Derek Holt does it again

IPGC golf from The Haven

Monday, Jan 11, The Emerald - Stableford
Div. 1(0-15)
1st Danny Miller (8) 35pts
2nd Rick Roberts (13) 34pts
3rd Martin Grimoldby (6) 34pts
Div. 2 (16+)
1st Roar Berger (28) 39pts
2nd Toshihiro Aoki (26) 33pts
3rd Serge Straeten (16) 31pts
4th Kenny Priddy (22) 31pts
Scoring was at a premium when the Soi 13 group played the Emerald, where the pin placements had obviously been set by someone who had a Master’s Degree in torment, and when allied to the speed of the greens, which were in excellent condition and running extremely fast, they did not need the extra problems of side hill placements. But sufficient players scored well enough to keep the CSS of the day down at 73.
Danny Miller continued his streak of form with another win by a single stroke ahead of Rick Roberts and Martin Grimoldby in the first division, with Rick winning the count back by 20 to 16.
Roar Berger’s best of the day was his best score since January 2009 and thoroughly deserved to win his division with some steady and thoughtful golf. Toshihiro Aoki took his first prize since joining and could not have been happier after several near misses. Serge Straeten took third place with a better count back of 20 to 14 as Kenny Priddy slipped over the closing holes following a strong start.
There were no 2’s in the second division and Rick Roberts had the only one in the first division.
Before presenting the prizes The Doc welcomed new members Jason Cole and Warren Gallop and also welcomed back Peter Sumner, Geoff Picken, Denis Scougall, Rick Roberts and Barrie Howarth.
Wednesday, Jan. 13, Green Valley - Stableford
Div. 1 (0-15)
1st Rodney Hayes (8) 38pts
2nd Brian Beaupre (5) 38pts
3rd Masanori Takano (9) 35pts
Div. 2 (16+)
1st Derek Holt (22) 39pts
2nd Chris Knapp (17) 38pts
3rd George Pittam (16) 33pts
Another large group left The Haven in good spirits to play one of the favoured courses in the area and hopes were high that things might be a bit easier than the previous outing. They were not disappointed as the course was found to be in great shape as usual but still a stiff test of golf for all the contestants.
Rodney Hayes returned to the top of the podium with a solid round of two under handicap which was just enough to pip Brian Beaupre into second place with a better 20 to 18 over the inward half, with Masanori Takano in third spot three shots further back.
Derek Holt won for the second time in ten days after spending seemingly forever in the wilderness, to deny Chris Knapp a much wished for win after several second placings. George Pittam lagged several shots behind them but was good for third place.
Grant Cadell, Al Keith and Masanori Takano shared the 2’s pot in the first division and Harry Vincenzi and Brian Kelly shared the quadruple roll over in the second division.
Before the prize giving Brian Beaupre, Harry Vincenzi, George Pittam and Mark Ward were all welcomed back.
Friday, Jan. 15, Eastern Star - Stableford
1st Alan Pilkington (11) 33pts
2nd Chris Knapp (17) 32pts
3rd Peter Sumner (8) 31pts
4th Masanori Takano (9) 31pts
5th Robin Peach (16) 31pts
With Jomtiem Golf playing earlier in the day, almost sixty IPGC members took on the Robert Trent Jones design at Ban Chang, where the windy conditions and fast greens conspired to defeat almost all as the CSS went out to 75 and just stayed as a counting competition for upward review.
Surprisingly after an absence from Eastern Star for several months, there were not quite sufficient Haven players to form two divisions with one player short of the required 30 entrants but there was still a good mix of handicap levels on the winners list which was headed by Alan Pilkington, who although not able to challenge par did just enough to take top spot by a single stroke from Chris Knapp, again having to settle for best dressed bridesmaid in second.
Peter Sumner led in a group three shots back, taking third place with a better count back of 18 after a slow start as Masanori Takano, with 15 on the back nine, took fourth and with Robin Peach rounding out the winners in fifth after only garnering 14 coming home after a very promising beginning to his day.
There were no 2’s in the first division but Ole Stamnes had one in the second division to sweep the pot.
Back at The Haven, The Doc welcomed Jon Rowley and welcomed back Trevor Schirmer before presenting the prizes.

Dietrich decidedly back to form

PSC Phoenix Tuesday Group

Mike Gerrard
Another beautiful day (so we thought) as we started off to tackle the Mountain and Lakes course - possibly the hardest two. After a few holes a few clouds formed and before we knew it we were all caught out by a short, but very hard shower. However, our hardy group resiliently battled through it only to be completely dried out 10 minutes later.

Graham Dietrich (center) was the winner at Phoenix last Tuesday.

The toughness of these two tracks ensured that the more consistent player in our group returned the best score. It was, of course Mr. Reliable (although over the last couple of weeks he has stuttered) Graham Dietrich, who managed a score of 34 points to win today.
In second place with 33 points was the ever smiling Sergio (Garcia) Volpi, and in third place, again on 33 points, was the unflappable John Bartley. Both Sergio and John edged Paul Saward into fourth place on count back with the same score.
Not to be daunted, Paul managed to play one of the best tee shots of the day on a par 3 to win a technical prize along with Graham Dietrich, Keith Etherington and, back on vacation for a few weeks, Joe Miller.
The lucky draw went to Alain Bellec and the free beer voucher went to ‘yours truly’.
Once again nearly everybody got their stake money back, with everybody getting half back by way of a free beer at Noy’s Music Bar. Well the ones who came back anyway.
Future events will include our last Tuesday of the month stroke play, with both Trattatoria Italiana and Noy’s Music Bar donating major prizes.
On March 30 we will be holding a PSC Tuesday Group charity tournament starting at 11.04 on the Lakes and Ocean course. At this stage we are looking at a 2-ball scramble with flights for both men and women. (And if I have any cheek off that Paula I’m going to refuse to let her in the men’s changing room again). A committee of Bob Neylon, Stuart Gordon and myself will decide on the full format and post updated news. 15 tee times have been booked from 11.04am.
If you are interested in joining in with the fun (but proper) golf, give me (Mike Gerrard) a call on 087 091 7565.

Robertson at the double

PSC golf from The Bunker Bar

Monday, Jan 11, Greenwood - Medal
The relatively long drive to Greenwood is always worth it as the course is in great shape and wasn’t too busy considering it’s the high season. Paul Smith had a good day winning the A Flight by four shots and picking up a near pin prize to boot and Gerry Cooney beat Gary Warburton by a shot to nick the runner up spot.

Double winner Jack Robertson relaxes at the Bunker.

Jack Robertson shot a two under to win the B Flight ahead of Reg Smart who won two near pin prizes as well, with Mike Corner taking third place with a net 76.
A Flight:
1st Paul Smith (4) net 71
2nd Gerry Cooney (12) net 75
3rd Gary Warburton (15) net 76
B Flight:
1st Jack Robertson (24) net 70
2nd Reg Smart (26) net 73
3rd Mike Corner (20) net 76
Near Pins: Reg Smart (2), Paul Smith
Wednesday, Jan 13, Khao Kheow - Stableford
Khaow Kheow was in its usual good condition with the greens playing exceptionally well; Jack Robertson thought so anyway as he won the B Flight again, racking up 35 points. Geoff Hart took second place and Tom Jones claimed third spot close behind.
JJ won the A Flight with the best score of the day and Dougie beat Tony Robbins on a count back.
A Flight:
1st JJ Harney (11) 38pts
2nd Dougie Crowe (8) 35pts
3rd Tony Robbins (11) 35pts
B Flight:
1st Jack Robertson (24) 35pts
2nd Geoff Hart (18) 33pts
3rd Tom Jones (24) 31pts
Near Pins: Tom Jones, Dougie Crowe, Jerry Waselenkof and Tony Robbins.
Friday, Jan 15, Phoenix - Medal
With a lot of the Bunker Boy’s playing in the Pattaya Sports Club Annual Championship we had a smaller than usual field with just a single flight.
Dougie Crowe took the honours shooting a net 74, a shot ahead of Reg who, in turn, was two shots ahead of third placed Alan Harris.
1st Dougie Crowe (8) net 74
2nd Reg Smart (26) net 75
3rd Alan Harris (9) net 77
Near Pins: Jerry Waselenkof and Alan Harris.

More of Morel

IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar

The Pattaya Golf Society travelled to Rayong C.C. on Sunday, January 9 to fulfill the next in their series of weekend bookings at the course and found that their stableford event got underway before time on an empty course which showed little after effects from the Asian Tour Q-School event which closed there the day before.
The field was divided into two flights at twenty and under. In the second flight Pat Murphy found that his 32 points was good enough for third place, one behind Mr Len’s 33 point card whilst Allen Dow took the flight victory with 36 points.
In the top flight Paul McNally again shot a gross 76 for a level par stableford total which gave him third place, scant reward for such excellent golf, whilst Ronnie Ramsay’s 37 points just edged him into second place. The best score of the day, again, was recorded by Jean Morel and his 38 points belied the fact that his front nine score was twenty three! Jean’s short game and putting have improved so much that he is finding sub par rounds on a regular basis these days, and Rayong is a course he always enjoys.
The day’s only birdie ‘2’ was achieved by Steve Evans on the eve of his departure for the winter chaos of Wales. The Booby Bevy went to ten handicapper Mark Stubbing after a lacklustre round which saw him playing his first golf for four months, but he thoroughly enjoyed his first experience with the PGS, as did the other golfers at Rayong on such a fine day.
McNally continues fine run
The PGS revisited Greenwood on Tuesday, January 12, after an absence of a few months and found the favourite course in excellent condition, long off the back white tees and with fast greens.
Conditions were perfect for an excellent stableford competition over the B and C nines. If one had any criticism it was that three of the four par 3’s were between 170 and 200 yards long and this takes the fun out of the shorter holes. However the two flights cut at eleven and under made a good fist of things.
In the second flight John Holmes made the most of his first round back to score 31 points and take third place whilst Ronnie Ramsay and Masashi Iizumi, both in good form at present, shared the win with 35 points each.
In the top flight a returning and now retired Brian Beaupre posted 33 points for third whilst Wichai Tananusorn and Paul McNally shared the win with 36 points each. Paul’s last three rounds have seen him play gross 75, 76 and 76 to emphasise the power of his game and it is gratifying to see his golf at this consistent level.
Paul and Brian also shared the ‘2’s pot for their efforts on C6 whilst Ronnie Ramsay Snr savoured the Booby Bevy after a nondescript eighteen holes which saw him threaten the record low score with the group. But it was all about a fun day out on a beautiful golf course and everyone enjoyed the experience immensely.
Voller smiles again
On Thursday, January 14 the Pattaya Golf Society visited Bangpra to play a stableford competition on the always well presented course. On this occasion the greens had been lightly sanded and thus were a little slower than usual but the rest of the course was fine.
The two flights were divided at eighteen and under and in the second flight Masashi Iizumi ended his stay this time with a steady 32 points which gave him third place. Doubtless his smiling demeanour and adventurous golf will be missed in the months to come. In second place was Ray Atkinson, newly returned to the Kingdom and his 35 points just fell short of the winning score of Ronnie Ramsay by one point. Ronnie is another PGS golfer in form at the moment.
In the top flight Dave Stockman recorded 33 points for third place and Richard Craig managed 36 points for second. The winner was Chris Voller and after a few weeks of experimenting with various replacement drivers he obviously found one to his liking and scored 38 points for the flight win. The only sub-par round of the day it also represented the day’s best gross of 77 shots.
The ‘2’s pot was shared by Ray Banks, Dave Stockman, Paul McNally and Peter Duncan whilst Harry Cowling took the Booby Bevy for actually filling in the bizarre “Birthday” section on the scorecard. Maybe he was after a pressie from the recorder! It worked. As did Chris Voller’s driver at last.

Bramley turns back the years

PSC golf from The Caddy shack

Damian Trant
Monday, Jan. 11, Kheo Kheow – Stableford
Because of the PSC Club Championship later on in the week, a huge number of golfers turned out today to play the very challenging Kheo Kheow as something of a practice round. This left poor old Bruce wondering where to put them all, but in the end everything turned out surprisingly well. The tees were well back and the pins were stuck in some very tough places, so it wasn’t surprising that the scores weren’t up to much.
In A flight Helmut Hebstreit and the new Mr Deliberate, Arch Armstrong, both scored 33 points, but because of Arch’s better back nine he stole third place from his German friend. Second place went to the lover man Ted two handicaps Gardner with an impressive 36 points, a good score considering how tough it was playing. The very consistent Phonsie McGanhan was the only player to better his handicap with 37 points and this was good enough to take first place.
In B flight the old boy Doug Carysforth put the young ones to shame to score a reasonable 32 points and take fourth place. One shot better was the stableford specialist Ramsey Smith with 33 points, which wasn’t that bad after the trauma of last week. Second place and returning to a bit of form was the quick playing slow walking Derek May, but just edging it by one shot with 36 points was first time winner Alan Gower.
A Flight
1st Phonsie McGanhan 37pts
2nd Ted Gardner 36pts
3rd Arch Armstrong 33pts
4th Helmut Hebsteit 33pts
B Flight
1st Alan Gower 36pts
2nd Derek May 35pts
3rd Ramsay Smith 33pts
4th Doug Carysforth 32pts
Friday, Jan 15, St, Andrews – Stableford
After last week’s disastrous washout at Green Valley we decided a change was needed and St. Andrews for the same price was an offer too good to refuse. With only twenty of us taking part and all of our slower players up the road at Khao Kheow, things were looking up and a swift round of golf was expected.
Everything was going to plan and with no hold ups; something had to happen and did it. After twelve holes a not so nice and friendly Korean six-ball jumped in front of the lead group and another five and half hour round was just about to happen. The scores though didn’t suffer and there were some unbelievable scores on the day.
In A Flight a fine 39 points from everybody’s favorite German, Helmut Hebstreit, was surprisingly only good enough for third place. Helmut also wins my shot of the day award for his magical chip on the seventeenth, a shot that even Tiger Woods would have been proud of. Inform Mike Murray posted a magical 41 points and was as shocked as anybody when this placed him a disappointing second. Dave Bramley turned back the years to when he could play golf and took first place with a stunning 42 points, giving him a well overdue victory.
In B Flight the stableford specialist and former ‘Wally of the Week’ Ramsay Smith shot 36 points to finish in third place. Two shots better in second place was Tony Duthie, who would have won if it wasn’t for his tee shot on the seventeenth that went about five yards and resulted in a blob. Tony did say that the twenty minute wait that had seized up his ageing body didn’t help though. So on a day of very good scoring it was left to the very powerful Derek Wilkins to take top spot with a very impressive 40 points.
A Flight
1st Dave Bramley 42pts
2nd Mike Murray 41pts
3rd Helmut Hebstreit 39pts
B Flight
1st Derek Wilkins 40pts
2nd Tony Duthie 38pts
3rd Ramsay Smith 36pts

Sheffield and ‘the Sugarman’ set their sights on Dubai

PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar

Joey’s column
Monday, Jan. 11, Burapha - Stableford
It is very rare during the last two and a half years that the Outback have been coming to Burapha every Monday; that when there are more than 40 players, Capt’ Bob is not given a two-tee start. Today was one of those days; and although the pace of play was acceptable for the time of year; with 47 Outbackers playing the A & B nines, it does make for a long protracted start and a relatively late finish for some. The Outback apologises for the hiccup but it was beyond our control and trust that normal service at Burapha will be resumed as soon as possible.

The Sugarman (& kids) with James Sheffield and birthday boy John Spiller.

There was some good scoring in Div C (white tees) with Barry Lewis being the star of the show, firing 43 points, by far his best score ever with the Outback and we believe anywhere in Thailand. Well played Barry! He was four clear of Bruce McAdam who’s found a bit of form recently, who in turn was four clear of two players, both with 35 points; Dick Mace (one of the Norfolk Raiders) and David Davies.
John Kittilsen blows hot and cold, he can shoot anything between 23 and 40. Today being a ‘hot’ day he scored an excellent 39 points from the blue tees to win Div B, with Paul Sweeney back in second on 37 ahead of John O’Keefe on 35.
Apart from George Bishop who stood out alone to win Div A with 36 points, the scoring was around handicap for this course from the blues, with eight players scoring between 31 and 33 points; they were headed by Chris Davisson (33), Bob Green (33) and Steve Plant (32).
There were only three ‘2’s from Bruce McAdam, Pat Regan & John Kittilsen.
Div A (0-13)
1st George Bishop (13) 36pts
2nd Chris Davisson (11) 33pts
3rd Bob Green (12) 33pts
4th Steve Plant (13) 32pts
Div B (14-19)
1st John Kittilsen (19) 39pts
2nd Paul Sweeney (14) 37pts
3rd John O’Keefe (16) 35pts
4th Fred Gemme (14) 34
Div C (20+) white tees
1st Barry Lewis (32) 43pts
2nd Bruce McAdam (22) 39pts
3rd Dick Mace (28) 35pts
4th David Davies (25) 35pts
Tuesday, Jan. 12, Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
We had a good number of Outbackers here today, 25 to be precise, despite some of the Tuesday regulars being away on a road trip. Welcome to some new guys with the Outback, namely Amarjit (Raji) and a couple of Geoff’s mates, Wally & Ian.
The course was busy and slow for a Tuesday which made it tough going out there; reflected slightly by the lower than normal scoring: 36 points topped Div A, attained by Bob Green and newbie, Raji; whilst Div B was nicked by one of the Irish contingent, and he’s been doing it a lot lately, John Cogan on 37. Emile Van de Wiele took second on the same score with Nev Steward (36pts) third and another Irishman, John Stafford (33pts) fourth.
There were four ‘2’s from Emile, Bill Peach, Nev Steward & Jean Paul.
Div A (0-20)
1st Bob Green (12) 36pts
2nd Amarjit Banwaitt (4) 36pts
3rd John Kittilsen (19) 32pts
4th Suzi Lawton (19) 31pts
Div B (20+)
1st John Cogan (21) 37pts
2nd Emile Van De Wiele (20) 37pts
3rd Neville Steward (20) 36pts
4th John Stafford (21) 33pts
Wednesday, Jan 13, Eastern Star - Stableford
What a great layout and great value too, but what a disappointment the greens continue to be. A good paced round for 20 Outbackers today and a mere 33 points from visitor Raji was enough to win Div A from David Day with the same score.
Div B was a different story as Brian Maddox shot the day’s top score of 39; but he was way clear of the second placed Sakorn (32pts) and another David, this time Davies in third on 31.
There were no ‘2’s so as is usual, the ‘2’s pot was added to the prize fund.
Div A (0-5)
1st Amarjit Banwaitt (7) 33pts
2nd David Day (15) 33pts
3rd Bruce Milner (12) 30pts
Div B (16+)
1st Brian Maddox (20) 39pts
2nd Sakorn Pramoolchart (27) 32pts
3rd David Davies (25) 31pts
Friday, Jan. 15, The Emerald - Stableford
Johnny Spiller, who celebrated his 78th birthday yesterday, did it in grand style today with some 42 of his golfing mates at the Outback, by hosting a 2-man scramble (Ambrose) at the lovely Emerald course. Not only did John provide some fantastic prizes, including the amazing first prize of a trip for two to Dubai, but he also provided the whole field with drinks throughout their round of golf; ably served by two of the Outback staff, driven around on a couple of heavily laden buggies. Our thanks go out to the Emerald for their assistance in making that all possible.
There is a rule in these scrambles that states that the team handicap may not be higher than the lower handicapper in the pairing, usually still a daunting task, but the Sugarman played out of his skin with his scratch playing partner, James Sheffield, to finish 8 under gross on a net 64; easily the best and of course winning score, to earn his ticket to Dubai. The runners up were Paul Avery & Mick Moore, picking up a couple of meals for two at The Windmill in Soi 5, Jomtien and third were Paul Greenaway & Boondy Lawson who collected a couple of Outback shirts, both pairings also pocketing the usual distribution of baht. The booby prize, an Outback Golf towel and a beer went to Bruce Milner & Barry McIntosh.
The near pins, were won by Paul Greenaway (5th), Tony Garnett (7th), Paul Avery (13th) and Carl Luke (15th) and the longest 1st putts were won by Bill Peach (12th) and Boondy Lawson (18th).
Back at the Outback there was a great spread of food, steak & kidney pie, chicken & mushroom pie and spaghetti bolognaise, all courtesy of Johnny. Happy Birthday John and thanks for a great day.
1st James Sheffield & Sugar Ray Handford, net 64
2nd Paul Avery & Mick Moore, net 65.25
3rd Paul Greenaway & Boondy Lawson, net 65.25
4th Tony Garnett & Brian Maddox, net 67
5th Jamie Milner & John Cogan, net 67.75
6th Amarjit Banwaitt & Ian Taylor, net 68
7th Chris Davisson & Bob Lindborg, net 68.25
Note: 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.

World team wrestle Mulberry Ryder Cup from England

PSC golf from The Golf Club

Robert Newell
This eagerly awaited contest, now in its eighth year, finally came around, much to the delight of all the participants. In keeping with the traditions of this competition, which is; drinking, fun, drinking, camaraderie, drinking, eating, drinking, fierce but friendly golf matches and more drinking, we had a casual get together at the Golf Club on the Saturday evening prior to our Tuesday departure. The main reason for this was just to iron out the finer points of the trip such as the itinerary, handicaps, courses, first day pairings and, naturally, to get some early drinking in! Of course, alongside this we welcomed some first time Ryder Cup trippers, had a nice bit of grub (kindly put on by the Golf Club) and we were handed our very snazzy team shirts.

Winning captain Steve Weller with the Mulberry Ryder Cup.
As previously mentioned this is the eighth year but, up to now, there had been no actual trophy being played for. This has rightly now been addressed, thanks to the generosity of Steve ‘Rigsby’ Mulberry, and we now have a beautiful cup that both sides will be battling for, in order to be the first name on it. A great gesture and I know this will only inspire the sides to greater efforts.
Steve also set the tone for the trip by becoming an early candidate for ‘the most stupid statement of the tour’ award. Whilst collecting the 1,000 baht whip for the ‘refreshments’ on board, he approached Brad ’20 cans’ Sproxton and said loudly, “Brad, will you be wanting a drink on the bus?” The saying we use in England is, ‘do bears poo-poo in the woods?’ or something very similar to that. I think that will actually take some beating but you never know.
Tuesday, Jan 12, Thai Country Club
After all the usual pre-trip morning palaver, 36 combatants eventually got away for the run up to Thai C.C. The bus was fully loaded up with half of Pattaya’s alcohol supply for the year (by the look of it anyway) and the party was ready to begin, but, and it’s a big but, there were more than one or two anxious faces around. The reason? The bus! This vehicle did not inspire confidence and as it turned out, the concern was not unwarranted.
The excitement of the day and the sound of bottles and cans opening ensured this was all quickly forgotten. After the not unexpected stop, after five minutes for fuel (never fails to amaze me though) and only one motorway stop to splice some non-consequential air lines together! (and a few detours I might add) we rolled up at the beautiful Thai C.C. ready to do battle.
This is a top quality course and it produced some very close matches, England eventually running out winners 5 and a half to 3 and a half. A couple of highlights were Simon Philbrook, for England, holing a beautiful eagle pitch and the ROW’s Tom Moran making eagle plus 2 birdies. It was a wonderful day and a great start to the competition.
Wednesday, Jan 13, Blue Sapphire C & D
Here’s a word of advice for any golf organizers planning a trip out to Kanchanaburi to play these 2 new nines at Sapphire; don’t!! This has to be the biggest Mickey Mouse course any of us have ever played; all it needed was a couple of windmills and clowns noses to complete the setting. As we arrived it was clear they had a big Korean tournament on the main (i.e. proper) course and they started with the ever-familiar ‘have no booking’ routine. In hindsight we should have told them to stick it and try somewhere else but, obviously, with the logistics involved this was impossible and, besides, they had a nice new course we could use, so what could be the problem?
With England slightly ahead after the first day there was a faint air of optimism around the team but what happened over the next four and a half hours smashed any confidence there may have been. It was a complete rout, an annihilation. We were only half way through the competition and yet the fat lady was not only getting warmed up but she’d already done a couple of numbers! Nine to the ROW and one to England!
A cynic said that as ROW had a lot of North Americans in the team then they were more used to Disneyworld. I don’t subscribe to that theory, even though it was said in jest, as bad as the course was it was the same for both teams, ROW handled it better while England resembled their cricket teams of old and capitulated.
As it turned out 2 factors could have maybe made a bit of a difference but, clearly, no one could have known that at the start. Going by the yardage on the card we chose the blue tees and, as per our local rules, we did not play drop zones. These things proved fatal, with 230 yard carries over water on numerous holes, internal OB everywhere and no safe bail-out areas for the shorter hitters it was farcical.
In my group one quite accomplished player failed to even get to the green on 5 or 6 of the first 9! There were tales of guys not making par 3’s with drivers in their hands and others considering chipping onto the next tee to give themselves a chance. Needless to say the only Blue Sapphire I want to see again comes out of a bottle with tonic and ice added!
To make matters worse, the very cultured and refined English team were subjected to a drunken barrage of ‘your not singing anymore’ and ‘its all gone quiet over there’ on the trip to the hotel. Quite disgraceful behaviour and I could see some of our more gentler souls were visibly upset! However did they learn these songs?
Thursday, Jan 14, Royal Ratchaburi
Another day, another golf course and, just coming up the drive through the grounds, it was clear this was more like the real thing. We were itching to get out there and erase yesterday’s bad memories. It must be said though, there were more than a few in zombie-like trances and plenty more with physical injuries, so much so that it was christened ‘the battle of wounded knee’. England’s last, realistic, hope of coming out on top all but vanished here. It was the greensomes format today and a much closer affair but the last hole proved lethal for the ‘old country’. On no fewer than 4 occasions the England boys were 1 up playing 18 only to end up halving their matches. It was going to take a super-human effort now to wrestle the cup away from the ROW. England 4 points, ROW 5 points
So it was onto the bus again for the ride up to Bangkok (I think there were only 2 impromptu stops for running repairs this time) in readiness for some fun and games in the capital and the last singles matches at Alpine.
Friday, Jan 15, Alpine G.C.
Now I have to apologise here because there is no way I can possibly relate in a few words the pantomime that happened on the way from the hotel, just try to imagine all your dealings in Thailand and the Thai way.
We stayed in a hotel right in the centre just up from Nana. In a big double-decker bus getting there in the evening was eventful enough but come the morning the driver decides to go a different way, down streets barely wide enough for a bike to pass. We had total gridlock at one stage as he had to try and turn in a hotel frontage to then sweep out and make a turn down another side street but the problem was all the high voltage cables were strung across the entrance. Cue his young son, who disappeared out of the roof hatch, like one of Fagin’s helpers up a chimney, to lift all the cables over the top. Result, 30 minutes later, 200 yards travelled.
All plain sailing then now, you’d think but no! Halfway down the motorway, on the elevated section, about 60 feet in the air, we heard a huge bang and rumbling and saw the remains of a massive tyre bowling down the road behind us. You couldn’t make it up, honestly.
After what seemed like forever we eventually limped in to Alpine and to what, I think, we had all been waiting for. We were not disappointed; this course is class with a capital C. If you were told you could only play one course for the rest of your life then, I suggest, this would be the one for many. It was a glorious day, a perfect setting for our final day of head to head games.
The course looked and played beautifully. The fairways were immaculate, the greens held and ran true and fast, all the caddies were knowledgeable, it was just perfect – for the ROW that is. They continued with their relentlessly efficient golf, ably led by their captain Steve Weller, and completed a thoroughly deserved victory with a 13 to 5 win in today’s singles. Congratulations then to the ROW side but look out, we’re coming to get you next year.
Teams: (England) Capt. Jack Bowman, Steve Mulberry, Loz Shaw, Dave Mather, John Barrett, John Warren, John Lay, Gavin Perfect, Gabriel Enright, Simon Philbrook, Steve Ellison, Dene Airey, Barry Tregurtha, Alex Tregurtha, Brian Wilkinson, Mark Williams, Jeff Calrow, Bob Newell.
(ROW) Capt. Steve Weller, Jack Spencer, Gary Emmett, Steve Coughlan, Brent Philp, JJ Wright, Tom Moran, John McHugh, Ernie McInerny, Mark Wood, Sonny Crawford, Mike Loewen, Len Schultz, Glen Ford, Mike Craighead, Bob Allen, Bob Patterson, Brad Sproxton.

The full crowd at the Alpine Golf Club in Bangkok.

Bridge in Paradise : by Neil Robinson

Last week I wrote about the problem of bidding so aggressively that you push the opponents into a game or slam that they would not otherwise bid.  Here is another such hand, played in Chiang Dao.  I was sitting East with neither side vulnerable and North dealing: 

                        S: AK862

                        H: K852

                        D: 7

                        C: 865       

S: Q4                                 S: -

H: Q104                             H: 763

D: KJ1098                         D: Q63

C: 1097                              C: AKQJ432

                        S: J109753

                        H: AJ9

                        D: A542

                        C: -            

This was the bidding:

North   East        South     West

P           3N           4S            5C

5S         6C           P              P

6S         All pass                  

I opened a gambling 3N which shows a long (7 or more cards) running minor suit.  The bidder hopes that partner has a couple of tricks, can stop the suit led, and has at least one card in the long minor to lead to declarer’s hand.  Then, presto, nine tricks and game made.  Alternatively, if you are not making 3N, the opponents probably have a game and you hope the 3N bid will make it difficult for them to find the right bid.
South made an aggressive 4S overcall.  My partner raised my presumed suit to the five level (if my suit were in fact diamonds, I could always correct).  North was happy to raise his partner, in view of his very adequate support for spades.  I bid 6C, to raise the ante and North, with the reasonable hope that his partner was void in clubs, made the wise decision to raise to slam.
South ruffed the club lead, pulled trumps in two rounds, played the ace of diamonds and eventually trumped three diamonds on board.  He led towards the jack of hearts, to try and make an overtrick, hoping that I held the heart queen.  When the finesse failed, he made twelve tricks (6 spades, 2 hearts, the ace of diamonds and three diamond ruffs), and had nearly taken all thirteen.  I was left regretting my ill-judged decision to bid 6C, thereby pushing the opponents into a cold small slam made with only 20 high card points between the two hands.  Such is bridge in paradise!

If you have bridge questions, or to send me your interesting hands, please contact me at: [email protected].  I look forward to meeting you at the bridge table.

Café Ole moves up to first on pin count

Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League

Café Ole split their match against Jack Tar with each team getting two points, but with the USMC team losing four to Brother D it was enough for Café Ole to move into first place, based of total pins. Ooy Pluemkamon bowled a 514 series for Café Ole. Brother D moved up from seventh place to fourth.

Only 200 bowler on the day: Aht Johansson.

Bavaria remains in third place after they split the points 2-2 with Sabai Sabai Friday. Green Tree took all four points from VFW Post 9876 and they moved up from ninth to sixth place. Indiana won three points from Canada.
Aht Johansson, bowling as a Pacer, had the best series of the day with a 591 pin count and a 209 game. Most of the bowlers had a really bad bowling day due to the poor conditions of the lanes at Pattaya Plus Bowl. The lanes were poorly oiled and dirty.

Results & Standings Jan 15 (week 10) Pos.    Team                                       Score    Standings 1         Café Ole                                   2 – 2         32 - 20 2         U.S. Marines (USMC)                0 – 4         32 - 20 3         Bavaria                                     2 – 2      27.5 - 24.5 4         Brother D                                  4 - 0         26 - 26 5         Jack Tar                                    2 – 2      25.5 - 26.5 6         Green Tree                                4 - 0         25 - 27 7         Indiana                                     3 – 1         25 - 27 8         Sabai Sabai Friday                     2 - 2         25 - 27 9         Canada                                     1 - 3      22.5 - 29.5 10       VFW Post 9876                         0 - 4      19.5 - 32.5