The prospect of a good feed to finish off the day might have been enough to persuade some members to brush off the cobwebs that, like long forgotten Christmas garlands, had festooned their golf clubs and bag. For others, perhaps it was the prospect of collecting at least one trophy after having failed to crack one during the year. And perhaps it was just the prospect of a lovely spring day (astronomical summer hasn’t started yet), and the relaxing vibe of the Ivanhoe course that was the main attraction. Whatever the reason, twenty-three members and Ryan’s guest, Tim, presented as the largest field to tee off for some time. There was still a little nip in the air at tee time, and some were ruing their choice of ‘tropical’ dress mode, while others repaired to their car to retrieve something a little warmer to start the day. Apart from some leaves on the greens at the first and the tenth, the course was in good condition, and the stage was set for some good scoring to be had.
There were two significant events contested today, the David Primrose Champion of Champions (stroke) for those members skilful (or lucky) enough to win a trophy during the year, and the Chump (Champ) of Chumps (stableford) for those who had been less fortunate in the trophy cabinet department. The whole field competed for the ball run and points based on their Stableford score.
Far and away the best score of the day was presented on the card with Stan’s name on it. The young fellah barely put a foot wrong all day. He methodically took the front nine apart and reached the turn with 42 strokes and 22 points, and the moon to shoot for. The form continued unabated, with the only ‘blemish’ being a singleton on the 14th, and he reached the end of the round in 41 more strokes and another 21 points. His 83 off the stick was not quite a personal best, but it was very close to shooting his age. Stan plans to repeat the performance after his next birthday so that he can cross that one off his bucket-list. NOTE: Stan wishes to be forgiven his Senior Moment – he actually is 83 already and has thus joined the ranks of ‘age-shooters’. His forty-three points was more than enough to take out the day and to collect the Chump of Chumps Trophy.
The next best score for the day came from the hands of CharlieG with thirty-nine points, a score that, on most days, would have taken the cake. It was a bit of an inauspicious start with a couple of sevens, but then he managed to par the 3rd for a very handy four points. Another pair of triples took the shine off that one, but the sixth hole marked quite the renaissance of his fortunes, and he was able to finish the front nine with 16 points on the card. An almost flawless back nine, that included a birdie (one of eleven that we scored for the day) on the 14th for another four points, produce 23 points to take his total to 39 to fill second place to open his championship points account.
Harry had a bit of a run-in with a tree as he negotiated the second, and the gash (score-wise) that followed dented his spirits a little, but he soon sparked up following a par on the 3rd. Things continued nicely as the nine progressed, but a chip-in for a birdie (think eclectic) on the 8th really heightened the mood. Twenty points on the card at the turn had his playing companions making all sorts of rash statements, requiring a conscious effort not to be put off. A singleton on the 10th elicited another good talking to (self) and three pars and a good recovery bogie on the 13th put the scoring train back on track. A bit of a chipping failure on the 16th was immediately compensated by par on 17, only to have the good work undone, by the short game on the 18th. Still, the 38 points for the round was enough to gather third place on the day. More importantly, the 84 off the stick, and the resulting net score of 66 was the best score of the Champion of Champions field, and Harry now has his name on this trophy for the second year in a row. But, nothing wrong with trying for more!
Now, the field started to get a bit crowded. Gordo started off well enough, and set a cracking pace for the first eight holes. Something (unspecified) went drastically wrong on the 9th, but the form looked to have made a return as the back nine began. Three holes good, three holes bad and three holes good meant that he could only accumulate sixteen points on the back, giving him 36 for the round. ChrisJ didn’t show any sudden change in form, but just managed to pepper his card with more singletons than he would have liked. Massive shanks on the 12th and 18th could have cost him the chance of challenging for the CoC, as they left him with a net score of 68, just two behind the winner. Rob was feeling pretty depressed after four holes of posting triples for the accumulation of just one solitary point. Whatever bee got into his bonnet on the 5th, it certainly got things moving, and, by the end of the nine, he had twelve points on his card. On a back nine that included a gash, he then proceeded to garner another 24 points. In the process, he installed himself at the top of the Eclectic table, so it will be interesting to see if he can hold on and not be pipped at the post again. SOS managed to write in six three pointers on his front nine card for 21 points, a score that was right up there in the scheme of things. Something of a fade out in the closing stages of the back nine, left him with thirty-six points to share the fourth podium spot.
Filling out the list of point scorers, we have the father/son combination of Josh and Matt. Josh started off a little shaky, but, by the back nine, he was storming home. Dad, on the other hand, played his cards in reverse and faded as the round progressed. Adam parred the first four holes for triplets all round. Perhaps the bee skipped from his bonnet to Rob’s, because the shine went off pretty much completely until three/three on the last two holes restored a bit of respectability. Brendon also got off to a good start over the front nine for a pretty respectable twenty points. After owning up to a moved ball on the 11th, things never did quite get back on track, and the final total of 34 points was a bit of a disappointment for him. Along with most of the field leaders, CJ started out pretty well, but the three pointers wouldn’t come, and the singletons kept turning up through the back nine, and, he too, had to settle for a share of fifth spot.
It’s hard to get good help these days. Just ask Santa! He tasked a couple of his trustiest elves to put out the NTP markers on the 7th for the ProPin and the 15th for the BallPin. As they left the 7th, Stan, reportedly, asked the number one elf if he had put out the marker. Reportedly, the number one elf replied ‘yes’. Number one elf claims no recollection of uttering that word. Upshot, no ProPin marker, and nobody could honestly claim to have been within five metres, so the result was declared a Jackpot with a good healthy ante to start, and a very good reason to register for next week to get a bonus dividend just in time for Christmas. There are no reports of what happened at the 15th, but the lack of a marker meant another non-event, and another Jackpot was declared. Thankfully, the marker for the 18th was in place, and Brent finished just a few centimetres past the hole with a shot that must have been a cats-whisker from being a hole-in-one, and he collected a ball for the effort.
Steve is wont to take a couple of practice swings in preparation for most shots. Unfortunately, as he prepared for his second shot on the first, the club contacted the ball, and it skittered a few metres. The third finished off the green to the side, and the following chip was travelling at a fair clip. That is, until the ball hit the pin, stopped dead and dropped into the hole for the par. The fortunes varied a bit from then on, but, on the 13th, Steve was playing his fifth shot from the back of the green. Once again, the ball was travelling at a fair clip, and looking to be headed for the slope at the front of the green. That is, until the ball hit the pin, stopped dead and dropped into the hole. ChrisJ hit a shot on the 6th that was a bit on the wide side, and it slammed into the garbage bin by the 7th tee, from whence it veered left and finished nestled right at the base of the remains of the old pine tree. Fortunately, it didn’t quite find the root hollow that beckoned quite nearby. As his group were preparing to tee off on the 18th, Brendon was noticed wandering, distractedly, around on the 17th fairway. He was looking for his phone, that must have fallen out of the pocket on his bag. Having played out the 18th, and before he headed off to search more diligently, Brendon was persuaded to check his bag one more time. And, what do you know, there was his phone! Bob didn’t have a great day today. He managed to run his buggy into pretty much everybody else in his group’s buggy at one time or another. He also score the only reported draughtie on the 8th, when his driver contacted the ground at least 300mm behind the ball, and it was probably dirt and grass that actually dislodged the ball from the tee-peg.
After the round, there was the usual break-up gathering (although we don’t actually break up) for the Christmas lunch and Trophy Presentations. There was a good spread of meats and salads, and a number of members showed their approval by heaping their plates and returning for seconds. The open bar also proved to be a popular spot to visit. After lunch, President Rob spoke, and asked members to think of Keith’s family as they spend their first Christmas without him. He also moved a vote of thanks to Gordon for his efforts in arranging the function, and to other Committee members for their sterling efforts during the year. Captain Matt then presented the trophies that had been awarded during the year, and a list of trophy winners can be found on the web-site (Statistics/Hall of Fame – V2 – Trophy Lists -Year by year tables – 2023). A few selected photos will be posted anon.
Results for Saturday, 16 Dec 2023
1st Stan Blackshaw (43) 2nd Charles Gibbs (39) 3rd Harry Boughen (38) 4th Gordon Hill (36) 4th Chris James (36) 4th Robert Priems (36) 4th Stephen O’Sullivan (36) 5th Josh Hunt (34) 5th Matt Hunt (34) 5th Adam King (34) 5th Brendon Mitchell (34) 5th Chris Priems (34)
Seniors Results: 1st Stan Blackshaw (43) 2nd Harry Boughen (38) 3rd Gordon Hill (36)
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 7th Jackpot BallPin No 1 – 15th Jackpot BallPin No 2 – 18th Brent Rowley