Monday, October 6th
Khao Kheow A & B
1st Alan Sullivan (15) 34 points
2nd Craig Dows (6) 26 points
3rd Michael Brett (17) 24 points
Near pins, Les Cobban, Alan Sullivan, & Michael Brett.
Following torrential rain yesterday the Khao Kheow course was very damp, needless to say the pick, clean, and place rule was applied. Carts were not allowed on the fairways so quite a bit of walking was required. There must be excellent drainage on the greens which were deceptively fast despite the rain.
Given the time of year the course was unusually quiet, in fact many courses are still holding low season pricing into October. A curious anomaly at Khao Kheow today where there was only one hundred baht difference between the walking fee and the all in fee, one might deduce that this course offers the lowest cart fees anywhere.
Scoring today was embarrassingly low with only Alan Sullivan making a decent effort with thirty-four points. Craig Dows took second with twenty-six points, he had the curious distinction of making more than one third of his total score on only three holes. Michael Brett took third two back.
Only three near pins were taken as listed, with the difficult A3 hole not claimed
Wednesday, October 8th
Pleasant Valley
1st Dave Galvin (21) 33 points
2nd Bil Richardson (23) 32 points.
3rd Michael Brett (17) 29 points
Near pins Geoff Williams X 3
Following a long absence we made a return visit to Pleasant Valley today where we found a course in excellent condition despite recent rain. Renowned as a wet course it was surprisingly dry today with no need for pick, clean, and place which was not necessary even though we applied it from the start. Luckily we got away on time and had a relatively free run, later the course became very crowded with many groups of six or more seen all over the course. A nice dry day for golf with moderate temperatures and no sign of rain. We drew the short straw when it came to caddies as it seemed all the honeys of which there were many, all booked by locals.
Scoring was again modest with only two players breaching thirty points. With twenty points on the back nine Dave Galvin took the honours with thirty-three points, one ahead of Bil Richardson of what is for him a ridiculous handicap of twenty-three. Geoff Williams in what was otherwise a game to forget managed to snag three near pins with one unclaimed.
Friday, October 10th
Plutaluang East & South
1st Dave Galvin (24) 34 points
2nd Bil Richardson (23) 33 points
3rd Alan Sullivan (15) 28 points
Near pins, Ray Cody & Alan Sullivan.
A strange day for golf at the Navy course today where we were directed to the East & South nines. As we arrived at the course thunder suddenly started rumbling all around and continued for the rest of the day. Light rain began falling as we commenced our round and lasted for a couple of holes, giving way to bright sunshine. The thunder and lightning continued in the distance for most of the round and as we entered the clubhouse after finishing our round rain started falling again. In hindsight we were lucky as Pattaya had heavy rain all day.
The course was in its best condition, well as good as the Navy course can be. Six-balls were all over the place so we were fortunate to finish without any significant delays
We ran up against a possible rules infraction on the second hole which was resolved with the correct decision being made. One golfer accused another of gamesmanship with “soft talk” coming trippingly off the tongue, no place for thin skin on the golf course.
Scoring was difficult which was reflected in the winners list. In his last game of this trip Dave Galvin took first place for the second time this week and was well set to challenge for golfer of the month, now he will have to wait till his return in January to achieve his goal. Another second placing for Bil Richardson one stroke adrift. Now that Bil has set up his practice facilities up country we can expect big things from him on his next visit. Alan Sullivan rounded out the winners list with twenty-eight points. Only two near pins were taken going to Ray Cody and Alan Sullivan.
The first of the swallows Neil Griffin, made his first appearance of this tour, we expect many more in the coming weeks. Mike Milland is also in town but didn’t play this week due to other commitments.
Next week we have two good courses, Burapha and Bangpakong Riverside on our roster for the last time this year before their pricing becomes prohibitive..
Winner at Khao Kheow Alan Sullivan
Winner at Pleasant Valley & Plutaluang, Dave Galvin.
