PATTAYA, Thailand – Saturday 11 Nov saw a repeat of last year’s highly successful fund-raising day at the Golf Kwan 9-hole course in Plutaluang, Sattahip District. The event had been organised by Trevor Moolman and Reds Liddell, with on-course assistance from Clive Rogerson, and Nathan, a professional golfer and other support in the form of raffle prizes provided by the players, sponsors and donors. The top prize was a weekend stay at the Serenity Bay Resort, KC
The weather was sunny, bright skies, and a modicum of breeze. There had been some rain, but the greens were playing faster than last year and the Asian Water Monitor was on a day off. The small increase in players to 40 were organized into 4-ball matches with two rounds on the 9-hole course with nearest the pin competitions at the 5th and 9th holes with a Challenge the Pro Competition on the 7th. Refreshments were available on the course as it was important to avoid dehydration and heat stroke.
The event started 1030 with a putt-off on the 9th hole which was won by Paul Wright from the OGG team (Our Golf Gang) and he was presented with a bottle of Thai gigglywater for his efforts. Thereafter, the players shot-gunned to their starting tees and began to tackle the notoriously difficult course, aided by several beers and shots at the 5th and 7th holes. Most of the pins are 80 to 200 yards in length, but it was narrow with plenty of trees and bunkers, so players had to be on their metal. All of those that defeated the Pro on the 7th had a playoff on the 9th which was won by Jainish Parikh of the Lucy ‘Lectric team.
After the two rounds there was lunch in the form of an excellent Vietnamese style beef stew with bread rolls at the clubhouse, a prize giving, a raffle and a vote of thanks for the assistance provided by Kwan Golf and the organisers. The prize that was awarded first was the Bradman Award for the worst score, a score of 0, which went to a team who predicted their own score, The Evens, consisting of Edwin Van Rensburg, Janik, Bim and Lawrence. Last year’s winners, The Walking Dead, namely Simon Philbrook, Gavin Perfect, John and Bob were still in good form and victorious for the third time, but not on their own for it was a tie on 10 under with The Lost Cause consisting of Carl, Woody, Clive and Geoff. Nearest the pin award on the 5th went to Daryll Lovegrove of The 3 Poms and a Kiwi team.
It was a great day of golf and the generosity of the attendees provided much needed financial assistance to the Pattaya CC. The work done by the organisers, the helpers and the staff at Kwan was very much appreciated. Rest assured, everyone is looking forward to the next event.
