IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at The Links Bar
Monday, July 27, Greenwood – Medal
The Pattaya Golf Society continued a busy month with a trip to Greenwood on Monday to play its monthly medal competition on the A and C nines, which showed definite signs of improvement since the last visit a month ago. All the greens, except for A4 are recovering well from the remedial work they have undergone and fairways are well grassed.
The field was divided into two flights with the cut at eighteen and under and consisted of a fine blend of age and experience, the latter an essential at Greenwood.
In the second flight a three-way split for the win saw a trio with more than 200 years already racked up. Charles Herring, Alan Walker and Bill Tunbridge all shared the win with net 75, with Charles volunteering a handicap cut before the round to reflect his recent form. It was an admirable act and followed a similar decision by Toby Glass a week earlier. The PGS is very proud of the integrity of its golfers.
Friday’s winners (from left) Grame Kerr, Wichai Tananusorn & Jesper Hansen.
In the top flight, Russell Exley and David Thomas shared third place on net 79 whilst Jon Batty took second with a fine net 74. The winner was Aussie Tony Campbell with a splendid net 71 on his return from Oz, which included birdie ‘2’s on the shortest and longest par threes (A6 and C3).
The consolation beer went to Masaaki Sugaya and David Edwards received the Booby Bevy after a horrendous start to his day which saw a puncture only 500 metres into his journey and the later realisation that his change bag holding his golf shoes was still in his room. “Home James!”
Wednesday, July 29, Siam C.C. – Stableford
The Pattaya Golf Society gave itself a treat on Wednesday with a trip to Siam CC Old Course for a stableford event. Starting on time in a thunderstorm the odds were not good for a successful day but the golf gods got to work and after a few holes the day cleared enough for everyone to complete the competition on soft wet fairways. The course was otherwise in immaculate condition and the greens, with some imaginative pin placings, were tough to read and pace.
The single flight saw Aussie Gary Cukier take third place with 35 points and Huw Phillips establish himself in second with 37, both playing the course for the first time. For Mark Lang however it was a day to remember. His level par front nine “off the sticks” gave him twenty points and he followed this with a back nine matching his five handicap to finish with 38 points. It was an awesome display which emphasised the quality of the unassuming Englishman’s game and his birdie ‘2’ on the short fourth hole added some relish to his round.
The consolation beer went to Mr Len, and thoroughly deserved too, whilst the Booby Bevy went to Tony Campbell after his hero-to-zero performance was inspired by a generous misunderstanding regarding the wet weather preferred lies rule.
What can be said of a day at Siam CC? One word springs to mind – quality – matched by the presentation of the club, course and the field. An unforgettable experience for the Siam “newbies”.
Friday, July 31, Pattavia – 1-2-3 Stableford
The last Friday in the month saw the Pattaya Golf Society use the 1-2-3 format for its monthly fun-day event. Playing in teams of three, this format asks each team to record its single best stableford result on the first, followed by the team’s two best scores on the second, and counting all three stableford scores on the third. This sequence is repeated over the next three holes, the three holes after that, and so on until the 18th.
Our five groups meant five teams and scores ranged from 51 up to the winners, Wichai Tananusorn, Jesper Hansen & Graeme Kerr, who recorded 73. They were followed in by Russell Exley, Gary Olliffe & Toby Glass just one point back on 72.
The key to scoring well in this format is the performance of team members on holes where all three scores count. At Pattavia this meant scoring well on the par-fives, which are hole numbers 3, 6, 12 and 18 – holes which require scores from all three team members. On one par five, the winning team posted 10 points! Scores like that can make a big difference.
Interestingly, today’s winners covered the field in terms of handicap spread. Between the Thai, the Dane, and the Scot they contained the lowest handicap in the field (Wichai on 7), the median (Jesper on 16) and the largest (Graeme on 25). A team effort indeed.
The event was played in perfect weather with cloud cover providing welcome relief. The course, which had suffered much rain the previous day, was very well presented: fairways offered excellent lies and the bunkers here are amongst the best in Pattaya, mainly due to the fact their sand is compressed and well kept. The greens were not as fast as Pattavia’s putting surfaces normally are, due to them having an extra covering of grass. All in all, a very well presented course costing 1050 baht green-fee caddie-fee; excellent VFM on a public holiday.
There were four technical prizes on offer today, courtesy of Russell Exley and Len Jones. Nearest to the pin in two, on the par-four fifth, was won by Russell Exley while nearest pins on the remaining par-3’s were won by Gary Olliffe (two), whilst Russell Exley picked another up at the 17th.
The booby bevy today had only one contender, the day’s organiser David Thomas, who deemed himself a worthy recipient of a free beer following his disastrous day with belts. Forgetting the belt to his trousers was one thing, but when the car he was driving lost its fan belt, requiring the services of a tow-truck, that really did turn his day upside down.
A great fun day had by all, well nearly all!
