Collier - Par

This week was back at Collier Park for a game of Par and the Matchplay replay between Robin and Mike after the first ended in a draw. There was the odd shower during the game and gusty winds which kept the scoring low and anything around your handicap was a chance.

Basil was the best of the weekly game with plus 3, he has bee working on some new game play which has finally paid off for his first podium of the year. The ever reliable Rob Mathias and Mike Newman filled the podium with plus one with a few coming in on square. Mike Patton picked up his first ever NAGA which has some satisfaction in not losing the Matchplay / or Robin would be disappointed losing the Matchplay to the NAGA. Regardless of the -5, real golf is stroke and he had the 2nd best stroke score of the day; golf is hard off a 9, so I feel your pain.

(MP: I actually didn't play that badly, it certainly didn't feel like a NAGA round. Just some weak shots missing on the wrong side that were severely punished by trees and sand; a couple of lipped out putts and there you go, -5 )

In other news I haven’t talked about myself for a few minutes so I thought I would add that I achieved a personal goal by breaking an 8 handicap. I am currently sitting on GA 7.9 which is the lowest the club has seen since 2007. It’s very selfish of me to mention it and the 7.9 is actually irrelevant, it’s about all of us having little personal goals like this to lift the overall quality of the club making us a more attractive outfit to outsiders and attract new members.

Match play report courtesy of Robin Dalby

It was back for Match Play II for Mike Patton and Robin Dalby after squaring their first encounter, and Mike had a wry smile. He was giving Dalbs just 12 shots after 15 shots the previous match. Could Dalbs maintain "The Cut form" against the smooth stroking Mike? It seemed so over Pines, the thin man racing to +3 after 4 holes with clean ball striking while Mike struggled somewhat with control over direction of his irons. His magnificent two 4 woods to be on the par 5 5th green for 2 putts and birdie got a hole back. But Robin’s tidy form persisted, winning the next 2 holes to go 4-up and maintaining that lead at the turn. Then, WHAM! Dalb's golf went inexplicably from ideal to imbecile, slicing and duffing shots with impeccable ease to wipe three of the first five Island holes while Mike was doing a bolter, finessing par on three of the first five and watching on bemused as Robin slid from 4-up to be 1-down in the blink of an eye. The seesaw see’d again as Robin clawed back to 1-up after the 17th thanks to a birdie at that hole and a brief spell of frustratingly misdirected shots by Mike. Both had a mishit or two down the 18th but Mike scrambled home in 5 while Dalbs staggered to within a metre and a half of a hole submerged in water after a short downpour. Just one good putt through 6 inches of water would square the hole and win him the match and . . . it pulled up a centimeter short! Match Play III coming up (with Lui writhing in the background).

Winners

1st: Basil Musca (+3)

2nd: Rob Mathias (+1)

3rd: Mike Newman (+1)

NAGA: Mike Patton (-5)

Nearest to Pins:

Pines 3rd: Robin Dalby

Pines 7th: Peter Fitzpatrick

Island 2nd: Basil Musca

Island 4th: Mike Patton

Nearest in 2: Robin Dalby

Nearest in 3: No takers

Longest Drives:

A Grade: Mike Patton

B Grade: Mike Newman

Matchplay Robin Dalby v Mike Patton - All Square