PATTAYA, Thailand – Monday, March 24 was a beautiful day in paradise for the Bunker Boys’ first game of the week at Bangpra Golf Course. Despite the warmth, a cool breeze kept conditions pleasant. The course was in top shape, being prepped for an upcoming competition. As always, the local monkey population made their presence known, along with a few dogs that seemed more harmonious than on previous visits.
Scores were solid, with Steve Downes leading the pack on thirty-seven points. Despite his frequent wins, Steve remains camera-shy, channeling his inner Dr. Richard Kimble—who is he hiding from? Dave Galvin was just one stroke back and could have taken the top spot with better putting. Alan Sullivan edged out Jimmy Carr on countback, helped by two four-point birdies on the back nine. As usual, many of the near pins went to those in the winner’s circle, with the exception of Chris Delamare, who made his return to the Bunker after a five-year absence.
1st – Steve Downes (6) – 37 points
2nd – Dave Galvin (24) – 36 points
3rd – Alan Sullivan (16) – 33 points
4th – Jimmy Carr (22) – 33 points
Near Pins: Steve Downes, Dave Galvin, Chris Delamare, Alan Sullivan
Wednesday, March 27 saw another strong turnout for the midweek game at Plutaluang Golf Course, where the N&W nines were in fair condition. The ever-present wind played a role again, making conditions tricky at times.
A slight delay at the start didn’t impact play, as the round moved smoothly with no hold-ups. Travis Kim topped the leaderboard with thirty-nine points, an excellent score on this course. John Sykes found himself in the winner’s circle for the first time with thirty-seven points. Dave Galvin, ever the quiet achiever, posted thirty-five points for third place—perhaps making a run for Golfer of the Month before his departure next month? Playing off a one handicap, Chris Delamare had an impressive round to take fourth, while Uwe Jurgensen outpointed Steve Downes on countback for the final spot in the winner’s group.
Regular seasonal visitors Neil Griffin and Dave Ashman played their final games of this tour and generously rang the bell at the bar. With most of the seasonal crowd now departed, we look forward to their return next high season.
1st – Travis Kim (16) – 39 points
2nd – John Sykes (15) – 37 points
3rd – Dave Galvin (24) – 35 points
4th – Chris Delamare (1) – 34 points
5th – Uwe Jurgensen (29) – 33 points
Near Pins: Dave Galvin, Uli Muller, Travis Kim, Hubert Stiefenhofer
Following the last rainout at Khao Kheow, the Friday, March 28 game was played with a rain check, reducing the all-in fee to 1,250 baht. We teed off ahead of schedule and learned that from next month, high-season pricing will be in effect—1,750 baht on Mondays and Thursdays, and 1,950 baht on other days. Whether this strategy will attract players remains to be seen.
Today’s game was the second medal round of the month, a format not favored by all. One player could have easily taken the top spot had it not been for an eleven on one hole—such is golf.
Despite some tricky greens, good scores were posted. Beware the injured golfer—Rob Folland returned from a curious injury to take first place with a net seventy-one. Alan Sullivan was just one stroke behind, while Uli Muller claimed third, beating Bil Richardson on countback. Steve Downes was among the near pin winners, joined by Uli Muller and Michael Brett, who claimed two.
1st – Rob Folland (14) – Net 71
2nd – Alan Sullivan (16) – Net 72
3rd – Uli Muller (13) – Net 73
4th – Bil Richardson (16) – Net 73
Near Pins: Steve Downes, Uli Muller, Michael Brett (x2)
