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Europe and Asia square
off at the inaugural Royal Trophy
Ryder Cup style fever comes to Thailand
The Amata Spring Club in Chonburi will be the setting
tomorrow for the first meeting of European and Asian golfers in a team
match-play format as they compete for the beautiful Royal Trophy, which has
been graciously donated by His Majesty The King of Thailand for this
enthralling new event. The European team, captained by Spanish golfing
legend Seve Ballesteros will feature many of the current top golfing stars
from the continent including past major winners, Nick Faldo and Ian Woosnam.
Facing them will be the cream of Asian golf including four previous Asian
Tour Order of Merit winners: Thaworn Wiratchant, Thongchai Jaidee, Arjun
Atwal and Jyoti Randhawa.
 Thaworn
Wiratchant, one of Asia’s top golfing stars will be hoping that home
advantage will give his team the edge over Europe (AP Photo).
European captain Ballesteros was one of those whose
foresight and imagination gave birth to this contest and he is eagerly
looking forward to captaining a team for the first time since his successful
Ryder Cup captain’s debut in 1997. Having Seve as the captain also proved
to be a masterstroke by the European organizing committee as he was able to
persuade some of the biggest names in golf to take part. The Spaniard (voted
European player of the century in 2000) is under no illusions as to how
important the experience of Faldo and Woosnam will be to his team.
“The pressure in team golf is unlike anything else in
the sport: you are playing not only for yourself, but also your team, your
continent and your fans,” said Ballesteros. “In this environment,
experience is essential and Nick and Ian are two of the all-time greats. I
am proud to have both of them on our team for the Royal Trophy.”
Seve was also happy to welcome several of Europe’s top
current professionals to his squad including Ryder Cup winners Paul
McGinley, David Howell and Thomas Bjorn: “ We have a very powerful
European team. Nick and Ian bring tremendous experience while David and Paul
are playing excellent golf right now and are both coming from winning big
tournaments. In all, we are taking eight truly outstanding golfers to
Thailand, and I’m sure Europe will provide Asia with a very strong
challenge. We are coming to Thailand to win the Royal Trophy.”
 David
Howell, current leader of this year’s European Order of Merit will be one
of the main threats to the Asian challenge at the Royal Trophy
(AP Photo).
Nick Faldo, a six-times major winner, Europe’s record
Ryder Cup points scorer and one of golf’s all-time greats is also eagerly
awaiting the commencement of the tournament tomorrow. “I know from my
Ryder Cup experiences that team golf is something special,” said Faldo.
“I’m really looking forward to being part of the European team with Seve
as our captain. We go back a long way and we have had some great times at
the Ryder Cup. Seve and I together in a European team definitely makes for a
very special occasion. We are certainly expecting a tough battle because we
know the Asian team would love to win this first tournament in front of
their own fans.”
Ian Woosnam, who took part in eight Ryder Cup events,
added: “It’s an honour to be selected to represent Europe in the first
Royal Trophy. Seve led us to win the Ryder Cup in 1997. This year is my turn
as captain and in 2008 it will be Nick’s turn. Obviously there is
something very special between us which I am sure will be very apparent to
the fans watching us at the Royal Trophy.”
Pitting his wits against Ballesteros will be Asia’s
non-playing captain, Masahiro Kuramoto of Japan. Winner of 30 Japan Golf
Tour titles in a sparkling playing career, one of his finest and most
memorable achievements came in the 1982 British Open when he finished
fourth, just two shots shy of the triumphant Tom Watson. His last success in
Japan came in the 2003 Acom International when he fired a record-breaking
opening round of 59.
Kuramoto, affectionately known as ‘Massy’ within the
golfing fraternity is proud to be at the helm of the Asian challenge: “I
am truly honoured to be selected to lead the Asian Team in this historic
first edition of the Royal Trophy. This is a tremendous responsibility and I
take it very seriously. I will do my very best in representing the three
billion people of Asia. We will take the challenge of defeating Europe with
the utmost commitment, dedication and the greatest fighting spirit.”
The Thai golfers on the team, Thaworn Wiratchant and
Thongchai Jaidee will have a particularly strong incentive to do well: The
Royal Trophy comes in the year that revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej
celebrates 60 years on the throne, and being part of a winning Asia side
would bring kudos galore to the monarch, his subjects and the region as a
whole.
The action starts tomorrow morning with foursomes and
four-balls followed on Sunday with the singles. Entrance to the course is
1000 baht per day; for ticket information contact www.thai ticketmaster.com.
The tournament will be screened live on Saturday from 1:30 pm on UBC Star
Sports and Super Sports channel 2 / Sunday from 12:30pm UBC Star Sports and
Super Sports channel 1.
The full line-up for both teams is as follows:
Europe: Seve Ballesteros (non-playing captain), David
Howell (England), Paul Mcginley (Ireland), Thomas Bjorn (Denmark), Kenneth
Ferrie (England), Henrik Stenson (Sweden), Graeme Mcdowell (Northern
Ireland), Ian Woosnam (Wales), Nick Faldo (England)
Asia: Masahiro Kuramoto (non-playing captain), Thaworn Wiratchant
(Thailand), Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand), Yasuharu Imano (Japan), S. K. Ho
(Korea), Keiichiro Fukabori (Japan), Jyoti Randhawa (India), Arjun Atwal
(India), Zhang Liang Wei (China)
Omani Orioles scramble to success - Rob Heath’s Ace is the highlight of the day
IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at the OK Corral
Pattaya’s final golfing “major” of the year is
traditionally the Pattaya Golf Society’s Annual Team Scramble, an occasion
to spend a few golfing hours with friends in what must rank as the most
popular of golf formats. So it was on Thursday, December 29, when a packed
field descended on Pattaya Country Club for this year’s event. The limit
placed by the club on player numbers only two days before the tournament,
meant that ten teams from what would have been a record breaking turnout had
to be disappointed but the twenty five other groups took the day in their
stride and contributed to the undoubted success of the event.
The
winning team of the the ‘Omani Orioles’; Bob Dibben, Maralyn
Hayes-Dibben, Hugh Bagby and an absent Paul Sharples, flanked by Richard
Livingston and tournament organiser Len Jones.
Four of the top five teams were to share the day’s best
gross of 62 and amongst the many fine team performances, an outstanding
individual achievement by Rob Heath was the undoubted highlight of the day.
Quiet, unassuming Rob took his five-iron to the twelfth tee and hit a shot
of such consummate skill that he holed in one to the joy of his team mates.
From memory it was possibly the first “ace” in an IPGC “major” and
is all the more memorable for that. He was obviously the centre of much
attention back at the presentation, as the “apres-golf” crowd all took
in the day. The booming 340 yard drive of Dene Airey on the eighth was but
another highlight of the event as local PGA member Richard Livingstone
steadied himself for the presentation.
 John
Cunningham receiving his “Player of the Month” award from Mr. Denis.
He thanked the ladies at registration, Mary Jones, Avis
Hewitt and Margaret Cunningham, for their customary vital contribution,
along with Khun Malee and her ladies at the OK Corral for the fine feast
which had been prepared. Local Foster’s lager representative, Gary, was
also heartily thanked for his company’s sponsorship. Harry Riley and Dale
Shier had sponsored technical prizes on the sixth and seventeenth holes and
their generosity was warmly applauded, as was the recognition of the
invaluable help and support given by Stephen Beard of the Haven Hotel and
Steve Donovan at “Lewiinski’s”, in their capacity as IPGC golf group
leaders. The loudest cheers were reserved for Len Jones and Denis Smith, the
brains and the brawn behind the event as the winners were being honored and
the trophies were awarded.
Results:
Winners: “Omani Orioles” Bob Dibben, Maralyn
Hayes-Dibben, Paul Sharples and Hugh Bagby, 56.1
Second: “The Bandits” Brian Wilkinson, Dene Airey,
Jeremy Masse and Doug Campbell, 56.5
Third: “Ya & the Yo-Yo’s” Harry Riley, Saranya
Chaiyanont, Bob van Mol and Mark Campbell, on count back on the last six
holes from Joe Mooneyham, Rick Sharp, Dave Porter and Kevin Moraghan, 57.4
Technical Prizes
Near-Pins: #5 Cecil Williams, #7 Rob Dolan, #12 Rob Heath
(an ace), #16 Bill Hewitt
Long Drive: Div. 1 Dave Stockman, Div. 2 Dene Airey (340
yards), Div. 3 Hugh Bagby, Ladies Saranya Chaiyanont
Nearest-the-pin, second shot on holes six and seventeen,
generously sponsored by Harry Riley and Dale Shier: Wilf Latham and Ed
Wyckoff
The Booby Bevy: Ed Trayling, Cecil Williams, Mike Corner
and Lec Wanliparom
And finally, a special individual award, the “Handicap
Consistency Award”: This went to Denis Smith, for never moving in the
Handicap lists for eighteen months!
It had indeed been the best and most enjoyable of all the
six Scramble events so far and here’s to the next one. Happy New Year to
all!
OK Corral player of the month
The regular end-of-month Player’s Choice tournament held two days
previously at Treasure Hill saw John Cunningham sneak past Len Jones to
claim his second PGS “Player of the Month” title in a stableford event
won by Koji Yamada with 37 points.
Pattaya Sports Club Charity Classic Golf Tournament hits 10 years of age
Every year the Pattaya Sports Club organizes
the PSC Charity Classic, traditionally the primary charity fundraiser of the
year. The PSC Charity Classic is as much fun for golfers as it is beneficial
for the local community with all funds raised from the tournament allocated
to the needy.
The entry fee for the competition is set at an amount
which not only gives the players ample reward but also contributes towards
the sum we are able to give to the designated charity. Players receive a
tournament shirt, other golf related items and 5 raffle tickets plus a
buffet meal. The popular raffle is conducted after the golfing prizes have
been awarded. Over 150,000 baht in prizes are on offer including gold, air
tickets, jewellery and many golfing items including bags and clubs.
This is the 10th year of the Charity Classic and all the
proceeds donated thus far have been used to help support charities which
benefit the local community. The amount raised each year has been between
350,000 baht and last year’s record total of 700,000 baht. The money we
are able to donate comes in part from the entry fees of the tournament
participants. The Pattaya Sports Club itself makes a sizeable contribution
from its annual membership fees, however the popularity of the tournament
and its charitable success is due in large part to the generosity of many
sponsors in the Eastern Seaboard area, Thailand in general and throughout
the world.
Throughout the year 2006, the Pattaya Sports Club will
also be aiming to donate funds to various schools and charitable
organizations that have proven to be of great help to the poor, the sick,
the handicapped and the underprivileged in the Eastern Seaboard area. These
organizations work directly with those who live in poverty stricken areas to
help individuals get clothes, food, medication and education for the
children. These are smaller and very worthy charitable organizations that
have somehow fallen through the cracks and are therefore in need of
financial assistance.
The Pattaya Sports Club is a transparent,
government-registered association with the objective to promote local sports
activities and support needy charitable causes. All donations are accounted
for and go directly to where they are most needed. Thank you in advance for
your participation in this worthy cause.
Crowds flock to The Emerald
PSC golf from The Cafe Kronborg
Monday 26 December Treasure Hill,
Stableford
The Treasure Hill Golf & Country Club was host to a
Stableford competition in two Flights: A Flight 0 to 17 and B Flight 18 up.
Aussie Mike Gosden took the A Flight with 39 points with Ted Morris in
second with 38 points, Bill Plath came third with 36 points on a count back
over Kevin Callaghan in fourth. Swiss golfer Thierry Bibinet took the B
Flight with 39 points, Big Bent Agerbo was second on count back over Dave
Richardson in third and Koji Yamada in fourth, all having 36 points.
 ‘Old
Mr. Steady’ Arthur Bailey returned a sparkling 43 points at The Emerald.
Near Pins: #2 Don Richardson, #6 Bill McDonald, #13 Bill
Plath, #17 Elias Magnussen
Long Put: #9 Barry Kerr, #18 Mike Gosden
Thursday 29 December The
Emerald, Stableford
For me, long time no see. In fact this was a
course I used to play regularly when it was Century Bang
Chang, so I was interested to see the new clubhouse and see the changes made
of late. At the Cafe Kronborg it was interesting to note we had an over full
start list, but I was sure we could fit everyone in at this course, and it
was nearly a miscalculation, as on arrival, the car park was packed. Indeed
I had to drive around in circles to find a parking place.
On the course it was obvious it was to be a slow day and
with 12 groups I would have a long wait until the day was over. The course
however seemed to be in pretty good condition and it was obvious a lot of
work has gone on, and more is promised. This is a tough course if you like a
flat lie, still it offers a fair test. The new facilities still offer
outside catering, but there is food available at a reasonable price, so the
wait was not too onerous. So much later, we were able to start the
presentations and we had one or two good results.
In the A Flight, 0 to 14, the winner was Steindor Eidsson
with 41 points, ahead of in second Ted Morris with 37 points, Lee Duneclift
in third with 35 points and Brian Cooke in fourth with 34 points.
In the B Flight, 15 up, we had some better scores. The
winner was ‘Old Mr Steady’ himself Arthur Bailey with 43 points, just
ahead of Alpo Sipola in second with 42 points and in third was Uwe Kessler
with 40 points. Fourth place was decided on count back with Kris Helgasson
just edging Jan Lovgren.
T.T.F.N.
Long Put: #9 Marty Allred, #18 Walter Bachli
Near Pin: #5 Lee Dunecliffe, #7 Peter Hammond, #15 Bill Plath, #15 Roger
Twine
Koji plays off correct handicap and still wins!
IPGC golf from The Haven
Mon 26 December Khao Kheaw
A&B, Monthly Medal
Division 1 (0-15)
1st Hugh Lyons: 70
2nd Tom Sathram: 71
3rd Joe McArdle: 72
4th Jens Nielsen: 73
Division 2 (16 plus)
1st Serge Straeten: 73
2nd Jorn Finnerup: 75 c/b 36
3rd Brian Kelly: 75 c/b 37
4th Nile Sheehan: 78
A record turnout of 41 golfers for the Boxing Day contest
for the first Monthly Medal of the New Year and the coveted Gold &
Silver Medals competed for by the previous 12 months medal winners! The day
was really won by the course as with strong winds that always seemed to be
into the face, it played very long off the yellow tees and just two players
managed to beat their handicaps, with Hugh just pipping Tom to take the
division 1 medal. Scores were not quite as good in division 2 where Serge
fairly romped home by two clear shots from Jorn & Brian. Serge rounded
out a great day with the only “2” in division 2 to take the rollover
prize, whilst Dave Stockman had two “2”s in division 1, the prize for
which he shared with Joe McArdle, John Howard, Tony Hurst, Martin Grimoldby
and Jens Nielsen. The Gold Medal winners were Joe McArdle and Tom Sathram
and the Silver Medal winners were Martin Grimoldby and Brian Kelly. Prior to
the presentation, Richard Livingston, the resident PGA professional,
welcomed Joe Peters, Christer Olsson, Jorn Finnerup, Hugh Lyons, Keith
Brooks, Barry Williams & Thomas Bindslev and welcomed back Dave
Stockman, Martin Grimoldby, Ted Lodge, Ger Lodge, John Curran, Fred
O’Connor & Peter Hall.
Wed 28 December Mountain
Shadow, Stableford
1st Alan Howell: 33 c/b 18
2nd Martin Grimoldby: 33
c/b 17
3rd Brian Kelly: 32 c/b 15,
c/b6 12
4th Joe Kirkpatrick: 32 c/b
15, c/b6 10
5th Serge Straeten: 31
A smaller gathering than expected, just falling short of
the required 30 golfers for two divisions, perhaps due to many taking the
day off ahead of the OK Corral Scramble on Thursday! Nevertheless, if ever a
course won on the day, it was Mountain Shadow and the difficult pin placings
on fast greens ruined many a scorecard! Out of the two professionals and
eight other single handicappers competing, only Joe (Joker) Kirkpatrick
managed to break 80! CSS on the day was 75 and so non-counting for handicap
revisions, but scores were tight at the top and Alan just did enough to hold
off Martin with Brian and Joker hard on their heels. In the “2”s
competition, Peter Hall, Peter Tucker, John Howard and Lee Duneclift all
shared the division 1 prize, but no “2”s were carded in division 2 so
welcome back rollovers! Prior to the prize giving, Richard Livingston,
welcomed Robert & Janet Hill and welcomed back John Teague and Mike
Dabanavitch before bidding farewell and good luck to Joe Kirkpatrick who
heads off to Malaysia in his attempt to qualify for the Asian Tour.
Fri 30 December Eastern
Star, Stableford
Division 1 (0-14)
1st Arthur Hancock: 39
2nd John Howard: 38
3rd Lee Duneclift: 37
4th Joe McArdle: 36
Division 2 (15 plus)
1st Koji Yamada: 38
2nd John Clements: 34
3rd Ger Lodge: 33
4th Bob McLachlan: 32
The weather is definitely warming up and it appears the
golf is as well. As usual, the course was in excellent condition and local
member, Arthur Hancock, made the most of his knowledge, which he needed, to
beat off strong challenges from John and Lee to take the honors in division
1. Chilcott Cup winner Koji Yamada thought he was playing off his PSC
handicap when he carded 42 points, but Stephen’s steely eye spotted
Koji’s error and his score was adjusted to 38 points off his correct IPGC
handicap. It made no difference to the results, as his 88 gross destroyed
the field in division 2. There are never many “2”s at Eastern Star and
today was no exception. Tony Hurst and Lee Duneclift shared the prize in
division 1, whilst Ger Lodge took the rollover jackpot in division 2. Prior
to the presentation, Richard Livingston, welcomed back Danny Miller &
Stephen Lewis and bade farewell to Paul Hartley.
Keith gets the Blues, Tom lights up the Whites
PSC golf from The Grapevine
For our last game of the year, 36 Grapevine golfers headed off to Noble
Place to play the A & B layouts. The course was in great condition; the
staff were friendly & helpful and with the great weather what more
could you ask for? On this day, rather than the flights split on handicap,
we opted for the split determined by tee choice, Blue or White/Red. For
some the day was more successful than others, with the day’s top score
coming from the White tees. Tom Herrington (18) shot his equal best score
ever to record 42 points. This was way out in front of Gordie Everingham
(34) who had 38, whilst third spot went to Paddy Wilson (15) with a steady
36 pts over Steve & Keith on a count back. In the Blue tee group Keith
Hodges (28) showed some fine form to score 40 points, while Nile Sheehan
(16) had 37, with Jeff Wylie (3M) recording 35 pts to slip in to third
position.  Back
L to R: Tom, Nile, and Gordon. Front: Keith and Lek.
The technical prizes were hard to snag on this day with
Noble Place having some testing par 3’s, especially off those back tee
markers. The NP’s went to Rod, Rich, Paul, Keith & Herb, while the
Long Putts went to Graham, Dick & Nile. With several technicals not
claimed, the lucky draws went to Barry, Mike, Dave & Vince.
All in all a great day out, with the year closed out in
style at a top venue. So at this time I will thank all of our golfing
friends, both new & old for their company at the Grapevine and wish you
all good times for 2006.
Cheers & good golfing.
If you think you may enjoy a day out golfing with the Grapevine crew,
come on down to Soi Regent Marina & sign up, or call Malcolm on 038
361736.
The big axe for Dave as Tully stays in the cellar
PSC golf from The Three Sisters Bar
December 19, Dick Caggiano won the day with 38 points, Rick Bevington lost
on countback as he tied Dick but had a lower score on the back nine. Doug
Douglas and Dave Miller both came in with 37 points. Holding the bag was Jim
Tully with 23 points and his husband -in-law, Jerry LIen coming in with 25
points. Jerry tried to knock off the man that married his wife but thought
better of it and let Jim Tully slip into the cellar again.
 Dick
Cagganio (right) a winner Dec 19 poses with cellar occupant Jim Tully
(left).
December 26 (Boxing Day) we again had another session of
golf and the results were as follows. This week Dave Miller managed to get
43 points to end the year for the Three Sisters Golf. Dave has been near the
top for the last few weeks and finally broke through for the win. The big
axe should be out as he has been at the top for too long. His legs are shaky
but he hits the ball in a straight line down the middle - down the middle -
down the middle - need I say more?
Herb Schweiterman came in a close second with 41 points
but all he can expect is the chop!! Paul Kinner and Paul Donahue???- were
close behind but could not put up with the heat of the competition. Paul is
one of our premier bag holders and surprised the field with his 37 points
for the day.
Again the husband -in-laws fought it out for the cellar
position. As can be expected, the younger and bigger Jerry Lien trashed his
in-law Tully, and kicked him into the cellar for another week. I am sure
that in the next year Jim Tully will come out fighting and kicking to get
out of the cellar.
Tony Scambler golfer of the month at the Bunker Bar
PSC golf with the Bunker
Monday 26 December, Pakong Riverside Country Club
John King made the long journey with the Bunker Boys to
Bang Pakong Riverside Country Club worth his while by winning first prize in
the A division with an excellent 43 Stableford points score, in joint second
place came William Macey and Eddie Martin both with 41 points.
With the cut at 18 and under there was a close fought
competition in the B division with three players finishing in joint first
place with 39 points. Thea Von Spelling, Granville Swanton and Mick Ramshaw
while the Near Pin prizes were claimed by Thea Von Spelling, Geoff Parker,
Tony Scambler and William Macey.
Wednesday 28 December, Noble Place
William Macey was again in the frame along with Bob
Turner to take joint third place at Noble Place golf course both with scores
of net 68, second place was won by John King who is coming into a bit of
form lately with net 67 but the winner in the A division was Tony Scambler
with net 66. This win put Tony ahead of Sean McVitty for the first time
during the month in the battle for the golfer of the month competition with
only one game left to play.
In joint third place in the B division with scores of net
71 were Jan Von Spelling and big Dougie Landsborough but the joint winners
with the best scores of the day were Sunni Ruthsip and Brian Maddox with
scores of net 64. Near pin prizes were won by Peter Hapgood, Thea Von
Spelling, Mark (Charlie) Gooch and Sean McVitty.
Friday 30 December, Pattaya Country Club
For the last game of the month (and the year) the Bunker
Boy’s travelled the short distance to Pattaya Country Club for a
Stableford competition and to see the climax of the keenly contested golfer
of the month competition which sees Tony Scambler leading Sean McVitty by
three points and with Eddie Martin a further two points behind.
None of the aforementioned had a good day, therefore,
Tony Scambler claimed the golfer of the month trophy for his excellent round
at Noble Place in the previous game - well done Tony!
The prizes on the day were claimed by Neil Griffin and
Sean McVitty in joint third place in the B division with 31 points each and
joint winners with surprisingly low scores of 32 Stableford points were Rod
Stevens from Canada and big Dougie Landsborough from Dumfries in Scotland
capping off a fine week for him.
In the A division Brian Maddox carded the best score of
the day with 43 Stableford points to win first prize, in second place was
Geoff Parker who has seen a dramatic dip in form lately with a decent 38
points and third place was claimed by Jan Von Spelling with 37 points.
Near pin prizes were won by Unto, Bob Pearce, Jan Von Spelling and John
King.
The battle for the trophies goes into the final week
Pattaya Sports Club Friday Bowling League
 200
Bowlers - Rich, Tue, Mai, P.K. and Kaew (Nun and Sven not shown).
The
trophy race is getting clearer but with only one week to go and as the first
placed team will play the second placed team, third place will play fourth
and on down the list, there could be a big shake up at the top of the
standings. Friends are still in first place after they split their match
with Three Sisters at two points each. Three Sisters moved into sole
possession of fifth place as Domicil lost three points to House of the
Golden Coin. Kaew rolled a 210 game, 524 series and La added a 518 pin count
for Three Sisters. Mark was best for Friends with a 501 series. House of the
Golden Coin got great bowling from Paul (P.K.) who had games of 203, 223,
and 178 for a 604 series. Bill Key led Domicil with a 529 pin total. VFW
Post 9876 moved up into third place after winning three points from
Shenanigans who remain in second. Tue bowled the best series in this match
as she knocked over 551 pins and had a 203 game. Grape Vine beat Mai’s
Thai Restaurant three points to one and knocked Mai’s down to fourth
place. Cafe Kronborg led by Bill Gibson’s 520 series just about knocked
Brother D out of the trophy race taking three points in that match. Mai
rolled a 555 series to lead Jack & Tar to a three point win over Cafe
Ole. 45 bowlers showed up this week and some good bowling was seen from some
of the spare bowlers. Rich had the best results of the day with games of
202, 246 and 184 for a 632 series. Nun rolled a 202 game, 573 series, Suphan
a 562 series, Sven a 208 game, 540 series, Antero a 549 series and Lance
rolled a 527 series.
The draw for the new league will be on 13 January and the
new league will start on 20 January 2006.
McAllister’s weekly event attracts another large crowd
PSC golf from McAllister Bar & Grill
Friday 30 December 2005 - This week the eve of the New
Year saw another large contingent of golfers turn up for the weekly event of
golf and entertainment: fifty-one to be exact and nearly all of them
regulars.
Emerald Golf Club must have had one of their biggest
playing days in its history with players turning up in busloads. Since this
is a regular weekly event for us throughout the year our bookings are
honored so all of our groups were off as specified. Maybe a slight hitch as
we sought to move onto the back nine with a few slot-ins in evidence but
overall pretty well managed.
Eventually two flights were organized with the divisions
pegged at 0-18 and 19-36 and the results of the scoring was again eased with
a lucky draw of PSC paraphernalia and other gifts donated by the genial host
of McAllister’s, Don McAllister himself.
There were some great scores out on the course and all
the results can be found below. Next week will be the Monthly Tankard award
for the best posted Stableford score so come on out and join us on Friday.
The day’s winners were:
A flight: 1. Eric O’Brien 39 points (hcp13) 2. Michael
Waltschek 40 points (hcp8) 3. Robert McArthy 39 points (hcp +2) 4. Ian
Edwards 39 points (hcp13).
B flight: 1. Herb Schweiterman 37 points (hcp 21) 2. Mark Guthrie 37
points (hcp 20) 3. Bob Lawrence 35 points (hcp 20) 4. Andy Evans 35 points
(hcp 32).
The MacGregor Trailer-Sailer - New kid on the block
By Peter Cummins
Tirachart Charavastra, managing director of Synergy
Yachts (Thailand), located in Pattaya next to SEAT is understandably
enthusiastic for his new import, the “MacGregor 26”, designed, produced
and exported by the MacGregor Yacht Corporation, in Costa Mesa, California.
Dwarfed
by the Tridhos City Marina, a MacGregor tacks along the Chao Phraya River
For a number of reasons this is the ideal yacht for the
relatively shallow waters of the Northern Gulf, sailing along the
Pattaya-Jomtien-Sattahip shorelines, picnicking at the myriad of beautiful
nearby islands, day-tripping or sleeping over.
Firstly, there is no keel; just a retractable
centerboard, which allows the craft to nudge into a beach and stability is
maintained through an ingenious water ballast system, of some 500 kilos.
And, if that is not what you want, the full rig (trailer etc.) is less than
eight feet wide - a legal trailer friendly dimension anywhere in Thailand.
So take her by road, go to Phuket, maybe even join the 2006 regatta next
December.
Depending on the engine size, the craft is capable of
speeds up to 45kph - even fast enough to pull a water-skier behind. The
weather-proofed cabin offers full standing head-room, unusual for a boat of
these dimensions and the large, comfortable sofas and dinette seats can be
converted to sleeping berths.
There is a head (hong nam) - an essential utility for
even short day-trips and, unusually, a large galley tucked neatly away near
the transom and eight adults can be easily accommodated in the cabin.
This craft is crammed with features; for example just one
person can raise the mast, launch the boat off the trailer and be sailing in
about 10 minutes. This makes sailing in inland waters - and yes, that means
even the Chao Phraya River so easy. A bridge rearing up? Just disconnect the
forestay. All other rigging remains intact. And the re-raising? -
“child’s play”, according to Khun Tirachart.
Several years ago, I had my own first experience of
sailing a MacGregor. Through the Yacht Cruising Association, Thailand, we
had some very exciting match racing on the Chao Phraya. Mom Tri Devakul had
just finished his three Tridhos City Towers and, with two MacGregors in the
canal, we raced off Tridhos City up to the Bangkok Bridge, opposite the JW
Marriott. What a great show. We dodged long-tails, rice barges and other
river transport on enormous towlines. At all times, the MacGregor handled
superbly, maneuverable, light and fast.
According to Khun Tirachart, there will soon be a fleet
of the MacGregors in the Kingdom - imported or built under license as there
are now so many good ship-yards operating all over the country.
Sirachart has a beautifully illustrated 16-page colour
brochure available, with full details for the demanding sailor and a
discerning buyer! For further information, prices, viewing and trial
sailing, contact Khun Tirachart 62/5 Moo 10, Pattaya Tai Road, T. Nongprue,
A. Banglamung, Chonburi 20150 Tel +66 (038)374328-30; fax +66 (038) 374330;
mobile: +66 (01) 4100155;
email >[email protected].
Wild Oats reaches Hobart in record time
The Super maxi Wild Oats wiped more than
an hour off the old record time to win the 61st Sydney to Hobart yacht race
last Wednesday, taking the line honors in one day, 18 hours, 40 minutes and
26 seconds. The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race (as it is now called) is
renowned as being one of the most famous, thrilling and dramatic ocean races
in the world. In 1999, six sailors lost their lives when heavy storms lashed
the fleet and only half of the original entrants made it to Hobart.
This year, the weather was somewhat kinder to the sailors
but a benign wind on the first day, diminished expectations for a race
record. Fortunately, conditions changed on Tuesday as the wind picked up and
the leading yachts crossed the icy cold waters of the Bass Straight An estimated 400,000 people showed up on the shores of
Sydney’s harbor, Boxing Day morning as the fleet of yachts headed out on
their 628 mile journey and this scene was repeated less than 2 days later as
thousands more watched in Hobart, capital of the southern Tasmania state, as
the leading boat, Wild Oats sailed up the Derwent River and reached the
finish just before 8 a.m. local time.
The Friday following the race, Wild Oats was also
confirmed as the overall handicap winner, adding to its line honours triumph
and race record. This is only the second time in the history of the event
that a boat has achieved this particular feat, (the only other time being in
the inaugural race in 1945). Despite this, winning skipper Mark Richards
said he still expects the achievement to be repeated.
“You still need the good conditions and we were very lucky in this race
that we didn’t get bad conditions until the end,” he said. “I think if
we had seen bigger conditions in the Bass Strait, it would have been a
different story and the little boats would have done better than us.”
New and old faces triumph at Eastern Star
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Tuesday The 27 December
Eastern Star, Stableford
Yes we are still here at the ‘ Old ‘ Tropical
Bert’s; after all, moving is always difficult and it is better to do
things correctly than too quickly, and believe it or not Xmas and New Year
is a difficult time to get things done. Still it is expected that next week
big things will happen and a move is in the air.
 Nikka
Peltomaa (left) and Dick Warberg (right): winners at Tropical Bert’s.
The morning started as usual, with a large number of
golfers arriving for breakfast, (the golfers know Pattaya well), and then
down to Eastern Star golf course. We had planned to play Century Chonburi,
but some players had reservations about it’s condition at present. It will
be back in a good condition soon.
So off we went and it was nice to see ‘Eastern Star
Welcomes Tropical Bert’s’ on the board at the entrance, it is the little
things that make the difference. This has always been a hard course to score
well on, a bad shot is duly punished and a good shot usually brings rewards,
but it is easy to become upset by a constant need to put the ball in the
correct place. Even more so on days like this when the wind blows and you
have to battle the cold... or as cold as it gets here anyway... still what a
great day. As I have said before, the restaurant here has always been a good
place to eat. It is one of the best on any golf course and well worth a
visit even if you do not play golf.
Scores in and its back to Bert’s, where the early
returnees were tucking into their food, burgers and chips. Tried it myself
and it certainly filled a gap. We had a couple of young brothers playing,
and as luck would have it, one of them, 13 years old and off 8 handicap,
Nikka Peltomaa, came in first in the A Div. Second came another
‘Scandi’, when Kyosti Hamalainen came in with a good score and in third
was Phil Dwyer, playing another fine round. In Div B it was the revenge of
the regulars, as Dick Warberg won with Bob Lawrence in second and another
regular over the years, Oili Helling came into the frame in third.
T.T.F.N.
Winner A Div: Nikka Peltomaa, Runner-up: Kyosti
Hamalainen, Third Phil Dwyer
Winner B Div: Dick Warberg, Runner-up: Bob Lawrence, Third Oili Helling
Near Pin: Vince Smythe (2), Rainer Helling, Stu Thompson, Andy Evans, Rainer
Helling, Martin Bullen, Steve Hamstad, Keith Avery, Peter King, Rich Murphy
Long Put: Derek Brook, Alex Sala, Rich Murphy, Bill Knight, Kevin Dunne
Anusorn Thavincha wins Bantamweight title at the first Pattaya Golden Gloves Amateur Boxing Competition
Mr. Niran Wattanasartsathorn, Pattaya Mayor presided
over the closing ceremony of the first Pattaya Golden Gloves Amateur Boxing
Competition which was held between 22-27 December at Thepprasit Boxing
Stadium and organized by Pattaya City Council and Chonburi Amateur Boxing
Association.
 These
young boxers may one day be national team members.
The event was organized to promote amateur boxing in the
region and as a selection process for Chonburi boxers to compete in National
competitions. Thailand has earned great success in international boxing
competitions especially at the last Olympics. Participants at the event were
required to be not over 18 years old and be students at schools in Pattaya and
Chonburi.
The results of the 7 classes were as follows: Cottonweight 36 kilograms
winner Suriya Chantong, Eight Pattaya City School, Miniweight 42 kilograms
Priyawat Kittiwongtrakul, Cholrasadorn School Chonburi, Paperweight 42 kilograms
Chainthorn Naka, Sattahip Wittayakhom School, Pinweight 45 kilograms
Phongsathorn Worapornpipat, Pantong School, Light Flyweight 48 kilograms
Theerapong Thukhammee, Eiight Pattaya City School, Flyweight 51 kilograms Ekasit
Sroyjit, Chonrasadorn School Chonburi and Bantamweight 54 kilograms Anusorn
Thavincha, Chonrasadorn School Chonburi. The first, second and third of each
class received study grants of 1,500, 1,000 and 500 baht respectively and
certificates from the Mayor of Pattaya.
The Square Ring
by Howie Reed
I’d best start this year off with a little tip to the
gullible: A little care must be taken when reading work by those of us that
type stuff. Sometimes you read but only understand what you want to. I sent
an email to my pal Stefan “The Lord of Pattaya” who, as most know is a
darts legend. Hey a legend is a legend. I was upset and wanted to know why
he didn’t wish me a Merry Christmas: Stefan responded, “Because it’s
not Christmas yet Howie and I don’t know if it’s going to be merry!”
Stupid Yank, my mistake.
Stefan then he opinioned, “Did you see that a Swedish
lady boxer nearly beat Laila Ali?” Knowing that he was still stinging
from his wager loss to me when USA finished ahead of Sweden in the World
Cup of soccer, I challenged his statement. “You’re full of beans,” I
said. He answered with a reference to a women’s boxing website:
“Women’s superstar Laila Ali stopped Asa Sandell in round five on
Saturday night in Berlin. The 6’2" Sandell put on a much better
performance than most expected, connecting regularly with a sneaky left
hook.”
The key here is the phrase “Sandell put on a much
better performance than most expected”. Mr. Lord read this to mean,
“Sandell almost won.” Let me put this in another context; many see the
name of this column The Square Ring and think “this guy probably
doesn’t know anything about boxing but works cheap.” They’d be half
right some of the time. Then they read the column and think, “Hummmm it
was better than I expected.” Low expectations sometimes lead to genuine
surprise. ‘The Lord of’ continued: “The ref saved Ali, the Swede wins
next time... go Sweden go.” Hope springs eternal. He was of course
talking about the soccer World Cup, which the elite call football.
Got a nice note from “Dapper” Dave Stewart who’ll
get a British title shot this year. “Merry Xmas Howie! Hope you have a
good one! Thanks for all the support during the year and here’s looking
forward to a ‘championship’ 2006!” That support wasn’t only from
the Square Ring but also from all his pals in Pattaya. See Stefan he wished
me a Merry Christmas, classy guy that Scot.
Each year fight fans have high hopes that this will be
the year of great fights, great fighters and a re-capturing of the sporting
public’s imagination. The first step may well take place on Sunday
(Pattaya time) at the famous Madison Square Garden in New York. Zab Judah
(34-2) defends his titles; he has three belts, against Carlos Baldomir
(41-9-6). It’s not that Judah has a lot a chance of losing but it gives
him a tune up for his April 8th meeting with Floyd Mayweather jnr., which
should be a ‘mega’ fight. The problem is that both boxers,
Mayweather/Judah, are not popular with the people that buy tickets. Both
have squandered what could have been popular careers and only have certain
sports writers still singing their praises. The April encounter will
probably take place in Las Vegas.
The co-feature is Jean Marc Mormeck (31-2) against
O’Neil “Ring My” Bell (25-1-1) for the WBC/WBA/IBF Cruiser titles.
Those ‘in the know’, who most often don’t know squat or any member of
the squat family, think that Mormeck will lead the division out of the dark
ages and into the light of day. That’s a mighty hill to climb.
Mormeck’s last two outings were both UD’s against an aging Virgil Hill
and Wayne Braithwaite. With both going 12 rounds this might indicate a lack
of power, which is somewhat silly to write, even for me, cause if he had
good power he’d be a heavyweight where every fighter could be the next
champ. Old “Ring My” is a different kettle of fish. He can hit, scoring
23 KO’s from 25 wins. He’s beaten former champs Dale Brown, Derrick
Harmon (who would be great but he gives a new meaning to lazy), Arthur
“The King” Williams and the always tough “Concrete” Kelvin Davis.
One fight that won’t add to the popularity of the
sport is the March 11 contest between two washed up guys that couldn’t
draw flies when they were in their prime. Roy Jones jnr. and Bernard
Hopkins will meet in a contest that no one but their bankers cares about.
They’ll try and sell this left over turkey as a “rematch” of the
pair’s first meeting in 1993. At that time Jones got a UD. The fight was
lousy then and it’ll be worse now. “This dog won’t hunt.”
WBC fly king Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (59-2-1, 31 KOs) got
a payday during the holidays when he scored a 5th round TKO over Isidro
Balabat (50-4). The champ had dominated the first five rounds as all judges
had it 50-45 at the time of the “No mas.” This ‘paid workout’ at
Rachabhak Univeristy was a prelude to a title defense in February. Local
sources claim that the defense will be against a Mexican fighter whose name
will be announced soon. Now hang with me on this. The WBC has two flyweight
title holders: Jorge Arce (43-3) is the “interim” title holder and he
defends on the 28th in Mexico. If he is removed from the equation, as a
January fight would seem to do, and considering that there are no other
Mexican fighters in the WBC top 10... one can then ask “Wonjongkam is
going to fight against Mexican who?” Hang on, that’s it... he’ll
fight Mexican Who... Heck of a deal.
Those sports fans that think there’s nothing new under
the sun in the sport discount ‘Dynamite’ Don King. Whether he’s
planning a promotion in Iraq or injecting himself into all phases of
boxing, there’s no one like him. As you may have read, King wants to
bring the new 7-foot heavyweight champ to America for a series of fights.
There might be a slight problem; although Nikolay Valuev, and you didn’t
think I knew his name, had to sign away a portion of his next four fights
to King to get the Ruiz match, it seems that in June of 2001, Valuev came
to the USA for a fight with George Linberger at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic
City. Whilst there, the big Ruskie signed away the proceeds from all his
fights outside Russia to an America promoter for $200,000. After that fight
he hauled his Ruskie butt back overseas, fought and didn’t pay the
promoter a dime. Bad idea. Promoter sues, wins in court and now wants his
money. Enter ‘Dynamite’ Don King who now tells the promoter “I’ll
work with you.” That ranks right up there with “checks in the mail”
and “I love you all my heart.”
Drive a man to drink. I hope someday to be able to thank Mr. King in
person.
The Beautiful Game?: Angry Addicks force fixture rethink
Riz Taylor
Some things never change. Despite a deluge of festive
fixtures in the Premiership it was the weather that dominated conversation
in England last week. The cold snap that had everyone talking didn’t
manage to deliver a white Christmas, but it did enough to play havoc with
the football.
Thanks to the insistences of England manager Sven Goran
Eriksson that he be given a full month to teach his players how to play
football before the World Cup, the already busy Christmas and New Year
period became even more congested as an extra round of fixtures was
shoehorned into the calendar.
I’ve no problem with that. Whilst managers love to
blame the Christmas period for fatigue and injury they forget that it’s
the same for everybody, and for us armchair fans in far-flung places such as
Thailand the successive games are a treat, even if they give you a kind of
footballing jetlag as you wonder if it’s Saturday every second day. But as
you relax on your barstool watching game after game after game, give a
moment’s thought for the unfortunate travelling football fan back home.
Last week Charlton Athletic journeyed northwards for an
evening appointment with Newcastle United, followed to St.James’ Park by a
hardcore of around 500 supporters. Some of these rabid football fanatics
left London as early as 10am to ensure a timely arrival, and many made it to
the match without incident. Yet as the game approached the wintery
conditions took a stronger grip on the city and delivered a second snowfall
of the day that caused havoc on the roads.
Despite warnings throughout the day that weather
conditions were due to deteriorate and although the St.James’ pitch was
perfectly playable thanks to undersoil heating, referee Mike Dean took the
decision to postpone the match just 25 minutes before the scheduled kick off
after being advised that the traffic conditions in the area were deemed
unsafe.
Whilst the referee was left with little choice and had
even abandoned his own car to reach the ground in time, Charlton fans that
had made the 300-mile journey were understandably furious. Their sentiments
were echoed by club chairman Peter Varney who laid the blame with Newcastle
City Council’s failure to act appropriately.
“It is astonishing that there was not one gritting
lorry in sight in a city the size of Newcastle that has a Premiership
stadium that attracts 52,000 fans per match,” Varney told Charlton’s
official website. “It took us 20 minutes to go about half a mile and there
were cars sliding past us backwards”. His Newcastle counterpart Freddy
Shepherd was also quick to jump on the bandwagon. It took me an hour to
drive three miles and I didn’t see any gritters,” he said of his three
mile journey to St.James’ Park.
After the initial blame game pointed fingers at the
council for their ineptitude and even at the football club themselves for an
alleged eagerness to postpone the match during the absence of key players
such as Emre and Scott Parker, the anger centred on the Premier League for
scheduling fixtures with huge travelling distances for away fans over the
Christmas period. Charlton supporters, for example, have travelled over 1000
miles in the last week whilst Liverpool’s needed to cover only 83.
Newcastle themselves were forced to visit London on New Year’s Eve to face
Tottenham, and the trend has been repeated throughout the lower divisions;
the cancellation of Torquay’s match at Stockport shortly before kick-off
meant a wasted 700-mile round trip for Torquay’s loyal (and some would say
insane) fans.
“The FA must look at this. Forget the players - it’s
just not fair on the fans,” said Shepherd, sensing an opportunity to
improve relations with his club’s supporters. “Why are we playing in
London on New Year’s Eve when we could be playing Sunderland or
Middlesbrough?” It’s ridiculous; we should be playing a local team or
even one in Manchester.”
I could never have imagined myself in agreement with
Shepherd, but the porky Newcastle supremo makes a good point. Christmas and
the New Year should be bursting with football and surely it’s not
impossible to arrange matches that don’t involve excessive travel. Whilst
policing so many derbies might be an issue, a dash of consideration could be
shown for the thousands of fans that spend the rest of the season crossing
the country in support of their teams.
Even the Premier League officials seem to agree.
“It’s an issue we will be looking at further with a view to next
season’s fixtures,” said a spokesman. “The fans are the most important
thing and we have to make sure that our fixtures reflect that.”
It seems that, for once, the concerns of genuine fans are
being listened to by the footballing authorities and even Freddie Shepherd
is getting in on the act. It’s a great way to start the year, but then
most New Year’s resolutions get broken, don’t they?
Que? Si? What?
Born-again Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp has been
presented with a language barrier since returning from neighbouring
Southampton. It appears that some of the playing staff brought in by his
Fratton Park predecessor Alain Perrin have limited English skills that are
hindering Redknapp’s coaching magic.
“It’s a crazy situation”, said Harry. “We’ve
got three people who can’t speak English. You can’t even tell them what
to do. What are you supposed to do, draw diagrams for 20 minutes? It
shouldn’t happen.”
Redknapp reached boiling point during the Boxing Day draw
with his former club West Ham. “With 10 minutes to go I bring on Viafara
and tell him to mark the near post space at a corner because it’s a vital
position,” he moaned. “He runs on and goes somewhere else because he
doesn’t speak a word of English.”
Maybe Harry would do well to watch a few episodes of
Fawlty Towers for some insider knowledge on delicately handling staff
members with a shortage of English skills.
Football: More important
than God?
Clergymen attending next year’s Church of England
General Synod are headed towards a clash between the man upstairs and the
football - because their religious summit clashes with the World Cup Final
on July 9th.
The Synod was told that England are fully expected to
make the final thanks to the symbolic significance of the number 40; this
was the number of days that the Israelites spent wandering the wilderness
and also the length of time in years since England’s 1966 World Cup win.
The Reverend Peter Spiers of St.Luke’s, near Liverpool, said he expects
a number of colleagues to support a postponement of debates if England make
the final: “Looking at the Bible, there is good reason to believe it may
be England’s year. I’m not the only fan in the Synod and I’m sure a
screening would be well-attended. I’m praying it won’t go to
penalties,” he said.
Sports Quiz
Congratulations to Steve Johnson for being
the first to answer last week’s questions correctly. Thank you to all who
tried and if you didn’t win, better luck next time. In case you were
wondering about the answers, here they are:
1) Who won the Cricket County Championship in 2000?
Answer: Surrey
2) Which player has scored the most FA Cup Final Goals?
Answer: Ian Rush
3) Who won the Men’s 400m at the Paris Olympics in 1924?
Answer: Eric Liddell
This weeks Questions are:
1) Who rode Aldaniti to win the Grand National in 1981?
2) When did Great Britain last win the Ryder Cup?
3) Who scored eight tries for Scotland in 1925 during the Five Nations Rugby
tournament?
The road to Super Bowl XXXX
by Howie Reed
With the College National Football Championship now
decided, it’s time for the pros of the National Football League to step
into the spotlight. Boy did they end the season with a bang. The New England
Patriots head into Sunday’s (Thailand time) first round play-off game
against the Jacksonville Jaguars on the heels of the first drop kick for an
extra point in 63 years. In a meaningless loss to Miami, the Patriots
diminutive ‘senior citizen’ back-up QB Doug Flutie took a direct snap
from center and drop- kicked the extra point. When was the last ‘drop
kick’ extra point in an NFL Game? That would be December 21, 1941 when
Chicago’s Ray “Scooter” McLean converted in the championship game
against the New York Giants. Oh yes Chicago won that game 37-9.
“We hold these truths to be self evident” is a phrase
that I picked up somewhere in my travels and it applies to the NFL’s
second half to the season. In the wild card round the home team usually
wins, defense is what counts and the weather or sometimes the lack of it
always plays a part. The following is a look at the first round of games.
Tampa Bay (11-5) kicks off the action at 4:30am (Thai) on
Sunday when they play host to the Washington Redskins (10-6). Washington had
to win 5 straight to get into the playoffs and did. The Buccaneers might
have been savoring a bye this week if it hadn’t have been for two losses
to the terrible Jets and 49ers. It’s tough for a wild card team to make it
to Super Sunday. They’ll go as far as their Cadillac (Williams) can carry
them. Playing at home, Tampa Bay would be favorites but they need a good
game from QB Chris Simms. The second best defense in the NFL can make up for
some of their offensive shortcomings.
The Redskins meanwhile make their first return to the
playoffs since 1999 thanks to some good running from Clinton Portis and fine
performances from their capable QB, “old” Mark Brunell. The Redskins
secondary however, has been really decimated by injuries. Look for the
Buc’s to rape and pillage in this game. If they do, they book a date
against the Bears next week to play in the swirling icy winds of Chicago...
“Da Bears are back!”
Just about breakfast time in Pattatya, 8am (Thai) on
Sunday, New England (10-6) opens its’ bid for their third straight Super
Bowl trophy when they host the Jacksonville Jaguars (12-4). The Pat’s are
favored by 7 points for the very simple reason that they don’t lose games
in January in New England. The Jags have to hope that QB Byron Leftwich is
100% after breaking his ankle in November. He’ll have to be; the Pat’s
are healthy for the first time this year with only Teddy Bruschi
questionable with a leg injury. If the weather’s bad, and what are the
chances of it not being, the guys from Florida will not only have to beat
the Pat’s but the freezing conditions. It’s a daunting task but the
winner of this one goes on to face the Colts (14-2) in the next round.
The New York Giants (11-5), riding the arm of QB Ely
Manning and the legs of running back Tiki Barber (1,860 yards) are back in
the playoffs for the first time since the 2000 season. Then they got all the
way to the Super Bowl only to get blown out by the Baltimore Ravens 34-7.
They’re favored by 2 points in this game, which kicks off at 1am on Monday
morning (Thai) against the Carolina Panthers (11-5). Some forget that
Carolina was in the Super Bowl just two years ago losing to New England
33-29. Like then, the key will be the Panthers’ QB Jake Delhomme and
running back DeShaun Foster. Foster has turf toe, which many thought would
affect his running. It didn’t as he went for 165 yards in the 44-11 romp
over Atlanta to close the season. Panthers also have the best receiver in
the NFL in Stephan Smith. Maybe the next great NFL QB is Ely Manning. He’s
not there yet. He does make mistakes and if Carolina can capitalize, this
game could provide an upset. The winner gets a trip to Seattle: home of
Starbucks and the Seahawks.
The final game of wild card weekend is not only the most
intriguing but one that could go either way with the Pittsburgh Steelers
(11-5) favored by 2 points when they visit the Bengals (11-5). The game
kicks off at 4:30am Monday morning (Thai). This will be the third meeting of
the year for these two AFC rivals. They split their first two meetings this
year with each team winning on the road. The December 4 game at Pittsburgh
provided the Bengals with a hard fought 38-31 victory. QB Carson Palmer
tossed three TD’s and RB Rudi Johnson ran in for a pair. The score should
however, be recorded with an asterisk. The Steelers’ QB was coming back
from a broken right thumb. He threw three interceptions, which is not the
norm. If the weather isn’t a factor here it will be the following week
when the winner gets to visit Denver in mid January. The Steelers are
probably better suited to the fridge like “Mile High City.”
Most observers would agree that as we enter the playoffs,
the two best teams in the league are New England and Pittsburgh. That of
course ignores the Indianapolis Colts (14-2) who along with the Chicago
Bears (11-5), Denver Bronco (13-3) and the Seattle Seahawks (13-3) all got
first round byes. If history repeats itself then it will be two of those
four teams that will be running out on the Ford Field in Detroit on February
6th. Chicago and Denver have the weather advantage with Indy being very
tough on their indoor turf. If the pre play scenario holds it will be Indy
and Seattle in the Super Bowl.
NB: For TV listings of the NFL Wildcard matches check out the Sports TV
schedule on page 49.
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