the resort was showing the ef-fects of having changed hands twice during the year and is cur-
rently lacking a little TLC.
Jeannie started as she finished by leading her team of Peter Quinn, Lewis Mosse and Chris
Hegarty to victory.
But from then on the sun shone bright and warm all week. Anne Fern’s 35 was good enough to take the lead in Round One and she had Alan Orritt and John Mac
close behind.
In Round Two she again led the field with 34 but this time she was joined by Jeannie and Alan. So at halfway she and Alan were four clear of John Mac and John
Shearan.
But as so often happens on “moving day” the whole picture changed. Paul Kaye’s 37 moved him right up the leader board into 3rd place and although Lewis’ 36 was good he was too far behind to influence proceedings. But Jeannie’s 36 moved her right into contention from where she was able to launch her assault on the
title.
In that final round Len Peifer celebrated his birthday with an excellent 35 and Reuben Fielding had 34. But the week belonged to Jeannie and although we were a little disappointed with the condition of Vila Sol, the course certainly provided a test of golf to
produce a very worthy champion.
We have decided that it is time for a change of scene next year, and because we will no longer be paying for the winner’s flights, we will be able to put more of the budget into hotel and green fees. Whilst we were in Portugal we looked at several venues—our preferred choice would be Quinta do Lago and Laranjal. But you
will have to wait and see.
Jeannie O’Keeffe, whose sobri-quet is Golfing Mum must now change it to Golfing Granny with the arrival of Liam, her first grandchild. Starting the final round two points off the lead, she birdied the first and played a flawless front 9 to take a 5
point lead at the turn.
Anne Fern who had led from Round One had finally been overhauled on the very tight Vila Sol course. As Jeannie’s near-est challengers were 7 point behind her, all she needed was
a quiet back nine.
But suddenly things began to unravel. Dropping shots at the 10th and 11th she then scram-bled through the next three holes before a disastrous finish with just 2 points in the last 4
holes.
Meanwhile Neil Ratcliffe, last year’s winner handed in a 36 from the group ahead and sud-denly things became very cloudy. Both John Mac and Paul Kaye playing alongside the girls in the final group had also rallied on the back nine and things had become very tense. Poor Annie has found herself in
this position 3 times now and has failed to convert. She was very disappointed with her 23 points but should take heart that if she keeps getting into this
position she will surely win soon.
But when the cards were all handed in no one could work out who had won. It was very clear that it was close but who was it
going to be.
When the printer finally splut-tered into life only 2 points sepa-rated the top 5. Jeannie was the winner, and Neil Ratcliffe was runner up with his fabulous final round. He beat both John Mac (3rd) and Paul Kaye (4th) on
count back.
Sitting out on the golf club ter-race, bathed in warm autumnal sunshine, it was a time to reflect on a great year with a fabulous
finale.
But the week had started with a rather damp and chilly day for the Am Am. It was immediately clear that the Vila Sol courses were not in such good shape as last year. The greens were slow and a little uneven and the tees were a little scruffy. Generally
Neil Ratcliffe, Jeannie O’Keeffe and Paul Kay share a joke in Vila Sol
GRANDSTAND FINISH BY GOLFING GRANNY
C o n t e n t s
Grand Finals
Vila Sol (cont)
2
El Rompido 3
Arizona 4
Agent Orange in
North Vietnam
6
Final Tour Points 8
Grand Finals on
the Move
9
Putting Slow Play
on the Clock
9
Taking us for a
Ryder
10
Merry Christmas
& Turkey Date
10
G r e e n c a r d G o l f
H o l i d a y s
4 H i l l c r o f t , A n c h o r
R o a d , C a l n e S N 1 1 8 H R
T e l : 0 1 2 4 9 8 2 1 5 0 7
F a x : 0 1 2 4 9 8 2 1 4 5 8
W e b : w w w . g r e e n c a r d g o l f
. c o . u k Golfer N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 V o l u m e 2 , I s s u e 4
I n T h i s
I s s u e
Vila Sol Grand
Finals
Arizona
El Rompido
Slow Play
Researching
North Vietnam
John Newark
The Ryder Cup
Finals Venue
The The The The
P a g e 2
As always at the Grand Finals we hold
a separate competition for those that
want to be there at the finish. It al-
ways attracts a good field and this
year was no exception. Although over-
all numbers were down, this was
more a reflection on the venue I think
than the state of the economy or the
popularity of the event. We hope to
reverse that next year.
Chris Clarkson used to be a regular
competitor on Tour but an illness a
few years back meant he had to lay
off golf for a couple of years. At last
year’s finals he made his reappear-
ance and he showed that he had lost
none of his skills. This year he went
one better and won the Masters title
by a convincing 7 shots.
After round one his 32 led John
O’Keeffe, Tony Brook and Kevin
Shearan by 1 shot.
In Round Two it was Margaret Brook
with 35 who headed the field but
John O’Keeffe, Kiki Bach and Chris
were just a point behind. That put
Chris and John 5 points clear of the
field and his 33 in the third round was
enough to take him 6 points clear of
John who was himself 5 points ahead
of Kevin Shearan and the chasing
pack.
So in the final round it was more a
question of who would be 2nd. James
Fielding and Kevin joined John and
Chris in the final group but the race for
the places was by no means confined
to them.
In the event Lodewijk Schlingemann,
whose latest Russian girlfriend wowed
the crowd, won the day with 33,
matched by Richard Phillips and Kevin
Shearan. Tony Wells and Gerry Gentle
finally showed some form and Kiki
sealed her leading lady spot with 31.
But even though Chris stumbled with
28 he was still 6 points ahead of Kevin
who was delighted with his perform-
ance. Richard Phillips was third and
Gerry Gentle fourth. Kiki was the lead-
ing lady in 8th place.
The great thing about the Masters is
the camaraderie. No Tour Points to be
won, no qualifying, just a good old
fashioned golf tournament. If you
win—Great. If you don’t get back to
Oscars and do some Karaoke.
CHRIS CLARKSON’S MASTER CLASS
1 CLARKSON CHRIS 32 34 33 28 127
2 SHEARAN KEVIN 31 29 28 33 121
3 PHILLIPS RICHARD 30 30 26 33 119
4 GENTLE GERRY 28 28 30 32 118
5 O'KEEFFE JOHN 31 34 28 25 118
6 KERR ROBERT 28 26 32 31 117
7 CROSSLAND PHIL 29 31 27 30 117
8 BACH KIKI 22 34 27 31 114
9 BROOK TONY 31 28 25 30 114
10 BROOK MARGARET 24 35 27 28 114
11 FIELDING JAMES 28 28 31 27 114
12 SCHLINGEMANN L 25 28 26 33 112
13 BROWN NEIL 26 26 33 26 111
14 WELLS TONY 21 30 22 32 105
15 FELL SHARON 23 28 23 29 103
16 FERN MELVYN 19 31 25 28 103
17 CARTER JACKIE 25 22 25 27 99
18 MARTIN MARIAN 23 27 27 17 94
19 HEGARTY GAIL 24 23 27 18 92
20 LASCELLES ROGER 15 22 22 28 87
Vila Sol MastersVila Sol MastersVila Sol MastersVila Sol Masters————Final ResultsFinal ResultsFinal ResultsFinal Results
1 O'KEEFFE JEANNIE 29 34 36 27 126
2 RATCLIFFE NEIL 27 33 29 36 125
3 MAC JOHN 33 31 29 32 125
4 KAYE PAUL 29 28 37 31 125
5 FERN ANNE 35 34 32 23 124
6 BAXTER ALAN 23 33 32 32 120
7 FIELDING REUBEN 28 31 26 34 119
8 HARRIS IAN 27 29 29 33 118
9 PEIFER LEN 30 24 28 35 117
10 HUNT ROGER 28 30 27 32 117
11 ROBINSON COLIN 25 32 30 30 117
12 TRAFFORD ANTHONY 25 32 32 28 117
13 ORRITT ALAN 34 34 23 26 117
14 SHEARAN JOHN 31 33 23 29 116
15 HAYNES BRIAN 29 33 26 27 115
16 ROBINSON IAN 29 27 32 26 114
17 MUNROE RICHARD 27 29 32 25 113
18 QUINN PETER 31 28 25 28 112
19 HARRIS JULIE 27 25 34 26 112
20 MOSSE LEWIS 21 30 36 23 110
Vila Sol TourVila Sol TourVila Sol TourVila Sol Tour————Grand Finals ResultsGrand Finals ResultsGrand Finals ResultsGrand Finals Results
Kevin, Kiki, Chris and RichardKevin, Kiki, Chris and RichardKevin, Kiki, Chris and RichardKevin, Kiki, Chris and Richard
THE LAST OF THE EUROBUSTERS solid 36 points. Geoff's 32 was enough to move him into the lead by one point as Peter had, by his standards, a poor day at
the office finishing with 26.
We returned to the South course for the final round. Although strange events had occurred on many a last day of events it was likely to be a straight shoot out be-tween Geoff and Peter as the chasing pack started the day 10 points behind second place. By the half way stage Geoff was looking very good whilst Peter was trying to hold onto his coat tails. The defining moment occurred on the dogleg 10th hole where Peter could only make one point and Geoff birdied for 4 points. The momentum continued with Geoff as he carded a fantastic 42 points to take the victory by 10 points from Peter who
finished the last round with 33.
Neil Gillam came third which was enough to secure his qualification to the finals week, whilst Jackie Bleakley claimed the
leading lady.
This was Greencard's first visit to the El Rompido golf resort in Spain. Lo-cated just an hour from Faro. The hotel is perched on the Huelva coast-line, wedged between the ever-popular hot spots of the Algarve and the Costa
Del Sol.
We were to play three rounds on the El Rompido South course and one round
at the Islantilla Golf Resort.
The opening round was played on the South course. The first nine holes here require real precision and cau-tion, while the back nine offer a little more space allowing for risk and re-ward shots to come into play. Geoff Hill with 36 and Peter Sumner with 35
El Rompido ResultsEl Rompido ResultsEl Rompido ResultsEl Rompido Results————StablefordStablefordStablefordStableford
points certainly took advantage of the course layout and took an early lead from
the pack.
Peter's form continued into the second round where a tremendous 39 points se-cured top spot at the half way stage with a combined total of 74. Geoff having fin-ished the day with 32 was 6 shots behind. Neil Gillam was in third position and needed to finish in the top 6 places to
gain his place at the finals in Vila Sol.
We moved to Islantilla for the third round, another tight course as it winds its way through tree lined fairways and offers only small greens as targets. It was going to be a tough challenge but one which Neil Gil-lam was equal to as he finished with a
Neil Gillam, Geoff Hill, Jackie Bleakley and Peter Sumner at a sparsely populated El RompidoNeil Gillam, Geoff Hill, Jackie Bleakley and Peter Sumner at a sparsely populated El RompidoNeil Gillam, Geoff Hill, Jackie Bleakley and Peter Sumner at a sparsely populated El RompidoNeil Gillam, Geoff Hill, Jackie Bleakley and Peter Sumner at a sparsely populated El Rompido
P a g e 3
Over the years at Greencard I have seen literally hundreds of slow
players. But strangely I have never met one. Whenever I confront
a group that has dropped a couple of holes, they always point the
finger at someone else. In truth we are all guilty to some extent.
But if we manage the 10 points below then things would start to
improve.
1 Whilst waiting for a green to clear, work out your shot and se-
lect your club before having a chat.
2 Mark your scorecard whilst the others are putting out or
when they are driving off, not after they have putted out or
when it is your honour on the tee.
3 Don't be afraid to play out of turn if you are ready, or if you
cannot reach the green, or if your partners are raking bun
kers etc. Play ready golf.
4. Always watch your partners' shots so that you can help them
look if needs be.
5. If you are shortest off the tee or furthest from the flag it is
your duty to get to your ball first.
6 Always play a provisional ball from the tee if you are in
doubt as to where your ball finished. It helps get an idea
of the length you should be looking, and it saves returning
to the tee.
7. Never leave your cart or trolley in front of the green. Al
ways think about where you will exit the green.
8. Remember that it is THE game not just YOUR game that
you should be thinking about.
9 If a gap opens up ahead it is your duty to close it. Saying
that you were never pushed is not the answer. The
group behind won’t feel a need to move faster if they
have you in sight.
10 Never be afraid to remind your partners that you are not
keeping up with the field.
A simple rule of thumb is this. If you arrive at a Par 3 and you
don’t have to wait for the green to clear then you are not keep-
ing up with the pace of play. Let’s make 2011 the year we
started to roll back the clock. See page 9
TEN TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR SPEED OF PLAY
1 Geoff Hill 36 32 33 42 143
2 Peter Sumner 35 39 26 33 133
3 Richard Munroe 30 38 29 28 125
4 Neil Gillam 23 31 36 34 124
5 Jackie Bleakley 25 23 35 30 113
6 Phil Crossland 26 28 25 30 109
7 Richard Bleakley 22 31 26 27 106
8 Maggie Stevenson 25 27 25 28 105
9 Linda Crossland 20 18 25 21 84
P a g e 4
“….the
posse kept
up a
spirited
chase but
the outlaw
was away
in the hills.”
Gary Coleman, Gary Coleman, Gary Coleman, Gary Coleman,
Martyn Cole, Martyn Cole, Martyn Cole, Martyn Cole,
Dee Shotton, Dee Shotton, Dee Shotton, Dee Shotton,
Jeannie Jeannie Jeannie Jeannie
O’Keeffe and O’Keeffe and O’Keeffe and O’Keeffe and
Russell Smit at Russell Smit at Russell Smit at Russell Smit at
Grayhawk, Grayhawk, Grayhawk, Grayhawk,
ArizonaArizonaArizonaArizona
DEE’S THE SHARPEST SHOOTER
IN THE WEST
We all assembled at Talking Stick for the practice round, under a blazing sun, in the Arizona desert. The club takes its name from the Indian prac-tice of only allowing the man holding the Talking Stick to speak. Some-thing maybe the BBC should consider for Question Time or interviews with
Jeremy Paxman.
The club wanted to do a shotgun start but when we arrived, instead of 1 group per tee they bunched us all onto 8 tees. The inevitable 5hr 30 min round ensued. Happily it all fin-ished in daylight and in time for the welcome cocktail in the clubhouse. Russell Smit led his team of Sue Hen-ney, Tom Bolger and Dee Shotton to a 5 shot victory. But I suspect the real winners on the day were the mosquitoes. A panic purchase of
mozzie spray was required but it seems they only live down at Talking
Stick.
After a relaxing day round the pool we took the highway north to Anthem Golf Club for round one. Two courses right out in the desert. Straight hit-ting required as the fairways were narrow and our new girl Dee Shotton woke everyone up with a startling 42. Sally Ward was next with 38 and Martyn Cole, Jeannie O’Keeffe and Chris Hegarty all shot 35. Already people were mumbling that the La-
dies always win in the States.
We then had a shopping day before Round Two at TPC Champions course. Not quite as well known as the Phoenix Open Stadium course but nonetheless a true test that also hosts USPGA events. This time Dee
really shot them down with 48 points and they were nu-merous calls for the Sherrif. But in truth she had simply had the round of her life making 10 single putts in the round. A benefit of having had to lay off golf for two years which she spent practising her short game. This score took the spot-light off Sally who shot another 38 along with Tom Bol-ger and Gary Cole-
man.
The forecast had been saying rain for the Wednesday for weeks and sure enough the day dawned grey and overcast. Just before 9am there was a downpour on the Karsten course followed by a huge rainbow settling on the mountain. And that was it for the day. We played an-other Am Am on the course where Phil Mickelson honed his skills. Although they had finished over-seeding and the course was in great condition, with the greens a little slow, they still insisted on Cart Path Only. This was the 3rd course out of 4 and was hugely frustrating. With the best will in the world 5hr rounds are inevitable. Geoff Bickerton’s team of Jane Le Maistre, Gary Cole-man and Melanie Barton won on count back from husband Jim Bar-ton’s team of Pauline Kirkman, Dee
Shotton and Brian Haynes.
But the rains hadn’t yet left and a disappointing free day that should have been spent round the pool was transferred to the shopping malls of Scottsdale of which there are plenty. Shopping is undoubtedly the Ameri-can sport par excellence. It seems incredible that so many shops can all be supported by the residents. Every few hundred yards there is
another Walmart or similar.
So with just two rounds to go Dee was 14 shots ahead of Sally who was herself 4 clear of Martyn Cole. Tom Bolger, Chris Hegarty and Gary Coleman in the posse kept up a spirited chase but the outlaw was away in the hills. But at Boulders for Round Three they picked up a track as Dee fell away with a surprising 26 points. Gail Fee plotted her way around the spectacular rocky out-crops to shoot 39 and Russell, Gary and Anthony Trafford all shot 38. Brian Haynes, Simon Klimcke, Jim Barton, Clare Bolger and John Jag-ger all scored 37. So on moving day
there was plenty of movement.
Although Dee and Sally were still on top the gap had closed to 7 points and Gary and Martyn both felt they might have a chance of catching her if she stumbled again. Unfortu-nately Sally had to leave a day early to see her family in Florida which again gave Dee a comfortable 10 shot cushion but strange things can happen in the final round of Green-
card events.
To finish we went to the best course of the week at Grayhawk. The Rap-
My step-
daughter
Emmanuelle
briefly re-
turned to her
old job start-
ing us on the
tee.
two bins full of bottles of beer, wine, gin and vodka and we served large measures of alcohol for $2 a shot for 90 mins each eve-ning. In fact it turned out to be the best thing. Nobody can resist a $2 bar and so
every night was a party.
On reflection I think that when we return to Arizona we would make it a 2 centre trip with a few nights up in the beautiful mountain scenery of Sedona as well. Scottsdale in peak season—Jan to March—is very expen-sive. When we were there this year in Octo-ber late bookers were able to get on all the course at a fraction of what we were paying for advanced bookings. It seems a little unfair that if you bring a large group you
have to pay twice as much.
The over seeding season is a great time to go for a small group who just want play as they go along. Make a booking for the fol-lowing day and green fees of $80 are stan-dard at even the very top courses. Book in advance and you pay top dollar - anything from $120—$250. Also if you go in the sum-
mer golf is great and cheap—and very hot!
The jet lag is a nuisance—8hrs time differ-ence takes more than a couple of days to get over. But if you asked me to choose be-tween Scottsdale and Dubai I would take Scottsdale every time. Literally hundreds of courses, thousands of restaurants to suit every budget, beautiful uncrowded roads and shopping to die for. The golf maybe
expensive but it is no more so than Dubai.
Dubai is great for a short break but anything much more than a week and I would head
for Arizona.
But desert golf is different and fun. And when we all recover from the flight home I am sure that people will remember the par-ties and the cacti more than the lack of a
hob!
tor was a fitting finale. But although Dee stumbled a little on the back nine her superb birdie on the last in front of the crowds gave her a well deserved victory by 4 points from Gary. Geoff Bickerton shot a gross 75 round a very tricky course and Russell Smit scored 35, Geoff Henney, Anne Marie Coleman and Jeannie all scored 34. It was a course
for the low men and ladies.
This gave Russell and Jeannie their place in the Finals. Martyn who had been the most consistent all week was third and
Traff was 5th.
In all it was an excellent competition. US courses do seem to give the girls a big advantage but not quite so much in Ari-zona. The biggest disappointment of the week was the cart path only rule at 5 out of 6 courses. It was very frustrating and
Arizona ResultsArizona ResultsArizona ResultsArizona Results————StablefordStablefordStablefordStableford
had we known we would never have booked to come at this time of year. They say that November is nice but we have seen how cold it can be when the weather turns. I suspect that March is the best
season.
Flying West always gives the worst jet lag and it takes a while for people to settle down. The time difference makes people irritated and from an organiser’s point of view it’s hard. Although our rooms at the Sheraton Desert Suites were extremely well equipped they were very dark requir-ing lights all day. Not great if the weather is poor. But in fairness the resort was ex-actly as billed apart from one important detail. The bar shuts at 5pm and no amount of persuasion could get them to open it longer. But we managed to get them to allow us to open our own bar. So every night the two Richard’s manhandled
Grayhawk’s Raptor—This is why we went!
1 SHOTTON DEE 42 48 26 30 146
2 COLEMAN GARY 30 38 38 36 142
3 COLE MARTYN 35 37 34 33 139
4 SMIT RUSSELL 30 34 38 35 137
5 TRAFFORD ANTHONY 27 37 38 32 134
6 HEGARTY CHRIS 35 34 34 30 133
7 O'KEEFFE JEANNIE 35 31 32 34 132
8 BOLGER TOM 32 38 34 28 132
9 BICKERTON GEOFF 31 33 30 37 131
10 COLEMAN ANNE M 32 32 33 34 131
11 BARTON JIM 32 32 37 30 131
12 FEE GAIL 28 37 39 27 131
13 KLIMCKE SANDIE 32 34 33 30 129
14 HENNEY GEOFF 32 29 33 34 128
15 BOLGER CLARE 33 31 37 27 128
16 ARCHER ANNE 29 32 34 31 126
17 ATTWELL BILL 31 33 32 30 126
18 HAYNES BRIAN 32 29 37 28 126
19 BUCKHOLT ROBERT 29 33 32 30 124
20 FRY JIM 32 30 36 26 124
Fighting the light at Boulders
AGENT ORANGE GOES NORTH OF THE DMZ
After two successful tours to Saigon and
South Vietnam we decided that we should
also have a look at the North. Hanoi is
surrounded by some excellent golf
courses but up until now there was no-
where else to go to play golf. Two sensa-
tional developments near Da Nang have
dramatically changed that. Colin Mont-
gomerie and Greg Norman have designed
two courses, side by side, between Da
Nang and the picturesque fishing village
of Hoi An. Right on China Beach, made
famous by the Americans during the war
as their main R & R, they are contrasting
and complementing styles. Norman has
designed a tough links style course and
Monty has gone for more of an American
style course in the desert, reminiscent of
the courses in Dubai.
The other problem with the North is that
the weather isn't so consistent. Hanoi in
January and February can be cold, but
October and November can be very wet in
Central Vietnam, and these are the two
main long haul holiday periods from the
UK. So I thought the best way to test it
would be to go in October. On arrival in
Hanoi the weather was beautiful. The
drive from the airport was easy, crossing
the Red River, to the city between rivers
(which is what Ha Noi means). Thousands
of beeping motorbikes surrounded us like
an escort into the tree lined avenues of
the Old City. The French influence is un-
mistakeable, no more so than in the 100
year old Metropole Hotel. Situated right in
the middle of the Old Quarter and near the
Hoan Kiem Lake it is a step back to a by-
gone era. Similar in fact to the Sofitel in
Da Lat. Outside stand two old Citroens
and inside are large wooden floored
rooms. The leisure area around the pool
is a haven from the bustling city and the
restaurants cater for every taste. But we
weren't here for lounging about and so I
steeped straight out to get a feel for the
city.
The first thing to realise is that you will
never cross the road by waiting for the
traffic to stop. Red lights only apply to
cars and so the streams of motorbikes
hurtle towards you, beeping away. But
the rule is quite simple. Walk across
slowly always looking in the direction of
the traffic. Don't stop and don't run and
they all weave their way around you. It
sure takes some getting used to but it
works. So I crossed over to the lake and
took a stroll down to shops in the Old
Quarter. On the way preparations were
well advanced for the forthcoming 1000
year anniversary of Hanoi. Spectacular
light and laser shows were being pre-
pared. At the far end of the Lake I came
to Shoe Street where dozens of cobblers
have set up shop. Turn left and you find
opticians street, right again and you are
in toy street, left and you are in Silk
Street. Remarkable really and slightly
unnerving as they all sell the same prod-
uct for the same price (high compared to
Saigon).
Eating out is not a problem. Restaurants
range from upmarket Asian Fusion to
simple Pho cafes with set menus ranging
from $10 to $35 per head. But it was
time to see some golf courses and I had
selected 4 that I wished to look at. Van
Tri is the nearest to town, just 25 mins
from the Hotel. It is a beautifully mani-
cured and presented course in the
American style. Built mostly for the
Party bosses and financed by Korean
money it is Asian golf at its best. Many
of the courses are Korean owned and I
got a distinct impression that a Euro-
pean Tour Operator wasn't very wel-
come. King Island claimed they had a
tournament and the club was closed
and Phoenix said that they wouldn't
welcome large European groups. But
Tam Dao welcomed us with open arms
and it was well worth the 75 minute
drive out to the Tam Dao national park
to see this majestic course. On the
way back we also visited Dai Lai Star
which is still not complete but will also
be an excellent course when it opens
in January, but apart from being down
a very bumpy road it was also very
tough. But as we will only be looking
for a couple of courses near Hanoi
Tam Dao and Van Tri are better than
anything Saigon can offer.
Hanoi has a lot more to see than a few
shops and golf courses, such as Ho
Chi Minh's Mausoleum, and a couple
of hours in a Cyclo taxi will both fasci-
nate and terrify you. It is one of the
nicest Asian cities I have visited but as
usual Agent Orange had to move on.
No visit to the North is complete with-
out a trip to Halong Bay. If you thought
Phang Nga Bay near Phuket, famous
for James Bond Island was worth see-
ing then you ain't seen nothing
yet. Although it was a long 3 hour
drive down to the coast it wasn't
wasted time. Rice paddies, buffalo,
conical hats and strange narrow 3
storey houses with windows only at the
front were excellent talking
points. Some towns seemed to have
no civic pride and others looked to be
competing for Best Kept Village com-
petitions. Why? But as we ap-
proached Halong the reason for the
journey became apparent with the
Karst mountains springing up out of
the fields.
We decided to try out Emeraude, a 34
cabin replica paddle steamer; a top of
the range cruiser. There are many
more traditional Junk style boats to
choose from but most of the best are
only 20 cabins. We need to be sure
that we can take over one boat and as
our groups to Vietnam are normally
between 40 and 50 people we would-
n't want to be split up.
Picturesque Hoi An
Registration was swift and as we were a
couple of minutes late the boat had al-
ready left, but we were whisked out on a
speed boat and taken up to the sun deck
for our welcome drink. Our cases were
taken to our cabins and we went straight
to the restaurant for the lunch buffet, and
very good it was. After lunch and back on
deck the scenery was breathtaking. Huge
limestone mountains rose up from the
sea, covered with vegetation and sur-
rounded by fishing boats and coracles
from another era. Soon we pulled up in
front of one particularly tall rock and we
were invited to inspect the "Secret
Grotto". We secret it certainly wasn't as
veryboat on the bay was also there, but
the disembarkation was orderly and the
arrival was simple. First we climbed a
couple of hundred steps and looked down
on the busy scene and then we plunged
into the grotto. It had been wonderfully
laid out with easy paths and steps and
was it worth the climb. Wookey Hole eat
your heart out. This was a cavern of sta-
lacmites and stalactites and extraordinary
ceilings and weird formations that just
went on and one. Cleverly lit and beauti-
fully clean it was one of the highlights of
my trip. If I was ever doubting the wisdom
of coming down here this dispelled it.
Back on board and more cruising through
the magical scenery until we arrived at a
floating fisherman's village. The little
houses were built on floats and they all
had generators and TVs. There was a
school and a temple and a general store
and the kids jumped from boat to house
and back again with an agility that was
quite remarkable. But this kind of voyeur-
ism isn't really for me. I worry that the
people only exist like this because of the
tourists coming to buy their painted shells
and donating money to the school and
that if it wasn't for us they wouldn't be
there. A bit of a chicken and egg situation
like the Hill Tribes of Chiang Mai, but nev-
ertheless it is an interesting way of life.
We then moved around to another bay
where we were able to go for a swim or do
a bit of kayaking. The water was incredi-
bly salty but refreshing and a good bit of
exercise at the end of the day. After cock-
tails and a spring roll cooking class, dinner
was served. Another delicious buffet in the
convivial atmosphere of the restaurant enli-
vened by a group of French from Marseilles
on a kind of group holiday from the depart-
ment store where the wives all worked.
They were right out of Are You Being Served
crossed with Allo Allo!
After dinner they showed the movie Indo-
chine with Catherine Deneuve on the sun
deck. Much of it was filmed around Halong
Bay and its broad canvas of French colonial
life in the 30's and 40's was a perfect
movie for the location.
In the morning we rose early as the boat
slowly made its way back towards the town
of Halong. After a good breakfast we sat on
deck and read our books and took pho-
tos. Should it be included in the tour? Un-
doubtedly. The area is unique and worthy
of its World Heritage Site status. Slowly we
are crossing them off - Ancient Egypt, the
Great Wall & Terracotta Warriors, Angkor
Wat and now Halong Bay. Stick with it,
there aren't too many more!
Of course the drawback of the 3 hour drive
down is the 3 hour drive back but we broke
it with a visit to a huge Arts and Crafts fac-
tory with products made of marbles, silk,
laquer and stones all made by the dis-
abled. Normally I wouldn't dream of stop-
ping at a place like this, so obviously de-
signed for tourists, but in this case I would
make an exception. There really was
something for everyone, even a hardened
old cynic like me.
In any case we also stopped at a golf
course halfway back, Chi Linh Star, which
was undoubtedly one of the VN's top
courses but I think trying to play a game
on the way back and then taking a late
flight down to Da Nang would be too much
in a day. So the shopping stop and an
early flight seems sensible.
Hanoi's airport is small and easy and we
boarded our flights to Da Nang in no
time. The flight is less than an hour and
there we were driving through monsoon
rains down past China Beach and Monkey
Mountain and old US Airforce hangars on
the road to Hoi An. Although Da Nang will
soon have it's Hyatts and Meridiens it is
not really a Greencard place and so we
opted for the Victoria Hotel right on the
beautiful beach about 5 kms outside the
Heritage town of Hoi An. It's a small 4.5
Star hotel by our standard but just the
kind of place we like for a long stay at the
beach. The standard rooms are large but
if you want beachfront suites and deluxe
rooms they are lovely. The hotel has great
restuarants and facilities and is a perfect
complement to the neighbouring village of
Hoi An.
Just 10 mins by hotel mini van and you are
transported to a world of chinese lanterns
and little shops, mostly silk tailors or vary-
ing degrees of skill, but also many wonder-
ful restaurants and bars. Touristy it most
certainly is. Polperro in Asia. But the rea-
son the tourists come here is because it is
so beautiful. So you won't see many Viet-
namese in the restaurants but you will be
in a magical place. Whether we would
make this a long stay would depend on
the golf courses. The next day and the
monsoon was still in full swing and luckily
the rains just let up as we drove up to the
Montgomerie Links. One immediately
Halong Bay at Sunset
The MontyThe MontyThe MontyThe Monty
Lewis Mosse 12 27 Teignmouth
John Shearan 6 26 Co Louth
Bill Coupe 7 22 Lancaster
Peter Sumner 7 22 South Herts GC
Richard Burke 12 17 Santa Maria
Julie Harris 14 17 Domaine Imperial
Ian Robinson 6 17 Rufford Park
Leonard Peifer 8 16 Santa Maria
Russell Smit 4 16 Woburn
Anthony Trafford 15 16 Weston Park
Colin Robinson 10 14 Malton & Norton
Neil Gillam 9 13 Wentworth
Christopher Hegarty 9 13 Chorlton-cu-Hardy
John Mac 8 13 Peter Quinn 18 13 Greenore
Roger Hunt 10 12 Wrag Barn
Jeannie O'Keeffe 5 12 Hankley Common
Alan Baxter 6 11 Mere
Martin Fell 6 10 Copt Heath
Elizabeth Fern 10 10 Willesley Park
Reuben Fielding 12 10 Tytherington
Ian Harris 8 10 Domaine Imperial
Brian Haynes 11 10 Sundridge Park
Geoff Hill 10 10 Hollinwell
Paul Holyhead 14 10 Nelson
Paul Kaye 6 10 Brough
Sandie Klimcke 12 10 Clandon Regis
Alan Orritt 10 10 Penwortham
Neil Ratcliffe 7 10 Derby
Julie Rotchell 12 10 Monmouthshire
Dee Shotton 20 10 Woburn
Sally Ward 26 10 Shaw Hill
Malcolm Buchanan 11 9 Preston
Gary Coleman 18 9 Elsham
Glenn Harris 13 9 Wellingborough
Geoffrey Henney 4 9 Woodbridge
Neil Bamber 6 8 Preston
Janette Brown 16 8 Nelson
Martyn Cole 8 8 Bowood
Gary Corbett 8 8 Mere
Sue Mawhinney 19 8 Woodcote Park
Seamus McConalogue 8 8 Ballyliffin
Jackie Bleakley 16 7 Anne Bridges 5 7 Birchwood
Anne Laming 15 7 Neil McGarva 6 7 Kilmacolm
Geoffrey McKeown 9 7 Channels
Frank Ryan 21 7 Royal Dublin
Dave Simpson 16 7 Sundridge Park
John Ward 14 7 Shaw Hill
Kathleen Birdsall 23 6 Woburn
Richard Bleakley 14 6 North Wales
Neil Dangerfield 27 6 La Moye
Keith Dawkins 17 6 Tim Elliott 15 6 Hankley Common
Tony Marshall 13 6 Wildwood
David Newmarch 16 6 Abridge
John O'Keeffe 12 6 The Wisley
Joe Warren 13 6 Co Louth
Jackie Carter 13 5 Rufford Park
Philip Crossland 14 5 Southport O Links
Neil Dalton 13 5 Meon Valley
Sharon Fell 30 5 Redditch
Gordon Geddes 12 5 Wrag Barn
Wallace Grace 18 5 Ham Manor
Val Smyth 3 5 Co Louth
Peter Turton 17 5 Stella Brewin 16 4 Torksey
Russell Garrington 10 4 Burton-On-Trent
Chris Lord 14 4 Moortown
Marian Martin 18 4 Santa Maria
Simon Ormerod 13 4 Shaw Hill
Inge Steinle 19 4 Santa Maria
Maggie Stevenson 17 4 Thomas Bolger 11 3 Ham Manor
Rosie Chisholm Hill 9 3 Ifield
Linda Crossland 15 3 Southport O Links
Melvyn Fern 13 3 Willesley Park
Gwynneth Fielding 19 3 Davenport
Laurence Graham 5 3 Royal Guernsey
Godfrey Horsford 12 3 St Ives
Robert Kerr 6 3 Troon Welbeck
Simon Klimcke 17 3 Clandon Regis
Rosemary Milton 17 3 Royal Mid Surrey
Julia Allen 26 2 Langley Park
Anne Archer 10 2 Ipswich
Geoff Bickerton 3 2 Golf del Sur
Barry Birdsall 14 2 Woburn
Paul C Speakman 9 2 Workington
Jenny Staines 21 2 Bishop Stortford
Su Worthington 6 2 Bristol & Clifton
Malcolm Baker 9 1 East Devon
Elspeth Baxter 23 1 Mere
Ann-Marie Coleman 5 1 Elsham
Oliver Egan 15 1 Gail Hegarty 14 1 Chorlton-c-Hardy
Brian Henderson 4 1 St Andrews
Diana Hudson 8 1 Royal Guernsey
Roger Lascelles 14 1 Lodewijk Schlingemann 18 1 Moscow CC
FINAL TOUR POINTS TABLE
knew that this was going to be just per-
fect for Greencard. I would have been
happy just to play the Driving Range! But
wide fir tree fringed fairways with white
sand bunkers and large undulating
greens were testimony to the fact that
Monty is getting better at this art of
course designing. Literally right next door
is the Greg Norman Da Nang Golf
Club. Although not quite finished, all 18
holes are open for play if you know the
right people. Although I knew Howie Rob-
erts, the Golf Director, from his time in
Egypt I didn't play as the rains were pour-
ing down again. But this was a top class
links course. In complete contrast to the
Monty, Greg has narrowed the fairways
and used the natural contours of the
dunes to make positioning off the tee a
premium. Well protected and smaller
greens will make this a real challenge but
one that can be conquered.
Both these courses are exactly what I
hoped for and more. Two rounds on each
will be a great way to end our tournament
in North Vietnam and if beach isn't your
thing you can always play again or visit Mai
Son temples or spend a day or two brows-
ing through the boutiques of Hoi An. Take
a river trip or a boat trip out to the islands.
Finally to really cap off a tour to North Viet-
nam you should try and visit Hue. The 3
hour drive from Da Nang over the moun-
tains, or through the tunnel if there is low
cloud, is beautiful. Hue is the ancient capi-
tal of Royal Vietnam and the citadel and
Forbidden City, although very badly damaged
in the various wars, is still well worth a
visit. The hotel La Residence overlooks the
Perfumed River that divides the town and is
a marvellous Art Deco palace that was once
the French governor's home.
From Hue and Da Nang you can fly easily
back to Hanoi or Saigon to catch your flight
home. We will be including North Vietnam in
our 2012 programme, arriving on 29th Janu-
ary. Expect it to be a little cooler than Thai-
land or Saigon with temperatures as low as
16C but they can also be in the mid 20's
and down in Da Nang in the high 20's. This
is perfect golfing weather, with very little
rain, but it might not be all day, every day
sunbathing weather.
“…..whereas
the £18,000
budget used
to buy
€27,000 it
now only buys
€20,000 .”
THE GRAND FINALS MUST
MOVE WITH THE TIMES
event if half the qualifiers failed
to attend.
In any case nearly all our qualifi-ers already spend a considerable sum of money upgrading to the hotel accommodation and single rooms. Far better for them to pay for their flights and then have a genuine Free holiday with some
added frills.
So in reality we are locked into Spain or Portugal where flights are affordable to all. People want better courses and a vari-
ety.
So I spent most of the week in Portugal in meetings with hotels and course owners to see if we can draw up an agreement for a long term deal that enables us to play on the best courses and stay in top class accommodation. All within our budget that will of course be improved by injecting
the average flight cost.
Whilst Spain does have some excellent courses the affordable ones tend to be in areas with precious little nightlife and res-taurants. I am thinking the Soto-grande, Almenara, San Roque area. To return to La Manga would be a step backwards. Whereas Portugal has the 3 Quinta do Lago courses all close to great accommodation and a short drive to some superb res-taurants and the nightlife around Vilamoura. In addition to these there are the Oceanica courses—Faldo, O’Connor, Victoria and of course the Old Course at Vilam-oura. Oceanica also owns sub-stantial amounts of accommoda-
tion, hotels and apartments.
So we have entered into serious negotiations to see if we can find a partner for the coming years who really wishes to be associ-ated with our event. Not just because times are hard now but because they genuinely want to see some great golf played by a large group at a quiet time of
year every year.
We will keep you informed of progress. We most certainly haven’t ruled out other destina-tions but in terms of affordable flights and the time of year it really seems that Malaga and Faro are the only realistic alterna-
tives.
Watch this space.
Almost since the day I started run-
ning golf tournaments the question
of Slow Play has been a burning
issue. No amount of exhortations
and threats have made an ounce of
difference as the time taken to
complete a Greencard tournament
round has moved inexorably to-
wards the 5 hours.
It would now be unusual for the last
groups to finish in under 5 hours. It
is painful in the extreme and I be-
lieve it can have a serious effect on
our business. There is only so
many 5 hour rounds that one man
can take.
So what to do? How do you make
people change their habits? Be-
cause in the end we are all guilty of
little quirks and habits that slow us
up. Most of us are aware of the
problem and concentrate on one
aspect whilst ignoring another and
we are too polite to complain when
we see others dallying..
I believe that the time for cajoling
and begging is over. I remember
that way back in the early 90’s
Theydon Bois GC in Essex decided
to put a Clocking On machine on
the 1st tee and a Clocking Off ma-
chine by the 18th green. Any group
that took more than 4 hrs were
suspended for a month. The effect
was breathtaking.
Suddenly people discovered that
they were in fact able to play
quicker without ruining their games.
Now I don’t believe that you can
change people from tortoises to
hares overnight but I do believe
that we can start by targeting 4hrs
45 mins as a tournament maxi-
mum. So the first group of the day
that fails to complete their round
within that time frame will auto-
matically get a yellow card. Two
yellow cards and it is a 2 shot pen-
alty. Obviously this doesn’t apply to
the people following them.
Something has to be done and only
by having an unarguable standard
can we hope to achieve an improve-
ment. You can expect to be on the
clock next year. Who knows maybe
the year after we can try 4hr 40!!
For many years now we have been aware that all is not well with the Grand Finals. La Manga Club, the home for 25 years was a superb venue at a time when people con-sidered a golfing week in Spain to be the highlight of the year’s golf-
ing calendar.
But that is no longer the case. Our clients qualify for the Finals at superb venues all over the world. Five star accommodation and Championship courses. It is thus unworthy to hold the finals at a venue that fails to match these
standards.
The constraints however are many. On average there will be two win-ners per event. If we increase the cost of the Free Holiday then that cost must be loaded onto the cost of the events throughout the year. We feel that cost is high enough. As one not so competitive client told me he wouldn’t be coming back because he didn’t see why he should pay for others to have a free trip. He has a point but only if
that cost becomes excessive.
Also whereas the £18,000 budget used to buy €27,000 it now only buys €20,000 and it is for this reason that we found ourselves at
Vila Sol instead of Monte Rei.
In 2005 we tried taking the Tour Finals to Abu Dhabi. Many people remember it as one of the best Greencard events ever. But the problem was that having struck the deal, the hotel spent the rest of the year trying to extricate itself. When we negotiated the deal Abu Dhabi was a quiet backwater near Dubai. Within a year it had taken off. Hotel rates were soaring and the Rotana Beach Towers were desperately unhappy to be tied in to our deal. They used every trick in the book to bend the rules and in the end the trip cost us way over
the budget.
We have also rejected the idea of giving people a £500 or £600 voucher that can only be used on the Finals, and then taking the venue to somewhere expensive. It is vital that no one who wins a place should be excluded. So we have decided to exclude the flights from the trip and increase the amount spent on hotel and green fees. We must never lose sight of the fact that not everyone who qualifies is a millionaire. It would be defeating the purpose of the
PUTTING THE
CLOCK ON
SLOW PLAY
TURKEY DATE
CHANGE—7TH
TO 14TH MAY
TAKING US FOR A RYDER I am not sure whether the world’s
most renowned seed merchant, Sam
Ryder, realised what he was starting
when he announced the eponymous
competition.
Back then in 1927 golf was a game
with few superstars. The British
team that came to Worcester, Massa-
chusetts only to be thrashed 9 1/2—2
1/2 was made up of virtual unknowns
to the other side of the Pond apart
from Ted Ray. The Americans on the
other hand were captained by Walter
Hagen with Gene Sarazen as his
sidekick.
In fact had it not been for the fact that
a relative unknown, George Duncan,
the GB captain, thrashed the great
Walter Hagen at Moortown by 10 & 8
in 1929 it is possible that the matches
might have died a death.
But by the time of the 1937 matches
both teams had assembled star casts
including Percy Alliss, Henry Cotton & Dai
Rees for GB and Walter Hagen, Gene
Sarazen, Sam Snead and Byron Nelson
for the USA.
But the results were depressingly familiar.
It didn’t matter which side of the Pond it
was played GB was thrashed. By 1981 at
Walton Heath, the first matches that I
attended, such was the politics in the
PGA that GB & Europe felt that they
could dispense with Seve for playing
somewhere they didn’t approve. Ranged
against a US team that included Jack
Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson, Ray
Floyd, Johnny Miller & Hale Irwin we
fielded such heavyweights as Howard
Clark and Mark James. It was embar-
rassing and we lost 18 1/2—9 1/2.
It was not long after this that the Euro-
pean Tour decided that if Europe was
going to use players honed on their Tour
then their Tour should have more say
about the event. One of the most signifi-
cant decisions was that the European
Tour would get to choose the venue
every 8 years. The PGA would choose
it on the other European years.
Let’s look at where the European Tour
has chosen: Valderrama, K Club and
Gleneagles. Compare and contrast that
with the PGA’s choice of The Belfry,
The Belfry, The Belfry and Celtic Manor.
The drama on that fabulous Monday at
Celtic Manor had absolutely nothing to
do with the course and everything to do
with the history of the event. Oh that it
could have been played on a course
worthy of such drama instead of a piece
of sheep grazing hilly Welsh motorway
verge.
The Ryder Cup does not need to sell
itself to the highest bidder. It is time that
the PGA recognised that the event has
outgrown them and they should hand it
over to the real Pros, lock, stock and
Grahame McDowell’s smoking putter.
The combination of British Airways and
ThomsonFly pulling out of the Antalya
route left us stranded with precious few
flight options for our Turkey trip to the
Gloria in May. And then Cyprus Turkish
Airlines went bust!
For 10 years Sunday to Sunday has been
the best option for Antalya but not any-
more. With effectively only Easyjet and
Thomas Cook on the route and rumours
that Monarch might come in and take up
the slack it seems that Saturday to Satur-
day is now favourite.
So we have moved the dates one day ear-
lier. Tee times were a bit of an issue as
we wanted two Old and two New course
rounds, so on the Thursday—Round
Three—the start time is at 12.00. But
apart from this there is no difference.
There is a Monarch flight on 6th May from
Manchester returning late 13th which
would enable you to leave after prize giv-
ing.
If you have any difficulty simply contact the
office for assistance as we can access all
flights. Apologies for the change but BA
and others are withdrawing in the face of
the recession.
It has been quite a momentous year at
Greencard. It began with us feeling dis-
tinctly sea sick from the effects of an un-
dermanned cruise on Sea Cloud. Then
just as the seas were becoming calmer
the air above was filled with volcanic ash.
Huge thanks should go to Richard Munroe
and our long time Portuguese agent
Domitilia for rescheduling dozens of holi-
days and ensuring refunds.
But as the year went on the sun came out.
Gordon was banished and the Pound
stopped falling. The coalition looks to
have found its feet and the UK will begin
the long and winding road back to eco-
nomic stability. It will take some time but
the I do believe the worst is now behind
us. Real rates of return can be obtained
from some very safe Blue Chip companies
and the housing market seems to be in an
orderly retreat, which is a pre-condition for
real recovery.
So both of the Richards (or the two Dicks
if you prefer) would like to join in wishing
you all a wonderful Christmas and a birdie
filled New Year. Preferably on a Green-
card Golf Holiday.
From now until 30th November Qatar From now until 30th November Qatar From now until 30th November Qatar From now until 30th November Qatar
Airways has a fantastic seat sale. Book Airways has a fantastic seat sale. Book Airways has a fantastic seat sale. Book Airways has a fantastic seat sale. Book
for travel from Manchester or London to for travel from Manchester or London to for travel from Manchester or London to for travel from Manchester or London to
Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur for travel be-Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur for travel be-Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur for travel be-Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur for travel be-
fore 31 Jan with prices from £538 to KL.fore 31 Jan with prices from £538 to KL.fore 31 Jan with prices from £538 to KL.fore 31 Jan with prices from £538 to KL.
It was with great sadness that I learned
of the passing of John Newark. He died
in October in his sleep having attended
an Irish wedding. Most of us would con-
sider this the Club Class exit, to be sur-
passed only by expiring from the exulta-
tion of holing a bunker shot on the 18th
to beat the Club Champion.
But my heart goes out to Margaret, his
widow. John was much more to me than
just a Greencard client. He and Margaret
have taken a great interest in the ongoing
saga of the Vine family. They even on
one occasion allowed us to stay in their
apartment when I feared that our lives
were in danger at home.
On another occasion John wrote that he
had attended his last event because
Greencard had become too competitive.
I replied that without him dinner times
would be a more arid place as he was
one of the few who could pass an eve-
ning without mentioning golf. He re-
turned, many times, and I shall miss him.
JOHN NEWARK
QATAR AIRWAYS
SEAT SALE A VERY MERRY
CHRISTMAS AND A
HAPPY NEW YEAR