The golfcourse looks the same As I line up for a game And there to greet me is my driver and putter Down the first I look and pull out the cherry Taylormade and not too hairy It's good to touch the green green grass of 'Hoe.
Yes, the grass at the ‘Hoe is definitely green, green. What with the warmish weather, some rain and a modicum of irrigation, the course is as green as grass. And, yes, it is a little furry in places, but the muck has settled, and there was even a little hint of some run to be had, particularly if you kept the launch angle down a bit. It was a bit windy yesterday, and there was still a fair bit of litter around the course. This was particularly irritating on some of the greens, where twigs and gum-nuts abounded. Ground-staff and leaf-blowers were obviously in short supply. Despite the very nice conditions, we could only scare up eight members to contest the August Monthly Medal, which prompted some to speculate that this could mean easy mblmblmbls.
Harry was less than chuffed when his draughtie from the second tee helped him on the way to a quadruple bogie, which might be considered a death-knell for chances in a stroke competition. The rest of the front nine wasn’t spectacular, although a couple of pars did add a modicum of respectability. A birdie on the 11th from a pretty long putt dropping raised the spirits a little, but they were dashed again on the 14th when the drive disappeared into the penalty area, never to be seen again (at least not by Harry). The penalty ball was a pink Precept Lady SIII that happened to be in the collection of ‘finds’ in the bag. May as well finish the round with it, thinks H. Cracks his drive straight at the pin on the 15th, and SOS reckons it must have gone in. Harry, on the other hand, thinks it might have gone past and possibly off the green. SOS was on the green, and he was keen to see whether he was in with a chance for the Jackpot ProPin, so he paced out the distance to the hole, only to be able to claim ‘I told you so’ when he spotted the ball neatly nestled in the bottom of the cup. For the record, this is the second time (of two) that SOS has ‘called’ Harry’s holes-in-one.
Rob has been having a bit of a run of form in recent times, and today was no exception, although a couple of triples did rain on the parade a little. His back nine was going gangbusters until he started to think about his handicap (warning – assumption) which culminated in him missing a ‘tiddler’ on the 18th to bring his net score to 68, right on handicap. Despite this, Rob was quietly confident that his score would be the one to beat. He was practising his acceptance speech and had worked out his brag technique for his triumphal arrival home. Needless to say, he was rather deflated to find that the bragging right had been evaporated by one stroke.
Anthony was bewailing the fact that he doesn’t seem to be able to get down to single figures despite being able to smash the ball a country mile, and turning in his fair share of par scores. A few chipping mistakes and a remarkable number of putts just lipping out or teetering on the brink of the hole prevented him being much better placed on the day, and maybe even moving into the heady realm of single figure handicaps. Maybe next time. Brendon also didn’t go much on the positioning of the tee on the second, but he did manage to make a birdie on the 5th. This was one of just four that the limited field was able to card for the day. The par threes proved to be a bit of a bete-noir for Brendon, but he was only able to put together a 74 to claim 4th place, for which he will happily take the points. Raj was just one stroke further back to round out the points with his fifth place. And as for the rest, not a mblmblmbl to be had.
Needless to say, Harry collected the Jackpot ProPin and the Eagle’s Nest for his shot on the 15th hole. The first BallPin was set on the 4th, and nobody was able to make it onto the green, so there will be a Jackpot for that next week. The BallPin on the 18th went to none other than Harry, who seems to have had a bit of a field day today.
Perhaps it was just the Golf God’s way of wishing him a Happy Birthday, just a couple of days early. The Birthday Birdie has a couple of other calls this week, with Ken and Brendon lining up to blow out the candles and to cut the cake. Belated besties also to Ben and Jonathan who both passed new milestones in the recent past.
Matt, that well known mumbler, was reported to have been possessed by aliens for the first eight or nine holes until the incantations worked and cast them out to allow him to post a ten stroke turn-around for the back nine. Still no cigar, though. SOS also seemed to be suffering demonic possession early in the round, having played three provisionals in the first four holes. Fortunately, only one required the provisional to be played. Raj was spotted with his umbrella unfurled at one stage. As there was no sign of rain, it can only be assumed that he didn’t want to get a tan.
Results for Saturday, 05 Aug 2023
1st Harry Boughen (67) 2nd Robert Priems (68) 3rd Anthony Browne (72) 4th Brendon Mitchell (74) 5th Rajesh Mahto (75)
Seniors Results: 1st Harry Boughen (67) 2nd Gordon Hill (80)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 15th Harry Boughen BallPin No 1 – 4th Jackpot BallPin No 2 – 18th Harry Boughen
Hole in One Results: Hole in One – 15th *** Harry Boughen ***