets in their allotted 25 overs. Gaurav, with 54 runs, was the only Southerners batsman to put up any real resistance.
When Pattaya replied, they found it just as difficult to score, with opener John Giuffrida top scoring with 34 runs. The turning point was a sixth wicket partnership of 49 between Salman Khan and Hancy Diwansingh. Pattaya scored 121 for 6 wickets, in 21.3 overs, and thus secured victory by 4 wickets. Man of the Match was given to Thomas Manoj for his bowling performance of 5 overs 1 wicket for 9 runs conceded.