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Buriram edge United
in top of the table clash
Pattaya United’s Keisuke
Ogawa, right, evades the challenge of a Buriram defender during their teams’
Thai Premier League game in Chonburi, Saturday, March 26. (Photo/Ariyawat
Nuamsawat)
The big match of the Sponsor Thai Premier League last
weekend took place at the Institute for Physical Education Stadium in
Chonburi on Saturday when fourth placed and unbeaten Pattaya United took on
the in-form league leaders Buriram PEA FC.
United were dealt a blow prior to the kick off when star striker Ludowick
Takam was ruled out from taking any part in the game through injury, while
Buriram were able to welcome back Cameroon midfielder Frank Ohandza to their
ranks after a period out with illness.
There was a lively start to the match and United fired in the first real
shot in anger in the 9th minute when Somchai Singmanee laid the ball off to
Ithipol Poonsap whose fierce drive was well kept out by Tessungnoen in the
Buriram goal.
Two minutes later the visitors had an attack of their own that ended with
Kaewprom’s snap shot forcing Narit into a smart save.
As the half progressed it was the visitors who gradually began to gain
control of the midfield and United were fortunate not to fall behind when
Buriram’s Frank Opoku had two great chances to put his team ahead, but he
fluffed his lines on both occasions.
Having squandered the better of the chances, Buriram would have been the
more disappointed of the two teams to go in at the break on level terms, but
the visitors came out in determined mood at the start of the second half and
they came agonizingly close to taking the lead when Ohandza charged into the
Pattaya box in the 50th minute only to see his shot amazingly clear the top
of the woodwork.
United were having a hard time breaking down the tough Buriram defence and
were for the most part left to take long range shots at goal.
United’s Anuwat Inyin (19) is
surrounded by Buriram players as the league leaders piled on the pressure
during the second half of last Saturday’s game. (Photo/Ariyawat Nuamsawat)
With the clock ticking down and only 10 minutes to go it seemed that a
goalless stalemate was on the cards, but Ohandza was to atone for his
earlier miss by latching onto a through ball from Sarif Sainui to dispatch a
shot past Narit and give Buriram a one goal lead.
United tried manfully to work a way back into the match but without the
talismanic Ludovick up front they lacked a cutting edge and indeed it was
Buriram who came closest to scoring again when substitute Kewsombat fired
over the bar in injury time with the United goal at his mercy.
It was a disappointing loss for the Pattaya team but they will take solace
from the fact that they were forced to take on the league’s current best
form team without their number one striker.
United will be eyeing the Ludovick injury situation closely as they face a
long trip to Pichit FC on Sunday for their next Premier League game.
While United were suffering defeat at the hands of Buriram, close neighbours
Sri Racha FC were also on the wrong end of a 1-0 scoreline as they were
beaten away at BEC Tero Sasana. The only goal of the game came through
Ronnachai Rangsiyo in the sixth minute.
Last Sunday, Chonburi FC bounced back from the mauling by Buriram the
previous week to record a come from behind 2-1 victory over TTM Pichit at
the Chonburi Stadium.
After the visitors had taken a shock lead in the 12th minute through Thanat
Wongsupaluck, the ‘Sharks’ struck back with strikes from Pipob-On-mo and
Natthaphong Samana to record an important win that lifts them up to second
place in the league standings.
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Regents School picks up another trophy
The Sarnelli House team from
Nong Khai.
Derek Franklin
The Shai Davis Soccer Tournament once again took place at Planet Football on
Soi Siam Country Club last month, and this annual competition has now become
a permanent fixture on the soccer calendar.
Now in its fourth year, the three regular participating teams, Father Ray
Children’s Home, Pattaya Orphanage and Sarnelli House who traveled down from
Nong Khai, were joined by a new team from The Regents School.
As in past years the level of talent was outstanding as most of the players
play in regular leagues and competitions throughout the year.
The first game played was a replay of last year’s final between the Father
Ray Children’s Home and the Pattaya Orphanage. There is always fierce
rivalry when these two teams play each other, and the Children’s Home has
won two out of the last three meetings, however Pattaya Orphanage won last
year’s final and continued that form here by defeating the Children’s Home
by a score of six goals to three.
The second match was played between the local Regents School and the
visitors from Nong Khai, and it was the Regents School who won resoundingly
6-0.
The following match was between the two losing teams, Sarnelli House and the
Father Ray Children’s Home, and once again the Nong Khai team lost 6-5.
The reigning champions from the Pattaya Orphanage were confident that they
could make it two in a row and carry the winner’s trophy home once again.
However the Regents School team was just too good, scoring five goals before
the Orphanage team came back scoring three goals.
The match finished with last years winners receiving the runners up trophy,
whilst the Regents School team picked up the winners trophy and also the
trophy for top goal scorer on the day.
The fifth Shai Davis Soccer Tournament will be taking place in March 2012,
and already the Pattaya Orphanage are promising that they will win the
trophy next year, and the team from Nong Khai are hoping that they will one
day make it to the final.
The winning Regents School
team pose for a photo with beaten finalists Pattaya Orphanage.
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City’s championship hopes left on a knife edge
MBMG International League Division 1
Paul Frain
Pattaya City entertained 4th place Cosmos last weekend, knowing that
the Bangkok team are usually the ones who give City the hardest games each
season. Leaders, the Londoners meanwhile were playing 3rd placed team All
Stars in another very tough fixture, so it was a weekend that could decide
the title.
Both City and Cosmos found their feet quickly and in Cosmos’s first attack
they nearly scored when a mix up between the City keeper and his defenders
nearly gave away an early goal, with the keeper just getting the ball at the
second attempt. City replied and after a patient build up Earnest Dipita saw
his shot just skim the bar on its way over the top.
City were playing their usual open game and were awarded a penalty after
Emmuanel Tshuma was flattened by the Cosmos keeper while bearing down on
goal. Amazingly the keeper was only shown a yellow card for his
indiscretion. It was four minutes before the penalty could be taken due to
the treatment of the City player, but this did not deter Earnest Dipita from
sending the keeper the wrong way to give City the lead.
For all their possession after the goal, City found it hard to make the
telling final pass and the odd times they did break through, the finish was
weak or wild.
After the half time break Cosmos changed their tactics and packed the
midfield to stop City’s control of the ball. They also directed their
attacks at the right side of the Pattaya defense and it nearly paid
dividends when the City keeper was forced into a save with his legs. He
followed that up with making the save of the match to keep a volley out at
the foot of the post.
At the other end, a slick passing movement saw City’s Denis Matveer put the
ball in the net but it was disallowed for offside, a very close decision.
Both teams turned up the heat in a fast and furious final period of the game
and Cosmos kept attacking the City’s right and would have equalized but for
a one handed save by the City keeper as they started to beat the offside
trap more often.
Eventually the pressure told and City were caught napping in defense as the
full back was left facing three forwards, one of whom broke into the box and
fired a shot past the exposed City keeper to equalize.
This was a big blow to City as time was running out and it was all out
attack with the last five minutes ticking away, but there was no way through
the packed Cosmos penalty area and their keeper made two more excellent
saves to stop City from winning the match.
The game lived up to all expectations and City are now looking around
anxiously to see how the other top teams do in their respective fixtures.
This coming weeked Cosmos play leaders the Londoner in Bangkok while both
Pattaya City and Division 2 outfit, Pattaya City Reserves have home matches
at Horseshoe Point on Saturday.
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Promotion in the bag, FC Nova set their sights on bigger things
Review of FC Nova’s 2010/11 season
FC Nova players and staff celebrate their
Division 2 title winning success at Jamesons Irish Pub in Pattaya.
FC Nova were finally crowned MBMG Bangkok International Division 2 Champions
last week without them needing to kick a ball. Pickled Liver conceded their
match in Pattaya which resulted in them being awarded the 3 points needed to
seal the title.
It looks as though they will be joined in Division 1 next season by the
Scandinavian Vikings who, having defeated BSL Youth last week, only need a
point from their final fixture to join Nova in the topflight.
Despite a shaky finish to the end of the season which saw Nova take only a
solitary point in games against their three closest rivals, BSL Youth,
Sportsman and the Vikings, there can be few denying that overall they did
not deserve the mantle of Division 2 Champions.
There is no questioning that Coach Stuart Levy was severely hampered with
injuries and unavailability in the latter stages of their league campaign
that had a significant bearing on their results. When Levy had all his
players available at his disposal there were few teams if any that were
capable of keeping pace with the Pattaya based side.
The season got off to the flying start when they plundered I Play for 17
goals in their opening fixture, thereafter a run of nine victories and a
draw effectively had the league title all but wrapped up. They remained
unbeaten at home having won all of their fixtures which was a significant
achievement.
They led the way in the leagues scoring charts having fired in a total of 69
goals and conceding only 20 in the process. Norwegian Striker Bjorn
Ellingsen finished the season as Nova’s leading goalscorer with fellow
strike partner Paul Derbyshire and midfielder Mark McKeown both hitting
double figures for the season.
For the most part their defence was solid with their inspirational captain
Lee Homer leading by example. Fellow defenders Dave Booton, Mark Hill and
Daryl Mann all made telling contributions throughout the season along with
goalkeeper Art who proved to be one of the best shot stoppers around.
Their centre midfield pairing of Roger Cox and Mark McKeown proved to be the
best in the league with the latter McKeown undoubtedly Nova’s player of the
season. His boundless energy and an ability to make surging runs from deep
caused headaches for all the teams he came up against on top of getting more
than his fair share of goals.
Wide men Ben Bryant, Sit Namthong, Andrew Robinson and Thai Nick all
produced match winning performances at some point throughout the season and
all four were hampered by injuries at some stage which ruled them out for a
number of weeks. There were also solid contributions from utility players
Stuart Cowie, Mark Dorey and Nicholas Creasey.
Veteran striker Creasey has finally called time on his illustrious playing
career and hung up his Drogba boots, the thought of competing in the top
division with the pace and physical demands that it brings was all too much
for the 43 year old. The lads of FC Nova would like thank Nick for his
valuable contribution he has made towards their league campaign this season
and his experience and overall popularity on and off the pitch will be
sorely missed.
What was more of a surprise was the sudden announcement that Stuart Levy
will be leaving the helm as manager of FC Nova, he has resigned with
immediate effect, however he has effectively moved upstairs and will
continue with the administration and being an ambassador for the Pattaya
based club. FC Nova would like to take this opportunity to thank Stuart for
all his hard work he has put in over the two seasons he has been in charge
of the club. After finishing their first season a creditable 5th he has
guided Nova to the title in only their second season as a club which is a
fantastic achievement and one that he can be extremely proud of. Anyone
wishing to apply for the post of manager for next season can contact Stuart
on 085 287 8885.
The club are also hugely grateful to the generous sponsorship of Ronnie
Fineman and his Nova Group and would like to thank him along with Kim
Fletcher, the popular landlord of Jamesons Irish Bar, for providing great
hospitality for the players after every game.
Finally FC Nova would like to thank Mark O’Callaghan and all his staff at
Planet Football, for providing them with fantastic training facilities
throughout the season. They will continue to train during the closed season
on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Planet Football and any players wishing to join
the club are more than welcome to attend.
After the cancellation of the Pickled Liver game that saw them crowned as
Champions the lads from FC Nova met up at Jamesons for the last time in the
season and were seen celebrating long and hard into the night as only they
know how!
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Enright strikes with thunder at the Valley
PSC golf from The Golf Club Sports Bar
‘Kaptain Klipboard’ Brad
Sproxton (left) with the winner of the coveted Monthly Medal and shirt, Eddy
Beibly.
Monday, March 21, Green Valley –
Stableford
A Flight
1st Bob Newell 38pts
2nd Jez Lees 37pts
3rd Michael Whelan 37pts
B Flight
1st Gabriel Enright 44pts
2nd Mick Beresford 38pts
3rd John Lawton 36pts
Near Pins: Mick Beresford
Thirty plus golfers assembled today for our regular Monday fixture.
The A Flight winner was none other than the golden voice of ‘The Sin Bin’,
Bob Newell. A count-back was required for 2nd and 3rd with Jez Lees having a
B9-19 to Micheal Whelan’s B9-18.
B Flight had a clear runaway winner with ‘The Thunder from Down Under’
Gabriel Enright taking top honors with an incredible 44 points. Well done
Gabriel. Best dressed Mick Beresford was a distant second on 38 points while
John Lawton, playing his last game before heading off to Africa for work,
finished 3rd on 36. Travel well John and come see us again.
Wednesday, March 23, Khao Kheow A & C - Stableford
1st Brett Chan 35pts
2nd Nigel Flanagan 34pts
3rd Vic Hestor 34pts
The cooler weather and steady drizzle chased a few of those signed up to cry
off. None the less, 16 brave souls continued out to Khao Kheow for a soggy
but enjoyable game.
Brett Chan proved to be the best mudder and finished at the top with 35
points. Nigel ‘Colts, Colts, Colts’ Flanagan fired a 21 on the B9 to edge
out Vic Hestor who came in with a respectable B9-19. Thanks to all that
joined us.
Friday, March 25, Phoenix Ocean & Lake – Medal/Stroke
A Flight
1st James Bracket net 73
2nd Alan Thomas net 73
3rd Micheal Whelan net 74
B Flight
1st Eddy Beilby net 72
2nd Marlene Prudden net 73
3rd Vic Hestor net 73
2’s: Eddy Beilby, Peter LeNoury, James Bracket, Peter Larrsen,
Gabriel Enright
Thirty-six players gathered to contest the Monthly Medal winner’s shirt.
Eddy Beilby was the man of the match today, mustering a fine net 72 and top
spot in B Flight. Second place went to our ‘Aussie Queen’ Marlene Prudden
who nipped Vic Hestor on count-back.
A Flight honors went to the count-back winner James Brackett who had a net
73. Alan Thomas was second on net 73 and Micheal Whelan third on net 74.
The presentation back at The Golf Club Sports Bar & Grill proved a loud and
boisterous affair. Many shots were replayed and there were those that were
left wondering what had happened out there. Most it seemed had struggled on
the greens. Many a libation was sunk, unlike the putts that didn’t. Thanks
to all that attended and we look forward to seeing you again at The Club.
Note: The Golf Club is located on Soi LK Metro, off Soi Buakhao and
Soi Diana junction. We can be reached on 085 434 3377 or
[email protected] and our new website is www.golfclubpattaya.com.
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Walkley tops the high scores at Burapha
PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar
Monday, March 21, Burapha - Stableford
Is the Capt’ going soft in the head, letting the guys play the Burapha C & D
loops off the whites? Judging by the scores brought about by the excellent
conditions, one would guess – Yes! If you didn’t get upwards in the late
30’s you got nothing and plenty of it.
 Wednesday
winner, Norm Cheetham.
There was an Aussie-Kiwi challenge just for fun and the Kiwis (Capt’ &
Lloyd) had a hell of a day with Lloyd Shuttleworth for the Kiwis shooting
one under on the back nine (gross) for 22 points to soundly kick the
derriere’s of the Aussies. I might add he got no help from his playing
partner who should remain nameless due to his dodgy handicap of 11.
The top scores came from the cream of the crop division A, with Owen Walkely
in the top spot with his 42 points, ahead of newcomer Peter (41), and Lloyd
(39), with the Capt’ just missing out. Rosco took Div B with 36 points and
Hec Copper returned to form after a poor showing in Chiang Mai the previous
week, to amass 40 points and win Div C, together with Bruce McAdam (37) in
third, who showed he could still play the game!
All in all a great day out and you will see by the winning scores that the
course was benign as there was no wind and just a little humidity.
Welcome to Peter Larsson from Sweden who was playing his first game with the
Outback and also a welcome to Paul Sirban and all the boys from Broome and
other parts of Western Australia.
There was a ‘jackpot 2’, which was a travesty of justice really, when you
see who got it, only joking Steve.
Div A (0-11)
1st Owen Walkley (11) 42pts
2nd Peter Larsson (10) 41pts
3rd Lloyd Shuttleworth (5) 39pts
Div B (12-15)
1st Rosco Langoulant (15) 36pts
2nd Gary Ralph (14) 35pts
3rd Norm Cheetham (15) 34pts
Div C (16+)
1st Hec Cooper (23) 40pts
2nd Shane Brown (17) 38pts
3rd Bruce McAdam (22) 37pts
Tuesday, March 22, Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
An excellent attendance here at Pattaya C.C. with 30 players
competing in two divisions. The course was reported to be in the best
condition seen here for some time, particularly the front nine.
Course specialist Mike Allidi’s gross 71 was not enough for him to win Div
A, which stretched right down to the 20 handicapper, as he was beaten by one
of the Capt’s good mates here on holiday, Gary Ralph with 41. He had already
been cut from previous form and has now had his handicap reduced to 11.
Welcome today to Chop, playing with the Outback for the first time and
taking third place with 38 points and in turn beating Dopp, who had 36. Div
B was won by Frenchman, Jean Claude on 36, just a point ahead of Tuesday
regular, Terry Marney.
There were three ‘2’s from Norm Cheetham, Chris Dopp and Mile Allidi.
Div A (0-20)
1st Gary Ralph (13) 41pts
2nd Mike Allidi (2) 39pts
3rd Chop Daprakhon (12) 38pts
4th Chris Dopp (11) 36pts
Div B (21+)
1st Jean-Claude Coulon (31) 36pts
2nd Terry Marney (27) 35pts
3rd Sid Ottaway (23) 35pts
4th Doug Chalkley (21) 32pts
Wednesday, March 23, Greenwood - Stableford
It was the worst of times - it was the best of times. The worst
for Pattaya as it coped with high winds, heavy rainfall and flash flooding
as dawn broke on Wednesday morning. The worst for the Outbackers who made
the trek to Greenwood in the heavy rain and of course the worst for our
Aussie friends who were flying back home and heading to the airport directly
from the course.
But of course, every cloud has a silver lining and today it turned out to be
a golden lining for Norm Cheetham who was today’s winner with 37 points and
an incredible 23 putts over a well manicured, wet, but extremely playable B
and C tracks at Greenwood.
It also turned out to be the best of times for the remainder of the
shortened field, the true 14 Outbackers, the real men and woman who teed off
and endured rain for 6 holes before the rain stopped and the day became
ideal for golf on a course that they had to share with no one.
And last, but not least, the best for the golfers who came back to the
Outback for the presentation and enjoyed a drink on Capt’ Bob who rang the
bell.
Rounding off the top four were Shane Brown, five back with 32, Tony
McDonough (31) and the Sugarman, also with 31. There were no ‘2’s today so
the pot was added to the prize money.
1st Norm Cheetham (15) 37pts
2nd Shane Brown (17) 32pts
3rd Tony McDonough (14) 31pts
4th Sugar Ray Handford (16) 31pts
Friday, March 25, Khao Kheow - Stableford
There is only one story here, and that is how did a pleasant day
out on a golf course nearly turn into nothing more than an abusive brawl for
two or three; thereby completely spoiling the round for innocent bystanders?
Was Khao Kheow partly to blame for asking the Outbackers to tee-off 30
minutes ahead of their allotted tee time, thus catching many players
unprepared, or was the Outback to blame for not turning round and saying,
“not all our players are here yet, you’ll have to wait”, rather than rush
everybody to the tee and send them out on a first come first served basis,
out of their predetermined groups.
Whatever the reason, the question of slow play raised its ugly head with
harsh exchanges of words and club threatening behaviour, neither of which
have any place on a golf course. It was reported that the pace of play was
not slow, around four hours, which for Thailand cannot be considered slow by
any means so why did this stupid and senseless incident occur? It is easy
sometimes to perceive that something is not what it seems; in this case one
of the first groups had shot round in double quick time, opening up a gap of
some four holes to the next group, thus making them appear slow. Slower they
were indeed but not unacceptably so. Golf is not a race.
The Outback does not condone the behaviour of a few today and we do not
support slow play. By all means ask politely for your fellow players to
speed up if they are unreasonably slow but we will never tolerate violent
threats with clubs or words.
For the record, 25 played today in two divisions on the A & C nines and
there was one ‘2’ from Chris Dopp.
Div A (0-15)
1st Steve Milne (13) 33pts
2nd Chris Dopp (11) 32pts
3rd Steve Plant (14) 32pts
4th Bob Philp (11) 31pts
Div B (16+)
1st Barry McIntosh (18) 36pts
2nd Andrew Makara (29) 34pts
3rd Sugar Ray Handford (16) 33pts
4th Raleigh Gosney (18) 31pts
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.
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Stormy weather
can’t deny Warberg
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Tuesday’s winners pose with Bert and Pu’s
favourite waitress.
Derek Brook
Tuesday, March 22, Greenwood - Stableford
It has not been the best of weather here at present, and as I write this we
have just undergone, last night, the most massive storm. The flashing,
crashing and banging outside was tremendous, and it was reassuring to live
in a place with many lightning safeties. The whole sky was lit up for ages.
The day out at Greenwood was also a bit dicey, but in the end turned out to
be hot, humid, then a bit of rain and the last few holes were played in
great weather. Cool and to all the players a blessed relief after the heat
of the first part of the day.
The course played very difficult as the rain of the previous days had made
it very heavy underfoot with little run, and the white tees all seemed to be
way back. We also played the B & C Nines which proved a real test. Still
this course is always a pleasure to play and particularly on this day as it
was also inhabited by few other golfers. Maybe the threat of rain put them
off?
The restaurant here offers a fine view of the ninth hole and the food is
reasonable with very good prices. After a hard 18 holes it is a pleasure to
just sit there and relax before the drive back. The drive home is now very
smooth and we were surprised as we neared Pattaya to find it had been
raining much more than we got on the course.
Back in Bert’s it was time for the scores to be announced and we found that
overall the course had won the day. Taking first place with 35 points was
Dick Warberg, in second was Paul Edgar with 34, third was Brian Gabe with 33
points and in fourth was Barry Elphick with 32. T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Mike Gaussa, Derek Brook, Paul Sharples, Walter Bachli
Long Putts: Mashi Kaneta, Doug Maiko
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Phil Groves is back to normal
IPGC golf from The Haven
Sunday, March 20, Green Valley -
Stableford
CSS 71
Division 1 (0-14)
1st Charlie Lapsey (8) 40pts
2nd Yasuo Suzuki (10) 39pts
3rd Michael Steele (13) 38pts
Division 2 (15+)
1st Ben O’Neill (20) 38pts
2nd Mark Armstrong (28) 38pts
3rd Charlie Sheppard (15) 34pts
With another good turnout two divisions were required with the cut being
made at fourteen and below for the first division. In a competitive
premier flight Charlie Lapsey claimed the top spot by a single shot from
Yasuo Suzuki, who was turning out for the first time on a Sunday
following his recent purchase of a motorized bicycle and the ensuing
need to amortize the cost in the shortest time possible, taking second
prize was an added bonus for the day. Michael Steele, playing his last
game before returning to South Herts, took third place with a two under
handicap return to round out the division winners.
 Phil
Groves.
Ben O’Neill had to win a count-back to take the top spot in the second
division, which he did with a better 20 to 18 over Mark Armstrong,
leaving the latter in second place. Charlie Sheppard took the final
placing after winning a three-way count-back over Kevin Hamilton and
Norman Cheetham, as he finished the back nine in 17 with Kevin winning
out on the back six by 11 to 10 after he and Norman had managed only 15
a piece over the nine.
The 2’s were shared between Russell Exley, Yasuo Suzuki, Norman
Cheetham, Joe McArdle, Mark Armstrong and Ben O’Neill; fortunately it
was a big enough field to make it worthwhile.
The near pins were shared between Steve Mulberry, Neville Duncan, and
Russell Goldsworthy.
The presentations were conducted and overseen by Russell Exley as usual
at the Golf Centre Bar on the course with amiable hosts John and Geoff,
assisted by their lovely staff, taking excellent care of the golfers.
Monday, March 21, Green Valley - Stableford
CSS 72
1st Trevor Schirmer (15) 40pts
2nd George Oakley (16) 35pts
3rd Phil Groves (10) 35pts
4th Roar Berger (24) 34pts
5th Ole Stamnes (27) 33pts
6th Danny Greer (24) 33pts
Trevor Schirmer had the his best round since June last year, playing
over 70 rounds in the meantime, getting round in a gross 83 which
ensures that he is once again almost at his historical lowest handicap
level. On the day he was by far the outstanding competitor, winning by
five from George Oakley, who was taking a rest day from his local
benevolent works but ensuring that there will be a little extra to
disperse prior to returning to ‘Blighty’ to rebuild the resources in
readiness for the next visit.
 Al
Rolnik.
Phil Groves was once again to be found among the prizes after losing a
count-back to George with a worse 19 to 20 and having to settle for
third place.
Roar Berger, also playing his last game for a while, took fourth place
with a solid two over round with playing partner Ole Stamnes close
behind in fifth after winning a count-back over Danny Greer with a
better 17 to 13 after Danny got a little bit over excited following a
one under opening half.
There were no 2’s in the second division but Phil Groves had the only
one in the first division to sweep the pool.
Before presenting the prizes for the day Stephen Beard welcomed back
Peter Hall and said a farewell for Roar Berger who will be visiting and
carrying the groups best wishes to fellow member Kjell Christiansen who
is very ill back in Norway.
Wednesday, March 23, Bangpra - Stableford
CSS 73
1st Phil Groves (10) 37pts
2nd Kare Lunde (18) 32pts
3rd Don Scott (10) 31pts
Terrible weather conditions in the early morning, when the thunder and
lightning crashed all around Pattaya, meant that most of the prospective
players rolled over for an extra few hours in the dry and warmth, which
left the field that that travelled to Bangpra very depleted.
 Trevor
Schirmer.
But after starting off in a very light drizzle that did not even require
the employment of an IPGC brolly, the skies cleared after two holes and
with the course as usual draining extremely rapidly, a very enjoyable
round was finished at a leisurely pace. But the let up in the weather
did not bring any relief from the course which always plays a little
harder than the 72 par and once again this proved to be the case as the
CSS for the day moved out to 73.
This movement in the day’s rating determined that Phil Groves, the only
player under par for the day or indeed within two of their handicaps,
would be dropped even lower after the weekend’s handicap reviews.
Kare Lunde stuck to the task fairly well to take second place albeit
some five shots adrift of the winner, which left Don Scott in third as
the prizes were restricted to just three places due to the numbers
playing.
On a day when scoring and the conditions were so difficult it was no
surprise to find that there were no 2’s in either division.
Friday, March 25, Phoenix (Blue Tees) - Monthly Medals
CSS 74
Division 1 (0-15)
1st Phil Groves (10) 71pts
2nd Don Scott (10) 76pts
3rd Russell Exley (8) 81pts
Division 2 (16+)
1st Al Rolnik (22) 79pts
2nd Rod Howett (24) 84pts
3rd Danny Greer (24) 85pts
Following the low turnout for the previous competition hopes were high
that the Monthly Medals would attract a few more players, but once again
the poor weather reports and looming skies meant another day when the
numbers were much reduced, although the course was found to be in
reasonable condition allowing for the ‘casual water’ rule which could be
claimed over a wide area of the course.
But the conditions were no problem for the very much in-form Phil
Groves, aka The Aussie Burglar, who once again took charge of the first
division and once again won with a margin of five shots, which resulted
in another drop in handicap making a total of three shots lost since his
return to golf just over a month ago, following a two year hiatus. The
win also ensures that he will be once again contending for the prized
Gold Medal at the end of the year.
Don Scott, playing his last game prior to returning Stateside to
entertain jazz guitar enthusiasts over there after too little exposure
to the Pattaya aficionados, took second place with a solid round that
did not trouble the winner but still ended five ahead of third place,
which was occupied by Russell Exley.
The second division was an exercise in application and doggedness, as Al
Rolnik stuck with it as shot after shot slipped away due to the length
of the course from the blue tees and especially the wetness of the
fairways which made scoring extremely difficult for the higher
handicaps. His five over the days CSS proved to be easily good enough to
take the month’s Medal and book his place in the end of the year finals
by a clear five strokes ahead of Rod Howett in second. Danny Greer went
out in five under handicap but suffered badly following a fairly nasty
ten to open up the inward half, followed by a nine on the eleventh that
would have floored lesser mortals and then one or two other unfortunate
occurrences, but he never quite gave up to finish in third.
Once again there were no 2’s in the second division and once again Phil
Groves had the only one in the first division.
Back at The Haven there were welcome backs for Yukio Kikuchi and Serge
Straeten and a farewell for Ole Stamnes.
Note. If you would like to play with The Haven group you can
contact 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.
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Stang & Covill take the honours at Green Valley
PSC golf from the The Caddy Shack
Friday, March 25, Green Valley –
Stableford
We had no game on Wednesday due to the rain but the players
turned out in force for our weekly visit to Green Valley on Friday with 31
in total making the trip.
Play was off the white tees and both Ian Colvill and Dave Strang recorded
identical 39 point scores to win the A and B Flights respectively. Phonsie
McGahan and Jim McGovern had to be separated by count-back for the runner-up
spot in the premier flight, Phonsie just edging it, while Ben Findon was two
clear of third placed Colin Gregg in the lower tier.
Dave Strang, Les Hall, Vincent Smyth and Phonsie McGahan all recorded ‘2’s
to split the pot.
A Flight
1st Ian Covill (14) 39pts
2nd Elphonsie McGahan (6) 38pts
3rd Jim McGovern (11) 38pts
4th Ted Gardner (8) 36pts
B Flight
1st Dave Strang (18) 39pts
2nd Ben Findon (19) 37pts
3rd Colin Gregg (26) 35pts
4th Bruce Tollitt (19) 34pts
Hurley on fire at shortened Khao Kheow
PSC golf from The Fairway Golf Society
Monday, March 21, Pleasant Valley –
Stableford
Only a small group of sixteen players today - just four 4 balls - so no near
pins but instead we had a ‘2’s competition and there were two of them by
Brian Maddox and Alan Sullivan. We also only had one division which was won
on a 20-18 count-back by Alan Sullivan over Ed Stewart, one of last week’s
winners.
 Wednesday
winner, Richard Hurley.
Everybody agreed that the course was in excellent condition and would like
to play it again soon, so we hastily decided to re-arrange our fixture for
this coming Friday and play here again.
1st Alan Sullivan (11) 39pts
2nd Ed Stewart (14) 39pts
3rd Steve Durey (17) 37pts
Wednesday, March 23, Khao Kheow - Stableford
Today we were debating whether to even set off for the course as it had been
raining heavily since 2 a.m. and was still showing no signs of easing up by
10 a.m. We were informed by the course that it was still open, so after a
show of hands we decided to take a chance and make the journey and decide on
whether to play or not once we got there. The decision was taken to start
and it was a good call because after just three holes the sky cleared and
the rain stopped.
We decided to play off the forward tees as we knew there would be no run on
the ball. This resulted in some very high scoring which is rare on this
course. The star of the day was undoubtedly Richard Hurley, playing to one
over gross of off his eleven handicap to record a massive 46 points. Well
played Richard and watch out as the handicapper will already be sharpening
his knife.
Ed Stewart also had a very good round to finish second while Ning Neal held
off Scott Dobbin for third on a back nine count-back. Near pins went to
(just to keep it in the family) Ning and Brian Neal, Scott Dobbin, and
Richard Hurley.
1st Richard Hurley (11) 46pts
2nd Ed Stewart (14) 38pts
3rd Ning Neal (15) 36pts
Friday, March 25, Pleasant Valley - Stableford
It looks like the high season is drawing to an end as we only had a small
group again today, and a clear golf course in front of us to play on (which
made a very pleasant change). Hopefully the courses will see common sense
and reduce their fees for the low season so we could all benefit from it.
What they all don’t seem to realize is that nearly all the expats here are
retired, which means they are getting old so a lot of them need a buggy to
get around. If they reduced the fees for the buggies they might well find
that the old ones play a lot more often.
On to the golf and no near pins today and only one player managing to break
par - Pier Cere with 37 points.
1st Pier Cere (11) 37pts
2nd Ed Stewart (14) 35pts
3rd Joop Medze (17) 34pts
Note: The Fairway Golf Society is situated at the top of Pattaya
Klang on the Sukhumvit Road and plays every Sun-Mon-Wed & Fri. Anyone
wishing to play with us can call into the club house and put their name down
on the lists provided or call Scott on 084 389 2327. Transport & breakfast
provided if required.
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Robinsons (jam) - no surprise
Phoenix Tuesday/Friday (PSC) Group
Tuesday’s top three (standing
rear)
pose with staff members at The Relax Bar.
Mike Gerrard
There was no jam about this result, but it was sweet. Clive is one of the
better golfers in town and he always scores there or thereabouts to his
handicap. The only difference this week was that there was no one scrambling
a better score. Therefore it stands to reason he will be victorious some
times.
The day looked promising, albeit a little humid. We tackled the Lake/Ocean
course (most people’s favourite) today and as we approached half way the
threatening storms in the distance quickly closed in on us all.
After about 30 minutes delay some guys were pondering whether to abandon the
day, but I assured them that this weather could change back to fine in
seconds. Would you believe it 5 minutes later we were back on track and
starting to steam from the heat. The rest of the day turned out fine.
Back at the ranch, as we call The Relax Bar, the staff welcomed us all as
usual with fine service with friendly smiles.
As each player who returned sipped their first drink (free in this group),
myself and Richard sorted out all the scores ready for the presentation.
As the headline says, Clive Robinson won the day with a steady 36 points. In
joint second place, both with 35 points, was our other steady guy Hugh Byrne
and last week’s winner John Poole.
Sadly John and his dad will be going back to good old ‘Blighty’ next week to
help increase the pension funds for us old codgers.
Near pin winners were John Poole (2), Eamon Murtagh and the ‘Cheshire grin
man’ Patrick Browne.
So, all that was left for the other poor players of the day was the lucky
draw. Something some of us are all too often in the hat for these days. Only
the players who have not won anything go in the lucky draw whose prizes are
kindly donated by our hosts The Relax Bar and went to John Bartley, Tony
Hill (free massage) and Bob Poole (free drink).
As the official high season comes to a close, our attendance figures will
inevitably fall (sometimes a relief?) and we will reduce to just one flight
for the prizes. However we will, as always be having lots of fun.
As of 1st April the green fees for guests will be 900 baht which is this
year’s Sports Day rate at Phoenix Golf Club. There is a special rate for
those who enjoy riding on a cart of 1,750 baht all inclusive of green fee,
caddy fee and cart. But if you wish to share a cart with someone it will be
better to pay the 900 baht green fee and 250 baht caddy fee each and then
share a cart at 700 baht. This works out at 1,500 per head.
Our Friday golf is now back in full swing and we have adopted playing from
white tees from now on (much more comfortable for most). The green fees on a
Friday will be same as the special cart deal for individuals (1,750 baht) or
you can just pay 1,000 baht green fee (as a guest of the members), plus 250
baht caddy fee if you wish to walk or share a cart.
Keith Keohane of KPK Foods also sponsors a mid month golf day for us and
that will be the second Tuesday of the month. The reward is a nice voucher
to spend in his retail out let.
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Edwards continues good form
PSC Golf from Mulligans Lakeside
Dave Edwards and Ken Hole.
Tuesday, March 22, Crystal Bay -
Stableford
Tuesday we travelled to Crystal Bay, where the test was the B & C
combination. The course was in good condition with the greens holding good
shots, but still having enough pace to allow putting strokes, as opposed to
hitting the ball.
The course certainly suited Jeff Wylie (8) who recorded a “best in a long
while” score of 42 points while next best was Ken Hole (16) with 35. Near
Pins were picked up by Rob & Jeff, with Ken securing 2.
Thursday, March 24, Greenwood - Stableford
Thursday was a journey up Hwy 331 to Greenwood and again the B & C layout
was the allotted combination. Dave Edwards (16) continued his recent good
form to post a solid 35 points, which could easily have been more with a bit
of luck, or concentration. Tony Chetland (17) made good use of his last game
before returning to Spain (to work) with 31 points for second spot.
Technicals on the day went to Dave, Tony & Frans, while 1 went unclaimed for
a donation to Banglamung Boys Home.
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 089 094 1841
or 081 935 8088. Cheers & Good Golfing!
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The Italian Job
PSC golf from Lewiinski’s
Sunday, March 20, Green Valley -
Stableford
A Flight
1st Colin Davis (16) 41pts
2nd Silvio Bizzotto (11) 39pts
3rd Seamus Cotter (11) 38pts
B F light
1st Gavoglio Massimo (28) 44pts
2nd Merle Humphreys (20) 40pts
3rd Eddy Beilby (18) 37pts
Near Pins: No 4 Colin Davis no 9 Mick Beresford No 12 Mark Morris No
16 Merle Humphreys.
We all know that Green Valley is typically set up in its usual Sunday
configuration for the weekly Sunday outings; that is forward tees, but even
that does not dampen the quality of Gavoglio ‘Mam a mea’ Massimo’s 44 point
B Flight mauling. Gavoglio has clearly taken his game to a higher level. We
will see how he manages with the forth coming cut.
 Gavin
Knox.
Gavoglio’s brilliant effort made also-rans out of the fine efforts of Merle
Humphreys’ 40 points and Eddy Beilby’s 39 point count-back verdict over
Kathy ‘Elgar’ Doody.
The Donkey provided further evidence that he can play despite the mantle of
leadership as he led the premier flight with a solid 41 points, thus ending
Silvio Bizzotto’s hopes of an Italian double victory with his 39 points. The
Irish, never far from the action, were represented by Seamus Cotter a
further shot back; Seamus counting the cost of three no scores on his card.
Bob’ low gross’ got himself a new partner in the continuing Sunday four-ball
challenge in the shape of Garry Blackburne, but the ‘Principal’ and
‘mussels’ Bonner proved once again they are a tough nut to crack, Who next
Bob?
Monday, March 21, Greenwood - Stableford
1st Gavin Knox (11) 32pts
2nd Brian Cooper (24) 32pts
Well it wasn’t pretty and nobody’s handicap is going up as the small field
threw a non-counter at the demanding Greenwood B+C layout. Tales of horror
abounded as the greens were lightning fast, with tricky pin positions to
boot.
Guess who not again. Afraid so! Gavin continued his weekly assault on the
Lewiinski’s coffers, but he needed a bit of luck as he got the count-back
verdict over the unlucky Brian Cooper.
Guess who added the only ‘2’ of the day to his winnings?
Wednesday, March 23, St Andrews - Stableford
1st Jim Bell (20) 37pts
2nd Colin Davis (16) 37pts
The size of the field might have been impacted by overnight one of the worst
storms and near hurricane conditions to hit the Eastern Seaboard. But those
that chose to play arrived at St. Andrews to find a wet but playable course.
Jim Bell returned to Lewiinski’s competition with a count-back victory over
the Colin ‘The Donkey’ Davis. G M. Jim, don’t you know you don’t beat the
boss on the first day back? Joe ‘The Kid’ Tynan shot an even par round to
keep his recent run of quality golf intact.
Back at Lewiinski’s Jim was as good as his name as he duly rang the bell. No
2’s were recorded so a on rollover Friday
Friday, March 25, Crystal Bay - Stableford
A Flight
1st Gavin Knox (11) 39pts
2nd Mike Jeffreys (15) 38pts
B Flight
1st Odd-holm Hanson (17) 40pts
2nd Sim Davis (29) 35pts
Odd-Holm Hansen did the best work on the day in the lower flight as
evidenced by his 40 points. That was five clear of Sim ‘Card’ Davis as she
made a return to the podium.
The clean-up guy struck again at the other end of the spectrum (ah I can
hear Colm from here!) as his 39 points led Mike Jeffreys by a single stroke,
with Mike edging Claude Harder via the resulting count =-back.
Claude did gain a part of the rollover 2’s pot along with Tore Eliassen,
Pierre Bietry and top man Odd-Holm Hansen.
Note: Lewiinski’s is situated on Pattaya land Soi 1, Beach road Soi/13 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.
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Ryder rolls home at Diana
Seniors and Ladies March Open
Diana Seniors and Ladies March
winners: Mike Ryder,
Chant Schwulera (Moon), and Joe Peters.
Nigel Cannon
Thursday, March 24, Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
The heavy rain the previous day and in the morning meant a few who signed up
decided to give it a miss. However the 27 who did arrive and played had an
enjoyable day.
The light rain stopped before the first group teed off and by the time most
got to the back 9 we were informed that carts could go on the fairways. The
sun came out making it perfect for golf. With the earlier conditions ‘pick
and “place was the order of the day.
For the first time there was only one lady today – our good friend Chant
Schwulera (Moon). Moon was awarded both first place with 32 points off her
10 handicap, and the ladies near pin prize to much applause.
In the Seniors event (50–65) two newcomers were in the frame; Mike Ryder
(33) with the best of the day 40 points, and Keith Beckham (23) runner-up
with 34.
Once again there was a group of our Irish friends and winner of the Super
Seniors (65+) came from that group. Joe Peters (18) with 39 points was the
victor ahead of runner-up and Diana regular Werner Schwarz (17) with 38
points, after beating Andy Galvin on count-back.
Alan Pearce calculated the results allowing the presentation to take place
soon after the last group came in. All scores are submitted to Pattaya
Sports Club.
Note: The next Diana Seniors and Ladies Open is on Thursday 28th
April at Pattaya Country Club with a tee time of 0900. Sign-up sheets are at
Diana Green Bottle on 2nd road and the Diana Driving range.
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Orawan & Heikki in dominant form at Bangpakong
Jomtien Golf with the IPGC
Monday, March 21, Bangpakong -
Stableford
We were all quite surprised at the turnout today at this course considering
some people think the 3 courses up the 331 are too far to travel and won’t
even go there. There were five cancellations but we still fielded 5 ladies
and 41 men today.
 On
the podium at Eastern Star, Erkki Koivisto, Bryan Rought and John Williams.
A very quiet route 7 on the way up and it took exactly one hour from Siam
Cats and we all arrived to our allocated tee times and there were no
problems whatsoever.
Two 40’s and two 39’s dominated the four divisions, with Orawan Meeraka
winning the ladies with 40 points, Noi Emmerson taking second on 38, and Mam
Morel coming in third with 36 points.
Heikki Alanko also scored 40 points to win division 2, with Rudi Schafer
playing his last game this visit coming second on 37 and Jerry McCarthy took
third on 35.
Still in winning form and now playing off 13, Jon Poole beat Terry Dutton on
a count-back after they both came in with 39 points to claim top spot in the
first division and Raivo Velsberg was third with 37.
Fred Duffy came third in division 3 on 35 points, one behind Jim Connelly in
second and the winner on 39 was John Sharky.
Near pins went to Dennis Scougal, Fred Duffy, Alan Pilkington, Jim Connelly,
Srithong Tann, Kari Kuparinen, Kari Aarnio, Noi Emmerson and Georges Faber.
The ‘2’s in division 1 were shared by Alan Pilkington, Dennis Scougal and
Raivo Velsberg while in division 2 Jim Connelly’s birdie on the 7th was the
only one in this division.
Wednesday, March 23, Greenwood – Stableford
The rain started here in Jomtien at around 4 a.m. in the morning and
continued until the groups arrive to a totally waterlogged Soi 5 at around 8
o’clock. With the street running like a river, a few people in cars braved
the storm and arrived but did not get out and enter Siam Cats. There were
half a dozen cancellations over the phone and with a phone call to Greenwood
which responded that it had been raining there for one hour we called the
game off.
Friday, March 25, Eastern Star - Stableford
A very pleasant and cool day was enjoyed by everyone today with many of the
lads playing their last game of this visit. After heavy rain here over the
past two days there was no run at all on the fairways today and this was
reflected in the scores with 35 points being the highest of the day.
There were 37 players out in total and Erkki Koivisto claimed division 1
with said 35 points ahead of Mike Combs, in his last game with us, and
Mikael Andersson. Mike edged second place with an 18/16 back nine count-back
over Michael after they both came in with 33 points.
John Williams won division 3 with another score of 35 points, Tony Holehouse
was second on 32 and the new sea captain Les Smith took third with 29.
Jean Bruneau topped division 2 with 34 points, with Bryan Rought talking
second three points behind, and with the luck of the Irish Cully Monks beat
Harry Vincenzi, Frank Kelly and Brian Blackford on a 19/15/14/14 count-back
after they all came in with 30 points each.
Toi Blair was the victor in the ladies division with 30 points.
Near pins today were claimed by Max Wilson, Ya Riley, Terry Redding, Bryan
Rought, Toi Blair, Jean Bruneau and Geoff Pickin.
There were no ‘2’s in either division today so a rollover in division 1 and
a double in division 2 to next Friday.
It was bon voyage to Andy Baber, Celia and Geoff Pickin, Mike Combs and
Jerry McCarthy, see you all soon! Still playing off 4 there was a warm
welcome return for Michael Dige.
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Wichai back in the groove
IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar
The Pattaya Golf Society travelled to the Emerald in Ban
Chang on Monday, 21st March, to play a stableford competition on the
ever-popular course. The visit saw a smaller than expected field turn out as
a result of many regulars returning this week to their home countries after
a testing “winter” break on the Eastern Seaboard courses and thus the single
flight set out before time.
The course is not quite at its pristine best currently and the fairways have
seen an increase in the crab grass, meaning the caddy marshalls may have to
“kick ass” to ensure the offensive intrusion is contained.
However the golfers made a good fist of things with rookie James Smith and
newbie Peter Talbot sharing third place with 33 points each. In second on 36
points was Larry Slattery, finding some consistency at last and the winner
was the organiser for the day, Wichai Tananusorn, who pulled out his second
consecutive PGS sub-par round with another 37 point return giving him the
victory. He is now well back in the groove after struggling through most of
the last month.
The sole birdie ‘2’ went to Steve Evans on the testing fifth hole and a rare
Booby Bevy went to Dave Moriarty for his 11-19 split. Good things come to
all who wait after all!
Schramm bosses the day
When the Pattaya Golf Society regulars awoke on Wednesday, 23rd March they
found heavy rain inundating most of the Eastern Seaboard and the prospects
of a day’s golf seemed most remote, but an early call to Bangpra reassured
them that golf was indeed possible on the fine course.
So it was that organiser for the day Rick Schramm ably marshalled his troops
and got them to the course ready for the usual start time. With numbers just
on the borderline of twenty after four drop-outs - fair weather golfers in
the main - it was decided to stay with one flight and the minor places were
shared by Dave Moriarty and Stuart Thompson both on 32 points. Ahead in
second was Jack Robertson on 33 points and out in front was the man himself,
Rick Schramm, enjoying success again with a level par 36 point return.
Jack Robertson and Glenn Martin shared the ‘2’s pot after their excellent
efforts on holes eight and twelve respectively whilst the Booby Bevy was
held back after seemingly a lack of obvious candidates, thus rolling over
the beer until the next trip.
It had been a relief to get onto the course at Bangpra as the day faired up
halfway through the round and Rick Schramm revelled in the extra
responsibilities for another fine win.
The PGS ‘Golf for Fr. Ray Day’
The third Friday each month has a special place in the PGS schedule as it is
the day when the golfers from the Pattaya Golf Society dedicate it as their
“Golf for Fr Ray Day”. It gives them the opportunity to share the fun of
team golf with their friends and also channel some charity funding to the
Fr. Ray Foundation’s Outreach Centre in Soi Thepprasit.
On the 25th March it was Green Valley’s turn to host the event, a pairs
stableford combined format, and as always a large field turned out. Nine
technical prizes had been generously donated by Rick Schramm, Peter Duncan,
John Mason, Rod Stevens, Harry Langkoff, PJ Mitchell, Larry Slattery, Len
Jones and Steve Evans and the fun got away on time.
In the main event Richard “Banjo” Bannister and his mystery partner totalled
69 points for third place, merely one behind Jim Ferris and Rick Schramm’s
second placed 70 point score. Rick Schramm played a blinder as this round
represented his best individual score with the group, his gross 73 giving
him 43 stableford points. Phew! What a shame it was his final round this
trip.
The winning combination was Mam Morel and Noi Emmerson and they took the win
in fine style with 75 points. Noi’s individual contribution was the second
best total for the day, 42 points.
Noi, Banjo and PJ MItchell shared the ‘2’s pot, PJ’s being his first birdie
‘2’ with the group and it was whispered that his fellow golfers had seen a
pig in flight over the sixteenth green as he set up his putt.
The technical prizes were won by Noi Emmerson, Harry Langkoff, Jean Morel
and Stu Thompson on the par threes, Rick Schramm, Rob Lamond and Mam Morel
on the par fours and Stu Thompson on the par five eleventh. The best par
three total was won by Noi, and Rabbis auction raised more than two thousand
baht courtesy of Jean and Mam Morel.
At the presentation in Soi Buakhao members were warmly thanked for their
generosity and the competition raised more than eight thousand baht for the
kids in Soi Thepprasit. This brings the total donated for the year so far to
more than fifty thousand baht, and there are many more “Golf for Fr Ray
Days” planned.
Half the field had finished with prizes and everyone had thoroughly enjoyed
the day. The next event is a pairs multiplier at St Andrew on Friday 22nd
April and the sign-up sheet will be available in Rabbi’s Elephant Bar a full
week before the event.
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Lloyd’s season’s best enough for Eastern Star win
PSC golf from The Bunker Bar
Wednesday, March 23, Eastern Star -
Medal
Many golfers were put off by the rain that had been pouring steadily
overnight in Pattaya but, the few golfers who took a chance were rewarded
with a pleasant day with very little rain once we had teed off.
Wednesday’s winners Mike
Lloyd with third placed Keith Smithson.
Mike Lloyd had his best round to date in Thailand (on this visit) and won
with a decent 34 points, and at Eastern Star that’s a good knock!
1st Mike Lloyd (13) 34pts
2nd Gerry Cooney (11) 32pts
3rd Keith Smithson (0) 31pts
Near Pins: Mike Lloyd, Keith Smithson, Gordon Melia, Colin Greig.
Friday, March 25, Treasure Hill - Stableford
Treasure Hill was in great condition for this time of the year and at the
price they are charging it’s one of the best values around!
Quite a few low handicap golfers showed up today bringing the cut right down
to handicap 14 and wasn’t William Macey pleased? William won the B Flight by
three points ahead of Bruce Gladden and Duncan Lee (who made it onto the
golf course for a change).
Colin Greig won the A Flight by beating John Graham on a count-back and
Keith Smithson, playing off scratch, had a very respectable 34 points!
A Flight
1st Colin Greig (12) 35pts
2nd John Graham (11) 35pts
3rd Keith Smithson (0) 34pts
B Flight
1st William Macey (16) 35pts
2nd Bruce Gladden (16) 32pts
3rd Duncan Lee (16) 30pts
Near Pins: Mike Lloyd, Duncan Lee, Rab McDonald, Laurence Harding.
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Ashurst enjoys standout performance at St. Andrews
Golf from the “Travellers Rest” 26th March
Barry Hooper
Top scorer of the week was Nigel Ashurst with his forty three points at
Green Valley on Monday. Sorry I don’t know that much about him, only that he
was playing as a visitor at the TRGG. His handicap was eleven according to
the Master Scoreboard statistics. Good shooting by anyone’s standards,
whichever way you put it. Well done Nigel!
Division prize winners from
March 19 at Greenwood: Bill McGarvie,
Phil Corbett, Noel Jackson, Mod Chaviraksa and Ed Brubaker.
Brendan Moore and Phil Cummins took the next two places,
both seven points back at thirty-six, with Phil edging it on the count-back.
Thirty-eights were the other two highest winning scores of the week from
Bill McGarvie on Saturday at Greenwood and Jimmy Merritt on Tuesday at Green
Valley. It is nice to see his name appearing in the listings again.
You had to go down to thirty-six for Thursday’s winner at Phoenix in the
guise of Alan Thomas who plays of six.
It was a quiet week all round, somewhat marred on occasions however by the
heavy rain storms that we are currently experiencing. But as usual our
regulars and visitors alike were undeterred. After all it is warm rain.
Saturday, March 19, Greenwood - Stableford
Saturday March 19 we went to Greenwood and played the A & C courses. Twenty
six players made the journey and competed in two divisions.
A Flight
1st Bill McGarvie (9) 38pts
2nd John Goudge (4) 37pts
3rd Ed Brubaker (11) 36pts
B Flight
1st Mod Chaviraksa (15) 36pts
2nd Phil Corbett (29) 34pts
3rd Noel Jackson (21) 32pts
Monday, March 21, St. Andrews - Stableford
Monday we visited St. Andrews and the course played well and was enjoyed by
all present. Twenty six players took part so two divisions arranged once
more.
A Flight
1st, Nigel Ashurst (11) 43pts
2nd Phil Cummins (9) 36pts
3rd Brendan Moore (11) 36pts
B Flight
1st, Mika Korjals (16) 39pts
2nd Peter Davies (24) 37pts
3rd Fred Temminck (22) 36pts
Tuesday, March 22, Green Valley - Stableford
There were just seventeen players today and just one division but
five prize places awarded
1st Jimmy Merritt (23) 38pts
2nd Mike Rushant (12) 37pts
3rd Mod Chaviraksa (15) 37pts
4th Fergus Brennan (10) 35pts
5th John Merrit (13) 35pts
Thursday, March 24, Phoenix - Stableford
Thursday saw twenty-three players take on the Lakes & Ocean course at
Phoenix. The numbers meant we were able to field two divisions on the day.
A Flight
1st Alan Thomas (6) 36pts
2nd Brendan Moore (11) 35pts
3rd Mod Chaviraksa (14) 35pts
B Flight
1st Gabriel Enright (18) 36pts
2nd Paula Byrne (23) 34pts
3rd Andy Turner (23) 29pts
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 call in to the
Travellers Rest in Soi LK Metro, Pattaya and look at the notice board, or
visit their website at www.trgg.biz.
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Andy Oz wins big at Emerald
The Backyard Golf Society
Winner Andy Oz (2nd right)
celebrates with the staff at Mama’s Bar.
Arriving at Emerald Golf Course for our weekly game with
the Backyard Golf Society it was nice to see that the weather had not
changed too much from the previous week, so yet again a very comfortable
round of golf.
A lot busier on the course this week which meant our two groups got off a
little bit late, but the guys in front of us managed to move on at a good
pace which surprised us all after their performance on the first hole!
Eight of us in all competitions this week and as the headline says, Andy Oz
was the man, with 37 points plus two scratches so a 3 shot cut for him next
week. John Mac, JJ and Geoff all tied for second with ‘Broken Wing’ yet
again taking the nearest the pin prize.
Skin results are as follows: John Mac (9), Dan M (5), Andy Oz (3), Micky (2)
and ‘Broken Wing’ (1).
No parties in Ban Chang this week so a relatively quiet beer was had by all.
Wong is alright
PSC golf from the Cafe Kronborg
Peter Blackburn & The Drut
Monday, March 21, Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
Thirty-five golfers faced the starter under overcast conditions and teeing
off the white markers the first group completed the journey in four hours
and five minutes. The course was in a good condition however the greens were
slower than unwanted in laws taking the hint that Sunday lunch was over.
Monday winners Leif
Kirkegaard, Henry Wong and Niels Hansen with the Admiral Dave Richardson.
The highlight of the day was undoubtedly Graham Buckingham’s academy
performance on the second tee. The gloved one (one on each hand) managed to
release not only the head but also the shaft and the grip through the ball
and his driver finished in a tree some fifteen metres directly behind him.
The group were amazingly composed through this comedy routine which was only
second to the Keystone Cops. Repeated prodding with a palm branch by Brian
Gabe and Andre’ Vandyk failed to dislodge the club. Eventually a male caddy
climbed the trunk shook the tree and the errant rod was retrieved. The round
continued and seven vigilant souls were on full alert for any more capers
from the gloved one.
In the A flight Niels Hansen continued his great form to hand in forty one
points and take first place. Mike Allidi parred the course for thirty eight
points and second place whilst Paul Avery with thirty seven points came
third and Mike Gosden with thirty two points was a distant fourth.
In the B flight Leif Kirkegaard scored thirty eight points to take the
flight from Peter Blackburn on thirty six points on a count-back from Jan
Lovgreen whilst Per-Olav Baarli rounded out the podium on thirty five
points.
In the C flight Henry Wong scored a magnificent forty five points for first
place and relegated Ronnie Ratte, who handed in a super forty four points,
into second spot. Third was Brian Noguer on thirty five points whilst Mick
O’Connor placed fourth on thirty four.
We welcomed Ronnie Ratte from South Korea and Guy Canipel from France.
A Fight (0–16)
1st Niels Hansen (13) 41pts
2nd Mike Allidi (2) 38pts
3rd Paul Avery (11) 37pts
4th Mike Gosden (11) 32pts
B Flight (17–21)
1st Leif Kirkegaard (20) 38pts
2nd Peter Blackburn (18) 36pts
3rd Jan Lovgreen (21) 36pts
4th Per-Olav Baarli (17) 35pts
C Flight 22 +
1st Henry Wong (26) 45pts
2nd Ronnie Ratte (27) 44pts
3rd Brian Noguer (23) 35pts
4th Mick O’Connor (22) 34pts
Near pins went to Mike Winfield on the fifth, Mike Gosden on the seventh,
Elias Magnusson on the twelfth and Agnes Sigurthors on the seventeenth.
Long putts saw Wayne Koch on the ninth and Svend Gaarde on the eighteenth
successful.
The Coveted Compass Cap went to Wayne Koch and Deefa continued to collect
donations for charity and once again a big thankyou goes to the people who
assisted in this worthy cause.
Thursday, March 24, Bangpra - Stableford
As I stood on my balcony and looked over towards Café Kronborg as
the rain was falling I had the feeling that we would be lucky to play golf
today or at best get “wet bums”. Thankfully I was proved to be very wrong.
There were a few cancellations from “golfers” not prepared to take the
chance but we still had an excellent turnout of 29 true golfers who are to
be commended for their keenness and were suitably rewarded.
Welcome back to Pekka Mustonen from Finland and bon voyage to Peter Hammond,
the in-form Niels Hansen and Jan Lovgreen who are all returning to their
homelands in the next few days.
We left Café Kronborg a few minutes late after a “golf bag inventory check”
revealed that The Admiral’s golf bag was still sitting in the Kronny. During
the drive to Bangpra the rain stopped and by the time we arrived 44 minutes
later the skies were clear and it was apparent that we were in for a fine
day.
Our scheduled tee off time was 1000 hrs but we were delighted to be able to
hit off 20 minutes ahead of schedule, although this popular venue appeared
to be quite busy. The weather was fantastic as was this beautiful course and
as usual the greens were as “slick” as ever, although the 10th green appears
to be “struggling” somewhat.
Very few monkeys were spotted around the course although The Admiral was
able to “snap” a cute young one quietly sitting in a tree alongside the 6th
tee. We stopped a couple of times for a cool drink and were able to finish
our round in the good time of four hours and twenty three minutes.
The golf course definitely took the honours on the day as only one golfer
played to his handicap and the majority of the scores were ordinary to say
the least. Johannes Jonnson took out the A Flight by 2 points over Mashi
Kaneta in second on a count-back from Mike (Hunter) Gosden.
Without elaborating too much your scribe, who is recovering from heart
problems, was ecstatic with his long awaited return to the winner’s circle
and won B Flight by 2 points from playing partner Elias Magnusson, who beat
Jan Lovgreen on a count-back.
C Flight was easily won by the returning Pekka Mustonen who finished a huge
7 points in front of Jean Claude L’Hoste in second and Ronnie Ratte in third
place.
A Flight (0-17)
1st Johannes Jonnson (13) 34pts
2nd Mashi Kaneta (11) 32pts
3rd Mike Gosden (11) 32pts
B Flight (18-21)
1st Peter Blackburn (18) 33pts
2nd Elias Magnusson (18) 31pts
3rd Jan Lovgreen (21) 31pts
C Flight (22+)
1st Pekka Mustonen (22) 36pts
2nd Jean Claude L’Hoste (23) 29pts
3rd Ronnie Ratte (27) 28pts
Near Pins: Johannes Jonnson, Graham Buckingham, Tien Tong, Tore
Eliassen.
Long Putts: Andre Van Dyk, Arne-Max Pedersen
Once again the Coveted Compass Cap was unfortunately not available for
presentation due to the absence of San Miguel Stu, but Deefa was back and
hungry and his appetite was well and truly satisfied as usual by generous
donations to charity from the Café Kronborg crew.
Note: Just a mention for all to place on their calendars – Tuesday, May 10th
at Plutaluang will be Papa Ray Rogers Birthday Anniversary. It will be a
four-man scramble and the starting sheet will be posted in Café Kronborg on
April 20th.
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Sea fishing with the
KPK Foods Club
Ola la, look what I got!
Mike Gerrard
It was a cool grey
morning as our little Swedish party departed from the bay of Bangsaray
at 7.30 a.m. There was a hint of rain in the air, which was not what
the ladies had planned for.
The idea of today’s trip
was to drop the ladies off on a beach somewhere and the men move away to
catch the food for the evening.
With everyone wrapped up
in cardigans and jackets (and some huddling together to keep warm (the
men and ladies that is.), we arrived some 60 minutes later to our first
fishing ground for the day. By this time the threat of rain had
disappeared but the skies were still quite cloudy, perfect to avoid the
sun burn.
As we entered into the
next hour and a few sandwiches and coffees later the first reel began to
sing wheeeeeee. Eureka. It was the organiser of the group Ola who had
drawn the first number and some 20 minutes later there appeared this
beautiful shark, spotted ray type of fish. Duly gaffed and aboard I
would hazard a guess at about 8 to 10 kilo’s.
It was at this stage I
had to find some more rods and reels due to the fact that the ladies had
decided not to go to the beach. This ended up with slightly too many
people fishing at one time, which caused the inevitable tangles and loss
of weights, hooks etc.
It was pretty quiet for
a while so I decided to instruct the skipper to weigh anchor and get
into a drifting area where the lines would be straight down and not
tangling. This proved to be an inspired idea because from then on and
for about two hours we could not stop catching some pretty sizable small
varieties of fish. Some lovely sized snapper, grouper, but strangely
enough not a pladang in sight today.
A couple of the group
then caught a nice queen fish on a small rig and then a good sand shark,
again on the small rod set up.
We tried to go for some
more larger fish for the last hour which proved fruitless, but at about
4.00 p.m. the whole group decided that they had really enjoyed the day
and that it was time to return to terra firma.
By the time we had
reached the jetty to disembark all the fish had been cleaned and sorted
out for all to take what they wanted for the barbie or grill. Then it
was time for the first beer (for me anyway).
Trips are at least
fortnightly at the moment whilst the town is still half busy, but a
regular monthly trip will be scheduled either on the first Saturday or
Sunday of the month.
The trips on the 3rd
April and the 1st May are both full. Our sponsor Keith Keohane will be
aboard for both of these trips but there is a couple of spaces available
for both the 17th April and the 15th of May. Anyone interested can call
me on 087 091 7565.
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PSC Fishing Report
The ‘Pladang King’ - Dene
Mundy.
For whatever reason, Khram Marina Fishing Lodge has
not been able to supply live bait to fish for the big guy out there, so
Dene and I decided to try another boat. Dene talked with the local fish
and tackle shop. They recommended a skipper –Ting- who runs out of Bang
Saray. Dene did a little recon and found the boat. Although a little
small, it was well kept and in good condition and we decided to give it
a go.
We limited the trip to
four people because of the boat size and were glad we did. Jeff,
Khammoon, Dene and I boarded the boat from the first large pier in Bang
Saray, stowed our gear and left under nice weather and flat seas.
On the way out to the
fishing grounds we trolled with Jeff’s 1,000 baht Rapela lures and,
believe it or not, we hooked up. After a little pulling and tugging I
managed to land a mackerel about two feet long. I never saw a mackerel
except in a Japanese restaurant and was surprised at the size, but happy
to finally catch a fish over a foot long.
We continued our trip
and soon sailed into a pretty good squall, with thunder, rain and wind.
We did our best to shelter ourselves, but on a small boat the space is
limited. So there we were, four – actually three and a half as Khammoon
was with us - large fisherman jammed into the captain’s cabin trying to
stay dry – we were cozy but cramped.
When we anchored to
start fishing, the storm was still with us. I can’t speak for everyone
but I was quite happy to let the captain rig the rods and set them for
fishing. We fished for about an hour, or should I say the captain
fished and we watched from the cabin. When the weather started to
clear, we emerged from our cocoon and began fishing. The captain was
soaked to the bone and took that opportunity to change to dry clothes.
I was very impressed with the amount of effort he put into the business
of fishing.
After a bit Dene
hooked-up and he fought the fish for quite a while, but the fish was
cagy and slipped the hook and escaped the mighty pladang king. Later I
managed to hook and land a barracuda about three feet long. Man that’s
an evil looking fish; wouldn’t want to meet him when you’re snorkeling.
We fished for a couple of more hours with not much action so we decided
to drift-fish for the smaller and more plentiful jacks and pladang.
Fishing for the larger
fish is demanding. The currents offshore around the islands are strong
and require large weights to get the bait down to the bottom. When a
fish is hooked you fight the fish and the weight. This type of fishing
is not for everyone. I think most of our group prefer fishing for the
smaller species which is physically easier and there is a lot more
action. We drift-fished the afternoon and all came back with generous
bags of jacks, pladang etc.
This was a trial trip I
will summarize like this:
Pros: The boat
is clean and neat and mechanically sound. It is well equipped with a
half dozen good quality large fishing poles, clean and well maintained;
weights and rigs were all provided by the captain.
The boat was well
supplied with good quality life vests stowed above the fishing area for
easy access. There are sun-rain shades both front and rear, very
important for a days fishing. The toilet facility, although small, was
clean and useable.
Even though the boat is
smaller than the Khram Marine boat it is adequate for four fishermen to
fish comfortably. Most important, the skipper is pleasant and a
tireless worker and it appeared he truly wanted to catch fish. He never
stopped checking rods for bait and depth; it wore me out watching him.
Cons: The boat
is smaller than the Khram boat and considerably less comfortable.
Seating is limited and there is little room to walk around. The
railings were a little low and made it difficult fishing for the small
fish. If the swell or chop were large that boat might be a little
scary. Also, the captain seems to be a big fish guy and most of his
focus is on trying to catch the big ones.
Conclusion: The
trip was a success, with an assortment of both large and small fish –
bags three to five kilo. So, if you want to try for large quality fish
and don’t mind a little loss of creature comfort give Ting a try you
won’t be disappointed.
If you have a group of 2
– 4 people who would like to try this boat contact Dene on 081 862 6279
to make arrangements. The boat plus tip costs Baht 6,000 and fishing
equipment and live bait is supplied.
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Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League
200 Bowlers: Rich, Antero,
Ooy, Tue & Kran.
Snow Bowler won all four
points from VFW Post 9876 and are only one half point behind first place
leaders Canada who won four points from USMC. Mai Munsitha led Snow
Bowler with a 202 game and 538 series. Tue Pettae was the dominant
force for Canada with games of 207, 210 and 173 for a 590 series.
Brother D moved into
third place after winning three points from Bavaria. Once again lanes
11 and 12 prevented any good scores.
Rich Murphy bowled a 221
game, 551 series and Kran Nielsen had a 203 game, 544 series to lead
Café Kronborg to a three point win over Green Tree. Tukata Thompson
rolled a 205 game for Green Tree.
Bowling as substitutes,
Tip bowled a 533 game and Sak had a 518.
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