The Saturday Men’s Par event, sponsored by Everest Auto Repairs and contested by 54 players, required count backs to decide winners and runners-up.

The A-Division had three players finishing on 5-up. The count back resulted in Alf Davies being declared the winner, ahead of runner-up Phil Maher who himself finished ahead of Phil Duke. The B-Division was easier with Craig Barrett the winner on 7-up and Jeff Haley runner-up on count with 3-up.

The ball sweep went to 1-up on count back: 7 up – C Barrett; 5 up – A Davies, P Maher, P Duke; 4 up – A Dukes, R Webb, I Bown; 3 up – S Kirkman, J Zannes, J Haley, G Falvey, B Everest, D Mylecharane; 2 up – D Culley, T Morgan, R Harrison; A Rees.

The NTP’s went to: 9th – P Pymont; 18th – P Dawson, neither of whom got a ‘2’.

There were a number of visitors, including – Stuart Hayes (Murrumbidgee ) Peter Jackson (Coffs Harbour), Alan Holley (Noosa) and Greg Hofman, Riall Harrison, Tony Lock, Tony Riach, Lachlan Buesnell and Ken Cobcroft from Parkes.

It was a special day for Craig, not only celebrating a win but also his birthday, and tying the best score on the back-9 with good mate Scott Kirkman.

Of special note was an eagle scored by Todd Callaghan on the 2nd hole. He was confident with his putt. He just missed another on the 7th.

The Stableford Medley on Sunday was a very quiet affair with many of the usual players recovering. The winner was Bess Shields with 40 points. There was no runner- up or ball sweep.

The NTP’s had a mixed story. Visitor Brett Byrnes (Condo) managed a good shot on the 9th, but the 18th went lonely. Brett enjoyed his day scoring 38 points off a par round.

On Friday the Annual Rugby Union Presidents Lunch Golf Game was held, attracting a field of 88 players. Results will be notified in a separate report.

By Short Putt

The men played a 4BBB Stableford last Saturday, sponsored by C&D Floorcoverings, where 60 players managed to record some good scores.

The overall winners were Nick Ryan and Adam Borger with 49 points. A 5-pointer on the card helped their score. Paul Kay and Allan Rees were runners-up on 48 points, with both playing well.

The ball sweep went to 44 points, with lucky players being: 49 – N Ryan/A Borger; 48 – P Kay/A Rees; 47 – M Duff/ B Slack- Smith; 46 – B Parker/ D Culley, R Taylor/ C Barrett; 44 – N Duncan/ R Nixon, G Webb/ R Besgrove, L Little/ M Prior.

The NTP’s went to: 9th – A Dukes; 18th – Alf Davies. Neither got their ‘2’, with few scored overall. Tim Toohey from Springwood was the only visitor.

Putting was made more difficult with ‘duck’s packages’ on many greens. But the greens were still receptive to high shots.

A late storm caught a few players out, but most were high and dry in the clubhouse when it hit. Peter Grayson had a storm also, damaging his Achilles heel. We wish him a thorough recovery.

The Stableford Medley on Sunday was a very quiet affair. The winner was Julie Hurkett with 39 points. There was no ball sweep. The NTP’s went to. Bess Shields on the 9th, and to visitor Robyn Lunn (Morisett CC) on the 18th.

The CWDGA Pennants 2019 Finals were held at Wellington on Sunday. Forbes was represented by our Division 1 team, who were up against Bathurst. There was a broad spread of clubs represented across the divisions, with Division 2 – Parkes v Bathurst, Division 3 – Wellington v Mudgee and Division 4 – Cowra v Dubbo.

Our Division 1 boys contested the CWDGA Pennants Final, but unfortunately went down 4/1 to a very strong Bathurst side.

Most matches were very close, with Peter Dawson winning his by 2-up.

This Saturday is an 18-Hole Par event, sponsored by Everest Motors, and the Stableford Medley on Sunday.

By Short Putt

The Saturday Men’s comp was an Individual Stableford, sponsored by Ian Simpson Real Estate and contested by 70 players, many of whom brought in a top score.

The A-Division had four players on 40 points, with count backs deciding the results. The winner was Ethan Gaffney, ahead of Josh Coulthurst, both on 40 points. The B-Division had a clear leader in Viv Russell on 44 points, followed by Bede Tooth with 42 points.

The ball sweep went to 38 points, with lucky players being: 44 – V Russell; 42 – B Tooth; 41 – R Borger; 40 – E Gaffney, J Coulthurst, L O’Connor, J Zannes, B Parker, A Tucker, S Grallelis, H Steel-Park; 39 – B Hodges, M Collits, B Shine, M Prior, P Dawson; 38 – G Newport, I Bown and D Mylecharane.

The NTP’s went to: 9th – P Maher; 18th – B Everest. Phil Maher fired a miraculous shot almost beside the 9th pin to snatch the NTP away from Richard Nixon. They got their putts easily, but many others surprisingly missed short putts.

The Stableford Medley on Sunday had its usual group of dedicated players, bolstered by the return of the Ladies. The winner was Jeff Haley with 39 points. He had a comfortable 22 points on the front-9, but lost his touch a bit on the back-9. Runner-up was Barb Drabsch with a tidy 36 points.

There was no ball sweep, and only one NTP which went to Jeff Haley on the 9th, while everybody missed the 18th green.

Last week the Forbes Division 1 team travelled to Wellington to contest a semifinal of the CWDGA Pennants 2019. They trounced last year’s winners, Mudgee, 4/1.

This weekend they play a very tough match against Bathurst in the final.

By Short Putt

The Saturday’s men’s comp was the Monthly Medal 18-Hole Stroke, sponsored by Michael Robinson and Co and contested by 78 players. Most scores reflected the tightness of the games, although the winners seemed untroubled.

The A-Grade winner, Ecky Dawson, started and finished with a double-bogey but in-between played brilliantly for his nett 70.

Runner-up on 71 was Dan Bayley, with a round that split the course evenly of 38-38.

The B-Grade honours went to the wise man Ray Taylor with a very classy 69 nett. He was chased by the youthful vigour of Ethan Gaffney, who fell one shot short with a 70 nett.

The C-Grade was quiet overall, although Stevie G celebrated his win, a nett 71, with some very noisy socks. Peter Tisdell had fun when amassing his nett 73.

The ball sweep went to 74 nett on count back, with recipients being: 69 – R Taylor; 70 – E Gaffney, P Dawson; 71 – S Grallelis, B Hodges, D Bayley; 72 – S Betland; 73 – P Tisdell, A McKinnon, M Watts, D Mylecharane, M Cahill, N McMillan, S Sallaway; 74 – D Churchill, B Parker, A Rees, S Hayes, B Carpenter, P Duke, M McGlashan.

The NTP’s went to: 9th – B Hodges; 18th – J van Opynen.

On Sunday Forbes hosted the CWDGA Pennants 2019 for the final round-robin play, with the Forbes teams having a bye.

In Division 1 Bathurst team had a resounding 5/0 win over Parkes, ensuring they finished in top spot. This means that Forbes will meet Dubbo in the semi-final. In Division 2 a narrow win by Parkes meant that Forbes finished tied with Bathurst, but missed out by count back on the semis.

The Division 3 saw the continuation of the Parkes juggernaut, who finished on top with Ex-Services second. In Division 4 team, it was Cowra and Ex-Services who head to the semi-finals.

By Short Putt

The Saturday men’s comp was a 4BBB Par event, sponsored by Highlands Design, and contested by 29 teams. Also up for grabs was the Ron Barton Memorial Trophy. Of the teams only one finished above par, or conversely at the end of the field.

The winning team was Ash Tucker and Brett Thomas with a score of +12. Brett played an inspired round of golf and probably his best ever score. Brett was 1-over after 9 holes, and held his good form to the end.

Runners-up were Ethan Gaffney and Barry Shine, who combined well to finish on +11. Their front-9 was tremendous, scoring +8, but they went quiet on the back-9.

The ball sweep went to +9 on count back: +12 – A Tucker/ B Thomas; +11 – E Gaffney/ B Shine; +10 – T Sharpe/ Alf Davies , A Dukes/ M Spice; +9 – S Hansen/ P Duke, R Besgrove/ S French, C Barrett/ T Griffiths, S Grallelis/ J House.

The NTP’s went to: 9th – S French; 18th – P Duke.

There was no Sunday Stableford Medley, which was surprising.

The fourth round of the CWDGA Pennants was held at Parkes on Sunday. Each of our teams played Cowra teams.

The Div 1 team scored a resounding 4/1 win, with the highlight being a hard battle for Steve Betland who won on the 19th. The Div 2 team also had a 4/1 win over Cowra.

The Div 3 team had a heavy 4/1 loss to Cowra. The Div 4 team narrowly lost 3/2 to Cowra in a nail biter.

The Div 1 team have made the semi-finals, while for the Div 2 to get through they rely on Parkes having a strong win over Bathurst.

By Short Putt

The Saturday Men’s comp two weeks ago was an Individual Stableford sponsored by the Tuesday Golfers, and contested by a smaller field of 45 players.

The A-Division was won by Dave Mylecharane with 39 points, compiled through steady play. Runner-up was Paul Kay with 38 points, resulting from even halves of 19 points each. The B-Division saw Steve Grallelis win with 39 points, ahead of runner-up Craig Barrett on 36 points.

The ball sweep went to 36 points: 39 – D Mylecharane, S Grallelis; 38 – P Kay; 37 – B Parker, R Nixon, L O’Connor, M Wood; 36 – J Zannes, G Webb, C Barrett, N Mc- Millan. The NTP’s went to: 9th – Mat Duff; 18th – Doug Churchill.

Most scoring was on or below average with only seven scores better than par. Putting was a problem for many, exemplified by Brian Everest’s four missed 2-foot putts.

Players either missed the fairways like Ecky Dawson, spent time in the trees like Kim Herbert, or lost concentration leading to hitting the wrong ball like Craig Barrett.

Both Neil McMillan and Mike Wood lost valuable equipment, their thongs, but thankfully these were found.

The Sunday Stableford Medley was very quiet. Neil McMillan did well to win the day with 36 points. Runner-up was Ken Sanderson further back on 33 points.

There was no ball sweep. The NTP’s went to: 9th – Ray Taylor; 18th – nil, as no one hit the green.

The Stableford Medley on Monday saw A Alley win with 38 points, ahead of D Mylecharane on 36 pts. The balls weep went to: L O’Connor, S Sallaway. There were no NTP’s.

Head Pro, Ben reminds all players to keep hydrated in the hot weather. Take plenty of drink with you, aiming to drink three litres per 9-holes.

By Short Putt

The Men’s Comp on Saturday, 19th January was the fifth running of the Australian 2-Person 2-Club Ambrose Medley Championship, sponsored by Cahills Footwear. There were 50 enthusiastic players scrambling for the national title.

This format requires teams of two to be very inventive with their shot making, whilst using unfamiliar sticks. The winning pair did just that, with John Zannes and Dave Rhodes finishing on nett 58. They manufactured 11 birdies, three bogeys and four pars on a day when everything went just right.

Runners up were Andy Dukes and Mike Spice with 60 nett, having finished on the same scratch score but being beaten on handicap. They did pick up other prizes, snaring the NTP on the 1st (A Dukes) and 12th Nearest to Pin 2nd shot (M Spice). Other prize winners were: NTP 3rd – S Kirkman; NTP 9th – D McAuliffe; NTP 18th M Watts; longest drive – J Zannes. The ball sweep went to 66.5 nett: 58 – J Zannes/ D Rhodes; 60 – A Dukes/ M Spice; 62.5 – L O’Connor/ D Mylecharane; 65 – D McAuliffe/ R Besgrove; 66.25 – R Webb/ P Tisdell; 66.5 – R Borger/ D Churchill.

Some fantastic shots were played, with getting onto the green from the wrong fairways.

There were also some bad shots, with one pair fluffing both drives on the 6th with the best drive not reaching the ditch.

Sunday dawned with promise of good weather, but it soon turned oppressive, leading to a small field in the Stableford Medley.

The scoring was good, Bruce Carpenter winning on countback from Steve Betland, both on 40 points.

There was no ball sweep. The NTP’s went to: 9th – Steve Betland; 18th – nil, they all missed. The 2019 CWDGA Pennants, commenced on the 3rd February with the first round being played at the Ex-Services Club. We wish all teams good luck.

By Short Putt

The Men’s Comp on 12th January was an 18-hole stroke event, sponsored by Rob Allen’s Livestock Transport, with 62 players enjoying the weather. During play, Max Haley especially enjoyed the 18th hole where he recorded a hole-in-one. As usual he was quite calm about it.

The A-Division winner was Dan Bayley, with 63 nett that was most satisfying as he had all his touch on display. Runner-up was Niel Duncan, who also had a good score finishing on 65 nett to once again be a ‘bridesmaid’.

The B-Division players were also well below par. Steve Grallelis was pleased with his game finishing on 69 nett to win. Runner- up was new member George Falvey who did well on the back-9, finishing with 70 nett.

The ball sweep went low, going to 70 nett on count back: 63 – D Bayley; 65 – N Duncan, P Maher; 66 – P Nixon; 67 – Mike Wood; 68 – Max Haley; 69 – K Sanderson, P Grayson, R Taylor, S Grallelis, A McDonald; 70 – M Spice, G Falvey, S French, D Churchill, J Haley. The NTP’s went to: 9th – S Kirkman, 18th – M Haley. The visitors included Lloyd Cotterill (Brisbane GC) and good mate Kevin Crapp (Russell Vale GC) and Stuart Hayes (Murrumbidgee). Mike Woods scored an eagle on the 2nd to start his round, while Neil McMillan lost the head on his wedge while playing a shot on the 7th, thus causing him to manufacture shots all day.

The Sunday Stableford Medley had a good field of 12, where the top scoring continued. Paul Kay was the winner on 37 points, on count back from Barb Drabsch.

The ball sweep went to 36 points, being collected by Ethel Coombs, nudging out four players on 35. The NTP’s went to: 9th – Ray Beacroft (The Grange); 18th – P Kay.

One player on the 15th tee had his ball hit the ‘Betland Tree’ and return almost directly to his feet. That mucked up his score.

The 2018 Wallace Cup was completed in 2018, with Neil McMillan victorious over Stephen Uphill. What was anticipated as an even contest, with both on the same handicap, turned into a comfortable win to Neil by 6/5.

A “New Rules 2019” presentation was the previous week and was well attended.

There is a large amount of material available, so get your handbook and any questions answered by Ben at the Pro Shop.

The 2019 CWDGA Pennants, commence on 3rd February with the first round being played at the Ex-Services Club. Please advise Ben or Stevie G if you are willing to play.

The 2019 Programme Book will be available in early February. A Programme for February will be displayed in the Pro Shop.

Also remember that the 2019 NSW Vets Programme Book is available at the Pro Shop.

Saturday, 19th January was the Australian Championship 2-Person 2-Club Ambrose, sponsored by Cahill’s Footwear,  followed by the Stableford Medley on the Sunday.

Saturday, 26th January was an 18-Hole Stableford, with a Stableford Medley on the Sunday. Also on the Sunday was the final of the AAA Cup, sponsored by AAA Septic Services. Read more about this in coming editions.

By Short Putt

On Saturday, 5th January, amidst strong winds and hot temperatures, the Men’s Monthly Medal was contested by 64 players, sponsored by long-term stalwart Linden Byrne.

The A-Grade winner was Kim Herbert, with 69 nett and just ahead of runner-up, Peter Dawson with his 70 nett. They pushed each other all the way.

The B-Grade went to Dale Rogers (Peak Hill) with an excellent nett 69, while Phil Duke was runner-up with a consistently constructed 70 nett. However, because Dale is a visitor and thus ineligible, the medal is awarded to Phil Dukes.

The C-Grade saw Frank Donohoe take the honours with his 74 nett. Runner-up was Les Little finishing with 75 nett.

The ball sweep went to 74 nett on count back: 69 – D Rogers, K Herbert; 70 – P Duke, P Dawson; 71 – N McMillan, B Everest, M Cahill; 72 – J Zannes, M Haley and 73 – C Dwyer, P Kay, P Maher; D Churchill, F Donohoe, Michael Wood, P Grayson, R Nixon.

The NTP’s went to: 9th – P Nixon, 18th – K Herbert. Visitors who joined included, from Parkes – M McGlashan, L Buesnell and from Peak Hill – A Brownlow, D Rogers.

The Sunday Stableford Medley saw a field of nine players get out and enjoy themselves.

Once again Peter Grayson was the winner, edging home with 34 points. Runner-up was Brendan Chambers from Parkes, with 33 points.

There was no ball sweep. The NTP’s were stolen by Parkes players, with the: 9th – B Chambers; 18th – J Van Opynen.

Prior to Christmas the final of the Wallace Cup Handicap Match Play was played. It was a solid performance by Neil McMillan to win, relegating Stephen Uphill into runner-up.

By Short Putt