IPGC golf from The Haven
Sunday, March 20, Green Valley – Stableford
CSS 71
Division 1 (0-14)
1st Charlie Lapsey (8) 40pts
2nd Yasuo Suzuki (10) 39pts
3rd Michael Steele (13) 38pts
Division 2 (15+)
1st Ben O’Neill (20) 38pts
2nd Mark Armstrong (28) 38pts
3rd Charlie Sheppard (15) 34pts
With another good turnout two divisions were required with the cut being made at fourteen and below for the first division. In a competitive premier flight Charlie Lapsey claimed the top spot by a single shot from Yasuo Suzuki, who was turning out for the first time on a Sunday following his recent purchase of a motorized bicycle and the ensuing need to amortize the cost in the shortest time possible, taking second prize was an added bonus for the day. Michael Steele, playing his last game before returning to South Herts, took third place with a two under handicap return to round out the division winners.
Phil Groves.
Ben O’Neill had to win a count-back to take the top spot in the second division, which he did with a better 20 to 18 over Mark Armstrong, leaving the latter in second place. Charlie Sheppard took the final placing after winning a three-way count-back over Kevin Hamilton and Norman Cheetham, as he finished the back nine in 17 with Kevin winning out on the back six by 11 to 10 after he and Norman had managed only 15 a piece over the nine.
The 2’s were shared between Russell Exley, Yasuo Suzuki, Norman Cheetham, Joe McArdle, Mark Armstrong and Ben O’Neill; fortunately it was a big enough field to make it worthwhile.
The near pins were shared between Steve Mulberry, Neville Duncan, and Russell Goldsworthy.
The presentations were conducted and overseen by Russell Exley as usual at the Golf Centre Bar on the course with amiable hosts John and Geoff, assisted by their lovely staff, taking excellent care of the golfers.
Monday, March 21, Green Valley – Stableford
CSS 72
1st Trevor Schirmer (15) 40pts
2nd George Oakley (16) 35pts
3rd Phil Groves (10) 35pts
4th Roar Berger (24) 34pts
5th Ole Stamnes (27) 33pts
6th Danny Greer (24) 33pts
Al Rolnik.
Trevor Schirmer had the his best round since June last year, playing over 70 rounds in the meantime, getting round in a gross 83 which ensures that he is once again almost at his historical lowest handicap level. On the day he was by far the outstanding competitor, winning by five from George Oakley, who was taking a rest day from his local benevolent works but ensuring that there will be a little extra to disperse prior to returning to ‘Blighty’ to rebuild the resources in readiness for the next visit.
Phil Groves was once again to be found among the prizes after losing a count-back to George with a worse 19 to 20 and having to settle for third place.
Roar Berger, also playing his last game for a while, took fourth place with a solid two over round with playing partner Ole Stamnes close behind in fifth after winning a count-back over Danny Greer with a better 17 to 13 after Danny got a little bit over excited following a one under opening half.
There were no 2’s in the second division but Phil Groves had the only one in the first division to sweep the pool.
Before presenting the prizes for the day Stephen Beard welcomed back Peter Hall and said a farewell for Roar Berger who will be visiting and carrying the groups best wishes to fellow member Kjell Christiansen who is very ill back in Norway.
Wednesday, March 23, Bangpra – Stableford
CSS 73
1st Phil Groves (10) 37pts
2nd Kare Lunde (18) 32pts
3rd Don Scott (10) 31pts
Terrible weather conditions in the early morning, when the thunder and lightning crashed all around Pattaya, meant that most of the prospective players rolled over for an extra few hours in the dry and warmth, which left the field that that travelled to Bangpra very depleted.
Trevor Schirmer.
But after starting off in a very light drizzle that did not even require the employment of an IPGC brolly, the skies cleared after two holes and with the course as usual draining extremely rapidly, a very enjoyable round was finished at a leisurely pace. But the let up in the weather did not bring any relief from the course which always plays a little harder than the 72 par and once again this proved to be the case as the CSS for the day moved out to 73.
This movement in the day’s rating determined that Phil Groves, the only player under par for the day or indeed within two of their handicaps, would be dropped even lower after the weekend’s handicap reviews.
Kare Lunde stuck to the task fairly well to take second place albeit some five shots adrift of the winner, which left Don Scott in third as the prizes were restricted to just three places due to the numbers playing.
On a day when scoring and the conditions were so difficult it was no surprise to find that there were no 2’s in either division.
Friday, March 25, Phoenix (Blue Tees) – Monthly Medals
CSS 74
Division 1 (0-15)
1st Phil Groves (10) 71pts
2nd Don Scott (10) 76pts
3rd Russell Exley (8) 81pts
Division 2 (16+)
1st Al Rolnik (22) 79pts
2nd Rod Howett (24) 84pts
3rd Danny Greer (24) 85pts
Following the low turnout for the previous competition hopes were high that the Monthly Medals would attract a few more players, but once again the poor weather reports and looming skies meant another day when the numbers were much reduced, although the course was found to be in reasonable condition allowing for the ‘casual water’ rule which could be claimed over a wide area of the course.
But the conditions were no problem for the very much in-form Phil Groves, aka The Aussie Burglar, who once again took charge of the first division and once again won with a margin of five shots, which resulted in another drop in handicap making a total of three shots lost since his return to golf just over a month ago, following a two year hiatus. The win also ensures that he will be once again contending for the prized Gold Medal at the end of the year.
Don Scott, playing his last game prior to returning Stateside to entertain jazz guitar enthusiasts over there after too little exposure to the Pattaya aficionados, took second place with a solid round that did not trouble the winner but still ended five ahead of third place, which was occupied by Russell Exley.
The second division was an exercise in application and doggedness, as Al Rolnik stuck with it as shot after shot slipped away due to the length of the course from the blue tees and especially the wetness of the fairways which made scoring extremely difficult for the higher handicaps. His five over the days CSS proved to be easily good enough to take the month’s Medal and book his place in the end of the year finals by a clear five strokes ahead of Rod Howett in second. Danny Greer went out in five under handicap but suffered badly following a fairly nasty ten to open up the inward half, followed by a nine on the eleventh that would have floored lesser mortals and then one or two other unfortunate occurrences, but he never quite gave up to finish in third.
Once again there were no 2’s in the second division and once again Phil Groves had the only one in the first division.
Back at The Haven there were welcome backs for Yukio Kikuchi and Serge Straeten and a farewell for Ole Stamnes.
Note. If you would like to play with The Haven group you can contact mobile 084 782 4582 or call in to the hotel at 185 Soi 13 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 8.30 on Mondays, Wednesday, Fridays and Sundays on the days you wish to play. A schedule of courses to be played can be found on our web site at www.thehaven-hotel.com.
