Hallelujah! The Priems Cup has finally made it to the tee blocks after years of frustration due to COVID, flooding, weddings, etc, etc. Then Rob threw the cat among the pigeons by announcing that it was his 25th wedding anniversary today, and he didn’t think he would be able to make it. However, the rules do allow for a substitute Captain to take charge of the team, and Gordo was able to step in and fill Rob’s boots while he was off celebrating. Congratulations, Rob. Here’s to the next 25, and let’s hope that the 50th doesn’t fall on a Saturday as well! Despite some notable absences (not all due to Anniversaries) we were able to manage seven matches among the fourteen members that made it to the starting blocks. The field was substantially bolstered by no less than four guests, thanks to the large circle of friends that James has. Charlie has now put in his second card and is looking forward to being to take part in competition. Jamie has also submitted a card to get the ball rolling on his way to membership. In the meantime, Kevin and Jack are keeping their powder dry, and we look forward to seeing them in the future, as guests or otherwise. The skies were a bit grey to start off with, but the temperature climbed, and the sun came out to make for a very pleasant day for golf. As the dew evaporated, the greens slicked up and short putts became mostly a distant memory (for some, at least).
The main order of the day was, of course, the matches played to decide the first round of the 2023 Priems Cup. Where possible, team membership from the last time it was played was maintained, and handicaps were kept as close as possible, probably with the thought that this might result in some close match-ups. And, in a few cases, it did. Captain CJ and Captain Robdo led the field out (except for Geoff and Peter) and, for the first few holes, it looked as if there was going to be a bit of a tussle. However, the wins started accumulating for CJ, and the occasional square did little to redress the balance for Gordon. The match was finished at the 12th with CJ taking out Gordo, 7 and 6. Dale was pitted against ChrisJ in an, on paper, even footing. Chris’s woes with ball striking seem to have continued, and his win on the first was soon dissipated, although he did manage to square holes on a regular basis, to prevent the front nine developing into a rout. The situation improved on the back, and, at one stage, there might even have been hopes that he could pull off a victory, being one down and three holes to go. Two successive losses put paid to that thought, and Dale won the match 3 and 1.
Maybe it was a psychological ploy, but, before the event, Michael carried on like a pork-chop about how he hasn’t played etc, etc, and how he had to give Brendon three strokes. Then, after the event, he carried on about how Brendon sank a 6m putt on the 12th for a birdie while his tee shot was about 10m away. Not sure why Brendon had putted first. Michael set his putt on the way, and, what do you know, he sank his monster as well. Unfortunately, that was one of the holes that he had to give a stroke, so he still lost the hole. Between the both of them, they helped us to a not too bad 12 birdies for the day. Anyhow, despite all that, Michael ended up victorious at the 17th, 2 and 1. Steve also was having a good old whinge about the devastation to his handicap after his performance in the David Ford. He was up against Stan, and there was only one stroke the difference. Despite all of the teeth-gnashing, Steve actually had the better of the match for a fair part of the day, although the margin was never that great. Things seemed to take a turn for the worse after the 13th, and four straight losses completely turned the tables. In the end, Stan turned out victorious 2 up.
Adam was drawn against James, and had to concede two strokes base on the handicap difference. Things looked like panning out well for about five holes, and then James seems to have found the accelerator pedal. The birdies and pars just kept rolling in, and the tally of holes won kept on mounting. Adam managed a couple of squares to avert a complete disaster, but the match came to an end at the 13th, going to James 6 and 5. Harry and Raj were on an equal footing on a handicap basis. Harry jumped out of the starting gate with wins on the first two holes. Unfortunately, that pace did not continue, and the advantage was conceded over the next two holes. The match then turned into a bit of a battle, with neither side able to deliver the knock-out blow. Wins were never too far away, but some eminently gettable putts weren’t, and the final nail in the coffin was driven home on the 16th and the match went to Raj, 3 and 2. Last, but by no means least, Peter was up against Geoff. Because of the vagaries of numbers, they had to set out as a pair, and, being fairly evenly match on handicap, nobody was able to get a significant advantage at any stage of the round. So much so that they finished all square after eighteen. Now, that should have resulted in a chip-off to decide the result. But, Peter had to dash off, and there were no Captains yet in the Clubhouse to supervise. So, to satisfy the software, that is set up for a result, the match was awarded to Peter, even though the result was square. So, at the end of the day, it was not quite a white-wash. The pedants might argue that the score-line should be 6.5/0.5 to Team Chris, but 6/1 is still a pretty white wash, and there was no Persil in sight.
The round of the day would have to have been that put together by James, who ended up with a magnificent 44 points, to top the score ladder and to get his handicap just a little closer to where it should be. Raj was feeling a bit deflated after his round as he was wondering what he has to do to get a win after his good form for minor placings in recent times. Brendon could have been right up there with James if he had kept up the pace of his front nine, but he suffered quite a slump on the back to come home with a handicap protecting 35 points. CJ and Michael were next, just one point behind, but they were prematurely excited about Senior points, because there are no ‘regular’ points awarded for Priems Cup events. Geoff slotted into fifth spot with his total of 32 points.
The Nearest the Pin competition today could have been a clean sweep, as Peter did his best to shut out all competition from his place in the first group. He didn’t succeed on the 7th for the first BallPin, because James was able to get closer to collect the ball on offer. He also didn’t succeed on the 18th for the second BallPin, because CJ was the one to do better to collect that ball. However, he did manage to shut everybody out where it counted, for the ProPin on the 12th. A shot to 77cm, right in line with the pin, is probably going to win it any day, unless somebody can snag a HIO.
Stan was spotted tucking into a bacon roll after the round, apparently a special treat for his birthday. He had a mention last week, but no harm in ‘playing it again Stan’ – to bastardise a famous line. Jamie didn’t have a driver today, but we won’t mention just why, as we don’t approve of that sort of thing. This could have contributed to his shot from the 9th tee heading off at right angles. A very good impression of an ostrich, ducking its head to one side, saved Raj from a very close shave indeed. For some reason, Michael took the long road from the 13th green to the 14th tee, and, seeing somebody already on the tee, started demanding to know why they were ‘butting in’. Only trouble was, it was the rest of his group who had taken the ‘normal’ route. James and Kevin both peppered the 15th tee from the 14th, leading the group in front to wonder whether they needed to invest in hard hats. CJ has a trophy cabinet in his garage housing mementos of his sporting achievements over the years. It seems he takes great delight in urging the grandkids to ask why Daddy doesn’t have so many.
Results for Saturday, 27 May 2023
1st James Hale (44) 2nd Rajesh Mahto (38) 3rd Brendon Mitchell (35) 4th Michael Gourlay (34) 4th Chris Priems (34) 5th Geoff Lyall (32)
Priems Cup Results: Chris Priems (TeamChris) d Gordon Hill, (7 and 6), Dale Webb (TeamChris) d Chris James, (3 and 1), Michael Gourlay (TeamChris) d Brendon Mitchell, (2 and 1), Stan Blackshaw (TeamChris) d Steven Gervasoni, (2 up), Rajesh Mahto (TeamChris) d Harry Boughen, (3 and 2), James Hale (TeamChris) d Adam King, (6 and 5), Peter Sein (TeamRob) d Geoff Lyall, (square), TeamChris d TeamRob 6 games to 1
Nearest the Pin Results: ProPin – 12th Peter Sein BallPin No 1 – 7th James Hale BallPin No 2 – 18th Chris Priems