MURRAY DOWNS MEN
MURRAY Downs Golf & Country Club held a very successful Bailey Ag Australia Day two-person Ambrose competition last Thursday, with 186 players participating in the popular event.
There were 136 players entered for the afternoon, so the overflow of players had to play in the morning timeslot.
The men’s competition was taken out by the pairing of Sam Davis (17) and Zac Caccaviello (17) with a net score of 60.5, closely followed by Ray Power (10) and Greg Daniels (23) on 60.75. Coming in third were Rob Merrett (21) and Stuart McLean (6) with 61.75, who were then followed by pairings of Grant McNees (8) and Luke Merritt (1) and Kurt Lenehan (4) and Jed Turland (13), from Warrnambool, on 61.75 each.
The nearest the pins went to Geoff Bett on the 2nd, Grant Ford on the 5th, Tyler Aitken on the 11th and Dave Hogan on the 15th.
In the women’s section, Dione Heppell (9) and Kristy Gordon (16) came out on top with 66.75, one shot ahead of sisters-in-law Pam Austerberry (23) and Colleen Roberts (30) 67.75, who was then half a shot ahead of Lisa Brady (25) and Shelley Wilkins (18) on 68.25. Lynne Merrett, Mag Kiley, Sarah Clarke and Suzanne Napier claimed the NTPs on holes 2, 5, 11 and 15, respectively.
Saturday was the holding of the February monthly medal, which was won by a former captain at Murray Downs in Dave Hogan (11), with a score of net 68.
Spencer McKenzie (6) was the best in Division 1 with 69, closely followed by Lleyton McLean (12) on 70 net. Dale Kelly (17) from Robinvale took out Division 2 with a net 69, from Peter Tripodi (17) from Medway, who finished with the same score.
The Division 3 winner was Gerard Moloney (21), also with a net 69, from Alistair Ferrier (22) on net 70. Scores of net 73 and better were required to be in the ball hunt, while the NTPs went to Andrew Gilchrist on the 2nd, Chris Willson on the 5th, Anthony Carroll on the 11th, and Greg Roberts on the 15th. Sean Baumgurtel had the least number of putts, 27.
On Sunday, a Stableford competition was played in two divisions, where the best score of the day was recorded by Damien Mangiameli (23) of 45 points to take out Division 2, from the unlucky Bailey Bowd (33), who finished with 43 points.
Jason Baird (14) was the best in Division 1 with 39 points, closely followed by Rob Forster (8) with 38 points, who topped off a good day by having the closest shot into the 15th green. Other NTPs went to Steven Bulmer on the 2nd and Greg Armsden on the 11th. Thirty-four points was the magical number required to the eligible for a ball.
On Tuesday, the competition was against par, with Coby McMillan (21) registering the day’s best score of three up, just ahead of Wayne Wisby (9) on two up. Scores of one up were required to get a ball, while the NTPs went to Ian Gammon on the 2nd and Shane Kelly on the 11th.
This weekend we will holding our 29th annual Reciprocal Tournament, which commences with a 4BBB Stableford competition on Friday, followed by the 36-hole Reciprocal teams event over Saturday and Sunday.
The competition is a team event of four players, the format being a singles Stableford, on each day, with the three best individual scores being recorded as the team’s score on each day, which is then combined for the overall Reciprocal winner.
There are prizes for the best individual scores on each day, plus prizes for the overall 36-hole winning teams of Murray Downs and Reciprocal members.
The winners of the Reciprocal event will each receive a two-night stay and play package, for themselves and their partners, at the Murray Downs Resort, while the members winners will each get a similar package at a reciprocal club along the Murray River.**
MURRAY DOWNS LADIES
CHRIS Warburton had an enforced layoff from golf last year but has certainly made her presence felt in 2023 by winning the February monthly medal with a score of 88-21-67.
Clare Nalder-Martin put together the next-best score of 95-26-69 to win Division 2, and Pam Blohm 107-33-74 was the Division 3 winner.
Runners-up in the three divisions were Janette Tucker (19) 71, Jenny Lynas (28) 75 and Jenny Monahan (32) 79.
Mag Kiley, 72, led the ball pool and had the least putts with 29. Other ball winners included Paula Pickert, Marg Moore, Virginia Allen, Rosie Ficarra, Georgina Douglas and Colleen Roberts.
Carol Wiseman’s accurate shot gained her the jackpot on the 11th, Kathy Parkinson was closest on the 2nd and 15th, and Rosie Ficarra on the 5th.
Robyn Bett (25), 35 points, and Wendy Talbot (40), 34 points, were Saturday’s leaders in the Stableford competition, while Kristy Gordon, Dione Heppell, Mag Kiley and Avis Shipsides collected balls. Dione Heppell and Carol Wiseman were the NTP winners.
Claris Bourne (28) had a fantastic score of 43 points to lead a small field on Sunday.
