The Tropical Golf Group
Thursday, May 4, Pattavia – Stableford
The destination this Thursday was Pattavia, a longer drive than most but the roads in have steadily improved.
Some days seem to be cursed and simple things are made difficult. It all started when one golfer missed the fact we were playing a day early, despite the change being well advertised and remembered by all the rest. This golfer was the important kind – the kind with a car. Scramble time. Then another car went to that other “P” course, Pleasant Valley. Eventually we all met at Pattavia and under hot weather started the round.
Pattavia is in good condition, but those greens, in good shape by the way, are tricky. People who advise to “hit below the pin” obviously overestimate our skills. The round over it was time to have the presentation, this time at the course. Nice!
The scores were pretty good, but at the top was Tom Herrington (c/h 17) who won the day with a most excellent 41 points. Tom didn’t collapse on the back this time. Next was Joel Flor (30) who returned in style with an enviable 40 points while the ever-present Mashi Kaneta (17) with 39 points rounded out the podium.
Near Pins: Joel Flor, Dick Warberg.
Friday, May 12, Treasure Hill – Stableford
We are well into the month of May and hopefully the temperatures will start to drop. Of course with it comes more rain, but you can’t have everything. Over at Tropical Golf some wandering souls have started to return and we jumped up to 19 golfers for this Friday at Treasure Hill. Always a tough challenge, there were also threatening skies to worry about.
What can you say about Treasure Hill? It’s a tough but fair course, and if one doesn’t exercise control and discipline within their skill level, you will be heavily penalized. Sometimes you are penalized even using skill management. Playing off the yellow tees, the course was in good condition. The greens are on the slow side, but some have so much slope that if you putt from above the pin you wish they were sticky. We did have some rain in the “drizzle” category but not enough to stop the Tropical’s, and lasted just a couple holes. With such a testing day, who would rise to the challenge?
The winner with four strokes to spare in A Flight (0-16) was Takeshi Hakozaki (c/h 15) with an excellent 40 points! Takeshi was coming off a most impressive win at the PSC monthly, and he hopes to stay in the zone for a while longer; funny how the game seems easy sometimes. Next up were Steve Truelove (9) and Gerd Riedler (9) at 36 points off single digits. Good golf!
B-Flight (17+) winner Dick Warberg (21) really used his strokes to perfection with a 5-pointer and a couple 4-point holes to earn a fine 38 points overall. Good management. Next up was “just in time” Bob Britton (18) with 34 points, and the returning Daryl Evans (26) with 31. Never give up!
Best Nines (non-winner): Brian Parish, John Davis.
Near Pins: Dick Warberg, Brian Parish, Landis Brooks, Steve Truelove.
