Good Morning, Vietnaaaaaam !
The first KLOGS Away Tour to Vietnam went off very smoothly for all from 15th-20st May 2018, thanks to the thorough planning by El Pres, Iain Wise. Our base was the seaside / oil town of Vung Tau, approximately 2-2.5 hours south east of Ho Chi Minh City. We played one stunning course, The Bluffs Ho Tram and one satisfactory course (Paradise). Tour accommodation was at the Muong Thanh Hotel, Thong Nat, ~200m from the seafront; the hotel was fine for our needs except for the bacon at breakfast. Weather was hot and sunny throughout.
Most golfers arrived late afternoon on Tuesday after the coach transfer from Tan Son Nhat International Airport; we rode into town with the sound of Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries” blaring from the bus (well, we didn’t, but we should have). Most were then fit and ready for the first round on Wednesday morning (or not, as the case may be). The KL contingent was joined by participants from UK, Australia and Thailand. We had 18 players including 1 visitor (Wayne Malouin), supported by fitness coach, Richard Moss and wandering minstrel, Ian Durant, who both flew in specially for the event.
1st Day – Monthly KLOGS Medal – Vung Tau Paradise Resort
This course was situated close to the hotel so there was very little time for the usual pre & post-game Baileys. We played the A & C courses on this first day. The courses and scenery were good but challenging with out-of-bounds on many holes and thick trees narrowing many fairways; the course also featured a couple of bunkers in the middle of one fairway that Saddam Hussein would have been proud of, 15ft deep with steps going into them; these were almost invisible as you approached but proved very difficult to get out of. The greens also had a lot of grooves so putting was always tricky.
Results
Only one player, our guest Wayne M, beat his handicap with 91 for 37 points, but since guests are not eligible for the trophy, the May medal winner with a score of 100 for 36 points was your scribe, Dave Evans (cut 4). (NB : MACC confirmed that no money or handbags changed hands between moneybags and the scribe to secure this result). Ted Parslow was second with 89 for 35 and Peter (Kenny Ong) Kenyon was third with 102 for 34 (cut 2 & 1 respectively).
Full results below
- NTP winner 1st Nine : Iain Wise
- NTP winner 2nd Nine : None
- Lowest gross : Wayne M : 91
- Last birdie : David Hewitt
- Apocalypse Now moment – Wayne ‘Marlon’ Beck with 5 points (One sleeve awarded)
This course severely challenged many players with only 5 beating 100 and 16 jugs being incurred for failing to pass the ladies tee (usually due to a 1st OB shot).
Special Nomination
Whilst competing in his 3rd London Marathon at the age of 62 (sorry Joe!), Joe Lacy was offered at mile 24 a beer which he declined when he discovered it was cans of Jack Daniels and coke. KLOGS arranged through our international network to bring in supplies of this drink so he could taste what he had missed out on.
COTD
There were 4 nominations for this initial award :
- Iain – for hitting his ball from in front of the tee marker then moving the marker forward to correct the error. Then penalizing Brian for teeing off from the moved marker.
- Wayne B – for getting a par on the 4th hole on the second nine which quadrupled his score
- Allan – for falling asleep and being offered a refund
- Brian – for spraying the wrong bus with shaving foam
The winner after a recount was Iain Wise.
2nd Day – 1st Day of Competition – The Bluffs, Ho Tram Strip
This Greg Norman-designed course was truly spectacular being set within towering sand dunes, about 50km north east of Vung Tau; the course was in very good condition and has beautiful views on almost every hole.
On the first day, we played off the white tees; on the second, the blue tees. Many holes challenged our group, notably the Par 3 4th hole, where a shot left or right was likely a lost ball but if you landed on the green but failed to stop the ball then it disappeared down a 50ft + cliff ! A lot of shots were played from the sand over the two days.
Results
Results of the full two-day competition are shown below
Setting the golf course on fire this first day with a score of 82 for 43 points was Martin “Ah love the smell of napalm in the morning” Walsh; second was Bernie Schobert with 88 for 41, closely followed by Joe Lacy with 88 for 40 points.
Novelty winners were :
- NTP winner 1st Nine : Bernie (3.2m)
- NTP winner 2nd Nine : Iain (3.1m)
- Lowest gross : Bernie with 81
Martin’s prize as leader on day 1 was a Bluffs golf shirt; he made a crafty attempt to get the matching shorts but failed.
The surprise on this day of the event was the performance of Wayne B, who improved 600% on the day before with 32 points.
COTD
There were 3 nominations for this:
- Frank – for his excitement over getting last birdie on the 17th only for Joe to hole out for his birdie immediately after and then discovering there was no award for last birdie; also for holding the bus up in the morning
- Iain – for his shorts
- Andrew – for not reaching the flag on an 8ft putt even though the flag was dropped in the way by Brian
Again, the winner was Iain ! (A pattern developing here)
3rd Day – 2nd Day of Competition – The Bluffs, Ho Tram Strip
Another great day on the golf course !
Results
Given the change from white to blue tees, as expected, scoring was generally lower on this second day (by an average of 3 shots). Despite a half-hearted attempt the previous evening to nobble Martin, he was able to comfortably increase his lead to finish first with 170 for 80 points. Second, 5 points back was Joe Lacy with 181 for 75. Stan was one of the few to improve on the 2nd day (by 7 shots), winning day 2 with 95 for 39 giving 197 for 71 overall and moving himself up to a tie for 3rd with Bernie (173 for 71).
- NTP winner 1st Nine : Rikki
- NTP winner 2nd Nine : Wayne M
The winners of the Horse & Jockey competition were Martin with Allan Wright for 1st and Andrew Robinson with Kenny Ong for 12th. (Andrew, Rikki and Hans were actually tied for 12th, but Hans had the worse day 2 score so dropped out of the running; then it proved very difficult to separate Andrew & Rikki as amazingly they had identical Day 2, back 9, 6 & 3 scores; Andrew was eventually declared the winner based on his single point on the final hole !)
COTD
There were 3 nominations for this:
- Iain – for ordering 4 pizzas for 8 (hungry) people, for choosing the blue tees for the second day, for failing to putt onto the green on a 15m putt
- David H – for being grumpy, for providing cultural experience (?) & for his caddy getting involved in Wayne’s sand dune land slide incident
- Rikki – for reversing his buggy into Brian’s and breaking it
Again, the winner was Iain !
Later that evening the group plus Richard Moss & Ian Durant had a very pleasant dinner with wine & beer at the Ganh Hao seafood restaurant booked by Ian D, who entertained us later with a few Irish songs and his mandolin.
4th Day – Team Scramble – Vung Tau Paradise Resort
Three 4 player teams & two 3 player teams cunningly selected by El Pres teed-off slightly later than booked on the A & B courses with all teams playing off scratch. Again, these courses proved a challenge.
Results
The team of Martin (again !) with Wayne B, Hans & Peter conquered the course, with 71 (-1).
Second was the team of Iain, Bernie & Andrew with 74 (+2), then third on countback, the team of Ron, David H, Frank & Brian also with 74 (+2). Ted, Rikki & Allan tied with Dave E, Joe, Stan & Wayne M with 76 (+4).
COTD
There were 5 nominations for this:
- Martin – for his buggy driving
- Dave H – for moaning
- Frank – for sticking his driver in an inappropriate position then breaking it
- Andrew – for booking his AA flight without luggage or sports equipment, then discovering he was booked on a later flight than the group
- Iain – for confusion over the choice of blue/white tee boxes (in the event, they were frequently together)
And the winner was Iain !
COTT
Given the earlier pattern, there was no surprise with the result :
Iain Wise – you are the 2018 May COTT !
David H was awarded a compensating ‘Grumpy C***’ mug
The various prize winners received sleeves of balls courtesy of Renaissance Hotels (thanks to Robert Frager).
Fines & Honesty Jugs
There were numerous jugs (30+) over the 3 days, and the Fines Master (Martin) was in fine form, penalising everybody for various misdemeanors. As a result, there was no reason to call upon extra for the Whip.
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Photos : courtesy of your Scribe, Bernie, Hans, Joe, Wayne M, Ian & Simon.
