Phil finds first (again)

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PSC Golf from The Golf Club

Monday, June 6, Green Valley (white tees) – Stableford

1st Andy Makara (26) 39pts

2nd Mark Wood (7) 36pts

3rd Dave Ferris (21) 35pts

The sixth day of the sixth month was lucky for us as we found tournament quality conditions at Green Valley today.  Pin positions were also in places we had never seen so the course was a lot of fun and surprising.  All that thrown into the golfing equation, we did pretty well for ourselves under these conditions that were the same as for the Singha tournament pros.  Yeah, they might have been teeing off a bit further back that’s all!

Phil Smedley (centre) with Kenny Aihara (left) and Fred Birch
Phil Smedley (centre) with Kenny Aihara (left) and Fred Birch

Dave Ferris is showing his form as he has become no stranger to the podium these days.  Dave turned in a solid 35 for third place but one stroke better found Mark Wood shooting to his handicap with a nifty 36.  Man of the match was our regular darksider Andy Makara, who usually meets up with the mob on the first tee.  Andy had a very solid 39 and left the rest of the field in the dust.

Fred Birch also made his mark by claiming near pin honours on the 16th hole.

Tuesday, June 7, Phoenix Gold (white tees) – Stableford

1st Phil Smedley (15) 39pts

T2nd Fred Birch (21) 38pts

T2nd Kenny Aihara (5) 38pts

We played the Mountain and Lake courses today which should come as little surprise as the Ocean nine is closed.  The practice greens are recovering slower than expected and still have many brown patches around the edge.  The course was better on the front and patchy on the back nine so I hope they get a move on for the upcoming King’s Cup tournament at the end of July.  Some of the greens on the course were still sanded, so pull your socks up lads!

Kenny Aihara and Fred Birch locked horns and had to share second place with a couple of great 38’s.  The convict was on the loose again and if the previous week’s 45-pointer wasn’t enough to embarrass him, then maybe today’s 39 might be.  Yep, Capt. Phil seems to be on a roll these days and turned in yet another great score to end up a terrible host once again.

The near pin on the last par-3 went to Wayne Macornish with half going to our Caddy Smile project.

Thursday, June 9, Khao Kheow B & C (white tees) – Stableford

T1st Dave Ferris (21) 37pts

T1st Mark Wood (7) 37pts

3rd Kenny Aihara (5) 36pts

We had a great run up highway 7 and got to the course in just over 35 minutes.  The weather continues to be decent and it made for an enjoyable day out.

Numbers are down just about everywhere and some courses are reporting only a few dozen rounds per day.  Competition between the clubs is fierce and we are getting some of the lowest rates we have ever seen.  With our PSC vouchers, we were getting a 550 baht green fee here at one of our finest golf courses and that is why we were here.

Mr. “Nice Shot” Kenny Aihara was in rare form and did not win today.  That was a most unusual circumstance to see an entire week go by and not a first place finish for our buddy Ken.  I guess those Monthly Medals wore him out!

As we all know, the rigs are quiet and the lads that make their living from them have a bit of time on their hands at the moment.  Idle time on the job means more time on the course!  Mark Wood is among that group and a second on Monday combined with a nice 37 today gave Markie a good week on the leaderboard.  He shared the podium pinnacle with Dave Ferris who also had a happy Monday earlier this week.  Dave has shown some strong consistency of late and is finally comfortable with Kenny’s old clubs!

The near pin went to Dale Shier who, as usual, gave the lot to our Caddy Smile programme.  Dale has been a quiet and generous contributor to the cause and he knows it is greatly appreciated.  By the way, even Dale could not miss his 18 inch putt for birdie!  Nice ‘2’ there Mr. Shier.

Golf certainly is a funny old game.  This past week Corey and Peter were absent from the podium after months of consistent, great play.  I would expect to see their names back up top in the near future. Even Jordan Spieth tied for 57th at The Memorial; such is the temperament of this unpredictable mistress we embrace!

Note: The Golf Club is located on Soi LK Metro.  Just call 085 434 3377 or see our website www.golfclubpattaya.com and for more information mail us: pattaya4golf @gmail.com and see updates at www.facebook.com/golfclubpattaya… all handicaps welcome!