PSC Golf Bunker Boys at The Ranch
The Bunker Boys held their annual club championship competition last week: a two day medal event held at Mountain Shadow and Bangpra goulf courses. Thirty-seven players took part and both venues were in somewhat good nick; somewhat refers to the unmowed/ unlevel T-boxes at Mountain Shadow, and the patchy greens/ scrubby fairways at Bangpra. We have seen both courses in much better condition.
The first day saw Colin Greig jump out to a lead – net 63 – that he never relinquished. Geoff Cox, Gordon Melia, Eddie Kelly, and Keith Hemmings were all in the mix but faltered badly on the second day being overtaken by Mark Stanley and Dave Ashman, who took second and third place respectively. Colin took it wire to wire. Congrats Colin!
Peter Allen was the lucky winner of the raffle, pocketing more dough than any of the others; but with no trophy.
Monday, Jan. 18, Pleasant Valley (blue tees) – Medal
Bailing out of a scheduled trip to Greenwood due to the roadworks on Rt 331, we made a late booking at the lovely Pleasant Valley C.C. We sincerely appreciated the acceptance of our booking on short notice, but wish we had been informed that another society had been booked at the same time. The overbooking resulted in nearly an hour delay at the starters’ gate.
Colin Greig (left) receives the Bunker Boys champion’s trophy from Tony Robbins.
Pleasant Valley is a beautiful, challenging and perplexing golf course. Playing off the blue tees at 6,400 yards, some of the hazard carries can be quite intimidating, if not downright impossible. Many of our guys were posting double digits, with Dave Ashman taking the cake with a 14 on the par-5 15th hole. Only one player was able to play to or better his handicap and the average medal score was net 78.
A Flight
1st Colin Greig (12) net 71
2nd Les Cobban (8) net 75
3rd Tony Scambler (12) net 77
B-Flight
1st Trevor Priestly (21) net 73
2nd Tom McDowell (21) net 74
3rd Neil Jones (18) net 75
Near Pins: Keith Norman (2), Lewis Greig, Tony Robbins.
Wednesday, Jan. 20, Mt. Shadow (blue tees) – Medal
Today was the opening round of the Bunker Boys’ Club Championship and thirty-seven of our finest were raring to go. Colin Greig showed no mercy, displaying his prowess by posting a magnificent net 63 – gross 75. An outstanding performance which could of been even better as he missed a couple putts by a you know what hair.
Geoff Cox, Gordon Melia, Keith Hemming, and Eddie Kelly all bettered their handicaps and, even with such fine scores, were a bit discouraged to find themselves more than five strokes off the pace.
The par-3 17th hole saw the near pin flag moving about like musical chairs. Many players hit and marked only to be outdone by the next player slowly inching closer to the cup until Thomas Nyborg finally settled the issue with a near hole-in-one, resulting in two pins on the day for him.
A Flight
1st Colin Greig (12) net 63
2nd Geoff Cox (15) net 68
3rd Gordon Melia (17) net 71
B Flight
1st Keith Hemmings (18) net 69
2nd Eddie Kelly (20) net 71
3rd Neil Jones (18) net 73
Near Pins: Thomas Nyborg (2), Dave Ashman, Tom McDowell.
Friday, Jan. 22, Bangpra – Medal/Stableford
The final round of the club championship and the excitement in the air was palpable, if somewhat muted by Colin’s commanding lead. It was looking like Colin’s to lose and, sure enough, by the 10th hole Gordon had drawn even with Tony Berry, Eddie Kelly, Mark Stanley, and Alan Freeman right on his heels. Then, disaster struck as Eddie took a 9 on the par-5 11th hole and Tony and Gordon fed the water gods on the par-3 12th.
Mark and Alan held steady, playing to their handicaps, but it wasn’t enough and Colin won the championship by an unassailable eight stokes – net 138. Mark Stanley was runner-up with net 146, and Dave Ashman finished third with net 147.
The event was capped-off by a great meal back at The Ranch. The raffle winner – Peter Allen – and Colin both rang the bell and good fun was had by all. Plans are already in the works for next year’s event.
A Flight
1st Barry Murnin (16) 36pts
2nd Tony Berry (14) 36pts
3rd Mark Stanley (8) 35pts
B Flight
1st Jimmy Carr (18) 37pts
2nd Ken Davidson (25) 37pts
3rd Mike Corner (20) 36pts
Near Pins: Gerry Cooney, Ray Crosthwaite, Jimmy Carr, A. Freeman, L. Hall
Note: The Bunker Boys play on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Contact Buff on 086 046 5091 or 080 605 5663 for more information and scheduling.
