Men’s Pennant 2021 – Round 7: 18 April – versus Keysborough GC Cheltenham GC at Settlers Run Golf Club
For the final match of the season our team travelled back to the Cranbourne area to take on Keysborough at Settlers Run Golf Club. Keysborough have strong pennant squad, with both Men’s and Colts Team sitting at the top of their respective ladders.
Undaunted by the Keysborough ladder position our team acquitted itself well and were again only a few holes or a few shot away from claiming what would have been a most rewarding victory. Five of the 7 matches went to the 17th hole, at least. In the final washup our team went down 2 – 5.
We did not get the start we would have liked, with Dale Edwards losing 5 & 4 and Andrew Roberts losing 6 & 5.
The next 3 matches were very tight and could well have gone our way, but as has happened a few times this season we got close but were not able to secure the victories. Shane Densley and Jeremy Derix both lost 2 down, while Paul Thompson lost 1 down.
At the top of the order a couple of great performances to record hard fought wins. Our skipper, Brenton Derix won by the narrowest of margins – 1 up. Russell Hughes, fresh of his Match Play Championship the day before, took on professional Mike Isherwood, who is a regular competitor on the pro-am circuit. In an arm wrestle, Russell claimed his victory on the 22nd hole, in front of both teams, their caddies and supporters.
With two wins, and some close losses, our team finished in 6th place.
Next season, Keysborough and Settlers Run move up to 4th division and Cheltenham and Bacchus Marsh move down.
A little less travel next year with Churchill – Waverley and Heritage (moving down) and Mt Derrimut and Yering Meadows (moving up) to join us in Division 5.
Thank you to all the players for their hard work and commitment to representing the club. Pennant golf is a very tough competition, but we are optimistic that with a bit more development we can look forward to some upward movement before too long.
Thank you also to Nunz Mantini who in his first outing as Team Manager did a grand job – a job which is his again next year, we hope! Our caddies and a few hardy supporters, including Barbara, were there each week to support the team.
Finals Hosting: 2 May
To close off the 2021 season we are hosting some finals (divisions / teams to be advised soon) on Sunday 2 May. If you are not watching your footy team, you will be most welcome to head down to GR to see some pennant finals. Hopefully, our teams will be there competing on the last week of pennant next year.
Colt’s Pennant 2021 – Round 7 – versus Keysborough GC at Patterson River Golf Club
The Colts team were also matched against the formidable Keysborough – on the tricky Patterson River layout. A bit of a home ground advantage for Keysborough who only had to travel about 10 klms to the south to a course not too dissimilar than their own.
The Keysborough lads, whose handicaps ranged from scratch to 6, were just too accomplished and experienced for our developing team, winning 5 – 0.
Will Chester, our least experienced player, a strong opponent and went down 10 & 8.
Zac Horsey started slowly and found himself 5 down before rallying, and ultimately running out of holes to lose 4 & 2.
Jordan Irish played the son of professional and the Men’s #1 player, and lost 6 & 5.
Our skipper Charley Smith has had plenty of tough matches, playing #1 most rounds, tried valiantly but could not overcome a strong opponent – losing 4 & 3.
Dan Scholz lost 6 & 5 – the morning after his 21st Birthday celebrations.
The Colts Divisions appear to be reasonably even, with a great dept of talent. The top 2 teams in Division 4 will move up – to be replaced by Kooringal and Mt Derrimut.
This was only the first full season for the Colts since we have been at Gardiners Run. While our team finished in 8th place, we saw enough potential to be positive about the future. Match Play is a very different game – to the weekly diet of stroke, stableford and par competitions – and most of our team have only played a handful of matches. With this year’s experience plus some maturing we look forward to 2022.
Thank you and well done to all the boys for representing the Club and exhibiting admirable sportsmanship, even when pitted against more experienced players.
Team manager, Rob Scholz, used all his knowledge and experience – as a secondary school teacher – to help recruit, organize and guide the team through the season. Thank you for a job well done!
Ray Seddon
Golf Captain
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