It felt weird playing in sub-20 degrees and thick clouds. The rain of the previous days created casual water in some bunkers. Greens were more receptive than before but the fairways still provided some useful extra yards on the roll. Contrary to the Starter’s predictions all of the field enjoyed very similar conditions to complete their round.

Darren Enthoven changed his tactics from last Sunday: Pars were in and Birdies were out. 10 Pars and 8 Bogeys make for a fine round of golf. The round was balanced all the way through (20pts out and 19pts in). Keith Cassidy recovered from a slow start on the first 3 holes and still managed to end the outward 9 with 21pts! 17pts on the back 9 means Keith has to settle for 2nd today. Richard Hodgkinson played a very solid round of golf (18pts out & 19pts in) to claim 3rd place. Mike Shabani almost matched Keith’s front 9 with 20pts. But he possibly missed an opportunity to improve on his 4th place with a sub par performance on the 17th hole. New(er) members Tina Neessen (36pts) and Jack Evans (35pts) complete the Top6. Results…

Darren’s handicap gets cut 10. Very well done.

CSS: 36pts (Men & Ladies)

Milder weather attracted one of the biggest fields (ever) for an RPGC competition. No less than 20 games went out to enjoy softer conditions (thanks to the light overnight rain) and swirling winds.

There was no match for Peter Osgood today. Par golf was his way to master the course. One sole birdie (on SI 18) and 11 pars were the key to his success. Word has it that he could barely keep it together and he topped and stumbled his way trough the back 9. All in all a very good day at the office. Peter’s handicap gets a massive cut: 1.4 strokes for finishing 7 strokes below CSS and an ESR of 0.5 strokes. His new exact handicap now stands at 9.9 (10c). Very well done.

First lady Jane Fraser started slowly (45 gross) but absolutely came alive on the back 9 (41 gross) to finish with 86 gross (67 net) to finish second. Jane’s new handicap is 17. The Captains’ honour was saved by Men’s Vice-Captain Nigel Gaymond. An excellent round of 83 gross (67 net) puts him in 3rd (based on the countback rule). Seong Lim’s nice round of 78 gross (67 net) earns him 4th place. Birdie machine Darren Enthoven (4 birdies allow him to finish with 79 Gross (67 net) has to settle for 5th. He let a potential win slip away on the 18th!. Habe Crocker completes the Top6. Results..

Some other prizes were up for grabs:

• The team comp (stableford aggregate score based on best score on the par 5’s, 2 best scores on par 4’s and best 3 scores on par 3’s) was won by 1pt by the team of Toby Hunt, John Curry, Doreen Dolby and Valerie Parker. Valerie’s 4 on the 17th (equalling 5pts) certainly helped their cause.
• The picture quiz was won with a perfect score by the team of Pete Harrison, Eric Lit, Henry L-B and Kim Chaffart. The Sky Sports golf team can all start fearing for their job!
• Nearest to the Pin for the Ladies on the 10th was won by Lia Donath
• Nearest to the Pin for the Men on the 16th was won by Pete Harrison
• Closest to the half circle – sorry I mean red line – on the 9th was won by Cheryl Woodhouse and Paul Brown respectively. Word has it that Paul Brown topped his ball barely past the ladies tee. But his ball came to a standstill near the straightest part of the circle/line.
• Peter Osgood wasn’t very bullish on the captains’ chances today. He totally low-balled the projected scores of the two captains to win the over/under sweepstakes. Thank goodness that a total disrespect of the captains is no reason to DQ a player.

Massive thanks to the captains and their respective vice captains for the organisation of a very entertaining day.

CSS: 71 (Men) & 73 (Ladies). There were again a multitude of handicap changes. Please take note of your new handicaps!

After three rounds for the Men’s Top Dog Trophy Peter Osgood leads with one win and a second place.  Roger Rojas and Tony Bergqvist share second place with one win apiece. There are four more rounds and the match play results to count. R3 Leader board…

Scorching temperatures keep complicating playing conditions: extra roll on drives or approaches are cancelled out by greens that are less and less receptive.

Early starters enjoyed “cooler” temperatures. Veronica Mitchell followed up a good front 9 (19pts) with an excellent back 9 (20pts) to win today’s comp. Keith Cassidy & Tamas Ladacs also netted 20pts on the back 9. Mike A. joined the early starters. His round was the exact mirror image of Veronica’s round (20pts out and 19pts in). So the countback rule pushes him into 2nd. The Mason family had a good day at the Park. Stephen M. played solid golf (19pts out and 18pts in). Lesley on the other hand needed 9 holes to get used to the hot temperatures. But she caught fire on the back 9. Her score of 21pts is the best performance on the homeward stretch today. Keith Cassidy and Paul House complete the Top6. Results…

CSS: 38pts (Men & Ladies)

61 players braved very warm weather, bouncy fairways and greens that are starting to dry up fast. Roger Rojas continues his excellent form. 20pts out and 22pts in earn him a second handicap cut in one week. On top of that Roger receives an ESR. His new handicap stands at 7. Deborah Potter did put her card in the correct box and managed to beat Roger’s score by 1pt. 24pts out and a steady 19pts in earn Deborah 1) the victory today and 2) a handicap cut of two strokes. Her new handicap stands at 26. Well done to both! Lee Marshall went out at the warmest moment of the day. His score of 41pts matched the score of early starter Danny Deprez and Martin Heinrich. 3rd place goes to Lee based on his stronger back nine. Lia Donath’s “struggles” on the last four holes prevented her from finishing higher than 6th. One of the highlights of the day must be Habe Crocker’s front nine: she managed to go out in 36 strokes (gross) earning her 25pts (!). Results..

CSS: 38 (Men & Ladies). There were a multitude of handicap changes. Please take note of your new handicaps!

Another big turnout today.  The course has been drying up pretty quickly over the last couple of days. Extra roll on the fairways is cancelled out by some unpredictable bounces. Greens are firming up but remain receptive.

Ronnie Mitchell posted a 69 (Net) to become leader in the clubhouse. The late morning starters seemed to make the most of the conditions. Ann Gardner played excellent golf to finish with a 64 (Net – 93 Gross). Needless to say that this score has put her out of reach of the whole field. May be time to start paying Sweep Money don’t you think Ann?

Today’s winner sees her handicap cut by 2.8 strokes. On top of that Ann receives an ESR of 0.5 strokes. Her new handicap now stands at 23.5. Paul House played very good golf (3 birdies were probably the highlight – he will regret the double bogey on the 10th hole). But his 66 (Net – 79 Gross) is “only” good enough for second today. Jeremy Ryan, took 3rd place with a score of 69 (Net – 81 Gross). FYI: the whole Top3 teed off late in the morning. Based on the countback rule Jeremy manages to hold off Ronnie, Eelco Snijders (you guessed it he also teed off at 10.00AM) and Gina Jillett. The afternoon starters were not able to mount any kind of challenge. Results… 

CSS: 71 (Men) – 73 (Ladies)

The field, without last year’s winner Lia Donath, enjoyed good conditions to play golf. It must be said that the swirling winds caught most of the competitors off guard. Rumours have it that players from the 8.24 tee time (Peter O. & Mark Rosamond) issued some very bold predictions on certain message boards about their scores today (transcripts available on request). Sometimes it is better to let your clubs do the talking …

Greg Saunders certainly did that. A gross score of 78 (66 Net) enabled him to see off the challenge of two other players. Val Riziotis played very good golf (86 Gross – 66 Net). Her “softer” back 9 forces her into 2nd today. Val’s new handicap now stands at 16. Roger Rojas went out in 33 (Gross) but hobbled through the tough middle stretch of the back 9. His score of 76 (Gross – 66 Net) and “weaker” back 9 puts him into 3rd.

If you wanted to improve your chances to win today you had to tee-off in the 8.40 game. Winner Greg Saunders was part of that game. As was Kerry Sargeant. An excellent score of 77 (Gross – 67 Net) earns Kerry a well deserved 4th place. Habib Amir’s 5th place (83 Gross – 68 Net) earns him an ESR. His new handicap now stands at 12! FYI: Habib won the MIP award last year. Does today’s result mean the race for that award is already over? Peter Osgood (82 Gross – 70 Net) completes the Top6. Decent score for Peter but quite a bit off the lofty expectations he set himself (see start of this report). Results…

CSS: 72 (Men) – 74 (Ladies)

There were an impressive list of handicap changes. Please take note of your new handicaps!

Conditions proved to be very tricky today. Casual water in the bunkers and pretty strong winds were the most glaring complications. Playing your handicap proved to the shortest way into the Top6. Henry L-B went out early and posted a recommendable 78 (Gross – 68 Net) to become leader in the clubhouse. Jon Ramphul was also one of the early starters and he posted a decent score of 92 (Gross – 69 Nett). Chris Jones wins today’s comp. He posted a score of 87 (Gross – 68 Net). But he pushes Henry L-B into second thanks to the countback rule. That bogey on the 18th didn’t help HLB! Keith Cassidy (79 Gross – 69 Net), Peter “Volvik” Osgood (82 Gross – 70 Net) and Mark Rosamond (89 Gross – 71 Net) complete the Top6. 1st Lady is Gina in 7th. Results… 

CSS: 68 (Men) – 70 (Ladies)

Ladies

There may only have been 9 in contention for the medal, but they certainly put up a good show with most inside their handicap buffers. Beating the rest of the field by 4 shots, Habe and Cheryl both shot 66s with Habe piping Cheryl on the back 9 and continuing the downward trajectory of her handicap to 10.8. Cheryl however, loses a shot off hers to play off 21. Results…

CSS: 68

Men

A big field enjoyed excellent golfing conditions. As a result scoring proved to be very good. 25% of the field shot below their handicap. There was no match for Habib today. A steady front 9 (42 gross) was followed up an excellent back 9 (34 gross). A total of 76 (gross) equates to a 59 Net! Sweep money, a cocktail glass, a new handicap of 15 (handicap cut of 2.1 strokes today) sums up a good day at the office. Mark Andrews played his best round ever. 84 gross (64 Net) would’ve won a Medal comp on a normal day. Today he’ll have to settle for 2nd. David Sandifer is keeping up his excellent form. 86 strokes (65 Net) is enough for 3rd. Paul Rockett (76 gross – 65 Net), Kim Chaffart (78 gross – 66 Net) and Keith Cassidy (76 gross – 66 Net) complete the Top6. Results…

CSS: 66