Race Helms to fore in Four-Island Race

Royal Varuna women dominated the 1999 Yetsenga Trophy Race, which comprised a four-island configuration for the multi-hulls and a four-buoy circuit for the Lasers off Pattaya Bay. Susan Race and Bianca Helms took the respective honours, in accordance with the wishes of Rinze Yetsenga, the creator of the event.

Peter Cummins reports

Susan Race and Bianca Helms were the two ‘leading ladies’ of the Royal Varuna Yacht Club last week when they stepped forward to receive the honours for the Multi-hull and the Laser Division, respectively, in the 1999 sailing of the Yetsenga Trophy.

Bianca Helms holds her first Laser lady trophy presented by Yvonne Hurrell. Photo Peter Cummins

But it was very close, indeed. The Race Hobie Cat 16 scraped in just three seconds ahead of Oon and Gary Baguley’s Nacra 5 which, finishing half a minute ahead of Race, had to concede handicap and accept that second place. Line honours went to that flying Moore, Nick and crew Bruce who, finishing seven minutes ahead of Baguley in the two and a half hour race, had to take seventh place overall, after the handicaps were applied.

A visible presence around the course was Alberto Cassio’s newly-acquired Hobie Cat 16, imported from Queensland, bearing a huge pink pig logo on the mainsail, representing the "Hog’s Breath Bar and Restaurant" on Australia’s Gold Coast. "Pigs can’t fly" has been an old adage but, under the skilled hands of maestro Alberto, this porker could well take off. "Babe" doesn’t have a chance of further fame, now.

In the Laser Division, the Helms siblings split the honours. Patrick, fresh back from the chilly waters of Port Phillip, scoring two and one, while kid sister Bianca, fresh from the ski slopes of Austria (who called them jet-setters?) reversed the order, winning race one and finishing second in race two. Echoing the spirit of the event’s founder, Rinze Yetsenga, race officer Reg Chambers awarded the winner’s trophy to Bianca, the first lady.

Charlie Zbinden, Stephan Immer (newly arrived back in the Kingdom), Neil Semple and Shin Suenaga finished third to sixth, respectively.

A light northerly prevailed, much to the chagrin of race officers Reg and Eileen Chambers. Reg, a cautious man when it comes to managing a yacht race, set the course five days earlier during the then prevailing moderate-to-strong southerly. So what does this fellow do? He does not change the course; rather he changes the sailors themselves and sends them on a down-wind start - and a down-wind finish. No doubt, Rinze would be proud of him!

Nick Moore leads Gary Baguley - but not by enough margin to win the Yetsenga. Photo Peter Cummins

Before he departed the Kingdom many moons ago, Rinze Yetsenga, a hard-bitten Dutch Australian - or, should that read, Australian Dutchman - decided to bequeath a trophy as his legacy to a decade of sailing and superb enjoyment at the Royal Varuna Yacht Club.

With his Old World charm, he preferred to see some shapely ladies at an awards ceremony occasionally, rather than the usual bunch of hirsute machos. So he gave the trophy to be presented to the first lady crew member.

At least, that’s what we all thought he wanted at that time, for the old lad was a trifle hard to understand, at times. He had learned his English on a Queensland dairy farm where the vernacular, to say the least, was a little colourful. After many years in Thailand, old Rinze spoke a kind of "Nederlish," laced heavily with Aussie expletives and delivered with Thai tonal inflections. Or, as one colleague asked him at the time: "What language do you speak, Rinze - Australian, Dutch, Thai or profane?"

Thus, over the years, no one was really sure what the Yetsenga Four Island Trophy Race was all about except, as pointed out by Brian Hurrell, a long-time Yetsenga buddy, Rinze wanted a race that had a configuration maximizing "off-wind" legs. Understandable for the man who brought one of the first Hobie Cats into the Kingdom - a single-handed Hobie 14 which, even with Rinze’s huge frame, excelled down wind.

Royal Varuna sailing secretary Marco Miagostovich had the course clearly delineated in the notice of race: "exactly the same configuration as in previous years," he pointed out. Yet, some insisted, there was an island in there - or, should that have read ‘out there’ - which was wrong.

Still others argued that the race had always been a purely multi-hull affair, while a third group maintained that the trophy was for the first lady crew and minor placings were for successive lady crews. Others disagreed with that, claiming otherwise. All these views were a little bit right and a little bit wrong.

This year was beyond any doubt, though, vindicating the third group’s view - and thus reinforcing the creator’s dictum - that it was a lady crew’s victory. Not only was Susan the winning crew but, to consolidate the female’s rightful place in this event, she was also on the winning craft - hubbie’s Hobie!

And, as if to re-establish the priorities in perpetuity, the second lady crew, Oon Baguley was on Gary’s second-placed Nacra and third was Suzanne Merz on Simon Prattley’s Hobie Cat 16.

No wonder Reg Chambers decided that Bianca would waltz off with the Laser trophy as combined helm(s)/crew on this single-hander.

Valentine’s Day Massacre?

The weekly Pattaya Sports Club softball game on Sunday, February 14, Valentine’s Day, proved to be anything but a massacre. Gordon’s Gang and Kiwi’s Mob rumbled through a turf war for nine innings before either side was able to eke out a victory.

The Mob started out quietly, scoring one in the top of the first as Craig (Hitman) Lewis singled home Dick (The Stick) Cagg.

The Gang quickly retaliated behind Mike (Mr. Ice) Berg’s two run blast in the bottom of the inning.

After a scoreless second, Sterling (Silver) Bechtel and Kiwi Rick strung together a couple of doubles to put the Mob up by one.

The Mob added another run in the top of the fourth but the Gang banged out two in the bottom of the inning as Dandy Dan and Esso Mike each had RBI.

In the sixth, both teams went to the mattresses as the Mob scored three behind the timely hits of Frank (Nitty) Gritty and G’day David.

The vengeful Gang came right back, however, with Seminole Joe, M.J. (Coffee) Jim and Gordon Lightfoot each doing some damage at the plate, and pushing five runs across to take a two run lead.

The Mob fought right back. When C.F. (Fowl Ball) Macallen doubled to right, three runs scored. The Mob added a solo run in the top of the eighth and took an eleven to nine lead into the bottom of the ninth.

Fearing impending doom, the Gang’s Montreal (Uppa US) Robert singled home one, setting the stage, two batters later, for Maple Leaf Rick, whose double to right brought the winning runs home, earning him MVP honors on the day and the Gang a twelve to eleven victory.

Games are every Sunday at 2:00 p.m. at Pattaya School #7 on Sukhumvit Highway just past Greenway driving range and Caltex gas station. Equipment is provided and refreshments are available. All are welcome.

Travel Experience - 1999 Hong Kong Sevens

Hotel & Tourism Marketing Ltd. is offering a special package deal to the 1999 Credit Suisse First Boston Hong Kong Sevens from March 26-29, for only Baht 19,750.

The package includes economy class flights on Cathay Pacific Airways, 3 nights accommodation based on twin sharing at the (3 star) Empire Hotel, Wanchai District, and tickets for general admission to the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens tournament.

* Note: The above constitutes the minimum package available, i.e. Hotel & Tourism Marketing Ltd. will not accept bookings for match tickets without flights and accommodation.

Extras and options:

Supplement for single room occupancy - Baht 4,500.

Upgrade flight to business class - Baht 9,350.

Daily American breakfast - Baht 350 per day.

Shuttle service from Hong Kong Airport to downtown - Baht 600.

Transfer by private car airport to downtown - price on application.

Packages will shortly be available for the Rugby World Cup in the UK later this year.

Contact Hotel & Tourism Marketing Ltd., 21/69, Royal City Avenue, Rama 9 Road, Bangkok 10320. Tel. (2) 2030601-5. Fax (2) 2030600. E-mail [email protected].

Pattaya Sports Club edges American Embassy

PSC Golf vs. AEGA “Ryder Cup” Matches

The American Embassy Golf Association celebrated Presidents’ Day weekend by traveling down from Bangkok to play the Pattaya Sports Club in a two day golf match. The format was loosely based on the Ryder Cup, with Day 1 being played in a Two-Man Scramble at Noble Place and Day 2 played in classic Match Play at Khao Kheow. The final score was PSC 18 1/2 points, AEGA 11 1/2 points; but the winners were the forty golfers who participated in what most certainly will be an annual event for a long, long time.

PSC’s Mike Franklin (left) proudly accepts the Ryder Cup trophy from OJ Oates from the American Embassy.

The idea for this competition came about as a result of a conversation last fall between AJ Oates, Tournament Director for the AEGA, and Mike Franklin, Chairman of the Pattaya Sports Club Golf Committee. The "wouldn’t it be great if..." became a reality and the two teams got together for a pre-tournament buffet and cocktail party. Where better to celebrate Presidents’ Day than at Lewinski’s on Soi Pattayaland? The food was great, the drinks were strong, and the good fun set the stage for a knock down drag out at Noble Place the following morning.

Ten teams from each side competed in the Two-Man Scramble on Sunday. One point was awarded to each winning team and a half point to any teams that tied. Just like the Ryder Cup. And just like the Ryder Cup when the first drive was launched down the fairway, the golfers knew that they were playing in something different. There was just a little more at stake. Your mates were counting on you and the pressure was more definable. Noble Place was in great shape, but it is a tough course. The American Embassy Golf Association and the Pattaya Sports Club went to war, and at the end of the day things were all square.

Overall, ten points were available on Day 1. The results after the Two-Man Scramble were PSC won 4, the AEGA won 4, and two matches were halved. The score was 5 points to each team. Seven of the ten matches were decided by less than a stroke.

The PSC teams had averaged 69.9 strokes. The AEGA team had average 70.2 strokes. An average of three tenths of a stroke had separated the two sides. Day 1 was close.

The PSC Ryder Cup team prepares for battle.

There were 20 points available on Day 2. Twenty matches, with a point for a win and a half point for a tie. The player in each pair with the lowest handicap played off scratch, and the others player received the full differential between the handicaps. In most cases, this meant the PSC was giving strokes to the AEGA. The average handicap of the PSC was 16 while the AEGA averaged a little over 19. Did this make a difference? Did the fact that the PSC was playing on a course they know intimately well make a difference? Probably yes to both these questions. The Pattaya Sports club took a commanding bite out of the twenty available points winning twelve out of the twenty matches and halving three. The score for Day 2 was PSC 13 1/2 and the AEGA 6 1/2.

The American Embassy Golf Association graciously loaned the Pattaya Sports Club the "Ryder Cup" trophy for the year 1999. The Pattaya Sports Club had won the right to keep the trophy this year by picking up a total of 18 1/2 points to the AEGA’s total of 11 1/2 points. The AEGA seem to have every intention of celebrating Presidents’ Day in the new millennium by taking the trophy back. This could be the start of something very interesting.

Near Pin Results

Noble Place: B2 Doug Powell, B5 Tony Stevens, C3 Mick O’Meara, C6 Stan Fry.

Khao Kheow: A3 Ebrahim, A5 Steve Mascari, C3 Al Swanda, C8 Doug Powell

Errington, Minnighan and Little prevail over competitive fields

PSC TAGGS... golf from the Hare House

Wednesday, February 10 - Bangpra International Golf Club (Pairs Medal)

1st: Roger Errington & Terry Minnighan, 64 net
2nd: George Jackson & Bob Patterson, 65 net
3rd: Rick Bevington & Al Klos, 65 net

It was a good news / bad news day at Bangpra for the TAGGS Pairs Medal competition on Wednesday, February 10. The good news was that the greens were not as fast as they have been. The bad news was that the greens had been aerated and top dressed with sand. That meant that a three foot downhill putt had to be rapped hard enough to keep its line over the sand, but if you missed the hole it was sayonara baby, that ball was gone. In spite of the maintenance on the greens (or maybe because of the maintenance) all twelve teams finished under par.

In first place, with a net better ball score of 64, were Roger Errington and TAGGS newcomer Terry Minnighan. They made the turn with a score of 34, close enough to keep them in the hunt if they could finish well. And finish well they did. With natural pars on the last four holes, split evenly between them, they won the Pairs Medal by a single stroke.

Finishing with a net 65, and taking second place in a count back, were George "One Ball" Jackson and another TAGGS newcomer Bob Patterson. They edged out the duo of Rick Bevington and Al Klos who also finished at 65.

Friday, February 12 - Phutaluang Royal Thai Navy Golf Course (Stableford)

1st: Jimmy Little, 37 points
2nd: Anders Karlsson, 35 points
3rd: Rick Bevington, 34 points

The weekly Stableford competition played out of the Hare House was held down at Sattahip on Friday, February 12. With wet fairways and the atmosphere pregnant with moisture, this long golf course played even longer than normal. Taking first place with a score of 37 points was American Jimmy Little. Playing off 22, Jimmy won this competition when he tapped in for a birdie on the 435 yard par 4 seventh hole on the South course. That was good for a net double eagle and five Stableford points.

In second place was Sweden’s Anders Karlsson who had 35 points. Anders, who plays off 13, shot the best gross of the day with a very respectable 86. In third place, and making his fourth straight appearance on the podium, was Canadian Rick Bevington who had 34 points.

Smiley and Vistung scramble to victory, Karlsson also in form

Pattaya Sports Club Golf from the Café Kronborg

Phoenix - Monday 8th February (Two Man Scramble)

In fine weather at Phoenix, competitors Joe Smiley and Svein Vistung scrambled home with a winning score of 64.4 in this popular two-man scramble format.

Winners: Joe Smiley & Svein Vistung, Net 64.4
2nd: Mashi Kaneta, Ivan Plunkett, Larry Nicholas, Net 65.5
3rd: Ebrahim & Audunn Einarsson, Net 65.6

Nearest Pins

L2 Matte Johansson, L7 Walter Depooter, O5 Paul Kraft, O7 Mashi Kaneta.
Long Putts: L9 Pete Lorentzen, O9 Larry Nicholas.
Long Drive: Audunn Einarsson.

Natural Park Resort - Thursday 11th February (Stableford)

On a fine day and with this course at its best, below par scores were returned by all flight winners, Anders Karlsson returning the best with 44 Stableford points.

A Flight

Winner: Anders Karlsson, 44 points
2nd: Pete Lassival, 40 points
3rd: Mauno Pollari, 38 points C/B Thomas Bergwall

B Flight

Winner: Arthur Wood, 40 points
2nd: Frank Abarico, 38 points
3rd: Bernie Tuppin, 37 points

Near-Pins: A 5 Paul Walia, A 8 Tony Payne, B 4 Thomas Bergwall, B 7 Michael O’Meara.
Long Putts: A.9 Joe Smiley, B.9 Bob Patterson.
Long Drive: Thomas Bergwall.

Coming up in March

Important dates for the diary in March include three major PSC Golf Tournaments. On Friday March 5th the annual PSC Splinter Golf Group Open takes place at Rayong Green Valley. Then on Wednesday March 17th we go back to Green Valley for the PSC St. Patrick’s Day Scramble, sponsored by Delaney’s, for the second year.

The highlight of the month is the PSC Charity Classic on Friday March 26th at Phoenix, at which we aim to raise over B.250,000 for Charity through the sale of ‘Charity Mulligans’. The popular ‘Full Monty’ Mulligan offer will be available again with all the proceeds going towards the charity target.

Hole Sponsors and Contributors to the Lucky Mulligan Draw from last year wishing to repeat their participation should contact Mike Franklin at phone/fax 731144 or e-mail [email protected]; or Steve Ross at phone/fax 720550 or e-mail [email protected]; or Gez Tracey at phone 422965, fax 423722, or e-mail [email protected].

More details in future issues of Pattaya Mail and at PSC Golf venues.

PSC Golf next week

February continues on Monday the 22nd with a choice of a Stableford competition at Sattahip with PSC Golf from the Café Kronborg ,or Stroke Play at beautiful Natural Park Resort with the PSC Splinter Group from the Green Bottle.

On Tuesday the 23rd PSC Pattaya Golf Society from the Bunker also go to Sattahip for a Stableford competition. On Wednesday the 24th a choice of two scrambles, at Sriracha with the Green Bottle, or at Natural Park Hill with PSC TAGGS from Hare House.

On Thursday the 25th it is the Café Kronborg Monthly Mug at Pattaya Country Club.

The week ends on Friday 26th February with the Splinter Group Monthly Medal at Rayong Green Valley sponsored by the Diana Group and, closer to home, a visit to Siam Country Club from Hare House to play Stableford.

Full details of the February and March Schedules can be seen at the PSC Golf venues, in Pattaya Mail and at our Web Site at www.pattayasports.org.

Copyright 1998 Pattaya Mail Publishing Co.Ltd.
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