IPGC golf from The Links
Sunday, February 5, Pattaya C.C. – Stableford
Twenty-three golfers made the ever popular Sunday trip to Pattaya Country Club on Sunday. Unfortunately, due to a lack of available golf carts (last week it was caddies), we were unable to take advantage of the vacant tee on arrival, and with other groups starting to arrive, we made the decision to start walking where possible, with the carts catching the groups as they became available; again, thanks go to the starter for giving priority to those who needed them most.
The group was split into two flights, 0-14 and 15+ and in the A flight, Terry Kelly, on his return to Thailand, took first place with 38 points, ahead of Jon Batty (36) and Jack Behan (35).
Silky Oak top three: John Connolly, Jean Morel & Andy Galvin.
Noel Reynolds triumphed in the B flight with 35 points, finishing two ahead of Sean Hallahan while Alec Hoare completed the places with 32 points, beating John Connolly on count back.
The ‘2’s went to Terry Kelly (2) and Ted Lodge.
A Flight
1st Terry Kelly (14) 38pts
2nd Jon Batty (8) 36pts
3rd Jack Behan (14) 35pts
B Flight
1st Noel Reynolds (15) 35pts
2nd Sean Hallahan (18) 33pts
3rd Alec Hoare (17) 32pts
Tuesday, February 9, Lotus Valley – Stableford
The second trip of the year to Lotus Valley saw the largest turnout so far, with 48 golfers deciding the 1 hour 40 minute drive was worthwhile. 4 minibus’s and one car left the Links in convoy, a little later than the planned departure time of 9.00am, but the first group managed to tee off at 11.00am, as scheduled. Unfortunately, the two-tee start we were promised failed to materialise, which meant a long wait for those scheduled to go out at the back.
The course was as always in fantastic condition, and the management had obviously taken onboard our feedback regarding the pace of the greens, as they were much slicker than our previous visit, despite reports of them still being slow the week before. As per our previous visit, we used the blue and white tees, with 21 golfers with handicaps 6-13 playing off the blues and 20 golfers at 14+ playing off the whites.
There were also enough ladies to have their own division for the first time this year, with Theresa Connolly taking the honours with 34 points, 5 ahead of Kathleen Fetherston. Christina Peltonen just missed out on a prize, shooting a very creditable 93 gross off her 11 handicap.
Round of the day in the A Flight went to Al Keith, shooting a 75 gross off his 6 handicap to top the flight. Rob Taylor and Joe McArdle could only be split for second by a 12–11 back 6 count back; Joe proving that the longer blue tees are not just for the young’uns. Rick Schramm completed the places, shooting a level 36 points after his birdie– birdie start.
In the B Flight, Tony Barritt took the spoils with 40 points ahead of Ted Morris and Francie McGuigan on 37 and 34 respectively. Jean Morel edged out Jack Behan to complete the places, by virtue of a 17–16 count back.
The ‘2’s pot went to Rob Taylor, Mark Stanley and Jack Behan.
A Flight
1st Al Keith (6) 39pts
2nd Rob Taylor (8) 37pts
3rd Joe McArdle (12) 37pts
4th Rick Schramm (7) 36pts
B Flight
1st Tony Barritt (16) 40pts
2nd Ted Morris (16) 37pts
3rd Francie McGuigan (15) 34pts
4th Jean Morel (20) 33pts
Ladies
1st Theresa Connolly (24) 34pts
2nd Kathleen Fetherston (23) 29pts
3rd Christina Peltonen (11) 26pts
Thursday, February 9, Silky Oaks – Stableford
This was my first visit to Silky Oaks, not a course I was particularly looking forward to, based on reports I’d heard, and I get a feeling you either love it or hate it. I felt it was a bit contrived, with no natural flow from one green to the next tee, and the greens were painfully slow and uneven. It is however extremely well organized, with no possibility of “clashing” with another group on the shared fairways, and at 1500 baht including buggy hire, which is compulsory due to the long drives between green and tee, represents decent value for money. I may even go again, but probably not this year!
With the long trip to Lotus Valley obviously taking its toll on many, only 16 signed up, which meant only one flight.
Jean Morel took the honours as the only player to shoot his handicap, ahead of Andy Galvin on 35 points, with John Connolly completing the places a further point behind
The day got better for John Connolly when he learned he registered the only ‘2’ of the day.
1st Jean Morel (20) 36pts
2nd Andy Galvin (20) 35pts
3rd John Connolly (19) 34pts
Note: The Links depart from the hotel on Soi Buakhao at 9.30am on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 10.00am for Pattaya Country Club every Sunday. Sign up at the hotel or contact Jon on 080 021 1034. A full schedule of courses can be found on the IPGC website: www.ipgc.org.
