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Smells like Finals – Club Event – Stableford 9th September
Back at the clubhouse at the end of the round Simon was grinning from ear to ear. No surprises as to why when the results were announced (after Targe scoffed down a pie) as he had a blinder of a round. Not as good as we thought though as there a couple of minor irregularities in the additions however 38 points was enough for 1st place. He admitted to telling his wife that the night before that she was going to be sleeping next to a champion the next day. Lucky for Simon it was himself who came out on top!
A trio of lads shared second place and equalled their handicap, The beast who continued his good run of form, Brendon and Matt Nicholls. Jason was up there with them but another miscalculation brought him back to 3rd with 35 points, which was also shared with Dennis Ward who is coming to grips with the doggies back out of the finals race.
Michael who is extending his lead in the championship found himself in 4th palace, and noodles somehow ended up in 5th. Closing the gap to Harry in the seniors championship with his overseas adventures, Simon, Bill and Dennis rounded out the placings.
Some controversy with the nearest the pins, on the 12th there was some confusion as Bill had his name on the card but there was no marker. Porks had his name on the 15th and Peps on the 18th pro pins, but were marginally beaten by Brendon and Michael in the last group.
Speaking of the two P’s, the eagles nest was close to going off with Pepsi driving it very close on the 14th, and porks hit his drive close to the pin on the 17th. Both missed eagle putts however from mere meters away but accounted for a couple of birdies from the 11 scored today. Both guys were also in the action on the 13th where after finding the water hazard, Peps found himself with a chip for a single point. He played it beautifully and slotted it home. Not to be outdone, porks followed up with a chip in for a single point on the same hole.
SOS was observed to be shanking it all day. On the 11th he managed to hit two in a row into the water from power shanks. He may have jinxed Peps on the 18th when he asked if he would be happy to shank one off the tee, he did take note and hit one at right angles straight into the fence. Lucky for him and the beer gods when the ball rolled down the path and ended just in front of the ladies tee. Not so lucky for Dale who had to shout some drinks at the end of the round for an unfortunate incident.
Another unfortunate incident involved an 8 iron and Rob, who managed to break it early in the round. Reports were that it was not in rage but I guess we should give him benefit of the doubt.
Results for Saturday, 09 September 2017
1st Simon Powell(38) 2nd Bill Eastoe(36) 2nd Brendon Mitchell(36) 2nd Matt Nicholls(36) 3rd Jason Hopkins(35) 3rd Dennis Ward(35) 4th Michael Gourlay(34) 5th Stephen Butterfield(33)
Seniors Results: 1st Simon Powell (38) 2nd Bill Eastoe (36) 3rd Dennis Ward (35)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin No 1 15th Brendon Mitchell ProPin No 2 18th Michael Gourlay BallPin 12th Bill Eastoe
The Beast was on fire at September Monthly Medal – 2nd September 2017
Rain threatened all day but held off mostly and the Beast was shining at full strength as he laid down the leading marker with an outstanding round. Together with Michael and Trev, they jumped the gun and started 15 minutes before the scheduled time so that Michael could get away early. It must have paid off as two out of three were in the points, however no one could stop Bill from winning by 6 strokes with a nett 62 to take out September’s medal. It was rumored that in order for the beast to play well, he needed to be kept ‘happy’ throughout the round. Apparently spirits were high and he could not miss with the flat stick. It was not relayed what exact measures were put in place but whatever it was it worked!
Second place way back with a nett 68 was one of our newer members in Matt Nicholls. It didn’t all go well for Matt though, as he was on the receiving end of a Targe ‘LOOK OUT!’ call in lieu of ‘FORE’ and was struck on the arm. See below for repercussions, solid bruise there mate. Craig was just one stroke back to come in 3rd place with a nett 69!
Michael was observed to be complaining about missed putts half way through the round, it can’t have been too bad Michael as he was still able to place in 4th position and 70. He now holds a substantial 20 point lead over Bob in the championship with only a few months to go. Gordon has maintained his good form and found himself in 5th place with a nett 71.
The ball hole was on the 12th and Keith managed to put it close enough to take out the prize! When asked about which ball he would like he simply stated, a good one. What defines a good one of not will probably be determined on the course Keith! A lot of cash was on offer for the pro pins, with the 15th and 18th holes up for grabs this week. Pepsi was closest on the 15th after Priemsy and Porks went very close to drafties on the same hole. Luckily their balls were found to be past the red markers. The 18th was taken out by the Beast with his tee shot ending up a mere 54cm from the pin. He slotted the birdie which was one of 11 for the day.
There are a few upcoming birthday celebrations during this week, with Matt Hunt, Dennis T, John A and Blightly all with milestones, some larger than others.
Results for Saturday, 02 September 2017
1st Bill Eastoe(62) 2nd Matt Nicholls(68) 3rd Craig Cameron(69) 4th Michael Gourlay(70) 5th Gordon Hill(71)
Seniors Results: 1st Bill Eastoe (62) 2nd Craig Cameron (69) 3rd Gordon Hill (71)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin No 1 15th Andrew Petricola ProPin No 2 18th Bill Eastoe BallPin 12th Keith Delzoppo
Everyone loves playing PAR on 26 August 2017
They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, (well he is not that old is he Targe??) however Michael it seems has joined the 21st century and picked up a new driver (second hand from Joe) and put it to good use with a very solid round to take out equal share of first place. By his own account it has taken him some time to upgrade his irons and driver from those he was using from pre 2000’s. Not to be outdone however, Chris V played his first round for many months after looking after family duties and it seems the time off has paid off as he played an outstanding round to equal Michael on +3. He started like a man on a mission and par’d the first 6 or so holes on the trott!
Hot on their heels was Gordon who played a steady round of +2 to end up in outright second place. He managed an outstanding chip in on the 13th for birdie and was otherwise consistent all day. Matt Nichols was a couple back on -1 to take out 3rd place, Dennis Ward in 4th on -2 and last but not least Blighty and Matt Hunt, fresh from his devastation of losing the mustard jacket finalised the points positions.
There were a few punters who did not have the best day and almost cracked double figures of minuses. Michael was concerned about how Rob would go as he reckons every time he has had a good round, Rob has had a blinder and beaten him – not today. Rob was one who, had rumored to have had a draftie although the ball could not be found and as a result, no penalties given (of the beer kind). But Rob found another ball that he used for the rest of the round. Darklands Dennis was so unused to being out in the fresh air that he decided to take a fresh air shot on the first after almost not making it past the red markers on his first. But he has been away for a while.
The ball pin was on the 12th and noodles somehow managed to put it close enough to take it out. No such luck for Bill however, who tried to claim one of the pro pins but was in fact more than 5m away. As a result, both were jackpots so lots of cash up for grabs next week.
DennisW was waiting for Targe to walk up the ramp and onto the 15th tee when it was suggested that he would have no trouble getting over his head. He hit a magnificent drive on the 8th then skinnied his chip shot and put it onto the cyclepath. The walkers handed it back apologising for it being covered in mud.
Harry had to apologise to the birdlife for all the ‘duck’ words he was using. Speaking of which, he is heading over to Europe for a month or so to get away from the cold drab of Ivanhoe.
Simon was so worn out by his week away in Sydney that he couldn’t drag himself to the course today. As ex-Challenge Mustard Jacket wearer, Matt H filled in very ably on the results announcements. Matt N had to dash off to Caulfield to attend to some important punting. Also spent some time in Far North Qld reporting on/investigating a murder mystery. Even when Ed is not playing with us, his voice and laugh still carries all over the course.
Results for Saturday, 26 August 2017
1st Michael Gourlay(+3) 1st Chris Vinecombe(+3) 2nd Gordon Hill(+2) 3rd Matt Nicholls(-1) 4th Dennis Ward(-2) 5th Andrew Blight(-3) 5th Matt Hunt(-3)
Seniors Results: 1st Gordon Hill (+2) 2nd Dennis Ward (-2) 3rd Andrew Blight (-3)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin No 1 15th Jackpot ProPin No 2 18th Jackpot BallPin 12th Stephen Butterfield
Chalk and cheese for the Annual Challenge on 19 August 2017.
When Simon arrived at Ivanhoe, the carpark was empty and it was raining. The prospect for golf looked grim as people packed up and headed home. Advice from the ground staff was to putt between the puddles. But, six members in all turned up and Simon got his wish to have a comp on the day despite Blighty pulling the pin with some rare and exotic medical condition. On the other hand, up in Shepparton the skies were clear, Friday’s wind had dropped and frost lay all about, particularly on Sunday morning. Nineteen contenders for the Mustard jacket blew into their palms and stomped their feet as they prepared themselves for the fray.
Meanwhile, at Ivanhoe, the rain eased a little and the secret six headed off to be beset by showers on and off for the duration of the front nine. After that the weather improved a little but the course was still soggy and this might have had some little influence on the scores. Simon started off well enough and was obviously not put off by the showery conditions making 19 points on the front nine. He might have choked a bit (on his bacon sandwich) after the 9th as the scoring rate dropped away and he came home with the grand total of 32 points to take the top points for the day. Simon also managed to score the ProPin on the 18th although the dividend would not buy too many bacon sandwiches.
The Beast, Ed and Dennis rolled in next with a score of 30 points. Bill was a bit erratic and found some problems with the trees but he was able to stay away from the trees on the 15th and put his ball on the green close enough to win the jackpot ProPin and one of the best dividends of the day. Eddie was steady and Dennis had a few shockers on what could have been a good card otherwise. CraigC is not a mud runner if his score card is anything to go by with the front nine proving to be a bit of a struggle but things got better on the back with a win on the BallPin hole, the 12th. The only ‘junior’ in the field, Joe, brought up the rear of the field but he still managed to get a couple of points for his trouble.
Back up in sunny Shepparton, the fortunes were mixed, very mixed. Matt was very confident that he was set to pull off the back to back and have to present himself with the Mustard Jacket. He turned out at the Saturday night dinner resplendent in the jacket with matching slacks, tan shoes (but no pink laces) and a very fetching star spangled black shirt (but no polka dot vest). He still oozed confidence that he could make a break from his middle of the field position to take out the young pretender, Brent, who lead the field after Saturdays round. As it turned out, Brent was not to be denied. There was a serious challenge from Michael who drew level at the 14th only to suffer a three point turn around on the 15th. And, from there, Brent blitzed it to finish with a chip in for birdie on the 18th to take out the Challenge trophy with a total for the event of 72 points.
After the first day, Porks was only two points behind the leader despite suffering all day with a headache. Application of some pain-killers on Sunday morning raised hopes of an improved performance but it was not to be with an equal card raising his total to 66 and leaving his position in second place. Maybe it was Brendon’s late night advice that Ryan should ‘lower his standards’ that was taken the wrong way. Not wanting to throw Tinder on the fire of course. Still, he did putt well under pressure with Michael threatening to take his place with any putt that happened to slip past.
And so it was that Michael tried to blot the 15th hole from his memory. He denied any recollection of it after Saturday and he would like to deny all recollection of it again on Sunday. He thinks it unlikely that he could have matched Brent’s sprint to the line and consoles himself with the points that he got for his 3rd place. The big improver on the day was Jason, who matched the best daily score and leapt well up the field to take the fourth spot on the podium. Jason was going gang-busters until the 13th when somebody in the group commented on how well he was tearing the course apart. He promptly gashed the next two holes. A win was unlikely but a better placing was definitely on the cards. And then there was Noodles who got himself fifth place with his 62 point total. And that with a claim that he managed to put a ball into every bunker on the back nine.
There were a swag of ProPins on offer. There were the usual on the par threes and a couple of nearest in two on the shorter par fours. Now the exact disposition of the largesse is lost to your intrepid reporter but the list of winners included Michael, Brent, Gordon, Ryan, Matt, Chris Woods-Day and Noodles. Most were not that close but there was one that went very close and that one came from the club of Brendon and if you can bear to look a little to the left you will see just how close and Brendon’s shoes as well.
The course description said ‘a long iron to the bend gives an easy shot to the green’. Not sure which universe that is in but the 15th defied all efforts to get on in two and so it was decided to draw lots from those who missed out on a ‘real’ ProPin. The lucky duckies to collect the left over moolah were SOS and JohnQ
There was also a ‘secret six’ competition with random holes being selected by the ladies present. Perhaps not surprising, considering his consistent and good form, both dividends went the Brent although there was only a third of a stroke or so in it.
There is one more trophy that is awarded for the week-end and that is for the ‘bugger’ (won’t use the other word that is often heard) shot of the round and there was no shortage of contenders. There was the usual collection of draughties by Mehmet, Rob, Harry, SOS and Matt. Harry’s was notable by finishing between two protective fences after a ricochet from a tree. There was a shot by SOS out of a bunker on the 18th that finished on the roof of the Clubhouse. And JohnQ scored a hat-trick of bunkers around the green at the 18th. But the one to take the prize was the second shot of the whole weekend when Mehm’s ball went about as high as JohnQ and as far as Targe from the 10th tee on Saturday with 18 other players watching on.
The santa ana couch was generally voted to be nice to play on despite being rather bleached by the cold and frost. However, some, including SOS still had to resist an urge to take preferred lies and a chance to clean the ball. SOS reckons it would be good for four or five strokes off the score. If he could combine that with Noodles eight strokes for staying on the fairway, SOS could easily be a scratch golfer.
On one hole, Chrispy was advised not to go right. If nothing else, Chris is famous for his ‘power fade’ so, short of taking on Shepparton’s array of fairly tall trees, it would have been advice that was hard to follow. Chrispy reckons that he needs a break from golf and that we won’t be seeing him for a while, at least, not this Saturday.
Now everybody knows that SOS managed to get a hole in one back at Ivanhoe a week or so ago. And, over the weekend, SOS managed to do it again. Except that it wasn’t exactly his first shot on the hole and it wasn’t exactly the hole in the green that he managed to tuck the ball into. Here is a reprise of the earlier picture but showing the different location – in JohnQ’s bag.
Most gathered at the RSL for dinner of Friday night and a good time was had by all although some found the size of the meal servings a bit overwhelming. There was a modicum of alcohol consumed and, as is often the case some beer was spilled. However, Jason was not satisfied with spilling his own beer, he managed to spill a whole table full.
After the game on Saturday, there was another gathering at the RSL. There were a couple of reasons. The Golf Club was taken over by a massive wake for a local identity and there was a TAB facility at the RSL. JohnQ organised the Punters Club and did a great job except for a couple of incidents where two horses in the same race were backed or somebody picked a horse that John did not like. The main bone of contention was when Stef backed a horse for the Club and took another horse in the same race on his own account and cleaned up big. Mehmet took out a multi on the football and Brendon had some sort of a bet that involved the All Blacks but it seems that neither of those got up despite assurances that the combinations picked couldn’t lose. At the end of the day, there was money in the kitty to be handed back to the members. This is a better result that last year when Pepsi took a hand in deciding the punts that were made.
The meal at the Golf Club left a little to be desired with the beef dish in particular causing some comment. Mehm got the hungers during the night and ordered in a pizza (probably not an hawaiian) to get himself through ’til morning. On the other hand, the meat and salads provided for the bar-be-que lunch on Sunday were voted to be exemplary with a lot of credit due to Bobbie who slaved diligently to ensure that the meat was cooked to perfection and almost to the extent of missing out on a feed for himself so hungry were the vultures (and kiwis). A secret vote was taken to appoint Bob to the position of Club Chef in perpetuity.
Results for Saturday, 19 August 2017
1st Simon Powell(32) 1st Brent Rowley(35, 37, 72) 2nd Bill Eastoe(30) 2nd Ed Kloprogge(30) 2nd Ryan Porker(33, 33, 66) 2nd Dennis Ward(30) 3rd Craig Cameron(28) 3rd Michael Gourlay(32, 33, 65) 4th Jason Hopkins(26, 37, 63) 4th Joe Wagenecht(26) 5th Stephen Butterfield(35, 27, 62)
Seniors Results: 1st Simon Powell (32) 1st Targe Mifsud (32) 2nd Bill Eastoe (30) 2nd Dennis Ward (30) 2nd Ed Kloprogge (30) 2nd Gordon Hill (30) 3rd Allan Davies (28) 3rd Craig Cameron (28)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin No 1 15th Bill Eastoe ProPin No 2 18th Simon Powell BallPin 12th Craig Cameron