There must have been something important on today if the flurry of requests for a spot in the first group was any indication. It really was a lovely late summer day with a not too cool start and clear blue skies to warm up nicely by the end of the round. The lack of any rain means that there was plenty of run to be had and the greens were in good condition with a tendency to be a bit on the quick side. So, conditions were just about ideal for the sixteen members to make a few scores. Those members were joined again by Ken, who now has his three cards in and has a nice new handicap to chance his arm against the field next time.
Jason was one of the ones wanting to get away early and he bagged a spot in the first group. Just being in the first group, obviously wasn’t good enough, so he decided to take as few strokes as possible to get the game over quickly. This resulted in him carding a 74 off the stick with at least five birdies on the card for a result of +5. It also meant that he scored exactly half of the 10 birdies that the whole field managed for the day. It also meant that his handicap is not quite what it used to be, but, that is the general idea of the system.
Brent came in, breathing a sigh of relief that his card was not good enough to win. As it turned out, it was not quite as good as he imagined as both he and his marker had a little trouble with the balance of plus and minus on the back nine. Maybe it was the excitement of having driven the green on the 14th and then rattling in the putt for an eagle that set their maths akilter. It seems that the pin in could very well have saved him from having to putt again from off the green. His tee shot landed just short of the green and rolled up behind Targe, who froze on the call of ‘Fore’ in order to be as small a target as possible. Rumour also has it that Brent’s first shot of the day was nothing to write home about but that just goes to show that it is how you finish that really counts.
It’s been a bit of a struggle for Harry over the last few months but maybe the little tweaks from the coach are beginning to have effect. Or maybe it was the few weeks away digging in the dirt in Jordan that had an effect. Or maybe it was just the one in twenty (or forty) chance to post a good one. Hopefully it is the first and the +1 (or its equivalent) becomes the norm from now on.
Not only did Rob have trouble with Brent’s card, he had some trouble with his own as well and, as a result, he came in to 4th place on his Pat Malone. Blighty and Dennis rounded out the field of point scorers with their cards of -1. And to round out the tales of woe, Simon dropped out of contention by dint of having scored one hole based on his inside handicap rather than using his club handicap.
And, while on the subject of Simon, he was more than a little cheesed off on the 6th when his ball went ‘walk-about’. Another ball was found in the vicinity and it is assumed that his ball had been incorrectly played by someone in another group. But then again, it shouldn’t have been on the other fairway! Si did manage to collect a ball for the BallPin on the 18th with a shot that was about as far away from the pin as possible with the pin well back on the top deck and his ball barely on the front of the green. Harry reckons he was closer to the pin, just not on the green. The second BallPin was on the 12th and Steve managed to wrest that one from the grasp of Porks. The jackpot ProPin on the 15th went to none other than Brent who followed up from his performance on the 14th to get to 2.75m from the pin. The putt must have been a bit short for him as he could only manage the par for the hole.
There were no draughties reported today although Bob did own up to having an airie on the 6th fairway. Peter executed a fierce shank on the 18th tee and the ball ricocheted from a tree and into the penalty area in front of the 17th green. There was no report as to whether it made it past the red markers. Dennis was hitting the ball well today. So well, that, when he thought he was out of range of the green on the 13th, he rattled it up onto the green and scared the living daylights out of Rod in the process.
Next week, the AGM will be held after the round. Here is your chance to get elected to the Committee and take the opportunity to run the Club the way you would like it to be run. You can download a Committee Nomination Form from the website and there will be a number of printed ones available on the day. Each and every Committee position is open for contest so don’t be afraid to put your name forward. Existing Committee members who plan to retire should endeavour to recruit a replacement.
Results for Saturday, 23 February 2019
1st Jason Hopkins(+5) 2nd Brent Rowley(+3) 3rd Harry Boughen(+1) 4th Robert Priems(□) 5th Andrew Blight(-1) 5th Dennis Ward(-1)
Seniors Results: 1st Harry Boughen (+1) 2nd Andrew Blight (-1) 2nd Dennis Ward (-1) 3rd Craig Cameron (-2) 3rd Simon Powell (-2)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin15th Brent Rowley BallPin No 1 12th Stephen Kelly BallPin No 2 18th Simon Powell
Eagle’s nest Results: Eagle 14th Brent Rowley