IPGC Golf from The Haven
Monday, July 11, Crystal Bay B & C – Stableford
CSS 71
1st Jon Batty (8) 38pts
2nd Chris Smith (0) 35pts
3rd John Tallett (24) 35pts
4th Shuichi Kodaka (18) 34pts
5th Tom McCarthy (21) 33pts
6th Larry Gibb (21) 32pts
Although the scores on the day did not confirm it, the course was in pretty poor condition as the basic maintenance appears to have been disregarded since the last time the group played here. The fairways were in not bad shape but the rough was extremely rough in most areas and the greens were as usual very difficult to judge for length, due to the several different types of grass on them.
But with the fairways at least allowing some distance from the tee, some of the lower handicap golfers played better or within their handicap ranges.
Jon Batty was the best of them at two under handicap and but for one hole where he took a triple for zero points he would have been even better, but he still did enough to chalk up the win.
Chris Smith, returning for a quick trip from Bangkok where he is used to much better prepared courses, stuck to the task well by shooting a one under gross on the back nine to claim second place after winning a count back with a better 19 to 16 over John Tallett who was playing his last event prior to returning to sunny Blighty for a holiday.
Shuichi Kodaka took fourth just a stroke behind with Tom McCarthy in fifth and Larry Gibb in sixth one and two behind him.
Once again there were no 2s in the first division but Shuichi Kodaka cleared out the second division multi-rollover pot with his solo effort on C7, the 156 yard signature hole for the nine.
Wednesday, July 13, Pattana A & B (yellow tees) – Stableford
CSS 73
1st Jon Batty (8) 35pts
2nd Markku Tynell (22) 34pts
3rd Phil Groves (8) 33pts
4th Phil Cass (15) 33pts
5th Shuichi Kodaka (18) 31pts
6th Graham Davis (8) 31pts
On a completely different level as regards the quality of both the course and the maintenance levels, Pattana’s A and B courses with their par 73 rating provided an excellent day’s golf, although the scoring over the longer layout was not so good as the previous event.
Jon Batty was the winner again with a worse total of points, and ahead by the same single point, but much happier with his result having scored six three-pointers during the round on a much tougher course.
Markku Tynell took second place, finishing strongly through the inward nine and holding off the challenges of the third and fourth players who needed a count back to separate them, with Phil Groves coming out on top by a margin of 17 to 15 to leave Phil Cass in fourth spot.
Shuichi Kodaka continued with his steady form to take another podium placing in fifth, with Graham Davis losing out 16 to 17 in the count back.
There were no 2s in the second division but Phil Cass took the first division multi-rollover pool with his solo effort on the 167-yard A8 hole.
Friday, July 15, Phoenix Gold (Mountain & Lakes) – Stableford
CSS 72
1st Shuichi Kodaka (18) 37pts
2nd Markku Tynell (22) 37pts
3rd Phil Cass (15) 36pts
4th Phil Groves (8) 35pts
5th Graham Davis (8) 35pts
6th Neil Skilton (5) 33pts
The last chance to play the course prior to the King’s Cup and joint sanctioned PGA professional event between the Asian Tour and the European Tour, which starts on the 28th July, was taken up by most of the groups regulars although the course had been shortened dramatically as many of the white tees were roped off in preparation. That meant that the higher handicappers had a distinct advantage on many of the holes as they were all within reach. The next problem was the siting of the holes themselves, many of which had been placed only a couple of yards from the front of the green.
Shuichi Kodaka continued with his very steady play to take the top step after winning a count back with a stunning 23 to 17, which was a gross 40 and his best nine holes for many a moon.
Markku Tynell, who is also playing very well recently was the loser in that count back but was happy to take second place after starting well and slipping a bit on the final hole.
Phil Cass placed third after a good day that started well but which could have finished better.
Phil Groves won a count back for fourth over Graham Davis, scoring a better 16 to 15..
Neil Skilton found the whole course a little confusing as he took no more than a four-iron on the par 4s for the whole day, ending in sixth another couple of shots adrift.
The first division 2s pool was taken by Neil Skilton and the second division by Shuichi Kodaka, both scored on the 160-yards Lakes no. 7.
Note: The Haven golf group have now relocated to Soi Lengkee, on the corner of the road leading to the Vogue Hotel, where there are good parking facilities but sadly no room for club storage at present. Whilst the kitchen in being renovated, there is a limited range of food available, but the supply of beverages continues, at ice cold temperatures and the hotel section is in full swing.
If you would like to play with The Haven group, you can contact 094 465 5002 or call in to The Haven, 315/13 Soi Lengkee, situated between Third Road and Soi Buakhao. 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 a Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on the days that you wish to play. A schedule of courses to be played throughout the year can be found on the web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.
