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United hit stalemate in Saraburi
 Staff
Reporters
Pattaya United were held to a goalless draw in
Saraburi last Sunday against seventh placed Osotsapa M-150, a result
which saw the Dolphins slip down one place in the league standings
following Bangkok Glass’s win at Si Sa Ket FC.
United were missing several first team players going
into the game due to injuries and suspensions, however the hosts had no
such worries and were able to field an essentially full strength team.
A sluggish opening 15 minutes of the match from both
teams gave a foretaste of what was to come as the players struggled in
the hot temperatures. United were the first team to create an opening
following some fine work by Phetwiset and Seehawong, but the latter’s
shot was well saved by Butprom in the Osotspa goal.
Phetwiset was again involved for United just a few
minutes later when his left wing cross was controlled by Ludovik, but
the league’s top scorer shot wide from a good position.
Osotspa came back into the game and on the half hour
mark they had a couple of near misses from Paiboon Thiebma, who drew a
good save out of Pattaya goalkeeper Narit before shooting over the bar
moments later.
The hosts piled on the pressure in the closing 15
minutes of the first half and after their Brazilian striker Silva saw
his free kick attempt float narrowly over the bar, Narit was called on
once more to deny Purisai with a good save.
United were put on the back foot as soon as the
second half got underway and Silva was disappointed to head a good cross
from Thiebma over the Pattaya bar when he perhaps should have done
better.
The home team rang the changes soon after, bringing
on attacking midfielder Boonmatoon in the place of Sumanya Purisai as
they looked to push on for a goal. United were struggling to create any
worthwhile chances of their own at this stage and their fluency in the
central areas of the pitch all but deserted them.
Osotspa had another great chance to take the lead in
the 76h minute of the match but Boonmatoon’s shot was blocked by a posse
of United defenders in their own goalmouth. The hosts created one
further chance 10 minutes later but Silva’s volley was once more ably
dealt with by Narit.
United almost stole all three points in the final
minutes of the game when substitute Wongdee appeared to have a clear
shot at goal but his effort was charged down by the Osotspa defenders,
much to the disappointment of the travelling United fans.
The final whistle soon after signaled the end of a
match that will hardly linger long in the memory of most supporters and
United will be desperately hoping to rediscover their goalscoring touch
as the season heads towards its climax.
It was a disappointing weekend all round for the
Eastern Seaboard teams as Chonburi FC crashed to a shock 3-1 defeat to
bottom club Bangkok United at a rain soaked Thai-Japanese Stadium to
fall 5 points behind Muang Thong United.
Pattaya United and Chonburi FC were due to meet up in an FA Cup match
this past Wednesday and on Sunday United will travel to Samut Songkram
for a Thai Premier League fixture while Chonburi will try to get their
pursuit of league leaders Muang Thong United back on track with a game
against Bangkok Glass in the capital.
Stadium go ahead
The Pattaya United board has approved a budget of
some 10 million baht to be spent on improving the facilities at the
Nongprue Municipal Football Stadium, their current Premier League home.
As advised in the Pattaya Mail recently, the club is preparing to
submit the construction models and plans to the AFC next month, with
work expected to start on the stadium at the conclusion of the current
season.
United hope to initially increase the capacity of the
stadium to 5,000 as well as improve the dressing room facilities for
both teams by the start of the 2011 league campaign.
Wiwat Iamlae, the assistant manager of Pattaya
United, said the AFC will come to inspect the football field and stadium
prior to next season to make sure it is up to scratch so it is
imperative that the work starts as soon as possible.
“If this plan is approved and assessed, then
construction work will be carried on and expected to be completed in
time for the next football season,” Wiwat said.
World pool champs coming to Pattaya
Deputy Mayor Weerawat Khakai, center, Jakkrapop Bunnaksaeree (Manager of
the Snooker Sports Project, Thai Beverage Public Co., Ltd.), second
right, and Capt Prajit Pichaisoratat (President of the Committee for Q
Sport Club Bangkok, and Chair Organizer), second left, attend the
tournament press announcement at the Flipper House Hotel, Thursday,
Sept. 9.
Thanachot Anuwan
Pattaya is set to stage its first world class pool
competition next month when some of the biggest stars in the game will
arrive in town for the 2010 Pattaya 9-Ball Invitational.
The 700,000 baht tournament will take place at the
Royal Garden Plaza from October 1-3 and top players from around the
world are expected to attend, including former world champions Efren
“The Magician’ Reyes and Francisco ‘Django’ Bustamante from the
Philippines and Darren Appleton from England.
Pattaya City and Q Sport Club Bangkok are
co-organizers of the event which is being backed by the Thai Beverage
(Public) Co., Ltd.
On September 9, at the Flipper House Hotel in Central
Pattaya, Deputy Mayor Weerawat Khakai joined a press conference to
publicise the tournament along with; Capt Prajit Pichaisoratat,
President of the Committee for Q Sport Club Bangkok, and Jakkrapop
Bunnaksaeree, Manager of the Snooker Sports Project, Thai Beverage
(Public) Co., Ltd.
Capt Prajit stated, “First of all I have to say thank
you to Pattaya City and Thai Beverage (Public) Co., Ltd. for organizing
the support budget for this event. Friends and I live in Pattaya City,
we love pool and we had a common idea about wanting to do something to
promote both tourism and pool in Pattaya. So we decided that we wanted
to organize a world class pool tournament and have invited leading pool
players from 17 countries to take part, headlined by the three world
champions, Efren Reyes, Francisco Bustamante and Darren Appleton.”
Before the main event gets underway there are several
qualifying rounds to be played out to find the best 15 local talents
(both men and women) to mix it with the ‘big boys’. Last month in
Bangkok eight rounds were completed at the Super Cue Club, Union Tower
Building on Petchburi Road and this month sees seven more spots up for
grabs with qualifying taking place at the Flipper House Hotel on Soi 7
in Pattaya from September 23–29.
The top prize for the winner of the tournament will
be 300,000 baht with the runner up receiving 50,000 baht. Cash prizes of
at least 5,000 baht are guaranteed for the final 32 competitors.
For applications to take part or for further information, call
08-4079-8064 or 08-1711-0157 or visit the website at
www.pattaya9ball.com.
Youth volleyball squad gets
official send off for regional comp
Mayor Itthipol Khunplume, 6th
left standing, greets the Pattaya youth volleyball team at Pattaya City
Hall, Wednesday, Sept. 8.
Vimolrat Singnikorn
The Pattaya youth volleyball team from the Muang Pattaya
School 7 took a trip to Pattaya City Hall recently to meet Mayor Itthipol
Khunplume and receive his good wishes and support ahead of their trip next
month to play in the regional finals in Nakhon Nayok.
This is the first team to represent Pattaya in the 12-15
years old age bracket at this level with the full backing of the City, and
the Mayor said he hoped the team would do their best to enhance the
reputation of both their school and Pattaya City.
Nittaya Patimasongkhro, the President of the Pattaya
Volleyball Club, said the 12 players in the squad had been inspired by the
recent 5th Volleyball Thailand League 2010 event
staged at Muang Pattaya School 7, and he believes the youngsters are good
enough to carry all before them at the tournament, being staged from October
19-28.
He also said he hopes in the future that the Chonburi Sports Association
team will be able to raise the bar as far as volleyball is concerned and
will come to be recognized as the national team of Thailand.
Ken & Graham on the heels of the All Thailand Tour
PSC Golf from Mulligans Lakeside
Tuesday, Sept. 7, Green
Valley - Stableford
Tuesday dawned with clear skies and a light breeze, so we
made our way to Rayong Green Valley with high expectations. The course was
in top notch condition and it was a pity the standard of play was not quite
up to scratch.
Graham
Hiskett & Ken Graham.
Jeff Wylie (6) with 35 points led the way from regular
visitor John Ottaway (15) who fired 33 points. There were opportunities for
more good scores with several 4 pointers being recorded by different
golfers, but none were able to maintain their form. The highlight of the 4
pointers was Derek Waterworth’s stunning par from 70 yards out on the 8th,
good one Derek.
Near Pins were collected by Jeff, while John grabbed 2,
the other “unwon” so a donation to the Banglamung Boys Home.
Thursday, Sept. 9, Bangpra
- Stableford
Following on from the All Thailand Tour’s visit to
Bangpra last week, it was our turn. The course was in superb condition, the
best I have seen it over my time here, a credit to the management, hope they
can maintain it this way.
Always a good test here, and so it proved today, although
Graham Hiskett (14) jumped out of the barriers on fire, holing putts like a
magician to card 19 points on the front 9, with a wipe on the 8th. However
he eventually came home in an ambulance, amassing a mediocre 29 points, but
still good enough for second place.
Leading the way today was Ken Graham (16) with a solid 34
points, no wipes on the card was testament to his consistent play.
Ken & Graham were the only players to hit the par 3s, so
shared the Near Pins with 1 each, while 2 were “unwon”.
Note: Mulligans Lakeside plays golf generally on
Tuesday & Thursday (we sometimes change to accommodate a Thai Holiday).
Presentations are made at the course on Tuesday, with Mulligans Lakeside
hosting the Thursday presentation. For more details on scheduling etc,
please call Jeff 089 094 1841 or Ray 081 935 8088. Hope to see you there,
Cheers & Good Golfing!
‘Sat-Nav’ leads the way
PSC golf from Lewiinski’s
Sunday, Sept. 5, Green
Valley - Stableford
1st Alan Thomas (7) 40 pts
2nd Colin Davis (14) 35 pts
3rd Pat Regan (11) 35 pts
Near Pins: No 4 Colin Davis, No 9 Mike Craighead, No 12 Don Lehmer, No
16 Alan Thomas
Joe
‘Sat-Nav’ Tynan.
Nobody told Alan Thomas it was not the monthly medal so
Alan went out and shot the best of the day 40 points, thereby reducing his
handicap without the benefit of picking up a trophy! He won’t be happy about
that.
Last week’s title boy Colin ‘The Donkey’ Davis kept the
purple patch going by gaining a coun-back decision for second spot, the
count-back victim being the young Irish Rover Pat Regan
Pat did however have the compensation of a ‘2’, along
with Eddy ‘The Eagle’ Beilby and Mike ‘The Mechanic’ Craighead.
Monday, Sept. 6, Mountain
Shadow – Stableford
1st Joseph Tynan (33) 41pts
2nd
Colin Davis (14) 40pts
Who was it that said timing is everything? Well it is no
wonder that Joe ‘Sat-Nav’ Tynan does not know because he was clearly not
listening.
It takes a clever fellow to blow the wheels off his
handicap with a blistering 41 points at Mountain Shadow in time to take a
healthy cut the week before the Monthly Medal. Of course there was no sign
it was coming, Joe’s good play can be controlled no better than his bad
play. The fact that his visits to the pay window have been limited of late
was reinforced by the fact that most people except the ‘Donkey’ were
actually happy for him, plus Joe managed the days only ‘2’. (But enough of
Joe the sandbagger) just kidding Joe.
The ‘Donkey’ was as you might imagine a little stunned
but is still riding his purple patch.
Wednesday, Sept. 8,
Bangpra - Stableford
A Flight
1st Ried Andrews (15) 36pts
2nd Mike Jeffreys (15) 36pts
B Flight
1st Geoff Kubas (20) 35pts
2nd
Peter Henshaw (17) 34pts
A much larger Lewiinski’s field turned out today to take
on the super conditioned Bangpra; one place one did not want to be on the
greens was above the hole.
Australian Ried Andrews won the day and senior flight,
gaining a count-back decision over Englishman Mike Jeffreys as both were
locked on even par rounds.
Geoff ‘Elvis’ Kubas was on song to take the junior
flight, edging Peter ‘Don O’Corleone’ by a single point.
Jim Brackett won a handy ‘2’s pot.
Note: Lewiinski’s have decided to reinstall the
very popular Golfers snowball starting Sunday 12th
September.
Friday, Sept. 10, St.
Andrews - Stableford
1st Richard Sheppard (22) 41pts
2nd Geoff Kubas (20) 41pts
3rd Peter Henshaw (17) 37pts
Richard Sheppard played his first game with Lewiinski’s
and recorded his victory, winning the day and senior flight honours after
carding a rock solid 41 points, but it took a count-back to beat Geoff
‘Elvis’ Kubas, who was left feeling like singing the blues. To be fair
‘Elvis’ made a late rush for the title spot, but how could I take it from
Sat-Nav?
Peter ‘Don O’Corleone’ Henshaw won a three-way tie for
the third spot, edging Morten Esseth and Jim Elphick as all were knotted on
37 points.
Peter Henshaw and Walter Balechi split the ‘2’s pot.
Note: Lewiinski’s is situated on Pattaya Land Soi
1, Beach Road Soi 13/3 near to 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.
Parker shoots personal best at Green Valley
PSC golf from The Bunker
Monday, Sept. 6,
Plutaluang - Stableford
After being washed out the previous month in our attempt
to play the Navy course for the first time in over a year, things turned out
better this time. The West nine was closed due to extensive maintenance
work, so we were directed to play the unusual combination of North and South
nines. Although the course is generally in good shape, unfortunately the
greens on these nines had also recently been cored, and had bigger bumps
than Dolly Parton. Hence putting became a lottery, with most golfers
struggling to get the ball to the hole.
Wednesday’s winner John Hughes.
The lucky winners on the day all had 35 points, but JJ
took the honours on a count-back, followed by Dave Dolle and Colin Greig.
Near Pin prizes went to Gerry Cooney, Peter Habgood, and
Colin Greig (2).
1st J.J. Harney (11) 35pts
2nd Dave Dolle (10) 35pts
3rd Colin Greig (12) 35pts
Wednesday, Sept. 8, Bangpra - Stableford
We arrived at Bangpra to find the course in excellent
condition, having recently hosted a Thai PGA event. The only blight on an
excellent day was that we were required to follow another golf society, who
seemed determined to have a 5-hour round, even though the course was quiet;
a real test of endurance for our first 3-ball.
John Hughes made a return to form prior to his impending
departure, to beat Geoff Hart on a count-back. This after John had been
offering Geoff advice on chipping, a lesson which nearly came back to bite
him after Geoff had a superb day scrambling around the greens. Hope you
bought him a beer Geoff..
Near pin winners on the day were Tony Robbins and William
Macey (2).
Back at the Bunker, John was so carried away by winning
that he rang the bell, an event which was deemed to be rarer than an eclipse
of the blue moon!
1st John Hughes (17) 34pts
2ndGeoff Hart (17) 34pts
3rd Gerry Cooney (11) 33pts
Friday, Sept. 10, Green Valley -
Rainbow Stableford
What excellent value Green Valley provides during the
current low season where the course was in excellent condition although the
greens were slow.
We opted to play a Rainbow competition today and
unsurprisingly everyone elected to go off the red tees for the daunting
first hole. Geoff Parker (who was heard to say before the competition, that
he never has a good score here) romped away to take first place with 45
points! If that’s not a good score, then what is? It was in fact Geoff’s
best ever round in Pattaya, carding a gross 79, with nothing worse than a
bogey on the card.
Eight points behind was Tony Robbins with Gerry Cooney
taking third pace on a count-back over John Hughes.
Near pins went to John Hughes, Tony Robbins and Geoff
Parker (2).
1st Geoff Parker (16) 45pts
2nd Tony Robbins (14) 37pts
3rd
Gerry Cooney (11) 35pts
Gosden in the groove
PSC golf from Café’ Kronborg
San Mig Stu
Monday, Sept. 6, Khao
Kheow - Stableford
Nineteen keen gofers, er golfers lined up for a 0920 tee
off, starting on the A course and finishing 4 hours and twenty minutes later
on the B course. The white front markers were again used which proved
convenient and welcome to a number of players. Despite the short yardage, as
a result of playing so much closer to the greens, many scores indicated that
this advantage did not necessarily assist all players.
Monday’s top two, Mike Gosden, right, and Henry Wong, left, with The
Admiral.
No excuses could really be used as the weather was
perfect, the course sensational and improving by the week with the greens
noticeably faster than last week. There was one major distraction though,
which blew many of us away. Having teed off the par three 5th
tee and walking toward the green, there on the left in the scrub (bush,
jungle) were three Chang (elephants), with Mama, Papa and baby quietly
grazing only a hand throw away. What a beautiful sight to witness on such a
pleasurable stroll.
There were no new members or guests to welcome today so
our presenter moved straight to the issues of the day. The issues were not
what everyone was expecting and for the next five minutes we were treated to
a torrent of pointed remarks concerning the player’s responsibilities toward
the understanding of the game and conduct in general. Issues such as knowing
ones handicap before starting play and to ensure obligations of payments for
the day were met on time, to name but a few.
It is not an easy task checking all the score cards to
ensure that handicaps are correct, Stableford and stroke scores match up and
cards are correctly signed etc. Along with trying to get a bit of lunch down
and not hold the players or the return trip home up, one has the sometimes
onerous task of answering questions and listening to uncalled for whingeing.
This is something that needed saying and I’m sure many other PSC golf
outlets would agree.
Having got that off his chest (to a sound applause) Mike
continued on to the day’s results and some fine scores were read out. The
chest heaving, spittle flaming man himself took out A flight with a
magnificent 43 points! Second with a not a too shabby 39 points was Mr.
consistent Martin Todd, third was per-Olav Baarli with 35 points and Paul
Avery was in fourth spot with 33 points.
B flight was won with another fine round of 39 points by
Henry Wong. Mike Winfield was close behind for second with a great 38 points
whilst a count-back decided that Patrice Bardy knocked off Ken Bernek for
third spot, both with 36 points.
Once again the Compass Cap charity received a donation by
Dave Neal for his efforts today. It does not seem fair that those who work
the hardest end up losing? The good thing though is that all these weekly
donations are going to assist the lives of those who are far less fortunate
than us.
The charity received a very welcomed donation today as
Henry Wong, the winner of the B flight, generously donated his winnings to
the charity! Many thanks Henry, your kindness has helped bring the total so
far this year to 4,270 baht.
A Flight (0–16)
1st Mike Gosden (12) 43pts
2nd Martin Todd (8) 39pts
3rd Per-Olav Baarli (16) 35pts
4th Paul Avery (10) 33pts
B Flight (17+)
1st Henry Wong (27) 39pts
2nd Mike Winfield (20) 38pts
3rd Patrice Bardy (18) 36pts
4th Ken Bernek (20) 36pts
Thursday, Sept. 9, Greenwood – Stableford
Numbers were slightly down today from previous outings as
16 of us arrived at the lovely Greenwood club house and the first group teed
off some twenty minutes earlier than our booking time. They completed their
round in a comfortable 4 hours and twenty five minutes including a few drink
stops.
The course is in spectacular condition with the greens
running at about 9.5 and a pleasure to putt on. The weather was quite hot
and the breaks taken at the well equipped drink huts were much appreciated.
An added bonus was the wonderful cool wet hand towels handed out by the
effervescent bar staff. The normally lively and excitable Lester the
squirrel was deep in slumber land on top of the Pepsi fridge at the B 5
drinks station. He is a lovely creature whom we all enjoy seeing when we
play this course.
We welcomed Brad Todd (son of infamous Martin) who
managed to get out of bed to play today. Apparently having heard what great
golf courses we have at our disposal here, he came over to play some golf
with Dad but despite being here for two weeks today, this was his first
game. Asked how he fared he said he would have had a better score if he had
stayed in bed!
The golfing highlight of the day came from the last group
who all made par on the index 1, par 4, B 7th hole.
Three of that Aussie foursome went on to take out all the podium spots in A
flight with Martin Todd winning with a very credible 39 points from Stu
Rifkin on 36 and Mike Gosden on 35.
A timely win in B flight was made by Hugh O’Donnell, as
he departs this week for hot and sunny California on a ten week trip and we
wish him a safe return. Hugh won with 33 points from Ken Bernek on 32 and
Walter Baechli with 30 points.
The Dueling duos for the charitable Compass Cap award
(Dave Neal and Ron Folks) are both off to the UK until early next year, but
it was Ron who today made the Charity Bin grow to the year’s balance of
4,470 baht. We wish you both safe journeys.
A Flight (0–16)
1st Martin Todd (8) 39pts
2nd Stu Rifkin (16) 36pts
3rd Mike Gosden (12) 35pts
B Flight (17+)
1st Hugh O’donnell (23) 33pts
2nd Ken Berneck (20) 32pts
3rd
Walter Baechli (17) 30pts
It’s in the can for Campbell
PSC golf from The Three Sisters Bar
Another beautiful day for golf at the Pattaya Country
Club last Wednesday, September 8, and three groups teed off at 0630
hours. The course was in good shape but two of the greens were sanded.
There was no hold up by any group and no one was pushing behind.
Wednesday winner Mark Campbell, left, with runner up Herbie Ishinage.
Back at Caddy Shack two Herbie provided snacks while
a tally of the cards showed Mark Campbell coming in first with a very
respectful 41 points. In fact he would have come in with 43 points if he
had not chosen to hit Bill Thompson’s ball, a nice two stroke penalty.
Look closer next time Mark!
Herbie Ishinage came in with 34 as did Sus Ige but Herbie took second
place on the count-back. Following Sus were Ciano Clavia and Bill
Thompsons, both with 33 points.
Kafka makes hay at Khao Kheow
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Derek Brook
Tuesday, Sept. 7, Khao
Kheow – Stableford
Khao Kheow is a venue we golfers all love to hate, but
what a great course it is on its day. We had a smaller than usual group for
this outing as some of our players were going off for a few days to pastures
new..The morning at Bert’s started off as normal with most of the golfers
tucking into Bert’s golfers breakfast, and then into transport for the run
down to Khao Kheow. These days this trip does not take very long, and we
were soon there and booking in for the day’s golf. One thing at present is
that the course has a promotion until the end of October. The main deal for
me is Tuesday with THB 800 plus free meal and green fee /caddy fee /cart for
THB 1250.
Tuesday’s top three: Hans Kafka,
Mick O’Meara and Andre Van Dyk with one of Bert’s helpers.
So in my cart off we went to the first hole to play A and
C nines. Usually here we play the yellow tees, but on this day decided to
play the white tees, and this turned out to be an excellent decision as most
of the yellow tees were on the white positions due to the tee boxes being
refurbished. This of course meant that the scores would be good, we hoped,
as playing off the yellows usually leads to being destroyed.
The course itself proved to be patchy, however it was
nearly empty and most of our players had a great day. The fairways were a
bit wet and the grass a bit long which meant we had little run. The greens
were recovering from work on them but still fast enough. All in all a fine
day.
Back in the restaurant we all sat and enjoyed some good
food and a cold drink before we jumped into transport and bimbled back to
Pattaya. There we all went to Bert’s to await the results.
The results proved the difference of playing off the
white tees, and the scores seemed to be several shots better than normal.
The winner of the day was Hans Kafka with 42 points ahead of Mick O’Meara in
second with 41 points. In third we had a count-back on 39 points which saw
Andre Van Dyk in third and Peter Basi in fourth. T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Joel Flor (2), Mike Phillips, Per Olaf
Baarli
West wows the field
PSC golf from The Caddyshack
Wednesday, Sept. 8,
The Emerald - Stableford
Eleven Caddyshack golfers showed up at Emerald to
tackle this testing course off the white tees. The greens were in good
condition but there was some couch weed on fairways.
Friday winners Clive Bruce & Mark West.
Ian Hart was the best of the bunch today, recording
39 points to take first place ahead of Jeff North and Mike Philipps in
second and third respectively.
1st Ian Hart (20) 39pts
2nd Jeff North (8) 36pts
3rd Mike Phillips (10) 36pts
2’s: Mike Phillips, Brian Orr, Bob Pearce
Friday, Sept. 10, Green Valley – Stableford
A larger field of 20 players were out today in two
flights to take on a Green Valley course in very good condition.
Clive Bruce led home the A Flight with 37 points with
Jeff North taking the runner up spot for the second time in the week.
Mike Phillips also got a case of d้jเ vu in third place.
Mark West recorded the score of the day, a great 43
points, to take the B Flight honours ahead of Les Hall and Brian Orr.
A Flight
1st Clive Bruce (7) 37pts
2nd Jeff North (8) 35pts
3rd Mike Phillips (10) 34pts
B Flight
1st Mark West (16) 43pts
2nd Les Hall (17) 38pts
3rd Brian Orr (15) 37pts
2’s: Helmut Hebstreit, Vincent Smyth, Les Hall and Graham Taggart.
Note: On Friday, Sept, 25 there will be a 2-man scramble to
celebrate the new extension & rooms at the Caddyshack with lots of
sponsored prizes and a buffet.
The Caddyshack is situated in Soi 8 Threppasit, We play golf twice a
week, Wed/Fri, until the punters return, then Monday, Wednesday and
Friday. We can also arrange golf outside these days. For more info email
[email protected]
Andersson on top form at Eastern Star
Jomtien Golf with the IPGC
Monday, Sept. 6, Bangpra –
Stableford
After a few phone calls on the previous Thursday we
switched from Pattaya C.C. to Bangpra owing to the price structures at both
courses. The Thai tour finished here the day before our visit so we expected
the course to be in excellent condition.
The
three division winners from Green Valley: Barry Rawlinson, Miss Nom and Jean
Morel.
Following reported torrential rain the previous evening
we arrived at the course to find a “pick, clean and place” sign on the front
desk and no buggies were allowed on the fairways. Generally the course was
in a damp condition but the greens were immaculate.
Mam Morel beat Miss Nut by 1 point to win the ladies
division with 25 points while Gordon Everingham took out division 2 on 32
points ahead of Jan Krag in second on 30, and in third place with 26 was
Torstein Olavssen.
Up and down each week, Chris Voller’s 36 points was
enough to win him division 1, with Bryan Rought second on 34 and Tage
Diedrichsen in third with 33.
No prizewinners today in the nearest the pins for the
ladies on the 2nd and 17th and
in the ‘2’s in division 2 another rollover to Green Valley on Wednesday, but
with two birdies on the twelfth hole Bryan Rought and Chris Voller shared
the pot in division 1.
Wednesday, Sept. 8, Green
valley - Stableford
We arrived at the Green Valley course just as the heavens
decided to open and expected a delayed start. But just as soon as it started
the rain stopped and we got away on time in bright sunshine.
With two extra players turning up on the day we had a
total of 9 groups of four with two divisions for the men and one separate
flight for the ladies.
In division 2 four players came in with 33 points each to
fight for second and third places; Russell Benson lost out with 16 on the
back nine, while William Chang also lost out to Jan Krag 12/11 on the back
six after they both tied with 18, but Joe Kubon’s 21 on the back nine got
him second place. The winner today with 36 points was Barry Rawlinson.
Jean Morel won division 1 with 38 points, with Frank
Kelly second one point behind and Chris Voller third on 35.
Miss Nom at last cheered up the old man, returning a
splendid 39 points to win the ladies comp. Well done! Miss Kung, Miss Mam
and Miss Nang all tied for second place with 32 points apiece, but having
the best of a 20/18/16 count-back Miss Nang was the one smiling most.
Near pins went to Miss Nang, Georges Faber, Gordon
Everingham, Miss Nom, Hugo Jossund, Burnie Sinclair, Mam Morel and Chris
Voller.
Friday, Sept. 10, Eastern
Star – Stableford
We had three divisions out today with a few more lower
handicappers enrolling and the 50 per cent cut mark is becoming lower each
week. There were 5 players of 15 h/cap today and the lowest at 14.8 went
into division 1 while the others played in the second division.
We experienced pleasant conditions today with a cool
breeze coming off the coast and anticipated some reasonable scores coming
in.
Don Head won division 2 with 33 points and in the same
group Russell Benson and Cully Monks both came in with 32 points each and 16
on the back nine, but Russell beat Cully on a 13/12 back six count-back.
John Lay was third in division 1 with 34 points and with
21 points on the back nine while Ya Riley amazingly finished second with 38
points, but the winner with 21 on each nine was Mikael Andersson with 42
points.
Miss Nom’s 32 points took out the ladies division with
Noi Emmerson second on 27 points. Nom also recorded the only nearest the pin
today with her shot on the 17th.
In the ‘2’s the only birdie of the day in either division came at the 13th
and Jon Lay went home smiling.
JJ wins by one point at Emerald
The Ban Chang Golf Society
After sunshine all week we were looking forward to a
good day at Emerald Golf Course, then on the way down the heavens opened
leaving us to wonder what is it about Fridays in the country? Luckily,
after a good breakfast, by the time we arrived at the course the rain
had abated and we started the round in overcast conditions.
JJ
celebrates his win with the girls at Mama’s Bar.
Eleven players this week so yet again 3 groups with
10 players in all competitions. Andy C did not leave this week, as
previously reported, but after doing his back in retired after 12 holes
which left us with ten players finishing the round and lots of confusion
at the prize giving due to ‘Broken Wing’ forgetting to put his card in.
JJ won the stableford competition with 37 points,
beating Terry C into second by one point. Someone obviously got to JJ’s
clubs because Danny L. won the nearest the pin prize to knock JJ off his
winning streak.
Skins results are as follows: Terry C (8), Dangle
(5), Danny L (2) Bernie (1) JJ (1) and the returning Andy Oz (1).
The prize giving finished it was off to Mama’s Bar afterward with
much bell ringing involved and greatly appreciated, especially from
‘Broken Wing’ for his failure to hand in Andy C’s score card!
Roger makes it to number one
Golf from the Travellers Rest
Barry Hooper
Roger Wilkinson is a player whose name I am often having
to type into my reports - usually for picking up one of the minor places,
second maybe or third. Well I am very happy to report that this past week he
was number one. He achieved top place at Phoenix on Thursday with 38 points,
just above Alun Webber and Fergus Brennan. Good on ya’ Roger, as they are I
believe often heard to say in Australia.
Monday, Sept. 6, Bangpra -
Stableford
1st David Booth (13) 37pts
2nd Alan Evans (31) 33pts
3rd
Robin Peach (17) 32pts
On Monday we went to Bangpra with a small group so just
one division. I have it reported that conditions were very good but also
hard to score well, with the fairways very narrow and the rough, if you
found it, extremely long.
Saturday’s winner Ron Gillies, left, looks after third placed Mod Chaviraksa.
David Booth obviously managed to tame the conditions as
he came home with 37 points and a full four up on the next player, Alan
Evans at 33. Back one more in third was Robin Peach, who is a visitor in our
midsts.
There were no ‘2’s so a bell ring was called for at the
TRGG.
Tuesday, Sept, 7,
Greenwood A&B - Stableford
1st Jeff North (8) 34pts
2nd Fergus Brennan (9) 34pts
3rd
Laurie Bevan (24) 33pts
Tuesday had us attending Greenwood and we had a fair
attendance with a bonus in store because on arrival we found only two or
three cars in the car park, so we were able to begin early and finish early.
The course was in excellent condition and someone described it as
millionaires’ golf at an acceptable cost.
Jeff North (Amphan’s other half) came out on top after
count back over Fergus, both finishing with 34 points each, but Jeff was 2
better on the back nine. In third was Laurie Bevan with 33 points.
Two ‘2’s came from Mod Chaviraksa and Saryl Ottoway.
Thursday, Sept. 9, Phoenix
- Stableford
1st Roger Wilkinson (15) 38pts
2nd Alun Webber (20) 36pts
3rd Fergus Brennan (9) 36pts
4th
Hugh Byrne (13) 36pts
It was back yet again to Phoenix on Thursday to play
Mountain and Lakes. Conditions were good but we only had a modest entry so
just one division. The course was practically empty so we were able to get
round in four hours.
This course has been really bringing out some good
scoring recently but there were no forties this week. Roger Wilkinso picked
up top spot with his 38 points, two up on both Alun Webber and Fergus
Brennan in second and third respectively.
Only the one ‘2’ today and it came from fourth placed
Hugh Byrne.
Saturday, Sept 11, Khao
Kheow – Stableford
1st Ron Gillies (21) 39pts
2nd Fergus Brennan (9) 36pts
3rd Mod Chaviraksa (11) 35pts
4th Tony Avery (14) 34pts
5th Bob
Rose (21) 34pts
Last Saturday it was a trip out of town to Khao Kheow to
play the A & B layouts. We had a very big entry with the numbers swelled by
a large visiting contingent from Down Under. Indeed, it was one of their
ranks that edged out Fergus Brennan for the win, namely Ron Gillies with his
39 points. Fergus was on 36 in second and Mod finished in third on 35.
Three ‘2’s came from Ron Gillies, Gary Minshin and Arnold
Jones.
Note: If you want any further or fuller
information about the golf outings played by the TRGG from the Travellers
Rest Hotel, please contact the hotel manager Tewin Lamthong on 086 056 7019
or just call in to the Travellers Rest in Soi LK Metro, Pattaya and look at
the notice board or visit our website at www.trgg.biz
Bob Lamond goes low
IPGC golf from The Haven
Monday, Sept. 6, Phoenix
(White tees) -Stableford
CSS 71
1st Al Keith (4) 40pts
2nd Rodney Hayes (10) 40pts
3rd Grant Cadell (15) 38pts
4th Barry Traynor (13) 36pts
5th
Orawan Meeraka (28) 36pts
Having not played Phoenix from the white tees since April
this year, quite a few players fancied their chances of getting to the top
of the podium at the end of the day’s play, but almost all were thwarted by
another outstanding round of golf by Al Keith, who delivered yet another
level par round that garnered him 40 points.
Rod
Howett.
That made his recent results two out of three at level
par in four days.
Rodney Hayes would have considered himself a little
unfortunate to not have grabbed top spot as he also returned a four under
round but was unable to do better than a two over gross 21 points as Al came
home in two under gross for 22 points to be declared the day’s winner.
Grant Cadell, one of Al’s playing partners, picked up
some of his rhythm and put together a very tidy two under for third place,
with Barry Traynor just getting the better of Orawan Meeraka on count-back,
on the back six with a 11 to 10 result after they had halved the back nine
in 18s.
Bob
Lamond.
There were no 2’s in the second division but Rodney Hayes
had one and Al Keith and Grant Cadell followed with both of them slotting
one in on mountain number four.
Before presenting the prizes The Doc welcomed back Mike
Dabanovich.
Wednesday, Sept. 8,
Bangpra - Stableford
CSS 72
1st Rod Howett (26) 36pts
2nd Rick Holmes (11) 35pts
3rd Mike Dabanovich (11) 34pts
4th Rodney Hayes (10) 33pts
5th
Al Keith (4) 32pts
Bangpra having just hosted the TPC B-ING Championship
tournament, which was part of the All Thailand Professional Tour, the course
was expected to be in top class condition. It certainly was all of that with
the fairways in excellent shape and the greens fast and true although
slightly slower than in some of the past occasions. All in all the players
considered it to be as good as any other course in the area and allied to a
very attractive price it’s certainly one to play on a regular basis in
preference to others costing double and more.
A very high quality field, with more than 50% of the
contestants with a handicap of 11 or better, found the highest handicapper
of the day, Rod Howett, in excellent form after he went round the very tight
layout in level handicap to take the win by the slimmest of margins from
Rick Holmes, the resident head banger, by a single stroke.
Mike Dabanovich slipped into third spot just another shot
back after showing great promise for an even better result on the outward
half. It was still good enough to help his playing partner Rodney Hayes, who
took fourth place, to defeat the tough pairing of Russell Exley and Alan
Pilkington in a hotly contested high stakes match even though the latter had
spent several hours of the previous day at the driving range. Unfortunately
the bar bill by far outweighed the bill for balls, by a factor of more than
ten.
Al Keith, having started the day odds on favourite
following his recent results, had to be content back in fifth as he trailed
Rodney Hayes by a single stroke.
In keeping with the difficulty with which the course was
playing, there were no 2’s in either division.
Friday, Sept. 10, St.
Andrews - Stableford
CSS 73
1st Bob Lamond (6) 42pts
2nd Steve Bickle (16) 38pts
3rd Rod Howett (26) 37pts
4th Phil Knight (10) 36pts
5th
Robert Taylor (10) 36pts
Bob Lamond turned in his best gross score since February
2009 and that was against a par of 72, so his level par gross 74, which
resulted in 42 points, richly deserved to take the day’s top honours with
his nearest challenger four shots adrift, underlining the quality of the
round in the conditions.
Steve Bickle made it a happy return to his favourite
golfing holiday destination with a two under handicap round that d he will
take back even more good memories when he returns to Blighty.
Rod Howett made his second trip to the podium in the week
with another steady round, this time one better, to take third place ahead
of Phil Knight and Robert Taylor, with Phil taking fourth spot with a better
count-back of 12 to 11 over the back six after they had tied the nine in
level par 18s.
Rod Howett swept the pool including the roll overs in the
second division ‘2’s and Trevor Schirmer, Tony Barritt and Russell Exley
shared the first division pot. Russell’s ‘2’ came of the extremely difficult
17th and he topped that feat with an even better eagle
three on the last but sill finished well out of contention after a slow
start.
Back at The Haven, Laurie Bevan was welcomed as a new
member and Steve Bickle was welcomed back prior to the presentations.
Note: If you would like to play with The Haven
group you can contact mobile 084 782 4582 or call in to the 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 8.30 on Mondays, Wednesday, Fridays and Sundays
on the days you wish to play. A schedule of courses to be played can be
found on our web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.
Ramsay & Knapp in the driving seat
IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar
The Pattaya Golf Society returned to Phoenix on Tuesday,
7th September to play a stableford competition on the Mountain and Lakes
nines and found the relatively empty course in better condition than on
their previous few outings.
The return of a few old friends made the day more
memorable and Bill Hewitt showed he had lost none of his “nouse” in
returning a score of 35 points to share third place with Tony Thorne, the
latter sharing the best gross score of the day with Kazuo Takimoto.
Playing together, in-form Ronnie Ramsay and Chris Knapp
went head-to-head throughout to record the best scores of the day and share
the victory with 38 points apiece. Chris also got his hands on the ‘2’s pot
with a splendid effort on Lakes seven.
Les Burns’s excellent two-under assault on the back nine
gave him a total of 31 points but did nothing to hide a poor front nine and
he duly received the Booby Bevy for the largest split score of the day.
Phoenix had once again given the PGS golfers a chance to
enjoy themselves on a pleasant day in the company of friends.
A job well “Don” at Green
Valley
The popular Green Valley club welcomed the Pattaya Golf
Society on Thursday, 9th September, when the Soi Buakhao based group played
a stableford competition on the well presented course. The absence of rain
for a few days has dried the course out and there was a surprising amount of
run on the fairways and with quick greens the competition would be sharp.
Sharing third place, on 31 points each, were Len Jones
and Rob Lamond, playing with the group again after a long absence. Rob’s
gross of 83 was the best of the day. In second place was Thai golfer Wichai
Tananusorn and his 34 points came in one of his last tournaments before
leaving for UK to watch the “big boys” in action at the Ryder Cup.
The day’s winner was “southpaw” Don Nellis and again he
demonstrated the consistency his game has adopted with a fine 35 point score
on the not too easy course.
Mikael Andersson recorded two birdie ‘2’s on the back
nine par threes and he was joined by John Mason and his birdie on the
sixteenth for a share of the ‘2’s pot, whilst the returning Steve McGill
enjoyed the Booby Bevy for his languid round which contained the day’s
biggest split of nine and eighteen.
Green Valley is well worth playing at the moment and the
group will return as soon as possible to enjoy more good golf at the popular
venue.
Big Mac sizzles at Emerald
The Pattaya Golf Society travelled to Ban Chang on
Saturday, 11th September, to play a stableford competition at the Emerald
club. The course was well presented, if a little soft, and play began under
overcast skies in comfortable cool conditions. The return of more old
friends made the day most enjoyable and one of these was to feature highly
in the results.
Sharing third place were Tony Thorne and Bob St Aubin,
the “Quiet Canadian”, both collecting an excellent level par 36 points. It
was the returning Paul McNally who stole the show however with a fine gross
77, giving him 37 points for a share of the win with Len Jones, similarly
connecting well all day. Arguably Paul is one of Pattaya’s finest golfers
and after seemingly interminable weeks at work he now has the opportunity
over the next month to get his handicap back to where it should be.
There were three birdie ‘2’s and Jon Lay, Tony Thorne and
Bob St Aubin all took a share for their efforts on hole number fifteen,
whilst the Booby Bevy went to the returning John Robertson after his
lacklustre nineteen points.
Emerald had been the scene of some splendid golf and it
was good to see “Big Mac” sizzling again!
Lawton lands top prize with final round scorcher
PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar
Joey’s column
Monday, Sept. 6, Burapha –
Stableford
After weeks of playing odd combinations from different
tees, the 29 Outbackers were back on the regular eighteen of A & B from the
blue tees, although it was rumoured that some of the blue tees were nearly
on the old ‘blacks’, making it difficult to reach the fairway for many.
Suzi
Lawton receives the Decanter from George Bishop.
No such problem though for Jim Brackett who took the
course by storm with a brilliant 42 points off a handicap of 8 to win Div A
with the day’s top score. Paul Young, who putts methodically but
effectively, also had a good round for second place on 40, which may be
enough to see his handicap reduced to 11, we shall see.
Div B had a tougher time than the big hitters from the
top division, as ‘Kissy’ Buchanan continued where he left off in July with
another win, this time 36 points off of h/cap 18. Kissy actually has a
handicap of 20 at the Vines in Perth but we think 18 suits him much better!
Second went to Bryan Priestley, who was having his first
game with the Outback, scoring 32 points ahead of two guys, both with 30
points, Larry Ball and Paul McGilvary.
There were four ‘2’s from Paul McGilvary, Oddvar Rykke,
John O’Keefe & Steve Mann
Div A (0-15)
1st James Brackett (8) 42pts
2nd Paul Young (12) 40pts
3rd Steve Mann (10) 38pts
4th Oddvar Rykke (11) 37pts
Div B (16+)
1st Keith Buchanan (18) 36pts
2nd Brian Priestly (21) 32pts
3rd Larry Ball (25) 30pts
4th Paul McGilvary (20) 30pts
Tuesday, Sept. 7, Pattaya C.C. - The Decanter – Day 2
With a field of 44 Outbackers, there were three
competitions to be decided here at Pattaya C.C.; The Decanter (2 day medal),
a 2 day stableford for those who failed to make the cut, and the normal
daily divisional competition. Having the benefit of a two-tee start, the
medal players went off the first tee and the stableford players from the
tenth.
What a shame that that PCC couldn’t get their act
together to present this course in a better condition, they have known about
this tournament for some time and what a great showcase to the Outback it
could have been, with a large number of players coming here today who
wouldn’t normally choose Pattaya C.C. Regrettably the greens on the opening
holes in particular were shocking and there is no doubt that it will be a
long time before General Jack can persuade many Outbackers to return.
Some of
the winners join Suzi in toasting her success,
(from the left) Jack, Geoff, Suzi, Paul and Pat.
The cancellation of the one player per cart promotion,
which incidentally had been extended twice since the end of June, also did
little to inspire confidence in the management. So much so that the Ryder
Cup singles, involving some sixty players, scheduled to be played here on
Friday 24th Sept, has been switched to the Emerald.
Most of the regular Tuesday players failed to appear on
any leaderboards as high scores came in from all divisions. Paul Greenaway
took the premier class division with 41 points in front of Paul Bourke
(39pts), who was just peppering the flag with his irons but couldn’t get the
ball to roll strait on the lumpy greens, and Pat Regan was third on
count-back with the same 39.
In the B division, it was Jack who took that on
count-back with 40 points, after scoring a miserable 3 points on the last
two holes, ahead of Ken Price with the same score.
Suzi Lawton, picked up the Div C prize with the day’s top
score of 43, ahead of the winner of last year’s Decanter, George Bishop on
39 and Div D went to Geoff Doody, whose coaching by Richard Livingstone must
be paying off, as he racked up 40 points ahead of Barney Clarkson (39) and
Tuesday regular, Nigel Cannon (38)
There was a total of nine ‘2’s from Paul G, Pat Regan,
Bob Lindborg, Jim Little, Neil Lavery, Dave Shelton, Ken Price and Barney
had two.
Div A (0-11)
1st Paul Greenaway (10) 41pts
2nd Paul Bourke (11) 39pts
3rd Patrick Regan (11) 39pts
Div B (12-15)
1st Jack Moseley (13) 40pts
2nd Ken Price (15) 40pts
3rd James Little (15) 37pts
Div C (16-20)
1st Suzi Lawton (17) 43pts
2nd George Bishop (16) 39pts
3rd Bob Lindborg (20) 38pts
Div D (21+)
1st Geoff Doody (22) 40pts
2nd Jeff Clarkson (25) 39pts
3rd
Nigel Cannon (24) 38pts
So with the leaders going out last, what affect was the
course condition going to have on the final group. Whether it actually
played a part or not in their total collapse is not known but the previous
Friday two shot leader, John Stafford, could only return a net 76 and the
second placed man, Steve Milne just one better with 75. The other two
members of that four-ball, John Helm and El Suggs, both had rounds they
would sooner forget.
The serious challenge for the coveted Decanter came from
the groups behind, with Suzi scoring a net 65, Paul Greenaway a net 67,
Geoff Doody a net 68 and Pat Regan, Paul Bourke and Jack all had 69’s. But
the winner by two shots with a two day net total of 139, was Suzi Lawton who
received The Decanter (this time full of wine) from last year’s winner,
George Bishop.
Two back was a three-way tie for second between Geoff
Doody, Jack Moseley and Paul Bourke all on 141, with Pat Regan tying with
Paul Greenaway for fifth place on 142.
The two day stableford, for those who didn’t make the
cut, started with the highest score carried over from Green Valley being 31
points, shared by five players; Bruce McAdam (B2), The Sugarman, Jum Karagit,
Terry Marney and Dave Shelton. B2 did the business, scoring 37 points today
for a two day total of 68 points ahead of George Bishop and the Sugarman
both on 67.
Just as a final note, one can’t help noticing that Suzi’s
husband, John, came absolutely rock bottom last. Well done Suzi!
The Decanter (Medal)
1st Suzi Lawton (17) net 139
T2nd Geoff Doody (22) net 141
T2nd Paul Bourke (11) net 141
T2nd Jack Moseley (13) net 141
T5th Paul Greenaway (10) net 142
T5th Patrick Regan (11) net 142
2-Day stableford
1st Bruce McAdam (22) net 68
T2nd George Bishop (16) net 67
T2nd Sugar Ray Handford (18) net 67
T4th Jeff Clarkson (25) net 66
T4th David Shelton (7) net 66
Wednesday, Sept. 8, Rayong C.C. - Stableford
When General Jack asked if anybody would like to do the
write up for Rayong C.C. today, there wasn’t exactly a show of hands;
however, Tony did offer but only if it was published in its entirety.
Judging by his comments at the bar and the fact that he walked off after
seven holes, it was decided not to risk it.
Steve Mann, who ran the show for the Outback, had some
more favourable thoughts although he did agree that the use of a mower might
be a good idea, but whatever the case it was in considerably better
condition that Pattaya C.C.
There were only 11 Outbackers there and Lawrie McBride
led the way through the long grass with a brilliant 40 points to win by two
from Bruce McAdam on 38, whilst Ed Delaney reproduced some of his Hua Hin
form to finish with 35 points to take third.
There were two ‘2’s from Rosco and Bryan Priestley
1st Lawrie McBride (14) 40pts
2nd Bruce McAdam (22) 38pts
3rd Eddie Delaney (28) 35pts
Friday, Sept. 10, Siam Plantation - Stableford
Today we returned to one of my favourite courses after a
long absence, Siam Plantation, playing the C and A nines and it felt great
to be back. The course was in fabulous condition, as per usual, and we
played from the white tees which in some cases were a little forward, but
that by the bye it was a great day out for the 34 Outbackers.
I wish to welcome some of Lumpy’s friends from Perth
(whoops! sorry Lumpy, I meant to say Fremantle). I hope Gary’s ribs keep
getting better so you don’t get all his money.
Some of the score’s were fantastic, particularly from the
higher handicappers in Div C; 41 points from Bob Parsons, 40 points from my
mate Paul McGilvary, who was having his last game before returning to NZ,
and 38 from Ed Delaney.
Paul Bourke won Div A with 38 and Steve Milne took Div B
with the same score (I played a different course I’m sure). We got no rain
although it did threaten for a while.
After golf it was back to the Outback to watch the
Fremantle boys play the Geelong Cats in Aussie rules which they went on to
lose dismally but I think the amber fluid took a lot of the pain away.
Finally, welcome back from Oman to Jim Moreton and Paul
Sharples, whose birthday it was, pity about the golf but thanks for the bell
ring Paul, and Happy Birthday mate.
There were four ‘2’s from Lumpy, Kissy, Andy Munroe &
Graham Ball.
Div A (0-12)
1st Paul Bourke (11) 38pts
2nd Andy Munroe (12) 36pts
3rd Paul Greenaway (11) 35pts
Div B (13-18)
1st Steve Milne (15) 38pts
2nd Joe Mooneyham (15) 37pts
3rd Lumpy Russell (13) 35pts
Div C (19+)
1st Bob Parsons (20) 41pts
2nd Paul McGilvary (20) 40pts
3rd Eddie Delaney (28) 37pts
Note: The Outback Golf Bar is situated about 6km
from Sukhumvit Road along Soi Siam Country. All are welcome to come and join
us for a beer and a hit. Just call in and put your name down on the list or
give Bob a call on 087 941 2474.
Bridge in Paradise: by Neil Robinson
Here is a hand to
try bidding with your favourite partner. See if you can get to the
optimum contract - my partner and I did not.
North-South were
vulnerable and East dealt. Assume you hold the North-South hands. If you
are playing 15-17 point 1NT, then the bidding will probably start as below.
What should North bid now to reach the best contract?
S: 3
H: Q
D: J952
C: AKQ10982
S: 9762 S: 10854
H: K83 H: A97642
D: KQ3 D: 1087
C: J74 C: -
S: AKQJ
H: J105
D: A64
C: 653
East South West North
P 1N P ?
The North hand has
only twelve points, but what a playing hand. There are six potential
losers, four diamonds and the major suit aces (the jack of clubs is a
conceivable additional loser, but unlikely). The question is how many of
these six will be covered by the winners in your partner’s no trump opener.
My partner and I have
a special bidding system to help find minor suit slams, but I am
disappointed to report that we ended up in just 3N (making three
overtricks).
After thinking about
the hand I decided the best way to bid it is the simplest. The most
critical cards to find in South’s hand are aces, to provide first round
control of whatever suit the defence leads. So bid 4C immediately, as
Gerber (if you do not play Gerber, this hand is a good reason to change).
When your partner shows two of the three missing aces, then blast right to
6C.
This slam contract is
cold no matter what is led - you take seven clubs, four spade tricks and the
ace of diamonds. A higher scoring (but riskier) contract is 6NT. A heart
lead will defeat this, but it is unlikely that West will lead a heart from
three to the king. The king of diamonds is a much more likely lead, or
maybe a top of nothing spade. Either allows the contract to make.
If you have bridge
questions, or to send me your interesting hands, please contact me at:
[email protected].
PSC Monthly Sea Fishing
Dene Mundy
The PSC September monthly fishing trip was voted another
success by the 8 angler participants and 1 accompanying lady.
The
anglers sample some well deserved beverages after their fishing exploits.
Whilst only 2 reasonably large snappers about 1ฝ - 2
kilos were caught, there were bag catches of over 10 kilos by several
members, yours truly being one with about 13 kilos (8 kilos after scaling,
cleaning etc). Many snapper and pla dang caught were around one pound (ฝ
kilo) size and these provide a great meal. I can attest to this having just
consumed 2 snappers, pan fried in canola oil, butter and garlic with a tangy
lemon, chilli sauce.
The two champions were Kharmoon and John Haddon pictured
(hopefully) at the libations after the trip. John was using more than a
little poetic licence in the picture showing the size of the fish they
caught.
Many thanks to the skipper, deck hand and Khram Fishing
Lodge for the boat and venue for the great day had by all.
During the last month I investigated other possible boats
ex Bang Saray and found they are available at baht 4,500 and upwards. They
are considerably smaller (and cheaper) than our current boat and can only
take 4 - 6 people comfortably. Discussions with our current participants
indicate they would prefer the larger boat we are currently using and pay
the additional cost of approx of baht 500 per head for the increased comfort
and amenities we experience. Nevertheless, I can provide information to
anyone who may wish to organise a group of 4 or more who may wish to use a
less expensive boat.
Also for those who wish to go big game fishing, I can
direct you to Ralf Bernard, a professional who conducts these trips from
Sattahip.
The next monthly trip is on Saturday 2 October and already we have 7
confirmed attendees. One more wanted! Contact me (Dene) on 081 862 6279 or
book at the P.S.C. Office
Sabai Friday creep up
the leader board
Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League
200 Bowlers: Mio, Tui, Ooy & Somrak.
Sabai Friday won again this past week behind Nok
Kennedy’s 534 series, taking three points from Green Tree. As a result Sabai
Friday moved up to fourth place and Green Tree dropped down to fifth.
Café Kronborg continued their winning ways as they won
three points from Brother D. Kran Nielsen bowled a 551 series and Jang Shaw
a 520 for Kronborg. Antero Ronkainen had a 538 series for Brother D.
VFW Post 9876 gained one point on first place as they
were the only team to win all four points. They beat the USMC team behind
good bowling by Somrak who had a 214 game, 559 series, Tui Amphanon a 213
game, 566 series and David Shaw bowled a 506.
Mio Aamlid bowled a 207 game and a 573 series to lead House of the Golden
Coin to a three point win over Jack Tar. Ooy Pluemkamon bowled a 222 game
and 574 series for Jack Tar. Bavaria won two and one halve point from Canada
with only Lek Reaper bowling well in the match as she posted a 520 series.
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