IPGC Golf from The Haven
Monday, April 20, Pattavia (white tees) – Stableford
CSS 75 NC
1st Phil Cass (15) 30pts
2nd Jens Gunnarsson (16) 28pts
3rd Daryl Burkett (12) 27pts
Following a week of no golf from The Haven, a small group of returnees travelled up the 331 to the newly renovated Pattavia Century Golf Club, previously known as Century Chonburi, where as usual the course was found to be playing at its toughest, although on this accession the greens were markedly slower than on previous visits.
Kevin Blake & Philip Cass.
Even with the greens being easier, with a fair amount of grass covering, scoring was still difficult as holding on them and then dealing with the grain and slope factors still seemed beyond most of the hopefuls’ skill range, which then saw the CSS for the day move out to 75 and become non-counting for handicap upward adjustment.
Phil Cass had the best of the day at six over handicap as he had the fewest zero-pointers, which was the prime factor of the day’s results. Jens Gunnarsson had four blobs in his round but still earned second place ahead of playing partner Daryl Burkett, who finished with just three wipes but a lot more single-pointers.
There were no 2’s in either division.
Wednesday, April 22, Khao Kheow A & C (yellow tees) – Stableford
CSS 72
1st Jens Gunnarsson (16) 41pts
2nd Peter Skinner (11) 34pts
3rd Gus Guidetti (12) 33pts
4th Mark Armstrong (25) 32pts
Once again the group generally seemed to get the better of the A course but many, as is often the case here, slipped badly when dealing with the C course over the inward half.
Jens Gunnarsson was the exception as he added a 20 point back-nine to the 21 going out to sweep to the top of the podium by seven clear shots and his best round for over eighteen months.
Peter Skinner was right in there challenging until the back-nine when a couple of zeros halted his move for the win, so had to settle for a well crafted second place one ahead of Gus Guidetti in third spot. Mark Armstrong showed well just one more behind in fourth place.
Once again there were no 2’s in either division.
Friday, April 24, Crystal Bay – Monthly Medal
CSS 71
Division 1 (0-15)
1st Kevin Blake (10) net 65
2nd Philip Cass (15) net 71
3rd Peter Coyne (11) net 74
Division 2 (16+)
1st Jens Gunnarsson (16) net 66
2nd Shuichi Kodaka (16) net 73
3rd Don Everett (22) net 75
Sparks were expected to fly when the monthly medals were scheduled for Crystal Bay, where the wide open fairways offer the big hitters a rare opportunity to open up their shoulders and give a bit of a ride off the tee. And with a good size and quality field it almost cane to be, but finally just two players managed to really take advantage, each winning their respective divisions.
In the first division the victor, Kevin Blake, winning his first Monthly Medal, was possibly the biggest surprise, even to himself possibly. Kevin returned his best card since Oct ’13 since which time he had seen his handicap steadily increase from 4 to 10. But now perhaps can be seen the onset of a new beginning following his recent extensive practice sessions, both home and abroad.
Philip Cass ensured that he will join Kevin in the end of year Gold and Silver competitions competing in the first division as a monthly medal runner up, having previously qualified in the second division as a winner in December. Today he returned a one under card for second place, three ahead of the count back for third spot which Peter Coyne won over Daryl Burkett with a better 36.5 to 39.
In the second division Jens Gunnarsson followed up his previous win, just a couple of days earlier, with another round that was even better as he took his first Monthly Medal, along with his first time qualification for the end of year event. Jens finished seven strokes ahead of Shuichi Kodaka, who became the tenth qualifier in the second division, and Don Everett had a solid return to Pattaya two further back in third place.
Once again there were no 2’s in the second division but Kevin Blake underline his return to winning ways with the sole one in the first division to sweep the multi rollover pool.
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.
