From Tony Durkin
ADAM’S FIRE: So keen was Adam Richards to win a Headland Club Championship across four decades that he took annual leave in May to appropriately prepare for what would be a most unique achievement, and challenge. And although the Championships set down for May have been moved to October because of COVID-19, Adam’s preparation was spot on as indicated by his two-under-par round in Saturday’s Monthly Mug. Playing off scratch, the Club Champion of 1994, 2002 and 2014 was one of seven A Graders to return a nett 70 in Saturday’s event. But bogeys at 15 and 17 cost him the Mug on a countback, with Apprentice Greenkeeper Jay Gourlay declared the winner. Adam had earlier birdied holes two, four, twelve and 13 on an otherwise unspoilt card. It was the second two-under round by the former Champion in a week, adding to his eight scores below 74 in the past month. Ted Banaszczyk took Thursday’s winning form (40 points) into Saturday with a nett 70 to win the B Grade Mug, while Dave Walker returned the best score of the day, 69 nett, to win C Grade.
BRILLIANT START: In his first round as a Headland member, former Pro golfer Renton Ritchie showed his liking for the course with a four-under par 68 in Thursday’s Single Stableford event. His 38 points may only have been good enough for third place in the competition, but some of the stats from the round of the plus-one handicapper were quite mind blowing. He scored five birdies and an eagle, missed eagle putts at 10 and 11 and – proving he was in fact human – double bogeyed the fourth after driving to within 20 metres of the green. And despite a bogey at the par-three 14th, Renton signed for a very impressive four-under 32 on the back nine. A FIFO miner, Renton moved from Hervey Bay to Sippy Downs with his partner in September last year and always intended to join Headland, linking with good mates Sean McGill and Brad Butler as well as Head Pro Adam Norlander, with whom he finished his PGA traineeship.
JOY FOR JOY: Following a bizarre recent handicap fluctuation, 2014 SWING graduate Joy Logan told husband John before Saturday’s round that ‘this is my best chance’ to win a Monthly Medal. From a low of 28 six months ago, Joy’s handicap had ballooned to 36 during her three-day-a-week golfing program since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, and that was just the lure she needed for her first Medal win with a score of 69 nett on Saturday. A self-confessed golf tragic after once having no interest in the sport, Joy decided to become involved in SWING following the passing of her mother, to whom she had devoted special care for three years. But it wasn’t just the desire to win the Medal that had spurred her on – she regularly plays with her husband and says the challenge to beat him is always there.
TONY TALKS: Usually the flambouyantly-dressed Tony Briffa stands out on the golf course because of his colourful attire, but on Sunday it was his golf that also did the talking. Playing in what was called a Pro-Score event for the Medley Monthly Medal, the BHP manager played seven shots under his handicap for a score of minus seven, to win by three shots. Playing ‘rubbish’ golf for months – his assessment – a practice session on his lonesome in the backyard on Saturday helped Tony realise he had not been transferring his weight, and the result was a much more consistent round of 86 gross, nothing worse than a double bogey, plus a birdie and five pars for his first Monthly Medal win at Headland since he and his wife Susan joined in 2014. And fate also played a part. The golf-mad couple made a late decision to play, not nominating until 10am on Sunday. Once playing off nine at Mt Isa, Tony says he is embarrassed to be on a 21 handicap and hopes Sunday’s round – and his backyard lessons – will put him on the downward handicap slide. Brad Butler’s one-under 71 from his plus one handicap was the best gross score on the day.
FIVE-POINT FINISH: A stern ‘you can get this’ message to himself as he stood over a 30-centimetre birdie putt on the 18th on Tuesday proved the difference between a win and yet another disappointing round for former Yorkshire Police Detective Alex Walker. With 33 points on his card, and two wipes on the back nine, Alex was resigned to having another enjoyable day without success until he dropped the putt at the last, giving him a five-point birdie and a win on a countback, with 38 points. Scottish-born Alex did not take up golf until he moved to Melbourne two decades ago and joined Headland when retiring to the Sunshine Coast in 2007. And although the 75-year-old has recently retreated to playing just once a week and had not had a win for at least two years, Tuesday’s victory has whetted his appetite for more rounds on the course he describes as ‘just wonderful’.
SUPER SIX: Valerie O’Brien’s recent form had indicated a really good score may be just around the corner and, with a few long putts dropping, that is how things eventuated during her 40-point round at Headland on Tuesday. For Valerie, who joined the club with husband Peter in May last year, it was the sixth of her past seven rounds played at her handicap or better and she was thrilled, and proud, to have won the Ladies Single Stableford event. And while most golfers are never quite sure why form suddenly returns, Valerie credits her good scores of late to lessons from former Headland Assistant Pro Leigh Stephenson in February and more recently bunker-specific tuition from her husband. A golfer of eight years standing and a former member of Pymble Golf Club in Sydney before retiring to the Sunshine Coast, Valerie enjoys playing ‘beautiful Headland’, appreciates the friendliness of her fellow members and is particularly enamoured by the relaxed atmosphere which exists.
SENIOR ECLECTIC: Despite the unavailability this year of interstate visitors, Headland’s annual Senior Eclectic Tournament next month is fully subscribed. Sponsored for the third successive year by Regis Aged Care, and with increased prizemoney, the tournament will be held on Monday and Tuesday, July 20 and 21, as Single Stableford events for men and women. Event organiser Steve Eggins believes the tournament, first staged in 1974 with a trip to Hong Kong as the major prize, is the longest-continuous non-Honour Board event on the Headland golfing calendar. Steve said golfers playing in the capacity field of 136 for the two-day tournament have a better than one-in-five chance of winning a prize at least equal to the entry fee. Entry is $50, with lunch included on both days. But, because of COVID-19 restrictions, the usual presentation function will not be held this year. Wait list entries, open to golfers aged 50-plus, can be made by phoning Headland Administration on 07 5444 5800.
DAMIEN’S DOUBLE: It took Damien Moelands 18 months to score his first win as a Headland member, and just four days to make it a double. Scoring 40 Stableford points on both occasions, Damien (handicap 7.5) won A Grade last Saturday week and again on Wednesday, yet both winning rounds had room for improvement. His card on Saturday revealed a double bogey at the seventh, a hole less than 100 metres from the home he and his wife Rebecca moved into when they arrived from Geelong in January last year, and on Wednesday he wiped both the second and fourth holes. But there were certainly some highlights, including a string of four birdies in five holes on Wednesday on a back nine that yielded 24 points. And despite five putts on the fourth, Damien says he has developed a better understanding of the nuances of the Headland greens than when he first arrived in January last year, on a handicap of five.
LESSON TRIUMPH: Three days after having a lesson with Head Professional Adam Norlander, Sue Wake had the round of her life at Headland, winning Thursday’s Ladies Single Stableford with 41 points. “I can’t believe the things I did out there today,” Sue beamed following her outstanding round which included a run of 14 points from the fifth to the eighth holes. Her partner of 38 years, Grahame Denovan, ‘shouted’ Sue a lesson with Adam after she had griped about playing like ‘an old chook’ for the past few years. The confidence instilled in her game – in particular her chipping – resulted in what she described as an amazing form turnaround. A retired nurse who joined Headland when she and Grahame moved south from Townsville in 2001, Sue says her goal now is to reduce her 31 handicap to at least 25, the lowest mark from which she has ever played.
MEDICAL MARVELS: Three members of the medical fraternity had ample reason to celebrate on Wednesday. Chiropractor Mark Postles returned the best score of the day, 41 Stableford points, to win B Grade, while GP Trevor Beall won C Grade with 38 points on a countback from former priest Tim Nunan. But they were both upstaged by another chiropractor, Darcy Brown, who eagled the par-five tenth hole on his way to 37 Stableford points. It is Darcy’s second eagle at Headland, his first coming on the 13th three years ago.
LOW ACT: Headland Golf Club management is appealing for information relating to an incident in the carpark on Thursday. A member’s three-week old car was bumped into between 12.30pm and 4.15pm, causing damage to the rear of the vehicle and smashing a tail light. Broken glass from another vehicle was on the ground nearby. Most people would consider driving off without reporting the damage to be a weak act, but even more offensive is the fact the culprit was almost certainly a fellow member. Any information leading to the identity of the offender would be appreciated by club management.
WEEKLY WINNERS:
Tuesday, Single Stableford, Ladies (50 players) – Valerie O’Brien (40 points), Joy Logan (37), Rosalie Brandt (36); Men (76 players) – Alex Walker (38), Nigel Morrison (38), Aaron Kenzler (37).
Wednesday, Medley Single Stableford (175 players) – A Grade, Damien Moelands (40 points), Peter Brown (39), Dominic Geeves (39); B Grade, Mark Postles (41), Richard Ryan (38), John Prosser (38); C Grade, Trevor Beall (38), Tim Nunan (38), Garry Brown (36).
Thursday, Single Stableford, Ladies (99 players) – A Grade, Christina Claxton (36 points), Sue Jones (35), Jodie McDonell (34); B Grade, Sue Wake (41), Wendy Derrick (39), Valerie O’Brien (35); C Grade, Kath Barford (39), Brenda Smith-Gittings (37), Jenny Pike (36); Men (92 players) – Ted Banaszczyk (40), Wayne Bridgeman (39), Renton Ritchie (38).
Saturday, Ladies, Monthly Medal Medley (29 players) – Joy Logan (69 nett), Rosalie Brandt (71), Di Stark (72); Men, Monthly Mug (227 players), A Grade, Jay Gourlay (70 nett), Sean Hanna (70), Barry Newton (70), Adam Richards (70), gross – Adam Richards (70); B Grade, Ted Banaszczyk (70), Ken Maguire (71), David Mansley (71), Harvey Nichol (71), gross – Ken Maguire (86); C Grade, Dave Walker (69), Rob Howard (71), Greg Smith (71), Roger Van Ginkel (71), gross – Roger Van Ginkel (91).
Sunday, Medley Monthly Medal (54 players) – Tony Briffa (minus 7), Chris Byrnes (-4), Graham Cartledge (-2), Alan Reed (-1), gross – Brad Butler (-1).
