Putt’s ‘n’ Pars from Grafton Golf Club & Keno Qualifier

The Grafton Golf Club golfing program has now returned to normality with the return of our midweek and Saturday competitions.  The Tuesday competition attracted 75 starters of which there were 68 veterans.  In the members component of the event, Matthew Dougherty (17) had to survive a countback from Karl Studd (18) to claim the victory with both players recording 38 points.  Billy Bishop (17) continued his recent good form to claim the 2nd runner-up spot with a score of 36 also on a countback from Gary Bondfield (19).  The nearest the pin awards for the members resulted in Terry Bowe (1010 picking up the 6th with Derek Latimer (18) claiming the 10th.  The ball rundown for the members went down to those on 28 or better on a countback.  From the 68 veterans in the field the results were almost identical to the members with Matthew  Dougherty  (17) picking up the win with his 38 from Billy Bishop (17) and Gary Bondfield (19) and their score of 36.  In the Veteran nearest the pin awards Peter Brannan (18) representing Yamba Golf Club claimed the 6th, the 17th was not won, Billy Bishop (17) claimed the 4th with his 2nd shot in finishing 390cm from the cup.  Neville Higham (18) struck the ball well on the14th to put his 2nd shot just 210cm from the cup.  Pro balls for the vets went down to 26 on a countback.

The Thursday competition was the June Tallowood Challenge which is played under the Stroke format with the course set up a little more difficult than normal.  There were almost 50 players in that particular competition which was dominated by Mark Robson (18) with a brilliant score of 66 nett, five strokes clear of his nearest rival, Kingsley Smith (7) with 71 who was just the single stroke ahead of Craig Woods (11) on 72.  The nearest the pin awards went to Nigel deVooed (17) on the 1st, Mick Carter (7) was the star on the 6th, Brett McConnell (9) unbeatable on the 10th with Joe Fahey (8) claiming the 17th, which without a doubt contributed to his finishing score of 74 which was good enough for 4th place overall.  Pro balls going down to 79.

The feature competition for the week was the Legacy Golf Day which incorporated the June monthly mug, conducted last Saturday.  In the Legacy division Allan Donaghey (14) won the Legacy Cup with 38pts.  The Diggers cup was awarded to Norm Burt (18) with a score of 29.  Not only did Allan Donaghey (14) take out the Legacy Cup, but he also won the June mug with a nett score of 70 on a countback from Koopah Walters (10) who had to settle for the win in division one.  The runner-up in that division was Tim Bartlett (5) with 72.  In division two Jake Lambeth (16) was the winner with 72 from Shane Essex (14) on 79.  Division three winner with a nett score of 74 was Gary Pym (23) on a countback from Simon Trivett (26).  The Pro pin on the 1st went to Dwayne Doyle (10) his tee shot painfully close, just 75cm from the pin.  Craig Woods (11) was also close on the 6th, his tee shot finishing 97cm away.  Billy Bishop (16) finding it hard recently to stay out of featuring in the results picking up the 10th with Graeme Filippe (11) a visitor from Armidale Golf Club the winner on the 17th.  There were 30 pro-balls issued and if you had a score of 80 or better you might have been lucky enough to win one, if you were on the right side of the countback process, as there were 9 players on that score and only two of the nine qualifying for one.

This coming Saturday the event will be the Grafton Glass 2-man Ambrose over 18 holes.  The event will also serve as the qualifier for the NSW Keno Series for those wanting to try and qualify a $5 entry fee will apply.

July will be a busy month for Grafton men’s golf with the 72-hole Club and Grade Championships rescheduled for 5th,6th,12th,13th July.  On Tuesday 15th July the regular Herron Stakes Day is programmed with the 36-hole Herron Cup to be held on July 19th and 20th.  As normal near capacity fields are anticipated for both the Herron Stakes Day and the Herron Cup, therefore it is advisable to get your nominations in early to secure your preferred tee times for both events.

Ray Hopwood

Grafton District Golf Club