Prakong back to form with a bang

Phoenix Members Golf Society

Wednesday,
March 21, Stableford

Today we had 24 players (16 members and 8 guests) on the Mountain and Lakes course. The day started off nice and sunny but after 4 or 5 holes the heavens opened. After about 40 minutes the rain abated and by the time we had finished even the caddies had dried out.

Friday’s winners Prakong Robinson (center) and Nigel Irvine (left) with Mike Gerrard.

Terry Turner returned our best guest score with 32 points with Paul Buckland coming a close second on 31 points.

For the members it was nice to see Prakong Robinson back in form, shooting 40 points to win the day. Second with 36 points was our Members Chairman Ron Bridge, just easing out (on count back) Geoff Bowers in third place, also with 36 points.

Technical prizes went to Neils Johanssen, Geoff Bowers, Mike Poustie (2) and Mike Gerrard whilst the only ‘2’ on the day was recorded by Uli Leuenberger (73 years old and still walking the course). Meanwhile a special short putt prize went to young Chazzie Poustie (only 6 yrs old).

Friday, March 23, Stableford

Prakong Robinson secured her second victory of the week with a fine 39-point haul. Playing off the yellow tees, this was a good performance. Mike Gerrard, also hitting a bit of form lately came in second with 38 points from the back tees and third was a new member to the group, Dennis Choo scoring a fine 35 points,

The Guests’ winner was Nigel Irvine with 29 points and second was Patrick Martin with 27 points. Both were gob-smacked to learn they had won the first two places.

Technicals went to Alan Collinge (2), Nigel Irvine, Terry Oconner, Geoff Bowers and Patrick Martin.

Sunday, March 25, Stableford

It was a strange day today with many regulars missing, and especially after having such a full field on Friday. Only 10 players showed up on a fine and clear day.

First place in the sole flight went to newly established member David Czernie with 40 points. I think if my calculations under the Mike Poustie system are correct David will be cut 6 or 7 shots for next week. Second was Annette Haraldsson with 37 points and third was Niels Johannessen with 36 points.

Technical prizes were claimed by John Cargill, Steen Poulsen and Lasse Eriksson.

The Beautiful Game?: Riz Taylor

Premiership Returns

Sometimes I really, REALLY wish I could practice what I preach. Only seven short days ago I suggested in these very pages that painting the fence or watching grass grow would be more enticing than another weekend of international football. Unfortunately that was proved to be all too accurate (unlike the strikers of a particular nation).

I say unfortunately because rather than take satisfaction about having predicted another round of dross, nothing would give me greater pleasure than to be proved wrong and have good reason to get excited about international fixtures. Put some flags up, maybe. Paint my face. But instead it was the usual story of doom and gloom, just as it always seems to be.

Whilst the audience of this newspaper is an international one which will hold me back from giving England the full treatment they deserve, there’s a lot of space to cover and one paragraph won’t do any harm. England were appalling in Israel, and writing before Wednesday’s fixture against a ski resort nestling in between France and Spain (sorry Andorrans) the English side hadn’t won in five games and scored just once in those fixtures. Yes it’s time for second-choice Steve to do the decent thing, but you can’t blame him entirely and I wonder about the player’s commitment to the cause.

Oh alright, two paragraphs and that’s it. The English team are supposedly a ‘golden generation’ that should be competing for world honours, but for all I can see they’re a bunch of clueless primadonnas who can’t string three passes together and who seem happy thumping long balls up to pint-sized Andy Johnson. Fantastic.

Well anyway, let’s move on with congratulations to Scotland, who gave new boss Alex McLeish something to cheer about with a late win against Georgia to move top of their group. At least someone’s doing well and the Jocks can also take heart from moving into the top 16 of the FIFA rankings, if you believe in that kind of thing.

And that’s not all. I heard a curious footballing tale the other day which may or may not have any truth behind it. Back when football began England would play against Scotland on a fairly frequent basis and the winner took away with them the title of ‘World Champions’, as they had every right to do as the only two nations playing the game. This cosy little world order continued for some time until ‘Johnny Foreigner’ wanted a piece of the action and began playing football himself, which of course meant that the title was passed around from nation to nation whenever the current champs were beaten.

They tell me that were you to follow the results of the international fixtures since then - and of course someone with nothing better to do has done just that - then until the weekend it was Georgia who could claim themselves as unlikely World Champs, before unfortunately coming a cropper against the Scots at the weekend. So even if you’re reading this after your boys have lost in Italy on Wednesday, the Scots amongst you can at least take solace from having stood at the top of world football for a few days.

Right, so before I take a running jump off the nearest hotel roof it’s time to put international football back into its box for the last time before June, when I’ll suddenly develop a love for the beautiful international game as there’ll be no domestic soccer to keep us busy. Until then, though, the focus will remain on a diet of mostly European football sprinkled with the odd story from around the globe when we’re running low on stories, just as it always should be.

Just before we move on though, and not because it’s a slow news week, spare a thought for the players of Trinidad and Tobago. The ‘Soca Warriors’ squad all retired from international football last week after being offered just 485 pounds each (31,000 baht) for their efforts at last year’s World Cup, despite the belief that a multi-million dollar sponsorship deal had been signed with sportswear company Adidas. The squad later retracted their retirements but pressed ahead with court action against the Trindad and Tobago Football Association. Good luck to them - being paid less than the cost of two weeks in Pattaya for a month’s outdoor work in a foreign country just ain’t good enough.

“What have we got this weekend then?” I hear you ask. Well it’s back to the Premiership this weekend, and what’s more the start of British Summer Time means that kick-offs are an hour earlier, which sounds like an excuse to watch more football if ever you needed one. And that’s not all, because Saturday’s early game - at 6:45pm Pattaya time - features what could be a humdinger between Arsenal and Liverpool. Or at least it should be a humdinger, but with both sides looking safe for a top four finish it could turn into a bit of a damp squib. Still, even if it does there’s still a whole load of other matches to whet the appetite this weekend, and after the tosh served up last week it’s a welcome return for the domestic game. With just six weeks of the season remaining, enjoy it while it lasts.

Saints fans get ‘Krankie’

A bronze statue of former Southampton footballer and manager Ted Bates was removed from outside the club’s St.Mary’s ground last week, just days after it had been unveiled.

The statue had been greeted with dismay from the club’s supporters, many of whom contributed towards the cost of the 112,000 pound figure. They say the statue’s arms are too long, legs are too short and the head too large. The statue has been compared to former Portsmouth owner Milan Mandaric and even the cheeky schoolboy character Jimmy Krankie played by a stumpy middle-aged woman.

During his time in charge at Southampton, Bates took the side into the First Division for the first time in 1965, and also presided over their first European matches.

‘Quote of the Week’

“It’s not the crucial game for Championship qualification. But it is a very, very crucial game. The whole qualification goes one way or the other with this result.” - Glenn Hoddle offers his unique insight on international football management after England’s draw with Israel.

The ‘Organiser’ storms to 46 points at The Emerald

IPGC Jomtien Golf

Monday, March 19,
The Emerald, Stableford

Monday saw a trip to The Emerald for a Stableford competition.
After a few months in the golfing doldrums, a remarkable and embarrassing 46-point total was recorded by the organiser to take the top position in Division 2. This sort of score is normally unheard of in an I.P.G.C. competition, but it happens. 10 points behind in second place was Chris Knapp, and in third with 33 points was Ken Foster beating Richard Baldotto on count back.

Ben Findon’s 36 points secured first place in Division 1 with Adrian Shelley second on 34 and Yasuo’s 33 points beating four others on count back for third.

Paddy (Del Boy) Wilson, Bob Martin and Raivo Velsberg shared the 2’s pot in Division 1 and there were no winners in Division 2. Near pins were scored by Richard Baldotto. Ted Morris and Raivo Velsberg

Wednesday, March 21,
Greenwood, Stableford

In today’s Stableford competition in Division 2, the ever-improving Bob Lathwell scored 38 points to beat Les Hall on count back for the top honours. Glyn Evans finished third with 35 points. The same winning score was recorded in Division 1 with John McLoone taking the top place ahead of Ben Findon in second with 35 points and Andy Shelley third with 33.

John Mcloone and Jan Sordal both had birdie 2’s on the A6 hole to win the Division 1 pot, but there were no winners in Division 2 yet again.

Grenville Hill, Les Hall, John McLoone and Miss Oam all won near pin prizes.

Friday, March 23,
Eastern Star, Stableford

A larger field than normal arrived for our regular Friday outing at Eastern Star.

A second 38-point score of the week secured Bob Lathwell first position in Division 2 with the Windmill’s Alan Duckett second on 34, Miss Nom third with 31 and the old man fourth with 29 on a count back.

A meagre 33 points for Ken Lill won the higher division first prize; beating Mikael Andersson’s identical score on a back three count back. There were 4 players tying for third and fourth positions with 32 points; the mathematics sided with Grenville who took third and Jan who took fourth on count back.

Jomtien Golf meets every Monday, Wednesday and Fridays at Paweenas in Soi 5 Jomtien Beach Road at around 9.00pm for a 10.30 tee off time. Please sign up in the bar or ring Glyn on 0868375464.

Buckland braves the storm to beat a depleted field

IPGC golf from The Caddy Shack

Tuesday, March 20,
Pattaya C.C., Medal

A Medal comp was held at Pattaya C.C. on what turned out to be a very frustrating day. Minutes after teeing off the thunder and lightning struck and everyone fled for cover. After one hour we returned but when the bad weather came back again, most of the players called it a day after completing only 9 holes.

The few remaining who finished the course saw Paul Buckland take first place with a net 70, Steve Nowell in second with net 75 and Bev Evans third with net 77.

The 2’s were shared between Emmet White, Damian Trant and Steve Nowell.

Friday, March 23,
The Emerald, Stableford

Friday saw a trip to Ban Chang on a very hot and humid day.

The cut was made at handicap 14 and under and in Division One, Al McGrory’s 40-point total proved to strong for the rest of the flight, with Steve Nowell finishing second two points adrift. Division Two saw Roy Mitchell take top honours with 40 points and Brian Kelly in second with 35 points.

Dave Smith and Al McGrory both recorded a ‘2’ to share the pot between them.

Evans above, Andy returns to form

PSC golf from Tropical Berts

Tuesday, March 20,
Greenwood, Stableford

As is well known to all the golfers, this is a fine course, at a fine rate, with the only draw back being its distance from Pattaya. Mind if you are a golfer and are on the bus it really does not matter, except you have to be awake to get off the bus. On this day the bus was full as the players relaxed before the hard work to come.

Andy Evans enjoyed a fine day both on and off the course.

Stood on the first tee it was obvious there had been quite a lot of rain in the last few days as the course looked lush and in fine condition. The fairways were green, and as we found out during the round so were the greens and most of the rough.

Under dark skies we started the round on a course that was lightly populated and we went around A & B at a brisk pace. This was good because as we entered the B nine, it started to drizzle and the winds started to rise but we still got around without any dramas.

Back at Bert’s with a few of his cold ones inside, the winner was declared as Andy Evans, who came back to form to with a fine 39 points. Rob Brown came in second with 37 points and Derek Brook was in third with 36 points.

T.T.F.N.
Near Pin: Derek Brook (2) Rob Brown, Don Carmody
Long Put: Kevin Dunne, Andy Evans.

Smith & Barr pass stiff test

IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at the OK Corral

Sunday, March 18, the Pattaya Golf Society paid a call on the Royal Thai Navy course at Plutaluang for another of its Sunday “Specials”, this time a stableford competition over the North and West nines. The course was very dry with hard fairways and firm greens, all of which posed a tough assignment to the golfers.

It was to be a day when the thinking golfers would make their impact and Ray Underwood set the initial pace with a finely crafted 34 points to eventually give him third place. Leading the field was the indomitable pair of Keith Barr and Denis Smith. For Keith his level par 36 points was a sign of his increasing consistency and for Denis, the “gaffer”, his similar score was a bonus for tolerance and perseverance. Who said “Nice guys don’t win”? They certainly did on this occasion.

Surprisingly there were no birdie 2’s on the par threes, even Kasu Agune breaking his winning habit of late, but the ‘Booby Bevy’ was still lurking back at the OK Corral, and it found an appropriate winner in Andy Bardill, making his debut with the group and shooting the day’s worst score. Welcome Andy, good times still lie ahead.

Multinational leaderboard at stormy Emerald

A heavily overcast day dawned on Tuesday, March 20 as the Pattaya Golf Society set out for Emerald to play a stableford competition and the heavens duly opened as the third group took to the tee, to the accompaniment of rolling thunder and flashing forks of lightning.

The two flights would have been forgiven if they had abandoned their efforts there and then but, with the exception of four players, they completed their task in style, to return saturated scorecards to the recorder. It was a memorable day as seven nations were represented on the leaderboard across the two flights with some extremely creditable performances given the conditions.

In the second flight, cut at 22 and over, England’s Ian Hart took third place with a score of 32 points, three behind Canada’s Keith Barr, so consistent of late, and a further shot behind American Paul Quodomine whose level par 36 points heralded a very welcome return to form.

In the top flight, Dutchman Joop Medze tied with Thai lady Saranya Chaiyanont for third with 32 points, only one behind Sweden’s Mikael Andersson whilst Finn Erik Anttonen took the flight honours with a steady 36 points, sharing the day’s best gross figures with the aforementioned Mikael.

Erik also had the honour of a birdie ‘2’ on the seventh whilst Saranaya did likewise on the fifteenth to share the 2’s pot.

Celebrating three eventual years of golf at the OK Corral, Mr. Denis had very kindly donated two “nearest-the-pin” prizes and these were won by David Thomas on the seventh and John Mason on the fifteenth. The ‘Booby Bevy’ went to Japanese golfer Kasu Agune for failing to register his trademark birdie ‘2’ in a round of stunning mediocrity.

The true winners on the day were the bedraggled golfers who had weathered the worst that Emerald and the elements could throw at them.

Greenwood, Underwood, 44!

Three years ago Pattaya golfers could be forgiven for thinking that Noble Place was definitely in the “Land that Time Forgot.” They rarely went there because of the horrors of the drive and the general condition of the course. But how things have changed. A little investment in the right places has brought about a transformation and the Greenwood course is now one of the Pattaya Golf Society’s favourites.

The group visited there on Thursday for a stableford competition over the B and A nines. Two flights were divided at 23 and under and the day was to throw up some pleasant surprises.

In a competitive top flight, David Thomas fired the day’s best gross figure of 78 to give him third place with a score of 36 points, whilst Erik Anttonen went two-under with 38 points for second place. The flight winner was Joop Medze and his 39 points marked his best return with the PGS.

In the second flight Paul Quodomine, Andy Bardill and ladies Margaret Wilkinson and Mod Churaiska all shared third place with their 32 point returns, three behind the 35 points of Tony Kitchen. Lording it at the top was Ray Underwood who massacred the course with some deft and at times fortunate golf to amass 44 points and set the best score record with the group for 2007.

Such was the enormity of his score that his net return was four less than his age and promises a large cut in his handicap. It could not have happened to a finer competitor and if the truth be known it has been coming for the last few weeks. Well done Ray!

There were three birdie 2’s, Erik Anttonen managing the feat on A6 and B2 and a blushing Margaret Wilkinson took the third with her birdie on the long par-three “A” second.

The ‘Booby Bevy’ went to Rob Hill for the only nil return of the day and would serve to remind him that in stableford such events are rare, except when a caddy runs off with one’s golf bag! Greenwood had been a treat and for Ray Underwood it was certainly a day to remember.

Neil and Wayne triumph in the rain

PSC golf from the Oohsa Bar

Tuesday, March 20,
Eastern Star, Stableford
This week was a story of rain followed by more rain.

(L-R): Wayne Farrell, Bah (waitress Oohsa Bar), Yves Philibert and Neil Duncan.

Our Tuesday outing to Eastern Star on the 20th promised much at the start. When we arrived, the course looked good and the weather was hot. But by the middle of the first nine the heavens opened. Within minutes everything was under water, lightning was flashing all around and everyone was exceedingly wet. In short, a complete wash-out, competition cancelled.
Thursday, March 22,
Plutaluang, Stableford
Having dried ourselves out after Tuesday’s wash-out, 19 players set off for Plutaluang. Again the day started well and we were assigned to the difficult North and West nines.
With the round well under way, guess what? Rain again! It wasn’t as severe as the lightning storm on Tuesday so we pressed on. Some manage better in the rain than others and the winning scores were excellent under the circumstances.
Two of this month’s in-form players, Neil Duncan and Wayne Farrell fared best with 36 points apiece. Neil took first place narrowly on count back 17 to Wayne’s 16 in the worst of the conditions.
Well done also to Yves Philibert in third place with 35 points on this difficult course on a very difficult day.
Near Pins: Mick Heatley, Peter Mills, Yves Philibert, Paul Smylie
Long Putt: Phil Dwyer
Next week we will play at Emerald on Tuesday, April 3 and Plutaluang on Thursday, April 5, Call in tot the Oohsa Bar and sign up.

When you’re Hot, you’re Hot!

Beaver Bar Golf

Pictured from left-right: Sus, Gordon, Apple, Herb and Bob

Amazing is the only description that can be used in commentary on the play of Phanom Jitchana, better known as Apple, at the weekly Friday Beaver outing at Emerald.

This has been the norm of late, and many players were left wondering if “it’s the humidity” or “the heat generated from the smoking shots from Apple’s clubs” causing the perspiration to flow. With back-to-back birdies on the tough 6th and 7th holes and a lone dropped shot on number 8, Apple maneuvered the front nine with a stupendous 35 gross. A brief spring shower at the turn failed to cool her off as Apple, playing off a 12 handicap, shot a 78 on the day to account for 42 stableford points, easily outdistancing the nearest competitors in the A Flight.

Calvin “Sus” Ige and Roy Thorton each managed 37 points with 19 of them on the back nine, but Sus outscored Roy 16 - 12 on the final six holes to claim the 2nd place money.

Aussie Bob Laurence handily won the B Flight with an equally impressive 42 stableford points, while Gordon Everingham scored 38 points and Herb Schwieterman 35 to capture 2nd and 3rd places respectively. The cut-off was 18+ for the B Flight and golfers with handicaps of 17 or less comprised the A Flight.

A special “Thank You” needs to go out to Jimmy Little for placing the near pin makers on the correct par 3’s. This is the first time this has happened in over a month. The winners were Apple on hole #5 and Dave Wolstencroft on hole #13. As predicted Apple was able to draw out the maximum 500 Baht Beaver discount voucher, while Dave could only manage a 100 Baht voucher. When you’re hot, etc.

Back at the Beaver, Dennis Willett was the source of much of the entertainment well into the evening. He may well heed the advice of those with more acute eyesight in the future rather than face that type of abuse again. Each Friday the Beaver plays at the Emerald with a 7:45 starting time.

Montana clinches first place trophy

Pattaya Sports Club Friday Bowling League

200 Bowlers – Mai, Tien, Leo, Ooy, Leen, Dang & Tui

Montana clinched the first place trophy with one week to go after they took all four points in their match against last place Domicil. VFW Post 9876 won all four points from House of the Golden Coin and remain in second place.

Diamond Shop also won four points in their match against Café Kronborg. Diamond Shop moved up to third place and Café Kronborg dropped down to a tie for sixth. Jack & Tar moved up to fifth place after they took three points from Shenanigans. Café Ole won all four points from Mai’s Thai Restaurant and Brother D took three points from Three Sisters.

Leo led all bowlers with a 598 series, games of 230, 168 & 200, Mai – 583 series, Rich – 564, La – 532, Leen 527, Dang 523 and Konrad – 523.

The Square Ring: by Howie Reed

“M’lord, is it possible that the gentleman you called a moron last week, i.e. promoter Dennis Rappaport, is a lot smarter than his lordship? “I know I shouldn’t bring this up, but last week you made fun of Mr. Rappaport when he announced that Oleg Maskaev would defend his title against Vitali Klitschko in Moscow on June 2 and that Samuel Peter drank the Kool Aid in taking ‘step aside money’ with the promise of a kiss and cigarette later.”

It would appear Jeeves that you are correct, and I, as rare as it may be, was wrong. It’s interesting though that while the Briggs-Ibragimov has a venue in the 12,000 seat Lizhniki Sports Palace in Moscow on that date, no TV deal is set. On the other hand, TV Cable giant HBO is said to have been the driving force for Maskaev-Klitschko.

For those outside the USA, the first Saturday of each month (Sunday in LOS) features matching boxing cards on HBO and Showtime. Both Biggs and Maskaev have fought on HBO. There’s a news report from ‘inside’ the Maskaev camp that HBO will televise his meeting with Klitschko.

The ‘insider’ reported: “Subject to finalizing some details, it looks like there’s a good chance we’re going to go June 2nd in Moscow. If we had the opportunity (to move the date) we would, but we’re committed to June 2nd. There are some things that need to be finalized but it looks like we’re going on that date.”

Anyone that covers boxing in print and refers to a person as a “boxing expert” can be sure of one thing: - that the so-called “expert” will invariably agree with the writer. That makes them both smart. It was the Square Ring that first mentioned when picking Marquez over Barrera that maybe the latter (that would be Barrera) was getting a little long in the tooth. Now two other “boxing experts” have expressed the same view. They have asked though that their identities be kept secret.

Two weeks later the fight still draws fan interest. It should, as it was action filled the way professional boxing is supposed to be. With the exception of Barrera whining about the judges, both boxers have acted like professionals.

“Barrera is a great champion,” said Marquez.

“This is boxing, we are Mexicans, this is a sport,” said Barrera.

Re-match? You bet, with a target date of September 16, which just happens to be Mexican Independence Day. Remember the first fight took place on St. Patrick’s Day, or as Jay Leno called it “Cinco de Gringo”.

There is little argument that WBC flyweight champion Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (64-2) is the best Thai fighter around. He’s defended his title 16 times. You just can’t argue with facts. That is except that all of those title defenses came in Thailand, with many against bodies that were this close to entering the ‘Riga Mortis Zone’.

On April 6, Wonjongkam will defend for the 17th time against Japan’s Tomonobu Shimizu who has a professional record of 10-1. Toss out that Shimizu just beat Fahpetchnoi Sor Chitpattana at 13-1 and somehow ranked 8th; the record of Shimizu’s opponents is 38-52-5 for goodness sake! The current rankings have the Japanese boxer ranked at #14. Way to go Wonjongkam - keep building that record that means nothing.

Amorn Supyuwittaya village in the Nongjork district of Bangkok had some box fight action recently. The reason for the card was to showcase Sataporn Singwancha (17-4-1) and also provide a payday for a couple of former champs.

The showcase part didn’t work as Singwancha only managed a draw with Fernando Montilla (32-20-4). WBC Super Feather champ, Sirimongkol Singwancha (55-2) took all 6 rounds against Jesus Muzaka (2-6), who was able to stretch his losing streak to 5 in a row. Former WBC Bantam Champ Ratanachai Sor Vorapin (70-9,46 KOs) got a six-round unanimous decision over a Filipino whose name was reported as Roger Monserto. Mr. Monserto now has a record of 0-3.

Back to the future moment, and tomorrow night Virgil Hill (50-5) and Henry Maske (30-1) meet at the Olympiahalle in Munchen, Germany in a rematch of their 1996 tussle. On that occasion Hill captured the IBF light heavyweight title to add to his WBA crown. It was a majority/split decision with Hill winning 116-113, 116-112 on two cards and hometown ‘fave’ Maske winning on the third 116-112.

After that fight Maske said, “I quit.” He was a man of his word as he did quit - until tomorrow night that is.

After he won the title, Hill only held it till his next fight when he got taken to the woodshed by Dariusz Michalczewski. Michalczewski would run his record to 48-0 before losing back to back to against Julio Cesar Gonzales (10-18-03) and Frabrice Tiozzo (2-26-05). After the second loss Dariusz retired. “Boxing is over for me”, he stated. “I am an ex-boxer.”

Dariusz’s take on tomorrow’s fight? “Maske will lose early. The condition will not be there. The psyche will not be there. The expectations are too big. And Henry can’t have better reflexes than eleven years ago. For me it’s very courageous what Maske is doing. After eleven years, you can play tennis, swim, kick the ball a little ... boxing is the only sport you can’t do anymore after such a long break. When he gets hit in the nose, Maske will wake up in the ring.” Or not.

There are things that occur in boxing that drive people crazy. Next Monday at the new headquarters of the WBA there will be a purse bid for a match between champion lightweight Juan Diaz (31-0) and Thailand’s Prawet Singwancha (30-2). The bid starts at US$150,000 with the champion getting 70% and the challenger 30% of the final amount.

Here’s the slight problem. The champion Juan Diaz is boxing Acelino Freitas and defending his title on April 29 at Foxwood’s Resort Casino in Connecticut, USA. What happens if Diaz should lose? Whoever won the rights to the Diaz- Singwancha title fight is now like the punter with lots of blue pills and no Baht!

Jack Sharkey was a great heavyweight with a record of 37-13. He fought the best - winning some and losing others. He captured the world heavyweight title by winning a split decision over Max Schmeling on June 21, 1932. He defended once, losing to Primo Carnera a year later. Sharkey - not noted for his eloquence - penned a piece called “The Lonesome Spot”. It went like this: “The lonesomest spot in the world is the center of the ring after the bell has clanged to start a fight. Your seconds climb out of the corner - and there you are. Nobody but you and the referee and the other guy. The referee can’t help you and the other guy is in there strictly to hurt you.”

Nowhere could Sharkey’s words be more appropriately used than when referring to the boxing killing zone that is Indonesia. There have been 27 deaths in Indonesian boxing since 1948, which on the surface doesn’t sound as bad as it might. But in the last three years there has been at least one death a year.

The country kept its record going on March 15 with the death of Dwi Mulya (1-5) from injuries received in the ring. The first question that anyone with one iota of intelligence should ask is, “What the hell was Dwi Mulya doing in any ring?”

Mulya was a boxer that had only fought once a year since 2001, taking 2006 off completely. Too many sanctioning organizations are taking the money from Indonesia and turning a blind eye to the corruption that makes the country a modern day killing field for boxing.

Jeeves my good man, you’re right on time with a couple of pints of the magic elixir, a finely cured cigar and the new Rod Stewart CD.

“Your lordship, I’ve had another communication from Richard McGinnis of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He sends the world’s shortest fairy tale. May I read it?”

Oh course Jeeves, proceed.

“Very well your lordship: ‘Once upon a time, a guy asked a girl ‘Will you marry me?’ The girl said, ‘NO!!!’ And the guy lived happily ever after and went fishing, hunting, played a lot of golf, drank a lot of beer, watched girls that walked to music with brief costumes, and broke wind whenever he wanted. The end.’”