The Bunker Boys Golf Society
Monday, May 29, Khaow Kheow (yellow tees) – Stableford
1st Geoff Parker (15) 33pts
2nd Colin Greig (10) 32pts
3rd Neil Carter (13) 31pts
Near Pins: Geoff Parker, Les Hall.
Heavy rain throughout the night and into the morning made the prospect of a dry round of golf look unlikely. Even as we left Pattaya, rain was falling and the skies were dark, however, as we reached the course the skies had lightened considerably and the rain stopped so we checked in and proceeded to the first tee without delay. Throughout the round, the threat of rain was ever-present but luckily we completed the round dry.
As expected the course played long with absolutely no run whatsoever, the ‘pick, clean, and place’ rule was applied. Conditions remained challenging and this was reflected in scoring, which was modest at best and only two of the four near pins were claimed.
One of the most noteworthy plays of the day came courtesy of Les Hall who sank a sixty-foot putt on the island hole for a birdie. Neil Carter also managed a trick shot, skipping his ball off the water and back onto the fairway.
Wednesday, May 31, Parichat (red/white/blue tees) – Rainbow
1st Colin Greig (10) 39pts
2nd Geoff Parker (15) 38pts
3rd Steve Durey (22) 37pts
Near Pins: Alan Sullivan, Neil Carter, Geoff Parker, Colin Greig.
For our last round of the month, we made a return visit to Parichat. This is a course that is starting to gain favour with many from the Bunker Boys and whilst it’s a bit of an unconventional layout, with hidden traps in some places and a layup from the tee when one might expect to use a driver, once you get used to the layout it’s fine to play. There are no complaints about the standard of the tee boxes, fairways, bunkers or greens.
For the first time in weeks, there was no worry about the prospect of rain and a good low season turn out of golfers participated. Generally scoring was of a high standard and all the prize winners beat their handicaps. There were four different players with near pins and, as usual, the near pin specialist Neil Cater was amongst them.
After a month of see-saw scoring, the “Golfer of the Month” was decided on the seventeenth hole where Geoff Parker, who was leading comfortably, had a wipe whilst Colin Greig, who was trailing, had a birdie resulting in a four-stroke swing and handing Colin the trophy. Some cynics might argue that there was an element of luck at play when Colin put his second on the green about thirty-feet left of the hole only to see it trickle slowly down the green and finish up about six inches from the hole. As many people in golf say, “it’s better to be lucky than good”. Still, it’s one more trophy for the Greig display cabinet and as usual a round of drinks after the presentation.
Friday, June 2, Mt. Shadow (blue tees) – Stableford
1st Niel Carter (13) 41pts
2nd Steve Durey (22) 36pts
3rd Tony Robins (17) 30pts
Near Pins: Neil Carter.
Mountain Shadow was in excellent condition and with very reasonable green fees and beautiful weather the stage was set for some great golf. Unfortunately things didn’t work out that way and for the majority of us scores were mediocre as the rough was thick and penalising.
Colin Greig, having just won Golfer of the Month, had a bad day and was outscored by Richard Baldotto who, armed with intense Internet lessons, managed a birdie and 4 wipes in his first six holes. Tony Robbins struggled into 3rd place thanks to a lucky 40-foot putt for a sandy par on the 16th.
Steve Durey kept up his good form with a steady 36 points to take second place, however it was Neil Carter who stole the show, taking first place with a great 41pts, his best ever and also getting all 4 near pins. Great effort by Neil, which was matched by him buying a round of drinks.
For interested, there is a trip to Kabin Buri planned for June 13 and 14 with an overnight stay at Serenity Hotel and two rounds of golf. Call Neil for details on 084-758-9907.
