KLM defeat Diana Group to win 15th Friendship Soccer Match

Players and staff members from Diana Group and KLM Airlines pose
for a post-match group photo.

Saksiri Uraiworn
Banglamung School field was the setting on April 21 for the 15th Friendship Soccer Match featuring teams from Diana Group and KLM Airlines.
Sopin Thappajug (Managing Director of the Diana Group) was on hand to perform the opening preliminaries and said that this fixture had been held continuously to support team spirit and camaraderie among staff members.
The game was played in a friendly atmosphere with neither side taking things too seriously. The KLM Airlines scored soon after the kick off and led 2:0 going into the half time break. In the second half the Diana team came back strongly and managed to pull a couple of goals back but alas their efforts were in vain as they eventually went down by a score of 3:2, making the KLM Airlines outfit the champions for 2008.

Raldorf and Lemvard do their Civic duty

The Honda Civics were out in force at Bira Circuit
on Saturday April 27 for the 2008 Honda Racing Festival.

Dr. Iain Corness
The Honda Racing Festival, held Saturday, April 27 at Bira circuit certainly brought the Hondas out of the woodwork. The car park was full and was segregated, with different Honda models all collected together, including many Jazz and Civic clubs from all over Thailand. There was no doubting that Honda Thailand has hit a winner with this series.
This Honda initiative, which began in 2007, was expanded this year to incorporate a Honda Civic One Make race series as well as the Honda Jazz. The response was such that there were more drivers wishing to compete in the class than Honda had race-prepared cars for it.
The Honda Civics look better than the Jazz in racing trim, though both categories could do with the exhaust mufflers being modified to add a little “noise” to the competition, not just squealing tyres.
The first Civic race saw local driver Jack Lemvard (Ocean 1 Racing) just drive away from the competition in both the Civic One Make races, all of whom were in identical Honda-prepared cars. His lead was such that he could afford to ease up over the last few laps, being almost half a lap in front at one stage.
The Pro Cup for modified sedans saw Thomas Raldorf (Pizza Company Racing) in his new lightweight Honda Civic R take the B class win and third outright in the first race, behind A class drivers Hathai and Ekprawat. Lemvard in his modified Civic was looking good for a podium in this race, but had to retire with steering rack problems.
In the second race, after the afternoon deluge, Raldorf stormed through in the slippery conditions to take the outright win as well as the B class position, to end up second outright for the day’s competition.
Results:

Honda Racing Festival 2008 Results
Pro Cup 1                                   Pro Cup 2
1st Hathai Chaiwan (A class)         1st Thomas Raldorf (B class)
2nd Ekprawat (A class)                 2nd Hathai Chaiwan (A class)
3rd Thomas Raldorf (B class)         3rd Kajonsak (B class)
Civic One Make (Race 1)            Civic One Make (Race 2)
1st Jack Lemvard                          1st Jack Lemvard
2nd Apathorn                                2nd Vuttikorn
3rd Khun Vuttikorn                        3rd Apathorn

Next generation of oarsmen sought by Rowing and Canoeing Association

Patcharapol Panrak
The Rowing and Canoeing Association of Thailand has started searching for the next generation of oarsmen, saying that there is a shortage of rowers in the country and that Thailand needs them to be able to compete at international competitions.

Admiral Kamthorn Pumhiran (left) was at Mabprachan Reservoir on April 28 to initiate a new program aimed at finding Thailand’s next generation of rowers.

Admiral Kamthorn Pumhiran, the association’s chairman chaired a ceremony at Mabprachan Reservoir on April 28 to initiate the new program.
He said that now was the time to be searching for oarsmen with strong potential, as the existing top men were now at their peak and would soon have to step down as they passed their prime.
It was important, said Admiral Kamthorn that Thailand is able to field an impressive line-up of rowers who could compete effectively against the champion teams put up at international rowing events.
The Thai team of oarsmen totals around 20, who are currently in intensive training for the Olympics. Following the Olympics, there has to be a team in place for the Asian Rowing Championships, which will take place in Indonesia in October 2009.
Rear Admiral Chainarong Charoenrak, who is secretary of the Rowing and Canoeing Association, said that youngsters were being sought who have basic physical sports training and mental skills. They would be encouraged to learn the traditions of rowing in addition to becoming expert oarsmen, with the opportunity of representing their country at international events.

Caddyshack are League champions and League Cup winners

Lawn Bowls from The Bowling Green, Pattaya

Division One
There were eight teams in this division and the format was pairs with sixteen ends of bowls, each team playing each other two times.

Keith Fortt (left) and Frank de Vries: Division One champions and League Cup winners.
With some very good teams entered this looked likely to be a very close competition, but this was not to be the case as the team from The Caddyshack, consisting of Fran De Vries and Keith Fortt, went through the whole season only losing one game out of 14. This has gone down in the record books as the most wins in a season at the Bowling Green.
This was the first season of these two players teaming up together and they made a perfect match, with Keith leading from the front and setting up a good head for skipper Frank’s deadly finishing. The only team to beat them was Mervin Pack and Ian Keilloh, and only then after playing a perfect game to win 13 to 10.
The runners up in the division was the team of Roger Rawding and Dennis Mijnhimer who put together a few back to back wins in their last few games. Worth a mention was that Frank De Vries, Keith Fortt, Roger Rawding and Dennis Mijnhimer, who were the two top teams in Pattaya, also teamed up and bowled in the Philippines national fours tournament, losing just one game and only being eliminated on shot difference.
Division Two
Division two was the same format as the top division with 12 teams taking part and at stake was promotion for the top two teams to the premier flight.
Again there were a few good pairings in this league with a few new bowlers as well.
The league title came down to two teams playing each other in the final game of the season and this was to decide the Division Two championship. In a very close match the team of Gary Crerar and Kevin Drumm from the G K Bar beat the team of Bob McMurray, Chris Richards and Peter Skinner of The Rhubarb team.
League Cup
This is a knockout competition between all the teams from both divisions, played over 18 ends with the winners progressing to the next round.
With a couple of old faces turning up and other team players being dropped, a significant signing was made by the Roo Bar. Peter Holt, whose regular partner was unavailable, snapped up Dave Mays, better known to many as Dave The Pro. This name was due to his earlier days as a professional bowler.
This team made up one side of the semi finals and their opposition was to be Mervin Pack and Ian Keilloh. The game was a very close encounter with it being all square with one end to go. Merv and Ian were leading by one shot, but with the final bowl left for Dave the Pro, a crowd gathered to see the outcome. Once the bowl left Dave’s hand it looked like he had missed his line completely and victory was gone, but with a double ricochet the bowl trickled towards the jack and gave them the win. Dave then uttered the words “you have got to be up.”
In the other semi final it was the tournament favorites of The Caddyshack’s team, Frank De Vries and Keith Fortt, against Chris Richards and Peter Skinner of team Rhubarb from the second division. This looked like a formality for the Division One champions but this was far from the case.
With three ends to go The Caddyshack dropped five shots to go behind 13-9. This turned heads around at the Bowling Green and a crowd gathered to watch. This looked like it was to be the big upset of the tournament but somehow Frank and Keith rallied and hit straight back, scoring a five end themselves to put their heads in front and then closing things out on the final end.
The final between The Caddyshack and The Roo Bar was a close game for the first few ends and then Keith’s precise draw shots and Frank’s accurate drives put a good few points between them and their opposition and eventually they cruised home with a decisive win.
Pattaya World Cup
This is an annual tournament that always attracts many nations from all over the world. The participating teams were from England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Thailand and Holland.
The eventual final was England v Holland. The Dutch team of Frank De Vries and Dennis Mijnhijmer were the competition favorites, something that always adds to the pressure. Their opponents were Keith Fortt and Mervin Pack representing England who would be no pushovers, having always played together well.
The game was very close with each end seeing a constant change of the lead: not more than two shots were conceded by either team on each end and no team went more than two ahead. Finally England put everything into the last two ends and eventually won the title by a single shot.

Eddie shines at Eastern Star

Golf from the Travellers Rest

Barry Hooper
Eddie Townsend returned to the TRGG this week after some time away. He advised everybody at the Travellers Rest that his game was in tatters. But this turned out to be a right load of codswallop on Saturday at Eastern Star when he turned in a card of thirty-six points to beat fellow Aussie Ray Trembath on count back. You just cannot believe everything you are told these days can you.
Monday, April 28, Phoenix - Stableford
1st Harvey Samuel (18) 38pts
2nd Andy Turner (23) 37pts
3rd Ray Allison (14) 37pts
4th Barry Hooper (36) 36pts
Monday we visited Phoenix and played the Ocean and Mountain courses. Fine weather greeted us but alas it was not to last. At about the halfway point the heavens opened up with a deluge Thai style.
This changed the conditions somewhat for the latter holes but it did not deter Harvey Samuel from posting a card of thirty-eight points for the best of the day. Second and third places were decided on a count back fight between Andy Turner and Ray Allison, both on thirty seven points, with the honours going to Andy. The scribe took fourth with thirty-six.
Tuesday, April 29, St. Andrews - Stableford
1st Andy Turner (22) 32pts
2nd Andrew Rich (20) 32pts
3rd Ito Akitoshi (8) 31pts
4th Alun Webber (23) 30pts
2’s: Ito Akitoshi
Tuesday’s outing was at St Andrews, a course that has not been visited before to the best of my knowledge by the TRGG.
Andy Turner found it to his liking and improved his second placing from Monday to take the win on a count back over Andrew Rich, both with thirty-two points. Ito Akitoshi was in third with thirty-one points.
I have heard it said that this course is very tough on the higher handicapped players but both of the Andy’s who have twenty plus handicaps proved this is not always the case.
Thursday, May 1, Plutaluang - Stableford
1st David Snell (13) 37pts
2nd Donald Pearson (36) 35pts
3rd Bob Short (19) 31pts
4th Fergus Brennan (10) 31pts
2’s: Keith Phillips
Thursday “May Day” was a visit to Plutaluang. The course was extremely busy and a late tee off was the only one available. This proved to be a very long day’s golf with all who entered returning very late back to Pattaya and looking very tired and weary.
But the man who endured and came out top was David Snell with a two-point gap over his rivals and a score of thirty-seven points. Donald Pearson, who has recently returned, also found form and posted a thirty-five pointer for second spot. Bob Short, another name not reported on for some time, came third after a three-way count back (thirty one) over Fergus and Frank Kelly.
Saturday, May 3, Eastern Star - Stableford
1st Eddie Townsend (18) 36pts
2nd Ray Trembath (9) 36pts
3rd Mike Morten (24) 35pts
4th Roger Wilkinson (14) 32pts
2’s: Ray Trembath
Saturday and back to our usual Saturday visits at Eastern Star.
The scribe did not play today but took on the task of a photo shoot of the course and the entrants. This proved quite entertaining as I travelled around popping up from behind trees and bunkers catching the players unawares. It offered a unique insight into the diversity of the playing styles and ability to be found.
But the one who shone with thirty-six points on the day was Eddie Townsend in his first outing on this visit to Thailand. He pipped Ray Trembath on the count back.
It must be said though that Ray was also looking very sharp on the day. On the occasions that I popped off the odd frame or two of him in action he looked rather good.
Dr. Mike Morten took third just the one back at thirty-five and the last of the top four was Roger Wilkinson with thirty-two.

The 2 Paul’s make the best of a soggy Pattaya C.C.

PSC golf from The Three Sisters Bar

Paul Donahue (left) with Tuesday’s winner Paul Kraft (right).

Herbert Ishinaga
The end of the month was a miserable day for golf. The Pattaya Country Club course was soaked from the rains the night before and yet they were still watering the fairways. The greens on the front nine were perforated so the putting wasn’t the best either. As it turned out, the Paul’s were the least bothered by these conditions.
Paul Kraft rolled in with the winning score and Paul Donahue came in the runner-up position. The scoring wasn’t the best but they were still winners. Paul Kraft scored 31 points and Paul Donahue came in with 28 points. Needless to say the others did not fair too well. Better luck next week.

Tony Robbins is ‘golfer of the month’ … again!

PSC golf from The Bunker

Monday, April 28, Bangpra - Stableford
1st Tony Robbins (10) 34pts
2nd Ron Ryan (16) 32pts
3rd Eddie Martin (16) 29pts
With a fair few golfers still away having an extended Songkran holiday, only a few hardy souls made the journey to Bangpra for a stableford competition. Unfortunately the course wasn’t up to it’s normal high standards as there was a bit of maintenance going on with the greens sanded etc., but I suppose it’s that time of the year.
Anyway, Tony Robbins had another good round to win with 34 points, making Tony the ‘golfer of the month’ for April, this being Tony’s fourth win during the course of the month and putting him in an unassailable position. This win also means Tony has won two of the last three ‘golfer of the month’ titles so well done Tony and lets hope he can keep up his good form when the Matchplay league resumes in May.
Ron Ryan took second place and Eddie Martin got third with 32 and 29 points respectively.
Near pins went to Dave Keats, Eddie Martin and Ron Ryan, no one hitting the fourth par three.
Wednesday, April 30, Green Valley - Medal
1st Mashi Kaneta (11) net 71
2nd Colin Stokes (24) net 72
3rd PJ Redmond (19) net 74
4th Alan Sullivan (15) net 74
Playing a Medal round at Green Valley, Mashi Kaneta took the honours with a fine one under par net 71. Colin Stokes came second with a very good level par round and PJ Redmond took third place with a net 74, beating Alan Sullivan into fourth place on a count back.
The Aussie contingency dominated the technical prizes as Liam Stewart and Aussie Wayne won two near pin prizes each to trundle back down under with their booty!
Friday, May 2, Plutaluang - Stableford
1st John Hughes (17) 36pts
2nd Geoff Parker (15) 32pts
3rd Bob Rasmussen (13) 32pts
John Hughes returned from the UK and got off to a great start winning first prize with 36 points while Geoff Parker beat Bob Rasmussen on a count back to take second place, both scoring 32 points.
Near pin prizes were shared around today, Geoff Cox, Geoff Parker, John Hughes and Stan Watkins winning one apiece.

Bubbles burst as Jim’s team hands out softball thrashing

Jimmy Howard’s victorious Jameson’s / San Miguel Lite Softball team celebrate with some of the amber fluid after handing a severe thrashing to The Landlord’s Bubbles team, at Horseshoe Point on Sunday April 27, 2008.

No surprise for Na

IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at the OK Corral

The Pattaya Golf Society continued its enjoyable Sunday stableford experience at Eastern Star on April 24, when a large field turned out to take on the course under bright skies and with a fresh breeze adding a little more challenge to the event.

April’s ‘Player of the Month’, Helene Lindberg (left) receives her award from previous winner, Paul McNally

The fairways were in fine shape but the greens as usual were a little inconsistent. With the single Sunday flight augmented by old friends, pickings were rich and the added spice was a large rolled over 2’s pot.
Kazu Agune continued quietly with his consistent game and found himself in more exalted company in third place as his 35 points was matched by the scores of Erik Antonnen and Harry Riley. In second place Ian Hart had the temerity to rub shoulders with David Thomas, his well-deserved 38 point score matching that of the canny Kiwi. One point ahead though was the ubiquitous Thai lady Na Srionrod and her customary straight drives were matched by a good short game to produce a three-under card of 39 points to take the major prize.
David Thomas had a double share of the large 2’s pot for his efforts on the sixth and twelfth holes whilst Ronnie Ramsay took the minor share for his chipped-in birdie on the sixth.
The OK Corral’s host Mr Denis ignored his own valid claims for the Booby Bevy, presenting it instead to Derrick Jones who was playing his first round with the group and suffered accordingly the usual PGS welcome.
The group always welcomes the company of ladies in its competitions and when the feminine contribution is as positive as that of Na Srionrod and the current “Player of the Month”, Helene Lindberg, golf’s true spirit comes to the fore as the warmth of the plaudits showed.
Chase the lady at Crystal Bay
Tuesday, April 29 saw the conclusion of the Pattaya Golf Society’s golfing adventures for the month with a stableford round at Crystal Bay, over the B and C nines.
The large low season field was divided into two flights at sixteen and under and the competition played itself out against a backdrop of a tense “Player of the Month” scenario. Could David Thomas win with a sub-par round and head off the leader? Time would tell.
The course is still in quite shabby condition and the greens were as slow as the previous month, however, in the second flight Evan Millar and Ray Underwood made a fist of it, both scoring 35 points for a share of second place. The flight winner was Len Jones with 37 points.
In an open top division Takeshi Hakozaki took third place with 35 points, three behind Erik Antonnen’s second placed 38. Finnish golfer Erik is currently enjoying a rich vein of golf and it was no surprise to see him in the frame yet again. The same could be said of the winner, Na Srionrod, whose form continues to amaze as she put together another astonishing round, having volunteered a cut in handicap, posting a score of 40 points to take the honours with ease. It was helped by a birdie ‘2’ on the C7 hole, joining Helene Lindberg and Paul Quodomine in the race for the 2’s pot.
Helene and Mikael Lindberg were playing the final round of their stay and sponsored prizes for the lowest score of the day, leaving Margaret Wilkinson to enjoy the prospect of a free golf lesson at the Diana Driving Range, whilst Paul McNally took a slightly more tasty prize as the player with the best total on the two easiest and two hardest holes, ten points helping him to pop the particular cork with passion. It was an especially fitting way for the popular Swedish couple to end their stay as Helene had taken the “Player of the Month” award with aplomb, holding David Thomas at bay on the final day. Well done ladies!
Aussie triumph at Emerald
On the first day of May the Pattaya Golf Society visited The Emerald golf course to play a pairs event with the intriguing “South African” multiplicator very much in evidence as pairs battled it out over the demanding track.
Conditions were tough as the greens were slow, a strong breeze was present all day and at the back of everyone’s mind was the fear of scratching a hole. This is the format which really strains golfing friendships.
Roy Thornton, playing as well as ever he has at The Emerald, paired with Rick Holmes to produce a score of 57 points for a surprising third place. In second came the pairing of Jean Morel and partner Mam, the latter producing the best individual round of the day, and their score of 62 points seemed unassailable for a long while. It was left to the antipodean pairing of Stuart Thompson and Alex Sala to post the best score, 67 points, and take the win, with Alex’s game holding up very well.
There were no birdie 2’s and the Booby Bevy went to the two “Blobbies” of the day, Chris Voller and Bill Quon, although in Bill’s defence it must be said that he was playing the course for the first time. It was not the best of introductions for him after all. But the rest of the field had been there, done that and still found it just as frustrating as Bill had.

The Beautiful Game?: Riz Taylor, 5th May 08

Down to the wire

Much to discuss this week: Onto the final weekend’s Premier League fixtures in a moment, but football does not completely revolve around the glitzy top division of English football, and a great deal of arguments were settled elsewhere last weekend.
Apparently, and this just a rumour, there are several divisions below the Premier League in which a number of clubs play almost every week. My shadowy sources tell me that these leagues are not only entertaining but also competitive to boot. Can you imagine!
Two of these mythical sides likely to feature a little more in these pages in the coming twelve months are Midlands outfits West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City, both of whom secured automatic qualification to the top flight at the weekend.
West Brom qualify as champions and will have their third crack at the Premier League in eight years. With Tony Mowbray at the helm you suspect the Baggies are best placed to have a chance of staying there.
“Hopefully we will have a good shot at it at the next level,” he said. “You do need to adjust in the Premier League. There are better players there and you need to have a game plan, but we’ll still go out to try to win matches.”
Let’s hope so. Stoke’s draw with Leicester was enough to send the Potters up, but the result also condemned Leicester to League One, England’s third tier, for the first time in the club’s history.
“It’s a devastating day for all of us. Too many times this season we haven’t done it, we haven’t scored and the table doesn’t lie,” Ian Holloway admitted. The Foxes’ fate was sealed after fellow strugglers Southampton were able to overcome Sheffield United in a nail-biting 3-2 win. Glamour sides Colchester United and Scunthorpe are also headed south towards League One.
Four sides also qualified for the playoffs, the four-way competition to find next season’s Premier League whipping boys. Competing for that honour will be Hull City, Bristol City, Watford City and Crystal Palace City. Watford were perhaps the most fortunate, scraping sixth place after a scrappy 1-1 draw away at Blackpool at the expense of Wolves and Ipswich, who just miss out. It’s anybody’s guess who’ll be promoted, but I’ll plump for Crystal Palace edging out Hull in the final.
Up in Scotland there’s still everything to play for as Celtic claimed a win at Motherwell whilst challengers Rangers could only draw at Hibs. Celtic now lead by seven points, but Rangers’ dreams of a treble are still alive as they have three games in hand over Celtic, whilst the Ibrox side also qualified for the UEFA Cup final after beating Italy’s Fiorentina on penalties. They’ll face Zenit St. Petersburg who overcame Bayern Munich, halting the German side’s bid for a treble of their own. Meanwhile over in La Liga, Real Madrid finally claimed the title in Spain.
But eventually we must come back to the Premier League, and possibly the most entertaining final Sunday in the division’s short history.
Going into the final round, in which all the matches are played at the same time, none of the key battles are sorted. Manchester United will clinch the title with a win at Wigan, but you have to credit Chelsea with a spirited challenge right until he last. Everton will claim fifth with a point or more at home to Newcastle, but Aston Villa will hope to keep up the challenge by beating West Ham.
But the real fun is at the bottom, where two from four will be relegated. Step forward Birmingham, Bolton, Fulham and Reading for an absolutely intense final afternoon.
With seven of the ten games actually meaning something on the final day, surely a record, choosing what to watch is going to be ridiculously difficult. No suggestions from me this week – you’re on your own!
The News
Cardiff manager Dave Jones says Robbie Fowler and Paul Parry may play in the FA Cup final, even if they miss the last league game of the season.
“It depends how they look, whether that experience is needed in camp,” he said. Fowler has been out since December with a hip injury, with Parry’s hamstring sidelining him for six weeks. Both could line up against Portsmouth at Wembley next week.
Roy Keane will ‘wield an axe’ this summer, according to the BBC, who say that the Sunderland boss is losing patience with some of his players. Keane has kept the Black Cats in the Premier League following their promotion last year, but is unhappy with his team’s performances this season.
“We’ve lost 22 games this season and people keep telling me we’ve had a good season, but I’m lucky to still be in a job,” he said.
According to another report in the Guardian, Keane will ask Sunderland’s board to revise the club’s wage structure this summer and urge his directors to start enticing potential new recruits with salaries comparable to those on offer at Newcastle United and Middlesbrough.
“I know for a fact that we pay nowhere near what teams round here pay, nowhere near,” he said. “Over the past few years players have gone to other clubs in this area rather than us because of their wage structures.
“Look at the players who have been at Newcastle and Middlesbrough in the past few years. I’m pretty sure Michael Owen is not getting just 20,000 pounds a week at Newcastle and I don’t think Gaizka Mendieta and Afonso Alves are on that at Middlesbrough either. I’m also sure Middlesbrough paid Juninho and Alen Boksic decent money too. If you want top players you have to pay them top money and we want to try and be in that bracket.”
Meanwhile Derby County may be going down, but Nottingham Forest’s promotion from League One will mean the return of the hotly anticipated fixture in next year’s Championship. To celebrate the Rams have agreed a two-year link with Dutch side Utrecht, which will see players and coaches gaining experience of football in Holland as well as allowing both clubs to exchange ‘commercial ideas’.
“One day we found ourselves in an isolated Buddhist temple with lakes and volcanoes nearby,” recalled Gareth Southgate when asked about his escape to Bali after missing that penalty at Euro 96. “It was magical but unfortunately I was spotted by a monk who came over and said: ‘You Gareth Southgate, you England penalty drama.’ I reckon he was one of those long-distance Manchester United fans,” he said.
Sir Alex Ferguson has made the remarkable claim that he knows of a club owner who “faxes his team to the manager every Saturday morning.” Ferguson, who admitted that the demands of foreign owners are making life more difficult for his fellow managers, said: “Nothing amazes you in football any more, but it [the treatment of Eriksson] is certainly a surprise. All different types of owners have come into football nowadays, though, and some want to be hands-on. I’m very fortunate in that the Glazer family have been tremendous and just allowed me to get on with my job and it speaks volumes for this club. But at some other clubs, the owners want to pick the team and I know of an owner that faxes his team to the manager every Saturday morning. Can you believe that? He has to pick it!”
Meanwhile Ryan Giggs can surpass England legend Bobby Charlton’s Manchester United appearance record - which now stands at 758 - against Chelsea in Moscow after a recount of Charlton’s career tally. “There’s a very good chance it will happen,” said his boss.
And in this week’s Blackburn news, striker Matt Derbyshire, Stephen Warnock and Martin Olsson have agreed new contracts with Rovers that will run until the summer of 2012.
Let’s meet back here next week for a roundup and a preview of the FA Cup Final.

Ray makes hay

IPGC golf from Donovan’s

Monday, April 28, The Emerald (White Tees) Stableford
1st Claude Schumacher (14) 39pts
2nd Steve Mascari (3) 39pts
2’s: Claude Schumacher, Steve Mascari
Monsieur Claude tapped a count back and the 2’s pool. His count back victory came at the expense of his fellow 2-shooter, The Pres.
Tuesday, April 29, Greenwood B & C (White Tees) - Stableford
1st Charles Sheppard (16) 38pts
2nd Steve Mascari (3) 37pts
3rd Peter Henshaw (15) 37pts
2’s: Steve Mascari, Phil Mitchell
Charlie Sheppard emerged from his own private Idaho to top out the day with 38 points. The Pres had a little better luck today as his 37 points were more favorably slanted to the inward side, to the chagrin of Peter Henshaw.
Thursday, May 1, Green Valley (White Tees) - Stableford
1st Gary Blackburne (5) 38pts
2nd Terry Phur (16) 37pts
3rd John Hillier (18) 36pts
2’s: Terry Phur, Pierre Beitry
It was Nice Guy Gary and Nice Guy Johnny bracketing Terry Phur on the podium. This no way infers that Terry is not a nice guy, it is just that the rum sodden mind of this scribe has not even come up with a nickname for him.
Saturday, May 3, Green Valley (White Tees) - Stableford
1st Ray Dell (12) 40pts
2nd Pierre Bietry (16) 38pts
3rd Kris Kritsanajootha (6) 37pts
Ladies Flight
1st Yui Duangkaew (20) 34pts
2’s: Ray Dell, Kris Kritsanajootha, Steve Mascari, Klaus Schackt, Claude Schumacher, Kevin Hamilton
“The Farmer in the …” was the Man of the Week with his 40 points which should continue the downward slope of his handicap. Monsieur Pierre and Kris Krits rounded out the less attractive of the two winners’ podiums. On the better looking one, Yui, as she has done now with some regularity, grabbed the loot, just edging May Larose by a single point, 34 to 33.

Seniors Mick and Tira post best of the day

Mike Franklin
A smaller field of 24 players turned out last month following the Songkran festivities when many were returning from escape trips to other golf locations in Thailand.
With rain threatening later in the day, it stayed mostly fine for the April Diana Seniors & Ladies Monthly Open.

The April Diana Seniors, Ladies and Super Seniors winners: Mick O’Meara, Siriporn & Arne Stagnes.

New faces joining the group were Pinyo Boontang, John Spiller and Norman Martin, and it was a warm welcome back to Ray and Im Woodruffe making their annual visit to Thailand. The course was in its usual good shape, although coring had just started, and the best performances of the day came from Mick O’Meara and Tira Charuvastra, tied with 40 Stableford points with Mick winning on count-back.
Arne Stagnes won the Super Seniors with 37 points and Nigel Cannon was runner-up with 35 points. Siriporn was the clear winner for the Ladies scoring 35 points. Im Woodruffe and Prakong Robinson each had 28 points with Im runner-up on count-back.
Near pins were claimed by Alan Pearce, Prakong Robinson, Mick O’Meara and Norman Martin. Morten Gauslaa had a field day with the putter by winning both the long putts on holes # 9 & # 18. The weather stayed fine, but only just as the rain started as the final group came off the 18th.
The May Seniors 7 ladies Open is on Thursday May 29 at Pattaya Country Club. Sign-up at the Diana Driving Range or Green Bottle Pub.

The Square Ring: by Howie Reed

Whoops … darned if Jeeves hasn’t gotten us in trouble again. One of his primary obligations is to ensure that this effort pays due respect to the Kingdom of Thailand and the Royal family. Well he “did the dog” yet again.
There is probably an excuse as I was suffering from jet lag and the horrors of the Los Angeles Airport. If that weren’t enough EVA Airline, with one assuming correctly that “EVA” is code for “Evil”, booked a flight from Los Angeles to Las Vegas that had been cancelled three months before.
Still, that does not excuse TSR in forgetting that not only is ‘Cinco de Mayo’ a great Mexican holiday, but it’s also celebrated in Thailand. It’s on that date 58 years ago that the Coronation of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej the Great took place. Not only do the Mexican people share a holiday day with Thailand but both countries, and His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, are fans of the sport of boxing.
A week best forgotten
A nothing week in box fighting except for De La Hoya-Forbes, which was more like a media event. Nothing, nada, zip, zero.
This would have been the week to publish chapter 1 of the upcoming best seller “The Best of the Square Ring.” It will be the thinnest book in history, ranking right up there with “Italian War Heroes” and “Great German Comics.”
It was the week when boxing took a deep breath to get ready for the early summer run that will see Ricky Hatton take on Juan Lazcano, with Pail Malignaggi against Lovemore “Not Less” N’dou at the City of Manchester Stadium on May 24 serving as a starter. That sets up Hatton-Malignaggi in the late summer or early fall.
The month ends with Shane Mosley-Zab Judah in Vegas with Jeff Lacy part of the undercard. The same day in Oberhausen, Germany, Ruslan Chagaev defends his WBA heavy crown against the 7-foot Nikolai Valuev.
May really sets the table for the June 7 match between WBC/WBO middleweight champ Kelly Pavlik (33-0) against Brit Gary Lockett (30-1) in Atlantic City. Lockett “The Rocket” will be making his first start outside Europe and will have to bring his “A Game” along with a couple of friends (be nice if those friends are Smith & Wessen) to defeat the man who today is the best middleweight in the world.
De La Hoya Si … Forbes OK
With a crowd of 27,000 plus in the Home Depot Center, Oscar De Lay Hoya did what was predicted in last weeks TSR: “Steve Forbes has three chances to win: slim, none and a Chinaman’s.”
Forbes was never in the fight, losing a UD 119-109 twice and 120-108 on the official scoring cards. TSR had it 120-109 as it called the 3rd round a draw.
Again quoting Forbes, “I know I’m a huge underdog against Oscar De La Hoya. But once the bell rings, you’re going to see a live dog.”
Forbes didn’t hurt himself with the performance. He never stopped trying, was active and proved a good test for a “ring rusty” De La Hoya who has spent too little time in the ring the last 5 years with only 6 fights. Regardless, Oscar was too quick, too skilled and too good for the journeyman Forbes.
With a script that could have been written in Hollywood, De La Hoya now looks forward to a September re-match with Floyd Mayweather jr. and a December final against Miguel Cotto.
The script for this De La Hoya farewell has in fact been written in Hollywood. Sylvester Stallone has done it four times with his Rocky series of movies. Like the fabled Rocky Balboa in every film, De La Hoya didn’t come out of this encounter unscathed. In post fight interviews the right side of his face looked like he had just gone 10 rounds with my ex-wife. Now there’s someone that packs a punch - as opposed to Forbes. This should raise some questions about De La Hoya’s durability against the likes of Mayweather jr. and Cotto. De La Hoya is the real life Rocky.
Rocky Balboa … The Movie
TSR doesn’t do movie reviews but there are always exceptions. The movie Rocky Balboa is one of those exceptions. It was viewed by TSR for the first time following the De La Hoya–Forbes encounter. For any of TSR readers who have a little age on them, it’s an inspirational movie that is well written, directed and acted. There’s some type casting with Balboa’s boxing opponent, Mason Dixon, being played by Antonio Tarver, who’s very good playing the pompous ass.
Those familiar with the “Vegas boxing scene” will recognize many familiar faces from the fight held at a Las Vegas casino. Without giving away anything, “real” judges names were used when Mason Dixon won an SD. Worth the time to watch.
Whitter-Bradley … who?
‘Ye Ole’ Nottingham Arena in ‘Merry Ole England’ will be the site of next Sunday’s WBC super lightweight title defense by Junior Whitter (36-1-2). Whitter, from Bradford, is not only the second best super lightweight in the world, but also the second best in England. Ricky Hatton holds the top spot.
Whitter defends against invading yank Timothy Brady who at 21 and 0 still does not know what it is to lose. Which of course if you’re 21-0 you haven’t.
As with many boxers today, Brady has had a somewhat protected road to this fight. He’s not really faced the best in the division, which, with the exception of Hatton, Whitter has with 12-round decisions over world class Lovemore “Not Less” N’dou (39-7-1) and DeMarcus Corley (31-4-1). Last time out Whitter got a KO in 7 over Vivian Harris.
Bradley has built his record mostly on the sometime difficult Southern California circuit. Without good mental preparation Whitter might take Bradley as just a tune up for bigger fights down the M1 or M2. That would be a mistake. There are boxers in and around Southern California that are a lot better than their records indicate. In some ways it’s like the old days of the Kronk Gym in Detroit where if you won the gym fight you survived.
Bradley said, “I am sure he (Whitter) is going to come prepared but I have been reading that his team is taking me lightly, they are calling it a tune-up fight but it is going to be the hardest fight of his career. I respect Whitter, he’s a world champion but when it comes time to get in the ring, there is no respect. There is no room for respect in the ring. This is a fight I have been waiting on my whole life, I have always wanted the WBC title.”
Someone reads TSR
TSR lamented the fact that “King” Arthur Abraham and Felix Strum were both middleweight champions who had really not fought anyone of world-class stature, although Strum did give a good account of himself against De La Hoya, losing on points in a fight many though he won.
That may be changing though as it was reported that Felix Strum has been offered 1.5 million euros to defend his WBA title against IBF champ Abraham. The proposed date is July 19 in Germany, which is home to both boxers.
So far the silence has been deafening from the Strum camp.
“Strum told everyone he wanted to fight Arthur and that he would win 24 rounds against him,” Team Sauerland said. “We are happy to prove him wrong. That’s why we have put a great offer on the table. This is the fight everybody in Germany wants to see.”
This might be grandstanding on the part of camp Abraham as they would have to cancel his June 21 fight in USA. Sir Frog said, “This is a fight I want to see. Two great champions.”
Par Deux is a story from El Paso Texas. Last week TSR opined that the “comeback fight” of Johnny Tapia shouldn’t happen. It didn’t as “the boxing gods” stepped in.
From fightnews.com: “It just might be the worst fight card ever to land in El Paso, Texas. In the main event - actually there was no main event, five-time world champion Johnny Tapia, hoping to stage a comeback, pulled out due to contractual disputes with the promoter - or a bad back.” Is up to you as they say. The gods and TSR work in mysterious ways.
Judge Giampa
retires
One of boxing’s better judges, Chuck Giampa, is calling it quits after 23 years to pursue a career as a “boxing consultant and sports columnist.” TSR can probably take credit for Giampa’s interest in being a sports columnist. As a regular reader of TSR he probably figured, “Heck, if that clown can write a column, so can I.” This is a throwback to the old axiom that if you put 100 apes in a room with a typewriter, eventfully they’ll come up with at least one piece of great literature.
Many regular readers will recognize the name Giampa as it usually appears in TSR with the notation, “TSR and judge Chuck Giampa had the fight scored 116-111, so that’s the way it was.”
Giampa worked over 120 world championship fights throughout the world. Two of his most famous were the Holyfield-Tyson “Buffet de Ear” and the Holyfield-Bowe “Fan man” fights. A cynic would write that this was just another quality boxing person jumping off the sinking ship that is the Nevada Boxing Commission. “Is up to you.” Giampa’s one of the good guys … and there are too few.
Jeeves jives
“Your Lordship, I have an e-mail from a professional boxing referee who agrees with you 1,000% that Joe Cortez did a good job refereeing Calzaghe-Hopkins. Then your pal Oscar De La Hoya, who can do no wrong in your eyes, whined about judging in Nevada, specifically Marquez-Pacquiao, Hopkins-Calzaghe and his fight with Mayweather jr. Golden Boy promoted the losers in all those fights.”
Well then Jeeves, Oscar is full of beans except in the case of Marquez. Both TSR and judge Jerry Roth had it for Marquez. Roth is a good judge even though he sometimes sees things a little different. He and TSR were right. Oscar ought to ‘button his lip” and quit trying to act like “whining” Bob Arum.
“Your Lordship as I fetch your lager, cigars and a Robbie Williams DVD to celebrate another successful endeavor for the Pattaya Mail, can you explain this comment from your fellow yank, running for President, Barack Obama? ‘My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you’ll join with me as we try to change it.’”
Jeeves, as comedian Ron White says, “You can’t fix stupid.” I mentioned that Rocky Balboa lost his last fight by a split decision. I’d like to tell my pal Sir Frog that the much-maligned judge who scored for Hopkins was in the majority, marking 115-114 for Dixon. TSR and Chuck Giampa had it 115-114 for Balboa - and that’s the way it was. Life is good!

May Day madness at Navy

PSC golf from The Café Kronborg

Derek Brook
Monday, April 28, Bangpra – Stableford
Bangpra and its monkeys was host to a stableford competition in one flight. The clubhouse is undergoing a complete gutting and rebuilding and is slated to re-open in mid July. The present facilities are in the old hotel, and are adequate for a small group, as most are at present.
The course on the day was in good condition, with greens recently cored and sanded, but recovering nicely. The renovations here seem to be on target for completion in October, with maybe the new tenth green slipping to the end of the year.
On this day the ever-steady Ebrahim took first on a count back from Graham Buckingham in second, both with 35 points. Henk De Bock was third on a count back from Bill Plath, both with 31 points.
Thursday, May 1, Plutaluang S & E – Stableford
Some days start out bad and get worse. Others start out good and get better. I will let you guess what sort of day this was.
The day started as normal with most of the golfers meeting at The Cafe Kronborg, then deciding to leave at the normal time, despite the Tee-off being at 10:16 hrs. Sometimes when we get there early we can start a bit early.
So a nice bimble down there, as there was no rush, was quite pleasant, then we arrived and realised what a dreadful mistake we had made.
It was May 1st and every ‘Tom, Dick and Harry’ had decided to make their way to Plutaluang. The reception area was full of bags and not a Caddy in sight. Of course we dropped the bags off and they put them to one side and we left a couple of players there to push them through.
At the start it was chaos, golfers not knowing what was going on and walking around aimlessly. Some groups went off, usually 5/6 balls so we knew it was going to be a slow day. Of our group, only 4 had caddies a little before our tee off time, so we sent them to the start and waited for what was to happen.
What happened was that some smart young people dressed as young military men turned up in their boots and were ‘assigned’ as caddies. Not a clue, in fact so little did they know about the job of caddying that they did not turn out too bad. They pulled a trolley and that was that and as they could not offer advice they did not give any wrong advice.
This meant that the golfers had to think for themselves: hard work for some. It was quite strange on the greens with four golfers, and four caddies sat at the side in a group watching.
Of course it was slow, and when I say slow, I mean really slow. Not much change was left from 6 hours, and of course our ‘caddies’ in their uniforms suffered a bit in the heat, so much so we had to keep letting them sit in the shade. This was a really bizarre day.
We will pass over most of it, but surprised to say we had a couple of good scores, and both golfers had a ‘special caddy’. This may say something about the need to think for yourself out there.
The winner with 37 points was Tom Cotton and he won on count back over Henry O’Brien in second. In third was Ebrahim with 33 points and we had a count back for fourth on 32 points won by Henk De Bock with J.C. Lhoste just losing out.
Now we could go home but the nightmare was not over. As we got close to Pattaya the traffic was backed up for miles. And here endeth the day. Good or Bad? T.T.F.N.

Derek is man of the month for April

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s

Derek Brook
Tuesday, April 29, Khao Kheow – Stableford
This was our welcome back after the mayhem that is visited on the city for a couple of weeks and is called ‘Fun.’ One of our members actually looks forward to it and calls it his best time of the year. He reckons it is a cheap shower I think. We have many happy discussions on the joys of having buckets of water thrown on you.

Alan Bolton (left) presents the ‘Golfer of the Month’ award to Derek Brook.

So the survivors, and those who took advantage to have a break, returned to test their skills at the ever-tough Khao Kheow. It was nice to see the first ‘organiser’ return to play with us as the ‘Master Blender’ took a break from a course where he was a member to really test himself.
We still had a small group, as is normal at this time of the year, and we were soon underway down a vastly improved motorway. The trip down there now is pretty quick and a pleasure to undertake.
Arriving at K.K. it was amazing how quiet it was, and then when you think of the time of year and also the heavy rains of late, it was not too surprising. We were allowed to use carts but had to keep them on the paths for most of the round before being allowed to drive in the rough.
The course as to be expected was very wet, close to being waterlogged, so drives did not run, and if you pitched in short to the green, the ball usually stopped and provided a very difficult chip. With the normal difficulty of this course, the B & C Nines proved really tough, but how tough we did not know.
Back at Bert’s, as the results were read out, it was seen that 30 points was a really good score. The winner with 31 points was yours truly, Derek Brook, with Mike Gaussa in second with 30 points on count back over Neil Skilton. While not good scores you only have to do enough to win, and this was a tough day.
This was also the culmination of The Alan Bolton ‘Golfer of the Month’ award and with a win at Bangpra earlier in the month, this win today allowed the scribe to slip into first place. T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Neil Skilton (2), Mashi Kenata, Steve Hamsted
Long Putt: Steve Hamsted, Neil Skilton

Larry shows the way

IPGC golf from Lewiinski’s

Sunday, April, Green Valley - Stableford
A Flight
1st Trevor Chappell (13) 39pts
2nd Seamus Cotter (13) 39pts
3rd Jon Haugen (9) 37pts
B Flight
1st Patel Chaten (16) 41pts
2nd Joe Tynan (28) 37pts
3rd Bob Lindburg (16) 37pts
The performances on customer friendly Sunday at Green Valley foretold it was to be a day of outstanding efforts. Alas not for all, a new society record was created on the second hole, par three. The new record set, is that not one golfer in the four-ball scored a single point. They were Colin the G M, Rigsby Leas, Mark happy shoes, and Oneball. For the next two holes not a word was spoken.
Now to the serious stuff in B Flight. Taking top spot, and man of the match was the in-form Chaten Patel with a splendid 41 pts. Second on count back was the impressive Joe Tynan with a fair 37pts over Bob Lindburg.
In the premier division, Trevor Chappell was victorious on count back with a more than handy 37 pts. Seamus Cotter took second spot and Jon Haugen rounded out the flight podium.
A good day was had by all, including the new record holders.
Tuesday, April 29, Treasure Hills - Stableford
A Flight
1st Larry Nicholas (20) 34pts
2nd Jon Haugen (9) 33pts
A smaller field took to the road to tackle the very difficult Treasure Hills layout, as the results testified.
Showing age is of no consequence in golf, the Crustacean displayed his mettle and won the day with 34 pts, one point more than the in form Jon Haugen. Davis Sim and Ray Philips took third and fourth places respectively with 31pts each.
The scores show just how difficult this golf course is, as not one player played to his handicap. Hats of to Larry.
Wednesday, April 30, Crystal Bay - Stableford
A Flight
1st Peter Hynard (12) 36pts
2nd Bob Lindburg (16) 34pts
3rd Paul Henshaw (14) 34pts
2’s: Kirk Fenn
A few more golfers made the trip to the immaculate Crystal Bay to compete in Lewinski’s midweek stableford comp. Winning with a close to even handicap score of 35pts was Peter Hynard, while one point behind and coming second on count back was Bob Lindburg. Rounding out the podium was Paul Henshaw.
One out of the money was the G M himself but Mr. Kirk Fenn was a happy man; he picked up the roll over 2’s.
Friday, May 2, Eastern Star - Stableford
A Flight
1st Seamus Cotter (13) 37pts
2nd Peter Hynard (12) 36pts
B Flight
1st Larry Nicholas (20) 34pts
2nd Ray Philips (24) 33pts
Lewiinski’s rounded the week off at the very challenging Robert Trent Jones jr. designed Eastern Star golf course where eighteen golfers made the trip.
Taking first and second place in A Flight were the in-form pair of Seamus Cotter with a man of the match winning 37pts, and Peter Hynard on 36pts.
For the second time this week The Crustacean was the winner in B Flight on 34pts followed home by Ray Philips in second place with 33pts. Makes you think what Larry’s drinking.
After a few sherbets and a Bang Chang massage, it was back to Lewiinski’s to finish the day off.

Jack takes sweet revenge over Thommo

PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar

Joey’s Column
Monday, April 28, Burapha - Stableford
It was St. Mark’s day on April 25, but today was Mark Kembrey’s round of golf, 40 points playing off the white tees on A & B took the Division C prize by three. Second was John the bookie and Pottsy returned to the frame in third after his trip down under.
May Larose made the most of her advantage from the red tees by taking the B Division, as the men were playing off the blues. Yes, there are those that moan and grizzle about the ladies but they are here to stay and they’re nice to have around. After all, the prize is only a few hundred baht, wouldn’t it be great if that’s all they cost! Come on guys give them a break - well played May!
Stuart Thompson easily took the A Division with 38 points, from the in-form Jack, and regular Outbackers, Bernie & Des took the remaining places.
Jimmy Dee’s drive on the first was just right of the green. Capt’ Bob, who’s no slouch in the big hitting stakes, said, “I was hitting an 8 iron when he was hitting wedges!” The matchplay starts back in May, Jimmy, what are you doing on the 12th?
Div A (0-14)
12 Players
1st Stuart Thompson (8) 38pts
2nd Jack Moseley (8) 35pts
3rd Bernie Segrave (9) 34pts
4th Desmond Scott (9) 34pts
Div B (15-19)
16 players
1st May Larose (17) 35pts
2nd Neil Hughes (15) 34pts
3rd Don Pavlovic (15) 34pts
4th Alex Sala (16) 32pts
Div C (20+)
20 Players
1st Mark Kembrey (20) 40pts
2nd John Spiller (22) 37pts
3rd Cambell Potts (20) 34pts
4th John Stafford (20) 33pts
2’s: John Stafford, Neil Hughes, Stuart Thompson, Don Pavlovic & Bob Philp
Tuesday, April 29, Phoenix - Stableford
The second week of the new Outbacker TOOs (twenty Outbackers only), saw eleven golfers turn up. The Mountain course had been re-opened and the greens, which still showed signs of the recent hollow tining and sanding, were a little slow and bumpy. The Ocean nine was in great nick and the faster greens made it additionally tough.
It was a brisk walk round of 4 hours but although there was no rain it remained extremely humid.
Jack continued his run and got his revenge over Stuart, taking the prize for the day with 38 points. Apparently Capt’ Bob has now cut him to 7.
1st Jack Moseley (8) 38pts
2nd Stuart Thompson (8) 37pts
3rd Pimusa Tonkhoksoong (20) 35pts
2’s: Jan Slotten
Wednesday, April 30, Royal Lakeside – Stableford
The completed highway has made the door-to-door trip from the Outback Golf Bar to Royal Lakeside little more than 40 minutes. It is a journey well worth doing as the course once again was in beautiful condition.
Not so many Outbackers today after the 44 that came on last month’s Bus Trip, so the Outback minibus plus a couple of private cars were enough to accommodate everybody.
Capt’ Bob demolished the field with a fantastic 41 points (gross 73), second place going to Frank O’Neill, 8 points adrift.
Amongst the usual ‘could have been stories’ and golf banter, Barry & Geoff were discussing the merits of living in Thailand and agreeing how fortunate they both were. Geoff said to Barry, “the worst thing about Thailand is the driving.” “Yes, I know,” replied Barry, “you didn’t hit many fairways, did you?”
Div A (0-19)
8 Players
1st Bob Philp (6) 41pts
2nd Frank O’Neill (15) 33pts
3rd Bruce Milner (10) 32pts
Div B (20+)
8 players
1st Bruce McAdam (20) 33pts
2nd John Stafford (20) 30pts
3rd Geoff Moodie (23) 29pts
2’s: Bob Philp, Carl Lovatt & Frank O’Neill
Friday, May 2, Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
There’s not very much that can be printed about this course other than it’s close to Pattaya! The front nine greens had been sanded, making putting a lottery and the back nine were in need of some TLC.
The low scores reflected the ludicrous putting conditions, however, Terry & Geoff rose above all that and came out on top of their respective divisions both scoring 35 points.
Div A (0 - 20)
9 Players
1st Terry Larose (12) 35pts
2nd John Stafford (20) 34pts
3rd Bob Pearce (10) 33pts
Div B (21+)
1st Geoff Doody (21) 35pts
2nd Nigel Cannon (24) 33pts
3rd Peter Allen (23) 32pts
2’s: Dave Mawford
Reminder: The Outback Golf Bar is situated about 6km from Sukhumvit Road along Soi Siam Country. All are welcome to come and join us for a beer and a hit. Just call in and put your name down on the list or give Bob a call on 087 941 2474.
Now we have our own minibus and have started regular Pattaya pickups on our golf days.
Please watch out for our new Tuesday (Sport Day 950 Baht incl Caddie) early bird slot at Phoenix, approx 8 a.m. tee off for the next six weeks. Limited to 20 players only, known as the TOOs (Twenty Outbackers Only). Everybody welcome but please get your name down early, this list will be cut off at 20.
More information can be found on our website www.outbackgolfbar.com. Our Bus Trip this month is to Kiarti Thanee on Weds. May 28 & don’t forget the complimentary food back at the bar afterwards.
That’s all for now. If you have any thoughts, scandalous stories or suggestions, why not drop me a line at [email protected]

MBMG Pattaya Golf Matchplay League 2008

After the Songkhran break the MBMG Pattaya Golf Matchplay League resumes again in May through to August. September will be another month break as many of the golfers will be participating in the Pattaya style ‘Ryder Cup’, which will take place on Monday 15th thru to Friday 19th September.
The MBMG Matchplay league comprises of teams from nine golfing venues in Pattaya who want to play individual matchplay golf against each other. The participating bars are: Outback Golf Bar, The Golf Club, Caddyshack, Kronberg, Tropical Berts, Angkana House, Storm, The Driving Range and The Bunker. For further information or if you would like to play, please contact Jack at the Outback Golf Bar or email [email protected]

Walkley clear by six at Bangpra

PSC golf from P J Pool Bar

Neil Duncan
Tuesday, April 29 Bangpra (White Tees) - Stableford
The group traveled to Bangpra in some trepidation because of recent reports about poor conditions only to find that the course was very playable, if not perfection.

Treasure Hill winners (left to right): Bob Drumm, Ken Hole and David Gardner.

Owen Walkley (H/C 22) had ‘a good day at the office’ carding 5 net eagles for 43 points, which seems something like a 42 shot improvement on his score the previous Thursday.
David Gardner (H/C 8) was runner up with 36 points whilst Dennis Jaycock took third position with 33 points.
Near pins went to Jim Walton, Owen Walkley and Bob Drumm (2) and Mike Jackson sunk the longest first putt on the 18th green. The average points scored on the 11 cards returned was 31.
Friday May 2, Treasure Hill (White Tees) - Stableford
Off to Treasure Hill today with two newcomers, Messrs Graham Jamieson and Andy Cargill, where two heavy showers of rain interrupted play on the back nine.
Our Ken Hole (H/C 13) now with no kit bag problem was able to shut out the noise of the butterflies and other Lepidoptera clattering about the course and its surrounding hills and take top spot with 30 points, whilst David Gardner (H/C 8) was runner up for the second time in the week with 29 points. The ever-steady and always ready Bob Drumm (H/C 10) came in third spot with 28 points.
Near pins were claimed by Bob Drumm, Ian Campbell, Jim Walton and Ken Hole whilst Good Ol’ David Gardner enjoyed sinking the longest first putt on the 18th green.
The average score for the nine cards returned was 25.2 reflecting the demands of this course combined with the effects of rain.
Note: Any golfers seeking to play with our group that wish to know about the format please visit P J Pool Bar & Restaurant on Soi Watboonsamphan (Soi Kanoi) or phone Neil on 0895110575.

SaBai Friday back in first place

Pattaya Sports Club Friday Bowling League

200 Bowlers: Teuvo, Sven, La & Mai.

Nok rolled a 538 series and led her SaBai Friday team back into first place again as they won three points from VFW Post 9876.
Café Kronborg split their match with House of the Golden Coin with each team getting two points. Kran led Café Kronborg with a 530 series and Mio was best for Golden Coin knocking down 546 pins with Sue bowling a 511 series.
Brother D dropped to third place after losing three points to Beaver Bar & Grill.
Balls Galore, led by La’s 215 game, 556 series, won all four points from Café Ole and they are in fou rth place. Jack Tar took three points from Montana and Diamond Shop split their match 2-2 with Canada.