Sattayanant Abdulkari takes out the first Pattaya Mountain bike Downtown 2006
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Sattayanant Abdulkari, SEA Games silver medalist won the women’s class in
the first Pattaya Mountain bike Downtown 2006 held last Sunday in Pattaya.
Her arduous training schedule and competitive experience were the main
factors as she coasted over the finish line.
Wuttisak
Rermkijakarn, Pattaya deputy mayor presents first prize to Hill A winner
Thanpol Jarupeng from the Chainart District team.
At just 18, Sattayanant has had a wealth of experience winning silver in the
Philippines last year at the SEA Games.
“I’ve trained very hard and you really have to love riding, something I’ve
loved since I was very young,” said Sattayanant. “I’ve only been training
seriously for the last 4-5 years.”
Sattayanant told reporters that her father was her coach and that she had
received a great deal of support from her family and her school, especially
leading up to last year’s South East Asian Games.
Mountain
bikers enjoyed the challenging Pattaya course and are looking forward to
another event.
The inaugural event, which took place in Pattaya on June 11 is just one of
six rounds in the national mountain bike competition. Points from each
course are counted to the overall competition as to who will be this year’s
national champion.
Racing kicked off in front of the Pratumnak Fitness Park with Wuttisak
Rermkijakarn, Pattaya deputy mayor presiding over the formalities. He was
joined by Anupong Udomrattankulchai, Pattaya Running and Cycling for Health
Club (PRCHC) president and more than 150 cyclists taking part in the event.
The race was jointly organized by city hall, PRCHC,
Thailand Cycling Alliance Group and the Knobbyonline.com website dedicated
to cycling in Thailand. The event is the first of its kind utilizing off and
on-road skills with the course involving a downhill of 1.5 km of challenging
obstacles beginning at the recently opened extension of the public park and
ending at the Bali Hai pier.
The
warm atmosphere and beautiful course conditions were well received by all
the riders.
The event was open to nine classes: Boys under 15, Downhill A, Downhill B,
Men’s 30-39 age groups, Men’s Over 40s. Free ride class, Hardtel class,
Women’s Open and a weight class of 85kgs and up. Each rider was taken on
their best lap on the hot Sunday afternoon.
Results for the Pattaya event saw Sattayanant Abdulkari from the Siam Bike
team winning first place n the women’s category, Chatchai Rujinarnont, from
the Chainart District team was the Boys under 15 winner, Vichai Promklang
won the Hardtel class. Thamarat Rujinarnont kept it in the family
winning the Free ride class and in the 30-39 age group Supote Nongyai was
first; with Montree Boonsen winning the men’s over 40 category and in the
heavyweights, 85kgs and above, Theerapat Janrat pounded the competition to
win his class. Hill B winner was manop Abdulkari from the Bike Line team and
in the Hill A group, Thanpol Jarupeng from the Chainart District team also
landed in the winners’ circle.
Brazilian street soccer team visits Thailand
The Brazilian street soccer
team trains with Team Fairtex
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
A representative team from that great soccer nation Brazil flew into
Thailand June 3, to show their skills under the Nokia ‘Defend Your Turf’
project to promote street soccer in Asian countries.
The eight members of the Brazilian street soccer team from Rio de Janiro,
are traveling around India, Singapore, Hong Kong and Thailand to promote
street soccer in these countries.
To mark the occasion, Thailand set up its own team of youngsters to play
against the Brazilian stars on June 4 at the Siam Discovery Center in
Bnagkok. Street soccer is extremely popular in Brazil and is normally played
in open areas at the side of the road. The game requires a lot of individual
skill and, not surprisingly, the Brazilians have taken to the game like
‘ducks to water’.
Carlos Eduardo, the coach and team manager of the South Americans commented
that both he and his players were very impressed by the standard of soccer
they had seen in Thailand. Talking about the trip he said that the Thai
national team is heading in the right direction and appears to have left
other teams in the region standing.
Following the competition in Bangkok, the Brazilian team made a trip to the
Fairtex Sports Club & Resort in Pattaya where the players took full
advantage of all the excellent facilities before flying off to their next
destination.
Pattaya goes football mad
Like venues all over Pattaya, the Green Bottle
Pub at Diana Inn welcomes the start of World Cup 2006.
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
June 9 - the start of the World Cup finals in Germany and reports came in
that Pattaya, along with the rest of the planet had gone totally ‘football
crazy.’
Shops and restaurants throughout the city decorated their premises with
bunting and flags of all the participating nations and employees dressed in
football kits to add colour and atmosphere to the occasion. This was
especially true along Pattaya Third Road and Walking Street in South Pattaya
where matches were broadcast live on giant screens. The Green Bottle Pub at
Diana Inn also added to the festivities, broadcasting the games on their own
giant screen, giving out promotional tickets to guess the results and also
offering reduced ‘world cup special’ drinks prices to enable the fans to
celebrate or alternatively drown their sorrows.
With the tournament not due to reach its conclusion till July 9, we can
expect to see these scenes repeated many times over the coming month.
Other than all the fanfare surrounding the opening of the tournament,
Pattaya launched its own mini-world cup with the Pattaya Paradise Futsal
2006 competition, which has been organized by Box Assets Company and the
Saang Fan Company. Fixtures that take place in the real World Cup in Germany
are repeated in a somewhat smaller, though no less competitive version next
to the beach near Bali Hai Pier.
And with the presence of the large TV screens, spectators now have the
chance to watch 2 games for the price of one.
The Pattaya Paradise Futsal competition is being
played concurrently with all the World Cup games in Germany.
Don & Joop take top billing
IPGC golf from The Caddy Shack
Tuesday, May 6,
Noble Place,
Medal
Noble Place was the venue for Tuesday’s outing with a Medal competition
being held over the challenging A & C courses. The winner of the day’s event
was Don Francis with a respectable score of net 69. In second came Ben
Findon with a net 71 and third place went to Nile Sheehan with a net 77.
There were no “twos” recorded on the day and the ‘bananas’ were awarded to
Al Mcgrory for his unremarkable net 83 score.
Thursday, May 8,
Green Valley, Stableford
Our second trip of the week took us to beautiful Green Valley for
a Stableford competition. Joop Medze took the honours with 35 points, 2
ahead of second placed Mike Allidi. Jan Eriksen completed the podium places
with a score of 29 points for third.
Jan also took a share of the “twos” pot with David Keats whilst the
‘bananas’ went to Paul Davies, who, with a new driver to improve his game
managed to trail home with a paltry 15 points.
Sports Quiz
Congratulations to Steve Johnson who was the first to
answer all 3 questions for last week’s quiz. Thanks to all who tried and in
case you were wondering about the answers, here they are:
1) Which 4 countries have appeared in soccer World Cup finals but never won
the trophy?
Answer: Holland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia (all twice) & Sweden
2) Which bridge(s) are crossed in the London marathon?
Answer: Only 1 – Tower Bridge
3) What was used in the 1973 FA Cup Final and never used again?
Answer: An orange football
This weeks Questions are:
1) Who is the only male tennis player to win the US Open on 3
different playing surfaces (grass, clay & hard-court)?
2) Name 5 boxers to defeat Muhammad Ali as a professional
3) Between the 1966 and 2006 World Cups only four England captains have
played for three different clubs while captaining their country, who are
they and for a bonus, which clubs were they playing for?
Alan Griffiths scores and runs
IPGC golf from The Haven
Monday June 5, Green Valley -
Stableford
1st Arthur Hancock, 40
2nd Tony Barritt, 39
3rd Takeshi Hakozaki, 38
4th David Winter, 37
5th Alan Griffiths, 36
Playing on his second home course Arthur Hancock made his local
knowledge tell as he slipped into first place after Tony Barritt just
failed to finish off a fantastic final run which included 3 birdies in
the last five holes. This followed a poor start, which saw him three
putt the first three holes until he began to listen to the caddy’s
advice regarding line and weight. Arthur’s round was a real gem as he
went round without a blob or 1 pointer on the card.
Takeshi Hakozaki came in just a further point back to secure third with
newcomer David Winter taking fourth ahead of the weeks ever-present Alan
Griffiths.
Before presenting the prizes Richard Livingston, the resident PGA
teaching professional, welcomed new members Barry McIntosh, Peter Lim,
Barry Urbano and David Winter and also welcomed back Randy Haupt and
Trudy Chadbourn, the latter having been incapacitated due to a serious
wrist injury.
There were no “twos” in either division and the pots were therefore
carried over.
Wednesday June 7, Khao Kheow -
Better Ball
1st Alan Keith & Serge Straeten, 39
2nd Barry Traynor & Paul Hartley, 37
3rd Tony Barritt & Alan Griffiths, 32 c/b 9 17
4th Trevor Schirmer & B.J. Smith, 32 c/b 9 15
Alan Keith made a long awaited return to Thailand for a short holiday,
before taking early retirement from his day job to take up a relaxed job
knocking the ball round the local courses as he hones his 5 handicap
towards a plus number.
With a steady partner in Serge Straeten and no language barrier between
them they combined to make a very difficult course on the day seem not
quite as insurmountable as most of the contenders in the other groups,
and ran out winners by two shots from the pairing of Barry Traynor and
Paul Hartley, who could never quite get on terms.
Tony Barritt picked up the man in form but unfortunately still struggled
with the advice that was flowing from not only his caddy but Alan
Griffiths and his caddy too. It took a while to get through but finally
it was enough to take third place ahead of the Trevor Schirmer and B.J.
Smith on count back.
Prior to the prize giving Richard welcomed back Alan Keith. Due to the
format, the “twos” competition was not played for and was again carried
over until the next outing.
Friday June 9, Eastern Star - Stableford
1st Alan Griffiths, 37
2nd Ger Lodge, 35
3rd Peter Emslie, 34 c/b9 19
4th Al Rolnik, 34 c/b9 18
Alan Griffiths, playing his last game before returning to supervise the
installation of a few rows of seats in The Arsenals new stadium in North
London took advantage on a low scoring day to chalk up another one in
the win column by a handy two strokes from Ger Lodge who has recently
returned for an extended rest.
Peter Emslie at last played a round somewhere near to his new handicap
to take a grip on third place by count back ahead of Al Rolnik who also
reached the podium after an extended period in the doldrums.
Back at The Haven Richard welcomed new member Mike Poustie and also
welcomed back Bubbles Davies, Ger Lodge and Chris Knapp.
Once again there were no “twos” in either division and so again the
pools were carried forward.
The Groom sweeps the field off its feet
IPGC golf from Lewiinski’s
Sunday, June 4, Green Valley,
White Tees -Stableford
A Flight
1st Larry Watson, 39 points
2nd Julian Clarke, 38 points
3rd Jim Wickstrom, 37 points
B Flight
1st Jan Erikson, 37 points
2nd Rick Sharp, 36 points
3rd Joe Mooneyham, 35 points
C Flight
1st Stan Dismuke, 41 points
2nd George Jackson, 38 points
3rd Eddy Beilby, 37 points
D Flight
1st Place Jez Lees, 42 points
2nd Nat Meesuk, 42 points
3rd Noy Pimmoen, 35 points
NP’s: #2 Doug Lynch; #9 John Emmerson; #12 Mark Wood, #16 Phil Mitchell
2’s: Julian Clarke, Jim Wickstrom, Mark Wood, Phil Mitchell, Jim
Brackett, Doug Lynch, John Emmerson, Colin Davis, Stan Dismuke, George
Jackson, Mike Shrosbree, Alec Hoare
Non-2: Noy Pimmoen
The Principal was actually playing against guys as well, although the D
Flight podium would have suggested otherwise as he led the Nat (ural)
and Ms. Summers up the steps to collect the loot. Jez, always battling
the pitching and putting woes that stifle his significant athletic
prowess, won a count back over Nat, who herself can probably be as good
as she wants, should she ever choose to pursue the game seven days a
week. The two players co-shared the best point total of the day.
Stan had seen his good mate, Jeremy Masse, start to make a significant
separation between their two handicaps and must have decided it was time
he put it in gear. His C Flight winning 41 points were three clear of
the oft-honored One Ball, and yet another ahead of the Man of Leisure.
Irish Larry Watson, who visits annually, and who has always brought a
low handicap with him from the Old Sod, is finally playing to his
abilities in the LoS. His 39 points served notice to the premier players
that there is another guy in the weekly mix. He was followed up the
podium by The Dispatch Rider and Dudley Dooright, architect of the day’s
low gross.
It is going to take a bit to finally highlight the performance of our
Title Guy as he was headed up the B Flight steps by The Quiet One and
The Hermit. If a third for Joe wasn’t particularly noteworthy in and of
itself, certainly the fact that he edged Mike Gaussa, The Donkey and
Barry Urbano on count back was.
Tuesday, June 6, Khao Kheow C & B, Yellow Tees -
Stroke/Medal
A Flight
1st Johnny McHugh, net 69
2nd Rick Sharp, net 72
3rd Joe Mooneyham, net 74
B Flight
1st Charles Sheppard, net 70
2nd Tony Molloy, net 73
3rd Dave Porter, net 74
NP’s: #B8 - Bob Lindborg
2’s: John McHugh, Tony Molloy, John Emmerson, Stan Dismuke
Big hittin’ Johnny McHugh threw in some accuracy as he navigated the
yellow tees of the C & B courses of Mr. Dye’s local offering in shooting
an A Flight-winning gross 76, net 69, both best on the day. The Hermit,
apparently arising from golf hibernation, held down A Flight’s second
slot and our Title Guy wielded the count back scythe again to hold on
his second third of the young week. This time his victims were the
quartet of The Lady’s Man, the Quiet One, Steve Smith and Jim-Bob
Brackett.
In B Flight, Charlie Sheppherd somehow found the front door of the bar,
the tee on each of the holes and the return van to claim his B Flight
first prize, resultant from his fine sub-handicap net 70. That left him
comfortably ahead of newly arrived Irish guest, Tony Molloy, and the
Valet’s Best Friend..
Wednesday, May 7, Eastern Star, White Tees -
Stableford
A Flight
1st Joe Mooneyham, 38 points
2nd Johnny McHugh, 36 points
3rd Colin Davis, 36 points
B Flight
1st Harvey Samuel, 36 points
2nd Sugar Ray Hanford, 36 points
3rd Dave Porter, 33 points
NP’s: #13 - Steve Smith
2’s: Steve Smith, Tony Curran, Andy Redmond,
There’s the Title Guy, fresh off two bronzes, and now adding a bit of
the gold to his treasure trove, with an A Flight winning, and Man of the
Match supporting, 38 points. Tuesday’s top man, Johnny McHugely edged
The Donkey with the slide rule. Chief Engineers will do that to ya.
Harvey Samuel, or was it Samuel Harvey, edged Sugar Ray with a little
math in B flight, while the Valet’s Best Friend earned his second third
in two days. Is Dave trending down? You’ll have to wait until next week
to see.
Friday, May 9,
The Emerald,
White Tees - 2-Person Better Ball (Stroke/Medal)
1st Seamus Cotter & Alan Ashby, net 63
2nd John Emmerson & Poo Supaporn, net 63
3rd Chaten Patel & David Hamilton, net 65
A good sized field paired up for two person better ball at the ever,
albeit slowly, improving Faldo/Muirhead design in the city where all the
girls have flat heads. Seamus Cotter, himself an infrequent, but
welcome, mid-week Society player extended an open hand to a Society
newcomer, Alan Ashby, a Patong Beach publican, and in so doing put
together the day’s winning team. That was much to the chagrin of the GM
and the First Lady who lost the top rung on count back. Are there no
limits to which the Old Silverback will go to in making a new fella feel
welcome? The Rajah was not going to expose himself to the fickled winds
of fate in choosing a partner. He brought along his mate, David
Hamilton, and together they edged The Donkey and the Man of Leisure on
count back for the last pay slot.
Deja-Vu at Crystal Bay
IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at the OK Corral
A number of welcome members are returning to these shores after various
mid-year breaks in Europe and elsewhere, and such was the case at the OK
Corral on Tuesday, June 6, as the Pattaya Golf Society ventured to
Crystal Bay to play a weekly medal event over the “A” and “B” nines.
The course is always a pleasurable challenge with its wide fairways and
expanses of water and the greens, though not as pacey as on the previous
recent visit, still held surprises for the party.
Under a cloudless sky battle commenced and before long it became
apparent that the “cream” would rise to the top. The antipodean pair of
Stuart Thompson and David Thomas were going head-to-head, with New
Zealander David holding all the aces after nine holes but a sparkling
in-run saw Stuart post a gross 39 to record a total of net 78, equalling
his partner for a share of second place.
In the previous six weeks the vagaries of the Scottish summer had
restricted John Cunningham to a mere nine holes but his return, with the
sun on his back, did the trick. He quickly entered his PGS mode and
produced yet another fine round, the only blemishes being “rusty”
dropped shots on the first nine. He finished the day, as so often, at
the top of the table and his net 77 marked a fine return to his adopted
homeland.
Rob Dolan achieved the day’s only birdie “two”, from off the green on A8
and his joy signalled one of the few occasions when he has managed to
cross the water on the picturesque hole!
Tony Duthie, recently hospitalised with pneumonia, found rehabilitation
tough, losing all his balls by the seventeenth but his caddy came to the
rescue with one she had kept for a special occasion and Tony proceeded
to immerse this as well on the final hole. His return was thus marked by
the Booby Bevy. But for him, as with the other players, the highlight of
the day was merely being on a beautiful course with fine friends.
Stu-pendous!
Far off Noble Place gets better with every visit and this was
no exception on Thursday, June 8 as the Pattaya Golf Society chose to
call in to play a stableford event. The continued work on the course is
turning an already fine golf track into something special and, as
communications improve, the course is destined to become a Pattaya
favourite.
The “A” and “C” nines formed the backcloth to proceedings as the four
groups set out on an empty course. After nine holes the field was
buzzing with the exploits of diminutive Aussie Stuart Thompson, who had
completed the front nine in a superb gross 35 giving him a staggering 23
points off his 8 handicap. For some, putting on the repairing greens was
a test but not for Stuart whose eyes and hands stayed true. Inevitably
he was to stutter slightly on the in-run but he retained his composure
to return a score of 42 points to win the day in immaculate style.
John Cunningham completed a fine week with a score of 37 points for
second place and Len Jones showed the tablets are working well as he
posted a creditable 35 points for third place, and another step on the
road to recovery after his recent health problems.
There were no birdie “twos” and a substantial rollover was expected at
Green Valley next time out.
The prime candidates for the Booby Bevy were the two competitors who had
chosen to compete for the fashion highlight of the day with their
trousers but as Jim Wilson seemed hell bent on matching Bill Hewitt’s
Heineken intake record on the course, all bets were off! As the day
progressed his short putts became longer and “tap-ins” became “top-ups”.
It had been a seriously good golf day indeed.
Stan & Rich share the spoils at popular Bangpra
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Tuesday May 30, Khao Kheow - Stableford
I always like playing at this course, it is one of the best in the area, and
also at this time of the year one of the best value, it must be on the top
of everyone’s hit list because on this week the other major golf outlets of
P.S.C. went there.
Bangpra
winners Stan Everingham & Rich Murphy
On this Tuesday we had a good turnout, and after breakfast at Bert’s off we
all went down the road to Khao Kheow with a couple of extra groups. All was
well at the course and we were soon off on the A & B layouts.
The conditions were as expected, wet, but if people read the score card they
will see that the course has made a local rule that allows a drop ‘Through
the Green’, so help was at hand.
Round over and with the results coming in, it was noticeable we had two
players who had beaten their handicap - one in each division, and this is
better than average at this course.
Back at Bert’s, and after some of the host’s fine food, the results were
declared by Tim. The winner in A Div was Dick Warberg with Stu Thompson as
runner up, and in the B Div, Rich Murphy was the winner with Tewin Lamthong
as runner up
Near Pin: Stu Thompson, Stan Everingham, Fergus Brennan, Tewin Lamthong,
Colin Cronin, Bob MacGuire
Long Put: Stan Everingham, Carl Lovat, Tong Pimblet, Dave Eastham, Rod
Sutherland
Tuesday June 6, Bangpra - Stableford
Put this course on the schedule and you can be sure of a full
list. So it was on this morning, and as I entered Bert’s, the place was
packed with players filling up on Bert’s food.
The trip down is not too bad, so it was not long before all were safely
signed in, and were at the first tee.
So onto the course, and as all who come here know, this venue is a real
pleasure to play. One thing I saw on the course that was interesting, was a
very large lizard, probably 3/4 feet long walking up the path by the 10th
green. Of course we all got out of the way.
After my normal in the clubhouse, Rainbow Ice Cream, it was time to leave
for the home range and a cold one at Bert’s. When we arrived, everyone was
already tucking into the food, however we managed to get their attention
long enough for Tim to do the presentation.
The winner of the A Div was Stan Everingham with Steve Hamstad in second,
whilst in the B Div the winner was Rich Murphy with Mark Brenton in second.
However, the star of the day was Steve Hamstad with a second and three near
pins.
T.T.F.N.
Near Pin: Steve Hamstad (3), Derek Brook, Colin Cronin, Bernie Cairns, Rich
Murphy
Long Put Dick Warberg, Derek Brook, Su Muangmatcha, Derek Eastham
Marty ‘on fire’ at the Emerald
Peacock Place Golf Society News
Thursday June 8 saw the third gathering of The Peacock
Place Golf Society. The Emerald GC was the chosen venue and a very popular
choice it turned out to be. Twenty three golfers arrived at The Peacock in
good time to sign the entry sheet, pay their dues and enjoy a hearty
breakfast before arranging the transport and heading for the course. Captain
Bob decided to add spice to the occasion and announced that we would be
playing a medal round instead of a wimpy Stableford competition today. We
would be playing the game as it was intended. A significant number
complained in unison but to no avail. Medal it was going to be.
We headed for the course and made it in 30 minutes. Down Route 36, right at
the Green Valley turn off and left just past Green Valley. It’s clearly
signposted. No need to go all the way to Bangchang and turn left. Our
starting point is so convenient for all the courses.
The weather was glorious and the course not too bad but the fairways are
still recovering from burning as a result of over feeding with fertilizer.
The greens I have to say were magnificent and very fast. Too fast for yours
truly as my score card will testify.
The course in the main won as many who recorded no returns will admit, our
illustrious Captain included but a noble few returned cards to be pleased
with. Our winner that day was Marty Allred who plays off 1 and returned a
net 70, great golf. The runner up in the A flight was Don Frances who
returned a net 72. In the B flight, Brent Dalby Returned a 72 and Phil Smith
a 74.
Some of our party could not be dissuaded from dropping off at Bangchang
Village for some reason or other but we all returned to The Peacock
Restaurant at 5pm for the prize giving and to sample the delicious morsels
prepared by Dao and her lovely handmaidens.
Another great day was had by all.
NB: If anyone would like to join us or obtain details of our group,
telephone 07941 2474 and contrary to last weeks information, The Peacock
Restaurant is only 8km from the Sukhumvit Road.
Phil leads the Aussies home at Burapha
PSC golf from The Café Kronborg
Monday May 29,
Crystal Bay - Stableford
The pristine Crystal Bay A & B layouts were host to a Stableford competition
in one flight. The course was not very busy because high season prices are
still being charged.
Aussie Gene Rooney won the day with a fine 39 points, in second was Aussie
John Christie with 38 points with Brian Blackford third with 35 points and
John Swanson fourth with 33 points.
Thursday June 1,
Khao Kheow - Stableford
What more can one say about this fine course except it was wet -
all the courses are at this present time, and Khao Kheow does not seen to
drain as well as some of the others.
The test for the day were the B & C layouts, and with them being so wet they
played long and difficult, so I was not expecting good scores and was not
disappointed.
With quiet times at hand, one flight was all we had, and the winner was John
Christie with 35 points. We then had a three way tie on 33 points that was a
count back situation, with Gene Rooney in second, John Swanson in third and
Ted Morris in fourth.
Monday June 5,
Burapha - Stableford
The Burapha A & B layouts were host to a small group for a
Stableford competition in one flight. The course on the day was in very good
condition even though there was a lot of rain over the weekend.
Aussie Phil Sheppard was first with 41 points ahead of fellow Aussie Gene
Rooney in second with 38 points. Another Aussie, Marty Allred was in third
with 37 points, and just to show that not all the players were Aussies, Rick
Evans was fourth with 36 points.
Thursday June 8,
Crystal Bay - Stableford
What a super course this is, and how sad that most players will
not pay the little extra to play it. This is one of the courses that does
not have a ‘Low Season Special’, and it showed on the day, with a small turn
out from the Cafe Kronborg and a nearly empty course.
Those who were prepared to make the trip were treated to ‘millionaires
golf’, with a nearly empty course and the A & C layouts in great condition.
The greens in particular were of high quality, being fast and tricky, but
all added up to a great day out.
Sitting in the fine, and empty, clubhouse the cards as they came in were not
great, quite unsurprising when you consider the tricky greens.
The winner with 34 points was John Swanson with Walter Bachli in second with
33 points, in third was Dave Richardson with 31 points and Colin Blues in
fourth with 30 points.
T.T.F.N.
‘Matelot’ Mick shows the way at the Navy
PSC golf from The Bunker
Monday, June 5,
Khow Kheow - Medal
A Medal competition was played at Khow Kheow on Monday and with a relatively
small field we only had one flight which saw Paul Smith come out on top with
a net 74. In second place was William Macey with net 76 and last month’s
‘golfer of the month’, John McDonald finished third with net 78.
On the notoriously tricky par three holes, only three greens were hit by
Paul Smith, William Macey and Clarke Alexander.
Wednesday, June 7,
Noble Place - Stableford
Another reduced field for a Stableford competition at the lovely
Noble Place on Wednesday had John McDonald finishing third again with 32
points, second place went to Dave Lightfoot with 36 points and today’s first
prize went to Tony Geeland, who finished with 37 Stableford points.
Only three Near Pin prizes were awarded again, one going to PJ Redmond and
two being claimed by Paul Smith.
Friday, June 9,
Plutaluang - Medal
The Royal Thai Navy Golf Course at Plutaluang was the venue for
the last Medal comp of the week and with the cut at 17 and under, ex-matelot
Mick Ramshaw took advantage of the familiar surroundings to win the B Flight
with a three under par net 69 - six shots ahead of runner-up Tony Geeland
who shot a net 75.
The A Flight was much closer with wily fox P.J. Redmond coming out on top
with net 73, just pipping runner-up Bruce Lawrence, who was one shot behind
with net 74. Yet again only three of the par three greens were hit - prizes
going to Matty Anderson, Scotsman John Bruce and Mick Ramshaw.
‘No Show’ takes the plaudits at Pattaya C.C.
PSC golf from The Three Sisters Bar
The first week of June - We were lucky again as the weather was perfect for
golfing. Herb Ishinaga almost made it a hat trick but missed by a stroke to
Joe Albright. Known to a few as “No Show” Joe, he slipped by with a sleek 39
points. This was enough to win the day as Herb faltered on the back nine.
Herb came in with 38 points after scoring 22 on the front nine.
Coming in with a strong 37 points was Marty Allred. Marty playing off a 2
handicap had a great round. He scored 6 birdies and 5 bogeys to shoot one
under his handicap. Marty plans to stay out here for a while so we just
might see his name quite frequently around the golfing scene.
Kenny Mau had a bad day as he battled it out with Rollie Weese for the
cellar position. In the end the younger Kenny managed to stay out to the
basement. Rollie, with a not too bad a score, fell back into the cellar as
Marvin and Tully were not there to help support him. With luck, Rollie will
get back out next week.
The Beautiful Game? :World Cup glory? This may hurt a little
Riz Taylor
After falling for the hype yet again, I’d forgotten just what a
nerve-jangling experience watching the World Cup can be. One moment you’re
hailing the arrival of the famous tournament and are making bold
predictions, the next you’re biting off your nails as your team fail to put
away the likes of flippin’ Paraguay. This is usually followed by a volley of
obscene language directed at the television.
Or at least that’s what happened to me as I settled down to watch England
take on the South Americans last weekend.
I say ‘settled down, but what I actually mean is ninety minutes of
relentless pacing up-and-down and heated discussion of England’s failings
with random strangers. I also yelled at an almost innocent Mexican referee
thousands of miles away, as a lacklustre England toiled their way to an
unimpressive 1-0 victory in Frankfurt on Saturday.
But the English aren’t the only team putting their fans through the mill.
Forget for a moment the supporters of the World Cup minnows - those goofy,
face-painted visitors from across the globe grinning for the cameras at
every opportunity as they rejoice at simply reaching the finals - and
instead spare a thought for the fans of the supposed superpowers of world
football for whom nothing less than a win will do. The French, the Spanish,
the Germans and even the English are amongst the teams harbouring genuine
ambitions on the trophy, but so many hopes are about to be dashed.
I understand this. England have no divine right to win and, judging by
recent form, they won’t get even close to it either. My head knows this, and
yet my heart will simply not accept it.
The reality of the World Cup arrived as I stood in the bar as the national
anthems played. Worst-case scenarios sprang to mind, and the letdowns of
previous campaigns were never far from memory. But then, just as I nervously
sipped my first beer - Goal! Carlos Gamarra put David Beckham’s left-wing
free-kick past his own keeper, and all was well in the world.
Relief. But what I hadn’t bargained for were another 87 minutes of tension,
as England did what has now become familiar and set about defending their
lead rather than moving in for the kill. It’s a worrying habit that the side
have developed in recent tournaments, such as against Argentina in the last
World Cup. And I’m not sure how much more of this I can stand.
Holland were unable to break down Serbia after their opening effort from
Arjen Robben and Portugal couldn’t kill the game against lowly Angola. Some
nations are experienced in sitting on a slender leads, but it’s not for
everyone, not for me, and certainly not for England.
Two years ago we were watching Greece bore their European opponents into
submission. Good luck to them, I suppose, but it’s not what we turn on the
television for. A “beautiful game” it was not, and for the fans - even those
of Greece - it was a form of torture.
England need to avoid getting on this particular bandwagon, or face the dire
consequences. Sven Goran Eriksson’s gambles on the unfit Rooney and Owen
along with unknown teenager Theo Walcott suggested a less restricted
approach this time around, yet still the side seem desperate to practice the
very un-British art of holding on for grim death.
The following weeks are sure to be full of thrills and spills for all fans,
but here’s one person that won’t be throwing himself off a hotel if his team
find themselves a goal down. England, Holland, Portugal and others are
actually better when they’re behind, and chasing a game isn’t half as scary
as desperately holding on. Going a goal or two down? Bring it on.
Scotsman hits World Cup headlines
Been a while since you’ve seen that particular headline, but
that’s exactly what happened as one Scotsman made the World Cup news in
Glasgow last week. The man, in the midst of a messy divorce, charged into
his local bookmakers to lay 27,000 pounds on Brazil to win the World Cup in
an apparent attempt to spite his greedy wife.
Coral said the punter, thought to be in his 50s, had placed the bet to “stop
his wife getting hold of his money”.
Simon Clare, a spokesman, said that if the bet came in the customer planned
to keep any winnings secret from his spouse and use the cash to help buy a
house after they separate.
Mr Clare said: “This is the most unusual explanation for a big bet in Coral
history but at the end of the day Brazil may end up winning and this punter
could walk away with over 90,000 pounds.
“This is by far the biggest cash bet we have struck on the World Cup and it
took the manager half an hour to count the money. While she was counting and
recounting, the customer told her his story of how he was going through a
bad divorce and wanted to stop his wife getting hold of his money.”
Any Pattayans in similar circumstances will need to come up with a different
plan, as gambling, we should remind you, is illegal in Thailand!
Germany’s unlucky mascot
Being a mascot for a top game is the dream of every schoolboy,
but surely leading out the hosts in the opening game of the World Cup finals
cannot be beaten?
Well it can actually, particularly if you are six-year old Louis Moffat from
Gateshead in England. The youngster was selected from 50,000 entrants in a
McDonald’s Happy Meal competition, but instead of lining-up alongside heroes
such as Michael Owen and Frank Lampard, Louis found himself leading out
Germany in their opener against Costa Rica.
Louis’s mother Denise, 47, said: “He told everyone he’d be meeting David
Beckham and Michael Owen and has talked non-stop about walking out with
David Beckham. On the day the tickets arrived, I opened them and saw it was
for Germany versus Costa Rica.
“I thought ‘Oh, that’s not right’ and broke it to Louis gently when he came
home. His face fell a mile when I told him. He wanted to meet the England
team and this just isn’t the same.”
But it’s not all disaster for Louis - he’ll still have the chance to meet
Steven Gerrard after McDonald’s arranged for him to be a Liverpool “player
escort” at the FA Community Shield game against Chelsea on August 13th. The
offer was made “as a gesture of goodwill’’. Aaah.
More to come
Some humdingers coming up, including from the ‘Group of Death’
tonight as Argentina, who are starting to worry me, face Serbia &
Montenegro, and later it’s Holland against the decent looking Ivory Coast.
Enjoy the action and if you plan on having any World Cup parties in your
bar, watch out for those balloon-chasers who mysteriously seem to arrive
just as the food is being served. Auf Wiedersehen for another week.
The Square Ring
by Howie Reed
A couple of weeks ago I belatedly published a story on the recent Danny
Green-Anthony Mundine mega fight in Aussie. I wrote, “Not seeing the
fight on the telly or in person I relied on news reports, which is
always dangerous.”
Peter B e-mailed in to say, “Your info on the Mundine / Green fight was
way off the mark. Sadly Green is a shadow of what he was not so long ago
and was out boxed and out smarted from start to finish.”
Thanks for the note. And the moral of the e-mail? Don’t trust the media.
Prior to taking his honoured spot at the TQ, O.R Cross, penned an e-mail
about ‘the fight that wasn’t’.
“Since we didn’t get the main event today (Castillo/Corrales) because of
the overweight of Corrales, I have a financial question for you. How
much did the sheep pay to see what, to me, was not even a very good
undercard?”
It was officially reported that anyone who so wished could turn in their
Castillo-Corrales tickets and receive a full refund. On the other hand,
if you opted to attend what became the main event, Vic Darchinyan-Luis
Maldonado, your tickets were discounted 75%. The original price for
tickets ranged from $1,500 at ringside to nose bleed seats for $50.00.
The estimate was that between 2,000 and 2,500 attended, which would have
produced a live gate of $30,000 USD. The two promoters, “Gas Bag” Gary
Shaw and “Whining” Bob Arum, were responsible for the $135,000 dollar
rental on the Thomas & Mack, which was the venue for the occasion.
O.R. signed off with, “I could also hear your guffaws in downtown
Pattaya when your nemesis Bob Arum, Castillo’s promoter, said, ‘I was
mortified and embarrassed.’”
Yes and you could have added that I also chortled. Having covered boxing
for a number of years I can state categorically that there is nothing in
the world that can embarrass Bob Arum. Just like the ‘ladies that walk
to music’, Mr. Arum worships at the alter of the almighty Dollar, Peso
and I’m sure given the chance the alter of the Baht as well.
The State of Nevada, the City of Las Vegas, the Nevada Commission and
both promoters were strangely silent about the cancelled fight for a
week. Maybe they figured that if they didn’t utter a peep, no one would
figure that the “fix” was in and the “cover up” on going. T’was not to
be.
The WBC has issued a “CYA” statement that explains: “Wasn’t our fault.”
The organization has suspended Castillo for 6 months but that means
almost nothing as the WBC can be bought off. The Nevada Commission is
maybe different. They filed a disciplinary complaint against Castillo,
which could result in a fine of $250,000 USD and a suspension. There are
also rumours of a lawsuit by Diego Corrales and his promoter “Gas Bag”
Gary Shaw has said there is “no question” - he will sue. Who will he
sue? Almost everyone.
“I believe he never tried to make the weight and he and his people
perpetrated a fraud and a charade upon the public,” Shaw said. “He
thought he’d bargain his way to another fight. (Top Rank’s Bob) Arum and
Beltran knew he was not on weight, but they never said anything.”
For once I agree with Shaw. Why would Bob Arum think he could talk Shaw
into having Corrales fight over the weight? Heck he did it once and the
betting is he did it twice but Corrales was too smart.
Two fights took place last Sunday. The Boardwalk in Atlantic City played
host to Antonio Tarver (24-3) and Bernard Hopkins. This was by far the
highest profile fight when compared to Miguel Cotto (26-0) - Paul
Malignaggi (21-0) for the WBO junior welter title up the road a piece in
New York’s Madison Square Garden.
Neither contest was of any consequence on the landscape of boxing but a
big easy lopsided win by Hopkins (118-109 on all official cards) did
allow him to say “adios” to the fight game with a flourish.
“Tarver may have landed ten punches during the fight if that. Hopkins
was in great shape and led from the opening bell,” reported The Square
Ring’s correspondent, who watched the fight while getting a “free” meal
at a friends’ house. Maybe this loss will shut Tarver’s mouth, which
usually overloads his ability as it did against Hopkins. Tarver lost an
additional $250,000 USD by betting Hopkins that he’d KO him in 6.
Cotto has been characterized as an over protected, pretty good boxer
with a suspect chin and maybe a problem making the 140 pound weight
limit. Holding the weigh-in at 1pm the day before the fight may lead
some credibility to that theory. With about 33 hours until the opening
bell that’s plenty of time to re-hydrate and add bulk.
Malignaggi’s manager Sal LoNano whined, “This is a disgrace. Why is it
at 1 o’clock? I’ve never heard of such a thing. It’s usually at 5pm. I’m
concerned about the safety of my fighter. He’ll be fighting a super
middleweight. It (early weigh in) gives Cotto an edge; four extra hours
to put weight back on, and four less hours of starving himself to make
the weight. It’s just not fair and I’m very upset about this decision. I
think we should consider asking a few doctors for their opinion about
the potential safety and health issues of an early weigh in.”
Yes Sal, and with their opinions and 5 baht you can make a local phone
call.
Cotto won an easy decision (115-112, 116-111 twice) against Malignaggi,
which was expected as the loser, like Tarver, is mostly hype. It was
written: “Malignaggi fought on bravely and took everything Cotto threw.
Cotto continued to batter Malignaggi down the stretch”.
On Sunday Jermine Taylor puts up his 25-0 record against spoiler Winky
Wright(50-3). This fight for the WBC middleweight crown should be a win
for Taylor, especially now that he has Emanual Stewart doing the
training chores. Taylor is a good student of boxing, smart and hard
working. When you add that to Stewart’s intelligence and training
methods, Taylor should get the win. The danger here is that Wright has
the ability to make the opposition fight down to his “style” which
includes a lot of holding, a lot of hiding and a lot of running
There’s an interesting title match on July 15 at the Color Line Arena in
Hamburg between WBA bantamweight champion Wladimir Sidorenko (18-0-1, 6
KOs) and challenger Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym (24-0, 15 KOs).
Interesting in that it’s a title match between undefeated boxers, which
is rare. Poonsawat has never fought outside of Thailand and will bring
to Germany good power, with 15 KO’s from 24 wins. On the other hand,
Sidorenko is called the “Ukrainian mini-power plant” but has only 6 KO’s
from 18 wins.
They have two common opponents in Richardo Cordoba and Leo Gamez. Both
beat Gamez easily. Cordoba got a draw against Sidorenko and a split
decision loss to the undefeated Thai.
His Lordship: “Jeeves did you know that WBA super bantamweight
champion Somsak Sithchatchawal was named the best Thai professional
athlete of 2005-2006?”
Jeeves: “I did Master. I see that award was presented at the
Sports Day function organized by the Sportwriters’ Association of
Thailand. He received the trophy from his Majesty the King. Somsak
impressively knocked out Mahyar Monshipour in round ten to capture the
WBA 122lb crown in Levallois-Perret, France on March 18 in one of the
biggest upsets of the year.
Hmm’, The Sportswriters’ Association of Thailand? I say Master are you a
member of the Sportswriters Association?”
His Lordship: “Sadly no Jeeves. I’ve been cast aside like an old
shoe my good man.”
Jeeves: “Perhaps a little amber liquid would cheer you up sir?
His Lordship: “I’ll drink to that.”
League leaders getting hard to catch
Pattaya Sports Club Friday Bowling League
200 Bowlers - Kran, Mark, Mio
and Wade.
First place House of the Golden Coin split their
match against Shenanigans with each team winning two points but still
are safely in first place. Grape Vine gained one point on first as they
took three points from Domicil as did Café Kronborg who also won three
from Brother D. Fourth place France, led by Captain Mark’s, best series
of the day 590 won three from Mai’s Thai Restaurant.
Friends are in fifth place taking three from Café Ole and sixth place
Montana got three from Three Sisters. VFW Post 9876 moved up several
places after winning all four points from Jack & Tar.
Ten weeks to go in this league but the dominant teams seem to get
stronger every week.
League Table June 9 (week
20) |
Team |
Points |
Standings |
House of the Golden Coin
|
2 - 2 |
50 - 30 |
Grape Vine |
3 - 1 |
48 -32 |
Café Kronborg
|
3 - 1 |
46.5 - 33.5 |
France |
3 - 1 |
45 - 35 |
Friends |
3 - 1 |
44 - 36 |
Montana |
3 - 1 |
43.5 - 36.5 |
Domicil |
1 - 3 |
40 - 40 |
Jack & Tar |
0 - 4 |
38.5 - 41.5 |
Shenanigans |
2 - 2 |
38.5 - 41.5 |
Three Sisters
|
1 - 3 |
38 - 42 |
Mai’s Thai Restaurant
|
1 - 3 |
35.5 - 44.5 |
VFW Post 9876
|
4 - 0 |
32 - 48 |
Brother D. |
1 - 3 |
31.5 - 48.5 |
Café Ole |
1 - 3 |
29 - 51 |
|
|