From Tony Durkin
INSPSIRED GOLF: Playing in the same group as Graham Smith a week earlier was the recipe for Lawrence Hireme to break 80 on Saturday, for the first time in his golfing career. “It was inspirational,” said Lawrence, commenting on the one-under 71 by ex-greenkeeper Graham the previous Saturday, with the big Kiwi truck driver scoring his card. “He was just so calm during his round, and I adopted that same approach on Saturday.” The other ‘secret’ handed down by Graham was to pick a line on the greens and hit the putts, not baby them. And that too worked a treat, according to Lawrence. His 79 off the stick from a handicap of 14 gave him plus six in the Single Par event, to win B Grade – his first victory at Headland in 18 months. And now that his confidence has returned, the former Rugby fly-half hopes to lower his handicap to somewhere near 11, from which he played prior to the Covid break last year. Dennis Mikolic (also plus six) won A Grade, Brett Beaumont (+5) headed the C Grade field and Trish Marsden (+2) was best of the women, winning her second Headland event in three days.
PRESSURE OFF: Sharon Thomas also broke 80 – for the first time in three years in Thursday’s Single Par event – breathed a sigh of relief and said ‘thank goodness the Championships are over’. Despite being a single-figure golfer for more than a dozen years and the holder of six Headland Foursomes titles, Sharon says she tends to freeze when the words ‘Club Championship’ are mentioned. And following a poor final round of the recent Championships and a 6&4 thrashing in the first round of the Match Play Championship last week, Sharon relaxed on Thursday, scored a competition-high plus four in the Par event, had 79 off the stick, putted the lights out on greens she described as ‘just brilliant’, and once again found her love for the game she plays at least twice a week. Trish Marsden (+3) won B Grade and Cheryl Kitson (+3) won C Grade.
PB FOR NICK: A bet with Headland B Grade Pennant team member Nick Reed was the driving force behind Nick Bolton’s personal-best round on Wednesday. Not only did the Mooloolaba Lifeguard win the Medley Single Stableford event with 43 points, but his gross score of 80 also snared him a Footjoy shirt as the result of a bet with his friend Nick Reed. The pair had been stuck on a PB of 87, with the bet based on the first to score 85 – which the Lifeguard did in a canter despite three double bogeys. But his card also revealed three birdies, seven pars and five bogeys from his 15 handicap. Nick, who admits he is ‘loving’ his new sport, had 119 shots in first competition round in September last year, and despite his three birdies on Wednesday – at holes 6, 8 and 11 – considered his up-and-down on the 10th from 120 meters after finishing in the dam with his fourth shot, a highlight of his best-ever round. NOTE: Nick Reed had the last laugh of the week, beating Nick Bolton 2-up in the semi-final of the C Grade Match Play Championship on Saturday. The side bet was a $100 bottle of wine.
SANDRA’S SECOND: She may have been beaten into second place – by Broncos supporter Bruce Heseltine – but Roosters NRL tragic Sandra Murphy was ecstatic with her golf round in Sunday’s Medley Single Stableford. Both Sandra and Bruce scored 38 points, with the winner taking the honours by virtue of his 19 points on the back nine to Sandra’s 17. But after just 17 rounds of golf this year, the former Ladies Captain at Woollahra Golf Club in Sydney described her golf as ‘the best this year by a mile’. She had six three-point holes and a four-pointer in her 38 points, while Bruce – who has been sidelined recently with a bad back – had seven three-pointers in his 89 off the stick.
CHRISTMAS DAY: He may have thought Santa had arrived six months early when he scored 43 points to win Tuesday’s Single Stableford for men, but a week earlier John Christmas was contemplating giving golf away. Following a run of outs when he claimed he ‘just couldn’t hit the ball’, John walked into the Pro Shop after scoring 25 points a week earlier and appealed to Head Pro Adam Norlander for help. Adam took less than 20 minutes to analyse the takeaway of the 50-year Telstra worker was on the incorrect plane, and the rest is history. John’s 43 points from his 21 handicap was by far his best score since, back in April, he won his sixth Monthly Medal/Mug since he joined Headland in 1999. But while he was delighted by the swing tips from Adam, John – who has issues with his sight – says he could not play golf was it not for his regular playing partners who spot his ball for him. And the group trifecta’d Tuesday’s event, with Tim Rees (37 points) and Stewart Douglas (36) finishing second and third respectively.
HELEN’S DOUBLE: Helen Martyn admits that inconsistency and a lack of confidence is her greatest opponent on the golf course, but that burden took a positive turn during last week with a win and a second placing in successive competitions. Helen won Tuesday’s Single Stableford for Women with 41 points and finished second in Thursday’s Single Par event, scoring plus two. And while she never had intentions of playing serious competition golf when she graduated from Headland’s SWING program in 2015, following her good form last week Helen is now playing from her ‘suitable’ AGU handicap of 36. “I thought if I could play from 36, with two shots on each hole, I would be very satisfied with my progress,” she said. Helen, a retired librarian, took up golf late in life, just as her mother had done at Tai Tapu Golf Club in New Zealand.
GRAPHITE MAN: Ted Banaszczyk recently changed from steel shafts in his irons to graphite, and within a few weeks has collected the biggest pay day in his 13 years as a Headland member. But apart from the change in golfing hardware, he has no idea why his best score in an age came totally from out of the blue. “All I know is that those little chips that I usually fluff, and those putts that fall agonisingly short, were on the mark,” he said, reflecting on his 40 points which won Thursday’s Men’s Stableford. And while he was surprised by his much better round of golf, he was even more stunned at his financial windfall. Ted collected a mammoth $125 for winning the competition – generously sponsored by AJ Steel – plus another $15 for his NTP at the 14th, which he fittingly converted into a birdie.
MEN’S MATCH PLAY: Men’s No.1 seed Adam Richards is 36 holes away from snaring his first Headland Club Championship/Match Play double following two wins on Saturday. Adam, who recently created the unique record of winning the Club Championship over a four-decade period, beat former Champion Dave Rattray 2&1 in Saturday’s quarter final and backed up in the afternoon with a similar result against Sean McGill in the semi-final. He will play schoolboy Ben Duncombe in next Saturday’s 36-hole final. Adam has previously won the Match Play in 2003, 2005, 2017 and 2019, but has never collected the prized double. In B Grade, fourth seed Ian Farrington meets Druce Fielding (6) in the final, while Josh Vickers and Nick Reed clash in C Grade. The 2021 Match Play Championships are sponsored by club member Ash Reck, of Definitive Finance.
WOMEN’S MATCH PLAY: Josie Ryan and Kate Wilkie will play a delayed semi-final of the Headland Women’s Match Play Championship for the right to meet Jenny Ingham in the A Grade final. Fiona Munro took Josie to the 19th last week before the Club Champion prevailed 1-up, while Jenny qualified for the final with a 2&1 victory over Karen Wilson. In B Grade, Cathy Roberts and Robyn Boreham will meet in the final after Cathy beat Carol Quin 1-up and Robyn defeated Monica Knowles (5&4). And in C Grade, Di Stark is through to the final following a 1-up win, again at the 19th hole, over Ruth Broderick. Di, the former SWING convenor, will meet the winner of Joy Logan and Lyn Forbes. The D Grade final is a showdown between Ellen Bloxsome, a 4&2 winner over Chrissy Eggins, and Rhonda Parry, who beat Wendy Burnie 5&4. All finals must be completed on or before July 1.
MEN’S PENNANT: Headland’s A Grade Pennant team has tasted narrow defeat in the first round of the 2021 Sunshine Coast Men’s Golf Zone Pennant competition, beaten 4/3 by Mt Coolum at Maroochy River on Sunday. The result came down to the final match with No.1 seed, Adam Richards, fighting back from two down with four to play to be square teeing off 18. But his opponent responded, sinking a three-metre birdie putt at the last, to win 1-up. Winners for Headland were Sean McGill (6&4), Adam Rydwanski (3&2) and Dave Rattray (5&4), with Scott Walker (3&2), Josh Holbrook (4&3) and Ben Duncombe (2-down) also beaten. Next Sunday Headland plays reigning Champions, Noosa, at Noosa, with a guest appearance by Sydney-based Jake Crowther a possibility. Headland’s Masters team, which has struggled to win its first game in recent seasons, scored a squared result against the strong Maroochy River at Twin Waters. Winners were Peter Perrett, who was five-up after five holes and eventually won 8&6, Warren Sorby (4&3) and Neil Oxley (4&2), while team Captain Warren Selvage squared his match on the 18th after trailing from the start. No.1 player Scott Bromfield lipped out at the 18th for a one-down loss, and Brett Stephenson (5&4) and Terry Grogan (5&4) were well beaten. And after missing last year’s campaign, Blake Thomas returned in a blaze of glory to lead Headland’s B Grade side to victory, also against Maroochy River at Twin Waters. Blake, the No.1 seeded player, won 3&1 at the 17th, giving Headland a 4/3 victory. Other Headland winners were Brendan Duncan (3&2), Matt Macaulay (2&1) and Pennant debutant Aaron Duff (3&1), while skipper Matt Hetherington (1-down), Will Millroy (4&2) and Rhett Charlton (6&5), finished on the debit side of the ledger. Next Sunday both Masters and B Grade play Twin Waters at Noosa Springs.
SENIOR’S ECLECTIC: Entries are now being accepted for Headland’s 2021 Regis Aged Care Seniors Eclectic Tournament, to be played on Monday and Tuesday, July 19 and 20. The cost of playing in the two-day Single Stableford event is $55 for members and $65 for non-members, with competition fees and lunch from Halfway House on both days included. Entries close at 5pm on Wednesday, July 14.
BUFFALO’S BRIEFS: With the 2020-21 financial year to officially end on Wednesday of next week, it’s time for the Headland Pro Shop to clear some stock so the staff don’t get tied up in stocktake and can spend more time helping our members become better golfers. So, starting from today (Monday, June 21) for a lucky 13 days, we will be having an EOFY sale on floor stock only. Everything on the floor will be discounted, including gloves and balls (both by 10%), while the same discount will apply to any repairs. But the big savings – 20% – will be on clothing, shoes and bags. NOTE: The sale definitely ends of Saturday, July 3.
WEEKLY WINNERS:
Tuesday, Single Stableford, Women (37 players) – Helen Martyn (41 points), Joy Bullock (37), Roz Brandt (35); Men (63 players) – John Christmas (43 points), Tim Rees (37), Stewart Douglas (36).
Wednesday, Medley Single Stableford (209 players) – A Grade, Ian Farrington (38 points), Tony Pattinson (37), Brian Richards (36); B Grade, Nick Bolton (43), Richard (Ryan (39), Brian Richards (36); C Grade, Mark Beswick (41), Vince O’Neill (40), Trevor Gourlay (39).
Thursday, Women, Single Par – sponsored by Marg Howard, Ruth Broderick, Cathy Peterson, Robyn Boreham and Joy Logan – (106 players) – A Grade, Sharon Thomas (plus 4), Julie Halliday (+3), Mary Dowling (+2); B Grade, Trish Marsden (+3), Kathy Walker (+3), Ruth Broderick (+3); C Grade, Cheryl Kitson (+3), Helen Martyn (+2), Denise Lawson (square). Men, Single Stableford – sponsor AJ Steel – (79 players) – Ted Banaszczyk (40 points), Chris Byrnes (39), Glen Evans (38), Brad Leslie (38).
Saturday, Single Par, Women (21 players) – Trish Marsden (plus 2), Bev Kelly (+1), Anne Callanan (square). Men (172 players) – A Grade, Dennis Mikolic (+6), Gary Clarke (+4), Peter Gablonski (+2); B Grade, Lawrence Hireme (+6), Jai Straney (+5), Stephen Blampied (+3); C Grade, Brett Beaumont (+5), Alan Ward (+5), Chris Byrnes (+1).
Men’s Match Play Championship – sponsored by Definitive Finance – quarter-finals, A Grade, Adam Richards beat Dave Rattray (2&1), Sean McGill beat Scott Walker (4&3), Josh Holbrook beat Shane Muller (4&3), Ben Duncombe beat Glenn Walker (3&2); B Grade, Rhett Charlton beat Simon Whittle (4&2), Ian Farrington beat Tony Pattinson (3&2), Joel Cooney beat Jay Gourlay (1-up), Druce Fielding beat Col Pledge (2&1); C Grade, Chris Wilson beat Tony Vickers (4&2), Josh Vickers beat Denis Clifford (5&4), Nick Reed beat Thom Adcock ((8&6), Nick Bolton beat Graham Newlove (2-up); semi-finals, A Grade, Adam Richards beat Sean McGill (2&1), Ben Duncombe beat Josh Holbrook (1-up); B Grade, Ian Farrington beat Rhett Charlton (2&1), Druce Fielding beat Joel Cooney (1-up); C Grade, Josh Vickers beat Chris Wilson (2&1), Nick Reed beat Nick Bolton (2-up).
Sunday, Medley Single Stableford (55 players) – Bruce Heseltine (38), Sandra Murphy (38), Glenn Kelly (37).
