MEN'S GOLF
By SHORT PUTT
The Forbes golfers took to the course under sunny skies aiming to do their very best to earn a spot in the next level of competition. Such was the enjoyment that roars of glee could be heard all around the course.
The main competition was the club qualifier for the Golf NSW-KENO two-person Ambrose, sponsored by Gunn Golf.
This popular event drew 72 players paired in either of men's, ladies or mixed divisions.
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The men's division was won by Peter (Ecky) Dawson and Terry Sharpe with 63 nett, but only on count back from Archie Quirk and Tim West.
Ecky and Terry had a successful front-9 managing birdies on the 2nd and 9th holes to sit alongside the pars.
Terry had the better of the driving while Ecky warmed up. Their back-9 started with a bang, scoring two birdies to open then another on the 15th with Ecky getting the driver working to perfection.
Runners-up Tim and Archie bolted out of the blocks with birdies on the 1st and a run from the 4th to the 7th to offset a bogey on the 2nd and manage a scratch 32. And most importantly Tim had his driver working extremely well.
Their back-9 was quiet by comparison with a lone birdie on the 13th hole, and a steady display of driving by Archie.
The ladies division saw four pairings finish within cooee of each other. Again a count back was needed to decide the winners.
Veronica Rebellato and Ann Simmons shared the driving load to finish on 77 nett and with a tidy back-9 take the winner’s prize. Ann was extremely good with the driver on the last three holes and finished with a very fine shot.
The ladies runners-up were Wendy Simmons and Sharon Grierson.
They also shared the driving load with a ‘yours, mine, yours, mine’ approach around the front-9. They scored exceptionally well on the back-9 but an errant double-bogey on the 14th cost them the win.
The mixed division saw Carolyn and Niel Duncan dominate to win this Division. Their nett 65.25 placed them fourth overall in the field.
Carolyn excelled with her drives on the shorter holes with Niel finding the fairways on the longer holes. Their split of 36-38 showcased their consistency throughout their game.
The mixed division runners-up were Warwick and Jean Judge.
Jean had the steadier driving with Warwick’s radar quite off the mark. He did not complete his required drives until the 16th. But it was the putting which held them back. Both putters were cold and led to too many bogeys that damaged their cause.
The winning pairs from each Division, plus the runners-up in the men's division are eligible to progress through to a KENO Regional Final.
Forbes will host a regional final on Sun 28 September but there are others in the KENO Schedule which they can enter for.
Well done to all of them and good luck in the next step towards the State final to be held at Bonville GC on 30 November - 3 December.
The ball sweep went to 66.5 nett, going to: 64.25 – K Tyne/C McMillan; 65.5 – P Pymont/L Fraser; 65.75 – B Carpenter/M Haley; 66 – A Dukes/J Betland, J Dobell/J Cutler; 66.25 – H Callaghan/P Murphy; 66.5 – B Hayes/W O’Neill, D Quirk/T Callaghan. There was one visitor – Ben Russell (Cowra) who teamed with Brett Slack-Smith.
The NTP’s went to: 9th – Ladies: Sarah Black, Men: Jacob Reid; 18th – Ladies: Ann Simmons, Men: Jade Page. Neither tee shot was converted for a ‘2’. There were six 2’s overall with the 1st and the 18th yielding two each.
The 3rd hole Super-Pin was well celebrated by Cody Banks. His shot was very nearly a ‘H-in-O’ but settled at 100cm from the hole.
It was an easy conversion for a ‘2’ and earned Cody his third tee shot. He had to wait for the back-9 for his next tee shot on the card.
Having a ‘second crack’ at important putts helped the scoring. This contributed to three eagles being recorded. Kailab Tyne and Cam McMillan snared one on the 7th, to follow their birdie in the 6th.
Then Pat Murphy and Harry Callghan managed one on the 15th to counter the bogey on the previous hole. Brendan Hayes and Wayne O’Neill also snared one on the 15th and followed that with a birdie on the 16th.
This format needs good combinations or good complementary play within the pairs.
Sometimes it is the physical, as shown by the tall Tim and shorter Archie pair, and sometimes it is equal capability as demonstrated by Max Haley and Bruce Carpenter.
But good putting is always a requirement for good scoring. Max Haley earned his accolades when he one-putted the 17th and 18th holes from long distance. This gave he and partner Bruce the KENO ticket over ‘The Two Steves’.
Also holding the end of a hot putter was Andrew Dukes. On each of the last three holes he converted very long one-putts to help his score and record three birdies to finish.
This gave he and partner John Betland a scratch 32 on their back-9. This was very pleasing as in the early part of his game Andrew’s putting was the backbone of nightmares.
The final of the Wallace Cup was played on the weekend and turned into an exciting match. Brad Ashton was up against Kim Herbert and having to give him four shots.
It did not look good for Brad at first when on the 4th his second shot from prime position in the fairway was fluffed and skipped over the water. His chip shot was skulled and fired off the back of the green, handing the hole to Kim.
But Brad rallied and played tight golf thereafter to lead Kim 2-up after 12 holes.
Then Kim was inspired to win the 13th and 14th holes to draw square. He won the 15th but then his putter went cold and he could not take advantage of a shot to win the 16th, halving that. The 17th was halved leaving Brad 1-down on the 18th.
Kim lost all rhythm with his tee shot and after battling the trees handed the hole to Brad. This required extra holes.
The 19th, playing the 1st hole again, saw Kim fire his tee shot too long and was snookered by the tree at the back while Brad was on the green. His resultant double-bogey gave Brad the Match in a tight contest.
Here is the news:
The greens were cored early this week and sand spread as part of the renovations. The next few weekends will see some ‘sandy lies’ on the greens and some very interesting putts.
But all should be ready by the end of September when the October Monthly Medal will be played, brought forward from the long weekend, and the KENO Regional Final will be played.
Head Pro Will has advised of a Titleist Equipment Demo Day scheduled for Wednesday 10 September. Contact him or leave your name at the Pro Shop if you want a time slot to try things out.
H/Pro Will has been away a bit playing in some PGA events. He travelled to Gunnedah where he finished in the back half of the field, then ventured to Port Macquarie where the main feature of play was the rain.
There he finished T-41 after a disastrous first round but much improved second round. Also at ‘The Port’ was James Grierson who finished on 1-over and T-15, with the winner at 6-under.
It is crystal ball time:
Saturday 30 has a 4BBB Stableford Medley, sponsored by Cahill Footwear. And Sunday has the usual Stableford Medley comp.
VETS GOLF
Successful Forbes farmer Stuart French took this attitude to the Parkes Golf Club last Thursday blitzing all playing the Lachlan Valley Veterans Golf Association monthly 18 hole competition with a score of 41 points.
At the same time Stuart was crowned winner of the LVGA district final for the NSWVGA Medal from players who qualified after rounds played earlier this season.
Keeping it in the twin town competition was runner-up Don McKeowen from Bogan Gate who plays the weekly T/T comp out of the Forbes club posting 36 points. They also shared spoils in the monthly A grade competition.
Visiting players took B grade honours with Cowra’s Elwyn Ward best registering 40 points from Peter Howarth of West Wyalong next on 36 points.
Forty five players took part in overcast but dry condition where Forbes again ruled supreme in the teams event with their best three scores from 12 players posted 109 points.
Next Parkes (14 players) 106, Grenfell (8) 105, West Wyalong (4) 97, Condobolin (3) 88, Cowra (2) 71, Bogan Gate (2) 63.
Nearest the pins- 4th A grade Nym Dziuba (P), B grade Elwyn Ward (Cwa), 11th A grade Ian Phipps (P), B grade nil.
Forbes and Parkes players to collect balls in the sweep – 36 points Phil Smith (P), 35 Barry Parker (F), Linday Elliott (P), Rob Staples (P), 34 Nym Dziuba (P), 33 Les Little (F), Kim Herbert (F), Ian Phipps (P), 32 Phil Smith (P), Alf Davies (F), John Pearce (P).
This week Forbes will host the twin towns weekly competition with noms from 9.30am for a 10am shot gun start. Be there or be ‘square’.
For the diary the next LVGA 18 hole comp is scheduled for West Wyalong on Thursday September 18.
Due to course maintenance last Tuesday only nine holes were scheduled for play with Steve Edwards again on top with 21 points from Barry Parker and Ken Walton next best on 20. Rest of the field not far behind.
It was a small meeting for coffee after with Steve E, Barry P and Ken W deciding to do three more holes while discussing the day’s results.
Tuesday 12 hole social comp for all, ball toss at 9am with coffee to follow for anyone interested.
LADIES GOLF
We begin our ladies notes with a run down of Wednesday's Captain's verse the President's team.
Threatening weather again affected the number of players for the match. This event was played as Stableford with some twists. Six holes were chosen and players could only pick one club to play the hole from start to finish.
Chipping and putting with a driver or fairway club proved interesting.
The outcome of these holes certainly affected the players scores with 31 being the best score of the day.
In the end the President's purple team were the victors over the Captain's green team.
The majority dressed up themselves and their carts for the day.
The winning team received a ball each and their carts lucky losers were awarded chocolates.
Ball sweep went to Robin Lyell and Lynn Kennedy with 31 points. Julie Wood 29 points and Heather Davidson 29 points.
There were no nearest to the pins due to the nature of the game.
Saturday 23rd was Golf NSW two-person qualifying round, sponsored by Gunns Golf.
Best girls team on the day were Veronica Rebellato and Ann Simmons with a score of 77 on c/b.
Carolyn Duncan playing with husband Niel were winners of the mixed team with a score of 65.25 .
Ladies nearest to the pins were Sarah Black on the 9th and Ann Simmons on the 18th.
Matches set down for next week are the Cahills Footwear 4BBB. Saturday 31 August is also the Narromine Tournament then Wednesday 3 September is the Barnes and Shields 18 hole stroke. Monthly Medal and Putting Comp + the dropout Stableford.
Good golfing everyone.
