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Sikh community stages
badminton contest fund-raiser
The winners of the Thai-Sikh community badminton
tournament pose with their trophies.
Narisa Nitikarn
Over 70 players took part in the first badminton competition to be
organized by the Thai-Sikh Community in Pattaya, staged at the Pattaya
Sports Complex on Phothisarn Soi 5 on February 25.
The event, jointly opened by Amrik Singh Kalra, head of the community, and
his deputy Sardool Singh was organized in cooperation with Sri Guru Singh
Sabha.
The contest was divided into four categories, namely men’s doubles division
A, men’s doubles division B, women’s doubles, and youth under 14 years of
age. Prizes were distributed to the winners at a ceremony in the Sikh Temple
in South Pattaya on March 4.
Amrik said part of the funds raised would be donated to the Elderly Home on
April 13, Family Day. He added that the Thai-Sikh Community had earlier held
unofficial table tennis and soccer competitions, but this was the first time
a sporting event was held for tangible results. Amrik said the intention now
was to stage other sporting activities on a regular basis.
The men’s doubles division A winners were Rajan Gulati and Chan Je Gulati,
and they received a trophy from Sardool S Sethi and Dalbir Singh, of Indo
BKK. The men’s doubles division B winners were Somsak Narang and Karan
Singh. The women’s doubles winners were Mrs Prabsharan and Mrs Gunjeet, who
received a trophy from Rattan Singh and Makhand Singh. The winner in the
youth category was Sam, who received a trophy from Boby.
Fun, colour and excitement at 5th Pattaya Relationship Games
The green team cheering
section warms up prior to the women’s 4 x 200m final.
Narisa Nitikarn
The Eastern International Sports Training Center held its 5th Pattaya
Relationship Games, Wednesday, February 14. The games were watched by city
administrators and members of Pattaya City Council together with many
boisterous supporters of the all the competing teams.
The teams were divided into 4 colours - namely red, blue, green and orange
and many sports were competed in, such as the 4 x 200 meter relay (men’s and
women’s), a nine-legged race and tug-of-war. A cheerleader contest was also
held and all were encouraged to wear yellow in honour of His Majesty King
Bhumipol Adulyadej’s 80th birthday.
The atmosphere at the event was very lively, especially when the women’s 4 x
200 meter relay race took place which witnessed a close battle between the
red and purple teams before the reds eventually came home the winners.
The women’s nine-legged eight runner race was as much fun before the start
as it was when the race finally got under way. The orange team had a trick
up their collective sleeve and used a half-run technique, which helped them
move faster than any of their rivals and took them to the finish line first,
all the teams meanwhile being egged on by their screaming hordes of
cheerleaders.
All the cheerleaders were beautifully decked out in team colours and each
had their own different dancing styles.
The whole event was followed by a big party later in the evening and great
fun was had by all.
The orange ladies seemed to
have mastered the art of eight-legged running.
Motorcycle enthusiasts flock to Pattaya 8-Hour Enduro
Thailand Motorsport Corporation under the leadership of Urs Schoenenberger
and Khun Nong organized the first 8-Hour Enduro race at the Bira
International Circuit in Pattaya last month, February 10-11. The event
attracted both Thai and foreign motorcycle riders to Pattaya.
 (Left)
Some spectacular action from the Pattaya 8-Hour Enduro.
In the Open 450cc category there were 6 teams competing, namely Bike Lane,
Royal Purple Thailand, Honda Worktech Obs, Vinilla Gorila, Pattaya Dirt
Riders and Som Racing Team. In the Lightweight 250cc group two teams
competed for the trophy, Som Racing Team and Honda Worktech, whilst in the
Supercup 125cc category, Som Racing Team and George Pattaya Team battled for
the glory.
Under a very hot sun that had the temperatures going through the roof, the
competitors were lined up for a Le-Mans style start and when the flag went
down all the riders got off to a very good start, and apart from one team
experiencing some mechanical problems, all the riders got to the finish line
safely,
Royal Purple Thailand left their rivals trailing in a typhoon of dust and
mud as they rode to victory in the Open category, the team of Mark Rossi,
Dan Ralph and James Robinson completing a total of 60 laps in the time
permitted.
 Team
Honda Worktech walked away with victory in the 250cc Lightweight class.
The Lightweight 250cc class winners were Prakasit Suksripisan, Prunkrong
Pinpon and Suwathee Trakulchai of the Honda Worktech team who crossed the
finish line with 56 laps under their belt. Meanwhile, Som Racing Team were
putting their rivals to the sword in the Supercup 125cc category, the
line-up of Sanchai Leardium, Yotin Boonteng, Avnornrat Tengthongnum and
Niyon Nulek completing 42 laps in the 8-hours of racing.
 The
racetrack at Bira Circuit provided a tough but enjoyable challenge to all
the riders.
The 8H of Pattaya Enduro Race was open to all Enduro amateurs or
semi-professionals, with no restrictions other than that all the riders had
to show a sufficient level of experience to ensure both their own and other
participants safety on the track. More than a simple race, the event was an
occasion for all Enduro and motor cross enthusiasts to meet and challenge
one another in a competitive and friendly atmosphere.
Due to the success of this event, another 8-Hour Enduro race will be held at
the Bira Circuit between August 18-19. For more information, check out the
official website at www. enduroracingthai.com.
KT Law Office wins
charity-bowling event
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
February 25, at P.S. Bowl, Tops Supermarket, The Plutaluang Rotary Club
International Rotary District 3340 held a charity bowling competition to
help raise funds for the Water Management Project, which aims to upgrade the
standards of drinking water in some outlying schools.
 Mrs.
Sumon Jaikid (right) from the Plutaluang Rotary Club presented the winning
prize to the KT Law Office Bowling Team.
The first school to benefit from the project was Bankaobaisri School in the
Plutaluang Sub-district, which now has a new water filtration system
courtesy of the event.
Altogether some 30-40 baht was raised from the bowling tournament and
further schools can expect to receive assistance in the near future,
starting with Juksamed School in the Sattahip sub-district.
In the competition itself, the winning team was the KT Law Office bowling
team, which consisted of Mr. Arjin Sastura, Mr. Soonthorn Kanpumma, and Mr.
Wisuth Wangweng. They were able to overcome some stiff opposition to claim
the honorary trophy donated by Gen. Surayud Chulanont (Prime Minister).
Second place went to the Rayong Rotary Club Team with the Jomtien-Pattaya
Rotary Club Team in third.
Eyre and Littlejohn win Koh Larn Classic
The weekend conditions were
ideal for racing in the waters off Pattaya Bay.
Story by Peter Cummins, Photos courtesy
Joseph Hoppen
It was an intensive period of local yacht racing recently as the Royal
Varuna Yacht Club embarked on the annual Koh Larn Classic and the
Three-Island Race, also focusing on Koh Larn.
The former, according to Race Managers Dave Wales and Gilbert Leemann, was
somewhat diminished this year and for the first time was not a sail-run,
simply because there were no runners. Normally, the Bangkok Hash House
Harriers can be relied on for a full turn-out, but with the Pattaya fathers’
disease of constantly tearing up the roads and pavements now spreading to
the island, there was nowhere for the brave runners to land.
So, it became, rather, a picnic event, but still supported by the Pattaya
Marriott Royal Garden Resort, with some assistance from the Dynasty and
overall sponsorship from the Pattaya Mail newspaper.
Beautiful conditions prevailed on February 24 for the Koh Larn Classic, with
a moderate south-westerly which suited the strong team of Richard Eyre and
Dave Littlejohn who brought their Hobie Cat F.18 Tiger in first, more than
six minutes ahead of solo sailor, Alberto Cassio (Nacra 16 Sq.). Thereafter,
Sebastian Lehmann’s Hobie Cat 16 led the rest home.
In the Laser Division, Gareth Owens racked up his first victory about one
and a half minutes ahead of Chris Dando, with Dominik Lehmann well behind on
the smaller-rigged Laser 4.7 in third.
But all is not lost, said race manager Gilbert after this year’s reduced
event. The Pattaya Marriott, which has enjoyed sponsoring the event for more
than 15 years, will continue to do so, and Gilbert vowed to look for runners
domiciled along the Eastern Seaboard, to bring back the original concept of
a “sail-run”.
The Royal Varuna Three-Island Race which was formerly one of the longest and
most-gruelling events on the Varuna racing calendar, supported for more than
three decades by the Bangkok Post, sailed off the next day in similar
conditions but the victors of the previous day, Richard Eyre and Dave
Littlejohn had to concede to Jean Philippe/Virginie, Aroon/Narongrid and
David Jezeph/Alberto Cassio, all racing the new Hobie Cat flying machine,
the Hobie Tiger.
Now, Royal Varuna is preparing for the 13th Pattaya Mail PC Classic Royal
Cliff Beach Resort International Regatta, to be sailed on Saturday 24 March,
with some generous sponsorship guaranteeing a successful event and a
substantial contribution to charities and the needy of our communities.
In the first week of April, Royal Varuna will host the year’s first world
championship: the Byte Worlds, with many of the participants and their small
single-handed craft, coming in from Singapore and elsewhere.
The Three-Island race
witnessed a close battle between all the Hobie Cat contenders.
With no runners at this year’s
Koh Larn Classic, the craft were left on the beach whilst the skippers and
crew went for lunch.
The ‘Club Maker’ fashions a win
IPGC golf from The Haven
Monday, March 5, The Emerald, Stableford
1st Ian Dale 38pts
2nd Konrad Klama 34pts c/b
3rd Alan Griffiths 34pts
4th Chris Seaborn 33pts
Ian Dale took his first win out of the Haven by a clear four shots after
not previously troubling the scorers since arriving in the ‘Land of
Smiles’. It was both a joy and a relief to Ian to be again knocking it
round in 76 after doubt had begun to set in and the clubs continued to
confound the maker; that person being Ian himself who produces all his
own clubs in his workshop above a garret in Scotland.
Konrad Klama just pipped Alan Griffiths on count back as the latter
continues to improve without the benefit of Russell’s advice. Chris
Seaborn was a very surprised podium winner with a score that he did not
realize would have any hope at all.
In keeping with the difficulty of the greens, there were no 2’s in
either division.
Before presenting the prizes Richard Livingston, the resident PGA
teaching professional, welcomed back Peter Ingham, Mike Ensor and David
Kim.
Wednesday, March 7, Eastern Star, Stableford
Division One
1st Chris Seaborn 38pts
2nd Bob Heath 36pts c/b
3rd Chris Davisson 36pts
4th Arthur Hancock 35pts
Division Two
1st Peter Aitcheson 38pts
2nd Alan Griffiths 37pts
3rd Trevor Schirmer 35pts
4th Max Arlen 34pts
A real quality field, with 25% of them single handicappers and the split
coming at under 14, meant several of the usual first division players
found themselves competing at the blunt end for a change.
Chris Seaborn followed up his third place in the previous outing with an
improvement of 4 shots and moved up to the top of the podium to deny
Captain Bob Heath a long awaited win. Bob was leader in the clubhouse
for about an hour and a half until the drawbridge was about to be raised
and the disappointment was hard to disguise when the results were
finally declared. But it was a good effort and he easily took second on
count back from Chris Davisson, with Arthur Hancock another shot further
back in fourth place.
Peter Aitcheson also returned to form to deny Alan Griffiths, who lost
out for the second time in the week. Trevor Schirmer, playing in
unfamiliar surroundings took third, a shot clear of Max Arlen.
With such a good standard of the field in the first division, it was
lucky that there was a rollover as there were ten 2’s in the division,
which meant that everyone got something almost worthwhile. The lucky
recipients were Chris Seaborn, Ian Dale, Roy Thornton, Phil Groves, Tony
Barritt, Michael Dige, Barry Winton, Chris Davisson and Mikael Andersson
with two. Conversely there was only one ‘2’ in the second division,
which also had a rollover added. So Konrad Klama did almost as well as
the winners of the divisions on the day.
Friday, March 9, Phoenix, Stableford
Division One
1st Tony Barritt 36pts c/b
2nd Rick Holmes 36pts
3rd Gary Parks 34pts
Division Two
1st Danny Poole 36
2nd Terry Wagner 34
3rd Serge Straeten 32
Once again a good turnout required the formation of two divisions at the
always-popular Phoenix layout.
Tony Barritt continued with his headlong flight down the handicap lists
as his putting goes from strength to strength with the now famous
crossed fingers grip. At this rate it will not be too far in the future
when he will be returning to the ranks of the cat one players, where he
resided some 20 years ago before having an extended rest.
Rick Holmes could be excused for thinking that he may well have had the
game in the bag with 36 points over the now not so easy Mountain and
Lakes courses. But it was not to be, as he could get nowhere near the
phenomenal 22pts that Tony threw at him on the back nine. Gary Parks
filled out the last spot in the top flight with a solid 2-over par
round.
The second division was a more straightforward affair with Danny Poole
making another of his raids from Bangkok under the watchful eye of Barry
the Baer, his ex tutor and now wagering benefactor.
Terry Wagner surprised himself as much as everyone else by claiming a
very unusual placing ahead of Serge Straeten in third.
There were no 2’s in the second division, but Gary Parks, Rick Holmes
Trevor Schirmer and once again Tony Barritt each slid one home in the
first division.
With a large turnout, it was surprising that there were no welcomes or
welcome backs for the Doc, who was once again standing in for the ailing
Richard, to announce.
Karen tames the ‘Beast’
PSC golf from The Café Kronborg
Monday, March 5, Plutaluang,
Stableford
Plutaluang South and East courses were host to a stableford competition
in two flights with the cut at handicap 17. The course on the day was in
fine condition with fast greens and we had a quick round of 4 hours on a
‘Holiday’.
 Karen
Brown shot a remarkable round at Khao Kheow, scoring 46 Stableford points.
Suwan Sormlianthong took the A Flight with 41 points ahead of Maurice
Herberge in second with 38 points and Johan Reynissen third on a count back
from Richard Kubicki, both with 35 points.
Dave Richardson took the B Flight with 39 points whilst Carole Kubicki came
second on count back ahead of Laurina Brinn in third, both with 35 points.
Near Pin: Finn Olsen Maurice Herberge, Larry Simpson, Suwan
Long Put: Jan Lovgren, Johan Reynisson
Thursday, March 8, Khao Kheow, Stableford
This is a really tough course, probably in the top three toughest
around the area. I have seen dozens of competitions here, and if a player
shoots to their handicap they usually win. When the wind blows it can
destroy a player’s game. In all my time playing here I have only seen half a
dozen golfers top 40 points, and then not by much.
On this day the test was the C & A Nines, and the wind was practically
non-existent, only gently cooling the players and keeping the heat down. We
started on the ‘easier’ C Nine and by the time the players came to the tough
A Nine they were in the swing. Maybe this could be a day for good scores.
Well as the scores came in it was notable that they were far better than I
had expected. Indeed the best I can ever remember, as said I have seen
points scores in the twenties in the first three places.
In the A Flight (0-14) we had some amazing scores. The winner with 43 points
was Richard Kubicki, second was David Gardner with 42 points with Bill Plath
in third with 38 points. Excellent
In the B Flight (15-up) with a ‘Truly Amazing’, never before seen here by
us, the winner was Karen Brown with 46 points. Most players are expecting
that many points in two rounds. In second with 38 points and still a good
round was John Christie and in third with a normal winning score here was
Graham Mitchell with 34 points.
T.T.F.N.
Near Pin: Laurina Brinn, Rob Brown, Sirkka Puikonnen, Elias
Magnusson
Long Put: John Christie, Marty Allred
Jack feeling jolly after
back to back wins
PSC golf from The Bunker
Monday, March 5, Royal Lakeside, Stableford
Monday and The Bunker Boy’s travelled to Royal Lakeside for the first
Stableford comp of the week. Charlie Gooch continued his good form
winning with 40 points ahead of a trio of players in second place;
William Macey, Mick Ramshaw and John Hughes all with 37 points.
 Jack
Robertson was a double winner this week with victories at Khao Kheow and
Phoenix.
Near pin prizes were won by John Hughes, Adam Beer, Mick Ramshaw and
Charlie Gooch.
Wednesday, March 7, Khao Kheow, Medal
The splendid Khao Kheow course hosted the first Medal comp of
the week where we saw William Macey have the best score of the day to
win the A Flight with a three-under par net 69, ahead of John McDonald
and Bob St Aubin who shared second place with level par net 72’s.
Jack Robertson and Mark Berger shared the winnings in B Flight with
two-under par net 70’s and third place went to Geoff Parker with a net
74.
Near pins were won by Mashi Kaneta, Julian Beer, Jack Robertson and
Charlie Gooch.
Friday, March 9, Phoenix, Stableford
The second Stableford comp of the week, this time at Phoenix,
saw John Graham win the A Flight with 36 points, John Hughes runner-up
one point behind with 35 points, and Mashi Kaneta and Kefin Jones joint
third with 31 points each.
In the B Flight Jack Robertson won with 40 points ahead of Mick Ramshaw
37 points, with Bryan Rought and Dave Keats sharing third place with 32
points apiece.
Near pin prizes were claimed by Kefin Jones, Mick Ramshaw John Hughes
and Bryan Rought.
The Beautiful Game?:
Riz Taylor
Big three kept apart
Nice to see the remaining British sides kept apart in the Champions League
draw last Friday, and there’s a chance that all three will be left in the
competition by the time we reach the semi-finals.
I say British, but Celtic’s valiant efforts against AC Milan - only losing
1-0 on aggregate - mean that it’s three English sides that remain in the
last eight.
It’s about this time of the year that the media starts analysing the teams
left in the competition before unsurprisingly deciding that the nation with
the most teams left in the competition has the strongest league in the
world.
Hardly surprising really, but does it indeed mean that the Premiership the
premier of premier divisions? There’s no doubting that Chelsea, Liverpool
and Manchester United are fine sides, but let’s also not forget that they’re
also the sides with the biggest income, and frankly it should be no surprise
to see a large English representation in the Champions League last eight.
Rather than a surprise this should be expected, and so let’s wait until this
scenario occurs for a few seasons running before we start touting the Prem
as the world’s best league.
I’d always suspected that the draws for the latter rounds were fixed, but
amazingly all three avoided each other in the quarter-final draw, setting up
the prospect of English sides making up three of the final four.
I’m all for trumpeting the Premiership and you can’t deny that should
Chelsea, Liverpool and United manage to overcome Valencia, PSV and Roma
respectively it will indeed say something for the league. But is it what we
really want? After all, look at the 2003 competition in which three Italian
sides reached the semis. What we were presented with was one of the most
boring climaxes to the competition in recent years.
Yes, Italian football is usually boring if there’s just one Italian side in
the game, let alone two, but the point is that putting teams up against
rivals from their own countries over two legs is rarely a recipe for an
exciting match. Everyone seems to be salivating over the prospect of a
re-run of 2004’s Liverpool against Chelsea semi-final, but personally I
struggle to think of a more boring fixture. Neither of these sides is
particularly pleasing on the eye, and over such an important fixture it’s
unlikely we’ll see anything approaching a classic.
Back in the FA Cup, the big boys were once again kept apart in the draw for
the semi-finals. Manchester United or Middlesbrough will play Watford,
whilst Chelsea or Spurs will face Blackburn. The Hornets were particularly
fortunate to overcome Plymouth Argyle at the weekend, and with virtually
nothing left to fight for in the league it makes sense to make an effort in
the cup. They’re my surprise tip for glory in the new Wembley in May.
Talking of concentrating on one competition, can anyone explain to me what
Tottenham boss Martin Jol was thinking when he took off Aaron Lennon and
Dimitar Berbatov against Chelsea on Sunday? It could all have been so
different for Spurs if they’d pressed home their 3-1 lead, but instead it
was more torture for their fans as they once again unsuccessfully tried to
hang onto a two-goal lead, having done the same thing against Arsenal in the
League Cup semis.
It’s all very well reaching semi-finals, but what Spurs fans are after is
some silverware and resting your two most dangerous players simply doesn’t
make any sense. What was Jol saving them for, exactly? This weekend’s
all-important match against Watford in the Premiership? Big deal. Instead
the side must replay Chelsea two days later on Monday, and fans will worry
that their big chance has passed them by. So much for resting players.
Hawk-Eye comes to football
The Premier League has agreed to the introduction of goal-line
sensors, after approval was given by the International Football Association
Board. The system, which is being developed by the UK company Hawk-Eye,
would finally offer a definite decision over whether a ball has crossed the
goal-line.
“Hawk-Eye has a great reputation within tennis and cricket especially, and I
would hope we could start trialling it within weeks at [a training]
academy,” said referees’ chief Keith Hackett.
However, Paul Hawkins, head of Hawk-Eye, told The Observer that the system
is unlikely to be used for another two years. “Getting a system to work is
easy, getting it to always work is much more difficult. We have to make sure
this works every time or it will lose credibility,” he said.
Beef up,
Chinese are told
According to a member of the advisory body to Chinese parliament
- I keep up on these things even if you’re too lazy - Chinese footballers
need to eat beef and drink milk if they’re to compete on the field with
their Western counterparts.
Last month’s punch-up between the Chinese under-21 team and Queens Park
Rangers showed that the Chinese players aren’t tough enough, says Zhang
Xinshi, a biology researcher from the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
“You can’t just say you aren’t used to eating beef and drinking milk and
leave it at that,” Zhang said during a discussion of Chinese agriculture at
this week’s meeting of the advisory body CPPCC.
“Our football can’t reach a higher level. We are only good at skilful
sports. Running for two 45 minute halves on such a large pitch at speeds
like 100m, how can (our) bodies do that?
“We all saw the recent fight in England and they (the players) were beaten
to a pulp. Sounds tragic, but if you are as strong as a buffalo how can they
beat you up? Therefore I don’t think we should advocate the Chinese
grain-eating tradition.”
Bob wins by a distance at Phoenix
I.P.G.C. Jomtien golf
Monday, March 5, Eastern Star,
Stableford
Another hot and sticky day with hardly any breeze at all greeted another
full house at this ever-popular course.
There were some close scores today in Division Two with three people tying
on 36 points for second place. After the count back calculations Beth Lill
was placed in third and Ken Foster second, but ahead of them all with 37
points was today’s winner, Ken Leadstone.
In Division One, Mikael Andersson’s 36 points topped the table with Fred
Duffy and Andy Mills both scoring 33, but with Fred having the better of the
count back, he took second place.
There was a rollover in the 2’s today for the lower division and yet again
nobody got near so an interesting competition mounting at our next game.
Andy Mills’ birdie on the 13th was good enough to secure the prize in
Division One.
There were only two nearest the pin awards collected today: Fred Duffy in
Division One and Martin Anderton in Division Two.
Wednesday,
March 7, Phoenix, Monthly Medal
It is that time of the month again that a few people dread, the
Monthly Medal.
Some steady scoring in Division Two today with Risto Manerus posting a net75
to take third place. On exactly the same score but with a better back nine
was Miss Amphan Dasa who came second, and with a score of 74 Glyn Evans came
first.
In Division One, three people scored 77 to fight for the second and third
places, but the count back favoured Bob Martin who finished third and John
Clift who was second. With a net 71, and six shots ahead of the field, was
Bob Newell who took the top honours.
Raivo made up for his count back disappointment to win a nearest the pin
award, as did Bob Lathwell and Ted Morris.
There were no 2’s in Division One but an amazing chip shot on the Lakes 2nd
hole earned Miss Amphan a birdie ‘2’ and also the triple purse.
A fond farewell was said to one of the nicest guys around, Fred Duffy
,before his departure back to the UK for six months.
Friday, March 9, Eastern Star, Stableford
Our second visit of the week to our normal Friday course. Bob
Martins 32 points earned him third place, one shot better was Arthur
Hancock, and top today in Division One with 34 points was Ravio Velsberg.
A close contest also ensued in the lower division with Joyce Jones beating
Beth Lill on a count back of 18/17 after both of them came in with 37
points. One point less with 36 points was Ken Leadstone who took third
place.
Jomtien golf meets every Monday and Wednesday at around 9am at Paweenas in
Soi 5 Jomtien Beach Road for a 10.30 tee off time. On Fridays for our
Eastern Star tee time of 9.30am, we leave around 8.30am. Please sign up in
the bar or ring Glyn on 086 837 5464.
The best laid plans
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Tuesday, March 6, Crystal Bay,
Stableford
At this time of the year it is difficult to book this course, so I got the
girls of PSC to reserve a spot for us as long ago as January - it is one of
my favourite courses and there was no way I was going to miss it.
 Tuesday
winners: Steve Hamstad (left) and John Vincent (right).
The best laid plans of mice and men; I got a call from my daughter saying
she was landing at the same time, and knowing my place I said I would pick
her up. I have medals for bravery, but I am not that brave.
So early in the morning at Bert’s a ‘volunteer’ was selected, Dick Warberg
and an assistant, Kevin Dunne, and off I went to relax. Meanwhile the
‘volunteers’, got to the course and found they were playing the A & B Nines,
and could start straight away. Being a man of action Dick got the groups
away, leaving the first group who arrived on the ‘real’ start time to bring
up the rear.
Nobody worried because this is a great course and is still in fine condition
at this time of year. With relatively wide, well-grassed fairways and fast
tricky greens, it is a dream to walk.
Round over and back at Bert’s, Dick declared the winners. In the A Flight,
(0-14) Steve Hamstad took first place on 38 points with the benefit of a
count back over Dave Askew in second. One point behind in third was Kevin
Dunne.
In the B Flight the winner was John Vincent with 34 points, ahead of Bill
Knight with 33 points in second and Henry Cignac in third with 32 points.
T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Joel Flor, Takeshi Hakozaki, Peter Dessaix, Stan
Everingham
Long Put: Bill Knight, Gareth Weeks.
Bert and Pat both see double
PSC golf from the Bowling Green
Barry Hooper
Tuesday, March 6,
Bang Pakong, Stableford
A Flight
1st Bert Mjornerup (19) 39pts
2nd Frank Kelly (17) 39pts
3rd Ken Robins (6) 35pts
B Flight
1st William Chang (36) 41pts
2nd Nigel Cannon (26) 39pts
3rd Petter Anderson (23) 37pts
Near Pins: Tony Holehouse, Fergus Brennan (2), Tony Jones
2’s: William Chang
Two flights again today. Good conditions, good club service all making for
enjoyable golf with winners and losers but as always with everybody trying
there best. Bert Mjornerup won for the second consecutive Tuesday in the A
Flight. Play was off the white tees
Thursday, March 8,
Greenwood, Medal
Flight A
1st Pat Regan (10) net 68
2nd Bert Mjornerup (19) net 71
3rd Frank Kelly (17) net 72
Flight B
1st Paul Barker (25) net 66
2nd Bob Short (23) net 67
3rd Patrick Browne (26) net 69
Near Pins: Dave Askew (2), Mam Morel, Paul Barker
2’s: Harold Gruber, Tony Jones
Excellent club service as always and a good day’s play enjoyed by all
concerned. Played off the white tees. Pat Regan on top form for the second
week in a row. Mention of the day comes to me that John Morel suffered a
5-putt from just 4 feet but he also managed to compensate with a near pin
award.
Saturday, March 10,
Eastern Star, Stableford
Flight A
1st Gary Blackburne (7) 39pts
2nd Fergus Brennan (12) 36pts
3rd Frank Kelly (17) 34pts
Flight B
1st Mikael Larsson (24) 35pts
2nd Jack Robertson (25) 33pts
3rd Les Burns (34) 33pts
Near Pins: Bob St.Aubin, Gary Blackburne, Derek Eastham (2)
2’s: Gary Blackburne
Play back at Eastern Star for Saturdays. Two flights off the white tees with
good golf in tough but fair conditions. Gary Blackburne has a great day and
treated all back at the clubhouse by ringing the bell. Fergus made it one
better than last week for second place.
If any one is interested in golfing with the Bowling Green we play every
Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. We meet at Bowling Green at 7:45am for
breakfast and transportation, and new players are always made to feel
welcome. Call Tewin on 086 056 7019 or Bowling Green 038-720742 or send an
email to [email protected].
Five-shot win at Treasure Hill
PSC golf from The Oohsa Bar
Tuesday’s winners (left to right): Poin
(Waitress Oohsa Bar), Wayne Farrell, David Gardner, Su Murphy and Peter
Holegate.
Tuesday, March 6,
treasure Hill, Stableford
A Flight (0-21)
1st David Gardner (11) 39pts
2nd Wayne Farrell (18) 34pts
3rd Barry Quirk (13) 32pts
4th Jeff Wylie (7) 31pts
B Flight (22+)
1. Su Murphy (35) 36pts
2. Peter Holegate (35) 34pts c/b
3. Ed Horrocks (29) 34 pts
4. Ron Bullock (25) 33pts
Near Pins: Peter Mills, Jeff Wylie (2), Steve Johnstone
Long Putt: Steve Johnstone
In spite of the recent difficulties experienced by the PSC at Treasure Hill,
the Oohsa Bar fixture on Tuesday ran very smoothly. There was light traffic
on the course and virtually no hold-ups.
We had 24 entries for the competition plus a few newcomers putting cards in
for handicap. The secret to good scoring anywhere, but particularly at
Treasure Hill is keeping the ball in play. Wayward shots here can be very
costly.
The A Flight winner, David Gardner, had a steady round of 19 and 20 points
for each nine, winning by five points from Wayne Farrell. Most fairways were
hit from the tee and putting errors kept to a minimum.
B Flight winner Su Murphy showed the alternative method of winning. Her
score of 36 points, with 13 points on the front nine and 23 points on the
back nine, contained at least 5 no-score holes. Quite remarkable!
Jeff Wylie continued his accuracy on the short holes with two near pins
prizes. He was pleased to take another free beer from Malcolm for his ‘2’,
as did Barry Quirk and Peter Mills.
Thursday, March 8,
Plutaluang, Stableford
1st Roy Pimblett (21) 35pts c/b
2nd Keith Hodges (21) 35pts
3rd Mick Heatley (28) 34pts
4th Wayne Farrell (18) 33pts
Near Pins: Mick Heatley, Roy Pimblett, Wayne Farrell, Steve Johnstone
Long Putt: David Childs,
March 8 saw the first of Oohsa Bar’s regular Thursday outings to Plutaluang.
There was an excellent turnout of 20 players for this inaugural competition.
It was more than we had hoped for as some regulars were missing due to
previously arranged commitments. Hopefully we can build on this number as
the word gets around.
The competition was held over the difficult North and West nines, which are
possibly the toughest 18 holes in the region. One would have expected poor
scoring, but this was far from the case. 3 players returned scores of 34pts
or better, which on this course is around the handicap mark.
Roy Pimblett and Keith Hodges tied on 35 points, only for Roy to take first
place on count back. We look forward to developing this fixture in future
weeks, please join us if you can.
Cricket World Cup 2007
Opening round fixtures:
(All matches start at 8:30 p.m.
Thai time except those staged in Jamaica 9:30p.m.)
Tuesday, March 13: West Indies vs. Pakistan (Jam); Wednesday,
March 14: Australia vs. Scotland, Canada vs. Kenya; Thursday, March
15: Bermuda vs. Sri Lanka, Ireland vs. Zimbabwe (Jam); Friday, March
16: Netherlands vs. South Africa, England vs. New Zealand; Saturday,
March 17: Bangladesh vs. India, Ireland vs. Pakistan (Jam); Sunday,
March 18: Australia vs. Netherlands, Canada vs. England; Monday,
March 19: Bermuda vs. India, West Indies vs. Zimbabwe (Jam); Tuesday,
March 20: Scotland vs. South Africa, Kenya vs. New Zealand;
Wednesday, March 21: Bangladesh vs. Sri Lanka, Pakistan vs. Zimbabwe
(Jam); Thursday, March 22: Netherlands vs. Scotland, Canada vs. New
Zealand; Friday, March 23: India vs. Sri Lanka, Ireland vs. West
Indies (Jam); Saturday, March 24: Australia vs. South Africa, England
vs. Kenya; Sunday, March 25: Bangladesh vs. Bermuda.
House of the Golden Coin regains second with three weeks to go
Pattaya Sports Club Friday Bowling League
200 Bowlers – Barry, Ooy, Somrak, La, Mai &
Leen.
Montana took all four points from Café Ole and increased their first
place lead to four points with only three weeks left in this league.
House of the Golden Coin won 2.5 points and lost 1.5 to Jack & Tar and
it was enough to put them back into second place. VFW Post 9876 remains
in third place but they lost ground on first after only managing to win
one point from Shenanigans.
Café Kronborg also lost ground as they only won one point from Brother D
but remain in fifth. Three Sisters won all four points in their match
with Diamond Shop and sent Diamond Shop from second to fourth place.
Mai’s Thai Restaurant, led by Barry with games of 205, 202 and 206 (for
a 613 series), secured a three-point win over Domicil. Good bowling was
turned in by Leen - 226 game, 589 series, La - 222 game, 547 series, Ooy
- 204 game, 532 series, Bill Key - 535 series and Aht with a 527 series.
Mitch & Barr in
control at Phoenix
IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at the OK Corral
For the second successive week the Pattaya Golf
Society visited Phoenix Golf Club for a medal round on Tuesday, March 6:
this time for the first of the Society’s Order of Merit events for the
month.
 The
PGS ‘Player of the Month’ award for February was presented to Len Jones
(right), who managed to pip John Cunningham and Ray Underwood for the
honour after one very impressive week mid-month.
The Lakes and Ocean nines were the track, the day was hot and the greens
had some pace and the usual tricky pin positions were there to confound
the golfers. The large group was augmented by a few special friends,
returning for a spell, and was divided into two flights based at 20 and
under.
In the second flight, lady golfer Sari Tamminen took the podium for the
second successive week by recording net 75 to share runner-up position
with Jim Parkinson, not relishing his imminent return to UK, and Len
Jones, now at ease with his bag of woods and wedges, the irons having
been discarded in favour of clubs with which he seems more comfortable.
No such trepidations for the winner however as Canadian Keith Barr came
up trumps yet again, his net 70 being a fine effort on a day which had
started in a rush for him.
In a quality top flight Andy Mills used his best gross score of 78 to
post a net 71 and share third place with Vic Barton, now happily risen
from his sickbed and their scores were only one behind the best of the
flight, Phil Mitchell and visitor Terry Burgess’ net 70’s. It was the
best result for Phil this trip and he certainly put his daily golf
routine to good effect.
Kazuki Agune chipped in on Lakes 7 for his first birdie ‘2’ and in the
following group Tony Kitchen nailed a teaser to help the personable
Japanese newbie share the spoils.
Ace for “KK”
Green Valley hosted the Pattaya Golf Society on Thursday,
March 8, for its weekly stableford event. The club had scrapped the
day’s arrangements at a moment’s notice to reschedule the Society’s
longstanding booking to more than an hour earlier, without giving any
notice. This led to some unpleasant moments in a crowded clubhouse and
some fretful rearrangements by the organisers.
Eventually the group teed off at its originally booked time, but for
some the day was already doomed. The rest of the forty-strong party set
about their task with the two flights cut at 19 and under.
In Division Two, an extremely competitive flight saw Les Hall, Jim
Parkinson, Ray Underwood and Denis Smith share the minor honours with
their hard won scores of 30 points, but they were overshadowed by
Margaret Wilkinson whose 33 points marked a consolidation of her recent
form.
The top flight was witness to something very special as Terry Burgess,
Bill Hewitt, Phil Mitchell and Frank Pilkington put scores together of
33 points for a share of runner-up place. The course was buzzing with
rumours of an ‘ace’ on the second hole and when Kris Kritsnajootha
returned his card the truth was revealed. He had ‘aced’ the par-three
second hole with a six iron, the hole playing very long on the day at
160+ yards into a strong breeze, over water. It was the highlight of his
golfing life and the memory of it will last longer than the discounted
air-conditioner and the full medical check-up at a hospital in Rayong,
both being the sponsors’ rewards for the feat. It had also helped him to
the day’s best gross of 78 and a flight winning 39 points. His ‘ace’
further usurped the efforts of Harry Riley, Kazu Agune, Alan Maxwell and
Mike Ensor who had secured the magic ‘2’ during their rounds.
At a packed presentation later Kris did the honourable thing and ‘rang
the bell’ allowing all to share in his joy and the twos ‘winners’
inevitably savoured the Booby Bevy award by way of compensation. Having
started in an unpleasant way, the day was to end on a high note with a
touch of “Special K” bringing some enchantment back to the noble game.
No ‘Holiday’ fun
for Peacock golfers
PSC golf from The Peacock Place
Monday, March 5, Century Chonburi,
Stableford
When we discovered that Monday was Makha Bucha Day, which is a public
holiday and was likely to cost us the best part of 2,000 baht, we
quickly changed our venue to Century Chonburi. The clubhouse there is a
bit of a disaster but the course these days is in as good a condition as
Pattaya Country Club, which is where we were originally booked to play
 Monday’s
winners (from left to right): Mark Joshua, A flight winner, Alan Bishop, C
flight winner and Wayne Farrell, B flight winner.
We didn’t think it would be as busy as the last time we played there and to
be fair, our tee time off time of 10.30am was honored and in the fullness of
time our group of 26 made a start. By the time we got off the ninth green
however, more than 3 hours had elapsed.
The second half seemed even slower but that might have been because my game
had descended into the pits. The course was in pretty good condition but
most of the caddies left a little to be desired. Most had been drafted in
from local schools to fill the void.
The A flight (0-13) was won by Mark Joshua H/C 7 with 37 points, second was
Marty Allred H/C 1 with 35 points, and third was Dave Arrowsmith H/C 6 with
30 points.
The B flight (14-20) was won by Wayne Farrell H/C 18 with 38 points, second
was Peter Harris H/C 20 with 33 points and third was Doug Campbell H/C 14
with 30 points.
C flight was won by Alan Bishop H/C 21 with 39 points, second was Wendy Khan
H/C 31 with 33 points and third was Dave Mawford H/C 29 also with 33 points.
2’s were recorded by Mark Joshua and Doug Campbell, who missed a hole in one
by only an inch or two.
The good news was that the six hour round only cost us 600 baht but even so,
Captain Bob said “next holiday we’re definitely staying at home.” We’ll see.
Wednesday, March 7, Greenwood, Stableford
If I had to choose a course out of all the ones in this area that
I had to play and no other, it would be a difficult choice but I think it
would be the A and B nines at Noble Place or Greenwood as they now call it
and that’s where we played on Wednesday.
We arrived to find the course beautifully set out and almost empty. What
more could a golfer ask for at this time of year. Our group was nice and
compact with only 20 players and this made for little or no drama. We
started at 10.30am or just before and we were all finished in about four and
a bit hours.
The A flight (0-18) was won by Jack Moseley H/C 10 with 37 points, second
was Chris Barnes H/C 10 with 36 points, winning on count-back from Matt
Anderson H/C 14.
The B flight was won by Peter Harris H/C 21 with 42 points, second was Don
Ryan H/C 27 with 36 points and third was Alan Bishop H/C 20 with 34 points.
There were no 2’s recorded so next meeting there will be a roll over.
Come and join us if you would like a game of golf with a friendly society.
We meet on Mondays and Wednesdays and our schedule appears in The Pattaya
Mail. If you would like further information telephone Bob on 087 941 2474.
Trante by a whisker
at Greenwood
PSC golf from The Caddy Shack
Tuesday, March 6,
Greenwood, Medal
The Greenwood golf course was host to a Medal competition held over the
A & B Nines on a very pleasant and cool day, which helped the large
field to play some good golf.
The cut was made at H/C 15 and Division One saw Peter Le Noury fire a
net 70 to come a close runner-up to Damian Trante, who secured the top
podium spot with a fine net 69.
Division Two witnessed another close contest with Phil Smith and Roy
Mitchell tying for first place on net 71, but with ‘Mr. Loy’ shading it
on the count back.
There were four 2’s recorded today and the pot was shared between Scott
Chisholm, Peter Le Noury, Andy Li and Frank Dante.
Friday, March 9,
The Emerald, Stableford
The Emerald was the popular choice for a Stableford
competition and a large field can always be guaranteed for an outing
here.
The cut was made at H/C 14 and in Division Two; Scott Chisholm came
second with 35 points, just one behind the eventual flight winner Brian
Kelly. Phil Mitchell scored 36 points off his 5 H/C to take the Division
One spoils, with Damian Trante in second on 33 points.
There were no 2’s recorded as all the players struggled to get to grips
with the tricky greens at The Emerald.
The Square Ring:
by Howie Reed
“Your Lordship, with such a full column last week you
left out some very important news from the ‘World of Punches and Pugs’.
“The second time was the charm for WBA featherweight champion Chris ‘The
Smiling Dragon’ John. He extended his unbeaten record to 39 when he had
no trouble beating Venezuelan Jose Rojas at the Bung Kamo Indoor Tennis
Center in Jakarta. The judges scored it 118-108, 117-107, 116-110.
“After the fight a boxing expert said, ‘John landed more punches.’ But
of course - rather silly comment if you ask me. The first time the two
boxed, the bout ended in a no-decision when a clash of heads prevented
either fighter from continuing.
“What would ‘The Square Ring’ be without a Manny Pacquiao update? Your
Lordship, it would be fish without chips, the Ying without the Yang and
True Thai Love without the Baht. Manny has dropped out of the political
race in his native city to spend more time on his boxing career.
“As predicted on these pages by Your Lordship, Floyd Mayweather Sr.
announced that he will be in his son’s corner for the showdown against
Oscar De La Hoya in Las Vegas on ‘Cinco de Mayo’. Floyd Jr. announced,
‘He may be in the corner but not YOUR corner!’ It’s funny that the rest
of boxing hasn’t yet figured out why Oscar is the gold standard for
boxing. His answer? ‘I’m really glad I can bring the family together
like it’s supposed to be.’ Cream rises to the top every time. Garbage
sinks.
“It’s very difficult to take a world champion seriously when they
continue to fight ‘set-ups’. That’s the case sadly with WBC flyweight
champion Pongsaklek Wongjongkam (64-2). He was slated to meet former
light-fly champ Yo-sam Choi (28-5). Choi , even though moving up in
weight and having a somewhat spotty record lately (3-4 last 7), has some
back class. He was 10-1 as a champ and lost to the very tough Jorge
Arce. No disgrace there.
“Instead Wongjongkam will now face a 14-9 Junichi Ebisuoka on April 6 in
Saraburi. Maybe the Wongjongkam camp wanted to stay away from Choi’s
power. Choi got in the ring last week in Korea where he KO’d Thai
Pradabsri Siwagon at 2:14 of the first round. Siwagon had no recordable
professional boxing record. Wongjongkam meanwhile hasn’t lost a fight
since 1996, which if all the talent was like Ebisuoka is understandable.
Still, 53-0 is 53-0.”
There’s a flip side to that also Jeeves. Joe Koizumi is a living legend
when it comes to boxing in Japan. He’s a promoter but best of all one of
the most honest and entertaining writers covering the sport.
Many tell it like they see it with only a few telling it like it is.
Koizuma is one that tells it as it is. Here’s a portion of a recent
column: “There are many fight fans and experts that often criticize
so-called mismatches between Japanese prospects and mediocre Thai
opponents. But they may shut their mouths after watching some
spectacular stoppages in favor of Thailanders. Thailander Kenkaji
Chuwatana (9-6, 2 KOs), effectively battered ex-OPBF challenger Tsukasa
Kashiwagi (13-12-2, 10 KOs), dropped him and finally halted him at 0:56
of the third round. Kenkaji furiously attacked the groggy local favorite
to send him sprawling to the deck, and followed it up desperately to
prompt the referee’s intervention. Earlier, OPBF#6 Ryuji Shoryu (16-9-2,
8 KOs; previously fighting under his real name Daisuke Iida), shockingly
got flattened by a single right of unheralded Thailander Chansaknoi
Sakrungruang (6-5-1, 4 KOs), at 3:01 of the first round in a scheduled
ten.” How about them Thais?
Funny thing happened to Chris John and vanquished opponent Jose Rojas
when they tried to cash their checks from their championship fight. The
checks from AMW Promotions bounced like a baby ridding on the back of a
motorbike. “This is the first time it has happened in Indonesia that a
promoter has performed poorly. I hope this doesn’t become a negative
precedent that will make foreign boxers afraid to fight in Indonesia,”
said John. “Next time we’ll be more selective in who we work with.”
Several days later promoter Albert Papilaya showed up at the Ministry of
Youth and Sports with several bags of cash worth US$250,000.
“Your Lordship, the bags were worth US$250,000?”
No Jeeves, the cash inside.
“Oh”.
Another boxing champion has been stripped of his title by the WBC:
Former light-flyweight champion Omar Nino will have to use suspenders as
his belt is gone after testing positive for met-amphetamine last
November. After his draw with Brian Viloria, Nino was tested by the
Nevada Commission. Besides losing his title, Nino was suspended by the
Commission for nine months and fined US$18,750. Viloria fights Edgar
Sosa on April 14 for the vacant title.
When Sam Soliman arrived in Sydney for his mid week clash with Anthony
Mundine he announced: “I am counting down the days now for when I climb
in the ring against Mundine for the WBA title. I will control the fight
from round one.”
Whoops! Mundine ‘dismantled’ Soliman, leading from the opening bell
until referee Stanley Christodoulou mercifully ended things at the 2:29
mark of round nine. The South African referee took this action after
Soliman hit the deck three times in the round.
Mundine for the second time can claim the WBA super middleweight title
as can Mikkel Kessler who under the WBA system allows for two champs in
the same weight class. More champs equates to more sanctioning fees.
Nice work if you can get it! Mundine - always a class act - said after
the fight: “Call me two-time, I knocked his a— out man.”
The headline shouted, “Klitschko annihilates Austin!” That was followed
by, “After an uneventful first round, Klitschko connected with four huge
left hooks in round two. Austin crumpled face first to the canvas and
was unable to beat the count of referee Eddie Cotton. Time was 1:27 of
round two.”
‘Bullocks!’ I may not know Deuteronomy but I know a horse-feathers
heavyweight title fight when I see one. Klitschko-Austin at the SAP
Arena in Mannheim was horse-feathers. Klitschkop actually landed a
couple of ordinary left hooks and Austin melted like an ice cube on a
Pattaya Soi.
Marco Antonio Barrera at 63-4 is a darn good super-featherweight. In
point of fact he’s a perfect 6 and 0 since his ’03 TKO 11th round loss
to Manny Pacquiao. Included in those wins was one against ‘arch rival’
Eric Morales. In his last two he’s had to struggle a little in beating
Rocky Juarez (25-2) twice, and by the slimmest of margins.
Sunday he gets in a Las Vegas ring against another ‘arch rival’ in the
form of Juan Manuel Marquez (46-3-1) for a ‘catch weight’ WBC Jr.
lightweight title. Jr. lightweight allows both fighters a few extra
pounds.
Back in ’04 Marqeuz got a draw with Pacquiao only because Canadian Judge
Guy Jutras is either an idiot or should be traveling with a white cane
and a dog. Marquez was down three times in the first, which would have
made that a 10-6 round except for the ‘Frog’ from Canada. Nevada’s Bert
Clem had it 113-113 and he probably needs a stronger optical
prescription also.
Marquez went to Indonesia and got beat by Chris John but came back later
last year with a convincing win over Thailand’s Tersak Jandaeng. Barrera
looks like he’s showing the effects of 67 professional fights. Probably
go with Marquez in a close contest.
Two other fights on Sunday: In the Palais des Sport Marcel Cerdan in
Levallois, France, O’Neil ‘Ring My’ Bell (26-1-1) puts his combined WBC
and WBA cruiserweight title on the line against hometown guy Jean Marc
Mormeck (32-2). Bell won the titles from Mormeck in January of 2006 with
a 10 round KO. Bell was ahead on two judges’ cards when the fight ended
at the 2:50 mark. Bell will probably need a KO to win as ‘sometimes’ in
France the home cooking favors the hometown guy. True fact.
“Your Lordship, before your well deserved beverage, refreshingly low
priced cigar and some sounds on the infernal noise machine, I have a
communique from a Richard McGinnis in Philadelphia, USA. He writes,
“Just a warning, +300 is the strongest eyewear that you can get at the
99 cents store in America.”
Thank you Jeeves.
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