Yearly Archives: 2015

There has got to be some special significance to the number nine.  Perhaps it will be the number of goals that Hawthorn wins the Grand Final by.  Perhaps it is the number of planets that used to be in the Solar System – until they demoted poor old Pluto.  Perhaps it is the number of strokes that Snags took after his tee shot on the 16th to get the ball in the hole.  And perhaps it is the number of members who could tear themselves away from Footy Festivities to take advantage of the beautiful spring weather and the magnificent course conditions at Ivanhoe.

So, since there were more than the minimum six players required for a competition, there was some discussion as to whether it should be declared a competition day or not.  Common sense prevailed and it remained a Social round, if only to keep Gordon from accumulating more points in the Championship tables.  As it turned out, that was a good move as GG (Gouty Gordo) set out to take the course apart.  At least he did until the 14th when Snags put the mockers on him to induce an uncharacteristic lapse in putting.  A repeat performance on the 15th had the handicapper looking askance and asking whether he was choking or foxing.  On balance, it was deemed to be more likely the former.  So, despite this lapse, if there was a winner on the day, it would have to have been Gordon who has vowed to keep up his diet of tomatoes, shellfish and red wine to keep the gout ticking over with the attendant need to wear sneakers rather than golf shoes and to keep the weight on the other foot.

In the absence of a club competition, a cash pool was established and divided between two ProPins, one on the 12th and one on the 15th.  Snags was tasked with the carrying of the markers and despite his threats to put them out on holes where he had good shots, they did go out on the nominated holes.  Mal snuck one in on the 12th and was pleasantly surprised to receive the cash.  Lo and behold, the name on the marker at the 15th was Snags which might go some way to explaining why there was no club throwing after the afore-mentioned debacle on the next hole.  He did get a bit cranky with the ball though.  Or maybe he is just being a good boy in the lead up to his birthday next week.  Have a happy one Snags.

Keith has woken up from his winter hibernation and seemed fairly happy with his first round for a while.  The Beast has also advised that he is now fit and well and will be a force to be contended with in the weeks to come.  Bring it on!

DennisT seemed fairly relaxed about not getting a call-up to work at the Darklands and was pleased to be able to work on getting his swing back into the groove.  The greens were deemed to be hard and fast and nary a birdie was heard to tweet.  However, Dennis reckoned he putted for par on twelve holes and only managed to get one.

Reports of three putts were common and although some of the pin placings were unusual and tightly placed, it seems that the pace was more a factor than anything else.  However, there was one no putt green after Harry took a drop out of the hazard at the back of the 5th and proceeded to chip it up and in for an unlikely five.  Never looked like missing according to his playing partners.  Some thought the shot had been played out of the hazard and lost interest when they heard otherwise.

On the 2nd tee, Gordon saw something that he reckons you don’t often see on GF Day, to whit, a Magpie, on the ground in front of the tee.  He also opined that if it wasn’t careful it could be a dead one.  Though a bit off line, Gordo’s tee shot was low enough to have done the job.  Thank Gord for that, said the magpie.

Simon has been gallivanting in the course of his employ and tells stories of his amazement at the standard of the driving ranges in Japan.  Nobody touches a ball in the whole place, not even the staff.  The practice hasn’t paid off just yet but he reckons, when he works on the strength of his left shoulder, he will be a force to be contended with (or at least he’ll be able to keep playing the game).

Next week is the first round of the Fred Kitson.  We are hoping for a good roll up and would like to know if we need to reserve another tee spot.  We know that a couple of old members are going to turn up so please let us know one way or another if you will be playing.  Send an email or use the Registration page.

For some reason I have been reminded of a bit of schoolboy doggerel that goes something like this.

Giddy, giddy gout, Your shirt’s hanging out.

Well, there was no-one hanging onto Gordo’s shirt-tails today although he did report that he was suffering from gout that was apparently brought on by high living on board ship and alcohol consumption while waiting for dearly beloved to explore the shops in Venice and other exotic places.  Taking advice from Doctors O’Sullivan and Mitchell Gordo was heading off to Dan’s to stock up on supplies of Guinness but totally ignored the advice of Doctor Boughen that what he really needed was tincture of Naked Lady.

But enough of what ails Gordon and lets talk about the golf.  Though the day started off a bit on the cool and misty side, the sun eventually got up enough to burn off the mist and bathe the course in a brilliant light.  And what a magnificent sight it was.  The fairways were green, well mowed and, other than a few spots, quite dry.  The greens, whilst not quite so lush in colour, were firm and fast and according to some were running true.  JohnQ might argue with that observation after recording five putts on the 12th and he might get some support from Snags who wasn’t quite able to snag it on the 18th and took four from about a metre.

Whether it was the state of relaxation after the holiday or the change in weight distribution necessitated by the gouty foot there was no stopping Gordon today as he gathered a pair of birdies, one with an 8 metre curling putt on the 12th, and played most of the rest of the course with nothing worse than bogie.  All in all, a fine effort to collect the Medal with a nett 64 and a certain amount of damage to the handicap just in time for the Fred Kitson in a couple of weeks.  By the way, this will be the last Major for the year so a good chance to catch up on Ryan who will apparently be out of circulation at the time.

While on the topic of birdies there were only eight scored for the day which is a bit surprising given the size of the field (22) and the good condition of the course and the greens.  However, as Ryan commented last week, the Eagles Nest was getting up a bit, to the stage of being worth winning, and what do you know, there was an eagle scored today on the 17th.  Brendon speared an iron shot over the trees, straight at the hole and finished only about a metre and a half away and sunk the putt for the easiest of results.  Of course he was in need of a new supply of balls after putting two into the river on the 8th and misplacing another somewhere else so all in all he didn’t end up all that far ahead.  And the less said about the rest of his round the better.

ChrisV played a good steady round and reports that he left a few out there but he also scored a couple of the birdies.  The nett result was a 67 that won’t do his handicap too much harm and gathers him a handful of points though he is a bit far down the table to be any worry to the front runners.  Just a stroke behind and maybe able to claim a relaxed frame of mind after a holiday, but not gout, to improve his form was Harry who could have been right up there except for some missed but eminently gettable putts.

Then followed as fine a grouping of golfers as you could wish for with Mehm (still without a win), Snags and Bob with a nice round score of 70.  In fifth and last points place, a couple of strokes further back were Zimmer and CraigC.  Chrispy went close to getting another point with a ‘crap’ score (his words) but just missed out by the one.

So, as we get to the pointy end of the season, Ryan still has a healthy lead in the Championship but, with him out of contention for a month, there is a good chance that the gap can be closed and make for some excitement in the lead up to the end of the year.  Gordon’s win today gives him a bit of a lead in the Seniors but he, too, is not impossible to catch and there is a fair group not too far behind so he will have to keep his form and/or his gout if he wants to keep his chances alive.  Pepsi is still dominating the Eclectic and there needs to be some serious birdie making by a few of the front runners if they want to topple him before the year end.

The Nearest the Pin for a ball on the 4th today eventually fell to Noodles.  The jackpot ProPin on the 12th was won by Chrispy at 3.75 m and the positioning can’t have been too good as he took three putts to record a four for the hole.

In the IGL, the draw last week between the Magpies and the Hawks was settled by applying the standard countback procedure using the relevant players scores.  In the event the Hawks (34 points) defeated the Magpies (32 points).  So, the Grand Final came down to a clash between the Hawks and the Tigers.  And, the result of that was that the Hawks (Gordon and AndrewP 137) defeated the Tigers (Brendon and CraigC 156) to win the inaugural Grand Final of the Ivanhoe Golf League.  Perhaps this is an omen for next week at least as far as the Hawks go.

Michael and Trevor will be tucking into cake and soft drink during the week to celebrate a birthday or so the Birthday Birdie says.  Have a nice day chaps.

SOS had to rush off after nine holes to take relief under Rule Number Two and left the rest of the group to finish off the hole on their own.  Not sure whether it was something he ate or drank but he was asking earnestly about supplies of Panadol shortly after.  Perhaps Trev was looking for an early birthday present as he asked whether a high score would make him eligible for a larger handicap relief.  JohnQ was resplendent in a colourful pair of shorts that raised some questions as to whether he was trying to dazzle his opponents or was just in a gay mood.  Whitey had a bit to say about the pin placement on the 12th after having some trouble getting the ball onto the green and into the hole.  Another less than glamorous score on his card was contributed to by the dreaded double hit out of the rough.

Numbers look as if they will be down next week due to the Grand Final and so it will remain a social round for those that turn up.  There will be the inside comp which might be Monthly Medal and a stroke competition and we can put in a pool for a ProPin (or two).  You will score an attendance but your handicap will be quite safe.  The week after will be the first week of the Fred Kitson Spring Cup which is a Par Competition.  Last chance for double points (unless you can win two weeks in a row on regular events) so don’t say you haven’t been warned and you have a chance of catching Ryan.  Or, alternatively, you want to cruel somebody else’s chances of catching Ryan.

Results for Saturday, 26 September 2015
1st Gordon Hill(64) 2nd Chris Vinecombe(67) 3rd Harry Boughen(68) 4th Mehmet Akdag(70) 4th Bob McDonald(70) 4th Craig Sharp(70) 5th Kazim Akdag(72) 5th Craig Cameron(72)

Another week and another 3 way tie for the win. With only 12 punters there was ample opportunity to score points. The course conditions were generally a little tougher than last week due to a bit of rain during the week, however the greens are on the improve and the ball was witnessed to be running a bit truer and a bit faster than what has been accustomed to over the winter months.

SOS and Ryan were grouped together and both played to their handicap coming in with 36 stableford points. Not to be outdone, Rod White showed a turn of form and followed them in with the same score and a share of first place. Rumour has it that some recent lessons has helped Rod with his ball striking and with more to come things could be looking up for him.

Mehmet ended up the bridesmaid again coming in second with a 35. He now is in second behind Ryan in the points table even though he hasn’t had a win this year. It could be strategic planning on his behalf as he seems to be racking up the points without the handicap penalty. Noods and Vinni were not far behind in 3rd place, although by some of Nood’s body language on the course it sounded like he was going a lot worse.

Pepsi ended up in 4th place tied with Dennis Tiernan, who playing his first game in quite a while. Hopefully there are more to come. Chrispy was quite surprised and happy with himself after a 5th place with 28 points. Some thought 28 points may not have deserved a point but nevertheless it stands. He was none too happy with the new clubs he was trialling either so he could be foxing before the next major tournament coming up.

There were 7 birdies scored and no eagles which means the eagles nest jackpots yet again, it is currently at 5 balls which is almost worthwhile going for. The pro pin was on the 12th and with a very tough pin position it has gone to a jackpot. Likewise the pin on the 18th was right up the back tier, the only person to land it on the green was Pepsi who took out the ball prize, although Ryan had overshot the green and his ball ended up just on the fringe quite close to the pin, and was close enough to sink the birdie putt too.

Second last week of the IGL league and it was down to the Hawks playing off against the Magpies to find a place in the grand final. The hawks were only represented by Andrew P who ended up with a score of 62 (31+31). Meanwhile the Magpies were represented by Ryan (36) and Edddie (26) who ended up with 62 also. The rules committee (Harry) will have to advise who will go through to play the Tigers next week, the rules about a drawn final, extra time, putt off have not been disclosed (or decided).

A shout out to Bill who is celebrating a birthday this week. A reminder that with the AFL grand final in the coming weeks, this week coming is Octobers’ monthly medal, held in September while the last day in September (AFL GF) is held in October this year.

Results for Saturday, 19 September 2015
1st Ryan Porker(36) 1st Stephen O’Sullivan(36) 1st Rodney White(36) 2nd Mehmet Akdag(35) 3rd Stephen Butterfield(32) 3rd Chris Vinecombe(32) 4th Andrew Petricola(31) 4th Dennis Tiernan(31) 5th Chris Priems(28)

Cold, wet, wintry weather. Damp course. Long fairways. Preferred lies. All things which are now in the past (at least in the short term) as spring is finally here and mid 20’s temperatures were embraced by all. The fairways had been freshly cut too but meant finding balls was now easier, however this did not correlate to high scoring. Maybe it was the omission of preferred lies or the freshly sanded greens but not a single soul beat their handicap.

There were 3 however who played to their handicap and shared the win. Rob Priems, Dennis and Ryan all came home with a square card. Not far behind was damo who handed in a score of -1, followed by Craig Cameron who was a further shot behind again. Damo was especially grumpy following his footy sides loss the night before, missing out on the win by 1 and after putting it to 2.25m on the 18th for the money hole, was beaten in the last group by Ryan who put it to 1.87m. Such a shame it was a jackpot from last week too! All well.

A very popular score was had on -3, with Mehmet, Mark, Blighty, Taner and Targe all ending up tied for 4th spot. Not to be outdone, Chrispy ended up with -4 and on his own in last spot. The less than spectacular scores meant only 8 birdies were had on the day.

The yellow ball teams event was also a highlight, with only 1 team losing their ball. We had a tie on -3 with 2 teams, so well done to Noods, JQ, Zimmer and Mehm followed by porks, blighty and vinni. For those of you who study the championship table day and night, you will notice that the bonus points have not been awarded for this week. Apologies as there was an error when running the handicapping and will have to be rectified when Harry gets back.

The IGL continued with week 2 of finals and results are as follows;

Blues -4 (Rob 0, ChrisP -4) lost to Magpies -3 (Ryan 0, Targe -3).

Tigers -2 (Dennis 0, Craig -2) defeated Hawks -6 (Taner -3, Blighty -3).

This means Blues have been kicked out, Tigers progress to the final in 2 weeks and next week the Hawks and Magpies play off for a place in the final. Interesting, after being on the bottom of the ladder for most of the year, Magpies are in the final 3.

Happy birthday to Alan for this week.

Results for Saturday, 12 September 2015
1st Ryan Porker(□) 1st Robert Priems(□) 1st Dennis Ward(□) 2nd Damien Lee(-1) 3rd Craig Cameron(-2) 4th Mehmet Akdag(-3) 4th Mark Berthelsen(-3) 4th Andrew Blight(-3) 4th Taner Kemal(-3) 4th Targe Mifsud(-3) 5th Chris Priems(-4)