Monthly Archives: November 2025

Who cares about horses sniffing jockey’s rear ends as they gallop around Flemington, or wherever? Certainly not the fifteen members who fronted up for the penultimate Monthly Medal for the year. It would have been sixteen, but Craig was ordered to stay in bed (presumably by a medico, and not his wife). So get well soon, old buddy, and grace the course with your smiling face and ridiculously straight drives. There were a couple of members, at least, who tried desperately not to let their punting investments (the term is used loosely) interfere with their game, but it did constitute a fair portion of their conversation, and attention to mobiles, for at least a few holes. The weather was very kind, and any need for extra layers evaporated soon enough, and by the end of the round, you could say that it was downright balmy. The ground staff seem to have taken off for the unofficial ‘long weekend’, and the greens were not cleared of litter, but otherwise there was little to complain about the course. Other than, perhaps, the missing chunks on the fairway, where some sort of scarification seems to have been attempted.

Porks was probably stung by Michael’s comments during the week about Nalin taking over the lead in the Vardon Trophy race. So he went out to show the crowd just who was ‘da boss’. Three bogies ‘spoiled’ the outward nine, and a couple more on the home run put the kibosh on a sub-par run home. So, he just had to settle for playing to his handicap, to take home the medal with minimum damage to his handicap. In the after game chat, there was talk of sub-par rounds and, even, course records, so he obviously reckons there is a bit more horsepower under the bonnet yet.

Brendon didn’t have a lot to say about his performance today, though he was probably a little less than happy about the sprinkling of doubles that marred his card. However, a tally of ten pars, including a run of four on the home straight, kept him well in the running to take out second place, beaten by a neck, to struggle to keep up the racing analogy. Denzil hasn’t been with us for too long, but, in line with other starters, it did not take him long to get his name on the points list. And, as somebody who has not had a great deal of experience with competition golf, he was keenly interested in the discussion of rules and rulings that went on after the game. But more on that later. AndrewV kept up his regular appearances on the podium, but the top spot has eluded him thus far. However, one of the secrets to making the rankings, is to play often and come second!

JQ was torn between completing the Matchplay (much delayed due to Harry’s gallivanting), and concentrating on winning himself a Medal. Try as he might, the ducks would not line up in the latter quest with some chunky chips, and wandering putts getting in the way of a better placing than fourth. He did have a fairly spectacular draughtie on the 9th when the shot went just about vertically, got caught up in the tree just off the path to the right, and dropped into the depression surrounding it, short, even, of the blue markers, let alone the red. Harry struggled on the front nine, with rather more triples to show for his efforts than he would like to own up to. His spirits perked up on the 10th, when a pitch shot from about 50m out bisected the pin all the way, checked and rolled in for a birdie. This helped us to tally five birdies for the day. JQ reckoned he called it from the moment the ball left the club. Anyway, the back nine ended up much more respectable than the front, and H collected the last point on offer. An unfortunate arithmetic error on Prez’s card meant that he did not actually get to share a point for fifth as well.

The ProPin today was on the 4th. The tee was set back about as far back on the tee box as possible, which made the hole even more tricky than usual, and there was all sorts of chat about whether it was possible to go over the trees or whether it was better to play for the low draw. Regardless of the strategy adopted, nobody was able to get close enough to the pin to make a claim, and there will be Jackpot for next week. Hopefully the course set up will be a little more favourable then. Raj got onto the 15th to claim the BallPin on offer there. Harry also got on, but only just on the cut surface, and he was a bare metre behind Raj, which might explain Raj’s mild surprise when his win was announced. On the 18th, Ryan was the only one to get on, and added to his winnings for the day.

Harry’s front nine was not a good way to start out in a matchplay competition. However, he was able to maintain a little respectability for about five holes, before the ‘cracks’ allowed the situation to deteriorate to the extent that, at the turn, JQ was four up, and a major defeat was in the offing for H. The birdie at the 10th was an easy win, but it also ‘wasted’ a stroke, and H considered requesting a ‘carry-over’ to the next hole, but thought better of the idea. The wins then pretty much alternated, until, at the 16th, and Harry’s last stroke, the hole squared, and the match went dormie two. A just missed putt for par on the 17th, meant that JQ took the match 3 and 1, rather than 2 and 1, if the putt had been sunk.

SOS was so intent on playing his draw to the 4th green for the money, that he just about missed the ball entirely, and also had a draughtie, that barely reached the blue markers. Bob had a bit of a bad day, and not only with his golf. His buggy apparently suffered a number of mishaps, he misplaced his specs at one stage, and the buggy controller at another. Then his game went off (less said). SteveG did not get off to a good start, with a shot straight into Charlie’s Bush on the first tee. However, Steve is quite unfazed, and is looking forward to the 28th, for the December MM, as he hasn’t won a MM yet, and he desperately wants to. Dan spoke in confidence to Ryan this morning and revealed that he is in the market for a new set of clubs. He went along for a fitting with the Pro, and, between you, me and the gatepost, it seems that the fitting did not go quite to plan.

Prez hit his drive from the 5th onto the fairway, but, in the fullness of time, and, despite an extensive search, the ball could not be found, but there was some evidence that it could have been picked up (or played) by another player. Rob was a little unclear on how to proceed. Here is a ‘ruling’ from the Captain – Okay, let’s figure out what Rob should do in this unfortunate (but hopefully hypothetical!) situation at Ivanhoe Golf Course.

The Governing Principle: Outside Influence

As before, the core rule here is about outside influence (Rule 9.6). Someone deliberately picked up Rob’s ball and took off with it. This is not a case of accidental movement; it’s a clear outside influence.

The Steps for Rob:

1. No Penalty: Rob gets no penalty for this bizarre event. The Rules of Golf are very clear that a player isn’t penalized when an outside influence causes their ball to move (or, in this case, disappear!).
2. Estimate the Spot: Rob must estimate, to the best of his ability, where his ball was when the lady made off with it.
3. Replace the Ball: Rob must replace a ball on the estimated spot.

Important Considerations:

• Honesty and Reasonableness: Since it’s an estimated spot, Rob needs to be as honest and reasonable as possible in determining where the ball was. If he was in the rough, he should replace the ball in the rough. If he was on the fairway, he gets to place the ball on the fairway.
• Witnesses: If there were other players or course officials nearby, their input might help Rob determine the spot more accurately.
• Proceed with Play: Once Rob has replaced the ball on the estimated spot, he continues play as normal.

In summary, Rob gets a bit of a bizarre golf story to tell, but he gets no penalty, just an obligation to estimate and replace the ball as best he can.

This and other rule discussions from today will be posted on el Capitano’s page (maybe not immediately).

In other news, Life Member Rodger is probably out celebrating big time today to celebrate another birthday. And, hopefully, Craig will be allowed out of bed in time to celebrate his later in the week. The Birthday Birdie (and everyone in the Club) says, have a good one, guys.

Results for Saturday, 01 Nov 2025
1st Ryan Porker (68) 2nd Brendon Mitchell (71) 3rd Denzil Flood (72) 3rd Andrew Vogan (72) 4th John Quinlan (73) 5th Harry Boughen (74)

Seniors Results: 1st Denzil Flood (72) 1st Andrew Vogan (72) 2nd Harry Boughen (74) 3rd Robert Priems (75)

Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 4th Jackpot BallPin No 1 – 15th Rajesh Mahto BallPin No 2 – 18th Ryan Porker