By P Utter
WITH the up and down weather lately, apart from the wind, Umkomaas Golf Club is ever-grateful for the intermittent rain of late.
The course is looking absolutely stunning at the moment – just in time to host both the Southern Natal Nomads on Tuesday, 1 December and the Natal Nomads on Thursday, 3 December. This is all thanks to green keeper Mike and his dedicated team who have worked tirelessly to get the course to its present, pristine condition.
There were many South Africans playing in the Alfred Dunhill Championships up at Leopard Creek last weekend. Garth Mulroy was one of them but unfortunately didn’t make the cut. The final result was Charl Schwartzel finishing with a four shot lead. Next weekend, 3 to 6 December, is the Nedbank Challenge at Sun City, which is always a great tournament to watch.
On the other side of the Indian Ocean is the Australian PGA Championships on the Gold Coast, Queensland. As mentioned, Garth Mulroy is back in South Africa. Everyone hopes to see him while he’s in the country. It was also great to see Tim Clark at the club on Sunday with his ‘baby girl’ – welcome home, guys. It’s always good to see the PGA ‘boys’ visiting their roots.
Wednesday was the usual individual stableford where the club welcomed Judy Pickavance, Gerald Payn and Russell Wilcox. Chris Viljoen was the victor with 41 points followed by Simon van den Bosch close behind Chris in second spot, with 40 points. Barrie Taylor took the third prize on a count out from Dudley Pringle, both with 39 points.
There was no ‘official’ competition on Saturday, but the guys (and Natalie) who did play had a great afternoon. The ‘spoils’ went to Wally Kent on 39 points with Bruce Sutcliffe counting out Johan Hugo for second and third places respectively, both on 39 points. It was great to see Natalie Singer down from Johannesburg. She is off to play in the South Coast regional champs on Sunday at Port Shepstone GC. Lastly, it’s many thanks to the Strand Strikers for their commitment and who never fail to support the club every Saturday morning with the ‘sparrows’.
Seven of the women ventured down to play in the South Coast regional championships at Port Shepstone GC last Sunday, with varying degrees of success. The only woman from Umkomaas who made any headway was Sabiha Bacaus who was runner-up in the silver division, as well as runner-up in both the open and closed competitions. Congratulations to Sabiha and well done to all those who took part.
Next Saturday, 5 December is the Toyota monthly medal ‘golfer of the year’ challenge – the list of eligible players is on the club notice board. Sunday, 6 December is social golf for all golfers.
Jumping ahead to Saturday, 19 December, it’s the annual women alliance day which is open to all members and visitors to play. Join in for a fun-filled afternoon of golf – it will also be the draw for the R10,000 plus there will be a ‘live’ band to entertain at prize-giving. Call the club to book a tee time on 039-973-1042.
A reminder that the mid-week special ended on 30 November and will resume again in January 2016. The geriatric special still stands on Tuesdays and Fridays, tee-ing off at 6.30am only. The ‘under 21 special’ is still on for the time being so call the club for more details on the number mentioned above.
All our news and green fees rates can be found at www.umkomaasgolf.co.za
