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October Monthly Medal – Stroke Competition on 26 September 2015

Gordo grinning
A holiday’s as good as a change!

For some reason I have been reminded of a bit of schoolboy doggerel that goes something like this.

Giddy, giddy gout, Your shirt’s hanging out.

Well, there was no-one hanging onto Gordo’s shirt-tails today although he did report that he was suffering from gout that was apparently brought on by high living on board ship and alcohol consumption while waiting for dearly beloved to explore the shops in Venice and other exotic places.  Taking advice from Doctors O’Sullivan and Mitchell Gordo was heading off to Dan’s to stock up on supplies of Guinness but totally ignored the advice of Doctor Boughen that what he really needed was tincture of Naked Lady.

But enough of what ails Gordon and lets talk about the golf.  Though the day started off a bit on the cool and misty side, the sun eventually got up enough to burn off the mist and bathe the course in a brilliant light.  And what a magnificent sight it was.  The fairways were green, well mowed and, other than a few spots, quite dry.  The greens, whilst not quite so lush in colour, were firm and fast and according to some were running true.  JohnQ might argue with that observation after recording five putts on the 12th and he might get some support from Snags who wasn’t quite able to snag it on the 18th and took four from about a metre.

Whether it was the state of relaxation after the holiday or the change in weight distribution necessitated by the gouty foot there was no stopping Gordon today as he gathered a pair of birdies, one with an 8 metre curling putt on the 12th, and played most of the rest of the course with nothing worse than bogie.  All in all, a fine effort to collect the Medal with a nett 64 and a certain amount of damage to the handicap just in time for the Fred Kitson in a couple of weeks.  By the way, this will be the last Major for the year so a good chance to catch up on Ryan who will apparently be out of circulation at the time.

While on the topic of birdies there were only eight scored for the day which is a bit surprising given the size of the field (22) and the good condition of the course and the greens.  However, as Ryan commented last week, the Eagles Nest was getting up a bit, to the stage of being worth winning, and what do you know, there was an eagle scored today on the 17th.  Brendon speared an iron shot over the trees, straight at the hole and finished only about a metre and a half away and sunk the putt for the easiest of results.  Of course he was in need of a new supply of balls after putting two into the river on the 8th and misplacing another somewhere else so all in all he didn’t end up all that far ahead.  And the less said about the rest of his round the better.

ChrisV played a good steady round and reports that he left a few out there but he also scored a couple of the birdies.  The nett result was a 67 that won’t do his handicap too much harm and gathers him a handful of points though he is a bit far down the table to be any worry to the front runners.  Just a stroke behind and maybe able to claim a relaxed frame of mind after a holiday, but not gout, to improve his form was Harry who could have been right up there except for some missed but eminently gettable putts.

Then followed as fine a grouping of golfers as you could wish for with Mehm (still without a win), Snags and Bob with a nice round score of 70.  In fifth and last points place, a couple of strokes further back were Zimmer and CraigC.  Chrispy went close to getting another point with a ‘crap’ score (his words) but just missed out by the one.

So, as we get to the pointy end of the season, Ryan still has a healthy lead in the Championship but, with him out of contention for a month, there is a good chance that the gap can be closed and make for some excitement in the lead up to the end of the year.  Gordon’s win today gives him a bit of a lead in the Seniors but he, too, is not impossible to catch and there is a fair group not too far behind so he will have to keep his form and/or his gout if he wants to keep his chances alive.  Pepsi is still dominating the Eclectic and there needs to be some serious birdie making by a few of the front runners if they want to topple him before the year end.

The Nearest the Pin for a ball on the 4th today eventually fell to Noodles.  The jackpot ProPin on the 12th was won by Chrispy at 3.75 m and the positioning can’t have been too good as he took three putts to record a four for the hole.

In the IGL, the draw last week between the Magpies and the Hawks was settled by applying the standard countback procedure using the relevant players scores.  In the event the Hawks (34 points) defeated the Magpies (32 points).  So, the Grand Final came down to a clash between the Hawks and the Tigers.  And, the result of that was that the Hawks (Gordon and AndrewP 137) defeated the Tigers (Brendon and CraigC 156) to win the inaugural Grand Final of the Ivanhoe Golf League.  Perhaps this is an omen for next week at least as far as the Hawks go.

Michael and Trevor will be tucking into cake and soft drink during the week to celebrate a birthday or so the Birthday Birdie says.  Have a nice day chaps.

SOS had to rush off after nine holes to take relief under Rule Number Two and left the rest of the group to finish off the hole on their own.  Not sure whether it was something he ate or drank but he was asking earnestly about supplies of Panadol shortly after.  Perhaps Trev was looking for an early birthday present as he asked whether a high score would make him eligible for a larger handicap relief.  JohnQ was resplendent in a colourful pair of shorts that raised some questions as to whether he was trying to dazzle his opponents or was just in a gay mood.  Whitey had a bit to say about the pin placement on the 12th after having some trouble getting the ball onto the green and into the hole.  Another less than glamorous score on his card was contributed to by the dreaded double hit out of the rough.

Numbers look as if they will be down next week due to the Grand Final and so it will remain a social round for those that turn up.  There will be the inside comp which might be Monthly Medal and a stroke competition and we can put in a pool for a ProPin (or two).  You will score an attendance but your handicap will be quite safe.  The week after will be the first week of the Fred Kitson Spring Cup which is a Par Competition.  Last chance for double points (unless you can win two weeks in a row on regular events) so don’t say you haven’t been warned and you have a chance of catching Ryan.  Or, alternatively, you want to cruel somebody else’s chances of catching Ryan.

Results for Saturday, 26 September 2015
1st Gordon Hill(64) 2nd Chris Vinecombe(67) 3rd Harry Boughen(68) 4th Mehmet Akdag(70) 4th Bob McDonald(70) 4th Craig Sharp(70) 5th Kazim Akdag(72) 5th Craig Cameron(72)