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McDowell holds
on to win US Open
Doug Ferguson
Pebble Beach, Cal. (AP) - Graeme McDowell of
Northern Ireland closed with a 3-over 74 last Sunday to become the first
European in 40 years to capture the U.S. Open.
Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland holds up the trophy after winning
the U.S. Open golf tournament Sunday, June 20, at the Pebble Beach Golf
Links in Pebble Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
McDowell seized control after a shocking collapse by
Dustin Johnson, then failed to get flustered with Tiger Woods, Phil
Mickelson and Ernie Els lined up behind him.
McDowell’s father was waiting to embrace him on the
18th green.
“You’re something, kid,” Kenny McDowell said.
McDowell, 30, wasn’t perfect, but he was good enough
to take the initiative and hold on for a one-shot victory over another
surprise contender, Gregory Havret of France, who shot 72.
Johnson took a triple bogey on the second hole to
lose all of his three-shot lead, and a double bogey on the next hole
ended his hopes. Three of the biggest stars of this generation were
right there, ready to continue the lineage of great champions at Pebble
Beach, only to play far below their expectations.
McDowell made only one birdie — an 8-foot birdie putt
on the fifth hole — and his final round was the highest score by a U.S.
Open champion since Andy North in 1985.
“I can’t believe I’m standing with this right now,”
McDowell said, posing with silver trophy. “It’s a dream come true. I’ve
been dreaming it all my life. Two putts to win the U.S. Open. Can’t
believe it happened.”
Woods couldn’t believe it, either.
Poised to end six months of bad publicity over a
shattered personal life, he bogeyed five of his first 10 holes and took
himself out of contention with a 75.
Els and Mickelson hung around a little longer, and
both had their chances, but neither hit the kind of shots that win the
U.S. Open.
Els had a brief share of the lead on the front nine
but came undone along the coastal holes — including one stretch of
bogey-double bogey-bogey — and never quite recovered. His hopes ended
when he missed his target with a sand wedge on the par-5 14th and took
bogey, then missed a four-foot birdie putt on the 15th. He closed with a
73 to finish alone in third.
Mickelson, with another great chance to end a career
of disappointment at the U.S. Open, holed a birdie putt from just off
the green on the first hole, then didn’t made another birdie the rest of
the day. He also shot a 73 and tied for fourth with Woods, missing a
chance to supplant Woods at No. 1 in the world.
Woods made only two birdies, but was more troubled by
his mistakes.
“I made three mental mistakes,” Woods said. “The only
thing it cost us was a chance to win the U.S. Open.”
Even so, nothing compares with what happened to
Johnson. The 25-year-old American looked so unflappable all week, and
came apart so quickly. On the final hole of a round he won’t forget,
Johnson missed a two-foot birdie putt and wound up with an 82. It was
the highest closing round by a 54-hole leader in the U.S. Open since
Fred McLeod shot 83 in 1911.
McDowell finished at even-par 284 and ended 40 years
of questions about when a European would capture America’s national
championship. England’s Tony Jacklin was the last one, in 1970 at
Hazeltine.
McDowell had to work harder than he imagined though.
Even under overcast skies and a stiff breeze, the
course was firm and dangerous as ever. Davis Love III, with a 71, was
the only player among the final five groups who matched par.
“I can’t believe how difficult this golf course was,”
McDowell said. “No matter how good you play ... good golf got reward,
and bad golf got punished really badly.”
McDowell got into the U.S. Open by narrowly getting
into the top 50 in the world at the deadline to avoid qualifying. He
wound up with his first victory in America to go along with five
European Tour victories, most recently the Wales Open last month at the
home course for the Ryder Cup in October. He is sure to be part of the
European team now, moving up to No. 13 in the world.
Only the best have won a U.S. Open at Pebble Beach —
Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Tom Kite and Woods in 2000 by a record 15
shots. Lanny Wadkins won the only PGA Championship played on this fabled
course by the sea.
McDowell might not have the pedigree, but he
certainly had the game.
“To play steady and to withstand some tough holes the
way Graeme did and to come out on top, he played some great golf,”
Mickelson said. “It was a wide-open tournament. Many guys had a chance.
And it made for kind of an exciting U.S. Open, I thought.”
With so few birdies to cheer on a day that was more
about survival, the gentle waves lapping the shore almost made more
noise than the gallery. McDowell had a three-shot lead as he walked down
the 10th fairway, and from there it was a matter of hanging on.
“You go chasing and you’ll make bogeys,” McDowell
said.
Mickelson gave it one last try when he fired at a
dangerous pin on the right side of the 16th green. It came up just short
and buried in the deep grass, and when the Masters champion heard the
groan, he said to caddie Jim Mackay, “I took a chance, Bones. Didn’t pay
off.”
Els played the par-3 17th in 5-over par for the week,
including a bogey from the bunker on Sunday. Needing an eagle on the
18th to have any chance, he came up woefully short and to the right in a
bunker.
None of this would have been possible without
Johnson’s collapse, which was simply spectacular.
He had a three-shot lead and was in the middle of the
fairway at No. 2 with a wedge in his hand after a 343-yard drive. When
he walked off the green at No. 4, he was three shots behind, a six-shot
turnaround in three holes.
With 15 holes remaining in the final round, the U.S.
Open was wide open, setting up perfectly for the three biggest names in
golf — Woods, Mickelson and Els — to seize the moment.
To most everyone’s surprise, none of them did.
New artificial football
field opens in Pattaya
Dignitaries cut the ribbon to officially open
the new
sports complex on Monday, June 14.
Vimolrat Singnikorn
Pattaya soccer players now have a new venue to
showcase their skills with the opening this month of the K Football
Stadium on Pattaya Central Road (Klang).
The new facility boast two synthetic grass football
pitches, one measuring 44 x 24m for 5-6 players a side, and the other 50
x 35m for 7-8 players. The Xtreme Turf artificial grass used to cover
the pitches is of the latest design and technology and conforms to FIFA
world standards, ensuring that footballers can play without fear of any
injury from a substandard surface.
A view of one of the soccer pitches at the new K Football Stadium.
The owner and brains behind the new venture is
Theeraboon Kanawatanakul who welcomed guests and dignitaries to the
grand opening on Monday, June 14, including Sonthaya Khunplome, the
former Minister of Tourism and Sports.
Theeraboon said, “This artificial football field has
the purpose of supporting football and exercise in Pattaya and provides
two quality pitches where the public and schools can play football 24
hours a day.”
Other services provided at the facility include a
caf้ with Wifi Internet and a VIP room that shows important soccer
matches on a large screen.
The cost to hire the pitches is 1,200 THB /hour for
the smaller field and 1,500 THB /hour for the larger one. Schools that
need a training field can also use the facility at a special price.
The K Football Stadium is located on Pattaya Central Road about half
way between second and third roads. For more information call
083-220-3200 or visit at www.kfspattaya.com.
Firman wonder strike seals league and cup double for City
MBMG International League Cup Final 2009 - 2010
The cup winning Pattaya City football team (already
changed into civvies) pose with their trophy following their 2-1 win over
The Londoner team in Bangkok last weekend.
Paul Frain
Pattaya City, already crowned MBMG International League
champions for 2010, completed a rare league and cup double last weekend in
Bangkok.
The Pattaya team reached the cup final after beating the
German all stars 2-1 in the semi’s with Earnest Dipita scoring the first
before the All Stars leveled things up before half time. City’s Attapon
Dapayo then scored the winner midway through the second half to secure their
cup final place.
Old rivals, The Londoner, who were last season’s
champions, had an easier ride in their semi-final as their opponents didn’t
turn up, so the Londoner went through to face their adversaries from Pattaya.
Both teams started cautiously in the final, testing and
probing each other’s defenses, with City’s Earnest Dipita coming closest to
opening the scoring when his snapshot just sailed over the bar in the
eleventh minute.
As the game opened up however, it was the Londoner who
went ahead when a curling centre found their forward unmarked and he made no
mistake to head the ball home and give his team the lead.
City replied back immediately and Emmanuel Tshuma made a
great run down the left before pulling the ball back to City’s captain Craig
Banks whose shot was brilliantly saved by the Londoner keeper. As Pattaya
pushed for an equalizer, however, they were increasingly frustrated by the
Londoner defense and forced into shooting from long range. The first half
ended with the Bangkok team still holding their lead.
City knew they needed to show all their fighting spirit
in the second half and they came out in determined mood, putting the
Londoner defense under increasing pressure. Patrice Lowe had a shot well
blocked before Earnest Dipita was brought down in the Londoner area
following one of his mazy runs and Lowe converted the resultant penalty kick
to even the scores at 1-1.
The Pattaya side now threw everything into attack but the
Londoner defense held firm and the Bangkok team nearly retook the lead
following a mix up in the City defense that saw the ball roll just wide of
an unguarded goal.
Then, with the clock ticking down and the prospect of a
penalty shootout looming, a devastating pass from City’s Patrice Lowe found
Eli Fineman who took the ball in his stride and smashed it into the roof of
the Londoner net from a very acute angle. A wonder goal which brought relief
to the Pattaya players and with only five minutes left it looked like City’s
cup.
The Londoner thought otherwise however and found the
strength to launch a series of attacks on the City goal, hitting the side
netting in the process. The last five minutes seemed more like 105 minutes,
with the City defense barely managing to clear their lines, but the Londoner
eventually ran out of time and it was City’s cup and the double was won.
The cup was presented to the Pattaya City captain Craig Banks by the
League secretary and the celebrations then started in earnest.
St Andrews students shine in primary sports event
Report Ed Cary
Photos Shane Looker
As the start of this month, June 4 to be precise, the St.
Andrews International School’s Primary FOBISSEA Team started a great trip
that culminated in a huge success at a regional sports day held at the
Regents School near Pattaya.
The girls showed great skill and commitment on the football field.
On the eve of the competition, our students stayed at the
Centara Grand Mirage Beach Resort, where the children had the opportunity to
enjoy the waterslides and spent a great afternoon amongst their friends and
their teachers. Later in the evening the kids were treated to a great buffet
dinner that included ice cream on demand and just after dinner everyone was
ready for a good night’s sleep.
The next day the children woke up full of excitement and
anticipation of the event ahead. They jumped out of bed early and were all
set to compete, but just before we left Centara there was still time for a
good breakfast to give the children enough energy for the fun-packed day
ahead.
A St. Andrews student kicks hard to win the butterfly race.
The journey to Regents was short but full of excitement:
the children were ready after all the training that preceded this friendly
competition! The day started with the swimming events followed by tee ball
and then football.
The Regents School, Pattaya were our hosts for the day
and they were also competing as well as an ‘All Star’ team composed of
students from ISE, Garden, Regents Bangkok, Bangkok Prep. and St. John’s.
Our team excelled in the swimming events and all our
athletes participated to the best of their abilities, showing all that they
had learned during the year. All the hard work and training paid off with an
impressive outcome where St Andrews won an overwhelming number of 1st
places in every stroke and in the relay events. Even Mr Walton, the
Headteacher at Regents, commented during the final presentation that he
thought that our students had done incredibly well and swam like fish!
Shortly after the swimming it was time for tee ball.
There were some great games and the score sheets were always very close. We
won some and we lost some but we all had fun playing.
After we had lunch, the football started. You would think
the children were tired by now but you would be wrong. The amount of
commitment and energy was amazing with the students working hard to tackle,
mark their opposition and score some goals. Everyone competed hard with fair
play and sportsmanship all round.
At the end of day all the teams came together for a
presentation of medals: the ‘All Star’ team finished the day in 3rd
place, The Regents School finished in 2nd place and in
1st place was St. Andrews International School. The
final result was a fabulous sporting achievement for our students and
reflected the hard work they had all put into their training.
A big thank you goes to our hosts for a wonderful day where fun, fair
play, sportsmanship and also hard work from the athletes were present in a
great sporting experience for the children.
The St. Andrews squad pose for a team photo.
PSC elects new Executive Committee
The new Pattaya Sports Club Executive Committee: (From left standing) Bob
Rasmussen - Public Relations Chairman, Nigel Cannon - Social Chairman, Peter
Malhotra - MD Pattaya Mail Media and past PSC President, Michael Johnston -
founder member of PSC, Bjarne Nielsen – Registrar, William Macey – Charity
Chairman, Joe Mooneyham – Golf Chairman, (Seated from left) Max Matthews –
PSC Secretary, Tony Oakes – PSC President, and Bob Clark – PSC Vice
President.
Staff Reporters
The Pattaya Sports Club (PSC) held their annual General
Meeting at the Town in Town Hotel, Pattaya on Saturday, June 19, with the
main matter of business being the election of a new Executive Committee for
the coming 12 months.
President Herbie Ishinaga called the meeting to order and
invited charter member and Past President Peter Malhotra to make his address
on behalf of the Pattaya Sports Club Association Committee.
Peter outlined the history of how the club was first
formed in 1979 and how it had grown to become the fully-fledged registered
association it is today.
He also clarified some of the points regarding the
responsibilities of the registered association committee and the advisory
committee, which runs the day-to-day business of the club.
Peter said that the committee was thrilled with the way
the association had grown and thanked everyone concerned for their
sacrifices and hard work in implementing the many humanitarian and
charitable projects to help the underprivileged and needy in our community.
Peter also stressed that whoever is elected to the
committees on that day that they should continue to stanchly uphold the
ideals of the PSC, which is to ‘Promote Sports and Support Local Charities’.
Following the various representations from nominees and a
round of voting, previous Golf Chairman Tony Oaks was elected to succeed
Herbert Ishinaga as the new PSC President with Bobby Clark taking up the
Vice Presidency.
The new PSC Secretary is Max Matthews and Graham
Buckingham has taken over as club Treasurer.
William Macey remains as the PSC Charity Chairman and
will be looking to continue his good work from last year.
On the sports front, Joe Mooneyham has succeeded Tony
Oakes as the Golf Chairman and has promised a few reforms with the current
monthly tournament format.
Bob Rasmussen will be in charge of public relations for
the PSC over the coming year and Bjarne Nielsen from the Café Kronborg is
elected as club registrar.
Finally, and completing the Executive Committee, Nigel
Canon has taken over as the Social Chairman.
Talking to PMTV following his election as new President,
Tony Oakes said: “I would like to uphold the traditions of what has gone on
before and I want to try and raise the status of the Pattaya Sports Club, an
organization that helps a lot of people here, promotes sports and aids
charities.
Tony continued by outlining his vision of how the PSC can help develop
local sports stars in the area. “And by promoting sport I don’t just mean
giving money to a golf tournament,” he said. “I would love to be able to
find a Thai individual who has got real potential and we can propel him
forward to be a future world champion!”
B. Bags United win Camel Summer Charity Classic 2010
Great support sees a record amount raised for the St. Camillus Foundation
The winning B. Bags United team get ready to tee off at
Emerald, Banchang.
For the 10th annual Camel Summer
Charity Classic the weather was fine but humid on Saturday, June 12, and 184
congenial golfers turned up at the Emerald Golf Course in Banchang in
support of this most worthy of causes, the St. Camillus Foundation which run
the Camillian Social Center – a relief center for HIV/AIDs affected people,
just out of Banchang, in Rayong.
The tournament runner’s up, Thai NDT, pose with their trophies.
This summer’s tournament raised a total of 410,200 baht,
a new tournament record, for the Camillians. The Camel Summer and Winter
Charity Classic tournaments, since inception, have now raised over 4 million
baht for the St Camillus Foundation.
Golfers from Banchang, Pattaya and Bangkok teed off from
6:30 a.m. and the organizers, once again, had everything arranged and in
order, from the easy registration (where a special thank you goes to Bob,
Vanessa, Tom, Steven, Rod and Kh Tong), to the carts, drink stands and all
of the technical prizes. Players received tournament shirts and caps, and
banners for major sponsors were located on each hole.
The organizers recognize the great support received and
extend our warm gratitude to the management, staff and caddies from Emerald
for turning the course and facilities out so very well and supporting the
tournament every step of the way.
The format was Texas Scramble and with such a large
number of players, the golfers were teeing off until just past 1:00 p.m. but
there were no delays and the teams generally managed to get around in better
than 4 hours. The Camel Pub had strategically placed huge buckets of the
finest Bloody Mary’s and sizzling sausages at the halfway point to keep
golfers strength up and their concentration focused.
After the game and some welcome refreshments at the
clubhouse, golfers and their families made their way, by 6 p.m., to The
Camel Pub, Banchang’s largest and finest pub/ restaurant. There, The Camel
had prepared a pig on the spit and a sumptuous buffet.
Time for a quick photo on the 1 st
Tee.
Prize giving and presentations to the successful golfers
started at 7 p.m. Hosting was done by MC, Dennis Willett with able support
from Steven, Rod & Vanessa.
A well provided raffle and a vibrantly contested auction
for a brand new set of clubs/ bag (donated by locals John Greenoff and Alan
Abernathy) were also held and contributed greatly to the final amount for
the charity. Many kind donations were made by some very generous folks and
the organizers extend their thanks.
The tournament champions for the Camel Summer Classic,
2010 were Tom Clark’s B. Bags United team of Tom Clark, Scott Clark, Steve
Giles and Joe Duffy, with a brilliant net score of 53.6. We should also
mention that the winners shot an amazing Albatross on hole 9. Well done! The
new champions were presented with individual crystal trophies and associated
prizes.
The runners up were the Thai NDT (Winter Classic champs)
team of Jimmy Deakin, Ray Campbell, Steve Page and Steve Hovi with a net
score of 54.2. They were also presented with crystal trophies and associated
prizes.
Congratulations to 2010 champions and runners up.
For the technical prizes this year, there were 2 longest
drives, one longest putt, one nearest the pin in two and 4 near pins. The
technical prize winners were: Mens Long Drive Hole 9: Scott Clark. Ladies
Long Drive Hole 18: Saranya Riley. Long Putt Hole 14: Kiwi Bar team. Near
Pin in Two Hole 8: Shawn Merryman. Near Pin Hole 5: Nat Sisan. Near Pin Hole
7: Guus Harting. Near Pin Hole 13: Kh Ittiphon. Near Pin Hole 15: Nick from
ARV. Congratulations go to all the technical prize winners.
Terry from the Camel Pub wishes to sincerely thank the
legion of contributors for the generous support and for making the
tournament the great success that it was. They are ALE Heavy Lift, CEA,
Chevron (Offshore) Thailand Ltd, CR Asia, Crathco, Dacon Services, Deborah
Services Ltd, DOW SCG, Jim Duff, Heineken Beer, Jesters MC, LS Cargo, NCE,
Paradise Property, Q Cars, Jim Ryan, John Ryves, San Miguel Beer, Sarens,
Sence of Siam (SOS), Siam Asia Scaffolding (SAS), Scott and Shawn McKeirnan,
Western Foods, and of course, The Camel Pub.
Additionally, The Camel Pub also wishes to express their
sincere gratitude to the following local establishments for a bottle of
spirits each: The Bar, Blackcat Bar, Beaver Bar, Cupids, Faces Bar, Fat
Bob’s, Jigsaw Bar, Kiwi Bar, Lasse’s Pizza, Mams Bar, Offshore Bar, Rainbow
Bar, Ship in the Hole Bar and Wherehouse Bar. Also, generous support was
received from local folks, Alan Abernathy, Ray Barrett, Rod Carmichael, Glen
Ebert, John Greenoff, Dave Issit, Anne Shop and Noi Shop.
The organizers would like to acknowledge the donation
from “The Banchang Golf Society (BGS)”, who gathered funds from the memorial
tournament of long serving BGS organizer Keith Whittle earlier this year.
The BGS is a local golfing society that has been operating specifically in
the Banchang area for over 9 years.
Finally, Terry would like to express his thanks to
tournament organizers Rod Carmichael, Steven Coulson and a big thanks to Kh
Tong from the Camel.
Many thanks from the organizers to all who supported and
played in this fine tournament. We hope to see you all and your friends back
for the Camel Winter Classic, in Dec 2010.
More information about the St. Camillus Foundation of Thailand and the
Camillian Social Center can be found at: http://www.camillian-rayong.org/en/contact.asp.
Table tennis champions
heading to Pattaya
City officials, tournament organizers and players attend
the press conference held at Pattaya City Hall, Monday, June 14.
Thanachot Anuwan
The Pattaya All Thailand Table Tennis Championships 2010
will take place from June 26-28, at the Pattaya Indoor Stadium, with prize
money totaling a jaw dropping 900,000 baht up for grabs.
At a press conference held at Pattaya City Hall on June
14, Sa-Nga Kitsamret (Vice President of the Thailand Table Tennis
Association) said that this tournament has attracted almost 2,000 table
tennis players from across the country to take part in the 3-day event. It
is categorized into general singles competitions for men and women, male and
female youth under 12, 15, 18 and 21 years of age, and individual male
players over 45 years of age.
Due to the number and quality of players taking part and the size of the
prize money on offer, this tournament is now widely recognized as the
unofficial table tennis championships of Thailand and Kitsamret said he
hopes in the future it will achieve international recognition.
‘Sharks’ go clear at the top, Pattaya slip to defeat in Bangkok
Staff Reporters
Chonburi FC increased their lead over their closest
rivals in the Thai Premier League last weekend with an emphatic 4-0 away
victory over Insee Police United in Rangsit.
Chonburi opened the scoring as early as the 10th
minute through Panuwat Jinta and a further strike from Jules Baga 7
minutes later left the ‘Sharks’ in full control of the match at half
time.
Pattaya United skipper, Niweat Siriwong (5),
challenges for a header with a Thai Port defender during the first half
of their match in Bangkok, Sunday, June 20. (Photo Ariyawat Nuamsawat)
A Takahiro Kawamura own goal in the 55th
minute virtually sealed all three points for the league leaders and they
put the icing on the cake of a great performance with a fourth goal from
Ekaphan Inthasen.
On the back of this victory, Chonburi were able to
open up a 2 point gap at the top of the league after Muang Thong United
could only draw their game 2-2 last Sunday against the struggling Royal
Army FC team. The defending champions seemed well set for victory after
opening a 2-1 lead in the second half and controlling much of the play,
but a last minute equalizer by Tatree Sina left them ruing their earlier
missed chances.
Also playing last Sunday were the ‘Rocking Dolphins’
of Pattaya United who took on Thai Port FC at the PAT Stadium in Bangkok
and were looking to take over third spot in the league following Buriram
PEA’s scoreless draw away at Pichit FC.
Whilst Thai Port were lying 11th
in the league standings, they had an impressive recent home record under
the guideance of coach Sasom Popprasert and they immediately went on the
attack against a strangely lackluster Pattaya team.
United were given a warning as early as the first
minute when Nigerian striker Jacob Aikhionbare cut in from the right
wing and unleashed a fierce left foot shot that Narit in the Pattaya
goal did well to parry over the bar.
The attacking duo of Aikhionbare and his strike
partner Sarayoot Chaikamdee were proving to be a real handful for the
Pattaya United defence and it was no surprise when the two combined to
give Thai Port the lead in the 22nd minute.
Aikhionbare got free once more on the right wing and when he squared the
ball, Chaikamdee was on hand to send an unstoppable shot past Narit into
the roof of the net.
Pattaya tried to get back into the match and they
enjoyed a brief spell of possession that saw Wongdee head just over the
Thai Port goal from a left wing cross. It was perhaps the best chance
United had in the first 45 minutes and they were left to rue the miss
just before the break when Chaikamdee doubled the lead for the home
side; volleying the ball past Narit from close in after a fine cross
from Nilwong.
United were dealt a further blow in a first half they
will wish to forget when French midfielder Jeremy was forced to leave
the field through injury following a clash with Thai Port’s Nanthapan
Jiensatawong.
In the second half United tightened up their defence
and restricted the hosts to speculative efforts from outside the area.
Pattaya also struggled though to break down the stubborn Thai Port
defence and the closest they came to pulling a goal back came when Tana
fired over the bar from 22 yards out after finding himself in a good
position.
The defeat will come as a blow to Pattaya United with just one game
to go before the mid-season break and a number of teams now closing in
on the top places. The Dolphins’ next league game is another away
fixture, this time at the Tephatsadin Stadium on Sunday June 27 against
BEC Tero FC, kick-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. Chonburi FC meanwhile face
an away trip to the I-Mobile Stadium on Saturday, June 26 to take on
Buriram PEA. Kick off for that game is 5 p.m.
Thompson claims narrow victory
PSC golf from the Three Sisters Bar
It was another fine day for the Three Sisters golf group
at Pattaya Country Club this past June 16. Early week rains were put on hold
while our players slashed and burned their way around the course. Tales of
multiple chips over the same green followed by several putts abounded.
Wednesday winner Bill Thompson, left, with runner up Doug
Douglas.
As usual the group met up later at Caddy Shack II where
some delicious roast pork sandwich material awaited. When cards were
tallied, Bill Thompson was found to have come in first with 37 points; Bill
must have been practicing hitting balls off the rig. Behind Bill was Doug
Douglas, who we have not seen for a while, with 35 points, while Herbie
Ishinaga carded a 32.
There was a handicap commotion among two friends that was settled by Tony
Oaks, PSC Golf Chairman who provided the “accurate” handicap.”
International flavor to the week
PSC golf from The Caddyshack
Wednesday, June 16,
Phoenix - Stableford
1st Helmut Hebstreit 37pts
2nd Koji Yamada 34pts
3rd
Vincent Smyth 32pts
Today was a short trip to Phoenix Golf Course for a
stableford competition, and we had a very international winning line up
with the Irish Vincent Price (Smyth) coming in with 32 points to take
third place, beating both Damien Trant and Graham Beaumont on count
back, so that was the English challenge gone. In second place from Japan
was Koji Yamada on 34 points, but the only player to break par was the
German challenger Helmut Hebstreit with 37 points to take the victory.
Friday, June 18,
St. Andrews - Stableford
1st Vincent Smyth 37pts
2nd Ted Gardner 35pts
3rd Ian
Covill 34pts
On Friday we played at St Andrews 2000 Golf Club with
another international field of many different nations taking part. Third
place went to the English challenge of Ian Colvill with 34 points, just
one behind the runner up Ted Gardner from the USA. In the top slot today
was Vincent Smyth from Ireland with a fine 37 points.
IPGC Sunday Golf at Green Valley
Sunday, June 6 -
Stableford
1st Alec Hoare 39pts
2nd Kevin Hamilton 38pts
3rd
Norman Cheetham 38pts
The low season continues so the course at Green Valley is
quiet and very pleasant.
Alec Hoare took the honours today with a fine 39 points
in a truly international event, with an Irishman, Englishman, and Australian
filling the first three places. Kevin Hamilton returned to take second
place, narrowly beating Norman Cheetham from Perth who has enjoyed a
successful golfing holiday.
There were no ‘2’s today.
Sunday, June 13 -
Stableford
1st Alan Pilkington 48pts
2nd Alec Hoare 38pts
3rd Charles
Sheppard 38pts
A career best 48 points from Alan Pilkington set the
marker for today. Alan has struck form with a vengeance and his gross 72 off
a 12 handicap, which included 3 birdies and 3 bogies, was indicative of a
superb round of golf. Alan is a longtime IPGC member and deserves full
praise for this outstanding effort.
Alec Hoare is also playing well and just pinched second
place on count back ahead of the irrepressible Charles Sheppard, also a form
horse, who took third place.
Sunday, June 20 -
Stableford
1st Charles Sheppard 42pts
2nd Alan Pilkington 38pts
3rd Tom
Byrne 37pts
Charles Sheppard swept the field today with an excellent
42 points. The old war horse is in fine fettle at the moment and easily took
the spoils.
Alan Pilkington, cut 2 shots following his heroic efforts
last week, played extremely well to take second place from Tom Byrne. Tom is
never far off the pace and his 37 points heralded a return to form.
The presentations were held at the Golf Centre Bar where
hosts John and Geoff, assisted by their bevy of beautiful ladies, took
excellent care of the golfers.
For further details on Sunday IPGC Golf at Green Valley,
phone Russell Exley on 084 782 4582.
JJ wins again at Emareld
The Ban Chang Golf Society
The weekly winners at Mama’ Pub with some friendly
staff.
We arrived at the Emerald golf course for our weekly
game to find more people at the venue than we have seen before since we
have started coming here as a group.
Thanks go to the course management who still managed
to get us out earlier than the official tee time. Who says that loyalty
means nothing in Thailand?
We welcomed Dan and Glen as first timers and Paul S
after his return from the UK. We had 12 players in all taking part in
the competition.
Yet again JJ took first place with 38 points ahead of
John in second with 36.
Nearest the pins went to the returning Paul S with
the skins results as follows: Bernie (7), Paul S (4), Martyn (3), Glen
(3), John M (1), Alan A (1).
Just to keep everyone up to date, Dangle had only 3
blobs this week so we are guessing that daddy gave him a talking too.
After the golf it was back to Mama’s for a few cold ones and thanks
to Tip for taking care of us and ringing the bell (again!)
Kington keeps kicking the kids
PSC golf with the Phoenix Tuesday Group
Phil Kington and Stuart Gordon with some staff members
from The Relax Bar.
Mike Gerrard
What a run our Phil is having. After only playing golf
for a couple of years he has all of a sudden improved his game so much that
the rest of us cannot live with him at the moment.
After this week, and with the string of good scores he
has submitted to PSC recently I am sure his handicap is all of a sudden
going to drop dramatically.
Playing the Lakes and Ocean course on a overcast and cool
day this past June 15, our three little groups set out with a course
virtually to ourselves. Never seen the place so quiet - I wonder how long
they will survive?
As said, Phil Kington was the victor today, pushing
Stuart Gordon into second place on countback after both recorded 35 points.
Don’t know what happened to Stuart. After carding a level par front nine
with 22 points he collapsed with only 13 on the back nine.
Only two near pins today which went to Richard Baldwin
and your truly.
So it was back to The Relax Bar situated near the
junction of the Sukhumvit and Phoenix road turn off. What a lovely place
this is for our presentation. The tables are set out for the group and there
is a small water feature with fish (not to eat), plus a nice friendly menu
for the hungry, served by very nice even friendlier staff.
As always with our group we meet every Tuesday at 11.00
a.m. in the men’s changing room to sign up for first tee time at 12.00 noon.
We have an entrance fee of 100 baht for the day, which is used to pay for
the first drink for everyone who returns to the presentation, and then pay
for the near pin and major prizes.
Further to this the management of The Relax Bar donate
one lucky draw prize voucher for a free massage and one lucky draw voucher
for a free beer, again only to the ones who return for the presentation.
This week the lucky winners were your correspondent (massage) and Sergio
Volpi (free beer).
Members of Phoenix enjoy their member rate and guests can
enjoy the Sports day rate of only 800 baht plus caddy and cart if required.
Two players can share a cart at Phoenix for only 700 baht. If preferred
carts can be obtained for the back nine only at 350 baht (again sharing
allowed).
All in all, pot hunters get no joy with our group as all of the input is
shared very evenly to most people who play. Only one went away yesterday
without a prize other than his free beer. Hopefully you can enjoy a good
friendly game with nice people who like to play serious golf, (but not TOO
serious). Call me, Mike Gerrard, if interested on 087 091 7565.
‘Jersey’ Jim’s Medal
PSC golf from Lewiinski’s
Sunday, June 13,
Green Valley - Monthly Medal
A Flight
1st Jim Elphick (24) net 68
2nd Colin Davis (15) net 70
Red Flight
1st Kathy Doody (20) net 70
2nd
Mike Craighead (11) net 74
Well the title held up but only just as ‘Jersey’ Jim
Elphick was man of the match and this month’s Medal winner with a net 68.
However, there is no excuse for this title when it comes to the runner up
Colin ‘The Donkey’ Davis. Of cause there is little excuse for the Donkey in
any circumstances! But it should not go unmentioned that although it took a
three-way count back with John Dearden and Paul Taylor to gain the second
spot, Colin has just completed a stint in the Memorial Hospital.
Medal winner Jim Elphick.
Kathy Doody showed all her flare as she waltzed off with
the red flight medal with a solid net 70.
These victories qualify Jim and Kathy into the hall of
fame at Lewiinski’s and, as with every monthly medal winner, also qualifies
them for the year–end Gold Medal competition held after the December winner
is determined.
‘The Donkey’ and Paul Taylor split the ‘2’s pot.
Tuesday, June 15,
St. Andrews – Stableford
1st Terry Mangan (10) 42pts
2nd
Colin Davis (16) 38pts
As pointed out in the above article, the Donkey has spent
a little time of late at the vets - or was it at the Richard Livingstone
golf clinic - as again he took the second spot with a solid 38 points. But
the race was only ever for second place as the man from Co Wicklow, Terry
Mangan, put together a scintillating 42 points to demolish the field.
Connie Whalsh was the sole heir to the ‘2’s pot.
Wednesday, June 16,
Burapha A&D - Stableford
1st Peter Henshaw (17) 37pts
2nd
Colin Davis (15) 37pts
Colin ‘The Donkey’ Davis notched his third second place
finish of the week, with a tidy 37 points. By the weekend he would have made
it to the pay window in all three events he has played. How do spell “cut”?
This was the nearest he managed to that illusive top spot, as he lost on
count back to Peter ‘Don O’Corleone’ Henshaw.
Mike Jeffries, Seamus Cotter, Mike Winterburn and who
else but Colin Davis split the ‘2’s pot.
Friday, June 18,
Mountain Shadow - Stableford
1st Mike Jeffreys (17) 38pts
2nd
Colin Davis (15) 35pts
After three consecutive runners up spots this week, ‘The
Donkey’ was determined to get to the top of the ladder. Starting with a
solid even par front nine, and the back nine first four holes producing
11points, victory seemed assured. However, the wheels well and truly fell of
big time as the next three holes produced not a single point - nothing other
than perhaps heart break for the ‘Dobbin’. His 35 points did however gain
him his fourth runner up spot this week.
Showing the ‘Donkey’ the way to win was Mike Jeffreys
with a best of the day 38 points, Mike was also the only player to better
par.
No ‘2’s were recorded so a rollover to the following
Friday.
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 can just pop in and add your name to the list or call Colin on 089 826
0764. Transport is provided.
High scores at Pleasant Valley
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Dick Warburg, Thomas
Cotton & Derek Brook
Friday, June 11, Pattana -
Stableford
It has been some time since we visited this course so we
decided to give it a try. The fair layout and excellent facilities easily
attract golfers to the sign-up list.
Tuesday winners: Bernie Seagrave and Walter Baechli.
The skies have looked a bit threatening recently but we
luckily avoided any significant rain. The weather and the course did not
disappoint, and with the “C” nine closed we were directed to “A” and “B” for
our competition. Fairways were in excellent condition and the course was not
busy so our played moved along at a good pace. The greens took some patience
as they were certainly playable but a bit slow and bumpy from recent
aeration and sanding.
Sat back in the lower cafe in the clubhouse, no ++ here,
scorecards were collected and the results tabulated. It seems that other
than in-form Bernie Segrave, the course won this day but not by much.
Back at Bert’s, after cussing and discussing the day’s
play over beverages and snacks, the results were announced as follows:
1st Bernie Seagrave (10) 38pts
2nd Bob Benda (19), 34pts
3rd Ted Morris (12) 33pts
Near Pins: Dick Warberg, Graham Buckingham, Bill
Knight and Bob Benda.
Tuesday, June 15, Royal
Lakeside - Stableford
It was a quiet and modestly sized group which advanced to
Royal Lakeside on the banks of the Bangpakong estuary. Keith Phillips found
his way even without the directions of Derek, who was off with Tropical Bert
and the British Legion to Malaysia.
For old men, Royal Lakeside is a nice and flat course,
easy to walk and is adorned with many bird species. So some of us went out
bent on playing golf while others went to bird watch and day dream.
Walter’s play has picked up since he started taking
lessons from “Mike”, but Bernie still kept ahead, even with his handicap,
which had dropped since the last game.
1st Bernie Seagrave (9) 39pts
2nd Walter Baechli (18) 39pts
3rd Dick Warberg (17) 34pts
Near Pins: Dick Warberg, Graham Buckingham.
Friday, June 18, Pleasant
Valley - Stableford
This course seems to get a bit better each time we go and
as it had been some time since our last visit we anticipated a good day out.
Neither the course nor the weather disappointed as the thunder storms stayed
well away, and other than some patchy areas on some greens the course was in
very good condition.
Happy to see that work on and around the course continues
and it will be good if they manage to pave the access and parking areas
before the rainy season hits with a vengeance.
With no one on the first tee our small group of players
were all off ahead of schedule and were all back in the clubhouse in just
over four hours. Cannot beat that and the majority really had a great day
with over half the group handily beating their handicaps.
Two of those to play well were Neil and Daryl who took
the course apart with 46 and 42 points respectively. Excellent play and the
handicap committee should have fun with those scores. With only one of the
two Par 3’s selected for ‘Near Pin’ prizes today having a winner, a 4th
place prize was available.
With our earlier than normal finish, all were back at
Bert’s enjoying a draft or two over snacks after a quick return trip down
the 7. Welcoming back Brian Gabe for his mid-year visit and thanking Bert
and staff, the results were announced.
We play every Tuesday and Friday from Tropical Bert’s and
all are welcome.
1st Neil Shaw (23) 46pts
2nd Daryl Evans (22) 42pts
3rd Walter Baechli (18) 39pts
4th Bob Benda (17) 39pts
Near Pins: Daryl Evans
Robertson victorious at Bangpra
IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar
The Pattaya Golf Society visited Bangpra on Tuesday, June
15, to play a stableford event on the immaculately presented course.
Certainly there is no finer course in the province at present and the
fairways are lush, the bunkers and greens manicured and the overall
impression is of a quality golf course prepared for a top competition. And
then the PGS turned up!
The white tees were all back and the course was playing
to its full length and those legendary greens were to hold back the scores.
Returning to the group Paul McNally entered 29 points for a surprising third
place, three behind Wichai Tananusorn who played some worthy golf in his
score of 32 points. The winner was John Robertson, with his whirlwind swing,
occasionally accurate but always prodigiously long. He managed to bully 33
points out of the course to take his first solo win with the group.
There were no birdie ‘2’s and the Booby Bevy was held
back for a return to Emerald a few days later. The abiding memory of Bangpra
was the beauty of the course when so many others are struggling to present a
track worthy of a competition. Eastern Star take note.
Masa goes for it at
Emerald
After a break of many months the Pattaya Golf Society
returned to the Emerald course at Ban Chang on Thursday, June 17, to play a
stableford competition on the empty course. The day was very heavily
overcast and it was a wonder that the rain held off for all except the final
three holes.
The course was well presented but the white tees were at
their furthest extent and the course, in the still conditions, was
exceptionally long. Quite a challenge then as Wichai Tananusorn and Len
Jones struggled to the magic thirty mark only to fail, leaving them on 29
points to share third place points.
Playing well with controlled golf was Tony Thorne and he
underlined his current improvement with a steady 34 points which included a
monstrous fifty foot putt across the slope on the fifth green for the first
birdie ‘2’ of the day. He was later joined with a share by Masa Takano and
his birdie ‘2’ on the fifteenth. Prior to that the commendable Japanese had
played the first ten holes in gross par and was looking at something special
but inevitably the wheels came off and he finished with a winning score of
36 points on his return.
The Booby Bevy went to Brendan Gilsenan for his 5-19
split and our goodbye wishes. A share also went to John Robertson for making
hero-to-zero status look extremely simple after two fine finishes this week.
Emerald had been a refreshing change for the group but it
had been enjoyable nevertheless.
Bridge in Paradise: by Neil Robinson
Here is an
interesting hand from the Brighton Pairs in England, which illustrates
the importance of the opening bid. It was reported by Andrew Robson.
E-W were vulnerable
and West dealt. Take a look at the hands and decide who was declarer and at
what level.
S: 764
H: -
D: AJ854
C: KQJ105
S: - S: Q952
H: AQJ98632 H: K1054
D: KQ106 D: 3
C: 3 C: 9842
S: AKJ1083
H: 7
D: 972
C: A76
The bidding at Table
One was as below. West opened a forcing (but rather weak!) 2C, counting the
hand for eight or nine tricks, and hoping to keep the opponents out of the
bidding. East’s two diamond bid showed up to seven points. West went to
game over South’s 2S overcall and East went to five hearts over North’s 4S.
Having pushed the opponents to the five level, N-S passed. Five hearts by
West was easy.
The sole trump was
pulled in one round and the hand then cross ruffed. The only losers were
the aces of diamonds and clubs. E-W +650.
West North East South
2C P 2D 2S
4H 4S 5H All pass
The bidding at Table
Two was very different, see below. West opened one heart. North’s two no
trump bid showed at least five-five in the minors. South’s 3S bid, in the
face of a partner bidding length in the minors, showed length and strength
in that suit.
West tried to shut out
the opponents from further bidding by going to slam, but it was too late -
North pushed on. West competed further, not wanting to defend with such a
hand, but South continued. Not unreasonably, East doubled, holding four
spades to the queen and with a partner who opened the bidding. So the final
contract was 7S doubled by South.
West North East South
1H 2N 3H 3S
6H 6S P P
7H P P 7S
P P Dbl All pass
West, sure that the
ace of hearts would be ruffed, led the king of diamonds, taken on board with
the ace. South, listening to the bidding, decided West was probably very
short in spades and took a first round finesse in trumps, winning with the
ten in hand. The seven of hearts was ruffed on board and the trump finesse
repeated. East’s remaining trumps were pulled with the ace and king. Then
five rounds of clubs allowed South to throw losing diamonds. Doubled grand
slam made for +1770 for N-S. Quite a swing (2420 points) between the two
tables!
If you have bridge
questions, or to send me your interesting hands, please contact me at:
[email protected].
Kuparinen wins by a street at Rayong C.C.
Jomtien Golf with the IPGC
The ladies enjoy their day at Phoenix on Wednesday.
Monday, June 14, Green
Valley – Stableford
After heavy rain overnight here in Jomtien we rang the
course and were told buggies on cart paths only today. As we reached Green
Valley there was still a constant light drizzle and all six groups tee’d off
bang on time and the rain eased after three holes with the sun gradually
coming out.
In the ‘2’s competition there were three rollovers in
Division 1 and eight in Division 2 and at last we had some birdies, two
actually, on the twelfth hole from Ted Gardner and Ian Hart, so back to
reality in both divisions on Wednesday.
A gross 76 won Division 1 for Ted Gardner with 39 points,
Ben Findon was second with 36 and Jean Morel, now playing off 17, was third
one point behind Ben.
Another 39 points won Division 2 for Barry Rawlinson,
poor Ian Hart with 22 on the back nine came in second one point behind, and
Gordon Everingham was third with 33.
Noi Emmerson was second in the ladies comp with 33 points
and the Frenchman’s other half Mam Morel won with 34 points; she also took
the only nearest the pin for the ladies on the 16th.
Wednesday, June 16,
Phoenix – Ladies Stableford
The second monthly independent game for the ladies and
many thanks go to Noi Emmerson for arranging the fixture and the special
green fee they all enjoyed on the day.
The Lakes and the Ocean courses were allocated upon
arrival and playing off the red tees there were some good scores coming in.
Miss Sang from Green Valley had an amazing front nine scoring 23 points to
finish with a gross 76 and 38 points. But she lost out to Kung Maliporn who
birdied the Ocean 7th and took second place with a
20/15 back nine countback, amazing! Noi Emmerson with 21 points on the back
nine won the competition with 39 points.
Wednesday, June 16, Rayong
C.C. - Stableford
Only two divisions out today, with the ladies at Phoenix,
and a surprise reduction upon arrival for the green fee, caddy and buggy for
all of us - well done Rayong Country Club!
Playing off 5 now, Kari Kuparinen recorded a gross 73 to
win Division 1 with 40 points; this is hard to believe but in second place
nine points behind was William Chang.
Tom Novak took out Division 2 with 33 points and Terry
Redding was second, beating Barry Rawlinson on a 12/11 back six countback
after they both tied with 31 points.
Kari also picked up the only ‘2’ in Division 1 with a
birdie on the 16th and now there are nine rollovers in
Division 2, the most ever in four years since we started at Siam Cats.
Friday, June 18, Eastern
Star – Stableford
Our largest turnout of the week with seven groups out and
back with three divisions, the equal cut today was 5-17 and 18 plus in
Division 2 with the ladies on their own of course. Miss Orawan finished
second with 32 points and Miss Nom won with 34 points.
After three weeks in the doldrums with a heavy cold and
chest infection, Terry Cowell bounced back to win Division 2 today with 38
points, beating Ian Hart on a 18/17 back nine countback. Willy Van Heetvelde
was third with 32.
Smiling as he walked into the clubhouse (he must have had
a good round) Mikael Andersson won Division 1 with 39 points. Don Head was
second with 33 and Kari Kuparinen came third three points behind Don.
It’s great to see Ya Riley making a comeback after her
recent illness and operation, scoring 21 points on the back nine today, keep
it up Ya!
There have been no ‘2’s here in Division 2 since the 7th
May so another interesting Friday next week. Mikael Andersson and Chris
Voller both birdied the 17th to share the pot in
Division 1.
Near pins went to Miss Nit, Miss Wan, Don Head, Kari Kuparinen, Roy
Thornton, Alan Duckett and Ian Hart.
Cooney in cruise control at Greenwood
PSC golf from The Bunker
Monday, June 14, Khaow
Kheow - Stableford
Peter Habgood followed up his win at green valley last
week with another win today to put himself firmly in the driving seat for
the golfer of the month trophy. Playing stableford, Alan Sullivan took the
runner up spot a couple of points behind and Gerry Cooney was a little
surprised, but pleased, to find his 29 points enough to take third place.
Reg Smart and Peter Habgood – both battling for the
golfer of the month award.
PJ Redmond, Reg Smart grabbed a near pin each and Peter
Habgood rounded off a good day by winning the other two.
1st Peter Habgood (19) 34pts
2nd Alan Sullivan (11) 32pts
3rd Gerry Cooney (12) 29pts
Wednesday, June 16,
Greenwood - Medal
On a deserted course playing a Medal round, Gerry Cooney
kept up the pressure on Peter Habgood in the race to be golfer of the month
by shooting a fine five under par round to easily win today. Reg Smart is
still in with a shout, and his second place today keeps him in the frame as
he beat Geoff Cox on a count back. Reg’s second place finish moves him up
into second place in the golfer of the month table also and he’s determined
to push Peter all the way!
Near pins went to Joe Vanderwegan, Terry Gill, Geoff Cox
and Gerry Cooney.
1st Gerry Cooney (12) net 67
2nd Reg Smart (25) net 74
3rd Geoff Cox (14) net 74
Friday, June 18, Crystal
Bay - Stableford
Geoff Cox made up for missing out on Wednesday by winning
quite comfortably today. Joe Vanderwegan has been playing well recently but
has been just missing out but he got in the money this time, taking second
place ahead of Peter Habgood who beat his playing partner Reg Smart on a
count back, which also extends his lead in the golfer of the month table.
Near pins were claimed by PJ Redmond, Eddie Martin, Mashi
and Geoff Cox.
1st Geoff Cox (14) 36pts
2nd Joe Vanderwegan (20) 34pts
3rd Peter Habgood (17) 31pts
Great day at the end of the ‘rainbow’
IPGC golf from The Haven
Monday, June 14, Mountain
Shadow - Rainbow Scramble
1st Al Keith (6), Alan Pilkington
(12), Chris Knapp (17), Mike Spear (24) Team H/cap (7.4) net 53.6
2nd Chris Voller (7), Russell Exley
(8), Mikael Andersson (9), Jeremy Masse (10) Team H/cap (4.3) net 53.7
3rd Chris Davisson (13), Stefan
Hoge (15), Paul Taylor (16), Doug Campbell (17) Team H/cap (7.6) net 54.4
4th Bob Lamond (6), Stuart Thompson
(9), Carl Lovatt (17), Evan Millar (21) Team H/cap (6.6) net 55.4
The second open scramble in consecutive months, that will
hopefully turn out to be a regular event out of The Haven, was this time
played from the Red, White and Blue tees at Mountain Shadow with each team
required to play six tee shots from each of the three different coloured
tees, in any order that they might decide. Allied to this also was a maximum
five tees shots from any team member.
The rainbow stableford winners: Al Keith, Alan
Pilkington, Chris Knapp and Mike Spear.
This was in fact a much simpler system than maybe viewed
at first sight, even when members of the team played from different tees on
the same hole - an easy way to score was shown as an R, W or B against the
players name who played the tee shot and the score entered at the bottom,
which made also for an easy day’s work for the scorer.
With ten teams entered and fine weather prevailing for
the whole day, expectations were high and nobody was disappointed with the
whole field returning scores within four shots of each other after the
deduction of handicaps, which had been set at 12.5 % of the teams combined
total without any capping. This was done to encourage as many players,
irrespective of handicap, to enter and that provided a winning team that was
a truly eclectic bunch who under different competition conditions would not
have finished in the top spot . But on the day they fully deserved their win
and a share of the pot of gold that was offer for the winners.
Some planning was required to allow the maximum number of
team players, three, to be able to play the last tees shot and from a
forward tee if possible. In the event the fourth placed team had a choice of
only two tee shots and that possibly contributed to their last hole bogey
after an 11 birdie previous seventeen, which cost them a place on the
podium.
Just pipping them by a shot, the third placed team had
recorded a solid 10 birdie round without any bogeys, which include a run of
5 in a back nine total of 7.
The second place team had the best of the day’s results
with no bogeys, 9 birdies and 2 eagles but just lost out by 0.1 of a shot to
the winning side who also kept a bogey free card with 10 birdies.
One of the surprising facts was that there were only
seven 2’s on the day with two of those rolled in by the winners.
Back at The Haven, Russell Exley was roundly applauded
for organising the whole day and Larry Ball was thanked for supplying eight
free rounds as prizes at his beautifully laid out and manicured 5 hole
practice facility at Hua Yai. Include in the entry fee was a meal of choice
from the selection of nearly 300 items on the Haven’s main menu which all
agreed was fantastic value.
Prior to the presentations Stephen Beard welcomed back
many old friends who had been absent recently and hoped that the day’s
enjoyment would encourage them to become regular players once more in the
future.
The end of the evening came much later than usual with
the winning teams celebrating deep into the night encouraged by many of the
other players who had come so near to being in their places.
Wednesday, June 16, Khao Kheow - Stableford
CSS 75 NC
1st Mike Spear (24) 37pts
2nd Yasuo Suzuki (11) 32pts
3rd Evan Millar (21) 31pts
4th Bob Lamond (6) 30pts
5th Rod Crosswell (15) 30pts
After the fun of the previous outing, things got a lot
more serious as the hopefuls took on the always difficult B and C courses
from the yellow tees.
Mike Spear, no doubt encouraged by his last result,
returned a solid one under handicap round to secure first place by a massive
five shots and with the CSS going up three on the day he can look forward to
a two shot reduction for the coming week’s games.
Yasuo Suzuki was the nearest chaser and was pleasantly
surprised to be called to the podium ahead of Evan Millar by a single
stroke.
Bob Lamond won a count back with Rod Crosswell with a
better 16 to 15 return over the inward half to take the first of the
honourable mentions.
There were no 2’s in the first division but Derek Holt
had one in the second division and delighted the assembled throng at the
prize giving with a quick demonstration and talk through of the whole event
from the lacing of the shoes prior to the tee off to the toweling off after
the shower.
Back at The Haven Dai Griffiths, Alan Jones and Dick
Heaney were welcomed as new members.
Friday, June 18,
The Emerald – Stableford
CSS 72
1st Yukio Kikuchi (22) 36pts
2nd Daniel Willits (12) 36pts
3rd Yasuo Suzuki (11) 36pts
4th Trevor Schirmer (14) 33pts
5th Mike Dabanovich (11) 32pts
The course was in excellent condition with very good
fairways and true and fast greens, which made it surprising that none of the
competitors was able to better their handicap, although Yasuo Suzuki came
very near until he inexplicably failed to score on the last having driven it
straight down the middle a considerable distance.
Yukio Kikuchi was the main beneficiary of this unusual
display of largesse by Yasuo, as he slipped in ahead of Daniel Willits with
a better count back of 20 to 17, with Yasuo again losing out on a count back
with 16 in third place.
Trevor Schirmer just edged out Mike Dabanovich for the
premier mention in fourth place with a round that was more expectation of
the apr่s golf than the reality of the competition.
There were no 2’s in the second division but Daniel
Willits took the rollover in the first division with his solo effort.
Before the presentations Masanori Takano and Shuichi
Kodaka were welcomed back and there were farewells for Yukio Kikuchi and
Kaneo Watanabe.
If you would like to play with The Haven group you can
contact Russell on mobile 084 782 4582 or call in to the hotel at 185 Soi 13
between Beach Road and 2nd Road. All transportation to
the course is arranged and you do not need to sign up prior to the day, but
you should be there by 8.30 on Mondays, Wednesday, Fridays and Sundays on
the days you wish to play. A schedule of courses to be played can be found
on our web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.
The 10th
IPGC Golf Championship
The 10th IPGC Championship will
take place on Wednesday 14th and Friday 16th July at Khao Kheow Country
Club. The event is a two-day stroke play competition with a cut (top 50% of
field make cut) after first day (1-day stableford for those missing cut).
Players who make the cut may elect to drop down to the 1-day stableford.
There will also be a two day stableford competition for the ladies.
The entry fee of 2,500 baht fee covers 2 days golf
including green fee and caddy fee, 2 buffets, trophies, championship
giveaways including; IPGC umbrella, IPGC golf shirt, IPGC golf towel, and
multiple Lucky Draw prizes to be drawn after the prize presentations. Entry
is limited to members of the IPGC and players must have at least 10
competitive scores on record to be eligible for a trophy.
Entry forms with entry fee should be handed in at either of, The Rabbi’s
Elephant (Mr. Len), The Haven (Russell Exley), Jomtien Golf (Glyn Evans),
and Donovan’s (Steve Mascari). Entries close, Monday, 12th of July, 7:00 pm.
All not lost with
the missing ball
Golf from the Travellers Rest
Barry Hooper
The headline sums up how two golfers found themselves
this week: both on Saturday at Eastern Star, but for two totally different
reasons.
Saturday winners: John Franklin and Ted Senior.
The first was Rob Herald who was a regular player with us
at the TRGG. At the 2nd hole he drove his ball into a tree on the left of
the fairway and really believed that was probably the last he would see of
it as it did not come back out. However, his caddy had eagle eyes it seems
and she spotted it nestled in the centre of the tree and recovered it. Rob
took his penalty. Played on and came away with a bogey a very happy man.
The other was the eventual winner on the Saturday, Ted
Senior (who I had previously named Mr. ‘2’ because he was always coming in
with ‘2’s). Ted fired his first shot at the par-three 6th onto a down slope
bank at the side of the green. His next shot was totally blind to the hole
but he took a line and fired it up into the air and he hoped just up on to
the green. But on climbing up the bank could not see his ball anywhere. Why?
Because it was in the hole for the only ‘2’ recorded on the day!
So down to reporting the golf this week with just the
three outings, it now being low season.
Tuesday, June 15, Greenwood - Stableford
Div. 1
1st Rod Cresswell (14) 40pts
2nd John Thornber (17) 37pts
3rd Fergus Brennan (10) 31pts
4th Phil Knight (10) 30pts
Div. 2
1st Laurie Bevan (27) 38pts
2nd Len Hardingham (18) 36pts
3rd Terry Hodgkiss (27) 32pts
4th Darrell Paul (32) 31pts
Off to Greenwood we went on Tuesday to play the B & C
layouts and we had a good turnout and two divisions. Some good scores were
turned in on the day as the course played well.
In Div 2 Terry Hodgkiss was in third spot at thirty-two.
Second went to Len Hardingham with his thirty-six but two up on Len and the
win was Laurie Bevan.
Division 1 had a real disparity between third and first.
Third with just thirty-one was Fergus Brennan. Second was John Thornber with
thirty-seven, but the winner was Rod Cresswll who really found form with his
forty pointer.
Four ‘2’s on the day came from Len Hardingham at the
second and Fergus Brennan, Rod Cresswell and John Thornber all at the fifth.
Thursday, June 17, Phoenix -
Stableford
1st Ted Senior (12) 37pts
2nd Rod Cresswell (12) 37pts
3rd Mod Chaviraksa (12) 34pts
4th John Franklin (12) 34pts
Thursday was our traditional visit to Phoenix - again
this week playing Lakes & Ocean. We had a moderate turnout so just the one
full division.
Mod Chaviraksa, who really seems to like this course,
could only manage third spot today with her thirty-four. Rod Cresswell was
still on form from Tuesday (he apparently played the whole event dressed in
a skirt and a wig using only irons. Not sure why? A bet I expect) so one can
forgive him for coming up just short this time with his thirty seven and
only loosing out on the count back to Ted Senior by the one point on the
back nine, 20 to 19.
Two ‘2’s were recorded by Jeff Wilcox and Amphan North.
Saturday, June 19, Eastern Star - Stableford
1st Ted Senior (12) 37pts
2nd John Franklin (12) 34pts
3rd Stuart Banks (21) 30pts
4th Robert Cannon (25) 29pts
So to Saturday and we went back to Eastern Star for the
first time in three weeks. A smaller turnout than usual for this weekend
outing was swelled a little with the visit from two visiting teachers; Rob
Herald from Hong Kong and John Franklin from Taichang, Taiwan, along with
Andre Coetzee.
John had some success with his second spot and
thirty-four points, pushing Stuart Banks with his thirty down to third
place. But the man of the day was Mr. ‘2’ himself, Ted Senior, for his
second win in a row with thirty-seven points and posting the only recorded
‘2’ on the day as well.
Note: If you want any further or fuller
information about the golf outings played by the TRGG from the Travellers
Rest Hotel, please contact the hotel manager Tewin Lamthong on 086 056 7019
or just call in to the Travellers Rest in Soi LK Metro, Pattaya and look at
the notice board or visit our website.
Bernek bags Monthly Mug at first attempt
PSC Golf from the Café Kronborg
Peter Blackburn
Monday, June 14, Pleasant
Valley – Stableford
My feelings at 0630 were that there would be no golf
today as it was absolutely bucketing it down in Pattaya and the weather
forecast was not good, but once more it was a matter of “oh ye of little
faith”. There were some gloomy faces whilst sitting in Café Kronborg and a
few phone calls to The Admiral enquiring “is golf still on?” but The Admiral
reassured all that it was all systems go and our rather good field of 21
golfers were ready to tackle the somewhat challenging Pleasant Valley.
Ken Bernek, left, receives his Cafe Kronborg Monthly Mug
from Bjarne.
We welcomed back Graham Buckingham from the UK, Eric Heck
from California, and Ronnie Ratte on R&R from his work in Korea.
Departing right on time as ever our 45 minute journey to
the course saw the rain diminishing and by the time we arrived at the course
it was bright & sunny although there were a few pools of water around the
course so winter rules in the bunkers and through the greens were applied.
The golf course had very few people on it so we were
invited to tee off at our leisure and our first group got away at 0933, well
ahead of schedule. Due to the heavy rain earlier, golf carts were not
allowed off the cart paths so we knew we were in for a slower round but the
course was in very good shape although the greens were surprisingly
“ordinary” and rather slow with many of them having a fair amount of sand on
them. It didn’t worry some though as there were some very good scores and
although our round took four hours and fifty-five minutes it was most
enjoyable.
It sometimes makes you wonder about the decisions re
course maintenance though as we watched sprinklers come on when we were
leaving the golf course! What’s that well known saying? – T.I.T.
The winner of A Flight was Patrice Bardy, 5 points clear
of Mike “Hunter” Gosden in second place. After a superb eagle on the 18th,
3 handicapper Mile Allidi finished third on a count back from veteran Ted
Morris in fourth spot.
Another great score saw Andre Van Dyk win the B Flight
five points ahead of Kevin Dinan in second place. Kevin’s run of blunders
continued as he inadvertently handed in his score card to The Admiral but it
turned out to be a blank score card from Plutaluang! A simple mistake which
was swiftly rectified but we all appreciate Kevin providing us regularly
with plenty of merriment. In third place on a count back was Volker Buley
from Daryl Evans who finished in fourth place.
The Compass Cap was once more won by the luckless Allan
Tranekaer who tells me he needs a break of a week or so but somehow I think
we’ll see him fronting up again on Thursday as he is such a good sport.
A Flight (0-18)
1st Patrice Bardy (18) 42pts
2nd Mike Gosden (10) 37pts
3rd Mike Allidi (3) 35pts
4th Ted Morris (12) 35pts
B Flight (19+)
1st Andre Van Dyk (19) 41pts
2nd Kevin Dinan (24) 36pts
3rd Volker Buley (31) 35pts
4th Daryl Evans (22) 35pts
Thursday, June 17, Phoenix Lakes & Ocean – Stroke
It was the time of the month when we have to count all
our strokes as twelve dedicated golfers signed up for the Café Kronborg June
Monthly Mug. After welcoming Englishman Brian Wilkinson back with us after a
long time, we departed Café Kronborg at 0815 and arrived at Phoenix 25
minutes later. Our scheduled tee off time was 0904 and our first group was
able to hit off after a short delay at 0915.
Weather conditions were fine but hot with very little
wind and rain clouds above did give us some rain on our 10th
& 11th holes but not even enough to warrant
unsheathing the umbrella. Speaking of umbrellas, our old mate Kevin Dinan
didn’t let us down with his comic relief as it was reported that
during his round he managed to stab himself in the arm (nothing serious)
with a spoke from his umbrella as it collapsed on him. Good one Kevin and
please keep it up.
The course was in very good shape although many of us had
trouble with the greens as there was sand on most of them and some of the
pin positions were placed in positions akin to an upturned saucer. Our group
certainly had an enjoyable day and after three much needed stops for drinks
we completed our round in the good time of four hours and twenty-five
minutes.
After qualifying for an official PSC handicap by
submitting five score cards, American Ken Bernek collected the Monthly Mug
at not only his first attempt but indeed his first competition since
obtaining his handicap. In first place in the “also rans” was yours truly,
just one shot behind the Mug winner and Koji Yamada finished second just one
stroke behind me. The epitome of sartorial elegance, Walter Baechli finished
in third place.
In the absence of Allan Tranekaer, who went through with
his “threat” of having a week off golf, it was left to my old mate Mike
“Hunter” Gosden to accept the Compass Cap.
Many thanks again to Bjarne and his family for his
continued sponsorship of this monthly event.
Monthly Mug Winner
Ken Bernek (28) net 72
Flight Winners
1st Peter Blackburn (17) net 73
2nd Koji Yamada (14) net 74
3rd Walter Baechli (18) net 77
Moodie makes hay with ‘local knowledge’
PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar
Joey’s column
Monday, June 14, Burapha -
Stableford
As The Belfry nine is still undergoing it’s maintenance,
is was another unusual coupling of loops today, Augusta (A) from the blues
and Dunes (D) from the white tees. Twenty six Outbackers tried their hand
with some reasonable scores returned.
Tuesday’s winner Geoff Moodie, left, with birthday boy
Arthur Bailey.
Steve Mann, whose driver has deserted him in recent
weeks, managed to keep it straight enough on the back nine (D) to rack up a
total of 22 points, to add to his average front nine of 18 points; giving
him the top score of the day of 40 points to win Div A. He was followed in
by Mike Winterburn with a fine 38 off 5 and Danny Willits in third with 34.
Div B was comfortably taken by one of the early starters,
El Suggs (37pts), four clear of the second placed man, Mark Williams with
33; Monday regular, Bob Lindborg was third on 32.
There was a record number of ‘2’s, a total of 11 coming
from Rosco, Raji, Tony Garnett, Mike Padilla, Tom Fitzpatrick, Mike
Winterburn, Steve Mann and both Mark Fisher & Dan Willits had two each.
Div A (0-14)
1st Steve Mann (10) 40pts
2nd Michael Winterburn (5) 38pts
3rd Daniel Willits (10) 34pts
4th Steven Budrys (12) 33pts
Div B (15+)
1st Eldridge Suggs (18) 37pts
2nd Mark Williams (16) 33pts
3rd Bob Lindborg (18) 32pts
4th Murray Hart (15) 31pts
Monday, June 14, Green Valley - Stableford
Today the alternate Monday venue was the ever popular
Green Valley, where 12 Outbackers chose to play. It was raining when we teed
off but hoping for better conditions, play continued in a persistent but not
heavy rain and fortunately our hopes were realised by the end of the first
nine.
The weather clearly didn’t upset the Doodys, as Geoff
claimed a ‘2’ twice as well as shooting 37 points to take second place, just
one ahead of his Mrs with 36. Dave Day claimed the top spot off his new
found handicap of ‘20’, with 38 points and should enjoy it (his h’cap) as
long as he can because he surely won’t be there long.
1st David Day (20) 38pts
2nd Geoff Doody (21) 37pts
3rd Kathy Doody (20) 36pts
4th Joe Mooneyham (14) 34pts
Tuesday, June 15, Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
When I first came to Pattaya, some 12 years ago, one of
the very first guys I played golf with, was, as Nigel often writes, ‘our
Arthur’, Arthur Bailey. Today was his 82nd birthday
and he’s still going strong; he might not hit it quite so far but he’s
always pretty straight and very tidy around the greens. Always the perfect
gentleman it was a delight to partake in his special day with the 14
Outbackers on the course and a few more (Outbackers) back at the ranch and a
couple of celebratory amber nectars.
Geoff Moodie, a spring chicken in comparison, just 10
years younger, was the winner today with a crafty 41 points, eked out by
plotting his way round his local course, where he knows every bump and lump,
even the ‘red ants’ by name. A month ago this guy couldn’t putt for toffee
but now he’s learnt to keep his hands stronger, he’s actually getting the
ball to the hole, meaning it sometimes goes in! Watch out, this guy is
capable of winning many times off his 27 handicap.
Second today was Barry McIntosh (37pts) who’s not been in
the frame for a while, followed in by La’Ong (36pts) who’s is now quite
accustomed to being on the podium and will see her handicap reduced yet
again on Saturday, to 28.
Arthur also sponsored the near pin prizes, a 500 baht
voucher at the Outback, won by Geoff Moodie (5th
hole), Dave Day (7th hole) and Chad (12th
hole). Where’s the prize for the 16th you may well
ask? Well nobody actually ended up on the green, although Frank said he did
hit it (the green)! So the prize went into a draw, you had to be there to
win it, and it was won by Roger Yabsley.
Thanks Arthur and Happy Birthday mate!
There was also a ‘jackpot 2’ won by Dave Spendley.
1st Geoff Moodie (27) 41pts
2nd Barry McIntosh (17) 37pts
3rd Laong (29) 36pts
4th Terry Marney (27) 34pts
Wednesday, June 16, Royal Lakeside - Stableford
Another fine day for golf as the 14 Outbackers left the
bar after breakfast for the 45 minute journey to this delightful course with
its stunning clubhouse, many travelling in the comfort of the Outback
‘Kangaroo’ bus.
Upon arrival the car park had a few cars and later we
found the course totally deserted except for a Thai five ball. The pro shop
procedure took a while, a bit like Khao Kheow used to be; but they do have a
special offer, 1,450 baht for green & caddy fee and cart alone and runs to
the end of October. Bear in mind you can also share a cart here which works
out at 1,170 baht all in each.
The usual ‘Lakeside’ breeze kept it comfortable but the
course, like so many, was showing signs of ‘wear and tear’ and lack of
watering. Some greens were sanded – but with the large greens, they are able
to do half at a time.
Once again Capt’ Bob (playing incredibly off of 10!) led
from the front, coming in with a fine 40 points (22 on the back). In second
spot was Andre Coetzee (6) with 37 points, Sel Wegner (14) was third on 36,
with the final place going to Steve Kilner (20) with 35. It is worth a
special mention that Andre had six birdies in his 37, only to be offset by
an almost similar number of bogies.
Three ‘2’s today – Capt’ Bob and Andre Coetzee had two.
1st Bob Philp (10) 40pts
2nd Andre Coetzee (6) 37pts
3rd Sel Wegner (14) 36pts
4th Steve Kilner (20) 35pts
Friday, June 18, Laem Chabang - Stableford
For one of the premier courses in the area, and probably
the most renowned, Laem Chabang falls way short of the condition seen here
in years gone by. The fairways quite simply have no density, the dead
cuttings seem to be suffocating new growth. The grass has no body or
strength; and the ball sits down every time, showing maybe only 90% of
itself, making it uninviting to hit. The greens were also average for the
time of year, although there was a variance between the two nines played, A
& B as it was today.
The white tee boxes are slowly being recommissioned after
being totally reseeded and there were about five or six in use today,
although once again the Outback preferred to set their own course for the 24
Outbackers who played today, giving a total length of about 6,300 yards.
The scoring was on the low to poor side, perhaps a
reflection of the conditions; with a couple of exceptions, as Tony Garnett
(39pts) Div A winner, continued his run of form that has seen his handicap
come down to just outside the single figure mark. Five shots adrift was Sel
Wegner on 34 and Capt’ Bob two further back with 32. Murray Hart took Div B
with an excellent 35 points ahead of Sakorn (33pts) and John Stafford with
32.
There were only three ‘2’s coming from Scotty Qua, Tony
Garnett and John Stafford.
Div A (0-14)
1st Tony Garnett (10) 39pts
2nd Sel Wegner (14) 34pts
3rd Bob Philp (10) 32pts
4th Robert Finley (14) 30pts
Div B (15+)
1st Murray Hart (15) 35pts
2nd Sakorn Pramoolchart (23) 33pts
3rd John Stafford (17) 32pts
4th Brian Maddox (20) 30pts
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 on the list or give Bob a call on
087 941 2474.
Dynamic duo pleased
at the valley
PSC Golf from Mulligans Lakeside
Tuesday, June 15,
Plutaluang - Stableford
Firstly to Tuesday’s round at Navy, where we mixed it up
with the South & West combination. It was Graham Hiskett (H/cap 14) who
played the best, his round best summed up on the S6 green, which was patchy
(at its kindest). Graham holed a 20-footer for birdie after bemoaning the
condition of the green, nice one, from there on it was all too easy.
Seriously though, the greens were not all in the best condition, but as I
always say, same for everybody, so get on with it.
Thursday’s dynamic duo, Tony Weresay & Mike Pledger.
Graham’s 34 points was 4 points clear of second, where a
countback was required before Tony Weresay (17) edged cart partner Derek
Waterworth (32) on the last 3 holes, 7 to 6.
Near Pins were picked up by Allan & Jeff, who had a
tussle with the putter, all day.
Thursday, June 17, Pleasant Valley - Stableford
Pleasant Valley was to be Thursday’s test, the course
overall is in good condition, with the exception of a few greens which are
still battling back from a recent coring. A few weeks and mows should see
them in fine order, let’s hope so anyway.
The surfaces did not appear to limit the scoring
potential of some, with a countback being required to decide the winner
after both shot a fine 39 points. Again Tony Weresay (17), who is getting to
be a countback king, beat out Mike Pledger (21) with a fine 20 on the back
9, to Mike’s 17.
Near Pins were shared around between Allan, Matt, Keith &
Tony.
Note: Mulligans Lakeside plays golf generally on Tuesday & Thursday (we
sometimes change to accommodate a Thai Holiday). Presentations are made at
the course on Tuesday, with Mulligans Lakeside hosting the Thursday
presentation. For more details on scheduling etc, please call Jeff 089 094
1841 or Ray 081 935 8088. Hope to see you there, Cheers & Good Golfing!
Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League
200 bowlers: Dang, Nok, Ooy, Noodle, Somrak, Sue & Yeow.
The new league got off with a bang with eight 200 games
being bowled, which shows that Pattaya Plus Bowl had the lanes in good
shape. Bowlers with no current handicap will receive their handicap after
three weeks which could change some game results.
Canada got off to a good start winning all four points
from the U.S. Marine team with La Montgomery leading the way for Canada with
a 530 series. Caf้ Kronborg won three points from Bavaria. Sue Murphy was
best for Kronborg with a 216 game, 553 series and Aht Johansson bowling as a
substitute for Bavaria bowled a 525 series.
Green Tree won three points from House of the Golden
Coin. Noodle Russell rolled a 212 game for Green Tree. Ooy Pluemkamon bowled
games of 223 and 201 for a 589 series and Yeow had a 204 game, 522 series,
to lead Jack Tar to a three point win over Sabai Friday. Nok Kennedy captain
of the Sabai team had the best game, 246 and best series 609 on the day.
VFW Post 9876 took two and one half points from Brother D as Somrak led
VFW with a 216 game and 592 series. Dang Downs bowled a 210 game and 578
series for Brother D.
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Results
& Standings June 18 (week 1)
Pos. Team Score
Standings
1 Canada 4 - 0
4 - 0
2 Café Kronborg 3 - 1 3 -
1
3 Green Tree 3 - 1
3 – 1
4 Jack Tar 3 -
1 3 - 1
5 VFW Post 9876 2.5 - 1.5 2.5 - 1.5
6 Brother D 1.5 - 2.5 1.5
- 2.5
7 Bavaria 1 -
3 1 - 3
8 House of the Golden Coin 1 - 3 1 – 3
9 Sabai Friday 1 - 3 1
- 3
10 USMC
0 - 4 0 - 4 |
The prize winners from last season pose for a group photo at the bowling
awards party held at the Diana Inn on June 15.
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