2017-07-02 Bankstown GC – Single Stableford + 4BBB Matchplay Rnd 2
Brrr, it was another cold morning, only 2 degrees Celsius 🙁
The frosty fairways of Bankstown golf course greeted 33 shivering players as they surveyed the empty horizon for the missing solar radiator.
Alas, the 6:45am hit off time from the tenth tee (yellow markers) meant the early groups would remain like a pack of Birds Eye frozen peas.
The practice putting green was dangerously fast and with holes cut in the unapproachable position “A” quadrant on each green, it was with trepidation as players gathered on the 10th tee 🙁
The weather was crispy clear when play started and remained so as the game progressed.
With numb hands and rugged-up bodies trying to swing a golf club, many struggled to hit the ball cleanly, particularly on the recently cored fairways. The fairway grass was short and thin and the ground soft underneath, so many “fat” and “thin” shots were the order of the day, even with prefer-on-fairways the local rule.
Fortunately, play was fast with no reports of bottlenecks on the course 🙂
The consensus after the game was the course was the victor, with many players in a state of shock and playing well below their handicap, with CCR set to a low 32 points. The course played hard with the holes in some never before-seen positions that were diabolical, wicked, evil, not easy 🙁
In particular, many came unstuck on the par4 10th (first hole played) when confronted with the pin tucked behind the front bunker on a very small plateau with steep slopes around its edges. It was an ominous sign 🙁
The greens were much firmer underneath, so stopping the ball quickly was extremely difficult, with many players adopting bump-and-run chips to get on safely and avoid the menacing bunkers that were protecting the holes.
Whilst the greens were in great shape and extremely fast, judging pace before line was more critical for scoring well, else the putter develop a stutter as your heart begins to flutter 🙁
The outright winner today was Adam Shields with a score of 37 points.
Yippee Ki Yay Adam, its your first win with Revesby, a victory well-earned (including two birdies) on a difficult course.
After winning awards from the other end of the spectrum over the last several months, it was pleasing to see Adam bounce back and reap the rewards from all his hard work on the range. Should be hard to beat with all that power in your driver and irons, I’m sure if you connected them to the energy grid you would save some dollars on your electricity bill 🙂
The A grade winner today was Mick McCarney with a score of 36 points.
Mick is a bit like BP, the quiet achiever. He goes along each week and steadily accumulates points without much fanfare, always in the mix and grabbing his fair share of nearest the pins as well. A good score on a tough day at the office, you deserve a bonus 🙂
The B grade winner today was Wayne Coleman with a score of 35 points.
A steady performance from Wayne, the outdoor man, who must have pitched a Coleman tent at the course overnight to acclimatise his body to the conditions beforehand. Using a fold-up camp stove to heat up his balls and a Coleman Lithium-Ion Lantern to illuminate his game, he became a lighter, brighter and mightier golfer on the day 🙂
The C grade winner today was Ken Harris with a score of 33 points.
Another solid performance from Revesby’s Treasurer, all that launderin, err, I mean, fiscal responsibility has put more numbers back into his stableford ledger this year – that’s his third C-grade win for the year.
Together with Matt Campbell, he also won his 4BBB matchplay today when they defeated Jeff Hilder and John McDonald 4&2.
A profitable performance with a huge dividend 🙂
The Guzzlers winner today was Frank Saify with a score of 36 points.
Faced the tough combination of Little & Lattouf in the 4BBB matchplay and managed to unscramble the combination with his precision iron tools, dare I say it, he was a cool Saify Cracker 🙂
The Bradman scores today were indeed Bradmanesque 🙁
Ryan Cassin shot his worst score ever with 19 points, the assassin’s bullets froze in the gun barrel – he improved on the last nine with ten points 🙁
Mark McDonald is in the midst of a cold snap and froze with 16 points, the electrical signals from brain to muscle to hands have short-circuited – he improved on the last nine with nine points 🙁
John McDonald’s lower than low score of 14 points only proves he must be a cold-blooded animal – his game never improved with seven points for each nine holes 🙁
Noteworthy Lowlights:
1. Some say they are off to a bad start when they wipe the first hole played.
What about if you wipe the first six holes !!! Well, George Ostermann did that today, he was zero points after six holes.
What was so amazing was George kept his cool and still managed to avoid the Bradmans – a courageous effort George 🙂
2. Speaking of omens for a bad game, Shane Thorn was pushing his buggy to the 10th tee (first hole played) when his buggy and bag tipped over onto the ground. An embarrassed Shane righted the buggy and bag and then took out his driver with head-cover on, only to find it looked like a goose with a broken neck – that’s right, the head of the driver had snapped from the shaft.
Since his driver only had a 3 inch shaft connected to it, his 4BBB partner, Phil White, offered one of his drivers in lieu. Whilst Shane drove well with the replacement driver, the rest of his game had fallen to bits 🙁
3. Famous last words.
The scribe was freezing on the 10th tee, even though he had on a skivvy, shirt, vest, jumper, shorts and wet weather gear.
He was amazed to see Ryan Cassin just wearing a T-shirt, shirt, jumper and shorts. When the scribe asked if he was cold, Ryan stated he was use to it as he works all week as a landscaper under these conditions.
Well, you could have guessed, Ryan topped his first tee shot and it rolled just five metres.
Watching him play, you would have thought he was in landscaper mode as he was digging up the course all day 🙁
Revesby results on the day:
Outright Winner: Adam Shields [18] 37 pts
A Grade Winner: Mick McCarney [15] 36 pts c/b
B Grade Winner: Wayne Coleman [18] 35 pts
C Grade Winner: Ken Harris [26] 33 pts
GUZZLERS CUP: Frank Saify [16] 36 pts
BRADMANS:
A Grade: Ryan Cassin [12] 19 pts
B Grade: Mark McDonald [18] 16 pts
C Grade: John McDonald [29] 14 pts
Nearest To Pins:
B.Craven(3), F.Saify(7), M.McCarney(11), M.McCarney(13), F.Saify(15)
Drive & Pitch:
S.Thorn(5)
MATCHPLAY RESULTS – 2nd Round:
Matt Campbell/Ken Harris def Jeff Hilder/John McDonald 4&2
Shane Thorn/Phil White def Ryan Cassin/Ryan Johnston 2&1
Brian Craven/Paul Dawkins def Cliff Bourquin/Louis Tasaico 3&2
Terry Coleman/Frank Saify def Ken Little/George Lattouf 2&1
SEMI FINALISTS
Matt Campbell/Ken Harris v Shane Thorn/Phil White
Brian Craven/Paul Dawkins v Terry Coleman/Frank Saify
