Ariah Park Golf After our journey into enemy territory last week to defend the mighty Logan Cup, we as a group of defeated warriors dragged our weary and yearning bodies back to our own dung hill to gather what’s left of our defeated army of golfers and do battle amongst ourselves for the right to be crowned “A”, “B” or “C” Grade Champions for 2026. The weather stayed fine for our first rounds of championships played by 12 players trying to get an early edge on the other players in their respective divisions. In C grade Zac hit the ground running (so to speak) and with a fine selection of shots managed to play one of his best rounds of golf for a long time. His driver was on song and his trusty four iron was doing well, but it was his putting that was most impressive as he forged his way around the course in fine style and was red hot as he returned a fine card. So, forget about it now Zac – next week anything can and will happen in C Grade. As Gary (a newcomer to golf) will be doing his best to upset your apple cart and if he can overcome that awful slice, he can put a lot of pressure on you fella. So good luck to both of you next week. In B Grade Nodza has a handy lead on the others and is playing steady and consistent golf, so you other mob will have to lift your game if you want to catch him. Jacko, Pete and the rest of you don’t throw the towel in just yet (as you threatened to do), that’s not how we play golf here at Ariah Park. Attitude and discipline are needed if you want to succeed in this sport. It’s not about winning (although it’s nice when it happens), it’s about having a bit of fun, and we don’t always play P.G.A rules at Ariah Park. We are only a few who get on here and turn up each week, fun and mateship is what we are about at Ariah Park – so turn up and have another crack at it. We should all take a leaf out of Zac’s book – he plays with a disability but plays with a great attitude at both golf/bowls – no dummy spits when things don’t go to plan, just gets on with it and does his best. This attitude should rub off on a few of us out here – just saying. In A Grade well who will catch Camo? He plays a wonderful game of golf every week and is so humble (a credit to the sport out here). So, to beat him is going to be hard but not impossible as there are a few handy old boys who on their day can “rattle his cage” a bit – but they must be consistent in both rounds. But unfortunately for me I’m a “shot duck” as the first round was my worst round thus far this year, so look out next week as I will be wearing my s**t stirring hat and will be taking no prisoners – no one is safe, okay. Now on a better note – Barry finally broke through for a win as he returned the winning score card this week – finally off that dreaded duck egg Barry and more importantly no dunce chair this year. There are only two contenders left for this honour, and they will be like two squawking galahs together if they are to be crowned – bloody hell this is going to be hideous on presentation night if they remain in the chair (watch this space). Mr Scotsman – that is Robert “Robbo” Robertson was back on deck this week after some R and R and was keen to let everyone know of his presence. The bloke is hard to understand but is a barrel of laughs, he also plays a good game of golf for an old fella – and he is quick to inform us that golf was invented by a Scotsman – and if and when we need advice on golf, he is the man. God help us. And him to open your arms up to this misfit bunch of golfers – left handers excluded – so welcome back Robbo. So good luck everyone next week and maybe a spanner or two might find their way into the leader’s bag of tricks – surely not – well you never know. Merrill enjoyed her day of golf and took out the lady’s trophy for this week, so with Marie back on deck next week she might be able to put a bit of pressure on Merrill – it will be a good contest between these two. So back to the club house we go to rave on how good or bad we played with some happy faces and some glum faces – but in the end who cares – as next week is a new golfing expectation and only the fit will survive (new slogan). Cards were done and the old birthday boy Barry won the day – well done old soldier you still have it. Happy birthday from us all and thanks Helen for the Tucker and cake. No N.T.P for championships. Men’s winner – Barry Harper Ladies winner – Merrill Rollins Shot of the day – I can’t go past Zac Worland who had one of his best rounds to date – well done buddy. There were a few wayward shots by others, but they will have to wait to be printed as Zac had a blinder and it wouldn’t be fair not to give him his day of glory. So good luck everyone next week and let’s all turn up and have another crack – remember it’s only a game. Cheers, Preferred Lies Coolamon Golf By THOMAS GOSS There was no golf at Coolamon on Sunday, the weather was an antonym for Saturday’s sunshine - non stop rain. This had farmer’s faces wreathed in smiles but caused much weeping and gnashing of teeth for golfers. And for farming golfers, the first stirrings of schizophrenia. Fourteen pairs entered Saturday’s two person Ambrose event played as two competitions. The main event was the NSW Keno nine-hole Ambrose which was then elongated to eighteen holes to accommodate those who wished to play the traditional number. From what I was able to gather there was very little of the general aberrant behaviour to report, no Monos, no evidence of excessive swearing or ball abuse and even The Ex and Monday were conspicuously quiet. This led observers to believe both had had their throats extracted or, the the very least, their tongues removed. It was not the case. Stranger things have happened, but not in my lifetime. Such was the heavenly quietness, the only sounds discernible were the mellow ping of the ball hitting the sweet spot and the screams of gum leaves as they plummeted to the ground. The winners of the nine-hole event were: Men - Mark Hardy and Paul Abbott. Ladies - Gail O’Brien and Sylvia Spring. Mixed - Bruce Chant and Leonie Dennis. These three pairs continue to the next round. For the club event, Greg McKelvie and Danny Milne eased home a quarter of a shot to the good of Gav Stephenson and Tom Goss. Others to feature were Tiff Chandler and Adam Carroll, Bruce Chant and Leonie Dennis and Mick and Mitch O’Brien. The novelty prizes were picked up by Sharn Seymour who produced a stunning shot on the seventh which left partner Stu a kick in for birdie, Squeaker, Karen Hilton, Gail O’Brien, Sylvia Spring, Tiff Chandler, Gav Stephenson and Tom Goss. This weekend we have a Stableford competition on the Saturday and August’s monthly medal on Sunday. Remember the old adage, ‘Red skies at night, shepherd’s delight, Blue skies at night - day.’ On that note I wish you all many more days of angry frustrated golfing. Ladies Golf On Wednesday, ladies played a Stableford event sponsored by the club. Winner on the day was Wendy McCrone with an outstanding score of 42 points. Runner up was Di Starling with 35 points. Ball winners: Lynn Gilchrist 35 points Pip Bleyer 34 points Nora Saffioti 33 points Jacinta Watson 33 points Nearest the pins: 12th (NTP): Di Starling 7.2 metres 16th (D&C): Marg Townsend 68 centimetres On Saturday our ladies played their August Monthly Medal, sponsored by Deidre Flakelar. Winner on the day was Paige Starling with 115 off the stick, 68 nett. Runner up was Marg Townsend with 96 off the stick and 70 nett. Ball winners: Nat Irvine 87 off the stick, 71 nett Di Starling 84 off the stick, 72 nett Sue Tier 91 off the stick, 74 nett Nora Saffioti 88 off the stick, 76 nett Nearest the pins: 3rd (D&C): Marg Townsend 90 centimetres 7th (NTP): Nora Saffioti 3.05 metres 12th (NTP): Nat Irvine 5 metres 16th (D&C): Pip Bleyer 13 centimetres Temora Vets Golf: Delta Ag Shield - Round 13 Nifty Neville Elwin (13) signed off on his mobile ‘Golf Connect’ app after confirming his score of 37 points with what they call an “attester”. A modern way of saying, scoring partner. Someone who signs their name to confirm your playing partners score. You use your finger mail to write your signature on the mobile phone screen. It’s pretty cool. The old paper scorecard is almost obsolete, but it is still used by some players, especially when there is phone reception issues such as lose of connectivity, or you forgot to pay your mobile bill, or for teams events where finals scores don’t affect one’s handicap. Anyway, Nifty was our winner last Thursday, and a well-deserved win at that. Nifty is one of our hardest working volunteers and he gives up a lot of his free time for our benefit. Runner-up to Nifty was last week’s winner, Graeme Eyles (17) with 35 points c/b. I’m not trying to take anything away from Nifty’s win, but I know for a fact, Graeme left about ten points out on the course. Ball winners: Anthony Madden (11) 35 points, Simon Eyles (17) 35 points, Peter Cartwright (27) 35 points c/b, Mike Daley (11) 35 points, Barry Flakelar (8) 34 points c/b, Di Starling (18) 34 points. Intersales points: Neville Elwin 6, Graeme Eyles 5, Peter Cartwright 4, Mike Daley 3, Barry Flakelar 2. Nearest the pins: 3rd Mike Daley 6.04 metres, 7th Jason Fernie 5.43 metres, 12th Ray Rodway 3.9 metres, 16th Graeme Eyles 0.95 centimetres. Drive and chip: 3rd Di Starling 1.2 metres, 8th Anthony Madden 2.07 metres. The Skins: Simon Eyles won six skins for $6.00. Barry Flakelar 5, Bruce Chant (Coolamon Sports and Recreation Club), and David Meale four each, Di Starling three, Neville Elwin two, Ray Jennings, Dave Loftus, Col McCrone, Anthony Madden, Anthony Abra, Richard Starling, Mark Browning, Graeme Eyles, and Peter Cartwright won a skin each. The kitty banked three for $3.00. Shot of the day: David Meale found himself among the trees on the left after his tee shot on the 17th hole. In trying to extract his ball from behind the trees, Dave went for it. He was going for the green no matter what. His bold attempt struck a tree, and the ball flew back and smacked him fair in the head. Lucky, as it would have hurt otherwise. Dave’s next shot weaved its way out through the trees but decided to take a U-turn and go for a swim in the creek that crosses 90 meters short of the green. I’m not sure how many more shots Dave took to finish the hole but reports back said he had trouble seeing the ball due to a slight concussion. Our wives, and partners think we are out here having a good time, enjoying ourselves. How wrong they are. Dave’s gone home with a black eye, concussion, and lost a ball to boot. They just don’t get it. A big thank you to Anthony Madden for cooking up a storm on the barbeque, thank you to the players who turned up, and thank you to the course workers. The golf course is looking pretty again, and Harry Wilson has those greens rolling beautifully. We have a few volunteers that give up their time and do a lot of little things in the background at Temora Golf Club. Just so we can enjoy our golf. So, the next time you want to have a whinge about something that bothers you, come out and grab a shovel, a hole cutter, a chain saw, a rake etc, and fix it yourself, bet ya don’t. Or better yet, come and offer your help, volunteer to keep our club the great place it is. Congratulations to Anthony Abra, who won the B Grade handicap division last Sunday at the Temora Open. Anthony’s 37 points were good enough to take home the trophy and the accolades that come with his win. Just awesome Anthony. Anthony is one of our younger vets, I still think he doesn’t look over 55, but as he sternly confirmed with me months ago that he is an authentic vet. I wasn’t going to argue. That’s it from me, time for a pie from the Roundabout Bakery, a cup of tea, and a read of the Temora Independent Newspaper. Go the Wests Tigers. Temora Bowling club Bowls Five-a-side. With the next bowls season not commencing until the start of the New Year, because we are reverting back to a calendar year playing season, it feels a bit like Ground Hog Day because we went through this same scenario six or seven years ago. There’s not much to look at over the next few months unless you are fortunate enough to be selected in representative team or something similar. We’ve knocked up a 5-a-side format to keep us interested in the interim as we now have ten teams entered. That’s 50 players all up. Originally, we weren’t going to kick this show off util after the annual Triples Tournament at the end of August, but with those 10 teams already committed, it has been decided we can commence as early as next weekend. All we need to do is make a few phone calls and Bob’s your uncle. The Teams have been randomly split into two sections of five to play a round robin format where everyone gets fours matches and a bye. Round one is scheduled to be completed by Sunday, 23 August. In Section A, John Tucker, Bruce Saffioti, Mike Tucker, Bert Taylor and Marcel Mouawad will play Peter Harpley, Richie Moir, Jon Wilson, Peter Hocking and Ross McKenzie. Herb New, Rick Potter, Mick Wynd, Terry Greenham and Rissole Rees meet Bevan Krause, John Rayner and three other magicians whose names escape me. In Section B, Glen Keane, Chris Colke, John Cronin, Ray Lanyon and John Bartel play Kev Mowbray, Rob Jordan, Phil Waterston, Dean Walsh ad someone else. Trevor Firman, Wayne Stimson, Mick Reinhold, Lisa and Wayne Schulz play Dave Taylor, Glenn Breust, Phil Reid, Steve Gilchrist and Brian Oliver. The system works this way, prior to every round, all teams will be given a team list where players are numbered one through five. There are nine possible draws for each round which locks the players into pairs or triples combinations for that draw. All players combine for the fours match with each player sitting out two ends and each player also plays lead, second, third and skip for two ends. Pairs matches will be 3-bowl triples over 12 completed ends. Triples matches will be played as 2-bowl triples over 12 completed ends. Fours matches will be played as 2-bowl Fours over 10 completed ends. Sundays are the default days for taking part in the afternoon barbeques. If you play your matches mid-week or on Saturdays, don’t expect a steak sandwich, southern fried chicken, lobster mornay or balinese lamb chops as a snack. Triples Tournament. It’s choc-a-block 56 teams of triples playing over two days on the 29 and 30 of August. There are a huge number of hot teams, so the whole outcome is going to come down to the “Luck Of The Draw.” The Club has developed a draw for 56 teams on four greens where everyone receives a maximum of two ditch rinks. Twelve teams will play in two game blocks at the Ex-Services Club while a further 12 teams will play one match at the Excies in Round 7. Eight teams play all their matches at the Bowling Club and won’t have to “travel.” King Of the Turf. After a bit of a spell from the racing scene, we return with an absolute cracking first up meeting after all the horses have finished celebrating their birthday. No less than 11 runners featured in a blanket Photo Finish which resulted in a triple developed print and a whopping magnifying glass was required to separate the winners. Jon Wilson and Karen Perrot were horribly unlucky to be adjudged in a dead-heat runner’s up position, a fraction of a millimeter behind Glenn Breust’s lunging nose. Glen Keane, usually very solid week in week out, had a stinker of a run. Not as foul as Peter Harpley who incredibly won consecutive barrier trails over the past fortnight. It was a horrible run. The worst run since Leo Casey got lost for four days roughly twelve years ago.
