IPGC golf from The Haven
Monday, Sept. 22, Greenwood B & C – Stableford
CSS 71
1st Mathew Badman (11) 37pts
2nd Allen Raaen (8) 36pts
3rd Kevin Blake (8) 36pts
4th Phil Groves (10) 34pts
5th John Carlin (18) 33pts
The once a fortnight competitions at Greenwood are proving to be very popular as the course is always in excellent condition and usually not very busy, even though at 500 baht the green fee is one of the cheapest amongst the Eastern Seaboard courses. Presumably the distance form Pattaya at almost fifty kilometers is something of a deterrent.
Bruce Hilde, Mathew Badman & Trevor Schirmer.
This day was no exception as the course was almost deserted and the rounds progressed at a very pleasant rate and with very good scoring across the field the CSS for the day reduced to 71, even allowing that the two most difficult nines were the test for the day.
Mathew Badman obviously has the measure of the layout as he returned a gross 82 for the third time in a row at the course, but this time making it count for the win on one under handicap.
Allen Raaen took second place just a shot behind, winning a count back against the resurgent Kevin Blake with a better 19 to 18 after starting out the day with a couple of one point bogeys before recovering from the long drive. Kevin’s round showed promise as he completed the eighteen without a single blob for the first time since returning to Thailand at the start of this trip.
Phil Groves, who is also still trying to get back into the golfing groove after several months layoff without even holding a club, slipped or rather stumbled into fourth place two points further back, with John Carlin another shot back in fifth.
Returnee Murray Frost would have figured in the prizes if only he had not allowed his or another caddy to mark his card, as it had been filled in with scores for the A & B courses, the wrong nines, and unfortunately Murray signed for them ensuring a DQ for the day after a very nice round and a card that showed thirty seven points.
There were no 2’s’ in either division.
Before the presentations were made there was a welcome for new member J.T. Goodes together with a welcome back for Murray Frost.
Wednesday, Sept. 24, Khao Kheow B & C – Stableford
CSS 72
1st Bruce Hilde (18) 41pts
2nd Kevin Blake (8) 36pts
3rd Mark Armstrong (24) 34pts
4th Markku Tynell (23) 34pts
5th Mike Hill (21) 32pts
Another course where the group are bi-weekly visitors is Khao Kheow and while the prices are not quite so competitive, the 700 baht green vouchers go a long way towards bringing the costs of three times a week golf down towards affordable. But once again the group were amongst a very small attendance at one of the top courses in the area and certainly amongst the best value for quality and condition.
Bruce Hilde at last made his way to the top of the pecking order, and without accruing any penalty strokes, as his recent purchase of a matched set of chipping wedges plus presumably some additional tuition from his Bamboo Bar dancing partner seem to have transformed his game to the point where he looks like a contender when he finally gets to play his shots. On this day he almost flew around the course, leaving his playing partners, all much lower handicappers, flailing in his wake and unable to get within ten strokes of his final score.
Kevin Blake took second spot on level handicap some five strokes back, again without a blemish of a zero on the card. It was a very tidy round on a course that played fairly long off the yellow tees, even with the day’s “lift and place in the fairway” ruling.
Mark Armstrong, having had his handicap reduced three strokes recently, still managed to take third place after he won a count back over Markku Tynell with a score of 20 to 13. Markku had started very strongly with twenty one points after nine but faded badly over the last five holes, scraping just three points from them on his way to fourth place. Mike Hill rounded out the podium another two shots back in fifth.
Once again there were no 2’s in either of the divisions.
Prior to the presentations there was a welcome back for Markku Tynell who had been back for a little while but unable to play due to a motor accident in which he suffered a neck injury. There was also a farewell for Kevin Blake returning to Blighty just as his game was finally coming together and sporting a Hollywood smile as things were looking so rosy.
Friday, Sept. 26, The Emerald – Monthly Medals
CSS 72
Division 1 (0-15)
1st Trevor Schirmer (14) net 79
2nd Bob Webb (12) net 80
3rd Shuichi Kodaka (14) net 86
Division 2 (16+)
1st Jon Yarrow (16) net 74
2nd Markku Tynell (23) net 74
3rd Bruce Hilde (18) net 75
With the bare minimum making the required score the CSS for the day remained at 72, even though the final scores indicated that the course was playing about as long and difficult as it could be after heavy overnight rain had left it (the course) very wet and offering very little run.
Trevor Schirmer won the first division Medal after returning the highest winning total of the year to become the eighth player to be included in the list for the end of year Gold and Silver Medals. Trevor won by the slimmest of margins ahead of Bob Webb in second and Shuichi Kodaka in third.
Jon Yarrow took his first ever Monthly Medal in the second division to also add his name to the end of year entries, being the ninth in the second division list.
Jon had to go through a count back which he won with a better 36 to 40.5 against Markku Tynell after the latter had once again collapsed through the back nine following an excellent opening half when he was seven strokes better. Bruce Hilde almost made it a week to remember as he took third place just a shot behind the leading pair.
With the par threes playing particularly long on the day it was not surprising that once again there were no 2’s in either division ensuring a couple of swollen pots for the following week.
Back at The Haven there were welcome backs for Shane Heavey, Ron Kerslake and Bob Webb.
Note: If you would like to play with The Haven group, you can contact mobile 094 567 5726 or call in to The Haven 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 8.15 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on the days that you wish to play. A schedule of courses to be played can be found on our web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.
