Monthly Archives: February 2023

It was a great day of golf at Ivanhoe Golf Course on 25th February 2023, as the Grandpar competition brought out players of all skill levels to compete in a social golf event. The competition was fierce, and the results were exciting with some fantastic scores. The weather was warm and overcast, making it an ideal day to hit the green. The 3rd hole had healed enough to use the normal green, so players could enjoy a full round of golf. There were 17 members plus guests John, who put in his second card and Yusuf who also put in his first card for the club. Welcome guys and hope to see you both around the club this year.

Gordon was glowing after the round, mainly because he was on fire from hole one as he posted a score of +10 which must be some kind of record for a par competition. This did not include any double pluses or birdies, just a lot of pars and a very consistent performance. He was inspired by lefty who was a player he played with at Nowra GC recently who only had one arm. Gordon had only 26 putts which included 3 on a single hole. A fun fact about golf: an average pga tour pro hits 32 putts on average for 18 holes! 

Two players tied for second who were none other than Bob and Stephen, both carding plus 4. Just behind were Craig Cameron and Robert Priems who both recorded a plus 3. The battle for fourth place was also tight with Kazim, Jonathan and CJ Priems all finishing on plus 2.

Bob said he had gone “alright I suppose” while Kazim made a triumphant return to the game after a lengthy hiatus. Jonathan wasted no time in scoring points with his first round with his handicap, which included a triple plus with a birdie on the 8th.  James, Andrew and Ryan all put in impressive performances ending with plus 1 who rounded out the points scoring positions. 

The ProPin on the 15th was won by Mr Jackpot who was infinity meters away.  BallPin No 1 on the 7th was won by Robert Priems who hit a nice cut which took a bounce and rolled up pin high. BallPin No 2 on the 18th was taken out by James Hale with a nice shot that ended a couple of meters away.

Targe took a tumble after last week’s success when his ball hit a tree on the 2nd and went sideways, ending up behind the red markers. Playing partner Brendon wasn’t faring much better with his shot on the 2nd with an unlucky bounce off a tombstone sent the ball back 20m for a another drafty for their player partner porks. 

To top it off, Targe and Bob managed to score a couple of birdies by rolling their tee shots right up to a flock of ducks, resulting in them taking out the ‘birdies’ with minimal force. SOS called out the exact events prior to Targes tee shot.

The fun continues at Ivanhoe Golf Course next week with our Monthly Medal competition.  After the round, we’ll be having a BBQ to celebrate the day’s results. The committee decided in their meeting on the weekend that we would be having a few more BBQ’s this year to make use of some excess funds in the bank. These dates will be updated on the calendar in due course. The matchplay draw was also determined on the weekend with Craig drawing names out of a hat shaped envelope. These will be posted on the website during the week for those who were not in attendance on the weekend. The top 4 seeds from last years comp all have a bye for the first round.

The Annual General Meeting (AGM) has been moved to the 1st of April so make sure to mark that date in your calendar too. There are a couple of empty positions available so please think about your plans if you would like to join the committee for the next year.

Results for Saturday, 25 Feb 2023
1st Gordon Hill (+10) 2nd Bob McDonald (+4) 2nd Stephen O’Sullivan (+4) 3rd Craig Cameron (+3) 3rd Robert Priems (+3) 4th Kazim Akdag (+2) 4th Jonathan Lau (+2) 4th Chris Priems (+2) 5th James Hale (+1) 5th Andrew Noble (+1) 5th Ryan Porker (+1)

Seniors Results: 1st Gordon Hill (+10) 2nd Bob McDonald (+4) 3rd Craig Cameron (+3)

Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 15th Jackpot BallPin No 1 – 7th Robert Priems BallPin No 2 – 18th James Hale

The day started off a bit on the gloomy side with a fairly heavy overcast sky. But, after a while, things brightened up as the cloud dispersed, and it turned out to be a beautiful mild, windless day, perfect for golf. So perfect that twelve members, and no less than 4 prospects, turned out to face what Ivanhoe had to throw at them. So perfect that you had to play to your handicap to even score a point. The main downside to the day, however, was the fact that some young vandals had entered the course on motorbikes and had desecrated several greens. The third was the most severely struck, so much so that a temporary green had to be established. The general feeling was that a much better spot could have been chosen so that a putt had at least some chance of getting to and going into the hole, although Andrew, Matt and Peter did manage to score their par despite this little challenge. The general feeling also was that the green could be out of service for some time, so it is hoped that a better temporary green can be developed, or a local ‘two putt’ rule can be promulgated. And, of course, that the perpetrators are caught and get a well deserved kick in the pants!

There have been signs, in recent times, that Targie just might be getting some of his old MoJo back. When he finished the front nine with twenty-two points on the card, there were a few raised eyebrows and questions asked whether he could keep up the pace, or would a pack of Throaties be in order. Oh, ye of little faith! Not only did he keep it up, he actually improved and finished the back nine with another twenty-four points. The resulting forty-six points was more than enough to knock off any opposition by a fair margin and to take first place, eight points (of the Championship kind) and a hefty adjustment of his handicap.

Stan had hit the Clubhouse early and was thought to be sitting pretty with his card showing forty-one points. He was only one point adrift of Targe on the back nine, but a pair of triple bogies and a pair of doubles on the front nine provided enough of a short-fall not to be right up there with Targe. In a similar vein, Steve was probably ruing the presence of no less than three ‘fat ladies’ on his card that probably prevented him from being right up there alongside Stan. Still, you would have to be pleased with a score of thirty-nine on any day. Andrew definitely seems to be intent on getting his handicap down to a respectable level by appearing on the podium with a handicap breaking score two weeks in a row, tying with Steve in third place.

It’s hard to believe that it all of a year since we last saw Joe on the course. But, today, he was back with a vengeance, and was obviously out to prove that he hadn’t lost any of his touch (or that he has been practising on the sly). If he hadn’t taken most of the front nine to warm up, he, too, could have been much further up the pecking order after streaking home with twenty-three points on the back. In general, the back nine was the happy hunting ground for almost everyone. Ryan and Rob were no exceptions, and they too were able to come back from ‘ordinary’ front nines to share the spotlight on the fourth place podium. Adam, on the other hand, was very even-handed, reporting the same sore on both nines on his was to his fifth place score of thirty-six points. And, it seems, that he missed a lot of putts in getting there. For a while there, he was chewing his nails, wondering whether he would even get into the points despite playing right to his handicap.

Raj was able to get the closest to the pin on the 4th for the first BallPin. Not only did he not get the birdie, he didn’t even get the par. As a result, that win did not make a contribution to the seven birdies that were carded for the day. On the 18th, for the second BallPin, Porks was able to add to his ever-increasing collection. The ProPin was on the 15th today, and Adam was able to take home the money with his shot to 2.30m.

The four prospects today were James Hale, Josh, Hunt, Jonathan Lau, and John Dimpoulos (a mate of Joe’s). James, Josh and Jonathan all submitted their third card today, and they now have their nice new handicaps, and we will surely see them on the podium in the near future if past history is any guide. John has a couple of cards to go before he attains such exalted status. A big hearty welcome to all and we look forward to seeing you on the tee soon.

Craig was a bit perturbed by the appearance of a woman blithely wandering across the 9th fairway about 75m away while they were in the process of teeing off. It is unclear whether this experience contributed to his attack of the ‘shorts’ on the greens that prevented him from occupying one of his usual spots on the podium. Jonathan apparently produced a draughtie during the round, but claimed ‘diplomatic’ immunity since he was not a full-fledged member yet. All bets are off now, Jonathan! Josh did not score a par in his round today, mainly due to missing about four putts from 300mm (playing for handicap?). However, on the 18th, his putt from the top deck rolled to a stop at the top of the slope. Then, it started rolling again and dropped, ever so gently, into the hole for the birdie. Unfortunately, it doesn’t count in our tally, or for his ‘future’ Eclectic score. And, while on the topic of the Eclectic, Ryan has a comfortable lead and only four holes left to birdie (or better) with most of the year to go. And, while on the topic of Ryan, his drive on the 14th had Matt hiding behind his buggy as the ball flashed by after bouncing on the shiny new bitumen path alongside the 15th tee.

The Birthday Birdie has a week off this week, which should help in getting over his jet-lag.

Don’t forget to register if you want to be included in the Matchplay which is due to start from 4th March, with the random draw to be done next week.

Results for Saturday, 18 Feb 2023
1st Targe Mifsud (46) 2nd Stan Blackshaw (41) 3rd Steven Gervasoni (39) 3rd Andrew Noble (39) 4th Joe Demir (38) 4th Ryan Porker (38) 4th Robert Priems (38) 5th Adam King (36)

Seniors Results: 1st Targe Mifsud (46) 2nd Stan Blackshaw (41) 3rd Steven Gervasoni (39)

Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 15th Adam King BallPin No 1 – 4th Rajesh Mahto BallPin No 2 – 18th Ryan Porker

What is the old saying, there are no truer things in life than death and taxes. Well add to that list, new members winning in their first few competition rounds for the club. Wasting no time with his first official round with a club membership, Andrew Noble wasted no time and blitzed his first par round with a score of +5 for the day. This included 5 pluses on the first 6 holes! Even on the 18th hole he missed a par putt and claimed “all well that’ll save me 0.3!”

Not quite up there but close enough, who also scored Andrew’s card mind you, was Raj who handed in a card with a score of +2, much to the dismay of the club house leader at the time. Raj was on multiple occasions sinking puts from everywhere, including a 16 footer on the 18th for birdie which moved quite a long way up and down the slope!

Andrew (Blight variety) took out the seniors and also outright 3rd place with a very respectable +2. Conditions could not have been much better with little wind and warm conditions, plenty of fairway run and greens in decent condition. The course faired well for three others who also beat their handicap, Craig, Matt and Targe all played to +1.  Craig claimed to have missed at least two putts from 18 inches or so. Michael also missed a shortish putt on the 18th for birdie. although this was close enough to win the ball hole, he did not however fair in the points.

Andrew (Peps) rounded out the place getters with a square card who was also joined by Brendon. Peps managed a shank on the 2nd although he blamed the tree he was under; although SOS blamed karma as peps was talking during SOS’s drive on the very same hole.

Speaking of shanks, Michael claimed to have scored the best par ever on the 14th after shanking his drive OOB, he reloaded and drove it close enough to the green to chip in for par and a square on the hole!  SOS was hesitant to mention mention the word which must not be spoken, and claimed to have never sh@#^ked one with the driver before, however about 10 seconds later he proceeded to do so and his drive sailed over the 16th green!

Porks didn’t have the best day but he turned it around on the par 3’s, winning the pro pin on the 12th with a tee shot to 1.6m and was even closer on the 15th for the other ball prize.  No hole in ones but there was a moment on both holes where the thought had fluttered by momentarily.

Adam achieved a first for the club for himself, a draughty and subsequent shout on the 17th. He was seen hitting a second shot from the hill adjacent to the 18th green.

Shout out to Bob and Brent who celebrated birthdays during the week.

Results for Saturday, 11 Feb 2023
1st Andrew Noble (+5) 2nd Rajesh Mahto (+3) 3rd Andrew Blight (+2) 4th Craig Cameron (+1) 4th Matt Hunt (+1) 4th Targe Mifsud (+1) 5th Brendon Mitchell (□) 5th Andrew Petricola (□)

Seniors Results: 1st Andrew Blight (+2) 2nd Craig Cameron (+1) 2nd Targe Mifsud (+1) 3rd Michael Gourlay (-1)

Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 12th Ryan Porker BallPin No 1 – 15th Ryan Porker BallPin No 2 – 18th Michael Gourlay