After making the
decision to leave the Golf Club near Thames I just played green fee games and a
few tournaments for the rest of the year. I played in a 54 hole Tournament at
the Golf Club near Maramarua and had a very good tournament winning a nice
prize and getting some real enjoyment from the people I played with. I played
green fees games at the Golf Club near Te Aroha and the Golf Club near Hauraki
Plains where I had been a member at when I first moved down this way. About a
month after I stopped going to the Golf Club near Thames, the local Head Master
from the school near the Thames Coast rang me up for a game at the golf club
near Thames on a Sunday Morning like he had always done when things were good
for me at the Golf Club near Thames. He said “Are you playing golf today?” I
said “Yes”. He then said “What time you want to play at the Golf Club near
Thames today?” I then said “I don’t go to the Golf Club near Thames anymore but
am happy to have a game with you at the Golf Club near Te Aroha or the Golf
Club near the Hauraki Plains”. He then said “he didn’t want to travel that far
today, but said he would ring me for a game at another course sometime soon”. To
this day I have never had a phone call, email or text from him. It appears to
me he wasn’t the friend I thought he was. Maybe he just saw me as a guy he
could have a game with and when I left the club that he was a member at he wanted
nothing more to do with me? Or maybe because he was a Rugby Referee and he was
in contact with the Local Painter near Thames who was also the president of the
Rugby Club near Thames and the person that I the disagreement with, and I feel
he told him some really bad things about me that weren’t true and this might of
influenced him in his decision to cease contact with me?
 |
| The Local Head Master from the school near the Thames Coast |
Actually after
not playing with him I didn’t really miss it. He used to never put in his bad
rounds which meant he had a false handicap that showed he was better than what
he thought he was. He used to try and knock my confidence with his psychology
he learnt from teaching. Like when I told him if I had scored a great round the
day before he wouldn’t talk about it. When he was defaulted in the 4BBB in 2011
with his son he told me he was going to leave the club and join the golf club
near Hauraki Plains but he never did. Also he used to always go onto me about
how the course rating at the Golf Club near Thames was too low and caused people’s
handicaps to go out too fast. When I wrote letters to the committee about the
issue he then told me when he found out about it to stop writing the letters. I
also gave him a pamphlet on how the handicap system works and then saw him a
few days later and asked him what he thought about it and he said to me “I
haven’t read it yet”. If he was really keen on getting the handicap rating
changed he would have read it and asked me questions about what he read. An old
guy I knew for a long time always told me the definition of the Teacher is “A
Man when with boys, but turns in to a boy when with Men”. I can relate this to
the local Head Master from the school near the Thames Coast. I can relate this
saying to him by when he said to me “How the course rating was too low at the
Golf Club near Thames and it is causing everyone’s handicap to go out too
quickly.” In his eyes I was the Boy and he was the Man”. But when I took the
issue to the committee which in this case would be the Man in the saying, the
local Head Master from the school near the Thames Coast had now become the boy
and would not stand up to the Man which was the Committee. And because the
Committee which in this case was the Man said “The existing rating is correct
and I was wrong saying it was not right”. His opinion on the course rating
issue had now become the same as the man which was the Committee in this case
and he told me in a threatening manner to cut out writing the letters.
Not long after I left the Golf Club near Thames I got an email reply to the weekly Golf Blog I write from a past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames who was also a member at the Golf Club near Thames. It read “Dear Me,
Dramas seem to be flying aplenty at the golf club these
days; including the Local Truck Dispatcher abusing the ex – Duty Shop Manager on the course. The gos is that some shit went down between you and
the Local Painter at the Golf Club near Thames and that now you are shooting thru to Tahuna; what
gives? It will be the club's loss if you go.
I am over the committee thing; too much weird shit.
All the best,
a past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames”
 |
The past school teacher at the Local High School
in Thames (Second row, six in from the left hand side)
|
He always used to be a bit sarcastic towards me like whenever I saw him on the course he would wave at me or yell out to me. One time he rang me up because it was the last Saturday of the month to qualify for the Shootout and he had rung the golf club for a tee time. The Duty Manager had told him it was Orange Ball Partners Day today and you couldn’t put in a round for the Shootout. He then rang me up and said to me “The Duty Manager is stopping me from putting a shootout qualifying round in”. I said “just turn up and tell him you are playing your shootout round and putting your shootout round in”. I then rang the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames and told him that the Duty Manager is stopping the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames from putting his shootout round in and asked the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames if he could ring the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames and tell him he could play his final shootout qualifying round today. I did this because I knew the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames had employed the Duty Manager and he wouldn’t like him talking to the members like this. The Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames rang the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames and told him he was quite within his rights to play his shootout qualifying round today. But the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames said he had already started to do something else now.
The Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames rang me back and told me he had rung the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames and explained to him he could play his shootout qualifying round today but he had now committed himself to something else. I then rang up the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames and he told me the same thing he told the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames. The next day I went out to the Golf Club near Thames for a game and the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames was doing his volunteer shift in the Golf Shop. I said “The Duty Manager at the Golf Club near Thames didn’t treat you very well yesterday did he?” He replied “Just dropped the issue, it wasn’t his fault!”. I thought back to the old guy I knew for a long time that always told me the definition of the Teacher is a “A Man when with boys, but turns in to a boy when with Men”. I can relate this also to the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames by when he rang me up angry saying he couldn’t play his shootout qualifying round the day before I was the boy and he was the man, but when I brought the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames in to the issue the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames then became the boy and the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames became the man. And the past school teacher at the Local High School in Thames then told me just dropped the issue and told me he would have to have a good round in the following months qualifying.
Just before Christmas I got an email from the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames and it read: “Hi
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Lot of people ask me if I am coming back to the golf club near Thames - Hope so I tell them.
We have a new Board now with only 9 people - quite a few changes. President – The Local Lawyer from Thames, The Local Farms Supply Agent - Vice President and Match Committee, An Ex – Bank Worker - Secretary, Myself, A retired Farmer, A bike shop owner - Sponsors and
Advertising, The Local Cater at the Golf Club near Thames - Ladies Club Captain and as yet no Mens Captain
although an Ex Foundry Worker is looking after Saturdays and Competitions.
Hopefully we can get a better structure sorted out. The Local Lawyer from Thames - President, like
myself thought your situation was badly handled but it was the Match
Committees decision to make and the fact that you were the only one that
didn't turn up on the day and the Local Painter from Thames uncoperative stance that led to a
bad decision.
I would hope you do come back to the Club - you would be very welcomed.
Don't let a few people dictate to you. The final decision will be yours
but I look forward to you being Club Champion next year.
Kind Regards
The Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames.”
 |
| The
Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames |
I took this email as a bit of sarcasm when he said I was the only player that didn’t turn up on the day, because I know that a lot of the other players never turned up to play their matches on the day that I was defaulted for not turning up. They arranged to play their matches on the following day or the next Saturday because of the dangerous weather that was hitting the course that day and they also had common sense. But because there was friction between me and the local painter from Thames. I felt that ringing him to ask if I we could play our match the next day or the following Saturday would be no good because I knew I couldn’t reason with the Local painter from Thames and also knew he had a lack of common sense. And I was sure he was out to get me for the first thing he could to get me back for not turning up at the golf club near Waihi for pennants when he had dropped me from the team anyway. So when the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames wrote that I was the only one that never turned up on the day. I felt this was a stupid comment to make because he didn’t actually know the true facts of the situation and I believe he wasn’t even present at the course that day. I also saw a huge act of sarcasm from the Treasurer at the golf club near Thames when I was on the committee at the Golf Club near Thames in 2012. The Ladies Club Captain who was also the past cleaner at the Golf Club near Thames had gone and got $150 worth of sponsorship from three local businesses in Thames to sponsor the hole in one hole for the Club Opening day. The month before the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames had said to the committee that trying to get sponsorship from Local Businesses in Thames was like in his words “Trying to flog a dead horse!!”.
At the next months committee meeting in her Ladies Club Captains report she reported that she had gone out and got $150 worth of sponsorship for the opening day tournament. I myself thought this was a good effort and sincerely congratulated her. On the other hand the Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames who at the previous committee meeting said “that trying to get sponsorship from Local Businesses in Thames was like in his words “Like trying to flog a dead horse!!”. Then The Treasurer at the Golf Club near Thames showed a disappointing act of sarcasm but clapping his hands loudly and yelling in a raised voice saying “ Well done the the Ladies Club Captain at the Golf Club near Thames”. When the rest of us on the committee knew that he didn’t mean what he was saying at all.
After
contemplating going back to join the Golf Club near Hauraki Plains, I decided
to have a game back at the Golf Club near Maramarua just after Christmas. I
played a green fee game with two golfers from the Golf Club near Huntly and
really enjoyed it again. And I had a good score that made me feel good. I knew
this Golf Club was affiliated to the association near Auckland and my three
previous clubs had been affiliated to the association near Waikato. As I am
originally from Auckland and I knew that half the members of the club near Maramarua
were from Auckland I was seriously thinking about joining there. So in early in
January I went up there and joined.
A few days
before I joined the Golf Club near Maramarua, I played in a 72 hole tournament
at the Golf Club near Waihi and on the last day as I was waiting for prize
giving I was sitting with two guys who were members at a golf club in south
Waikato. They asked me what club I was a member at and I had to say “The Golf
Club near Thames” as I hadn’t yet joined the Golf Club near Maramarua. They
then said to me “Do I know the Golfer who plays there who is also the Local
Painter in Thames?” I replied “Yes” but I didn’t say anything bad about him.
They replied “He is a Bad Sport” and then they told me why. They said “Back in
2008 they made the division three pennants final in the Waikato and there
opposition was Thames. One of them said he was playing the Local Painter from
Thames in the singles and it was the deciding match in a very close final. He
said he had never witnessed such bad sportsmanship from a grown man!!!”. He
said “He would walk off the tee before all the players had teed off and he
talked in a very abusive manner to him, etc”.
The golf club near Thames managed to win that Match and got promoted to
division two the following year. I believed it was the un sportsman like behaviour
from the Local Painter in Thames that helped them win rather than their good
play. I replied back to them by saying “I had experienced that behaviour from
the Local Painter in Thames in a Club Champs Match both times I played him”. It
was refreshing to know that my opinion on the Local Painter at the Golf Club
near Thames was the same opinion that a lot of other Golfers had of him and it
confirmed to me that leaving the Golf Club near Thames was my best Option
because If I went back he would just make my golfing life a misery!!
 |
| The Golf Club near Maramarua |
The second
Saturday in January I went up to have my first game on a Saturday there in the
Club Scramble. I got the tee times wrong and arrived at 10:30am and didn’t
realise you had to turn up before 8am for 8am tee off. I just had a game on my
own which was okay. A good friend of mine who is a devoted Christian and I had
known for a few years was also a member there and had just moved into the old green
keepers house on the course. He was walking back to his house to put his gear
away as I was just starting the back nine. I hadn’t seen him in a few years and
I told him I have joined this club now. He said “come up and have a drink in
the club house after my round”. Also one of the members I played with in the 54
hole Tournament a few months before hand shock my hand and said “Well done for
joining this Club”. And another guy I had played with before at the Club said
“I might as well join the club” I replied “I already have”. He replied “That is
very good”.
After I had
finished my round and I was walking past the club house the friend of mine who
is a devoted Christian and I had known for a few years yelled out of the club
house window “Come and have a drink after you have put your clubs away” so I
did. The day before I joined the Golf Club near Maramarua one of the low
handicappers in the club had suddenly pasted away unexpected. And most of the
members had gone to a memorial services that morning and were playing at the
special time of 1pm. The friend of mine who is a devoted Christian and I had
known for a few years and few other members had teed off at the normal time of
8am because they never knew about it. It was good for me to go up and have a
drink with only a few members in the club house because as I am quite a shy
person. I walked up the stairs to the club house and the friend of mine who is
a devoted Christian and I had known for a few years had already brought me a
drink. He introduced me to all the members that were present in the club house
and made me feel very welcome. This is a feeling I had not felt for a long time
because at my previous golf club there was always tension in the air!!!
I asked the
friend of mine who is a devoted Christian and I had known for a few years how
the Saturday Scramble golf works at my new club. He said “In the summer time
they tee – off from 8am and players start turning up from 7:30am. Everybody is
teed off within the hour. When you first play on a Saturday they give you a
name tag and every Saturday once you have got your card and paid for the
scramble you grab your name tag from the board and put it on the table and the
starters for the day put the names on the starters board and you play in the
group you are put in. If you are in a match you tee off first and there is no
arrangement with your opponent like what was happening at my previous club I
belonged to because the match committee decided your tee off time so what
happened at my previous club would never happen at my new club!!”.
So my first time
ever playing the Saturday Scramble at the Golf Club near Maramarua they made me
up a name tag straight away. I was put in the second group off the first tee. For
my first game in the Club Saturday Scramble I was paired with the reigning club
match play champion, an engineer and the pennant selector. I enjoyed there
company and I scored in the mid 70’s which was a good round for me. After the
round I noticed the club house was full with people and this was because
everyone in the scramble had teed off within an hour of each other. At my
previous club some people teed off at 8am and others at 12:30pm and when we
came in the Club House there was no one in there for that reason. Plus at my
new club the field was away at 9:30am at the latest and that meant that green
fee players could tee off from mid morning without upsetting the club players
in the Saturday Scramble where as at my previous club with the Saturday Club
Golf running from 8:30am till 1pm it didn’t really cater for green fee players
that wanted a game and it left huge holes in the field as well. The Duty
Manager was forced to put green fee players off in the middle of the Saturday
Scramble field and that would frustrate club players that were having a great
round and were suddenly slowed up because a group of green fee players was
allowed to play off the tenth tee!! So
this showed that my new club had common sense where as my old didn’t have much.
After my round I
sat with the players I played with and the player I played with who was the
pennant selector asked me if I was keen to play pennants and I said I would. I
thought that was a very nice gesture for him to ask me, I said I couldn’t play
the first game because I was already committed to a 54 hole tournament at the
golf club near Waihi on the same weekend. But I would play the remaining games
where required. I went up for another game the next day and told the manager in
the golf shop that I like the way you run your club days.
I continued
going every Saturday and really enjoyed it and enjoyed playing with different
members each week. The Pennant team played their first game of the season
against a golf club near Manukau at their home course at the golf course near
Maramarua. They really took advantage of the home course advantage and won by
an amazing 7 points to one. I went up to the golf club near Maramarua for the
Waitangi Day scramble on the following Thursday and I played with the Pennant
selector, his brother and his son who all played in the winning team on the
Sunday before and won their matches. I said to the pennant selector that he
shouldn’t change the team for the second game at the golf club near Howick in
two weeks time. I thought by saying that I wouldn’t be seen as an intruder
trying to force my way into the team. I played in the Saturday Scramble the day
before the second pennant game of the season at the golf club near Howick. As I
was paying my money and getting my scorecard the long time pennant player and
also a local farmer at the Golf Club near Maramarua said to me “Don’t you want
to play pennants for us? Why not drive to my place and we will travel
together?” . My reply was that I did want to play but you don’t change a
winning team. After my round that Saturday I went up to sit with the friend of
mine who is a devoted Christian and I had known for a few years and as I was
walking to get there the reigning club match play champion who I had played
with in my first ever Saturday scramble game at the Golf Club near Maramarua
said to me “How come you aren’t playing tomorrow?” I replied “You don’t change
a winning team and also jokingly said it is too early to get up” His reply was in
a friendly Manner and was “If you don’t start playing we are going to give you
more harassment than you got at the golf club near Thames”. I knew he was only
joking but I now knew I would make a big effort to play the third game if I was
selected. Before I left that day I went and wished the pennant selector, his
brother and his son all the best for their second pennant game at the golf club
near Howick tomorrow.
The next day
after I had played just a practise round at the golf club near Maramarua I
checked my cellphone and there was a text from one of the players in the team
that I consider to be a good friend of mine. He said they had beaten the golf
club near Howick’s team on their home course 4.5 to 3.5!! It was the best start
they had had to the season in many years!! The following Saturday I was in the
club house and I was sitting next to the good friend of mine who also plays in
the pennant team and I asked him if he knew who was in the pennant team for the
next week for the third round of the season? He said “I believe you are”. I was
playing with his father who was also in the pennant team in the scramble that
day and he asked me if I had played the Golf Club near Pakuranga before because
that is where the next game is being played? I said “I had a couple of times
but years ago”.
On the Tuesday
of the next week I got a text from the Pennant selector telling me the time for
the pennants at the golf club near Pakuranga on the Sunday coming and by
getting this I knew I had made the team. The next Saturday I was playing a
handicap match play semi – final and I won the game easily and scored 74 off
the stick which was my best round to date in the Saturday scrambles since I had
been a member there at the golf club near Maramarua. When I was up in the Club
House the pennant selector gave me a brand new pennant shirt to wear tomorrow.
I was sitting with the good friend of mine who also plays in the pennant team
and I told him the long time pennant player and also a local farmer at the Golf
Club near Maramarua hadn’t told me where he wants me to wait to be picked up
tomorrow. When the long time pennant player and also a local farmer at the Golf
Club near Maramarua came into the club house the good friend of mine who also
plays in the pennant team asked him where he wants me to wait to be picked up
tomorrow? The long time pennant player and also a local farmer at the Golf Club
near Maramarua told me “Lyons Road” at 7:50am.
I turned up at “Lyons
Road” at 7:50am and we arrived at the golf club near Pakuranga on time. I was
playing number eight in my first pennant game for the golf club near Maramarua
and the good friend of mine who also plays in the pennant team was playing
number seven so we were in the same group. I got off to a bad start and was
three down at the turn. I fell to four down after 11 holes and my situation
looked hopeless when I halved the next two holes and was now four down with
five holes to play. The good friend of mine who also plays in the pennant
team’s opponent walked off on the 13th hole conceding him the match. He stayed
on to give me support and his encouragement inspired me and I went on to win
the next five holes and win the match one up!! The team halved the match with
Pukekohe four points all!! And Maramarua were still on top of the points table
after three rounds. I went in the club house afterwards and the whole team was
in good spirits!!
The following
Saturday I was playing the good friend of mine who also plays in the pennant
team in the tray handicap match play final and I think I must of inspired him
with my coming from behind win in my first game of pennants the previous Sunday
because he scored his equal best score ever at the golf club near Maramarua
which was 71 one under par!! He beat me 5&4. But I was happy for him and
knew that I had to be really playing awesome golf if I was to match him that
day. We went in the club house and I brought him a drink for winning the match.
The friend of mine who is a devoted Christian and I had known for a few years
was playing in the other tray final that day and afterwards in the club house
he showed me how to play some of the tough holes at the golf club near Pukekohe
where the fourth pennant game of the season was being played tomorrow. He
showed me by drawing it on a piece of paper. The next day I drove up to Lyons
Road again and got a ride with the long time pennant player and also a local
farmer at the Golf Club near Maramarua. We arrived at the golf club near Pukekohe
on time. I was playing number eight again and the good friend of mine who also
plays in the pennant team was playing number seven so we were in the same four
again. I had a very good front nine and turned four up; I eventually won the
match 4 & 3 which made me very happy!! The Maramarua team had their first
loss of the season but it was still a good game with us gaining 3.5 points to
the golf club near Pakuranga’s 4.5 but we were still leading!! The team in the
club house afterwards were in good spirits!!
I got another
text from the pennant selector on the Tuesday night confirming I was in the
team to play the golf club near Auckland Airport at the golf club near Remuera
on the Sunday coming up. I arrived at the golf club near Maramarua the
following Saturday and saw the long time pennant player and also a local farmer
at the Golf Club near Maramarua to see what time he wanted me at Lyons Road
tomorrow? He said he is not sure if he is playing and to see the son of the
current President to get a ride up to the golf club near Remuera. I saw the son
of the current President after my game and we exchanged cellphone numbers. He
said to meet him in the golf club near Maramarua carpark around 6:30am and we
would go up to the golf club near Remuera from there. I meet him in the carpark
at the golf club near Maramarua at 6:30 am and drove up to the golf club near
Maramarua. His Father who was also the president of the Golf Club near
Maramarua also came to caddie for his son. We arrived at the golf club near
Remuera just after 7:30am. The weather turned shocking throughout the round
with high winds and very heavy rain!! And the golf club near Auckland Airport
decided to play six of their players from the top team because they had a bye
and I thought that was very un sportsman like and not in the spirit of the
game. They ended up beating us 8-0!! I lost my game 3&2 to my opponent but
I fought back well after a poor start. And that basically ended any of our hopes
of making the semi finals!!
The next
Saturday I went to the Scramble at the Golf Club near Maramarua and all the
players in the Pennant Team that played in the game the previous Sunday at the
golf club near Remuera against the golf club near the Auckland Airport were
chatting about how we got cheated. But our pennant selector told us to move on
and get ready for the next game in four weeks time. The Saturday before the
game at the golf club near Auckland Airport verse the golf club near Onewhero.
I was playing another first round match in another handicap match play
competition at the club. I played a very nice older man and played a great
round of golf and scored 75 to win the match 6&4. I had arranged to by text
to get a ride with the son of the current President at the golf club near
Maramarua and I was to meet him at 6:30am in the carpark at the golf club near
Maramarua and we were to travel up to the golf club near Auckland Airport. I
meet him at 6:30am on the Sunday Morning and we arrived at the golf club near
Auckland Airport at about 7:20am but we had to wait till 9am till we teed off.
It was annoying because if we had know we weren’t going to tee off till then
were would of left later.
I was playing
number eight again and the good friend of mine who also plays in the pennant
team was playing number seven so we were in the same group. I played good and
won my match 3&2 but the team lost 5.5 - 2.5 and our chances of making the
semi finals were definitely over now which was a shame as the first four games
of the season we were leading or tied for the lead in the competition.
The next
Saturday I played in the club scramble at the golf club near Maramarua and I
had a match against the good friend of mine who also plays in the pennant team.
This time it wasn’t a final but again I must have inspired him because he
played some awesome golf and scored 71-1 and he beat me 4&3. I was trying
out my new set of golf clubs so I wasn’t two disappointed. The following
Saturday was club match play champs qualifying, it was different to my previous
club with only one qualifying round and then four straight knockout rounds of
match play the following four weeks. My qualifying round was very good with
scoring 36-1 on the front nine; I struggled a bit on the back nine and scored
39+4 but scored 75+3 for the 18 holes and qualified second. The next day I met
the son of the current president at the golf club near Maramarua carpark at
6:40am as I had arranged the day before. We were heading to the golf club near
Manakau to play the golf club near Remuera. We arrived there about 7:30am. My
opponent was a very good golfer and in a close match he prevailed 3&1 and
the team unfortunately lost 6-2. So after a very promising start to the season
we eventually finished second to last in our division but we managed to stay in
the Captains Division for the 2014 season.
I went up to the
golf club near Maramarua the following Saturday to play in the scramble and
none of the seniors in the club match play championships had a game in the
first round because there was only six players that turned up to qualify the
week before. I played with the pennant selector and two new members. I had very
good start to my round and was 2 over with four holes to play but couldn’t keep
it together and ended up with a score in the high 70’s. But I had a big win in
the hidden holes so that made me happy. A couple of Saturdays later I had my
semi – final senior club champs match play game. I looked at the radar before I
left and knew it must be raining at the golf club near Maramarua but I knew if
I didn’t show up I would lose by default which was fair enough, a lot different
to my old club. When I was driving up to the golf club near Maramarua I thought
I would show them the MetService Website to see the radar on it and how close
it was from clearing. When I arrived there and went in the Club House to get my
scorecard I saw they already had the website on their computer and were looking
at it. At my previous club they wouldn’t even have know how to get that website
up. The weather finally cleared at 9am and we were first to tee off the first
tee in our semi finals club champs match play game. They played the two Semi –
Finals Club Champs match in the same group which I myself feel it is the
correct way of doing it. I played a phone line worker and unfortunately he beat
me 3&2. I had my chances but never took them.
I went up the
following week and played in the scramble and it was also the final of the club
championships match play. I played an average game and after my game I went in
the club house and the two finalists in the Senior Men’s Championship Match
play came and sat with me. I wished the winner who was already the current Club
Champion Match Play Champion congratulations for winning and said “Good effort”
to the phone line worker for coming runner up. The following week was the first
round of qualifying for the Top Dog Trophy Match play. My partner was the
friend of mine who is a devoted Christian and I had known for a few years. We
qualified in the middle of the draw. In the first round we drew the good friend
of mine who also plays in the pennant team and one of the duty managers in the
golf shop. It was a very close match but we managed to have a slight edge
throughout the match and eventually won on the 16th green, 3&2. We had a
drink with our opponents afterwards and they were very gracious in defeat.
The next week in
the quarter finals we played a business man and a retired man. We turned two up
and went to three up after ten holes. But they fought back well and suddenly we
were all square after 15 holes. I then birdied the 16th and 17th holes and we
won the match 2&1. We had made the Semi – Finals!! Our opponents were very
gracious in defeat. We shared a drink with them in the Club House just as we
had done the week before. Our Opponents for the Semi – Final the following week
were a Phone Line Worker and a Storeman. We got off to a bad start falling
three down after five holes but our opponents were two under par!! I birdied
the par three sixth to get it back to two down. We halved the next three holes
to make the turn at two down. We halved the next two holes to still remain at two
down. Then we won the 12th and 13th holes to get back to even with five holes
to play. We halved the next hole. But the store man won the 16th hole and
suddenly we found ourselves one down with two to play. We halved the 17th hole
and we were still one down with one to play. But I made an excellent birdie up
the last to make the match all square!! So we headed back to the first for
extra holes. We were both looking good for pars but the store man went one
better and made a birdie to win the match. We congratulated them and wished
them all the best for the final next week.
In the middle of
the year my car needed a CV Joint replacement and my Dad suggested I take the
car to the Son of the best Man at his wedding many years ago. The Son of the
best Man at his wedding many years ago had his own mechanical business in the
town near Thames and could replace CV Joints. Dad rang him up and he said to
bring the car in next time I am coming to the town near Thames. I took the car
into see him and arranged a time to get the CV Joints replaced. When I arrived
there the Local Painter from Thames also was there getting something done on
his van. I hadn’t come this close to him since I left the golf club near
Thames. He was just leaving with his repaired Van. His reaction towards me was
still the same by just staring at me. I spoke to the Son of the best Man at my
parents wedding many years ago and he said he would replace both CV’s the
following Thursday. He took all the required details to order the CV Joints. I
took my car to him early on the Thursday Morning as he requested. Dad came over
and picked me up so I didn’t have to wait with him. Dad dropped me back to pick
my car up before I had to start work.
A couple of days
later I noticed the idling speed of my car had increased and I couldn’t work
out why? Dad rang up the Son of the best Man at his wedding many years ago and
he said to bring the car in the next day and he would have a look at it. I did
and he did a computer check on the engine but it came up with nothing wrong. He
said to bring it in the next day and he would replace a part that he thought it
could be. When I told Dad about what he was going to do he suggested to not to go
back to him because he thought he was trying to cheat me. Dad said “We will
find another Mechanic to fix it. The next day I noticed a clicking noise starting
to develop when I turned the steering wheel for a right or left turn. It got
worse in the days ahead and we thought that is the noise that you start to hear
when the CV Joints wear out on the car but that should not be happening because
the Son of the best Man at my parents wedding many years ago who has the
mechanical business in the town near Thames replaced them just a couple of
weeks earlier!! So now I had two problems with my car which were a fast idle
and CV joints needing replacing and I believe both were caused by the Son of
the best Man at my parents wedding many years ago who has the mechanical
business in the town near Thames. What I believed happened was the Local
Painter from Thames when he saw me drive into the Son of the best Man at my parents
wedding many years ago who has the mechanical business in the town near Thames
that day. The Local Painter from Thames after he left phoned the Son of the
best Man at my parents wedding many years ago who has the mechanical business
in the town near Thames and said to him “Am I getting my car repaired by him”?
The Son of the best Man at my parents wedding many years ago who has the
mechanical business in the town near Thames would of replied “Yes, Why”? Then
the Local Painter from Thames would have replied “Don’t do the repair properly
because that guy needs to be taught a lesson”! The Son of the best Man at his
wedding many years ago who has the mechanical business in the town near Thames would
of then asked the Local Painter from Thames why are you talking like this?” and
he would of replied “He left the pennant team at the Golf Club near Thames a
player short last season in one game and made us look silly!!” and he would of
also said some more horrible things about me.
 |
| The Local Painter from Thames |
I believe the
local Painter at the Golf Club near Thames was the reason why my CV Joints
weren’t replaced properly and the idling speed of the motor increased were
because the Son of the best Man at my Parents wedding many years ago who has
the mechanical business in the town near Thames was influenced by the Local
Painter at the Golf Club near Thames to sabotage my car repairs when he did
them. It ended up costing me over three times the price to get the CV Joints
and fast idle fixed. This proofed to me that even though I had left the Golf
Club near Thames the local Painter at the Golf Club near Thames was still out
to get me and bring me down or Sabotage anything I own and the best thing for
me to do was to stay well clear of him at all times!!
In the middle of
the year the golf club near Maramarua had an interclub with the golf club near
Tahuna and the golf club near Hauraki Plains. The three clubs played on the
golf club near the Hauraki Plains and I was surprised how many players from the
golf club near Maramarua supported it. Comparing it to my last year at the golf
club near Thames where we couldn’t get enough players to even make a team up.
The Club Captains had arranged a breakfast for all the players travelling down
from Auckland in his place that is near the golf club by Maramarua. I didn’t go
because I travel up the other way. It was done on the best average stableford
for all the teams and the golf club near Maramarua won by the slightest of
margins!! It was the first time we had won it in years!! And we all had a team
photo afterwards.
The next
Saturday I went up to the Scramble just like I always usually do and the good
friend of mine who also plays in the pennant team was playing the Store man who
I lost to in the Top Dog Semi – Final in a handicap match play final. The good
friend of mine who also plays in the pennant team turned up ready to play but
the store man was home in bed sick with the flu. The good friend of mine who
also plays in the pennant team was very sorry that the store man didn’t turn up
and generally wanted to play the final match but because the rules of the golf
say “that the player who turns up ready to play and his opponent has not, then
the player who turned up has won the game by default”. So the good friend of
mine who also plays in the pennant team was awarded the handicap match play
title by default. All the members in the club that had played there for years
didn’t make a deal about it because they knew that that was the rules of golf.
And also all the store men’s mates never tried to tell the good friend of mine
who also plays in the pennant team that he should wait till the store men’s
well and play the final at a later date. This was a completely different to my
previous club because when this happened to one of their mates and I was playing
them and they didn’t turn up they would just say “Play him next week or when he
has some spare time”. But if the boot was on the other foot and I never turned
up then I would be defaulted with no questions asked and they would just laugh
at me next time I came face to face with them. So this confirmed to me more
that the club I now belong to plays by the rules of golf compared to my
previous club who make up the rules as they go to suit their mates!!
In mid November the
golf club near Maramarua that I am a member at held a competition where if you
could land your golf ball in a two metre circle you would earn three balls in
the grand final which would be held after the prize giving at the Christmas
Open in early December. It cost $5 for three balls and $10 for six balls. Also
if you qualified for the final you got $20 back for doing it!! It was on
Saturdays after the scramble and on week nights when there were twilights on. Nearly
everybody in the club had at least one go at it. I managed to get one in to
qualify for the final. There were eight of us in the final after the Christmas
Open prize giving and I drew the short straw and had to go first. The best I
could do with my three balls was six feet from the flag stick and I came third
out of eight golfers but it wasn’t enough to win one of the two big prizes that
were on offer but I enjoyed the concept of the competition and will certainly
give it a go next year. My previous club would never have had the imagination
to dream up a concept like this and even if some did dream up the idea someone
else of importance would quick knock it back and say “That will never work!!”
So not only had
I joined a club that played by the rules fair and square they also had great
imagination to dream up competitions like I just mentioned and had people who
would work together and volunteer their time to make sure they did work!!
The first
Saturday in December was the AGM at the Golf Club near Maramarua and the way
they did it was everyone was to attend because the Scramble wasn’t to begin
till after the AGM had been completed. At my previous club they used to hold
the AGM on a week day night meaning there would be a poor attendance. But at my
new Golf Club they had a very large attendance and I feel that it was because
they did it before the scramble on a Saturday. So that was another reason why
the committee at the Golf Club near Maramarua had more common sense than my
previous club.
They also ran their
54 hole tournament much better than my previous club in my opinion because they
seeded the draw for the Sunday on the scores from the first round on Saturday
meaning that the players who had the lowest scores on Saturday were playing
last on Sunday, just like the PGA Tour do. But at my previous club they would
just say you are playing in the same group on Sunday to Saturday which I myself
thought was very lazy!! And one time at my previous club I was leading the
gross after the first round and teed off in one of the early groups on Sunday
when I should have been teeing off last with the people that had the same
scores as me and we even had five players in our group because there was an
extra player!! This also reinforced to me that the Golf Club near Maramarua
were more focused on the proper playing of a 54 Hole Tournament where my
previous club was just treating it as weekend where there mates were just
meeting up with each other to have a good laugh!!
The Golf Club
near Maramarua also had a much better way of running their Christmas Open with
it being a shot gun start at 9:30am meaning they used every tee and everyone
finished relatively at the same time. And the prize – giving was held around
2:30pm. Where at my previous club it was always a rolling start from 8:30am to
12noon and the prize – giving wasn’t till after 6pm and this meant that people
that teed off at 8:30am would be finished and ready for prize giving around 1pm
but would have to wait another five hours to get their prize if they played well.
Whereas at the Golf Club near Maramarua everyone would finish almost at the
same time and not have to wait hours to get their prize if they played well
because prize – giving was straight afterwards and be free to do something else
with their afternoon. Considering that both Christmas Tournaments had around
100 starters in them I feel the shot gun start was a much better concept than a
rolling start. As the Christmas Open in every golf club is always the biggest
one day tournament of the year it needs to be run with a lot of thought put
into it. Again it show me that golf club near Maramarua’s Golf Committee had
more common sense than my previous clubs one.
The good friend
of mine who is a devoted Christian and I had known for a few years said to me “that
the people at your previous club who were very nasty to you and displayed a lot
of animosity towards you and drove you away from the club would be judged by
God and made accountable for their actions”. But he also said “I would have to
forgive them for what they did to me as well”.
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