It’s amazing what the prospect of a burger and a snag will do for attendance. At one stage, there was a prospect that would have twenty-two teeing off for the final round of the David Ford Autumn Cup. However, the dreaded C-bug is still doing the rounds which lost us Ryan and his mate, and Brendon had some serious family problems to deal with. As a result, we finished with 18 members, and Jonathan’s mate Dave, teeing off into what turned out to be a remarkably persistent drizzle, which was just enough to require the umbrella and wet weather gear for about half of the time. As usual, just as you thought it was safe to put the protection away, it started to mizzle again, but it was possible to tough it out without feeling too uncomfortable. The preferred lies through the green were certainly welcome, though some did opine that conditions were not easy out there.
That is, until the last couple of groups from the leaderboard came in. There was a bit of a delay in getting the last cards sorted when Raj was nowhere to be found, which prompted CJ to suggest that he really was a miRaj. Eventually he did appear out of the gloom, and we were able to cross-check Steve’s score to show that he had finished with a very impressive +8 for the day, which brought his total for the event to +11. After the presentations, Steve couldn’t wait to get home so that he could don the Mustard Jacket and pose in the Pool Room with his shiny new trophy. The question was raised whether this was a record winning score for the event. The answer to that is that it is equal best, Mike Mann produced the same total back in 2012. Steve’s handicap has taken a fair old pummelling as a result, so he will have to keep his head down from now on.
One of the big questions leading up to today’s play was whether James would be able to repeat last week’s performance, or would he fold under the pressure. The fact of the matter is that he produced exactly the same score as last week. A pair of +5 scores is good going in anybody’s books, particularly as there were only two scores on the debit side of the ledgertoday, so something better was not too far away. And, he saved a couple of handicap strokes by not winning, As far as scoring went on the day, Raj was not too far behind with his card of +4. It could have been even better if it had not been for a bit of a slump over the last three holes, but his overall total of +6 was plenty to get him third spot in the overall result.
Whitey came in feeling a bit disappointed with his result today, as it was ever so slightly on the ‘wrong’ side of the ledger. However, when combined with his slightly positive result last week, the square total made him the holder of the fourth placing in the event. Stef’s front nine was only what could be described as average when he turned with -3 on the card. However, he pulled his socks up and matched par on the back for a compensating +3, to finish square on the day and one down for the event. Stan was probably reasonably happy with his game when he turned square with the card. However, he played the back nine to bogie, which is excellent for his handicap, and he finished with one of the better rounds for the day on +3. The overall total of -1 tied him in fifth place with Stef.
The first BallPin was on the 12th hole today. And, it was pretty much uncontested after Prez (aka Rob) put his name on the card and nobody else got any closer. On the other hand, the competition for the BallPin on the 18th was nothing short of fierce. Gordo put his name on it, only to be knocked off (just) by CJ. CJ was promptly knocked off from the next group by Bobby, who was then close enough that the ball was safe in his hands. Bob reckons that it was the only shot he had hit all day. And he was probably upset with his putting because he missed the birdie by two strokes, so he wasn’t able to add to the total of nine that we scored for the day. Of course, we must not forget that Adam, as calmly as you like, pitched into the hole from about 80m out from the 14th to score an eagle. His only comment at the time was, that it was only for one ball, after Stef had scooped up a cool dozen last week on the same hole. But, Stef only chipped in from a couple of metres out. The ProPin was on the 15th, and CJ curved one of his best onto the right sort of line, but he was not optimistic, thinking it could easily be a repeat of last week’s effort where he missed out by 200mm. However, the tape did not lie, and the shot to 3.46m was plenty good enough to collect the Double Jackpot, which he had optimistically agreed to share beforehand.
ChrisJ spent some time on the driving range after last week, and, despite flinging the head of his driver about 80m down the range, he reckoned he was hitting them well. Unfortunately, the practice did not really translate to the course, and his round was variously described as ‘more shanks than a butcher shop’ and ‘more scones than a CWA street stall’. He did manage to produce a better bottom line than last week, thanks largely to a flurry of pars over the last four or five holes. Captain Matt advised members not to risk parking their cars in the overflow car park after Rob put his drive from the 14th tee into said car park. The 14th seems to have been the venue for all sorts of adventures/misadventures today. Harry was faced with a tricky little chip out of the west grass bunker, so he decided that he should make a practice swing. Unfortunately, he was a little too close to the ball, and the toe of the club sent the ball skittering off at a 45 degree angle for a couple of metres. Not happy, Jan! This comment could also have applied to Geoff, who didn’t move his drive on the 14th more than a metre from the tee peg. Fairly obviously a draughtie.
Gordo might have been a little distracted today, as he is apparently heading off to take part in some foolishness called running marathons or something. Anyway, he picked up a club that had obviously been left by the group in front, and asked if anybody had lost a sand wedge. No, but they’d lost a 5 iron. Which on closer inspection turned out to be the club that Gordon had. Jonathan, it seems, is a Maths teacher, but it seems that he needed a fair bit of coaching in the intricacies of calculating the points in a Par competition, though, to be fair, it is about the first that he has played. There are signs up in various places exhorting players to use the path and stairs provided. On the 15th, Raj chose to ignore this advice, and came to grief slipping down the slope and finishing with serious skid marks on his trousers. At least they weren’t on the Y-fronts!
There was a bit of a landmark today that went unheralded as Stef completed his 200th games with the Club. There will be a few other landmarks during the week as the following members move one step closer to playing to their age. The Birthday Birdie will have a busy week, getting around to Gordon, Targe, and Stan to wish them all the best on their day.
Results for Saturday, 20 May 2023
1st Steven Gervasoni (+3, +8, +11) 2nd James Hale (+5, +5, +10) 3rd Rajesh Mahto (+2, +4, +6) 4th Rodney White (+1, -1, □) 5th Stefan Belevski (-1, □, -1) 5th Stan Blackshaw (-4, +3, -1)
Seniors Results: 1st Steven Gervasoni (+3, +8, +11) 2nd Rodney White (+1, -1, □) 3rd Stan Blackshaw (-4, +3, -1)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 15th Chris Priems BallPin No 1 – 12th Robert Priems BallPin No 2 – 18th Bob McDonald
Eagle’s Nest Results: Eagle – 14th Adam King