Monthly Archives: June 2013

Last week, we had the frost and ice to deal with.  This week the fog and mist.  Not sure which was the worst but some opted to volunteer for the last group to try to avoid the worst of it.  Not sure that it made a huge difference looking at the scores that came in from the last group.  Apparently, there were a couple of lost balls on the first.  The course is still a bit damp in places and so the relief rule was in place once more and that perhaps helped some more than others – or maybe they just played better.

One person who did play better after a few weeks away keeping the ruffians at the Darklands under control was Dennis who looked more than a little concerned when Mehm announced a winning score of 44 points but, fortunately, it was just Mehm’s warped sense of humour.  Well done Dennis, the points have given you a nice little boost up both Championship tables.

Hot on the heels of Dennis was RodW who has been lurking in the background for a while now and is starting to gather a few points.  Gilbert wasn’t too far behind and scored third spot on his own after a calculation error on Mo’s card dropped him down to join Targe in 4th spot.  Zimmer and Noodles filled the last of the point scoring spots.

There were a fair swag of Seniors who scored points today – Dennis (3), Mo and Targe (2) and Mike, Trevor and AndrewB (1).

Nobody else managed to break their handicap today but there were one or two calculation errors on the cards.  So please, chaps, take a bit of care and be sure to cross check where you get strokes and agree the calculations with your marker.

As well as coming in second on the scoring front, RodW did pretty well in other areas as well as he got his name on both the nearest the Pin and ProPin.  This doubling up seems to be getting to be a common thing.  Poor old Jack had to hand over the cash that he was holding from last week so the stakes won’t be nearly so high next week.  The birdie tally was 17 which is pretty good and they seemed to be pretty well spread around.  Nobody seems to have scored an eagle though there was a rumour that somebody might have gone close.

Mostyn and Sinan put in their third cards today and they now have an official Ivanhoe handicap.  Welcome to the Club boys.

One person who didn’t go close was Craig who set a new record for short putting by moving the ball by less than a centimetre.  Craig reckons it was an accident.  Damo must have been doing it tough as he reckoned he had handed the Championship to Oliver by the 13th.  Oliver didn’t make the points though so the status quo remains at the top though there have been some moves further back that have potential to affect the result at the end of the year.

The moves to set up our GolfLink membership are under way and once this weeks results have been entered by the Club House, the membership transfers will begin and you will be notified by e-mail of your new GolfLink number as soon as it becomes available.  You will receive a new membership card in due course.  In the meantime, note your new number and use it to check your scores and handicap on GolfAccess and for entering competitions.  Those of you who are not nominating Ivanhoe Men’s as your Home Club will retain your existing membership number.  New GolfLink members will receive a new handicap according to the rules of the official handicapping system.  The Ivanhoe Men’s competitions and handicapping system will continue as before.  However, if you wish to have scores entered into the official system when you do not play the inside competition, you will have to keep a card with your official handicap and your GolfLink membership number.

Results for Saturday, 29 June 2013
1st Dennis Tiernan(43) 2nd Rodney White(42) 3rd Gilbert Demiri(40) 4th Targe Mifsud(39) 4th Mo Sabih(39) 5th Kazim Akdag(38) 5th Stephen Butterfield(38)

The solstice has passed us by and this morning was the first day of the astronomical winter.  There was a nice high pressure cell overhead and the clear skies allowed the temperature to plunge – minus 2C was reported in places nearby – and the course was nicely frosted over until the sun got above the trees to thaw some of it out.

The soft greens and the accumulation of ice around spikes meant that the greens took on the appearance of the surface of the moon and as they count as spike marks, there was no option for repair – though you’d have been there all day had you tried to.  The ice is a loose impediment though and that could at least be brushed away, provided of course that you were on the putting surface.

The ball did have a tendency to pick up ice and sand and grow somewhat in diameter, track off line and pull up short much to the chagrin of some players.

Despite the icy start, play went well for some and a few fairly impressive scores were forthcoming.  In particular, Bill, who was in the front group and was responsible for a lot of the pock marks in the greens, managed to come in plus four and was quietly confident that he would be hard to beat, particularly with encouragement from David and others in the following group.  As it turned out, he was hard to beat, but he was equalled by none other than SOS who produced a mirror image round with plus one on the front and plus three on the back.  The points have leapfrogged the BEast over Damo in the Championship Table so there is plenty of excitement left the the competition yet.

Ultra reliable Oliver put in another sterling performance to maintain his front runner status with plus two.  A bit of a cluster in third spot with +1 included Damo, Harry and Zimmer.  This was followed by a group of squares such as Ben, Mehm, Chrispy and Stefan.  RodW collected himself another point on his own at -1.  Seniors points went to Bill, Oliver and Harry.

There were two closely fought Matchplay matches played today.  Stefan prevailed over Harry 1 up in a match that was never more than one hole each way and could have gone either way on a number of occasions.  David and Dick also played their second round match in a similarly close run thing with David getting up 1 up as well.  David reckons Dick was a bit stiff on the 17th when he over hit the green with his 5 iron from the tee and the ball could not be found.

Despite some hoo-haa before tee time about the money being on the 4th, it turned out that nobody got close enough to claim so the old stager Jack Potts will hold the cash till next week to see if we can do any better.  The Nearest the Pin for a ball on the 12th went to Stefan who almost broke Harry’s heart by sinking the putt for his birdie after Harry put the pressure on by putting in from off the green for the par.  Speaking of birdies, there were 16 today which isn’t too shabby a number.  Once again the Eagle was left in peace.

It seems that today was a day for hats.  First off Trevor left his at home.  Gordon wore his startled hair hat.  Ben was getting around looking like a Parisian artist/gangster.  Tony was resplendent in a jolly tartan from the Old Course at St Andrews.  And last but not least there was another hat challenge between Bill and Zimmer.  Needless to say, Bill was victorious and was insistent on showing it off instead of getting his photo taken.  He has also promised to keep Zimmer informed of its adventures during the coming week.

In other news, Trevor and Noodles were heard to be admonishing themselves and we also suspect that Damo was not too happy about one of his tee shots.  He made up for it on the 18th by chipping in for a birdie from what appeared to be an impossible position amongst the bushes.  No reports of any draughties today, though Jan was away.

The arrangements with Golf Victoria and GolfLink will be finalised this week and an update will be circulated as soon as information comes to hand.

Results for Saturday, 22 June 2013
1st Bill Eastoe(+4) 1st Stephen O’Sullivan(+4) 2nd Oliver Gross(+2) 3rd Kazim Akdag(+1) 3rd Harry Boughen(+1) 3rd Damien Lee(+1) 4th Ben Akdag(□) 4th Mehmet Akdag(□) 4th Stefan Belevski(□) 4th Chris Priems(□) 5th Rodney White(-1)

The weather forecast was for possible showers but they held off and only looked threatening from time to time.  So the only danger from water was from that contained inside the hazards and that squeezing up between your toes from underneath.  A few pretty soggy patches after the rains of the past few days and some of the works going on around the course.  Fortunately, the preferred lie rule was in place again through the green and good use was made, at least by some.  As an aside, when the preferred lie rule is in place, you are allowed to clean the ball before placing it back within the specified distance – but don’t forget you have to mark the spot suitably before you lift.

It is pretty clear that Noodles is a bit of a mud runner and after his performance a couple of weeks back he has blitzed the course again to rack up 39 points and continues his rapid climb up the championship table.  The big question is, can he get enough points up before the cricket season starts again or will he be prepared to fore-go the cricket for a crack at the Big Kohuna.

Bill battled a bit from time to time, even pulling out his driver for a shot from the short rough on the 6th to try to make up for some errant play.  Despite half a dozen single pointers he still managed to play to his handicap.  Mister Consistency, Oliver, filled the third spot with 35 points and the placing points have pushed him to a slight lead on the Championship table.  Targe, Pepsi and Harry filled the next rank a couple of points back.  A further point back was RodG who was heard to claim that he was having a hopeless round.

There were two matchplay matches run today with Jan getting up over Brendon 3 and 2 and Eddie turned in one of his performances to knock the top off Pepsi 4 and 2.  There are still two matches outstanding in the second round.  Harry and Stefan will be playing next week and David and Richard will have to sort something out as well.  If it is not next week, somebody will have to forfeit.  In the meantime the rest of the field can get on with the third round matches as the competition gets to the pointy end.

Eddie only played the matchplay today but did manage to get his name on both pin competitions (is that legal?) – the ProPin on the 15th and the ball hole on the 18th.  As he didn’t put a card in it is not clear whether he made the birdies but they were relatively thin on the ground today with only seven plodded.  Nobody worried the eagle today although Bill seemed to be liking his chances on a couple of occasions though the results did not reflect his confidence on the tee.

Fairly obviously the recent wet weather has been good for the ducks and it seems as if some of them might have kicked the breeding season off a bit early if the little yella fella spotted during the round today was any guide.  Or maybe David was just keeping an eye of how things were going – quaaack.

Targe was striding purposefully towards the hole after a putt ready to scoop the ball out of the hole when it stopped and turned left to stay perched on the edge.  Must have been one of those volcano holes.  Ken’s GolfLink handicap is showing the benefits of his membership at Rosanna with the differential from his Club handicap out to five strokes.  If he keeps this up he’ll be able to challenge Adrian Fleming for bragging (or bagging) rights inside.

Although Jan was able to get up over Brendon in the matchplay, it still didn’t stop him pulling off a couple of draughties during the round.  Not happy Jan!  But what does it say for how Brendon played?

Chrispy played a game of two halves today, managing a mere 8 points on the front nine then absolutely tearing the back nine apart to rack up 20 points and an almost respectable score.  All he has to do is remember what he did differently and Just Do It.

Must be the time of the year to buy new gear.  Last week Harry turned out with fresh kit and this week it was Pepsi’s turn to show off his new Aston Martin (golf bag – not car).  Didn’t help him in the Matchplay but at least he scored some points.

Speaking of points, Bill topped the seniors, followed by Oliver in second and Harry and Targe in third.  Still fairly tight at the top in this event.

More details on the changes with the IMSGC.  As you are aware we have been registered as an incorporated association and this has a few implications for the general management of the club with respect to account keeping and record keeping generally.  We will also become part of the GolfLink network through VicGolf.  In addition, if we wished we will be able to field a team in the Victorian Pennants Competition.

We will continue to use our Club handicapping system as a basis for our Club Competition.  However, as part of the membership of GolfLink each member will have an official handicap that can be used for competition at any Golf Club in Australia (including the inside comp at Ivanhoe).  If members wish to maintain an up-to-date GolfLink handicap but not enter the inside competition, they will still have to fill out a second card using their GolfLink handicap for separate entry into the GolfLink system.

Members will also be covered with insurance for third party and injury and possibly also theft of equipment (to be confirmed).

Obviously, there will be a cost associated with this, which will amount to $80 plus the normal IMSGC subscription of $20 per year.  For those that currently have a GolfLink membership, a small fee will see that membership extended to the end of the year and the Club will cover that cost.  For those that do not have a GolfLink membership, the full $80 will have to be paid, but the Club will subsidise that fee to the extent of $40 for the six months to the end of the year.  This should be settled as soon as possible.  On January 1st 2014, the full $100 will become payable but there might be an option, on application to the committee, for quarterly payment if any members feel that this arrangement would suit them better.

If you are a member at another Club (Rosanna, Yarrambat, Riverview etc) and wish to maintain that membership, then a small fee can be paid to affiliate with IMSGC.  It is not clear at this stage what this entitles you to.

A further reminder for those going on the Annual Challenge.  Ben needs another $50 (like yesterday) – there’s a deadline to meet – he has everybody’s initial deposit.  He knows where you live and his mate Terry is straining at the leash.

Results for Saturday, 15 June 2013
1st Stephen Butterfield(39) 2nd Bill Eastoe(36) 3rd Oliver Gross(35) 4th Harry Boughen(33) 4th Targe Mifsud(33) 4th Andrew Petricola(33) 5th Rod Grant(32)

There are several things to note about this photograph.  First, there is the exemplary position of the hands and club at the top of the backswing.  Second, there is the location of the red (ladies) tee markers.  Third, and this is not something that anybody would have expected, is the golfer involved.  In case you don’t recognise the style, it is Constable SOS.  Not that he was alone in having a draughtie.  He had been preceded by David and was followed a little later, on the second tee, by Jan.  Jan even went close to not getting past the men’s markers.

In case you are wondering, a draughtie is that ‘not quite a windie’  that costs you a draughtie for your mates.

Despite some shivering while waiting for the sun to struggle above the trees on the horizon, the day turned out to be quite a nice one in the scheme of things.  The course was soft in places and the course management had declared preferred lies through the green.  So, there really shouldn’t have been any excuses.  But, other that a select few, by and large the field didn’t quite manage to play to their handicap.

Once again, it was Oliver who reigned supreme to snatch the medal by a stroke from Bill.  And he was in the last group, so Bill had been sitting there for quite some time holding out hopes for the ultimate prize.  On the way to his victory, Oliver also delivered something of a hiding to Dennis in their matchplay round.  It was all over by the 11th at 9 and 7.  Then Dennis started to play and the result could have been quite different if he had started out that way.

Despite his less than auspicious start to the round, PC SOS pulled his socks up and managed to match his handicap.  A better score on the first could have made all the difference.  Chrispy, Damo and Quack, who also made a creditable comeback from a shaky start, filled fourth spot with a couple of old stagers, Harry and Bob, filling the last of the points.

Speaking of points, Oliver has now matched Damo and there are a few others straining at the leash to make their run for the Championship now that the season is just past the half way point.  It is also fairly tight at the top of the table in the Seniors with Oliver alone in top spot, but not by much.

Speaking of Oliver, he also got his name on the marker for the nearest the pin on the 15th (thought it was supposed to be the 18th) and Harry lined up again for the ProPin money on the 12th.  The group behind tried to break his heart by suggesting that he had been beaten by a centimetre but it was all hot air.  Chrispy has promised that there will be a tape measure available for next week.  The birdie count was thirteen and the eagle was allowed to rest for another week.

As a matter of interest there were also thirteen scores of 8 or more plodded, which seems to be a fairly large number compared to a normal week.  One of the mega-scores was down to Ben on the 13th where he set what is believed to be a Club record of six (yes 6) putts.  Brendon also put in a sterling effort on one hole to rack up four.  Three putts, while bad, don’t rate a mention in the scheme of things.  Noodles also had a couple of moments and it was observed that his B-player was doing much better than his A-player after errant shots required him to re-load off the tee on the 14th and the 16th.

The arrangements for the Club Challenge in November are coming along well according to Ben with everybody having paid their deposits.  There is an option for an extra night accommodation on the Sunday but you have to let him know as soon as possible as he has to finalise the accommodation requirements within two weeks.

The arrangements for implementing the changeover of members to out own GolfLink register are progressing and an update will be posted and an e-mail circulated later in the week when a last couple of details are finalised.

We had three guests along today.  Mostyn Gregg put in his second card and Sinan Cekuc put in his first.  Another guest, Bernard, played a casual round.

Next week is the last week scheduled for the second round of the matchplay and there are still a few to be played.  If you think you should be granted more time an approach to the president would be in order and an extra week or so might be granted.  Otherwise, if you can’t fit in that, a forfeit by the one unable to present is the appropriate action.

The player statistics page has been updated so that you can check how you have been going over the past little while.

A new chart has been added like the one shown at the left though the ones on the stats page wont have the pretty coloured lines on them.

The idea of this chart is that it indicates how you are going relative to your average score over the period of time covered by the record shown.

If your line is running horizontal (more or less) then you are playing at or about your average score.  In this chart these times are indicated by the thick red lines.

If you have been consistently playing worse that your average, then the chart will trend downhill and the steeper the line, the worser the performance.  This is indicated by the thick yellow lines.

And of course, if you are playing better than your long term average, the line will trend up as indicated by the thick blue line.  You’ll have to imagine your own thick lines but hopefully you won’t be too thick to do that.  Hope you find it useful.  And all you have to do is work out what it was that changed in your game when your trends changed direction and fix it.  Just do it!

Results for Saturday, 08 June 2013
1st Oliver Gross(66) 2nd Bill Eastoe(67) 3rd Stephen O’Sullivan(68) 4th David Howard(70) 4th Damien Lee(70) 4th Chris Priems(70) 5th Harry Boughen(71) 5th Bob McDonald(71)