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A new champion crowned at Thailand Optimist
National championship
Chaninat
Poolsirikot (THA 188) was the winner of the 2011 Thailand Optimist
Nationals.
After nine races over three days, the 130 international
junior sailors finished the Thailand Optimist Nationals in style on Monday,
with tropical blue skies and steady wind and Thailand winning the top three
places in all divisions. The Thailand Optimist Nationals is incorporated in
the Top of the Gulf Regatta and organised in co-operation with the Yacht
Racing Association of Thailand.
In the Under 12s division, Jarupong Meeyusamsan showed
his class to take first from Sutida Poonpat in second and top Samui sailor
Natthakarn Punyawan in third.
In the girls division, Chaninat Poolsirikot scored
consistently well to take a resounding victory over Kanapan Pachatikapanya
in second and Kamonchanok Khlahan in third.
The Thailand National Optimist championship has a long
and storied history with many of today’s top Thai sailors having competed,
and won, the perpetual trophy. In 1976 the Yacht Racing Association of
Thailand started Junior Sailing, a programme to encourage and train young
Thai sailors and send them to compete in international sailing events. In
the same year, YRAT started what was then called the Optimist Thailand
Championship Cup, known today as the Thailand Optimist Nationals. Now in its
35th year, the Thailand Optimist Nationals is as competitive as ever, with
many leading Thai juniors, international teams and world champions competing
for the title.
This year, 2010 Thailand Optimist Nationals champion and
2010 World Champion, Noppakao Poonpat, could not enter, no longer being
eligible to race Optimists having reach the class age limit. This meant 2011
would see a new national champion and a new star take the headlines.
In 2010, Thailand won the Team World Optimist
Championships and two members of that winning team took part in the Thailand
Optimist Nationals over the last three days. Expectations were high for the
two World Champions. After nine competitive races, Sarawut Phetsiri took
second overall and Jirawat Jadklay fourth. Neither could match the five
firsts and overall consistency of the series winner, 13 year old Thai girl
Chaninat Poolsirikot, who won by four points and is the 2011 Thailand
Optimist Nationals champion.
Sarawut Phetsiri took second and Pongsapat Pumyam third.
Prizes were presented at the Gala Dinner hosted by Ocean
Marina Yacht Club with the new Thailand Optimist National champion being
cheered by all the participants, big and small.
Note: A full and comprehensive round-up of the 2011 Top of the Gulf (TOG)
Regatta can be found in next week’s Pattaya Mail. (Source TOG Press
Release)
Optimist
sailors enjoy great sailing conditions on Day 1 of the championships.
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Dolphin’s flounder at rain
lashed Chiang Rai
Pattaya
United’s Ittipol Poolsap, left, challenges for the ball with a Chiang Rai
defender during the second half of their Thai Premier League match at the
Mae Fah Luang University Stadium in Chiang Rai, Sunday, May 1.
(Photo/Ariyawat Nuamsawat)
Pattaya United came unstuck at a rain drenched Mae Fah
Luang University Stadium in Chiang Rai last Sunday to drop down to ninth
place in the Premier League standings after 11 rounds of the current season.
The hosts were coming off a five game losing streak and
they looked like they might be extending that unwanted run as Pattaya tore
into the home team in the opening 10 minutes.
Having weathered the early onslaught, however, it was
Chiang Rai who broke the deadlock with their first attack of the game in the
13th minute. A shot came in from the left side of the
penalty area which Narit in the Pattaya goal was unable to hold and Chiang
Rai’s Brazilian striker Edvaldo spectacularly volleyed in the rebound to
give his side the lead.
Worse was to follow for the Dolphins on the half hour
mark when a corner kick to the home team was pulled back to Tawatchai
Thong-Huad and the defender unleashed an unstoppable left foot shot from
fully 25 yards out that flew past Narit and cannoned in off the far post and
upright to double Chiang Rai’s lead.
Pattaya gained a foothold back into the match on the
stroke of half time when Ittipol Poolsap ghosted in at the far post to knock
the ball past Tanusorn from what seemed like an impossible angle.
United pressed hard for an equalizer in the second half
without creating any clear cut chances but their prospects were dealt a
severe blow when Slovenian defender Marian Juhas was harshly shown a second
yellow card in the 75th minute leaving the Dolphins to
play out the final quarter of an hour with just 10 men.
Chiang Rai put a seal on their victory deep into injury
time through a penalty kick from Wasan Natasan leaving United with a long
trip home and nothing to show for their efforts.
Pattaya United’s next match is another away game, this
time against BEC Tero Sasana in Bangkok on Saturday, May 7. Kick off
scheduled for 6 p.m.
In the Thai Premier League standings, Buriram
consolidated their position at the top with a hard fought 2-1 win over Army
while Chonburi remain their nearest rivals after beating BEC Tero 2-0. Sri
Racha are still rooted to the foot of the division after losing 3-1 to
Bangkok Glass and are the only team still looking for their first win of the
season.
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Pattaya Rugby 10’s Tournament goes from strength to strength
Tequila Mocking Birds on
the charge against Thai Mosquitoes.
The eleventh edition of the Chris Kays Memorial 10’s Rugby Tournament took
place over the weekend of 30th April and 1st
May, and 16 rugby teams from all over Thailand and other parts of the world
had arrived in Pattaya to contest what has become one of the principal 10
a-side tournaments in the region.
Saturday dawned bright and sunny and the upgraded
facilities at Horseshoe Point were in perfect condition, with tents having
been erected around the playing area to create an amphitheatre ready for the
battles that were to come.
There were many familiar faces returning to try and
capture some of the silverware and there was a very welcome appearance from
the “Pot Bellied Pigs”, one of Asia’s most colourful and committed touring
teams, albeit as a support group for the Phuket Viagrabonds. We also
welcomed another famous touring team from Hong Kong, the Typhoons,
travelling under the name of “The Tequila Mocking Birds” together with their
quieter cousins from Causeway Bay RFC who were making their first venture to
Pattaya.
Bangkok
Bangers take on AT Truck at the line-out.
The main tournament was to be contested by 16 teams with
a strong local bias. The Thai teams continue to improve and they are
starting to excel at this brand of rugby as the greater space created by
only having 10 players per side benefits the speedy Thai physique. There
were 7 all-Thai teams with several Thai national players in their ranks and
of course many Thai players in the other squads. Unfortunately last year’s
champions Thai Legends were engaged elsewhere and were unable to defend
their title but Khun Day still managed to enter 4 teams with some innovative
names such as “F” Club and Thai Mosquitoes. The Thai Barbarians, who were
former champions, led the local challenge and they had a new feeder team A.
T. Truck sponsored by one of the boy’s parents.
As usual there was strong representation from the
expatriate teams in Bangkok; The Southerners were as usual favourites from
this group but the Old Bangkok Bangers had found some young Bangers and they
played as the impressively named Bangers “F” Troop (no relation to the “F”
Club). They had impressed with their fitness and energy under the leadership
of Mr. Grumpy and both teams were expecting to make a big impression.
Pattaya
Panthers on the charge.
Perennial crowd favourites the Bangkok Japanese had also
found some new blood and they were expected to make a strong challenge.
Bangkok University provided the lone academic challenge due to the late
withdrawal of Kasetsart University but fortunately the slack was taken up by
a group of graduates from Surin, who had actually travelled down to support
their old school in the U-18’s tournament.
We also welcomed back the Chiang Mai Suas, who have gone
from strength to strength and were hoping to go one better than being losing
Cup finalists last year. The Phuket ‘Viagrabonds’ with considerable help
from the aforementioned Pot Bellied Pigs rounded out the field with the
hosts Pattaya Panthers, who felt that at full strength they also stood a
good chance of getting amongst the trophies.
The teams were divided into 4 groups and Saturday’s games
were played in a round-robin format to determine the ranking for the various
knockout tournaments.
In the rather warm conditions hard and fast running rugby
was the order of the day for the Thais and rucking and mauling for the
larger and more mature foreign players. Most games went to form as expected
and there were strong performances from all of the Thai teams, especially
the Royal Thai Police and The “Suas”, whilst the host team stunned everybody
including themselves by playing out of their skins and actually drawing
their first group game against Causeway Bay and winning a heart stopper
against the Bangers “F” Troop, thus qualifying for the Cup competition.
Cup
winners Thai Police team ready at the put-in.
The Royal Thai Police led the way into the Cup
quarter-finals and were established as early favourites with the “Suas”,
Southerners, Thai Barbarians, A. T. Truck and Thai Mosquitoes.
Thai Barbarians and the Old Bangkok Bangers led the way
into the Plate competition after elimination from the Cup whilst the “F”
Club and the hosts were running on the rails.
The preliminary rounds of the of the junior U-18’s
tournament were played in the cool of the Saturday evening with the final
rounds to be played early on Sunday morning. The Boys U-18 tournament went
ahead with 8 teams all from Thai schools and clubs. The games were all very
hotly contested with teams from Bangkok battling against the boys from the
provinces. The boys set a very high standard for the men to live up to and
everybody who witnessed the ability and courage of these boys agreed that
the standards are improving very quickly.
The
Viagrabonds challenge the Mocking Birds to a different kind of game.
The tournament was won by the No. 1 team from Vajiravudh
College and for the second year running the runners-up were the
Surawittayakrn School from Surin and the Plate was won by the Chalermprakiet
School Roi-Et. Trophies were presented to the winners by Khun Adisak Hemyoo
the President of the Asian Rugby Union and Vice-President of the Thailand
Rugby Union.
Sunday dawned and tired limbs were anointed and strapped
as the quest for Cup, Plate, Bowl and Shield got under way. The night‘s
partying had definitely taken its toll and the Tequila Mocking Birds had
obviously partaken of large quantities of Don Jose Gold as they missed their
Bowl quarter-final completely. Many first time losers were surprised to find
that they then had to play more games than if they had won as the trickle
down worked. Again there were some superb performances and some very close
encounters with not a few surprises.
Players
and spectators take some welcome shelter from the hot sun.
The Royal Thai Police led the way into the semi finals
with Chiang Mai Suas, Southerners and “F” Club filling the other spots. In
the Plate we saw some fine performances from the Thai Barbarians who had of
course dropped down from the Cup and together with their sister club A. T.
Truck, Bangkok University and “F” Club won through to the semi finals whilst
Surin, Causeway Bay, Bangkok Japanese and the hosts would contest the Bowl
semis.
In the Shield we had two dream matches in the semi-final
as The Bangkok Bangers teams would play each other and the Tequila Mocking
Birds (if they arrived?) would play the Shield holders the Phuket
Viagrabonds. In the event the first semi final between the Bangers and their
“F” Troop was settled over 20 beers. The Tequila Mocking Birds barely made
it and were then summarily sent back to the bar by Phuket, who were set on
retaining their Shield.
The
refreshment team brings emergency supplies to the officials’ tent.
The Shield was finally decided between The Phuket
Viagrabonds and the Old Bangkok Bangers and after a draw at full time a
drink off was refused and in a hotly contested extra period the Bangers
finally got the golden score to run out winners 19-14. Then there was a
mighty drink off between both squads consisting of beer and tequila, and
Phuket Viagrabonds did win that thanks to the contribution of Chris Kays
Trophy winner Mark, who downed almost a half bottle of tequila on his own …
shame on you Mocking Birds!
The competition for the Bowl was by contrast a bagful of
surprises. Bangkok Japanese had handsome victories over The Bangers “F”
Troop and Causeway Bay to make the final whilst the surprise team was Surin
who squeezed past the host Pattaya Panthers to make it into the Bowl Final
against the Bangkok Japanese, who were the sentimental favourites. In a
hotly contested final the boys from Surin prevailed 33-17 as they seemed to
have more left in the tank and had probably not drunk as much sake as the
Japanese boys!
Collecting for a worthy cause – the Croston House Children’s Home which was
badly damaged by fire recently.
The Plate promised to be just as exciting and hard fought
and it was hoped that the hosts, who had dropped down from the Cup, would be
able to reproduce their form of the previous day and finally get among the
silverware. It did look like a home victory could be possible but the home
team imploded on the final day and ended up empty handed.
The final was an all-Thai affair between the two sister
clubs, Thai Barbarians and A. T. Truck. Despite their relationship no
quarter was given in the match and in a very fast hard fought game the
senior side Thai Barbarians were finally crowned Plate winners by a score of
19-7.
Bangkok
University get to grips with the Thai Barabarians.
So the stage was set for the Cup Final between the
resurgent Royal Thai Police Team, who were former champions, and last year’s
losing finalists the Chiang Mai Suas. It was an absolutely cracking final in
which no quarter was given. The “Suas”, with their older and more
experienced heads in the team, gave their all but finally the superior
fitness of their opponents told as the “Suas” legs tired. The Royal Thai
Police eventually triumphed and regained their title in style, winning a
hotly contested final quite comfortably 28- 0.
After the final whistle everybody crashed into the pool
and the presentations were made to all trophy winners by Jim Howard the
Chairman of Pattaya Panthers RFC. He also presented the prestigious Chris
Kays Award, for the person contributing most to the tournament on and off
the field, to Mark Goodwin from the Pot Bellied Pigs, mainly for his
efficiency with the tequila bottle. The player of the tournament was Khun
Joy from the “F” Club.
Phuket
Viagrabonds take on the Bangkok Bangers in the Shield final.
A vote of thanks is due to all the organizers, supporters
and sponsors without whom a tournament like this could not happen: MBMG
International, Cranes and Equipment Asia Ltd., Amari Orchid Resort, G4S
Security, AusGroup Corporation, Waste Management Siam Thailand, Construction
Cost Consultants, Synovate Thailand, Jardine Shipping, NZ Asset Management
and Phoenix Pacific Inc.
Also a heavy vote of thanks goes to Contract Resources
Asia, who provided all the shade and Bangkok Pattaya Hospital for the first
aid and medical attention. Of course thanks also goes to Horseshoe Point for
providing a perfect venue and our beer sponsors San Miguel Thailand and Asia
Pacific Fluids who supplied the imported beers and the very attractive beer
servers.
Bangkok
Japanese tackle Surin in the Bowl final.
We were also royally entertained by Russell Jay from Mix
88.5 FM radio station and Soundzgood Discotheques, who kept us amused with
his style on the mike and the music.
A final mention should also be made of the boys and girls
from the Croston House Children’s Home, who provided the ball persons for
the weekend, they did an amazing job and The Croston House Foundation is the
tournament’s designated charity for this year.
David Viccars, the referees’ supremo was absent this year but Bruce
Birchall stepped into the breach and kept the games running smoothly with
his team of Thai and foreign referees. Thank you very much gentlemen we
couldn’t have a tournament without you!
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Thai driver Stuvik finishes in top group at Spa Francorchamps
Sandy Stuvik races his
Formula Renault car at the Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium, Sunday, May
1.
Sandy Stuvik, the 16 year old Thai racer, showed little respect for the
established European drivers last weekend as he stormed up the grid of the
sun drenched Belgian circuit.
Sandy takes breather in
the pit lane.
Having qualified 22nd in the morning, after being blocked
on his fast lap and seeing his subsequent hot lap being red flagged, the
Thai driver knew he could be quite a bit faster than the cars around him.
The massive grid of 45 Formula Renault cars got off to a good start, and the
Asian Champion quickly started picking off cars in front of him. Over the
action packed race he moved up 9 positions, to finish the race in 13th
place.
Both the Sandy and his team were very satisfied with the
progress he had made, in this the toughest junior Formula grid in the world.
The 4th race was won by Russian driver Danil Kvyat, with
British driver Will Stevens in second and Spaniard Carlos Sainz Jr in third.
The race saw the Safety Car out on the first lap, due to two cars at the
back end of the grid colliding.
The next race in the 2011 EuroCup series will be at Nurburgring in
Germany on June 18th to 19th and the Sandy will enter into a tough fitness
program to prepare himself even better for the next round. The 16 year old
Rayong boy is firmly set to breaking into the EuroCup points fight by the
middle of the season.
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Kraft leaves ‘young guns’ in his wake
PSC golf from The Three Sisters Bar
Monthly
winner Paul Kraft, left, with Joe St. Laurent.
As the end of the month rolled around and with the
holidays behind us, our numbers finally picked up. The ‘oldster’ of the
group rose to the top again to show the rest of us that it’s not age that
counts but the way you play the game. Paul Kraft shot a score that was half
his age. He came in with 38 points and could have easily come in with more.
We had a slew of followers that tied for second on 36
points, namely Bill Thompson, Larry Emerson and Joe St. Laurent. They were
all going over the count-back until Paul put them in the back seat. They
still needed the second place winner so it didn’t go to waste. Just behind
the list at 36 was Sus Ige with 35 points.
At their gathering place at Caddy Shack II, plans were
laid out for next week’s competition - a two men scramble will be held.
Teams were formed and as usual, the bragging rights began on who had the
best team. It will be interesting to see how it will turn out. Entry fee
will be 200 hundred baht and will be divided for 3 places. Hope to see you
all there.
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Rippey secures hat-trick
of monthly medal shirts
PSC golf from The Golf Club Sports Bar
Monday, April 25,
Green Valley - Stableford
1st Brad Sproxton (12) 35pts
2nd Alex Godinez (24) 35pts
3rd Peter LeNoury (9) 35pts
We had a smaller field today with 15 golfers, six of
which scored 35 points to tie for first. Let the count-backs begin! Brad
Sproxton managed a B9 of 21 points to take the frame, Alex Godinez a B9 of
20 for second and Peter Lenoury a B9 of 18 for third. Missing out were Jeff
Gortler with 17, Gordon Kerr and John Emmerson with 16.
The near pin winner on # 16 was Suzi Lawton. Thanks to
all that attended.
Wednesday, April 27, Greenwood A & C - Medal
1st Ian Rippey (11) net 67
2nd Jon Haugen (8) net 70
3rd Gordon Kerr (13) net 71
4th Noel Pittard (8) net 71
Near Pins: Steve Snelgrove
2’s: Jeff Coriero, John McHugh (2), Ian Rippey, Brian
Gavagan
Twenty-eight players showed up to contest this month’s
medal comp at Greenwood. We were assigned the A & C combination and stood on
the first tee eyeing the skies for the inevitable shower that was sure to
come.
Only one man in the field held 2 of the coveted Monthly
Medal winner’s shirts. The third came a few hours (and a rain delay) later
as Ian Rippey fired a fantastic gross 78 off the stick and was 3 shots clear
of the next competitor Jon Haugen. A count-back was needed to settle third
and fourth with Gordon Kerr edging out Noel Pittard.
Friday, April 29,
St. Andrews - Stableford
1st Ron Gamey (15) 40pts
2nd Chuck Anderson (12) 39pts
3rd Jeff Cordiero (9) 38pts
4th Noel Pittard (8) 37pts
Near Pins: Steve Snelgrove
2’s: Andre VanDyke, Ed Kost, Steve Snelgrove, Chuck
Anderson
Ron Gamey, visiting from Hua Hin, was our winner today
with a fine 40 points off the white tees. The quiet Canuck Chuck Anderson
was second with 39 points which included 2 chip-ins. Jeff Cordiero left a
lot of putts out there and finished third. Noel Pittard concluded a
consistent week with another fourth.
Note: The Golf Club is located on Soi LK Metro, off
Soi Buakhao and Soi Diana junction. We can be reached on 085 434 3377 or
[email protected] and our new website is www.golfclubpattaya.com.
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Mann & McBride on the mark at St. Andrews
PSC golf from The Outback Golf Bar
Kevin Fitzgerald with
playing partners Capt’ Bob and Harry Moseley (right) and caddies at Burapha
on Monday, April 25.
Monday, April 25, Burapha B & D - Stableford
There was an ASEAN PGA Tour event coming up here on 5th
May, so preparations were under way erecting the stands, scoreboards, TV
towers etc. About a dozen Outbackers were due to play in the Pro-Am on Weds
4th May and were hoping for one of the big name Pros
to play with, either way and whoever they got drawn with, it promised to be
a great day out.
Brian
Maddox.
We had the privilege of playing the B & D nines, but not
from the tips; Capt’ Bob was lenient this week and nominated the tee of the
day as white. 26 Outbackers tried their skills and Brain Maddox came in with
the best score of the day, 39 points, to win Div B by two from Jerry Quin
(37pts), who at long last has sorted out his tee shots.
Paul Young returned to the Outback with a win in Div A,
37 points, just ahead of Sel Wegner and Chris Fletcher both on 36.
There were three ‘2’s from Jack Moseley, Bob Philp &
Svenn Lund.
Div A (0-15)
1st Paul Young (12) 37pts
2nd Chris Fletcher (12) 36pts
3rd Sel Wegner (14) 36pts
4th Bob Philp (10) 35pts
Div B (16+)
1st Brian Maddox (21) 39pts
2nd Jeremy Quin (18) 37pts
3rd Greg Hill (26) 37pts
4th Steve Plant (16) 36pts
Tuesday, April 26, Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
Twenty-three Outbackers on the starting blocks but not so
many completed the circuit as heavy rain interrupted the day’s play,
rendering many of the greens unplayable, particularly for the later groups.
It did (the rain) eventually clear away but too late for some.
Otherwise the course was OK but quiet, even if the greens
were getting a little furry, making them slow.
Dave Earthrowl clearly had no problem with them (the
greens) as he notched up the day’s top score of 38 points to take Div A by
three from Paul Smets and Svenn Lund, both with 35. Mam Persson (Ms Seesa)
made 33 points work for her to win Div B from Sid Ottaway on the same score
and JinJo (Martin O’Neill), with 32.
There were two ‘2’s from Kev Fitzgerald and Svenn Lund.
Div A (0-20)
1st David Earthrowl (20) 38pts
2nd Paul Smets (17) 35pts
3rd Svenn Lund (14) 35pts
Div B (21+)
1st Phompinmon Seesa (30) 33pts
2nd Sid Ottaway (23) 33pts
3rd Martin O’ Neill (27) 32pts
Wednesday, April 27, Greenwood C & A - Stableford
Five groups from the Outback (20 Outbackers) and a
similar number from the Golf Club, were just about the only players on this
superb golf course. We started on loop C and the Golf Club started on loop
A, all being able to play at a comfortable pace without any hold-ups. The
weather once again deteriorated as the round progressed but other than a
short delay for the passing lightning, everybody was able to complete their
round.
Brian Maddox followed up his win on Monday at Burapha
with another one here, taking Div B with only 34 points, from a new boy to
the Outback, Greg Leblanc with 33, playing off an adjusted h’cap of 19.
Sel Wegner topped the premier division with his 37, to
follow his third place at Burapha and may see his handicap coming back down
to 13 very soon. The handicapper is slowly catching up with Owen Walkley,
now down to 10, but he still managed to get himself into second place,
scoring 35.
We say goodbye to General Jack’s son, Harry, whose golf
has come on leaps and bounds as he played in his first ever golf tournaments
alongside his Dad; “he’s going to improve quickly”, said Jack, “no doubt
next year when he returns, he will be giving me shots!”
There were three ‘2’s from Owen Walkley, Michael Morrison
and Sugar Ray.
Div A (0-15)
1st Sel Wegner (14) 37pts
2nd Owen Walkley (10) 35pts
3rd Bernie Stafford (12) 33pts
Div B (16+)
1st Brian Maddox (21) 34pts
2nd Greg Leblanc (19) 33pts
3rd Jean Paul Michiels (18) 33pts
Friday, April 29, St. Andrews - Stableford
All three nines at Khao Kheow were closed today as they
were hosting a big tournament, so we moved to St. Andrews for a change, with
our 32 Outbackers. The Golf Club were there as well, as were The Caddyshack
all enjoying a very attractive rate for the course.
It was a slow round of about five hours but nevertheless
many players were able to hold their concentration to run up some excellent
scores, not least of all Joe Mooneyham whose 40 points was not enough to win
his division, but considering he had two wipes it was a great effort to take
second.
Lawrie McBride had the day’s top score of 42 to win Div
B, ahead of Joe, and third place was a long way back with three players tied
on 34 points.
Steve Mann headed the premier division with 40 points,
two in front of Capt’ Bob with 38; whose 19 on the back nine was just enough
to give him the edge over Mike Morrison’s 18.
Joe Tynan’s 36 points got the nod over Andrew Makara as
he (Joe) scored 20 on the back and 16 on the front, whereas Andy’s was the
exact reverse. Third place went to Brian Maddox (35pts), which completes a
very successful week for him with two firsts and a third.
There were five ‘2’s from Bob Philp, Steve Mann, Danny
Medd, John Heaney & Joe Mooneyham.
Div A (0-12)
1st Steve Mann (9) 40pts
2nd Bob Philp (10) 38pts
3rd Michael Morrison (11) 38pts
Div B (13-17)
1st Lawrence McBride (15) 42pts
2nd Joe Mooneyham (14) 40pts
3rd Suzi Lawton (17) 34pts
Div C (18+)
1st Joe Tynan (29) 36pts
2nd Andrew Makara (27) 36pts
3rd
Brian Maddox (21) 35pts
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Who is Jun Usami?
Golf from the Travellers Rest
Barry Hooper
It was nice to get back to our normal full week of
outings again after the restrictions on activities the previous week
because of the Songkran festivities. The numbers playing were also
filling out a little bit which is always good to see.
Monday and Tuesday winners: Mike Smith and Jun Usami.
Amongst those numbers were a few “new faces” and one
that seems to be standing out a little. I am referring to Jun Usami whom
I am led to understand comes from Japan. He is apparently here to play
golf and pretty good golf it seems judging by the result sheets I
received. He came home with a second spot at Greenwood on Saturday with
36 after count-back over Richard Petterson. The event winner was Larry
Simpson with 37
He topped this out on Monday at St. Andrews with a
win and 39 points after beating Roger Wilkinson again on the count-back.
Richard Goad was third with 36. But unfortunately he slipped a little on
Tuesday at Emerald and could only manage a third with 33. But this time
it was at the top of a three way count-back over Noel Pittard and Roger
Wilkinson.
These count backs seem to have become a habit. He
obviously plays better on the back nine’s. I did notice however that he
had received a cut in his handicap to 9 after his previous results.
Mike Smith was the winner on this occasion with a
great 40 pointer and the second spot went to Jon Dean and 38.
On Thursday at Phoenix we had great support with over
twenty varied ability players taking part so two divisions were played.
Div 1 was won by Noel Pittard with 39 and he was
followed in by Jon Dean at 36 for his second runner up spot of the week.
Third was Bill McGarvie with 35, and just for the record Jun Usami
scored 31 and was sixth.
In Div 2 top honours went to Rod Crosswell with 37
but we had to go back five points to find second and that was Alain
Persilherbie at 32 (a one spot improvement on his third place earlier in
the week). Third was the Welsh wizard himself Alun Webber at 31.
And with that outing so the week’s play was rounded
off in style.
Saturday, April 23,
Greenwood – Stableford
1st Larry Simpson (11) 37pts (11)
Winner
2nd Jun Usami (10) 36pts
3rd Richard Petterson (5) 36pts
4th Alain Persilherbie (15) 32pts
Monday, April 25, St. Andrews - Stableford
1st Jun Usami (10) 39pts
2nd Roger Wilkinson (11) 39pts
3rd Richard Goad (12) 36pts
4th Brendan Moore (11) 35pts
Tuesday, April 26, Emerald - Stableford
1st Mike Smith (9) 40pts
2nd Jon Dean (10) 38pts
3rd Jun Usami (9) 33pts
4th Noel Pittard (8) 33pts
5th Roger Wilkinson (10) 33pts
Thursday, April 28, Phoenix – Stableford
A Flight
1st Noel Pittard (8) 39pts
2nd Jon Dean (10) 36pts
3rd Bill McGarvie (9) 35pts
B Flight
1st Rod Crosswell (13) 37pts
2nd Alain Persilherbie (15) 32pts
3rd
Alun Webber (19) 31pts
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 call in to the Travellers Rest in Soi LK Metro,
Pattaya and look at the notice board or visit their website at
www.trgg.biz.
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Greg and Mashi bag 40 pointers
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
Derek Brook
Tuesday, April 26,
Greenwood - Stableford
Low numbers today as we ventured out after the Songkran
break. Some have not returned and some were up at River Kwai for the ANZAC
memorial services. This would be the final Tuesday outing of the month so
the ‘golfer of the month’ award was to be decided, but to be declared next
week. So, under cloudy skies and a hope the daily rains would hold off, we
were off to one of the group’s favorite courses after breakfast and coffee
at Bert’s.
Mashi
Kenata.
Arriving at Greenwood, check in was quick, efficient and
all were pleased with the special Tuesday Sports Day rate. No carts allowed
on the fairways today due to recent afternoon rains so it was ‘lift, clean,
and place’ on the fairways and relief allowed in bunkers, some of which were
better called water hazards or mud holes. No problem and we were off to take
on the ‘C’ and ‘A’ nines off the yellow tees.
Other than the bunkers, which the grounds crew were
working on, the course was in very good condition, but allowing little roll.
Play was at a good pace, the rains stayed away, and each
of our groups finishing their round in a bit over 4 hours. Showered and
compiling the scorecards showed that several players had indeed conquered
the course. Guess next time we’ll have to go off the white’s to give the
course a better chance.
Back at Tropical Bert’s, after a thirst quenching brew
and a sandwich or two, the day’s results were announced. Results for the
‘golfer of the month’ will be tallied and announced at our next outing. All
applauded the winner who rang the bell for the golfers and the evening was
off to a great start.
1st Greg Menne (25) 44pts
2nd Barry Oats (29) 41pts
3rd Mike O’Brien (17) 40pts
4thh Bill Knight (19) 38pts
Near Pins: Joe Charles (2), Mike O’Brien
Friday, April 29, Pleasant Valley - Stableford
We had a good turnout for this trip up to Pleasant
Valley. This is a course that is improving greatly except for the parking
area. With it raining of late, the place was a mud heap and parking the cars
in between the big holes filled with water, and skirting the mud was
difficult. Soon we bypassed it and were getting changed.
Changed and on the first tee it was obvious that it had
rained hard of late. The fairways were soggy and carts were not allowed off
the path. Soon we were off and apart from a light wind it was a super day.
Off we went and good scores were being put up by all the people in our
group. Whilst the ground was wet the greens putted well if not a little
slow.
We were soon around and a hot shower put us in mind for
the drive back. Back at Bert’s it was time for ‘silence’ as all the TV’s
were on and the ‘wedding’ was centre stage. Bert’s being the centre of The
Royal British Legion here in Thailand, it can be seen that golf took second
place. Mind no one objected as we were all mesmerized.
The winner with 43 points was Mashi Kenata. In second we
had a count-back won by Walter Bachli with 42 points who birdied the last
over Derek Brook who double bogeyed the last. Such is life. We then
continued to watch the ‘wedding’ and had a few beers. T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Graham Buckingham, Daryl Evans, Mashi
Kaneta, Derek Brook.
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‘Broken Wing’ soars at Emerald
Friday’s
winner ‘Broken Wing’ (center) outside Senorita’s Bar.
Yet again another quiet week at Emerald Golf Course so
with 10 players, of which 9 were in all competitions, we got away on time
and proceeded to get around in under four hours, which seems to be the norm
now on a Friday.
As the headline says, ‘Broken Wing’ produced a stunning
round of golf and came in first place with a massive 44 points. You have to
feel a bit sorry for Dan M. who came in with his best round ever but only
came in second place with a score of 40! Needless to say JJ will be paying
special attention to see how many strokes he can cut off the handicaps from
aforementioned Backyard boys.
Andy Oz seems to own the nearest the pin prize as he won
yet again and the skins results were as follows: Broken Wing (7), Dan M.
(4), Andy Oz (3), Neville (2), and JJ (2) as well.
Finally, we welcomed back Terry C. this week after an absence of a couple
of months and we wish Bob G. all the best for his trip back to the UK and
hope to see him in July
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Starbeck shines
at Diana Seniors Open
(Left-right) Diana Seniors and Ladies April
winners Freddy Starbeck and Amphon Phuiphon with the scribe Nigel Cannon.
Nigel Cannon
Thursday, April 28,
Pattaya C.C. - Stableford
It was a fine day for golf for the 28 players who
played in this month’s Diana Senior and Lady’s competition. There was no
rain, plenty of sun with just a little breeze. Whilst the course was wet
in places it did not interfere with play and ‘pick and place’ was
unnecessary.
Work continues in the clubhouse with a number of new
lockers – although rather small – others have been refurbished and there
is now some ‘jungle’ wallpaper.
As is usual with this competition all arrived early
and with not many others about some groups were away early and all gone
by 0930.
There were 7 Ladies out today – In first place was
Amphon Phuiphon (24) with 36 points. Runner-up was a regular Diana
player, and it was good to see her on the podium, Wanida Reed (33) with
31 points.
The ‘best of the day’ came from Seniors winner Freddy
Starbeck (22) who was having the round of his life – so far! a great 41
points (gross 89) which included a ‘wipe; on the par-3 16th.
Runner–up was Paul Linderen (26) with 38 points.
In the Super Seniors (65+) it was Rich Murphy (23) in
top spot with 37 points, and runner-up Werner Schwarz (16) with 36
points.
Alan Pearce calculated the results allowing the
presentation to take place soon after the last group came in.
All scores are submitted to Pattaya Sports Club.
Ladies
1st Amphon Phuiphon (24) 36pts
2nd Wanida Reed (33) 31pts
Seniors
1st Freddy Starbeck (22) 41pts
2nd Paul Lindgren (26) 38pts
Super Seniors
1st Rich Murphy (23) 37pts
2nd Werner Schwarz (16) 36pts
Near Pins: Paul Lindgren, Rich Murphy, Bo Engstrom.
The next Diana Seniors and Ladies open is on Thursday 26th May at
Pattaya Country Club with a tee time of 0900.
Sign up sheets are at Diana Green Bottle on 2nd road and the Diana Driving
range.
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Lyrestam top scores at P.A.G.S. monthly
The Fairway Golf Society
Tuesday, April 26, Crystal
Bay - Monthly P.A.G.S. Tournament
It was another great turnout for our 4th monthly P.A.G.S.
tournament of the year. Eighty-six golfers competing for the many prizes on
offer and overall points for the year in three divisions today plus a ladies
div. with the cut off at 0 to 11, 12 to 17 & 18 to 28.
B
Flight winner Staffan Lyrestam.
Although the skies were overcast and there was a threat
of thunder storms all day, the weather held off and we managed to finish
without anyone getting wet. The course was in good condition and the
competition was fierce with many golfers shooting sub-par scores.
In divisions 1 & 2, second places were decided on
count-backs. The winner of division 1 was Richard Line with 40 points but
unfortunately for him he had to dash straight off to the airport for his
flight back to the U K, so he missed the prize giving and the excellent
barbecue laid on by the guys back at the Fairways club house. As usual the
conversations and festivities went on well into the night.
A Flight
1st Richard Line (11) 40pts
2nd Jack Grinvold (6) 39pts
3rd Richie Neville (13) 39pts
B Flight
1st Staffan Lyrestam (14) 41pts
2nd Gavin Perfect (14) 40pts
3rd Gunnar Morero (14) 40pts
C Flight
1st George Hayes (23) 37pts
2nd Peter Lomm (23) 34pts
3rd Steven Balfour (18) 33pts
Ladies
1st Siripen (6) 40pts
2nd Noi
Emmerson (19) 31pts
The winners for the technical prizes were as follows:
Long drives - Jon Haugan, Ning Neal (2) and Leif Petterson; Long putts -
John Lay, Matt Hobbs; Near pin in 3 shots - Gordie Jack & Davy Done; Near
pin 2 shots - Leif Petterson, Gavin Perfect, Billy Vickers, Mike King, Alan
Pilkington, Andy Sheppard, Keith Charlesworthy & Eric Reginiussen; Near pins
- Staffan Lyrestam, Leif Petterson, Jonny Larson & Siripen.
The overall leaders at this stage of the tournament are Gordie Jack in
the Men’s and Siripen in the Ladies, with the rest of the field hot on their
tails.
Ladies
winner Siripen (right).
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Charity Day judged a great success
PSC Golf from Mulligans Lakeside
Tuesday, April 26,
Treasure Hill – Stableford
First to Tuesday, when we went to Treasure Hill and where
the course was in very good condition, however there has been a price rise
from the High Season to the Low Season, which is a little baffling, T I T.
Mike
Gaussa, Dave Edwards & John Chapman - the major Charity Day winners.
As always at this challenging venue good scores are at a
premium, with Ray Spence (19) showing some form from the past to post a
respectable 34 points, and next best being the reliable Jeff Wylie (6) with
31 points. Near Pins were secured by Jeff, Frans and Joel, with 1 going
unclaimed.
Thursday, April 28,
Greenwood - Stableford
Thursday was our annual Charity Day, with proceeds going
to Banglamung Boys Home, while the emphasis is on a good day out for all
participants. With the good support of our regulars, thrown together with
some frequent visitors and old friends, all in attendance deemed the day a
success.
The overall winner was Dave Edwards (17) who tore
Greenwood A & C apart to sign for an outstanding 41 points. The respective
winners in A & B flights (the cut was 19+) were Mike Gaussa (13) with 36
points and John Chapman (23) scoring 39. Second & third in A flight had to
go to the 4th last holes after numerous count-back steps could not separate
them. It was Ken Hole (15) who triumphed over Bart Starink (10) after both
had secured 32 points.
The B flight was easier, with Jim Fortune (28) having 36
points while Ian Hart (19) with 30, needed a count-back to get the prize
over Thommo.
Near Pins were numerous and really spread around between
the 2 flights; John with 2, Thommo, Martin, Dave and Dennis being
successful, while Keith scored the Long Putt prize.
To round out the evening we had some lucky draws for
those who, perhaps didn’t play to their potential on the day.
A big thank you to all participants on the day, Ray, Keow
and all the staff at Mulligans Lakeside with thanks also going to the P.S.C.
who generously added to our donation to the Boys Home.
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 089 094 1841 or 081 935 8088. Hope to see you there, Cheers &
Good Golfing!
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Boys are back in town
PSC golf from Lewiinski’s
Sunday, April 24, Green
Valley - Stableford
A Flight
1st Thierry Petrement (12) 42pts
2nd Wira Siduang (10) 42pts
3rd Terry Mangan (12) 41pts
B Flight
1st Kathy Doody (19) 41pts
2nd Sim Davis (28) 39pts
3rd John Hillier (19) 38pts
Near Pins: Andrew Byrne (2), Jack Grindvold, Brian Byrne.
“The boys are back in town! Boys are back in town!” That
wasn’t the girls of soi six of either category. No, they had their hands
full of other things. This was just the society happy to have its numbers
bolstered by the return of the Songkran refugees. Emboldened by the
refreshing hiatus from Pattaya, the gang almost en masse turned out to play
Green Valley, enough, that is to support two flights and three positions in
each.
Sunday’s winners: Thierry Petrement and Kathy Doody.
Thierry Petremont and Wira Siduang were the stars of the
show on the day with 42 points apiece, Thierry edging Wira for the match
honors. Irishman Terry Mangan wasted no time in settling in on his return
with a solid 41 points to close the flight.
If not the card of the day certainly the shot of the day
belonged to Australian Mark Sayegh who fired an eagle on the sixth par four.
Kathy ‘Helga’ Doody dominated B Flight, returning an
excellent 41 points. Sim ‘Card’ Davis stood on the podium looking up at
Kathy in second place. John Hiller was looking the farthest one stroke back.
Monday, April 25, Khao
Kheow - Stableford
A Flight
1st Kevin Mcentee (6) 35pts
2nd Andrew Byrne (12) 35pts
B Flight
1st Adam Oyston (21) 35pts
2nd
Mark Sayegh (17) 31pts
Kevin Mcentee and Andrew Byrne, two of the Co. Offaly mob
who the paymaster knows by their Christian names, were locked in count-back
as 35 points took the first and second podium places in the senior flight.
Adam Oyston also carded 35 points to win the junior
flight, followed by Australian Mark Sayegh who edged Roger Cross by the
narrowest of margins in another count-back.
Mark Riley, John Hughes, Peter Hynard and Keith McLachlan
shared the 2’s pot.
Wednesday, April 27,
Bangpra - Stableford
A Flight
1st Frank Higgins (14) 39pts
2nd Kevin Mcentee (6) 38pts
3rd Ed Wyckoff (9) 34pts
B Flight
1st Sim Davis (23) 38pts
2nd Colin Davis (15) 34pts
3rd
Gordon Wallace (15) 33pts
Frank Higgins did the best work in the premier flight, as
evidence by his 39 points; this also gave Frank the man of the match honors.
You can probably guess who was but a shot behind, yes, Kevin ‘stick em up’
Mcentee, leaving Ed ‘The Right Honorable’ Wyckoff to fill the flight.
Sim ‘Card’ Davis put her Donkey in his place with 37
points. Colin’s 34 points were one better than Gordon Wallace’s.
Sim Davis and Mick McMahon shared the 2’s pot.
Friday, April 29,
Greenwood C&A - Stableford
A Flight
1st Frank Higgins (14) 40pts
2nd Colin Davis (15) 37pts
3rd Eddy Beilby (14) 36pts
B Flight
1st Barry Elphick (22) 38pts
2nd Keith McLachlan (23) 38pts
3rd
Jan Eriksen (18) 35pts
The society doesn’t travel well but the rewards were
great as they ventured up the 331 to play the lightning fast greens of
Greenwood. This was supported by the field’s performance.
Frank ‘Hurricane’ Higgins led everyone home for the
second time in as many games with a masterful 40 point performance. The
Donkey landed the silver, beating Eddy ‘the Eagle’ and Peter Hynard by one
stroke. Eddy bettered Peter Hynard on count-back when their respective 36
points were laid down side by side.
It came down to two wily seasoned society members to see
who would top the junior flight, Barry Elphick getting the right result in a
count-back over Keith McLachlan as they were locked together on 38 points.
Jan ‘the quite one’ rounded out the flight three shots adrift.
Frank Higgins, Eddy Beilby, Andrew Byrne and Keith
McLachlan shared 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 can just pop in and add your name to the list or call Colin on 089 826
0764. Transport is provided.
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White has the edge at Crystal Bay
PSC golf from The Caddy Shack
Wednesday, April 27,
Crystal Bay – Stableford
A small group of 12 players took on the challenge of
Crystal Bay on Wednesday. In a low scoring day Emmet White topped the
leaderboard with a level par 36 points to finish one ahead of Greg Ritchie
and two up on Damian Trant.
1st Emmet White (12) 36pts
2nd Greg Ritchie (23) 35pts
3rd Damian Trant (11) 34pts
Friday, April 29, St. Andrews – Stableford
Sixteen players at St. Andrews on Friday split into two
flights plus a separate team game with the best three scores on each hole
counting.
John Connley took out A Flight with an even 36 points
ahead of Jeff North, while Peter Henderson was victorious in the B Flight
with 35 points, beating Bruce Tollitt by three.
In the team event a score of 113 total points was
returned by the combination of Arch Armstrong, Jeff North, Ted Gardner and
Derek Mower to give them the win.
A Flight
1st John Connley (12) 36pts
2nd Jeff North (10) 34pts
B Flight
1st Peter Henderson (16) 35pts
2nd
Bruce Tollitt (17) 32pts
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Mashi strikes again
PSC golf from the Café Kronborg
Peter Blackburn
Monday, April 25, Bangpra
- Stableford
Our usual Monday organiser, Mike Gosden, called in sick
the previous evening with “Anzac Day Knee” so it was up to The Admiral and
myself to conduct proceedings for the day.
The weather was fine although overcast as we assembled at
Café Kronborg and it was pleasing to see a few Bunker Bar golfers amongst
the 23 starters for the day and they were duly welcomed. Also welcomed were
Greg Mennie and Joe Charles from Glenelg, South Australia, along with Ken
Davidson and Stuart Tinkler from the U.K.
Bjarne
Kjaer, Peter Blackburn & The Admiral pose for a photo after Thursday’s round
at Khao Kheow.
Departing the Kronny at 0815hrs on the dot we arrived at
Bangpra just 42 minutes later to find the golf course very quiet. This
enabled our first group to hit off at 0935hrs which was 25 minutes ahead of
schedule. Once more the course was in great shape despite the recent rains
and although the fairways were a tad wet in parts and many bunkers had water
in them the green were tricky as usual.
It was hot and sticky for the first nine but then the sun
disappeared and a light breeze arrived which cooled things down somewhat. It
looked like rain was threatening, in fact one of our caddies suggested that
we don’t stop for a drink with 3 holes to go and of course she was correct.
We managed to get our seven groups finished before the heavens opened so
thanks once more to the man above for being kind to us.
With just a couple of drink stops our first group went
round in the excellent time of four hours and fifteen minutes. It should be
mentioned that the monkeys were conspicuous by their absence, possibly
somewhere watching the annual Anzac Day Collingwood v Essendon game at the
MCG!
The golf course I guess took the honours on the day as
only three golfers played to their handicaps or better and the majority of
the scores were in the early thirties.
Mashi Kaneta was once again Mr. Consistent and won the A
Flight by 2 points from Stu (San Miguel) Rifkin who just beat Laurence
Harding on a count-back. Stu was having his first game for a month and may
well be now called “Heineken” Stu after consuming 10 of them during his
round. Stuart Tinkler finished in fourth spot.
Our visitor from Glenelg, Greg Mennie took out the B
Flight on a count-back from John Teague and another count-back was required
to determine third and fourth places with Mike Winfield emerging victorious
from Mick O’Connor.
A Flight (0-17)
1st Mashi Kaneta (13) 37pts
2nd Stu Rifkin (16) 35 pts
3rd Laurence Harding (16) 35pts
4th Stuart Tinkler (16) 34pts
B Flight (18+)
1st Greg Mennie (25) 36pts
2nd John Teague (21) 36pts
3rd Mike Winfield (20) 34pts
4th Mick O’Connor (23) 34pts
Near Pins: Mike Winfield
Long Putts: Hugh O’Donnell
Once again the Coveted Compass Cap was unfortunately not
available for presentation due to the absence of Mike Gosden, and Deefa was
also elsewhere, possibly watching the Anzac Day game at the MCG with the
monkeys.
Thursday, April 28, Khao
Kheow A & B – Stableford
A fairly good number of twenty golfers assembled at Café
Kronborg, ready to take up the challenge at the classy Khao Kheow golf
course. The weather was perfect with hardly a cloud in sight as we headed
off from the Kronny at 0815hrs on the dot.
We were saying farewell to Joe Charles and Greg Mennie
who are heading off back to South Australia at the weekend and we look
forward to seeing them again later in the year.
We arrived at the course 43 minutes later to find that it
was reasonably busy but our first group managed to hit off 15 minutes ahead
of schedule at 0945hrs. This lovely golf course, which must be right up
there with the best of the value for money golf courses in the area, was in
magnificent condition although the greens were just a tad slower than
normal, nonetheless firm and true.
It was hot and sticky and fluid intake was vital although
it did cool down somewhat later in the round. After several stops for drinks
we were still able to complete our round in a brisk four hours and twenty
minutes.
Our group did particularly well with 34 points being the
lowest score and all four of us featuring on the podium. Your writer had his
best stableford score for over 20 years with 45 points to win the A Flight
by 2 points from Ulf Larsson who finished second. There was a count-back for
third and fourth places with two excellent scores of 39 points with Andre
Van Dyk wining third place from Tore Eliassen.
The B Flight was easily won by a member of our group in
Bjarne Kjaer whose 41 points were 6 better than second place getter and
another group member Mike Winfield. PSC Treasurer Graham (2 gloves)
Buckingham finished in third place on a count-back from our fourth group
member The Admiral.
A Flight (0-16)
1st Peter Blackburn (16) 45pts
2nd Ulf Larsson (16) 43pts
3rd Andre Van Dyk (16) 39pts
4th Tore Eliassen (14) 39pts
B Flight (17+)
1st Bjarne Kjaer (18) 41pts
2nd Mike Winfield (20) 35pts
3rd Graham Buckingham (23) 34pts
4th
Dave Richardson (20) 34pts
The Compass Cap was a closely fought contest with Aussie
Jerry Dobbs winning in a three way count-back. Deefa the Dog was back and
paraded around by his uncle, Ken Bernek, and succeeded in gobbling up many
donations to charity from our generous Café Kronborg golfers.
The sheet is now up in the Kronborg for Papa Ray Roger’s
Birthday Anniversary Tournament at Plutaluang on Tuesday, 10th
of May. It will be a four-man scramble and the entrance fee will be 600 baht
which includes dinner back at Papa Ray’s house plus a memento of the
occasion.
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Hewitt & Baldwin victorious
Phoenix Tuesday/Friday Golf Group
Phoenix
group winners with the staff at the Relax Bar.
Mike Gerrard
After last week’s depleted field due to many of our group
going away to avoid Songkran, we were back to a full complement of players
for this week.
A few of us went to Kanchanaburi for a week’s golf. What
a wonderful trip, except for the condition of the golf courses. Such a
shame! On only one of the days was there any semblance of many players
playing the course. For the other four days it seemed at times that we were
the only four-ball on the course. Indeed two of the days we arrived at the
clubhouse the management had to telephone for caddies to get there.
The courses were of magnificent design, but sadly due to
lack of cash flow the condition of them was far below the lush playing
conditions we experience here. One good thing though was the price of the
green fees - nothing over 500 baht.
Back to dear old Phoenix, where the conditions are as
good as you could hope for at this time of the year. The Mountain course has
now been opened, (Lakes closed for repairs) and as usual the management of
Phoenix seem to stick to their old rule of open the newly repaired course
too early. If only they would wait a couple more weeks to allow the grass to
grow properly. Never mind, it was a pleasure to hack my way around our home
course.
An old friend we had not seen for some time recorded the
best net score of the day. Bill Hewitt won the day with net 70, two shots
better than Richard Baldwin who played to his handicap with a score of net
72. Joint third were Clive Robinson and Patrick Browne on net 74.
With Bill not playing the required amount of times, this
month’s Trattoria Italiana voucher went to Richard Baldwin. However, I think
Bill will qualify for the next one should he return the best score.
It was a fitting end to the season for Patrick. After a
successful season in both Phoenix groups (winner of the matchplay trophy in
the Members Sunday group), and winner on more than one occasion with our
group, Patrick is now leaving for the sunny island of Ireland for the next
five months. Along with him we also lose David Czernie and Dave Boran. Also,
after a fleeting visit for 5 days, Shaun Merriman returns back to China.
Near pins today went to John Stafford, Clive Robinson and
Stuart Gordon (2) which were both converted into birdie ‘2’s.
Thank god for the lucky draw, all donated by The Relax
Bar. For some of us at the moment it is the only thing that we have a chance
of winning. Winners this week were Terry Vicary, yours truly and David
Czernie.
Our fishing group is getting bigger each week and I am
having to organise more trips to fit everyone in. For information regarding
Tuesday or Friday golf and Saturday fishing, call me on 089 791 7565.
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Low scores reflect
tough test at Century
Jomtien Golf with the IPGC
Monday, April 25, Century
Chonburi – Stableford
There were 23 names down today for Treasure Hill and as
the first arrivals went to pay their green fees they were told there had
been an increase from 600 to 750. They held back and waited until the rest
of the group arrived and we were then informed under new management changes
the price had gone up 150 baht. We all declined to pay this on principle and
with Greenwood shut today we move to Century Chonburi.
Paul
Renall was the Division 1 winner at Century Chonburi on Monday.
Amazingly after all the hiccups the first group still
teed off at 10.00 a.m. and there were no complaints regarding the condition
of this course as everyone came in afterwards, which was strange considering
29 points was the highest score of the day from Paul Renall to win division
1.
Georges Faber took second in the top flight, beating
Erkki Koivisto on a 16/15 back nine count-back after they both came in with
28 points.
The alternative Frenchman won division 2 with 27 points,
beating John Williams on a 15/14 back nine count-back after they both scored
27 each, well done Yves Bossett. Burnie Sinclair came in third just one
point behind.
In the ladies today, Pranee Bossett and Mam Morel both
scored 30 points with 15 each on the back nine, 11 on the back 6, 6 on the
back 3, 4 on the back 2 and 1 on the eighteenth to share the purse.
There were no ‘2’s today in either division so a rollover
ensued to Rayong Country Club.
Wednesday, April 27,
Rayong C.C. – Stableford
It was the last Wednesday of the month and our fun game,
but with a lack of participants signing up we reverted to a normal game. As
the numbers went to 29 on the Monday evening we decided on a normal two
divisional men’s comp and one for the ladies with a phantom lucky draw for
all three divisions back at Siam Cats after the presentation.
The cut today was 5-17 in division 1, with Paul Butler
playing off 14 winning with 35 points, Kari Kuparinen off 6 in second 1
point behind, and the Lopburi boy Grenville Hill beating Jean Morel on a
13/10 back nine count-back for third.
Alan Duckett, from the Windmill here in Soi 5, won
division 2 with 36 points. Kari Aarnio was second on 35 and as always
count-back Burnie beat Ben Findon and Lee Casey as they finished 18/18/14 on
the back nine and Lee lost out 13/12 on the back six.
Mam Morel won the ladies division with 36 points with
Pranee Bossett second 4 points behind.
Paul Butler yet again got the only ‘2’ in division 1 to
take a rollover from Century Chonburi. Marty Aronson birdied the 7th
for the only ‘2’ in division 2 and also there was a rollover from Monday’s
game.
The cards in all three divisions were equally split into
two divisions according to the scores and Miss Pranee selected one card from
each for the draw and the scores were added together to find the three
winning teams. Kari Aarnio and Lee Casey won with 67 points ahead of Mam
Morel and Noi Emersson in second with 65 and in third place, winning the
sponsored giant pasties from Jules at Sportsarama in View Talay 1, were Ben
Findon and Grenville Hill.
Friday, April 29, Eastern
Star - Stableford
An exceptionally hot day here and our last game before
the green refurbishments began on Sunday. Labour Day on Monday was a holiday
of course and we will be playing the back nine twice each round over the
next two weeks, after that, the next fortnight it will be 18 holes on the
front nine.
The best score of the day was in division 1 with Mikael
Andersson winning with 36 points. Darryl Blair took second on 33 and Paul
Butler was third with 28 points.
Kung Maliporn, the Burapha caddie, beat Toi Blair by one
point to win the ladies division with 35 points and after 3 months in the
doldrums Glyn Evans was the victor in the second division with his highest
score in that time with 33 points, beating Brian Blackford by one point and
third placed Marty Aronson by five.
Toi won both the ladies nearest the pins and there were
no ‘2’s in any of the three divisions today, so a rollover to Eastern Star
on Monday.
Note: Our annual trip has been finalized to Hua
Hin and we are playing Mon 9th Palm Hills, Tues 10th
Black Mountain, Thurs 12th Springfield, and Fri 13th
at Black Mountain.
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Bland spoils the
ANZAC party
IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at Rabbi’s Elephant Bar
On ANZAC Day, 25th April, more than a smattering of
Aussie golfers joined the Pattaya Golf Society in a monthly medal event at
Crystal Bay, over the A and C nines which were finely prepared with
excellent greens. The track is currently one of the best in the area and
offers far better value for money than the likes of Green Valley.
John
Mason.
The large field was divided into two flights at thirteen
and under. In the second flight Paul Bartlett joined Brian Shaw and John
Mason in runner-up place with net 77, the latter insisting his game is more
focused and honed to medal play - and who can argue with his credentials as
a former medal winner! The flight was won by Jim McNeill with an excellent
net 74.
In the top flight Stuart Thompson and Ray Jackson shared
third place with net 77 and Trevor Chappell posted his second consecutive
runner-up place with net 75. The winner was American Larry Bland who
recorded net 73 to deny an all-Australian leaderboard.
Stuart Thompson and Wichai Tananusorn shared the ‘2’s pot
with Wichai’s effort on C7 also guaranteeing him the Booby Bevy as his tee
shot struck a tree and ricocheted onto the green giving him the birdie
opportunity.
Again the day was ably marshalled by John Mason and his
return to UK in the near future will give Mr Len a headache as he continues
his recovery after recent surgery.
Crystal Bay had been the perfect way to start the golfing
week.
Normal service resumed
The Pattaya Golf Society visited Eastern Star on
Wednesday, 27th April to play a stableford competition on the course,
shortly to go under the greenkeeper’s knife yet again. The course is a
challenging track and the general condition is good but the greens have
become extremely awkward to control and the sixth is getting smaller every
year.
The field played as a single flight and competition was
fierce for the minor placings with Gubbi Innvaer, Ronnie Ramsay and Larry
Slattery sharing fourth place on 31 points. Ahead sharing runner-up place
were Ray Jackson and Masa Takano on 32, but after an aberration at Crystal
Bay two days previously normal service was resumed with the return of Wichai
Tananusorn to the top of the lists with 35 points and the best gross of
eighty for the day.
Paul Bartlett received the ‘2’s pot for his excellent
effort on the shrinking sixth green and Pat Murphy received the Booby Bevy
after a claim that he was always overlooked for the awesome award.
The day was well marshalled by Wichai and it was good to
see him back in his customary consistent form at Eastern Star.
Queens beat the Ace - PGS
Golf for Fr. Ray Day
A large field of warm-hearted golfers entered the latest
PGS “Golf for Fr Ray Day” event at Emerald on Friday, 29th April, to play a
stableford pairs multiplier competition. Seventeen teams took part in the
monthly event which is rapidly becoming the flagship of the PGS monthly
schedules.
The chosen charity for the year is the Fr. Ray Foundation
Outreach project which offers hope to Pattaya’s streetkids and so far this
year the project has benefitted by more than sixty thousand baht in just
four months. The warm-hearted generosity of Pattaya golfers is certainly
overwhelming.
Essentially the event is all about fun and the format on
this day was perfect. Generous individual members had sponsored six
technical prizes and there were the usual ‘2s prizes up for grabs. Near pins
were won by Mam Morel, Noi Emmerson, John Mason and Chris Smith whilst Jean
Morel took the prize for nearest the pin with his second shot on the second
hole whilst Jim Ferris’ third shot on the fourth hole took the award there.
In the competition proper there was a tie for fourth
place with Tim Lazecki and Masa Takano posting 64 points to share with Paul
Bartlett and John Mason. In third with 70 points was the pairing of Nile
Sheehan and scratch golfer Chris Smith and barely one point ahead was the
runner-up team of Yves and Pranee Bosset. The winners were the lady golfers
Mam Morel and Noi Emmerson who recorded a resounding 88 points, with Noi
scoring forty four points on her card alone.
The fun wasn’t over though as the thirteenth hole
witnessed the rare feat of a hole-in-one. John Mason had locker 13 and he
was the thirteenth golfer to drive the hole in the competition but his
skillful five-iron was nothing to do with luck as the ball disappeared into
the hole on the second bounce. Such was the impact of the shot that it was
rumoured that CNN had interrupted coverage of some wedding to break the
news.
The PGS is profoundly grateful to all who had contributed
to the success of the event. It had certainly been a fun day to remember and
the next charity event will be at Emerald on Friday 27th May and will take
the format of stableford 1-2-3 for three-balls with a sign-up sheet
available in Rabbi’s Elephant Bar in Soi Buakhao from a week before. Once
again the real winners were the kids in the Outreach Centre on Soi
Thepprasit.
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Sluggers take top honours at St. George’s Day Scramble
PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s
The
winning Sluggers team with the scribe and Emcee, far right.
Derek Brook
Friday, April 22, Burapha
A&B 4-Ball Scramble
This is the big event in Tropical Bert’s for the golf
section, as we gear up for what always turns out to be a great day, and at
the same time raises money for The Blind School. This is our Sixth Annual St
Georges Day Invitational and as usual everything came from an idea around
the bar, from Bert, Gez and the scribe, and immediately took off with the
scribe ‘a volunteer’ to run it. Mind, Gez is now ‘the shirt master’ and
‘course organiser’ so we keep him busy. Well done Gez!
Tournament runners-up: “Gez and The Pigs”.
After the build-up, the day came along at last and this
year off we went to Burapha, and for this thanks goes to Bob Philp who
booked the course for us at a great rate. We selected Burapa as we had
played Phoenix for the last three years and decided a return to Burapha
where we started would bring us back to where we began. I like to think it
worked well and all had a great round and thoroughly enjoyed the course.
This day is an ‘invitational’ and we limit it to twelve
groups as this is more or less the number of people who can fit into
Tropical Bert’s. This year, as is usual, the players met in Bert’s where
Bert and Pu very kindly provided a free breakfast for all the golfers. This
was most appreciated and thanks go to Tropical Bert’s.
Long
putt award winners Dick Warberg and Kiwi Bill with new bags, all presented
by Emcee Derek Brook.
So off we went to Burapha, and played the A&B Nines in
4-ball scramble format. I always think that these are the best nines. On the
day we were not held up on the front nine and zoomed along, but on the B
course we met those slipped in to start on that nine and for a while it was
slow going, then those in front pushed on and we finished the 18 holes in
good time.
The course was in its usual fine condition, and the
fairways were well cut and the greens a pleasure to putt on. We had a strong
wind but all in all the good weather hung on and ‘played the game’ and we
had a super round. It always helps when all the players have a cart. This is
a course it is always a pleasure to play and has some stupendous views.
We all met in the restaurant and partook of their food
and drink to put us on till we got back to Bert’s. With the scores coming in
it was obvious that the winning scores would be very good and you would have
to shoot in the fifties to be in as a winner.
Dick’s
Yanks were the third team on the podium.
Back at Bert’s all the players were tucking into the food
and it was typical hot food with sausages and burgers etc with all the
trimmings and nice crusty rolls. The eating of the food went on for some
time along with the sinking of ‘cold uns’ so it was some time before we got
to the presentation.
Here I must thank the sponsors, without whom a
competition such as this could never go on. So a big thank-you to M.B.M.G.,
Matvic Wholesale Butchers, Pattaya International Golf Society, P.S.C., and
of course Tropical Bert’s. To all who helped thank you.
We had two very special prizes in the technical awards
and decided to keep them for the ‘long putt’ on the 18th in both flights.
Dick Warberg had been saying all week this was one he wanted to win and of
course he won the A Flight long putt. Winner of the B Flight was Kiwi Bill.
The remainder of technical prize winners are listed below.
So to the winners of the competition proper and in fourth
place was that magnificent team of ‘Derek’s Duffers’ with Derek Brook, alias
scribe, Mashi Kenata, Frank Pilkington and that great putter Keith Phillips.
The score was net 58.7
In third place was the team of ‘Dick’s Yanks’ with a fine
58.6. The team consisted of Dick Warberg, Steve Hamstad, Mike Gaussa and
Joel Flor. Dick really feels very guilty for beating my team by so little.
So he said!
For a long time Gez thought he had actually won with such
a fine score, but as is usual the last team pipped him. So in second place
with 56.7 was the team of ‘Gez and The Pigs’ with Gez Tracy, Jerry Quinn,
Bob Philp and Greg Ritchie.
So to the winners, and with essentially the last score in
the long time team of The McMullen Sluggers came in with a superb 56.1 to
take the day’s honours, so well played. The team consisted of John McMullen,
Bill Marsden, Al Clark and Daryl White. Mind, I think their ‘hard lucks’ to
Gez’s team were a little insincere. At the end of the great day the party
was just beginning and we were very lucky that Frank as usual won a bottle
of something. T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: Craig Miller (3), Mike Gosden, Pinky, Daryl Evans, Frank
Pilkington, Jerry Quinn.
Long Putts: Dick Warberg (2), Daryl Evans, Kiwi Bill.
Near Beer Case: Jeff North.
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Heavey hat-trick is highlight of the week
IPGC golf from The Haven
Sunday, April 24, Green
Valley - Stableford
CSS 72
1st Lyle Blaw (12) 40pts
2nd Joe McArdle (12) 37pts
3rd Andy Sheppard (9) 32pts
4th
Gerry Hannon (9) 31pts
Once again there was just a small turnout for the regular
Sunday outing at Green Valley as many players are either still away, or if
not, members of Green Valley Golf Course object to the high prices at the
weekends.
Lyle
Blaw.
Lyle Blaw, having warmed up earlier in the week, came
good with a splendid four under handicap round to take the top honours for
the day ahead of Joe McArdle, who was once again to be found in second place
at one under as previously.
Andy Sheppard made it a very happy return without playing
that well but his four over was just enough to take third place away from
Gerry Hannon who also repeated the previous week’s result of fourth spot.
The 2’s were won by Andy Sheppard who had the only one of
the day.
The presentations were conducted and overseen by Russell
Exley as usual at the Golf Centre Bar on the course, with amiable hosts John
and Geoff assisted by their lovely staff, taking excellent care of the
golfers.
Monday, April 25, Crystal
Bay - Stableford
CSS 74
1st Shane Heavey (17) 31pts
2nd Rod Crosswell (13) 30pts
3rd Lyle Blaw (12) 29pts
4th
David Cable (13) 28pts
It was just as well that there was another IPGC
competition being played over the same courses, C and A, otherwise the day
would have been a non-counting competition. As it was, the CSS went out to
74 as the conditions and difficulty of the course played havoc with the
scores.
Shane
Heavey.
Shane Heavey made the best of it with a round that was
outshone by his golf attire which rivals John Daley’s outfits in both size
and colour co-ordination, but one that was just enough to lead in Rod
Crosswell by a stroke and also left Sunday’s winner Lyle Blaw wishing for
the tighter layout of Green Valley.
Newcomer David Cable surprised himself, having thought
that he was well out of contention, by claiming fourth spot with several
blobs on the card.
There were no 2’s on a day that saw precious few pars let
alone birdies.
Before presenting the prizes The Doc welcomed new member
David Cable.
Wednesday, April 27,
Mountain Shadow (White tees) - Stableford
CSS 71
1st Shane Heavey (17) 38pts
2nd Lyle Blaw (12) 35pts
3rd Terry Hodgkiss (25) 33pts
4th Shuichi Kodaka (16) 33pts
5th
Allan Heavey (26) 33pts
A new day, a new course, a new outfit, all seemed to work
well for Shane Heavey as he once again scattered the field whilst
mesmerizing the caddies and green staff with yet another peacock display of
sartorial elegance over a framework almost large enough to qualify as a
traffic roundabout.
David
Cable.
With the usual pairs competition shelved due to the low
numbers participating, a singles event was organized from the white tees as
many of the players were above the standard 15 handicap for which the course
had been designed.
Following Shane once again was Lyle Blaw, although this
time he moved up into second place with a much more characteristic return
just one over handicap and good enough by two to ensure that he did not take
part in the count-back for third which Terry Hodgkiss won with a better 13
on the last six over Shuichi Kodaka in fourth, who managed just 8 after
tying the nine on 16 a piece. Shuichi indeed seemed to have badly misjudged
the deployment of the anchor as he amassed just 6 points over the last 5
holes.
Allan Heavey just failed to keep the engine running long
enough as his round subsided to just 13 points on the inward half to lose
out in the first round of the count-back and was left back in fifth which
was not such a bad result with borrowed clubs.
Once again there were no 2’s on the day as the pots grow
steadily in both divisions.
Back at The Haven there were welcome backs for Rod
Howett, Shuichi Kodaka and Allan Heavey, who has been around for a while but
having lost his clubs along with all his baggage whilst transiting at
Singapore on the way from Darwin, has been unable to play as he struggled to
get the airline to accept responsibility and offer some recompense.
Friday, April 29, Eastern
Star - Monthly Medals
CSS 72
Division 1
1st David Cable (13) 72
2nd Lyle Blaw (12) 76
3rd Rod Crosswell (13) 80
Division 2
1st Shane Heavey (17) 82
2nd Terry Hodgkiss (26) 82
3rd
Shuichi Kodaka (16) 82
With Phoenix, the usual venue of for the Monthly Medals,
having inexplicably lost the tee bookings, possibly due to the fact that the
two courses that were open were full with another large competition and with
just the offer of a tee-off time sometime in the afternoon, the venue was
moved to Eastern Star on the day.
David Cable, having thought that golf in Thailand was
just one nightmare after another after a week of less than sparkling results
in and around Pattaya, at last got to grips with the different conditions as
he swept to the top of the first division with a solid level par round which
once again left Lyle Blaw settling for second place four shots adrift but in
turn four better than Rod Crosswell whose recent form suggests that he will
be soon playing regularly to his higher level of handicap when he returns to
the Gosnells Club in WA.
Shane Heavey continued to win, but his form was a long
way off his earlier efforts as he had to rely on winning a three-way
count-back with Terry Hodgkiss in second and Shuichi Kodaka in third, with a
better back nine of 36.5 to Terry’s 38.5 and Shuichi’s 40
As the 2’s pools continue to spiral once again there were
no 2’s in either division.
Prior to the prize presentations there were farewells for
Terry Hodgkiss, Rod Croswell, Shane Heavey and Allan Heavey.
Note: As from the 1st of May the Haven group will
depart Soi 13 at the earlier time of 8.30 a.m. until further
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 8.00 on Mondays, Wednesday, Fridays and 9.00am on 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.
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Pattaya Sports Club Bowling League
200
Bowlers: Wade and Tue.
Snow Bowler, led by Wade Meyers who bowled a 213 game
and 532 series, split their match with Green Tree and are still in first
place by one half a point. Last week they were also one half point in
first ahead of Brother D but this week Canada were in the chase and they
moved into second.
Tue Pettae bowled a 203 game, 517 series and Lek
Reaper had a 510 series to lead Canada to a three point win over Brother
D. Canada moved up to second place and Brother D dropped from second to
third.
Café Kronborg loss four points to USMC and dropped
out of fourth place and all the way down to sixth. Joe Ferral led the
USMC team with a 524 series and Somrak was best for Café Kronborg with a
537 pin count.
Playing in the difficult eleven and twelve lanes VFW
Post 9876 and Bavaria split their match with each team winning two
points. None of the bowlers managed to figure out these lanes.
Franz Stigler, who is the sponsor for Bavaria, and was bowling as a
spare bowled a 528 series. Well done Franz!
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