Mid-table win secures Toti GC a start in 2015 premier league
The nearest the pins went to Mark Bingham on the fourth and Rob Wilson on the 15th, while the jackpot was not won so carries over to next weekend.
LAST Sunday the Amanzimtoti Golf Club (AGC) men’s A side hosted Umhlali in a mid-table clash that would secure the winner a guaranteed position in next year’s premier league.
Both teams had played five games so far this season and were evenly placed on 1.5 game points going into this game.
Toti were forced to make a few changes from their last game, with some players returning from overseas commitments, and others being forced out due to what could best be described as non-golf related injuries. Team selection is always difficult, with some unlucky players often having to miss out, but the goal is naturally to select a team that will fight to the bitter end, no matter what their form on the day, and a team that complements each other, especially in the critical foursomes games.
Toti’s foursomes results have been poor this year, but with a few new pairings, and with the course clearly set up to suit the local boys, there was an air of confidence about the team.
Two of the three new foursomes pairings duly delivered, with Mike Igesund and Bester Swart claiming a valuable 3/2 victory, and stalwart Colin Scorer and Michael Dunlop fighting back for an impressive half. Unfortunately, Jacques Nel and Mark Cowie came up against a very hot pairing and lost on the 16th hole, but regular number one pairing Kalvin van Rensburg and Sadeak Khader made a mockery of their opposition, annihilating them 8/6. So, for the first time in the season, Toti held a lead going into the singles, leading 2.5 to 1.5.
The singles went according to plan as well, with Dunnies and Colin leading from the outset and securing wins in the first two matches. At the back of the field, Kalvin and Sadeak were once again in remarkable form, with both winning comfortably. These four results secured Toti a valuable and rather comfortable victory. But Toti weren’t finished just yet, with Mike Igesund finally getting that ‘monkey’ off his back with his first win of the season – which once again proved that form is temporary and class is permanent.
Mark, Jacques and Bester weren’t at their sharpest and failed to secure any further points, but the Umhlali horse had already bolted, and Toti achieved a well-deserved and extremely significant 7.5 to 4.5 victory.
With two more games remaining this season, Toti can now work on finishing as high on the league table as possible, with the knowledge they have secured the club a spot in the 2015 Premier league. Well done chaps.
The Allerton boys travelled to DCC to take on the DCC 2 side, and were all square after the morning foursomes matches. Cecil Heydenrych and Chris Tredoux beat their opponents 4/3, while Peter Dalton and Ronnie Nair won 4/2. The other two pairings of Clive Fryer and Mike Halse, and Jason Moriarty and Peter Tierney succumbed to their opposition by 5/3 and 2/1 respectively.
In the afternoon AGC’s boys turned up the heat, almost recording a clean sheet of wins with the exception of the half point provided by Jason, and Cecil struggling to find his form and subsequently going down to his opponent.
Final result Toti 8.5 to DCC’s 3.5 and this puts Toti’s boys firmly back on top of the league.
On Wednesday the regular IPS competition took place, and Elsune Roode showed the men exactly how the game should be played. She took top spot on a solid 40 points, with visitor M Olsen in second on 39. Captain Tommy McNaughton took third place by a count out from Piet Roode with 38 points.
Friday’s 9 hole sundowner competition was won emphatically by Rob Wilson with 22 points, followed in by Tommy McNaughton on 21 and Norbert Dupont on 20.
On Saturday the men played a 4BBB stableford with a smallish field of 63 players. Terry Boyce and Brian Amm took the honours with 47 points, and Errol Woods and Rob Stone came in second on 46 points. Billy Williamson and Buff Berry finished third with 45, counting out Gordon Dunlop and his pivot Brian Amm, also on 45 points.
The nearest the pins went to Mark Bingham on the fourth and Rob Wilson on the 15th, while the jackpot was not won so carries over to next weekend.
The women played the same format as the men on Saturday, with Jacky Dunlop and Lynette Roodt blowing away the opposition with 47 points, followed by Ina de Boer and Cheryl Flutter on 45. Lynette Roodt also picked up nearest the pin on the seventh hole.
A sincere request to all members and visitors to the course – the fairways and rough are drying out more each day, and as such, the risk of fire is greatly increased. Ensure you extinguish cigarette butts properly and dispose of these safely. Pick up any glass which may be lying on the course to assist in fire prevention. Let’s all help to get the course safely through to the rainy season.
AGC welcomes all visitors to the area to enjoy a round of golf on the stunning golf course. Contact the pro shop on 031-902-4144 to book a tee-off time and carts.
