Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League

200 Bowlers: David, La, Antero & Kran.

Café Kronborg won all four points from VFW Post 9876 with Kran Nielsen leading the way with games of 248, 192 and 186 for a great 626 series. Nok Ostbo bowled a 500 game for Kronborg.
La Montgomery bowled a 211 game and 549 series to lead Indiana to a four point win over Semper FI. Antero Ronkainen added a 204 game and 501 series for Indiana.
Jack Tar moved into fourth place after winning four points from Bavaria.
David Shaw led Canada to a three point win over Green Tree as he bowled a 245 game and 577 series.
The Blind team won three points from Brother D. Sue Murphy bowled a 508 series for Brother D.

Results & Standings Jan. 18 (week 4)
Pos.	Team	Score	Standings
1	Café Kronborg	4 - 0	11 – 5
2	Indiana	4 - 0	11-5
3	Brother D	1-3	10-6
4	Jack Tar	4 - 0	10-6
5	Canada	3-1	10-6
6	Bavaria	0 - 4	9-7
7	Semper FI	0 – 4	7-9
8	Blind	3-1	6 – 10
9	VFW Post 9876	0 - 4	5-11
10	Green Tree	1-3	1-15

Calm seas and fish galore

Sea Fishing with KPK Food Services Ltd

Lee Gerrard (left) and his brother in-law (right) hold up a beautiful trevally and a couple of nice sized snapper caught on Jan. 14.

Mike Gerrard Ahoy me hearties!
What a lovely time of the year it be to go out on the ocean. The weather could not be better. A nice breeze blows but the sea seems to remain quite calm. Absolutely Perfic!
On Monday, January 14, we enjoyed a great trip out and caught a beautiful trevally, some snapper and many other fish. I would say we caught well in excess of 15 kilos of small fish along with the 5 kilo trevally. I can tell you that the fillet of trevally was very tasty indeed.
We have been out on the ocean 6 times in the last three weeks, all being hugely successful in terms of quantity of fish but as stated earlier, the weather is a great bonus when you think of the poor conditions back in Europe.
For out trips we travel from about 7.30 a.m. and return about 5.00 to 6.00 p.m., normally from Bang Saray. Our next scheduled trips are as follows: Saturday, Feb 9, Saturday Feb 23, Saturday March 9, and Saturday March 23. There are spaces available if anyone would like to come along.
All tackle (if you do not have your own) is available, all bait is included in the trip, and transport can arranged from Jomtien area (or further south of town) only. All you have to do is bring your own food and drinks for the day. Please contact me (Mike) on 087 091 7565 for further information.

Nick The Pizza - P.C.D.O. Friday 601 Darts League

Results & Standings Jan. 25 (week 2)

Team	P	W	L	B/L	+-	Pts.
Dang’s Bar	2	2	0	2	18	4
Taffy’s Bar ‘A’	2	2	0	1	14	4
Legends Sports Bar	2	1	1	1	2	2
Load Out Bar	2	1	1	1	-4	2
Taffy’s Bar ‘B’	2	0	2	0	-14	0
Jantha Coffee House	2	0	2	1	-16	0
Results:  Taffy’s ‘B’ 0 v 9 Dang’s Bar, Load Out Bar 6 v 3 Legends Pool & Sports Bar, Jantha Coffee House 1 v 8 Taffy’s ‘A’

John Keppler Cider Pool League

Results & Standings Jan. 24 (week 8)

Team	Pts.	For	Against	Diff.
Brasshouse	18	59	32	27
Outback	15	57	47	10
Barking Frog	15	56	48	8
Rendezvous	15	56	48	8
Lucky Bar	15	52	52	0
Panitas	15	51	53	-2
Mulligans	12	55	49	6
Pats Bar	6	43	61	-18
Smarty’s	6	40	51	-11
Neena	0	38	66	-28
Results:  Lucky 7 v 6 Panitas, Barking 6 v 7 Outback, Neena 5 v 8 Brasshouse, Mulligans 11 v 2 Pats, Rendezvous 10 v 3 Smarty’s

Crumpton Oaks Cider Monday Pool League

Results & Standings Jan. 21 (week 1)

Division 1
Team	P	W	L	F	A	+/-	BP	Pts.
The Irish Rovers	1	1	0	10	2	8	0	3
Dean’s Bar	1	1	0	10	3	7	0	3
Nicky’s Bar	1	1	0	10	3	7	0	3
Biggy’z Rest	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Links Bar	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Shoot Pool	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
The Butchers Arms	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Legends	1	0	1	3	10	-7	0	0
Sweethearts Bar	1	0	1	3	10	-7	0	0
Pook’s Bar	1	0	1	2	10	-8	0	0
Results:  Dean’s Bar 10 v 3 Legends, Nicky’s Bar 10 v 3 Sweethearts, Pook’s Bar 2 v 10 Irish Rovers, Biggy’z Rest P v P Shoot Pool, Links Bar P v P Butchers
Division 2
Team	P	W	L	F	A	+/-	BP	Pts.
Mai’s Bar	1	1	0	10	3	7	0	3
Smile Bar	1	1	0	10	4	6	0	3
Easy R-Con Bar	1	1	0	10	5	5	0	3
Wet Bar	1	1	0	10	8	2	0	3
Eor’s Bar	1	1	0	10	9	1	0	3
The Stag’s Head	1	0	1	9	10	-1	1	1
Rabbi’s Elephant	1	0	1	8	10	-2	0	0
Cheers Bar	1	0	1	5	10	-5	0	0
Offshore Bar	1	0	1	4	10	-6	0	0
The Caddyshack	1	0	1	3	10	-7	0	0
Results:  Easy R-Con 10 v 5 Cheers Bar, Eor’s Bar 10 v 9 Stag’s Head, Mai’s Bar 10 v 3 Caddyshack, Offshore Bar 4 v 10 Smile Bar, Rabbi’s Elephant 8 v 10 Wet Bar

WKD Tuesday Darts League

Results & Standings Jan. 22 (week 13)

Team	P	W	L	B/L	Pts.
Irish Rovers	13	13	0	10	26
Mee Chew Sports Bar	13	11	2	5	22
Crazy Eddies	13	9	4	8	18
Yates Bar	13	8	5	9	16
Biggy’z Rest	13	7	6	11	14
Shoot Pool	13	7	6	6	14
Nervous Wreck	13	7	6	6	14
Londoner	13	6	7	7	12
VIP House Bar	13	5	8	4	10
Mai Roo Bar	13	4	9	7	8
Cum On Inn	13	4	9	4	8
Mai’s Bar	13	4	9	4	8
Jantha Coffee House	13	4	9	4	8
W. Tankies	13	2	11	6	4
Results:  Mai’s Bar 5 v 6 Mai Roo Bar, Mee Chew Sports Bar 10 v 5 Londoner, Nervous Wreck 7 v 5 Jantha Coffee House, Shoot Pool 6 v 9 Irish Rovers, VIP House 1 v 11 Crazy Eddies, W. Tankies 8 v 5 Biggy’z Rest, Yates Bar 5 v 4 Cum On Inn

Crumpton Oaks Dry Cider Wednesday Darts League

Results & Standings Jan. 23 (week 4)

Team	P	W	L	Diff.	Pts.
Legends Sports Bar	4	4	0	10	8
Irish Rovers	4	3	1	14	6
Yates Bar	4	3	1	14	6
W. Tankies	4	3	1	10	6
Mai’s Bar	4	1	3	0	2
Mee Chew Sports Bar	4	1	3	-2	2
Jantha Coffee House	4	0	4	-8	0
Results:  Bye 0 v 9 Jantha Coffee House, Irish Rovers 4 v 5 Legends Pool & Sports Bar, W. Tankies 5 v 4 Mai’s Bar, Yates Bar 5 v 4 Mee Chew Sports Bar

Big fields - long days

IPGC golf from The Haven

Monday, Jan. 21, Treasure Hill (yellow tees) - Stableford
CSS 74
Division 1 (0-10)
1st Martin Grimoldby (6) 39pts
2nd Masanori Takano (7) 37pts
3rd Alan Pilkington (8) 34pts
Division 2 (11-19)
1st Alwyne Burley (16) 34pts
2nd Fred Land (11) 33pts
3rd Shuichi Kodaka (15) 31pts
Division 3 (20+)
1st Kenny Priddy (24) 39pts
2nd Steven Howard (32) 32pts
3rd Hal Hart (24) 30pts
Red Division
1st Kiti Ulvio- Peltonen (9) 33pts
2nd Marita Eeva (17) 22pts

Alwyne Burley.

Having heard of other groups waiting up to one and a half hours after their reserved tee times to start play and then having a three and half hour nine holes and finally running out of light well before finishing the eighteen holes, many were wondering when it would be their turn to suffer again.
Today it was a waiting day on the tee, with the lack of available caddies being the main problem rather than the overbooking, which seems to be prevalent recently on many of the courses. Although when the round started it all went pretty smoothly and lasted no longer than four and a half hours, which is fairly good during the high season.
Adding to the problem for those at the back of the starting lineup was the size of the field which required four divisions including a red section and starting from just one tee meant a long wait for the last groups.
The first division was led in by Martin Grimoldby, who is in the middle of a very good run of form, with an outstanding round of three under handicap, which was even better than at first sight as the CSS for the day went out two strokes making it a five under return for handicap purposes.

Kenny Priddy.
Masanori Takano may well have thought that his good return of one under handicap would be enough to carry the day but was unlucky to have found Martin in such sparkling from. Alan Pilkington, having played in the same four-ball as the winner, already knew that two over was not enough but was pleased in the end to be third.
The second division was taken by Alwyne Burley who’s two over was enough to ensure that Fred Land would not be a winner on his return from a break in the Philippines. Fred had to settle for second place a shot behind with Shuichi Kodaka another two back in third.
Kenny Priddy had an outstanding day to return a three under card that won the third division easily by seven points ahead of Steven Howard in second, with Hal Hart anther to behind in third spot.
Kiti Ulvio-Peltonen took the red division with a solid round after recording a very rare birdie ‘2’ on the second hole and leaving the rest of the division well behind, with Marita Eeva being the next best.

Martin Grimoldby.
The first division 2’s pool was shared between Kiti Ulvio-Peltonen, Rick Schramm, Mark Lang, Peter Sumner and Martin Grimoldby, while the second division was taken by Alwyne Burley.
Before the presentations were made the were welcomes for Heather Hill, Rob Nolan, Eddie Allan and Frank Bradley together with welcome backs for Mike Sanders, Fred Land and Peter Sumner.

Wednesday, Jan. 23, The Emerald - Stableford
CSS 75
Division 1 (0–19)
1st Steve Bickle (16) 34pts
2nd Masanori Takano (7) 33pts
3rd Mark Lang (7) 30pts
Division 2 (20+)
1st Steven Howard (32) 36pts
2nd Wilf Wellman (26) 31pts
3rd Mike Korney (20) 28pts
Red Division
1st Marti Juutilainen (22) 43pts
With many of the previous competition’s players deciding that the day’s course would again be overcrowded and possible not worth the effort, the starting numbers were much reduced but still there were sufficient to require three divisions including a red one.

Steve Bickle.
As usual the play was made much more agreeable with a local ‘lift and place’ rule in the fairways to mitigate the problem of poor lies in the crab grass areas. This did not help the scores that much as the best of the day was level par, with only one return from the counting players that met the required criteria of “within two strokes of handicap”. This meant that the CSS for the day went up the maximum three strokes to 75 but stayed as a counting round for upward review.
Steve Bickle was the man that stopped the day becoming non-counting as his two over round in the first division proved to be just sufficient to push Masanori Takano down into second place for the second tournament in a row by a single point, with Mark Lang back in third.
Steven Howard went one better than his previous outing with a level par round that ensured that he will at last see his pleas answered and his handicap reduced, albeit by the smallest amount, to take his first win out of The Haven and vowed that this would be the beginnings of a new era.
Wilf Wellman also tasted of that rare cup, a place on the podium, and although his score was well behind first place it was one to be savoured. Mike Korney won a count back with a better 15 to 14 for third spot leaving Phil Stevenson pining for the old days.
The score of the day went to Marti Juutilainen whose seven under handicap round to win the red division will see his handicap radically reduced following the upward movement of the CSS of the day and he finished the day well ahead of the rest of the division with his best round ever in Thailand.
There were no 2’s in either division.
Friday, Jan. 25, Phoenix - Monthly Medals
Division 1 (0–15) Blue Tees
CSS 76
1st Martin Grimoldby (6) net 72
2nd Petri Nurmi (8) net 75
3rd Alan Pilkington (8) net 77
Division 2 (16+) White tees
CSS 74
1st Alwyne Burley (16) net 73
2nd Walter O’Keefe (18) net 75
3rd Paul Taylor (19) net 76
A return to Phoenix where the last outing had been fraught with many problems including rounds that commenced an hour later than reserved and a lack of caddies. But today was a completely different experience as it was back to the usual and expected efficiency of the course management. Everyone started on time and the rounds were completed in just over four and a quarter hours with all participants back in The Haven as much as two hours earlier than on Monday.
As usual with the monthly medals, just two divisions with the first division playing stroke play from the blue tees, and the second division playing stroke from the white tees.
Once again it was Martin Grimoldby who led in the first division, returning another outstanding round of level handicap gross 78 to win by three from Petri Nurmi, also taking his second podium placing of the week, and Alan Pilkington also once again taking third to Martin whilst playing in the same group.
The second division medal was taken by Alwyne Burley, completing his second win of the week, with a one over handicap return that was good by three ahead of returnee Walter O’Keefe, with Paul Taylor taking third with a better count back of 35.5 to 38 over Mike Korney as Mike slipped badly following a promising front nine.
Once again there were no 2’s in the second division but the first division rollover pool was shared by Eddie Allan, Mike Dabanovich and Martin Grimoldby.
Note: If you would like to play with The Haven group, you can contact mobile 082 219 0965 or call in to The Haven 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 8.15 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on the days that you wish to play. A schedule of courses to be played can be found on our web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.

Repeat winner has all the answers

The Backyard Golf Society

Four groups of Backyard golfers out on Jan. 25 at Emerald for our weekly golf game. We had 2 new guests today including Paddy Wilson which meant we had a large group of former Slimy players back together again. With Randy the French Canadian now up to his third game as a guest we have a new full time member of the group.
Dan ‘the Diet Whiskey Man’ did pull a clever pre-membership sale of the society shirt to Randy, so well done to Dan. Before anyone asks, we will never be like Man Utd and sell different shirts each season and they will never be on sale at the various night markets around Pattaya.
Winner again today was Mike ‘Michelle’ Chatt with 38 points, 3 ahead of Tony ‘Foos yer Doos’ Cowe. ‘Michelle’ is playing some great golf at the moment and we may have to cut his handicap for general play to give others a chance. Amazingly with such a good score he did not win any skins. Big winner today was Russell “He’s a Victorian” Benson who won 7 with a regulation par (and a shot) on the 10th hole. That’s what makes the skins interesting, even a good score does not guarantee you a win with players receiving different numbers of shots.
Don ‘The Divorcer’ won 4 skins, with 2 each to Kit and Golden Trowel’s Boyfriend, 1 each to Second-hand Bob and Tel and the 18th rolled over again to next week.
Near-pin to day went to ‘The Divorcer’ and last week’s roll-over skin was won by Golden Trowel’s Boyfriend, who also won our football quiz.
‘Foos yer Doos’ showed some clever Jockonese cunning today, calling up the wifey from the fairway to bring his society shirt to the clubhouse and thus avoid the round of drinks fine for not wearing society attire down the road.
Unusual moment of the day came on the par 5, 14th hole where Kit’s caddie took to the tapioca field on the left side of the fairway to confirm what wild bears actually do live in the woods. Kit did manage a par though so all’s well that ends well.

Ger Linehan the President’s man

PSC golf from Lewiinski’s Golf Society

Billy Briton was a double winner during the week.

Sunday, Jan. 20, Green Valley - Presidents Trophy
A Flight
1st Bob Watson (2) 41pts
2nd Yui Bietry (11) 39pts
3rd Tim Hickey (5) 38pts
4th Ed Wyckoff (10) 38pts
B Flight
1st Pat Regan (12) 36pts
2nd John Nalty (13) 36pts
3rd Jerry McCarthy (13) 35pts
4th Pat Hanafin (13) 34pts
C Flight
1st Ger Linehan (17) 44pts
2nd Nick Odnoral (17) 40pts
3rd David Dune (19) 34pts
4th Tony Dolphin (19) 32pts
D Flight
1st Mick Coghlan (22) 37pts
2nd Jez Lees (19) 33pts
3rd John O’Neil (19) 32pts
4th John Bassett (21) 32pts
Near Pins: No 4 Max Scott, No 9 John Hartigan, No 12 Vic Hester, No 16 Peter LeNoury.
With every available slot of the 20 tee times taken, the society teed it up for the President’s golf tournament and Colin and Jimmy Elphick welcomed a large group of competitors to this popular event. The weather was fine and the course was in splendid condition; the only hick up was the lack of caddies.
‘Broad more’ Bob, one of the pre-tournament favorites, had to pull out at the last minute because of business commitments so the spare place was filled by the Scribe. I must say it was like old times, playing in the same four-ball as the Principal in D Flight. So that’s where we will start.
Mick Coghlan was the top provider with a solid 37 points followed by, would you believe it, the Principal 5 shots in arrears, who edged the net count back duo on 32 points of John O’Neal and John Basset. Mr. O’Neal has been on the podium too many times to lose a count back and proved it again this time.
The Irish flight, usually known as B Flight, was topped by the young man from Co. Dublin, Pat Regan and good friend John Nalty, both with decent par rounds. Pat had the better of his mate on count back while Jerry McCarthy was but a shot adrift for the bronze. Pat Hanafin and Victor the infector were tied a shot back as the luck of the Irish held up in the count back to make it an Irish flight rout.
The big boys flight provided some excellent scores as Aussie Bob Watson led the flight with a high class 41 points. Bob’s score contained five birdies and a eagle on the par five 16th hole. Any other day this score would probably have won but it was good for the lead crystal second place trophy. Yui ‘the Belle of Pattaya’ fired a very creditable 39 to fill the silver spot.
It took a three-way 38-point count back to fill the third and forth spots between Jim Hickey, Ed ‘our man in the White house’ and Monsieur Thierry Petrement. Count back dictated that they climbed the podium steps in that order but there was no step for the unlucky Thierry.
C Flight, which has taken a bit of stick from the Scribe lately, produced the overall winner and the third placed golfer. Irishman Ger Linehan amassed an incredible 44 points to take the President’s lead cut glass trophy for 2013 and he also collected two 2’s and a trip to the handicap committee. Nick Odnoral took the second flight place and the third overall spot with an excellent 40 point return. David Dunne was third with 34 points as Tony Dolphin closed the flight with 32 points.
Back at Lewiinski’s and after the presentation it was party time as everybody tucked into Lewiinski’s famous buffet. Finally Jim thanked all who helped make it a day to remember, especially the Lewiinski’s staff. Next year’s comp is an eagerly awaited event.
Monday, Jan. 21, Crystal Bay – Stableford
A Flight
1st Jonny Lindberg (11) 37pts
2nd John Feehan (16) 36pts
3rd Tim Hickey (5) 36pts
B Flight
1st Ayoka Pueschi (23) 39pts
2nd Ronny Valfridsson (21) 35pts
3rd David Dunne (19) 30pts
It was off to Crystal Bay today and that suited our Japanese lady golfer Ayoka Pueschi down to the ground as she returned the top score of the day, a delightful 39 points in B Flight to take the match honours. Ayoka was four clear of second placed Ronny Valfridsson and a further five clear of David Dunne.
A Flight was tight as just one point separated the top three players. Jonny Lindbergh sneaked the top spot with a creditable 37 points, closely pursued by Irishman John Feehan and Tim Hickey on even par rounds, with the former having the better of the count back.
Jim Bell, Ayoka Pueschi and Tom Morrisroe shared the 2’s pot.
Wednesday, Jan. 23, St. Andrews - Stableford
A Flight
1st Bob Watson (2) 40pts
2nd Thierry Petrement (11) 40pts
3rd Max Scott (3) 39pts
B Flight
1st Billy Briton (15) 37pts
2nd Vic Hester (14) 35pts
3rd Mike Jeffreys (18) 35pts
C Flight
1st David Dunne (19) 34pts
2nd Ken Kelly (19) 34pts
3rd Mick Coghlan (22) 34pts
Desmond Muirhead’s monster always seems to intimidate the society, but on saying that, a rather large group showed up to take it on - 55 players in fact.
The senior circuit pair of Aussie Bob Watson and Monsieur Thierry Petrement showed no fear as they led the way with 40 faultless points apiece and Bob gaining his second man of the match award as Thierry’s count back woes remain. Max Scott’s purple patch continues as he closed the flight. (Michele Sancillo, Peter Kelly and Terry pork chop Mangan deserve a mention as they carded fine rounds of 38 points) each.
B Flight was led by Irishman Billy Britton with a solid 37 points. Vic ‘the inflictor’ Hester was true to his handle as he edged Mike ‘the Welsh Wizard’ for the silver.
A group of luminaries were knotted atop the C Flight as the old count back was dragged out and the log jam was quickly sorted. David Dunne completed a hat trick of podium places for the week as his 34 point return had the best back nine math’s. Ken Kelly took the second place as Mick Coghlan tidied up the flight.
Bob Watson, Michele Sancillo, Peter Kelly and Steve Armstrong shared the 2’s pot.
Friday, Jan. 25, Mountain Shadow - Stableford
A Flight Blue
1st Billy Briton (15) 34pts
2nd Mark Watson (6) 34pts
3rd Michele Sancillo (9) 34pts
4th Tom McManus (11) 33pts
B Flight Blue
1st Ayoka Pueschi (23) 36pts
2nd Marjatta Tikkala (23) 35pts
3rd Brian Price (20) 35pts
4th Gerry Roche (18) 34pts
A Flight White
1st Michael Lenihan (18) 38pts
2nd Ed Delaney (26) 38pts
3rd Frank McNamara (17) 36pts
4th Peter Henshaw (19) 30pts
Competition suspended due to mental illness! - well not quite but strange things happen when the golf manager is late on the first tee, as he was this day. Somehow a fair percentage of the field took a short detour to the land of Zog and hit off from the white tees. Not to be outdone, the remainder teed off the blue tees since the starting sheet was nowhere to be seen. Good work lads. Back at Lewiinski’s Colin somehow sorted it out.
Michael Lenihan and Ed Delaney in C Flight, or white, or it might be blue or possibly the Irish flight, whatever they were co men of the match with 38 points each. Big Frank McNamara took the bronze with a steady even par round while fourth place went to a triple count back as Peter Henshaw, John Heaney and Mike Dwyer all carded 30 points – Peter’s backside math’s prevailing.
Ayoka Pueschi foreshadowed a week on form with her B Flight, just might be blue, winning 36 points. Second was simply a matter of count back as Marjatta Tikkala edged Brian Price for the silver. Gerry Roche, Mike ‘the Welsh wizard’ Jeffreys and John O’Neil pushed the calculator to the limit with Gerry emerging the victor in fourth spot.
Some other flight (up to you) didn’t know if they were coming or going and were headed by the man on form Billy Briton, who won a three-way count back over Mark Watson and Michele Sancillo who took silver and bronze respectively. The McManus boys were the last count back the calculator managed as Tom got the better of Paraic.
Peter Henshaw, Barry Power Whitish! Pat Hanafin and Brian Price True Blue shared the 2,s pot.
Note: Lewiinski’s is situated on Pattaya land Soi 1, Beach Rd Soi13/13 near 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

JJ shoots the lights out at Pleasant Valley

PSC Golf from The Growling Swan

Peter Blackburn
Monday, Jan. 21, Crystal Bay - Stableford
It was good to see our numbers up again and after a late cancellation and a “no-show” we had 29 golfers ready to play the popular Crystal bay Golf Course.

Martin Todd & Max Bracegirdle.

We welcomed Brian Gabe & Art Sohlin from Detroit, Michigan, USA plus fellow countryman Ed Stewart from California. Returning after a few months work off the coast of Gibraltar was Stephen Newton, plus Max Bracegirdle back from Australia & the eagerly awaited return of JJ Harney after spending Xmas and New Year with family in Ireland.
With transport at a premium in Pattaya at the minute we were restricted to 2 mini vans so we had to call on the help of our “car owners” to lend assistance and we were extremely grateful to Wendy, Alain, Ebrahim & JJ for helping out. Another early tee time meant we were leaving the GS early and we managed to depart at 8.10 am which was 10 minutes later than scheduled but we headed North on Sukhumvit where the Monday morning traffic was a touch busier than usual. The journey took about 50 minutes and we arrived at the course where it was fairly busy and were allocated the A & B nines.

Peter Grey, Rita Zoebelli & JJ Harney.

Our first group, a three-ball, teed off 15 minutes behind schedule at 9.35 am in terrific weather conditions with a nice breeze to keep playing conditions quite comfortable. With no groups immediately in front of us we proceeded at a cracking pace whilst appreciating the excellent condition of the course and although the greens were at times “lightning quick” they were firm & true.
We quickly caught up with the groups ahead of us so the tempo slowed and we finished our first nine in two hours & ten minutes. There was no hurry so we relaxed and enjoyed the golf course & the scenery and managed to complete the round in a touch under four hours & twenty minutes, which was perfectly acceptable for this time of year at such a popular venue.
We were able to have 2 grades with five podium spots in each. A Grade was for handicaps 0 to 21 and B Grade for 22 and over. We had nearest the pins on all the par threes and longest first putts on the 9th & 18th greens.
In a very tight finish at the top of A Grade it was Martin Todd (21 point back nine) who emerged the victor on a count back from your writer, Peter Blackburn (20 point back nine), with both of us having 38 points. With 3 players on 34 points another count back was necessary and it resulted in JJ Harney (18 point back nine & 14 points on the last 6 holes) finishing third with Mike “Hunter” Gosden (18 point back nine & 12 points on the last 6 holes) in fourth place & Mike Allidi (18 point back nine & 11 points on the last 6 holes) finished fifth.
Max “Two Corsets” Bracegirdle was too good in the B Grade and finished first with 34 points and with 3 people on 31 points yet another count back was required which saw Bernie McCart (19 point back nine) finish second from Shane “Jockey” Young (15 point back nine & 13 points on the last 6 holes) in third spot and Andrew “Turtle” Allen (15 point back nine & 11 points on the last 6 holes) finished fourth. Another count back saw Graham “Grunter” Buckingham (16 point back nine) “slip” into fifth place ahead of Wendy Bernek (15 point back nine) with both having 30 points.
A Flight (0-21)
1st Martin Todd (8) 38pts
2nd Peter Blackburn (11) 38pts
3rd JJ Harney (12) 34pts
4th Mike Gosden (12) 34pts
5th Mike Allidi (2) 34pts
B Flight (22+)
1st Max Bracegirdle (25) 34pts
2nd Bernie McCart (29) 31pts
3rd Shane Young (25) 31pts
4th Andrew Allen (36) 31pts
5th Graham Buckingham (24) 30pts
Near Pins: A5 – Martin Todd, A8 – Peter Blackburn, B4 – Takeshi Hakozaki, B6 – Brian Gabe
Long Putts: A9 – Max Bracegirdle, B9 – Pekka Mustonen
The Growling Swan NAGA Award, awarded to the golfer who has the worst score on the day and discreetly their score is not made public, was won by newcomer Art Sohlin who accepted the award in fine style. In the absence of big Ken Bernek it was Toddy who paraded Deefa the Dog and many donations were collected for the needy in Pattaya from our ever generous Growling Swan Crew.
Thursday, Jan. 24, Pleasant Valley - Stableford
We had a “full card” until someone pulled out at the last minute so 31 of us were ready to make the journey to the picturesque Pleasant Valley Golf Course and for one person in particular it was to be a memorable day.
We welcomed back Aussies Scot Eaton and Kevin Waycott & newcomer Glen Henriksson from my old stamping ground Wollongong in New South Wales, Australia. Some of the Melbourne Chapter of the Growling Swan Delinquents were at the end of their stay here so we bade a fond farewell to Robert Allen returning to Melbourne & Tony Olcorn going back to Brisbane for a short while. It was a good showing by the Delinquents who had three groups playing so fun & games was always going to be the order of the day.
We departed the GS right on schedule at 8.30 am and in what seemed the blink of an eye we arrived at the course just 37 minutes later. The golf course was fairly busy so there was to be no early tee off for us and we were instructed to start on number 10, our first four-ball getting away at 10.05 am which was just 5 minutes later than our booked tee time.
The weather was once more great and the golf course looked a treat, although some of the greens were a bit “hairy” having been recently cored & sanded and many of the bunkers were in a “sloppy” state but all in all conditions were good. The going was slow with heavy traffic in front of us so there was plenty of time to enjoy the scenery and our first nine took two hours & twenty minutes and a similar pace continued for the rest of the round which was completed in four hours & thirty five minutes.
We were able to have 2 grades with five podium spots in each. A Grade was for handicaps 0 to 21 and B Grade for 22 and over. We had nearest the pins on all the par threes and longest first putts on the 9th & 18th greens.
Most good golfers have a day when everything goes right and they end up with a terrific score but rarely does a 12 handicapper shoot one under the card. With just 20 putts for the day and bettering his previous best ever score by four strokes it was my old mate JJ Harney who amassed an amazing 49 points to win the A Grade. His playing partners walked off the course stunned and shaking their heads, in particular JJ’s good mate, five handicapper Scot Eaton who was demanding a visit to the “Steward’s Room” and a drug test for JJ.
In second place, 9 points further back came Kevin Waycott with a welcome return to form and newcomer Glen Henriksson was third with 37 points, three points ahead of Ebrahim in fourth spot. With 2 golfers on 33 points a count back was required to determine fifth place and it was your writer, Peter Blackburn (17 point back nine & 11 points on the last 6 holes) who edged out Mike “Hunter “ Gosden (17 point back nine & 10 points on the last 6 holes).
In the B Grade it was another fine winning score with Rita Zoebelli finishing on top with a terrific 42 points, 6 points ahead of Roy “Plums” Dayton (19 point back nine) in second place on a count back from Andrew “Turtle” Allen (16 point back nine) in third spot. Wendy Bernek finished fourth with 34 points & Geri Crilly rounded off the podium with 33 points.
A Flight (0-21)
1st JJ Harney (12) 49pts
2nd Kevin Waycott (11) 40pts
3rd Glen Henriksson (10) 37pts
4th Ebrahim (16) 34pts
5th Peter Blackburn (11) 33pts
B Flight (22+)
1st Rita Zoebelli (24) 42pts
2nd Roy Dayton (22) 36pts
3rd Andrew Allen (36) 36pts
4th Wendy Bernek (31) 34pts
5th Geri Crilly (25) 33pts
Near Pins: 5th – Kevin Waycott, 8th – Pekka Mustonen, 13th – Alain Taddei, 17th – Ed Stewart
Long Putts: 9th – Ebrahim, 18th – Shane Young
The Growling Swan NAGA Award was won by Growling Swan Mine Host Peter Grey who as ever accepted the award in fine style and wore the NAGA cap for quite some time afterwards. In the absence of big Ken Bernek it was Toddy who paraded Deefa the Dog and many donations were collected for the needy in Pattaya from our ever generous Growling Swan Crew.
It was then back to the Growling Swan where as usual the ice cold beer was plentiful and the day’s golf was the main point of discussion with most of us. JJ arrived & kindly rang the bell to celebrate his memorable round of golf with everyone there, which was indeed much appreciated.
Toddy & I spent some time discussing certain rules of the game with a couple of the GS delinquents which is of course our duty to do so and as the saying goes – “you learn something new every day”! It had been another great day’s golf with a lot of fun and excellent golf from some.
Don’t forget to check your new handicap on Saturday afternoon JJ!
Note: Growling Swan Golf welcomes golfers of any persuasion – low & high handicappers alike, female golfers and beginners. We generally play Mondays & Thursdays, meeting at The Growling Swan (formerly The Bunker Bar) in Soi Chaiyapoon at 8.00 am with transport departing at 8.30 am. For bookings or more information please contact Peter on 0806 351 386 or email to [email protected]. 

Pattaya 9-Ball Pool League

Results & Standings Jan. 23 (week 5)

Team	Played	Won	Lost	Draw	Pts.
Cheers	5	5	0	0	10
Buddy’s Bar	5	4	1	0	8
Party Girls	5	4	1	0	8
George n Dragon	5	4	1	0	8
FCUK	5	3	2	0	6
The Ranch	5	2	2	1	5
Wet Bar	5	2	2	1	5
Queen Vic	5	2	3	0	4
Legends Pool	5	1	3	1	3
Simple Simon	4	0	3	1	1
Irish Rover	4	0	4	0	0
Rioja	5	0	5	0	0
Results:  Cheers 15 v 5 The Ranch, Party Girls 11 v 9 Buddy’s Bar, Simple Simon P v P Irish Rover, Rioja 8 v 12 George n Dragon, Wet Bar 11 v 9 Legends Pool, FCUK 11 v 9 Queen Vic

Shelton shows them how

PSC golf from The Golf Club

Joe Nagh, Tom Breslin and Dave Shelton.

Steve Ellison
Monday, Jan. 21, Green Valley (white tees) – Stableford
1st Ken Aihara (6) 41pts
1st Sugar Ray Handford (17) 41pts
2nd Geoff Doody (24) 40pts
3rd Martin Kingswood (14) 39pts
4thMurray Kent (15) 37pts
4th Paul Greenaway (9) 37pts
Last week he was second and this week he finished first; so goes the very consistent game of Aihara-San, a.k.a. Steady Ken. He shared the first place position today with the one and only Sugar Ray Handford who also had a handy 41 on the card, an improvement on last week’s third place. Funny how these two both moved up the card a week later!
We said howdy to Geoff Doody once again as the fellow darksider notched up a even see-sip on the card, with Martin Kingswood a shot back on 39 and two 37’s brought home by Murray Kent and Paul ‘Rent-A-Bike’ Greenaway.
Good going guys, those are some really good scores, and thanks for joining us!

Glorious Green Valley.

Wednesday, Jan. 23, Mountain Shadow (white/silver tees) – Stableford
1st Tom Breslin (22) 39pts
2nd Dave Shelton (7) 38pts
3rd Joe Nagh (18) 35pts
For those of us who are most privileged to pass the 70 year mark, the P.S.C. has arranged a Silver Tee handicap on all Pattaya golf courses. I think this is a great idea (and you will too in a few years) because it gives our “Silver Seniors” an opportunity to compete on a level playing field and a chance to share in the just rewards of good play. Such is the beauty of golf, as in no other sport, where we can all join in and feel part of the game.
Tom Breslin is a mature golfer who has been coming to Pattaya from over 20 years now. The affable Irishman from Donegal has played with us many times over those years and now has seen his game come together nicely for a 39 point win off the Silver tees today. Tom is well known in the Irish expat community here and very involved in charitable fund raising for the Father Ray Foundation with his partner Moya. Great game Tom!
That young whippersnapper Dave Shelton was right on Tom’s heels but could only muster 38 on the card whilst Joe Nagh turned in 35 points for third place in today’s comp.
Friday, Jan. 25, Khao Kheow (white tees) – Stableford
1st David Shelton (7) 33pts
2nd Christian Peters (4) 32pts
3rd Ross Schiffre (17) 30pts
9-Hole Score
1st George Bishop (17) 18pts
Rain, rain go away! We were so looking forward to playing the great Khao Kheow today, such a shame about the precipitation issue. Not all of the field could finish play, such was the state of the course on this Friday. Captain Phil decided that as a consolation prize, we would also award someone with a “Best 9-Holes” score to cheer up the drenched masses.
For our regular comp, it was the fine play of Dave Shelton that topped the podium as the course proved ever so difficult in the wet. Dave scored only 33 points for his surprise win, but none in the field could do any better. Dave scored a second place on Wednesday and first place today to capture “Golfer of the Week” honours.
Young Christian Peters, playing off just a 4 handicap, was right behind for sole second with only 32 points and Ross Schiffre made another podium appearance with an even sam-sip on his card. George Bishop was the man for the front 9, bringing home the bacon with 18 hard earned points to take the consolation prize of first place for 9 holes.
It was a hard ol’ slog out there today, so thanks go out to all the lads who joined us for another great golf outing in Pattaya, the home of golf in Thailand. Hey, at least it’s a warm wet!
Note: The Golf Club is located on Soi LK Metro. We usually play on Monday, Wednesday and Friday so come join us for a seriously fun day out. Just call 085 434 3377 or see our website www.golfclubpattaya.com and for more information mail us: [email protected]  and see updates at www.facebook.com/golfclubpattaya.

High-season havoc at the Valley

IPGC golf from The Tara Court & O’Gara’s Bar

Sunday, Jan. 20, Pleasant Valley – Stableford
On Sunday we went to Pleasant Valley where we were booked for 12.30. We arrived around 11.50 to find the place packed and even the car park full. There were people and golf bags everywhere but no caddies or golf carts. We were told to check-in and when caddies came available we would be able to go. We offered to play without caddies and they could send them out to us when they came in but they said that was not possible.

Ger Lodge.

The management said there would be a delay of 30 mins but at 1.15 p.m., still with no caddies, we decided to go home. When we told the manager of our decision and that we wanted our money back suddenly she said we could go off the 10th and they had caddies and carts for us. We all headed down to the 10th tee and eventually got out at 1.30 p.m., one hour later than our booked tee time.
We told the manager that it was doubtful if we would get finished before dark but she assured us that we would get round in 4hrs no problem. It was a nightmare and at 5.00 p.m., 3½ hrs after we started, we finally arrived at our 9th green, the 18th hole. On one par 5 there were 5 groups on the tee box waiting to play. There was no sign of a Marshall anywhere and it was complete chaos.
There was no point in going on to play another 9 holes as we had barely one hour left before dark so we decided to quit. When we asked for a refund they offered us 50% of the green fees but no allowance for the carts even though we only had them for 9 holes.
We were met by a young man with a serious attitude problem who claimed to be the owner and we explained to him that we had paid them over 40,000 baht and that if he didn’t refund us 50% for the carts we would not be coming back. He said that was ok with him and wouldn’t accept that the problem was that they had overbooked and spoiled everyone’s day. He won’t have to worry as we will never be back again!
Tuesday, Jan. 22, Bangpra – Stableford
Today we played at Bangpra where in contrast to Pleasant Valley everything went very smoothly and no problems. As usual the course was in very good condition, especially the greens which were fast and very true. Everyone had very high praise for the course and enjoyed the day.
We also got off on our exact time and got round in 4hrs, which for this time of year is excellent. We only had one player, Ger Lodge, who managed to do better than his handicap, finishing with 37pts. Maybe it was the fast greens; I think there were a lot of 3-putts.
Coming in second place was Keith Murphy on his first outing with us on 36pts, John Chambers was third with 33 and Joe McArdle took fourth on count back, beating Sean Connolly after both returned 31pts each.
1st Ger Lodge (19) 37pts
2nd Keith Murphy (17) 36pts
3rd John Chambers (9) 33pts
4th Joe McArdle 31pts
5th Sean Connolly (10) 31pts
2’s: Ger Lodge, John Chambers and Peter Murphy.
Thursday, Jan. 24, Khao Kheow – Stableford
Today we were in Khao Kheow, which is probably the best and one of the hardest courses in the area. We played C and B nines and while the course was in beautiful condition, the greens were slower than usual for this venue.
Again the scoring reflected the difficulty of the course with only one player, John Featherston, doing better than his handicap with 38pts.
Back in O’Garas Bar and Resturant we said goodbye to Leo McAuley and John Chambers who were going home on Friday. We also had a very good sing song by the Murphy twins aided by both John Fearherston and Peter Murphy who entertained everyone for a few hours.
1st John Featherston (11) 38pts
2nd Peter Murphy (13) 35pts
3rd Terry Kelly (15) 34pts
4th Sean Connolly (10) 34pts
5th Keith Murphy (17) 32pts
2’s: Ger Lodge
Note: The Tara Court Golf Group plays every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday, leaving O’Gara’s Bar and Restaurant in the Tara Court on Pratannak Rd around 10.00 a.m. Sign up either in O’Gara’s or ring George on 087 540 0844.

Buchanan blitz at Khao Kheow

PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar

Steve Plant (left) with Mark McDonald, Friday’s low gross winner with 75.

Monday, Jan. 21, Burapha - Stableford
Twenty-seven Outbackers set off to Burapha to play the C and D courses from the white markers, with a 9 a.m. tee time instead of our normal 10 a.m. as Burapha is very heavily booked with many overseas players. The round was very stop/start but we still all finished in four and a half hours, not bad considering the number of players on the course.
The course was in great condition but the front of some greens had been heavily watered and the ball sometimes plugged.
The greens were the fastest I have played on for quite some time and nearly everybody found them very difficult. The green-keeper must have changed the hole positions in the dark as most pin placements were on slopes and if you didn’t get the ball to the hole, or in it, you found the ball back at your previous position or off the green.

Murray Hart leads the ‘Race to Bangkok’ standings.

Also a number of tee placements on the C course were back on the normal blue tees which made for a tougher than usual day, particularly for the higher handicappers as can be seen by the low stableford points scored.
Two divisions plus the ‘2’s and the best score of the day was recorded by Paul Bourke, winner of Division 1 with 33 points off his 10 handicap from three all tied on 32pts - Stephen Mann edging out both Rick Kaban and Rosco Langoulant by the usual count back method.
Division 2 was won by Tim Knight with 30 points from John Player with 29, and third place going to Eddie O’Neill (28pts) who beat Mick Indge on a count back.
John Player’s 29 points and second place was his seventh podium finish this year and with it kept him firmly at the top of the “Race to Bangkok” leaderboard with 2,700 points from oddly enough the man who beat him today, Tim Knight, who has 2500 points from six podium finishes.
Four ‘2’s today to Jimmy Little on C8, Paul Bourke and Rosco Langoulant on D2 and Noddy Moyle on D8.
Div A (0-18)
1st Paul Bourke (10) 33pts
2nd Stephen Mann (10) 32pts
3rd Rick Kaban (16) 32pts
4th Rosco Langoulant (14) 32pts
Div B (19+)
1st Tim Knight (21) 30pts
2nd John Player (20) 29pts
3rd Eddie O’Neill (36) 28pts
4th Mick Indge (19) 28pts
Tuesday, Jan. 22, Khao Keow – Stableford
We had a good turnout at Khao Kheow today with the numbers being 17, a couple of the players not showing in the results as they did not play in the competition.
The starter informed us that we were playing C & B and as usual we elected for the yellow tees, so a great warm up hole for the boys to start with – what water on the left? And what OB on the right?
The course was in average condition with the rough drying out but C & B greens were like chalk and cheese regarding the speed, C fairly fast and B average. Whichever, ‘Kissy’ Buchanan blazed his way round to amass 40pts as he returned to a bit of form after quite a long time going nowhere with his game and he beat the in-form man of the moment, Murray Hart, who took second with 36.
Div B was won by another man whose game has been in the doldrums for sometime, which has seen his handicap drift out to an embarrassing 17, Joe Mooneyham, who scored a fine 38 to win by four from Mike and my good self.
There were no ‘2’s.
Div A (0-16)
1st Keith Buchanan (15) 40pts
2nd Murray Hart (15) 36pts
3rd Allen Raaen (10) 35pts
Div B (17+)
1st Joe Mooneyham (17) 38pts
2nd Mike Dwyer (17) 34pts
3rd Suzi Lawton (19) 34pts
Wednesday, Jan. 23, Siam Plantation – Stableford
Only 15 players to Siam Plantation today as we regrettably had two ‘no shows’ which cost others a place. Played the Tapioca and Pineapple courses and they were both in great condition as usual and even though the course was heavily booked we still got around in four hours.
Welcome to Jean Philippe and Christine Gaillard for their first game with the Outback for quite some time.
Only one division plus the ‘2’s and the winner was Chris Thompson with 36 points off his 24 handicap from Jean Phillipe with 35. In third was Andy Butterworth with 33 points and rounding out the placings was Christine Gaillard with 32.
Only two ‘2’s and they were both from Paul Lavender on Tapioca 7 and Pineapple 8, well done Paul.
1st Chris Thompson (24) 36pts
2nd Jean Philippe (15) 35pts
3rd Andy Butterworth (12) 33pts
4th Christine Gaillard (7) 32pts
Wednesday, Jan. 23, Mt. Shadow – Stableford
Twenty-one Outbackers travelled to Mountain Shadow after an absence of nearly a year. All those who had played here before were informing the newcomers that the greens were like glass, but not today – however, they were still pretty slick if you had a downhill putt and it took a few holes to get used to the pace.
The course itself was generally in good condition and the low handicappers seemed to manage their way round better than the average guys as the results show with the best score of the day coming from Peter Erikson, playing off 5, with a very good score of 38pts (75 gross). Second was Muzza, who is playing very consistently, with 37 and Peter LeNoury took third on 36.
The best of Div B was a newcomer to the Outback, Leo McCauley on 32pts and a surprised Eddy Beilby took second with 28 from the Sugarman in third on 27.
I think we will be coming back here again in the very near future as the value and the course makes up for the longish drive out to the club.
There were two ‘2s from Noddy Moyle (Hole 5) and Peter Erikson (Hole 8).
Div A (0–16)
1st Peter Erikson (5) 38pts
2nd Murray Hart (15) 37pts
3rd Peter LeNoury (9) 36pts
Div B (17+)
1st Leo McCauley (18) 32pts
2nd Eddy Beilby (17) 28pts
3rd Sugar Ray Handford (17) 27pts
Friday, Jan. 25, Green Valley – Devere Monthly Medal
Unbelievably the last Friday of the month of January already; doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun, but of course signalling the time for the regular monthly medal worth double points for all podium finishers in the “Race 2 Bangkok”.
Today, with a field of 47, was the first time that the Outback were to drop the divisions and play everybody as one and the placing would go down to tenth place.
General Jack was actually spotted on a golf course yesterday at Amata Springs playing something akin to golf but not as we know it but today he was giving Capt’ Steve a break and taking care of the start.
Surprisingly we were away ahead of schedule with all the groups off by 10.30 and the pace of play was excellent with the first groups round in under four hours, which is quite incredible for this time of the year. I wonder how much that might be down to John who has been helping out with the marshalling by geeing up some of the Koreans and some other slow groups who are out there every Friday just in front of the Outback, particularly that one guy who always takes a “Mulligan” on the first hole as he knows it annoys then proceeds to walk the course as slow as he possibly can!
The scoring was average with the win going to John Chambers with a net 70 (gross 79) but unfortunately John could not make it back for the presentation to receive his DeVere sponsored winning trophy. There were three more tied on 71, headed by Steve Plant followed by that man again, Murray Hart who has had a great week and now finds himself 1000 points clear at the top of the “Race 2 Bangkok” leaderboard.
There were four ‘2’s, one on each of the Par 3’s from; Jack Fetherstone (4th), John Stafford (9th), John Chambers (12th) and Dennis Pelly (16th).
Just a few stats from the round; the toughest hole was back to the 3rd – playing over two shots tougher than par (6.02), yielding only 2 pars and 1 birdie and there was one other hole that only gave away 2 pars, hole 15. The easiest hole was the 12th playing at 3.85 and giving up 18 pars. The highest score recorded by any player was 13.
1st John Chambers (9) net 70
2nd Steve Plant (13) net 71
3rd Murray Hart (15) net 71
4th Rick Kaban (16) 71
Note: The Outback Golf Bar is situated about 6km from Sukhumvit Road along Soi Siam Country. Call Jack on 081 578 1956.

A windy day at Emerald

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s

Tuesday’s top four with one of Bert’s finest.

Derek Brook
Tuesday, Jan. 22, The Emerald – Stableford
The lists seem to be filling up in January this year, and so we had a full house on this morning. Emerald is usually a Friday course, but we then have the extra traffic problems so being really smart we decided to play here on Tuesday and go to Royal Lakeside on the Friday. Something seems a bit strange!
So off we went and soon arrived at the Emerald. Booking in is quick and they have the advantage here, for an anti social golfer, of having a cart for one at 400 baht. That’ll do me. So down to the start and as it happened we got off on time.
With the heavy wind the course proved quite difficult. I must admit to not being the best of wind players, so a really good front nine got blown away on the back nine. Still, a couple of the golfers playing with me were producing good results.
The course itself is playing quite well; the fairways are a bit hard but overall it is quite playable.
Round over it was into the showers, which are rather small but with good showers. Outside is the restaurant, the only open air one around, and the food is good and cheap.
Back at Bert’s it was soon time for the results. In the A Flight, 0-18, the winner was Richard Kubicki with 35 points ahead of a count back on 32 points that saw Brian Parish in second and John Binns in third.
In the B Flight, the winner was Jack Robertson with 34 points ahead of a count back on 32 points that saw Barry Elphick in second and Daryl Evans in third, with Pekka and John Marrit just losing out.
Near Pins: Art Solin, Bob Watson, Ken Hatton, Kub 1
Long Putts: Brian Parish, Koji

Friday, Jan. 25, Royal Lakeside – Stableford
Well it is a long way, and now the decision to play on a Friday struck home, not before we left but as soon as we started back and realised it was a busy traffic night.

Ted Morris.
The drive up there was a doddle, as was the book-in which was pretty quick, and then onto the course. The day was fine and so was the golf course. Since it was given the upgrade this place is now even better and is a pleasure to play. It is in many respects a much tougher test of golf, but the back nine in particular has been changed. The fairways are well trimmed and the greens are quick but true. I suppose if it was not so far away we would play it more often.
Round over it was back into the fine changing rooms, a shower and into the restaurant. Then off we went on the way back. As said it was a busy drive back but I suppose any other night would have been much the same.
Back at Bert’s it was soon time for the results. In the A Flight, 0-17, the winner was Ted Morris with 37 points on count back over Bob Watson in second. In third was Mark West with 34 points on count back over Max Scott in fourth.
In the B Flight the winner was John Davis with 38 points ahead of a three-way count back on 37 points that saw Mark O’Callaghan in second, Paul Alford in third and Daryl Evans in fourth.
T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Brian Parish, Bob Watson, Max Scott, Alan Sullivan.
Long Putts: Bob Watson (2)

Norman conquers Lakeside

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s

Monday, Jan. 21, Plutuluang E&S – Stableford
Another good turnout today, as 35 golfers turned up for the visit to a course which is not top of everyone’s favourites list, although it is top of Skinny and Neil Griffin’s list because the beer’s cheap. However, most players find the cabbage grass on the fairways a bit difficult to deal with.

Laughing Les (Burns) heading back to Oz.

On arrival at the course we discovered, yet again, that there was a shortage of caddies, but things were eventually sorted out and we set off with a collection of gardeners, cleaners, and various other trades that had never been on a golf course before.
We were offered the choice of playing the North and West, or South and East courses, and after some discussion we elected to play the second pair because our last several visits have been around the North and West nines.
It has to be said that even though the course was busy, the round progressed reasonably well, with only a few minor holdups. The course however is showing signs of suffering from the high season, with the fairways drying out, un-raked bunkers and as always, the slow greens.
Cyril Wallwork recorded his first win, in the fifth game of his annual tour, narrowly beating Tony Scambler by a single point. Tony Robbins almost recorded the first hole in one for over a year in the society, but his tee shot only caught the side of the hole and lipped out! Hard luck Tony, but your scribe will be back soon to show you how it’s done!
A Flight
1st Cyril Wallwork (14) 37pts
2nd Tony Scambler (8) 36pts
3rd Geoff Cox (14) 33pts
4th Tony Robbins (12) 32pts
B Flight
1st Mike Corner (19) 36pts
2nd Neil Griffin (28) 34pts
3rd Lars Strom (20) 33pts
4th Peter Habgood (20) 32pts
Near Pins: Gordon Melia, Lars Strom, Raleigh Gosney, and Tony Robbins.
Wednesday, Jan. 23, Royal Lakeside – Stableford
The perfect number of players today as 32 of us set off up the 7 motorway for the trip to Royal Lakeside. Although a few players complain that the trip’s a bit long, we were all at the course within an hour and the always excellent condition and fine layout of the course make the longer trip well worthwhile.
We played off the blue tees, and a couple of the par 4’s and all the par 3’s were playing long, but there was some run on the excellent fairways, so even the shorter hitters had little to complain about.
Keith Norman produced a long overdue fine performance to win the A flight, even with the obviously minor handicap of having 15 stitches in a leg wound over the previous weekend!
The supposedly fitter players could only follow along in Keith’s wake, although Colin Greig and Tony Robbins also produced fine performances and had to be separated on a count back for second and third places.
John Hughes scraped home in the B flight, although back at The Ranch it transpired that Richard Baldotto would have taken first place, but Paul Smith had inadvertently marked Richard’s card incorrectly, depriving him of a vital point – check it before you sign it Richard!
A Flight
1st Keith Norman (12) 40pts
2nd Colin Greig (10) 37pts
3rd Tony Robbins (12) 37pts
4th Gerry Cooney (14) 34pts
B Flight
1st John Hughes (19) 35pts
2nd Richard Baldotto (29) 34pts
3rd Jack Robertson (26) 34pts
4th Lars Strom (23) 32pts
Near Pins: Cyril Wallwork, Marion Melia, Lee Butler and Tore Eliassen
Friday, jan. 25, Greenwood A&B – Stableford
Another 30 plus field headed out to Greenwood, to be greeted on arrival by absolute chaos. Sometimes the management here seem to get things horribly wrong, and today was one of those days, with no caddies available and golfers milling around like lost souls.
Fortunately they came up with the solution of offering a buggy (with no caddy) for 1,400 baht, or walking with prospect of a caddy arriving later, for 1,100 baht. The more money conscious members of the society quickly figured out that no caddy meant no tip, and jumped into the buggies faster than rats up a drainpipe.
The round progressed reasonably well until a thunderstorm arrived as the fifth group reached the eleventh tee. Most players were forced to take shelter for 30 minutes but the leading groups carried on and completed the round. After the storm moved away there was still intermittent light rain for the rest of the day, making the course very damp in places.
Paul Smith mastered the difficult conditions superbly, shooting a level par round for a winning score of 39 points, comfortably ahead of the rest of the field.
With the delayed start and the rain stoppage, some of the later groups struggled to get back to The Ranch in time for the presentation, but eventually Buff and Tony got everything sorted out. We said goodbye today to the ever smiling Les Burns, who’s heading back to Oz for a spell – hurry back Les, we’ll miss you.
A Flight
1st Paul Smith (3) 39pts
2nd Duncan Lee (15) 36pts
3rd Mark Stanley (11) 34pts
4th Cyril Wallwork (14) 34pts
B Flight
1st Dennis Quinn (22) 34pts
2nd Thomas Nyborg (19) 33pts
3rd Gez Williams (17) 33pts
4th Richard Baldotto (29) 32pts
Near Pins: Cyril Wallwork, Thomas Nyborg and Paul Smith
The eleven games played so far this month have produced 10 different winners, so the race for the Golfer of the Month title is wide open, with two remaining games to play. Current leader, Mike Corner, has taken an ill-timed holiday with the wife and will miss the last two games, so the chasing pack have everything to play for.
Note: The Bunker Boys are a PSC affiliated golf society, who now play out of The Ranch bar on Pattaya 3rd Road (in front of the fire station, and almost opposite the Buffalo Bar). We play three times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, so if you enjoy a fun day out, and a friendly but competitive golf competition why not come and join us.
We meet at The Ranch at 9 a.m. for breakfast and transportation, and new players are always welcome. Contact Buff on 086 046 5091 or 080 605 5663 for all enquiries. You can find all the news, schedules and results on our website at www.bunkersociety.com. 

Jomtien 8-Ball Pool League

Results & Standings Jan. 23 (week 11)

Team	Played	Won	Lost	Bonus	Pts.
Buddy Bar	11	11	0	0	33
Winners Bar	11	10	1	1	31
Country Road	11	9	2	2	29
Shenanigans	11	7	4	3	24
Simple Simon	11	6	5	5	23
Windmill Bar	11	6	5	5	23
Flying Dolphin	11	6	5	4	22
Take Care Bar	11	5	6	5	20
The Den	11	5	6	5	20
Woaws Bar	11	5	6	5	20
Minnys Bar	11	2	9	8	14
Anzac Bar	11	3	8	4	13
Wombat Bar	11	2	9	7	13
Lion Pub	11	0	11	5	5
Results:  Wombat Bar 4 v 11 Winners Bar, Lion Pub 3 v 12 Simple Simon, Anzac Bar 6 v 9 Windmill Bar, Minnys Bar 7 v 8 Shenanigans, The Den 9 v 6 Woaw’s Bar, Buddy Bar 8 v 7 Country Road, Flying Dolphin 10 v 5 Take Care Bar

Morel makes it look easy

Jomtien Golf with the IPGC

Monday, Jan. 21, Bangpakong – Stableford
A favourite choice every 2/3 months and we had a 40-seater coach, a mini bus and a few cars meeting at Siam Cats for our normal 10.00am tee off time at the course. From the elevated view from the clubhouse the course looked to be in a good condition as we all checked-in.
There are a few ladies now joining us and we had four out today, though not quite the same as three years ago when the ladies comp was between 6 and 8 players for each game.
The equal divisional cut today was 7-14, 15-18 and 19+. There were a few moans on the first tee, no names mentioned, as we selected the white tees today at 6,680 yards instead of the yellow at 6320 yards, but when the winning scores were announced back at Siam Cats at the presentation there were no comments whatsoever.
‘Mr. Happy’ a.k.a. Bryan Rought recorded the best score of the day in the three men’s divisions, winning the second with 42 points. Harry Vincenzi was second in that flight with 40 and Dennis Scougal took third with a meagre 37.
Tony Kay topped division 1 with 39 points, beating Horst Starchl on a 22/21 back nine count back and John Chambers placed third with 36.
Jim Connelly won division 3 with 36 points and, dressed in a very outlandish outfit, Pepo Frick was second on 34 after beating Stefan Kallback 19/18 on the back nine.
Miss Nut was happy yet again after winning the ladies division with 33 points.
Near pins went to Verena Suhr, Alan Maxwell, Neville Scurrell, Horst Starchl, Volker Suhr, Gordon Everingham, Pepo Frick and Curtiss Hessler.
Volker Suhr birdied the 16th for the only ‘2’ in division 1 and in division 2 there was a rollover to Pattaya Country Club on Wednesday.
Wednesday, Jan. 23, Pattaya Country Club - Stableford
We had another good turnout today with 3 ladies and 35 men, so there were four divisions in total.
Playing off the white tees the best score of the day in the three men’s divisions was 44 points with the Frog (alias Jean Morel), taking the top podium position in division 2. Paul Hartley was second with 39 after beating Eiichi Matsumoto on a 22/19 on a back nine count back.
Jerry Sweetnam won division 1 with 40 points ahead of Chris Voller in second on 37 and Horst Starchl took third with 35.
In the frame most weeks with a reducing handicap, Rod Howett topped division 3 with 37 points, Charlie Charalambous was second on 34 and Roar Berger beat Bernt Dubland on a 19/15 back nine count back after they both came in with 33 points.
Winning with 27 points in the ladies division kept Miss Nut smiling all the way to the bank.
Near pins were claimed by Anders Hansson, Horst Starchl, Chris Voller (2), Mike Fitzgerald, Randy Flello and Eiichi Matsumoto.
Amazingly there were five ‘2’s in division 1 from Sid Crawley on the 7th and 12th, Anders Hansson on the 12th and Horst Starchl on the 5th and 12th and with no rollovers there were no smiling faces Siam Cats.
Friday, Jan. 25, Eastern Star - Stableford
As we drove towards the course this morning the roads were waterlogged just before taking the u-turn off Sukhumvit into the course and the clouds in the distance were looking a trifle threatening.
There were 14 groups out but a slight error with the mini bus driver meant 8 players went AWOL for a couple of hours so we only teed off with 12 four-balls. There were 6 ladies out also today while for the men the division 1 cut was 7-14, 15-20 in division 2 and 21 + in division 3.
The 13th and 18th greens are still improving here at Eastern Star and the rest are still slightly slower than what we are used to. The first group reached the 8th tee and we then experienced 20 minutes of showers and light rain, crazy for this time of the year but it did not affect the golf.
Wilf Latham proved this with 38 points to win division 1 ahead of Chris Voller in second two points behind and Bill Bertram was third with 34.
Joe Kubon topped division 3 with 35 points and yet again Rodney Howett was in the limelight, beating Iain Walsh 19/18 on a back nine count back for second after they both scored 33 points.
There was a small debate at the presentation as to whether we should recognise any winners in division 2. Winning it with 30 points was Andy Baber while the Saturday morning telephone box entrepreneur, Dennis Scougal, was second with 29 and Finn Olsen came in third, beating Frank Kelly on a 16/13 back nine count back.
Miss Nut won the ladies division with 29 and Wendy Hillier was second on 24.
Near pins went to Noi Emmerson, Hildur, Miss Nut, Mikael Andersson, Arthur Hancock, Rick Hiatt, Dennis Scougall, Andy Baber, Mark Conway and Jim Connelley.
There were no ‘2’s in any of the divisions so rollovers to next week.
Finally, we had to say Bon Voyage to John Chambers today and we hope to see you again soon.

Aabling leads the way at Navy

PSC golf from Café Kronborg

Monday, Jan. 21, Century Chonburi – Stableford
The day’s game today was up the route 331 for 55 minutes to Century Chonburi – the cheapest of any course around. We checked in and were off the first tee 20 minutes early under delightfully sunny skies and a good breeze.
The course on the day was dry with slowish greens up hill. It looks to be dry because the installed sprinkler system is out of commission. It was also noted upon completion of the 4½ hour round and back in the building that the bookkeeper was doing the books manually and the boss was playing cards on the computer. All in all you can’t go wrong for 200 baht.
A whole bevy of welcomes went out today, to Jim Covington from BC, Ben Browning, working from Coventry, Ann Winfield, Ronnie Ratte, Mark O’Callahan and Brendon Ruddy from Ireland and also Scott Brehaut from Guernsey.
Two flights today with the cut at handicap 20 and the full monty of near pins.
Jan Lovgreen won the A flight with a fine 38 points while Michelle Sancillo was second on a count back from Ted Morris, both on 36 points, and Kjeld Ravn took fourth ahead of Richard Kubicki.
Eddie (the eagle) Glinsek won the B flight with 36 points ahead of Svend Gaarde in second Peter Bygballe third and Kai Aabling and Mike Winfield completing the podium.
A Flight (0-20)
1st Jan Lovgreen (20) 38pts
2nd Michelle Sancillo (8) 36pts
3rd Ted Morris (14) 36pts
4th Kjeld Ravn (19) 35pts
5th Richard Kubicki (12) 32pts
B Flight (21+)
1st Eddie Glinsek (34) 36pts
2nd Svend Gaarde (27) 35pts
3rd Peter Bygballe (24) 35pts
4th Kai Aabling (25) 33pts
5th Mike Winfield (22) 33pts
Near Pins: 4th Jan Lovgreen, 7th Peter Bygballe, 13th Dave Richardson, 17th Bjarne Kjaer
Long Putts: 9th Gurli Stolt, 18th Bjarne Kjaer
Thursday, Jan. 24, Plutaluang W&N – Stableford
Plutaluang West and North layouts were the test today and we checked in and were off the first tee 20 minutes early under mixed overcast skies with a hint of rain as we saw some wet roads close to the course, but no rain ever came. The course was in fine condition with the greens having a good pace.
We were back in the clubhouse after a quick round of 4½ hours and two flights today with the cut at handicap 20.
Michelle Sancillo won the A flight with 38 points, Richard Kubicki was second on 36 and Elias Magnusson took third ahead of Jan Lovgreen in fourth.
Kai Aabling topped the second division with a fine 42 points ahead of Dave Richardson in second, Eddie Glinsek third and Peter Bygballe fourth.
A Flight (0-20)
1st Michelle Sancillo (8) 38pts
2nd Richard Kubicki (12) 36pts
3rd Elias Magnusson (20) 35pts
4th Jan Lovgreen (20) 33pts
B Flight (21+)
1st Kai Aabling (25) 42pts
2nd Dave Richardson (25) 37pts
3rd Eddie Glinsek (34) 37pts
4th Peter Bygballe (24) 36pts
Near Pins: W3 Peter Bygballe, W8 Kjeld Ravn, N3 Peter Bygballe, N6 Richard Kubucki.
Near Pin in 2: N9 Mike Winfield.
Note: If you are looking for a game of golf, call Dave at 083 602 2117 or email [email protected].  Just a reminder we are very busy now so sign up early.

Mah holds it together

The Pattaya Golf Society (IPGC) at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar

The Pattaya Golf Society visited Eastern Star on Monday, 21st January to play a stableford competition in two flights with the cut at sixteen and under. The day was warm but there was an ever present wind blowing which posed problems in addition to those normally posed at Eastern Star, with water, OB and tough to putt greens. Over the last few years good scores have been rare and today was no exception.
In the top flight Paul Edgar and Larry Slattery shared second place with a mere 27 points each whilst Alan Flynn almost romped away for the win with 29 points.
In the second flight there was more respectability with Martin Hennessy and John Chelo sharing third place with 29 points and Bryan Barrell coming up with his best result in many a long month making second place his own with 32 points. The winner, with the best score of the day, 35 points, was Canadian Henry Mah and his round was very solid in most departments.
There were no birdie ‘2’s and Rabbi’s beer draw was won by Syd Harrison whilst Dave Plaiter picked up the Booby Bevy for his hero-to-zero performance after an excellent club championship performance on his previous round.
Pilkington the pick at Crystal Bay
Crystal Bay these days is a treat to play with the generally well-tended fairways and excellent greens complementing the dramatic backdrop of the clubhouse and mountains. For a golfer on top of his game there is always the opportunity to score well. Thus it was, on Wednesday, 23rd January the Pattaya Golf Society took a large group to the course to play a stableford competition on the A and B nines in two flights, cut at seventeen and under.
In the second flight Henry Mah again showed the value of sticking with the advice of his coach and he posted 35 points for third place, just one behind fellow countryman John Chelo’s 36 and second place. The flight winner was Jim Ferris with a fine 38 points to emphasise his current consistency.
In the top flight Steve Evans took third with 35 points, three behind Wichai Tananusorn whose 38 points came on a course he loves after his personal best there a few months back. The winner was Alan Pilkington whose gross seventy-seven gave him 39 points.
There were birdie ‘2’s for Alan, Fred Land, John Hackett and a brace for John Chelo and back at Rabbi’s his free beer draw was won by Larry Slattery.
Mr Len took the Booby Bevy after a rapturous back nine had seen him extend his front nine score of only four to twenty six, by a long way beating the group’s highest split record figures. Keep taking the medicine Boss!
Tananusorn top at tough Treasure Hill
Treasure Hill is always a challenge and the Pattaya Golf Society were up for it on Friday, 25th January. Currently the course is in fine condition with excellent tee boxes, good fairways and steady paced greens and the humidity being high added to the challenge off the white tees.
A tight competition followed with three golfers on 32 points sharing third place; the ever consistent Henry Mah, steady Mike Earley and Dave Edwards who loves to play the track. It took the very last putt to decide the competition and Wichai Tananusorn’s fine eight-foot effort just edged it for the popular Thai golfer.
There were birdie ‘2’s for Dave Lehane on the tough second and Mike Earley again on the seventeenth.
The boss’s free beer went to Martin Hennessy and the Booby Bevy was enjoyed by Dave Moriarty after his 14-6 split. It’s always a good test at Treasure Hill and this day was no exception.

Perfect Pearce triumphs at Pleasant Valley

The Billabong Bar Golf Group

Monday, Jan. 21, Pleasant Valley - Stableford
Monday saw the team going to Pleasant Valley, and true to form they got away on time off the 10th tee; my thanks to Colonel Bob for looking after the boy’s for me. The management of some other golf courses could get a lesson from here - there is never a hiccup at the tee blocks and everything just ticks over like a well oiled wheel.
The scores were good and ordinary but playing from the white tees it does make it a bit easier for the shorter hitters.
We welcomed Ray Thirtle back today from his knee replacement and Bunker Bill - good to see you fellas hope the knee keeps getting stronger for you Ray.
The winner today was the ‘Old Master’ Bob Pearce with 44 points and coming second was Brian Maddox on 39 points. There were four ‘2’s coming from Stan Stoker, Bob Pearce, Bill Fenton and Willem Lasonder.
Wednesday, Jan. 23, Green Valley - Stableford
Down to Green Valley for our regular Wednesday game and 4 groups set out on time for a very quick round of under four and a half hours – that’s great for this time of the year. The course is in great condition also.
Welcome to Tony Oakes, the PSC President, who played with us today and good to see Richard Holmes, and Lamun Hanley with us also.
The scores were very good with a couple of over the top ones. In the winner’s circle were Martin Hayes with a fantastic 43 points to take the top spot ahead of Bob Philp in second with his best score in months with 41 points. In third place was Tony Oakes with 36 points (and that score I might add would have won every day for the last six weeks) and completing the podium on fourth was Richard Holmes with 35 points.
There were five ‘2’s today coming from Bob Philp, Tony Oakes, Richard Holmes and Martin Hayes got 2.
Friday, Jan. 25, Crystal Bay - Stableford
Friday we went to Crystal Bay and after a bit of a mix up with tee times we finally got away a little late but having a 3½ hour round it was great. It was decided we play a 4-man scramble and there was a bit of banter as to who would go first but as Nick had to get to the airport to go home, so the group of Peter Lenory, Brian Wilkinson, Mark Wood and Nick got away and he got to town and the departure lounge on time.
The team of JJ Harney, Scott Eaton, Stan Stoker and Keith Bowles were next up followed by Brian Maddox, Martin Hayes, Willem Losander and Phil Waite. Those teams made up the winners circle.
I will get to the score’s in a minute as there is a little story to tell here, on the way back to the bar a certain person and his navigator got very low on petrol so a decision was made by the navigator to go off road to the nearest petrol station. Suffice to say they didn’t quite make it and finished up in a ditch with about 4 feet of the car under water. The driver, after castigating his mate, decided they needed help so stay in the car was the command and the driver went up the road to get a truck pull him out. Needless to say when he got back the navigator was standing outside the car in the pouring rain and was heard to say, “I didn’t stay in there because I didn’t want to bloody drown.”
The good news is they got out, got some petrol and got back to the bar, albeit you could have had a swim in the car itself. See JJ, I told you no one would find out who it was mate!
The winning score of 60.5 was from Brian, Phil, Willem and Martin. In second place came Peter, Mark, Nick and Brian with 60.9 and in third was the team of JJ, Stan, Keith and Scott with 61.7.
Note: Golf at the Billabong is played every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. If you care to play just give Bob a call on 082 204 3411 or call in to the bar. The Billabong Golf Bar is situated just before the arch going to Siam Old Course looking straight down Lake Mabprachan.
 

Joel the best of the week

PSC Golf from Mulligans Lakeside

Tuesday, Jan. 22,
Pleasant Valley - Stableford
Tuesday was our usual monthly visit to Pleasant Valley, with the course in generally decent condition, other than a few of the greens undergoing some maintenance work. While most of our regulars enjoy this course, there are a few dissenters who have yet to convince me their disdain does not come from a lack of ability to manage the course, rather than any course shortfalls.

Joel Flor.

We played from the Blues with allowances on holes 12 & 14, so as not to make it a ball washing exercise for the shorter hitters on those longer carries. This meant the course played at under 6,300 yards, so really the colour of the tees is insignificant when compared to other courses White tee lengths.
With sufficient players for 2 flights, it was Joel Flor (21) with the best score of the day leading the “B” flight with 39 points. Second spot went to Trevor Taylor (36) with 33, while Jim Federspiel (19) filled the bronze medal spot with 32.
In the lower handicap group it was Jeff Wylie (6) out in front with 36 points, followed in by Kevin Hamilton (17) 35, while another point behind was the in -form Phill Waite (11).
Mike Jackson & Jeff split the Near Pins between them, unfortunately no birdie ‘2’s though.
Thursday, Jan. 23, Century Chonburi – Stableford
Not quite so many players today at Century Chonburi, where the fairways & greens are in reasonable condition, although it is getting a bit dry off the edges.
Even though we had a smaller field, there were some good scores, especially from Jeff Warner (13) leading the way with 38 points, while Paddy Devereaux (23) & Clive Hoseason (24) needed a count back to decide the minor placings, which Paddy won 23/17, after both signed for 36 points.
Near Pins today were much more evenly spread with Owen, Clive & the 2 Jeff’s each getting 1.
Note: Mulligans Lakeside plays golf generally on Tuesday & Thursday, with ML hosting prompt presentations on both days. As a PSC affiliated venue we welcome ALL golfers, including ladies & seniors who have opted for the “Silver” tee option. Call 089 094 1841 for scheduling or enquiries. Hope to see you there, cheers & good golfing!

Pattaya City triumph against league leaders

Bangkok Casuals Football League 2012/13

Paul Frain
Pattaya City took on league leaders The Londoner at Laem Chabang last weekend and were in confident mood after beating BSL Youth 3-0 in Bangkok the week before.
The Londoner started out playing some pretty and neat football but it was City who nearly stuck the first blow when centre forward Vorontsov was only thwarted by a desperate dive from the Londoner keeper who smothered the ball before Vorontsov could shoot.
Both teams seemed intent on putting everything into attack and it made for an end to end match as City wasted a couple of good chances and then the Londoner’s centre forward found himself alone with just the City keeper to beat but his shot was weak and the chance went begging.
Dipta had the best effort in a goalless first half when his shot was brilliantly saved by The Londoner keeper following good build up play from Fox and Emery.
The second half started pretty much as the first half finished, with end to end play and within a couple of minutes City went ahead when Dipta latched onto a loose ball and fired home to make it 1-0. The Londoner pressed for an equalizer but the City defence held firm, with the reliable Yongui picking up any pieces. Soon after, a throw out by City’s keeper found Dipta who beat three defenders before seeing his shot roll agonizingly the wrong side of the Londoner’s goalpost.
The visitors came back once more and forced some good saves out of the City keeper, but he was powerless to do anything about the equalizing goal as Craig Massey beat the Pattaya offside trap to bury the ball in the back of the net and pull The Londoner level at 1-1.
City did not allow this setback to knock them out of their stride however and soon after, a defence splitting ball by Sego found Vorontsov in the clear and he side-footed home to give Pattaya the lead once more at 2-1.
The Londoner tried to claw their way back into the match once again but they started leaving spaces at the back and City’s Paul Madden had a glorious chance to seal the match but put his shot wide. It didn’t matter though as soon after the referee sounded his whistle to bring the match to a close.
This was a wonderful game with both sides playing good football and giving it their best. All credit to the officials also who kept everybody in check.
City seem to have reached a new level since the new year and now they have to try and maintain it as they next take on local rivals F.C. Planet in a reschedule match this coming weekend at Laem Chabang.
 

Return of the ‘usual suspects’

PSC Sunday Softball

 

 

George ‘the Great’ hits it out of the park.

 

Rodney Thomas
Another great day of Sunday afternoon Pattaya Sports Club Softball took place recently with the return of Diego, Brian, Doug and all the usual suspects. Two full teams did battle that ended in a tie due to the gritty performance of “George the Great” stepping up to the plate with bases loaded, two outs in the bottom of the last inning and hitting a grand slam. A grand slam so gritty but yet oh so tasty Denny’s is adding to its Grand Slam breakfast in George’s honor. A side of “George the Great Grits” at no extra charge.
Although overshadowed by George, but not to be forgotten (especially by Phil), was the latter’s stellar defense and his swollen fat lip from a bad hop at short. But like the true superstar he is, he played through the pain and has a nice souvenir to remember today’s thriller.
Hope to see everyone soon at the “Shoe” for more PSC Pattaya softball excitement and fun. As always for future game locations, times, directions etc. go to the Pattaya Sports Club website at pattayasports.org and click on the softball page. You will also find additional information and updates as well as past articles about PSC softball games. You can also contact Justin @ 082 474 0401 or the PSC Softball phone @ 091 492 6619. See you at the ball field!

 

Canada beat the World 6-4 in charity game

 

The VIP puck drop.

 

Team Canada defeated the World Team 6-4 in a charity ice hockey game held in early January at “The Rink”, located on the 7th floor of the Central Grand Rama IX shopping centre. Team Canada was composed of Canadian expats based in Thailand, plus three visiting Canadian MPs (Patrick Brown – Barrie, Andrew Saxton - North Vancouver, & Randy Hoback – Prince Albert), and ex-Trustee Justin Heran from Simcoe County.

Johnny Oduya, playing for the World Team.
The World team was a collection of American, Czech, English, Finnish, German, and Swedish players. It was also boosted by the addition of Chicago Black Hawk defenseman, Johnny Oduya, who soon after the game flew back to North America to participate in the abbreviated NHL season.
Team Canada was in tough for this game because the World squad featured the Flying Farangs top line of Swede Henrik Olofsson, Czech Jurg Dudler, Thai national Tewin “Thor” Chartsuwan plus defensemen Oduya and Swiss national Remo Nyffenegger. This line had led the Farangs to their first ever Land of Smiles tournament victory back in October.
Philip Calvert, Canada’s new ambassador to Thailand, dropped the puck for the ceremonial face-off between Flying Farang co-captain and outgoing TCCC board member Todd Switzer and World Team captain Oduya. The TCCC was also represented by board members Derek van Pelt and John Casella and advisor and Flying Farang co-captain Geoff McIntyre.
Marc Spiegel, the President of the Thai-Finnish Chamber of Commerce, was the MC for the evening and handled the introductions in both Thai and English. Attending the game were Thai Senator Tassana Boontong, The President of Thailand-Canada Parliamentarian Friendship Group and MP Udomlak Pengnorapat, the vice-president of that organization.

 

Team Canada rally at their net.

The Canadian team jumped out to an early lead in the game and hung on with some stellar goaltending from Lance Parker, who had done yeoman’s work to help promote the game. Canadian MP Patrick Brown dominated play when he was on the ice.
The World Team fought back to within one goal through the determined effort of Oduya, and the strong goaltending of Czech Ambassador Victor Grepl but in the end the Canadian bench proved too strong for the World Team and Thai goalie Pattarapol “Dream” Ungkulpattanasuk, playing for Team Canada, made a number of sensational saves in the third stanza to seal the win for the Canadian team for the second year running.
Organizer Scott Murray said aftewards, “We had an active NHL player, the Canadian ambassador to drop the puck, three serving Canadian MPs playing, and a Thai senator and MP in attendance, what more could you want? Referees Sakchai Chinanuvatana and Mike Lashbrook also did a great job of maintaining order in the game when it looked like things might get out of hand.”
The game raised Bt58,474 for the Thai Red Cross. This was the third charity game to help the Red Cross, the first was in January 2005 to benefit tsunami victims, and the second was last year to benefit Bangkok flood victims.
 

Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League

Calm seas and fish galore

Nick The Pizza - P.C.D.O. Friday 601 Darts League

John Keppler Cider Pool League

Crumpton Oaks Cider Monday Pool League

WKD Tuesday Darts League

Crumpton Oaks Dry Cider Wednesday Darts League

Big fields - long days

Repeat winner has all the answers

Ger Linehan the President’s man

JJ shoots the lights out at Pleasant Valley

Pattaya 9-Ball Pool League

Shelton shows them how

High-season havoc at the Valley

Buchanan blitz at Khao Kheow

A windy day at Emerald

Norman conquers Lakeside

Jomtien 8-Ball Pool League

Morel makes it look easy

Aabling leads the way at Navy

Mah holds it together

Perfect Pearce triumphs at Pleasant Valley

Joel the best of the week

Pattaya City triumph against league leaders

Return of the ‘usual suspects’

Canada beat the World 6-4 in charity game