Next Week’s Details

What a day! The group sheet had more changes than a stripper at a nightclub. However, we ended up with our original field size of sixteen, but in only four groups after Harry just about chucked it in. Gordo and SOS gave instructions to the chefs on where to look for the supplies and the new Club gas cylinder, so everything was deemed to be in dinky-di order. The air was a bit chill, but the sun was shining, and a warming trend was in the offing. The forecasts hinted at rain later in the day, and this proved to be perfectly correct, though there were half a dozen drops as the post game barbecue wound up. The big question was, would anybody be able to catch Nalin, who started out with at least four points start on the rest of the field. Would there be a brilliant performance by somebody or would there be a tragic collapse, by the first round leader?

There was a brilliant performance. But, it wasn’t by one of the back runners. It was by none other than Nalin himself, who absolutely played out of his skin to make last week’s score look ordinary, and carded a PB eighty-one off the stick, for plus six to add to the first round plus three. And that included three ‘bad’ holes. The reports were that the short game was absolutely brilliant, with the approach shots finishing close. Or, if they didn’t, the putts rattled in from anywhere on the green. Targe had it in his mind that Nalin’s ‘arrow’ ball marker might have had something to do with his uncanny accuracy. Maybe not! Regardless, a total of plus nine for the two rounds left the rest of the field the length of the straight and a couple of home turns behind.

SOS had a lesson during the week, and the coach ‘changed everything’. There was one instance of a reversion to form on the third, when a power shank from the tee could have taken a passer’s head off if it had made it through the bush. There were just enough missed putts etc for SOS to opine that the score didn’t really reflect how he played. Still, his minus one for the day was well up in the ball run listings, and the overall of minus three was adequate to score him second place for the event. Something that he entirely did not expect.

Gordo was heard doing a fair impression of a randy elephant seal, as he expressed his frustration with the ‘luck’ of the game. However, he came home with a wet sail by making birdie, par, par on the last three holes to finish the day just minus two to finish just behind SOS for the event on minus four. He wasn’t alone on that podium step. Bob shrugged off the effects of an air swing on the 6th, and the usual putts that were in the hole except for the last minute turn, to match Gordon on both daily scores. Targe took a slightly different path to his minus four, but he also needed a bit of a wet sail, as it took pluses on the last two holes to get him there. Brendon produced the second best score of the day with his square card, and also finished plus four overall.

Harry misjudged the effect of the dew on the speed of the greens early on, but made some very nice ones later in the round. One that should have been in hung on the lip of the cup, but the ten seconds elapsed, for no result. Reports suggest that Craig suffered a similar fate on one hole. Harry’s driver abandoned him on the last two holes, buying all sorts of trouble, and he could only manage minus two for the day. This let him hold his fourth place in the main field. Stan produced a very even distribution of all markings on the card, and, if it had not been for a ‘bald’ patch in the middle of the back nine, the result could have been somewhat different. So he had to settle for the last point on offer for the event. He was joined by AndrewV, who didn’t do quite as badly as he thought due to a point allocation error on his card.

As a second consolation prize for Andrew, he managed to knock off JQ for the BallPin on the 12th hole. The Kiwi (who else?) took out the Jackpot ProPin on the 15th with a shot to 3.49m, although a few estimated that it was longer than that. And, it was just not JQ’s day, because his claim to the BallPin on the 18th was overturned by Nalin.

We managed to score six birdies today, perhaps a bit on the light side considering the field and the conditions. Gordo did a bit of muttering about the fact that his second on the 16th finished to the left of the green and just off. Unperturbed, he just chipped it in. He went close to another on the 12th when the ball just about slam-dunked, almost disappearing from sight before jumping back out. JQ put in a reasonable round, even though he did own up to a draughtie on the 15th tee. Whitey, on the other hand, did not make much of a fist of the game on the day. At one stage, he lost four balls over the course of three holes. Matt also did a certain amount of huffing and puffing as the round progressed, and apparently pulled a real tantrum on the 8th tee, about the quality of his drive. He then proceeded to par the hole. Go figure!

So, having received adequate instruction from Gordo and SOS about the barbecue supplies, Matt fronted up to the cafe, looking for the meat and trimmings. Of course, they knew nothing about it, and offered to sell him some of theirs. Luckily, he didn’t take the offer and decided to phone a friend. The instructions were patiently repeated over the phone, and the barbecue could get under way. Except, that they reckon the brand-new gas bottle would not give out with any gas. They found another one lurking which, apparently, would give out some gas, and a very fine feed of burgers and snags (some <hot>) with frazzled onions, coleslaw and a range of sauces and breads was ready to be consumed by the ravenous hordes. To prove a point, SOS, afterwards, connected up the Club gas bottle, and it gave out gas no trouble at all. Matt and JQ claimed that they must have ‘loosened it up’. Regardless, a good time was had by all.

Results for Saturday, 25 Oct 2025
1st Nalin Samaranayake (+3, + 6, + 9) 2nd Stephen O’Sullivan (-2, -1, -3) 3rd Gordon Hill (-2, -2, -4) 3rd Bob McDonald (-2, -2, -4) 3rd Targe Mifsud (-1, -3, -4) 3rd Brendon Mitchell (-4, □, -4) 4th Harry Boughen (-3, -2, -5) 5th Stan Blackshaw (-5, -1, -6) 5th Andrew Vogan (-5, -1, -6)

Seniors Results: 1st Gordon Hill (-2, -2, -4) 1st Bob McDonald (-2, -2, -4) 1st Targe Mifsud (-1, -3, -4) 2nd Harry Boughen (-3, -2, -5) 3rd Stan Blackshaw (-5, -1, -6) 3rd Andrew Vogan (-5, -1, -6)

Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 15th Brendon Mitchell BallPin No 1 – 12th Andrew Vogan BallPin No 2 – 18th Nalin Samaranayake

What was it about the back nine today? You can’t really blame the weather. If anything, the back enjoyed the best of it, as the cold, and even a mist of rain, gave way to sunshine. Although the course looks green, the grass hasn’t really got a grow on, and there was plenty of run to be had, with the downside of the occasional bare lie to play from. As it was, fifteen members set out to battle it out in the first round of the Fred Kitson, and they managed to knock out five birdies in the process. If last night’s SnapChat/WhatsApp was to be believed, there would have been more, but maybe it was the sherbet talking.

When asked how he went, Nalin’s response was that he had hit seven trees from the first seven tees. Then, he handed his card in. According to reports, there was a suspicion that he had stolen Bobbie’s putter, as he replicated Bob’s last week’s performance by sinking just about everything from just about everywhere. Some were travelling so fast that they were in danger of leaving the green, if they had not hit the pin dead centre, which prevented the possibility of damage to the back of the cup. Not to be outdone, Harry’s putt on the first was saved from a similar potential fate by catching the pin dead centre at high speed from about five or six metres, to stop dead and drop into the hole for an unlikely par. Nalin finished the front three up, but ‘faded’ slightly on the back to square the nine, to lead the field comfortably on plus three.

Craig played his usual steady game on the front, and should have finished better than plus one for the nine, if some of his putts had been slightly better directed. The near misses with the flat stick continued on the back, and the final tally was minus one to slot into second place on the Leaderboard. Targe turned up looking as if he had just come from, or was about to head off to a disco, if his pants were any guide. At least he wasn’t wearing high-heeled sneakers. His golf was largely unaffected, however, and he was able to match Craig to share second place. Gordon finished just a single point further back from a round that seemed to lack any highlights, other than that his super-powerful second shot on the third brought down a ‘major’ branch from the tree that got in the way. SOS joined him as one of the few who recorded a better score on the back nine than they did on the front. SOS did claim that he managed to hit thirteen trees in the process, but it is not clear whether this was an unlucky number or not. He did remember to hit <record> for his shot on the 18th today, and, although he did not get the HIO, he did get a shot of his BallPin winning shot. There was some consideration of declaring the claim over Brendon (who was barely on the green) because of the ‘obscene’ gesture inscribed on the chit. Bob also shared a piece of third place, with his main complaint being that he had picked up twice when he still had strokes left. This usually happens when people go out rather than having taken a big cut last week.

Harry was pretty happy at the turn, and, on the 10th tee, promised better things. Things did look better for a few holes, but four gashes in the last six holes tore the guts out of the score. Dan should have been right up there with Nalin, after finishing the front level-pegging on plus three. The rot set in when he marked and picked up his ball off the green on the 10th. Six of the next eight were losses. Porks joined the merry band on minus three, as another who scored ‘better’ on the back. Brendon would probably prefer to forget his back nine on his way to minus four for the day and the last spot on the Leaderboard placings. A lost ball on the 13th fairway, did not contribute much to his level of happiness.

There was a BallPin on the 4th, and the prize was hotly contested, with Dan and Stan putting their hands up. Unfortunately, Matty’s usual course was being ‘cored’, and he came to Ivanhoe to ‘take home the chocolates’. Barbecue tools and a ball from the 4th will be the only ‘chocolates’ that he will get. The ProPin was on the 15th, and, despite the tee being well back, and the pin as well, the five-metre circle proved elusive, and there will be a Jackpot on offer for next week. Despite Matt’s rather poor showing in the scoring arena, he absolutely shone compared to Raj, who is apparently front-runner in the Shank-king Stakes after today’s effort. One shot, at least, was not a shank, because the ball was missed completely. Just don’t write him off just yet, though. CJ had a couple of home chores to attend to this afternoon after the round, and he was undecided which one terrified him the most. One was doing the vacuuming, the other was meeting up with the Ice-man who rear-ended Carolyn’s car.

Results for Saturday, 18 Oct 2025
Leaderboard Round 1: 1st Nalin Samaranayake (+3) 2nd Craig Cameron (-1) 2nd Targe Mifsud (-1) 3rd Gordon Hill (-2) 3rd Bob McDonald (-2) 3rd Stephen O’Sullivan (-2) 4th Harry Boughen (-3) 4th Dan Marie (-3) 4th Ryan Porker (-3) 5th Brendon Mitchell (-4)

Seniors Leaderboard: 1st Craig Cameron (-1) 1st Targe Mifsud (-1) 2nd Gordon Hill (-2) 2nd Bob McDonald (-2) 3rd Harry Boughen (-3)

Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 15th Jackpot BallPin No 1 – 4th Matt Hunt BallPin No 2 – 18th Stephen O’Sullivan