It’s official - the Outback Golf Bar is on the move

Last week Capt’ Bob & General Jack completed negotiations to purchase what was formerly a Thai restaurant.

The new Outback Golf Bar coming soon.

Still on Siam Country Road and within 400 yards of the existing bar, work is already underway to provide additional staff accommodation, a 40 golf bag locker room and a freezer room as well as upgrading the kitchen and outside bar area.
The new Outback Golf Bar and Restaurant will be able to seat up to 80 people (both undercover and outside) and this pretty Thai style garden restaurant will blend well with the real Outback image as West meets East. The move is expected sometime towards the end of February; in the meantime it will be business as usual at the current premises, which is now on the market.

Jum Karagit is back

PSC golf from Lewiinski’s

Sunday, Jan. 17, Green Valley - Stableford
A Flight
1st Seamus Cotter (11) 38pts
2nd Chaten Patel (13) 35pts
3rd Peter LeNoury (8) 35pts
B Flight
1st Jum Karagit (21) 38pts
2nd Colm Mullen (15) 35pts
3rd Mick Folan (15) 35pts
Near Pins: No 2 Frank Higgins, No 9 Nick Strasshine, No12 Frank Higgins, No16 Colin Davis.
Ground control to Captain Cotter, “Hey up he’s won again.” Is it the rise in rank to captain or maybe just good golf? Whatever it is the captain is on fire as his 38 points won him co man of the match and senior flight honors.

Jum Karagit.

It is always bad luck to lose out on a podium finish on a count back, but Paraic McManus and Nick ‘The Bucky boot boy’ did with 35 points; Chaten Patel was a judged second with Peter LeNoury filling the flight with the same 35 points.
News travels fast in the ‘Land of Smiles’, especially when one’s partner with all the luck of the Irish was having the time of his life. Jum was back in a flash to take over were ‘young’ Pat left off, posting a great 38 points for co match honors and so replenish ‘young’ Pat’s bank account.
At last Irelands ‘The Right Honorable’ Colum Mullen put together a score worth a mention. Colum garnered 35 points to take second spot on a count back over Mick Folan. ‘The Donkey’ was one shot off the pace along with ‘Mussels’ (new moniker pending), ‘The Don’ and ‘Skippy’.
Monday, Jan 18, Greenwood - Stableford
A Flight
1st Neil Bramley (8) 35pts
2nd Jukka Kuskela (14) 33pts
B Flight
1st Michael Lenihan (17) 32pts
2nd Geoff Kubas (17) 27pts
The A and C nines at Greenwood was the challenge for today’s comp, and lighting fast greens had the Lewiinski’s gang at sixes and sevens, hence the poor scores.
Best score of the day was the 35 points put together by Neil Bromley in the senior flight; Jukka Kuskela was two shots adrift in second
Michael Lenihan took the top rung in the junior flight with 32 points. The second place went to Geoff ‘Elvis’ Kubas, who is certainly on song, with 27 points.
Michael Lenihan, Peter Le Noury and Peter ‘The President’ shared the ‘2’s pot.
Wednesday, Jan 20, Bangpra - Stableford
A Flight
1st Frank McNamara (16) 36pts
2nd Don Lehmer (15) 33pts
3rd Peter Le Noury (8) 33pts
B Flight
1st Jim Elphick (24) 37pts
2nd Jum Karagit (21) 36pts
3rd Peter Hedenbergh (19) 33pts
Only one man managed to better par today, Jim Elphick with a match winning 37 points and the junior division title. With the greens fast and tricky (but not as fast as Greenwood two days before), Jim remembered to keep the ball below the hole, and so took the day’s honors. Jum Karagit for the second time in two games stood on the podium in second spot with an even par round. Peter Hedenbergh rounded out the flight with 33 points.
The senior flight was a nightmare for ‘The Donkey’ to work out as there was a six-way tie for second and third places. ‘The Don’ gained second and Peter Le Noury was third, the count back victims were ‘Daddy Long Legs’ Bonner, ‘The ladies man’ Jimmy Day, ‘young’ Pat Reagan and Mick Folan.
Spare a thought if you will for Tom Prosser, who had a wonderful day despite enduring sixteen no-scoring holes.
Pueschl Ayako, Peter Chadwick and Terry Mangan split the ‘2’s pot.
Friday, Jan 22, Treasure Hill - Stableford
A Flight
1stTore Eliassen (15) 39pts
2nd Tom McManus (10) 35pts
3rd Don Lehmer (15) 34pts
B Flight
1st Bobby Collis (17) 39pts
2nd Mark Bonner (17) 36pts
3rd Tom Gorey (17) 34pts
C Flight
1st Sic Crawley (19) 36pts
2nd Seesa Phompimon (34) 36pts
3rd Gebi Kindle (20) 33pts
A very large Lewiinski’s turn out dictated that three flights were needed for the ever-challenging Treasure Hill, scene for today’s comp.
Tore Eliassen proved to be a very popular winner in the top flight and gain co man of the match, posting a very impressive 39 points. Ireland’s Tom McManus, the man in form, was four shots back for second while ‘The Don’ himself closed the flight a shot further back.
Bobby Collis posted the same 39 points to win B Flight and co man of the match. Tom Mark ‘Mussels’ Bonner showed he has settled in with an even par round for second. Tom Gorey rounded out the flight, gaining a count back decision over Frank McNamara who had three costly no-scoring holes.
Sid Crawley did the biz in C Flight with a solid even par round but it needed a count back verdict over Seesa Phompimon. Gebi Kindle again needed the assistance of a count back decision to fill the flight; Tom Kelly being the unlucky player.
Note: Lewiinski’s is situated on Pattaya Land Soi 1, Beach Road Soi 13/3 near to Walking Street. Anyone wishing to play with us just pop in and add your name to the list or call Colin on 089 826 0764. Transport is provided.

Slick greens at Greenwood take their toll

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s

Tuesday’s second, third and fourth, minus the ‘camera shy’ winner.

Derek Brook
Tuesday, Jan. 19, Greenwood A&B - Stableford
This is the course that is generally the most distant from Pattaya, if you disregard Bangpakong and Royal Lakeside. These days really they are all well within distance and a trip to Greenwood can be done in well under 50 minutes, indeed the other two mentioned take little more than the hour, so all these courses are a fine day out.
On this day I sat in with Dick Warberg and he went via the road past Laem Chabang and Burapha, quite a good way there and reasonably traffic free, and we seemed to get there in no time, then I woke up. The course on the day was quite busy, but we were away on time and as the first group we were round in about 4 hours, those behind in about 30 minutes more, pretty good.
On the day all the tees were back and many white tees were indeed on the blue, this with a strong wind made for a tough day so we knew scores would not be great. However, the course was in great condition, with green fairways, tough rough, and greens that were the best I have played for months. Indeed so fast were the greens that multiple putts were common place. The general consensus was that the course in this condition was as good any as we have played for a long time.
The scores were low but the winner was Gabriel Enright with 35 points ahead of Brian Gabe with 33 points on count back over John Marritt in third. In fourth was our new ‘vegetarian for the month’ Kevin Dunne with 30 points.
1st Gabriel Enright 35pts
2nd Brian Gabe 33pts
3rd John Marritt 33pts
4th Kevin Dunne 30pts
Near Pins: Gabriel Enright (2), Kamiichi, Richard Kubicki.
Long Putts: Dick Warberg, Neil Shaw.
Friday, Jan. 22, Rayong C.C. - Stableford
After hearing of a few groups getting bumped due to tour groups and a lack of golf carts being available when we last visited this venue, we returned here with a bit of reluctance. But with the PSC vouchers it is a great price and most of our golfers really like the course.
After reconfirming our tee time a couple of times prior to Friday and reserving an adequate number of golf carts we headed off from Bert’s after breakfast. Other than a bit of a delay on the first tee due to an earlier heavy rain shower that had delayed a few groups getting off on time, our groups were in golf carts, if they wanted, and on the course.
The course was in good condition although the greens were a bit slower than the last time we were here, and the fact that there is evidence of continuing work on and around the course bodes well for the future availability of this fine venue. The pace of play was leisurely to say the least due to the high season number of players ahead of us and we all finished in about 5 hours. All in all, not bad, and not one drop of rain fell during our round, unlike Pattaya which received quite a drenching we learned later.
Back at Tropical Bert’s with scores tallied and plates of chicken cashew tucked away, the results were announced and prizes handed out. Well done by all.
1st Tom Breslin 37pts,
2nd Derek Brook 36pts,
3rd Don Carmody 35pts,
4th Cees Hoeboer 32pts
Near Pins: Don Carmody (2), Derek Brook, Bob Benda.

IPGC Sunday Golf at Green Valley

Sunday, Jan. 17 - Stableford
Div.1
1st Dave Stockman 38pts
2nd Brian Wilkinson 35pts
3rd Steve Mulberry 35pts
4th Kjetil Hadland 33pts
Div. 2
1st Roar Berger 35pts
2nd Sean Hallahan 35pts
3rd Kevin Hamilton 34pts
4th Chris Knapp 33pts
Dave Stockman can be relied upon to play close to his 6 handicap and today was no exception as he stormed away with the 1st division. Brian Wilkinson, nursing painful fingers that adversely affect his grip, battled manfully to take second spot on count back from Steve Mulberry. Kjetil Hadland, who is used to playing in much colder conditions, returned a creditable 33 points to take the minor position.
Roar Berger had an outstanding round playing off his 26 handicap to take the 2nd division. Roar is a Pattaya regular from Norway and it was good to see him in the winner’s enclosure. Sean Hallahan was unlucky to be beaten on count back by the rampant Roar. Kevin Hamilton put in a steady performance to take third position.
‘2’s were in abundance again today with Dave Stockman, Steve Mulberry, Dave Mathers, Terry Kelly, and Ted Murphy sharing the spoils.
Sunday, Jan. 24 - Stableford
Div. 1
1st Phil Mitchell 37pts
2nd Brian Wilkinson 37pts
3rd Russell Exley 36pts
4th Joe McArdle 36pts
Div. 2
1st Damien Montague 35pts
2nd Joe Peters 35pts
3rd Chris Knapp 34pts
4th Kevin Hamilton 33pts
Another high turnout with 8 Tees being filled for the second consecutive week. We are blessed with a regular Irish contingent and they were in strong evidence today. The lovely Irish brogue and impish sense of fun so typical of the Irish people filled the air, reminiscent of the atmosphere at the Cheltenham Festival where Irish raiding parties regularly empty the bookmaker’s money satchels.
The 1st division saw a close contest where Phil Mitchell, playing off his 6 handicap, managed to see off Brian Wilkinson. It took a close count back to separate the two players. Russell Exley, steady as always, followed close behind in third, beating Joe McArdle on count back.
The 2nd division was taken by Damien Montague, fighting off fellow Irishman Joe Peters on count back in the final furlong. Chris Knapp was several lengths back in third place, just pipping Kevin Hamilton who was on the podium for the second successive week.
There was only a single ‘2’ today, bringing a smile to the face of Steve Mulberry.
The presentations were held at the Golf Centre Bar, Green Valley with amiable hosts John and Geoff, assisted by their attractive staff, taking excellent care of the many golfers.
For further details on Sunday IPGC Golf at Green Valley, phone Russell Exley 084 782 4582.

Schramm comes in from the cold

IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar

It was the turn of Rayong C.C. on Sunday, January 17 to host the Pattaya Golf Society for another of their weekend stableford competitions and the course is still improving with every visit.
The substantial field was divided into two flights at 13 and under and good scores were at a premium as for the first time the group played the course in a strong wind. It made the back nine very long, especially the closing two holes.
In the second flight Phil “PJ” Mitchell stuttered to 29 points for a surprising third place finish whilst Martin Hennessy and Mr Len shared the win with 31 points each. It was unimpressive stuff on a windy day.
In the top flight Chris Voller loosened up in anticipation of receiving a new driver with 34 points and third place, closely following the 35 points score of Peter Ditz. The flight winner was Rick Schramm, newly returned from a wintry Canada, and the sun on his back brought out the best in his game and he took the flight with 36 well-earned points.
There were no birdie ‘2’s and the two competition pots were suitably enhanced.
Albert Craigie, a thoroughly experienced Scottish golfer, took to the course immediately on his first visit, praising its fine layout, and proceeded to find only twenty-two points for his card. He also took to his first PGS ‘Booby Bevy’ back at Rabbi’s later! There is no better way of enjoying a Pattaya Sunday than golf with a large group of friends on a challenging course.
Taki takes Khao Kheow
Khao Kheow was immaculate when the Pattaya Golf Society played a stableford competition there on Tuesday, January 19. The fairways were excellent and the greens were running at a sporting 10.5 pace, putting touch and accuracy at a premium.
Full of anticipation the large field was divided into two competitive flights at fourteen and under and the round got underway immediately in a fresh breeze before the ladies of the Honda-PTT Challenge tour event on the A and C nines.
In the second flight Dave Cadwallader and Tom Atkins shared second place with splendidly crafted scores of 34 points, just one behind the in-form Ronnie Ramsay who continued his winning streak in style.
In the top flight Pete Sumner joined David Thomas (at last!) on 35 points for a share of third place but the honours of the day in the top flight went to Mike Earley and Kasuo Takimoto whose 37 points scores were the only sub par rounds of the competition. Taki’s contribution was also the day’s best gross of 77 shots.
David Thomas secured the day’s only birdie ‘2’ to increase his pocket money and he was left regretting the “blob” on C4 and his bogey-bogey finish on two relatively easy holes.
The Booby Bevy went to Yvonne Earley after her low score just pipped that of Booby Shirkey on count back. Scores apart it had been a wonderful day out at Khao Kheow, surely pre-eminent amongst the province’s courses at the moment for its condition and value for money for the IPGC groups.
Ramsay on the rampage
Escaping the stifle of Pattaya on Thursday, January 21, the Pattaya Golf Society travelled to Pattana to play a stableford competition on the B and C nines, which were well presented and Pattana’s efficient irrigation system had “greened up” the course and left little run.
The day was comfortably cool and the large field was divided into two flights at eighteen and under. Two members of the group were Brian and Kerry Eames, visiting on the anniversary of the sad passing of their brother Dougie, and the poignancy of the occasion was not lost by many of his friends.
In an extremely competitive top flight Larry Slattery, Kasuo Takimoto and Peter Duncan all posted scores of 37 points for a share of the honours and for Peter it was his first sub-par round in almost a year, ironically on the eve of his departure back to work.
The second flight saw Margaret Wilkinson take third place with 32 points, with Allen Dow coming second on 36. The flight winner, again, was Ronnie Ramsay, emulating his feats of the previous three rounds and the Scottish oil worker found his game was running like a well lubricated machine.
Margaret recorded the only second flight birdie ‘2’ whilst the top flight birdie boys were Rick Schramm, Ray Banks, Tony Atkins and Larry Slattery.
The Booby Bevy went to Mr Len for the shot of the day which epitomised his whole round when a prodigious three wood on the seventeenth peaked at 190 yards, struck a tree and rebounded back fully thirty yards into a hazard.
The final two groups finished the round in the rain which had hung around for an hour or so but it did nothing to spoil the day for the PGS at Pattana.

Duthie dominates at Green Valley

Jomtien Golf with the IPGC

Monday, Jan 18, Green Valley – Stableford
It was an overcast day upon arrival with a slight breeze and the conditions were perfect for golf. Having our tee-off on the tenth hole bang on schedule also kept everyone happy.

Tony Duthie relaxes after his 43 points at Green Valley.

Sang Ryves was one of those smiling most after winning the ladies competition with 33 points, with Miss Nang coming second on 29 and Miss Faa in third place two points behind her.
There were three divisions in the men’s competition today and with the highest score of the day, after a four over par front nine, Tony Duthie won the second division with 43 points. Cully Monks meanwhile beat Ben Findon on a back 3 count back of 6/4 to claim the runner up spot after they both came in with 36 points.
Jimmy Johnson won the third flight with 37 points, with Randy Flello coming second on 29 and Gordon Everingham beat ‘the old man’ on a count back of 14/13 on the back six for third after they both tied on 28 points.
Paul Brummie finished top of the first division with 35 points on count back over Paul Borg in second. Arvo Hillier took third place with 33 points.
Tony Duthie shared the ‘2’s dividends with Berny and the Near Pins went to (Div 1) Don Head x2, Raivo Velsberg and Harry Vincenzi, (Div 2) Berny x2, Tony Duthie and Randy Flello, and (Ladies) Mam Morel and Sang Ryves.
Wednesday, Jan. 20, Greenwood – Stableford
With a new agreed IPGC green fee reduction price this was our first visit here for probably at least nine months, and with the course condition the best we have seen for a long time, especially the greens, we have now booked for the next few months.
Billy Hewitt bounced back after no placings in the last few weeks to win division 1 with 36 points; Brian Beaupra was second with 34 and in third place came Barry Stirling with 33.
In the second tier the handicap cut was 15-19 today and Harry Cowling came in with 31 points to take first place. Meanwhile Keith Hector beat Harry Vincenzi into second place on a 15/14 back nine count back after they both finished with 30 points.
Barry Rawlinson topped out division 3 with 32 points followed by two players fighting for second place with 28 points, John Harvey beating Ray Atkinson on a 13/11 back nine count back.
Nar Hector won the ladies division with 25 points with yet again Miss Nang in the listings, taking second spot with 21 points.
Andres Kaar, playing off 12, birdied B2 and B5 to win both prizes in the first division ‘2’s competition and the Near Pins went to (Div 1.) Brian Beaupre, Bill Hewitt, Andres Karr and Les Utting, (Div 2.) Gordon Everingham and Randy Flello, and (Ladies) Valentina Hillier.
Friday, Jan 22, Eastern Star – Stableford
After nine holes of play the clouds thickened all around and the caddies were predicting heavy rain. The first group reached the 17th hole before the light rain started, luckily this was spasmodic over the next hour and didn’t affect any of our groups.
There were 7 ladies and 36 men out in the four divisions today.
Neville Scurell won the top flight honours with a well crafted 39 points. Don Head took second place 7 points behind while Bill Hewitt was a further point back in third.
The second tier saw a win for Bryan Rought with 34 points on a count back over Mike Theedham. Andy Oz filled out the podium in third place on 33 points.
Barry Rawlinson had a similar 33 points to win division 3 ahead of Jimmy Johnson (30pts) in second and David Phillips (29pts) in third.
Last but not least, Miss Nang put together a fine round of 38 points to secure victory in the Ladies flight ahead of Miss Faa (34pts) and Miss Nut (30pts).
There were no ‘2’s today and the Near Pins were claimed by (Div 1) Wilf Latham, John McLoone, Harry Riley and Timo, (Div 2) Randy Flello x2 and Andy Oz, and (Ladies) Miss Faa and Miss Nut.

‘Field of dreams’ becomes a reality for Huayyai kids

The children hoist a PSC flag and celebrate
the opening of their new football pitch.

Paul Strachan
In September 2009, I was approached by Ben Bryant a student from St Andrews International School regarding CAS (Creativity, Action & Service) which forms part of the International Baccalaureate programme he is following as part of his studies.
Ben’s passion is football and he wondered how I could help him marry: football, CAS and media into one project.

The waterlogged area prior to renovation.
My immediate response was to contact my colleague at the Pattaya Blatt, Elfi Seitz who works closely with the Child Protection and Development Center in Huayyai.
The Center currently takes care of 36 boys and girls who are 6-18 years of age. Most of them are street children and the victims of child abuse. They live at the centre and receive occupational training that supports their education.
Currently, 29 children are learning formal education, and the 7 remaining children are preparing for the next school semester.
I knew from TV interviews and articles in the Pattaya Mail the outstanding work that the Centers Director Supakorn Noja had achieved in the last few years so Ben, Elfi and I made the trip down to Huayyai to meet him and the children.
We were delighted to find that the kids had a makeshift football pitch, so the passion was there, only problem was, the pitch was full of holes, boulders and was not really a safe place for the kids to enjoy themselves.

Paul Strachan talks to Ben Bryant (left), one of the innovators of the project.
However the plot of land at the camp is quite extensive measuring approximately 11 Rai and 79 Wah2 and there was an area that, although waterlogged and uneven, was big enough to put a slightly reduced football pitch.
So now we had the location, we now needed the capital to make it happen. Elfi suggested that we contact the Pattaya Sports Club, so we invited the Charity Chairman William Macey to come and have a look at the project. William was very excited about the club being involved in an initiative that was sports based and he immediately got to work getting quotes on transforming this piece of waste ground into a playable surface.
Due to the high cost of watering grass, it was thought that this would not be the line to take so it was decided to use a mixture of earth and small stones, which would be hardy enough for running around but soft enough so that if the kids did take a tumble, the only thing that would be bruised would be their ego’s.
In the end it was the Huayyai municipality that impressed William the most and he put their quote to PSC committee.
As hoped for he got massive thumbs up from his colleagues and work commenced on the ground at Huayyai in late December 2009 under a budget of 150,000 baht.
It took 200 trucks filled with earth to bring up the level of the land which finally made an area measuring 34 by 48 metres.
So on the 17th of January there was the official opening of the playing field, replete with netted goal posts and white pitch markings.
On the day the Pattaya Sports Club handed out a huge assortment of polo & football shirts to the kids and they didn’t need a whistle to let them know that it was time to have some fun.
Ben Bryant was also there and joined the kids on the pitch and pledged that he would train the kids every Sunday afternoon to pass on his skills.
It was smiles all round, with the Pattaya Sports Club delighted that they were able to fund and support this project, with Ben having achieved his dream and of course most importantly the children who can use the pitch for exercise and fun as they start a new, happier chapter in their lives.
And I was overjoyed at being able to help facilitate a project such as this, using my contacts and experience I feel I have helped Ben, the PSC, the kids and hopefully you will agree, I got a good story out of it as well.

The new playing field gets some immediate use.

Bridge in Paradise : by Neil Robinson

This hand was dealt in a Chicago game recently.  East-West were vulnerable and West dealt: 

                        S: Q6432

                        H: A98752

                        D: 73

                        C: -                

S: 108                                     S: 95

H: 43                                      H: QJ106

D: A1098                               D: KJ6

C: AQ732                              C: J1094

                        S: AKJ7

                        H: K

                        D: Q542

                        C: K865          

The bidding was straightforward: 

West    North     East        South

P           P              P              1C

P           1H           P              1S

P           3S            P              4S

All pass                                               

The four of hearts was led.  The problem is how to make the contract.  Put yourself in South’s seat and decide on a plan before reading on.  It is tempting to take the ace and king of hearts and then try and cross-ruff the hand out without pulling trumps.  If you can make all nine trumps separately you will take eleven tricks for an overtrick, losing only two diamonds.  The difficulty is that you run the risk of being over-ruffed at some point.  Declarer tried this tempting line of play at the table and ended up going down one.
The alternative is to pull trumps first.  But, if you do this, how can you set up your hand?  You have eight potentially losing cards in the minors.  One can be thrown on the ace of hearts.  Even if you can pull trumps in only two rounds you will be left with only three trumps on board to ruff your losers in hand.  That still leaves four losers and you go one down.
The solution lies in dummy’s six card heart suit.  Dummy has no trump losers (when combined with the high trumps in hand), no club losers and only two diamond losers.  If you can play the heart suit for only one loser, then you have the contract made.  As the cards lie, trumps split.  Pull them in two rounds, ending on board.  Then play the ace of hearts and ruff a low heart.  Cross back to dummy by ruffing a club and ruff another low heart with your last trump.  Now dummy’s remaining hearts are good, and you lose only two diamonds.  Eleven tricks made.
Even if trumps are not quite so friendly and need three rounds to pull them, you will still make the contract after conceding a heart to set them up - you take five trump tricks, one heart ruff, two high hearts and two long hearts for ten tricks.  This is a dummy reverse, which is often useful, particularly when dummy has a long suit, but sometimes difficult to see.  All of us tend to focus on setting up our own hand, rather then dummy.  If your plan of play for this hand was a dummy reverse, congratulations!
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.

New golf player in town

For those looking to play a round of golf while staying in Pattaya, a new alternative outlet has just opened up to individuals and groups of golf enthusiasts who want to take advantage of the tremendous golf courses and facilities here on the Eastern Seaboard.

Arne Dahlin and his friendly staff await you at the Players & Traveller company office at the entrance to the Grand Sole Hotel on Pattaya 2nd Road.

Run by Swedish man Arne Dahlin, the Players and Traveller Co., Ltd. aims to provide a first class all-in-one service to players wishing to sample the extensive choice of golf courses in the area, and at very competitive rates. For those travelling from abroad, the company also offers accommodation in some of the finest hotels in Pattaya at great discounts when booked as a total golf package, and airport transfers are also included as part of the deal.
Subject to numbers, Arne hopes to hold regular weekly competitions for those seeking a little more than just a relaxing round of golf and the full course schedule, together with all the price information, can be found on the company website at www.playersandtraveller .com and also here in the Pattaya Mail.
Set for a grand opening on February 1, Arne and his staff can be easily located in their office on the ground floor of the Grand Sole Hotel on Pattaya 2nd Road, opposite Hard Rock Café or by calling 083 589 9100.
So call in and find out what great offers they have for golfers of all ages, nationalities and abilities, and in no time you can be teeing it up on some of the best golf courses here in Asia.

‘Wood’ you believe it?

PSC golf from The Golf Club

Robert Newell
Monday, Jan 18, Green Valley - Stableford
1st Joe Stranks (8) 37pts
2nd Brian Wilkinson (16) 37pts
3rd John Dearden (19) 37pts
Following last weeks exhausting tour of Kanchanaburi and Bangkok it was to be expected today’s field would be smaller than normal. In fact more than one or two were absent through some kind of mystery illness, not entirely attributable to the excess alcohol intake either. The show must go on though and those guys who did play enjoyed a great day for golf, not too hot and a very pleasant breeze. The course, apparently, was in good condition albeit with some patchy areas and scoring was good but not great.
Steve ‘Rigsby’ Mulberry and ‘the font of all knowledge’ JJ Wright defied the fatigue factor, but only just: cards of 31 points fell below their normal standard. New boy Barry Wood posted a 33 off his 7 handicap and our recent Aussie imports, Steve Coghlan and Gary Emmett, seem to be now coming to grips with Thai golf. Both are continuing on an upward curve and, indeed, both carded 35 points.
Up in the top placings, amazingly all 3 of the winners returned scores of 37 points! Once more the comedy moment was produced by who else but ‘Weak-side’ Wilko (I make no apologies but I did predict this weeks ago).
As the cards came in ‘Weak-side’ knew he had beaten JTB on count back and proclaimed (as only he can), “Well if you can’t win fair, win on count back, ha ha.” Unfortunately for him Joe Stranks’ card, with a better back 9, had not yet come in. Brian was holding court (yawn) as it did, so I tapped him on the shoulder and said, “Brian what was that quote you made, I want to put it in the paper.” After repeating it he added, “I like that one myself”. To roars from the gang I said, “I’m glad about that mate because Joe got 22 on the back!” I swear his cigar bounced 2 feet off the floor!
Wednesday, Jan. 20, Phoenix - Stableford
1st Kevin Moraghan (12) 35pts
2nd Mark Wood (11) 35pts
Phoenix is doing itself no favours at the moment with its pricing structure. Due to a couple of late cry-offs we arrived with less than 20 players and were somewhat shocked to find, because of this, the green fee and caddy fee for walking was 1,450 baht. Add a buggy to this of 600 baht and its clear to see that at over 2,000 baht this course does not represent good value when compared to others around. On- course prices are costly too, with a can of Heineken at 90 baht. With your caddy tip and a few refreshments this venue is now an expensive day out and I think we have no choice but to limit the times we play here.
Back with us from the North Sea was the catalogue man himself Dale Shier. It was, however, a somewhat subdued reappearance though as the promised new 2010 collection was not aired due to a small sizing error. Apparently the services of one of our local tailors have been employed due to the fact Dale couldn’t get his trim, lithe body into the 38’s!
He also struggled with his new 8 handicap and put the blame firmly on the shoulders of the Aberdeen crooner Mark Wood. Mark was, on Dale’s last visit, quite vociferous about his handicap. How ironical then that Dale has come down while Mark has shot out to 11. He has to be the best 11 handicapper in Thailand!
Scoring was on the low side today; ‘boom boom’ McHugh showed some promise but finished with only 32. ‘The Mountie’ Sproxton started poorly but then strung together a long succession of pars for 34. That left 3 guys tied on 35 and battling for the 2 money places. Losing out was the unlucky Dave Mather with 17 on the back. Taking second with a 19 point back 9 was that man Mark Wood. His voice has not been heard for a while and, for a moment, deep in the night, we thought he was about to make a comeback. Alas, it wasn’t to be and it was left to Seamless and ‘Jacko’ Jackson to entertain the crowd at Mulligans. With a great 21 points on the back it was ‘gentleman’ Kevin Moraghan who took today’s top spot.
Friday, Jan. 22, Bangpra - Stableford
1st Mark Wood (11) 42pts
2nd Martin Solberg (18) 38pts
3rd Steve Mulberry (12) 36pts
4th Dave Mather (10) 35pts
5th Vic Hestor (14) 34pts
We had a great turn-out today but boy was it slow. Arriving late on, as we do to get the reduced green fee, we were greeted by the sight of massed coaches and mini-buses filling the car park. The collective sigh must have been audible back in Pattaya. Not only was it packed but our first tee time ended up about a half hour later than scheduled making it an extremely long day before we arrived back, in darkness I might add.
Apart from a few exceptions at the top end of the field, the course, again, gave very little away. It is possible to score well here but, more often than not, a score around par puts you in with a good chance. If your game is only slightly off then you will struggle, as I can testify to! The scores were generally bunched around the middle to high 20’s and low 30’s, just bog-standard stuff that should never get in the places.
With us today were one or two new boys, Dan Johnston, Brent Peacock and Graham Howard were amongst them as were the 3 new Welsh boys, Viv, Brian and David (‘there’s lovely isn’t it”) but, you must try harder guys!
Back on a fleeting visit and taking advantage of us having 5 places today was Vic Hestor. He fired a 34 and took the fifth placing. Up in the 3rd and 4th spots were those two constant sparring partners, not Abbott and Costello or Simon and Garfunkel, but Mather and Mulberry. Dave’s 35 got him 4th while ‘Rigsby’ notched 3rd with 36.
Now in second and unlucky, as any other day his 38 would easily be enough for top spot, was Martin Solberg. At present, it seems the words unlucky and Martin Solberg go quite well together, as the rather vivid, red scars above the eye seem to prove. Sixty- odd stitches, that’s no laughing matter but I had to chuckle over the thought of his attacker debating, “Hmm, shall I take the 9 iron for more loft or the utility for distance?” Tiger’s missus could learn a thing or two there.
This brings me on to today’s winner. If you look at the last but one paragraph in the previous report you’ll see that I’m quite a clairvoyant, not that I needed a crystal ball to predict this outcome (I’ve played too many times with this guy to know what he can do). Mark Wood, 42 points. Yes, that’s correct, no misprint. A full 4 shots better than a very good second place 38. A terrific round and I’ll say no more.

“We Love Pattaya” holds first bowling tournament

Staff Reporters
Social networking online has recently become a huge phenomenon with applications like Facebook and Twitter attracting hundreds of millions of users all over the globe.
The Facebook Group “We Love Pattaya” which has grown to just over 1,000 members since its foundation in December 2009 decided to also do some “real-world” networking and held its first Bowling tournament at Blu-O Bowl at the Avenue Shopping Center. Eight teams competed over three games to find the best team and the best individuals, with separate scoring for male and female players.

Uli Kaiser congratulates women’s champion Eva Kühlbeck with the men’s winner Alain Duerwaerder stood center in the background.

First and second prizes were provided by the Amari Nova Suites, who sponsored a “We Love Pattaya” weekend and Shambala Wakeboarding Thailand, which sponsored the second prize – a fun day of wakeboarding and water skiing for the whole family at their resort in Dok Krai, Rayong. Blu-O Bowl sponsored a number of Bowling vouchers for the first, second and third placed teams.
The winner of the first prize for men was Alain Duerwaerder, MD of Katoen Natie, while the women’s top award went to Eva Kühlbeck, both are from Pattaya.
Facebook group founder, Uli Kaiser, said that he was very pleased at how the group developed and how the event had been accepted by the local community. The next Bowling tournament of “We Love Pattaya” will be on March 6 this year. Michael Procher, General Manager of the Amari Nova Suites, the Nova Platinum and the Nova Gold Hotel has already announced they will be proudly sponsoring this next event with a “We Love Pattaya” package in one of their hotels.
You can find the Facebook group by searching for “We Love Pattaya” on Facebook and it is free to join.

Jack Tar makes a moves into third

Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League

200 Bowlers: Nok, Rich, Aht, Mai, Leen and Mio.

Jack Tar moved up from fifth to third place after winning all four points from second placed USMC. Mai Munsitha led Jack Tar with a 205 game and 552 series. Somrak rolled a 531 for USMC.
Brother D won three points from Green Tree to remain in fourth place while La Montgomery bowled a 513 series to lead Indiana to a three point win over Bavaria. Rich Montana bowling as a Pacer had games of 223, 198 and 190 for a 611 series.
Nok Kennedy bowled a 225 game and 574 series to lead Sabai Sabai Friday to a three point win over Café Ole. Canada was led by Tue Pettae who bowled a 541 series to take all four points from VFW Post 9876.