Forbes golfers were keen to put some decent scores on the board, but the day was capped off by a hole-in-one by Bruce Chandler during Saturday’s event.

Saturday’s event was an 18-hole Stableford, sponsored by Troy Howe Electrical.

The course was enjoyed by a field of 61 players who generally scored well.

The A-division winner was Phil Maher, who once again was in form and scored 42 points. Close behind was Scott Kirkman with 41 points. They each had numerous pars and birdies.

The B-division had a large group of players on 41 points. In the end Bruce Chandler took the honour with 41 points on countback from Tom Edols (41), who took runner-up on count back from many others.

The ball sweep went to 37 on count back, going to: 42 – P Maher; 41 – B Chandler, T Edols, L O’Connor, S Kirkman, S Grallelis; 40 – Andy Cogswell, R Borger; 39 – B Shine, P Grayson; 38 – C Alley, B Doyle, R Smith, S McAlister, R Besgrove; 37 – A Rees.

The NTP’s went to: 1st – Marty Cahill, 18th – Bruce Chandler. Nobody could beat Bruce on the 18th, but there were a few contenders for the 9th.

Certainly, the story of the day was Bruce Chandler’s ‘ace’ on the 18th. He used a 5-iron, seemed to hit it okay and watched as it landed on the front of the green and rolled forward. He and his group thought it may have rolled off the back, but it was most definitely in the hole.

Sunday was Stableford Medley day, played by 9 players who all enjoyed their day. It was an all-male day with the ladies on other business. The winner was Charles Dwyer with 37 points, followed by Steve Betland on 36.

There was no ball sweep, but the NTP’s were well received. The 9th went to Andy Dukes and the 18th to Steve Betland.

There were no visitors.

This Sunday, we have a Par-3 comp where both club players and social players are invited. This is aimed at giving the club golfers a bit of a lift, and enticing the social players out for a bit of fun.

The CWDGA Pennants played the 2nd round last weekend at Bathurst. Our teams did not fare too well, with the 2’s (3/2) and 4’s (4/1) losing and the 3’s winning 3/2. The Div 1 team had a bye.

By Short Putt

Monthly Medal contested at the golf club last Saturday attracted a field of 80 players. Scores were okay but not outstanding.

On Sunday some golfers represented the club at the Pennants and had some good success.

In the Monthly Medal, the A-Grade winner was Digit McAuliffe with a nett 71, compiled with steady scoring. Runner-up was Dave Mylecharane with 72 nett. He had a near perfect back-9. Pro Simon kept them all honest with a 69 Scratch score.

The B-Grade went to Warwick Judge, who scored a 70 nett, and got there on countback from Ian Bown. Despite a ‘7’ on the 4th hole Warwick had two very good 9’s. Runner-up Ian Bown carried on some recent good form in his drives but could not convert to an outstanding score.

In the C-Grade it was John Gunn with a nett 69 who won ahead of Albie Callaghan on 70 nett. The NTP’s went to: 9th – D Mylecharane; 18th – R Webb. The 3rd Hole Pro Shop Trophy went to: A-grade D McAuliffe; B-grade J Haley; C-grade G Webb.

The ball sweep went to 73 nett on count back, being distributed to: 69 – J Gunn; 70 – W Judge, I Bown, A Callaghan; 71 – T Morgan, R Webb, S French, P Maher, D McAuliffe, R Smith; 72 – D Mylecharane, M Cartwright, G Webb, M Andrews, P Barnes, F Hanns, P Dawson, D Rhodes, R Besgrove; 73 – M Collits, S Uphill, G Collits.

On Sunday, the regular Stableford Medley was played, with a small field due to the Pennants commitments. The winner was Scott Kirkman with 35 points, on count back from Ray Taylor. There was no Ball sweep, but the NTP’s went to: 9th – Barb Drabsch; 18th – Mike Wood.

By Short Putt

The weekend’s golf featured the fourth running of the Australian 2-Person 2-Club Medley Championship, sponsored by Cahill’s Footwear. This is an 18-Hole Stroke event in which four clubs are shared between each pair, and makes for a challenging experience.

The winners were John Betland and Craig Barrett who combined their efforts to finish with a nett 62. Their 32/34-66 scratch was a combined effort. Runners-up were Brian Doyle and Greg Webb.

The ball sweep went to 681/2, going to: J Betland/C Barrett, B Doyle/G Webb, C Alley/B Slack-Smith, D McAuliffe/R Nixon, A Dukes/M Spice and Alf Davies/P Barnes.

The NTP’s went to: 9th – Ladies: Bess Shields, Men: Paul Pymont; 18th – Ladies: Brianna Duncan, Men: Greg Webb. Marty Cahill, sponsor for the event, presented the Trophy to John and Craig, along with their ‘Golden Boot’ individual personal award.

To start the weekend Friday, 26th January had a Stableford Medley. Players meshed their golf game in between Australia Day activities.

The winner was Digit McAuliffe, with 39 points. He got there on count back from Andrew Dukes, who but for an untimely bogey on the 17th would have been king.

The Ball sweep went to 37 points, distributed to those above plus Peter Nixon, Scott Kirkman, Greg Webb and Peter Sinclair (Nelson Bay). The NTP’s went to: 9th – Ron Morris; 18th – Peter Nixon.

Then on Sunday, 28th January the regular Stableford Medley was played. The winner was Ron Morris with 41 points. Runner-up was Brianna Duncan who scored 40 points.

The Ball Sweep went to 39 points, going to those above plus John Betland (39). The NTP’s went to: 9th – Peter Dawson; 18th –Ray Taylor.

It is with sadness that we acknowledge the passing of Ron Hurst. Ron fell very ill last week, and was transported to Sydney where he passed away on Monday. Margaret was by his side.

By Short Putt

On Saturday the Mens comp was an 18- Hole Stableford, with 65 players in the field. Once again the scoring matched the weather.

The A-Division winner was Ted Morganwho, despite a minor blemish on the 14th hole, compiled 41 points. Runner-up on count back was Barry Parker. A few 7’s on his card hurt him.

Also on 41 points, but sadly without any honours, was our pro Simon Houston. This was, I think, his first competitive 18-hole game at Forbes. He relished being out there with the club members so much that he shot a 5-under ‘67’ to earn him the 41 points.

The B-Division saw Garry Collits with a score of 43 points relegated to runnerup by newcomer Joshua Coulthurst, who burst in with a score of 51 points. It was a fantastic round by each of them, with Josh showing real skill.

The ball sweep went to 36 points on count back, going to: 51 – J Coulthurst; 43 – G Collits; 42 – G Webb; 41 – T Morgan, B Parker; 40 – Alf Davies, T Howe; 39 – Mike Wood, D McAuliffe; 38 – J Morgan, L Grierson, P Nixon; 37 – B Squires, S McAlister and 36 – B Borger.

The NTP’s went to: 1st – Alf Davies, 18th – Simon Flynn.

The Sunday Stableford Medley comp had a small number in the field primarily due to the forecast conditions. Eileen Hush did very well to score 36 points and take the honours. She defied all common standards to do better on the back-9 rather than thefront-9, which is the reverse of everybody else. She finished ahead of Ray Taylor on 35 points.

There was no ball sweep. And there were no NTP’s as nobody hit the greens.

By Short Putt