IPGC Golf from The Haven
Monday, Dec. 7, Greenwood C & A – Stableford
CSS 75 NC
1st Garry Barling (9) 32pts
2nd Kevin Townsend (12) 30pts
3rd Brendan Dunne (30) 30pts
4th Terry Hodgkiss (24) 29pts
5th Rick Morgan (8) 27pts
As the rainy season seems to have no end this year the fairways remain wet with very little run and Greenwood is also proving to be one of the hardest in the area that this particular group play, meaning that once again the CSS moved upwards, on this occasion to 75.
Alan Hanlon.
Garry Barling was the best of the day, at four over his nine handicap, to underline the difficulty of the conditions. Although the course was in good shape and the greens were fast and flat, the lack of run from the tee was a decisive factor.
Kevin Townsend took second place after winning a count back over Brendan Dunne, scoring a better 12 to 11 over the last six holes.
Terry Hodgkiss was a little surprised to be on the podium in fourth place as was Rick Morgan, who was on a flying visit to Pattaya and placed fifth some nine over his handicap.
There were no 2’s in either of the divisions.
Wednesday, Dec. 9, Khao Kheow B & C – Stableford
CSS 73
1st Phil Cass (15) 36pts
2nd Serge Straeten (17) 34pts
3rd Markku Tynell (21) 34pts
4th Huw Phillips (11) 32pts
5th Jens Gunnarsson (12) 32pts
6th Garry Barling (9) 32pts
Another course that is always hard to best is Khao Kheow, especially when the C course is added to the mix, and again even though it was playing extremely well the CSS for the day moved out, but this time only by one stroke.
Garry Barling.
Phil Cass usually manages his game fairly well on this course and excelled again, taking the win two ahead of a count back for second place, after a very strong back nine of three under handicap.
Serge Straeten won that count back with a better 19 to 18 to leave Markku Tynell in third and ruing the missed opportunity after having dropped five shots on the first three holes of the inward half.
There was another count back for fourth place between three players, with Huw Phillips coming out on top with 13 on the back six, with Jens Gunnarsson taking fifth with 11 and Garry Barling sixth with 10 after they had all tied the back nine on 16 apiece.
Once again there were no 2s in either of the divisions.
Friday, Dec. 11, The Emerald – Stableford
CSS 73
1st Allan Hanlon (13) 37pts
2nd Shuichi Kodaka (17) 34pts
3rd Walter O’Keefe (14) 30pts
4th Vincent Gras (17) 26pts
5th Kevin Townsend (12) 25pts
6th Adrian Cook (13) 24pts
To round of a testing week of golf the group were set for Emerald where although the course could not be faulted, the problems were added to when halfway through the day the rains lashed down requiring a short halt to play but thereafter the conditions were even more difficult.
Allan Hanlon easily took the top step with an almost runaway win by three ahead of second place after a solid round of one under handicap front nine and level for the back. He had just one blemish on the 18th after seeing his tee shot disappear into the right hand jungle for a lost ball, but a solid par for three on the last ensured a happy return to Thailand in the end.
Phil Cass.
Shuichi Kodaka, having had a very quiet week again up to this point did enough on the front nine before the rains hit to ensure his first visit to the podium well ahead on the rest of the field.
Walter O’Keefe would have been quite surprised to find himself in third spot as were Vincent Grass in fourth, Kevin Townsend in fifth and Adrian Cook in sixth after they had all returned scores they would usually like to forget but at least they had the dubious feeling of superiority over the rest of the hopefuls on a day when the weather had the last laugh.
Note: If you would like to play with The Haven group, you can contact 038 710 988 or call in to The Haven Hotel, 185 Soi 13, situated 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 a Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on the days that you wish to play. If you would like to leave your golf clubs at The Haven, there are usually lockers available at a nominal charge. A schedule of courses to be played can be found on our web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.
