Mr Jeffrey today but lose all individual bets...

Played today with the Koh Brothers and Billy at NSRCC Changi

As usual, the bet was for 6 sixes and individual matchplay. Started pretty strongly for the first 6 holes, I was only over but the last 3 holes at Navy, I played 4 over. I played back 9 Army at 6 over and I am pretty pleased with 83.

But it was quite strange that I was Mr Jeffrey (for the uninitiated, it means I get free lunch), I lost all the individual bets. I can think of 3 reasons:

1. For the individual bets, the guys are getting too many strokes from me. Lost $10 each to Peter and Billy, $15 to Robert.

2. For the Sixes, I gave too few strokes to them.

3. My partners did all the work when I partnered them.

Still cannot think of the right reason.

Anyway, the lunch was too heavy, thanks to Peter's ordering. 4 dishes of carbo :

1. Fried Rice
2. Hor Fun
3. Hongkong noodle
4. Mee goreng

And for some of the guys, plain rice too!!!

Thats a great deal of carbo loading man.

Future World No 1s?

This weekend, 2 of golf's most promising young players won in style!

Rory McIlroy shot 62 came from behind to win Quail Hollow. In the event that made news because Tiger missed the cut, Rory shot 8 birdies and an eagle and finally won his first tournament in the PGA Tour.



Ryo Isshikawa, the talented golfer with the rock star look, shot a record breaking score of 58 to win in Japan on the same weekend. He could have shot 57 had his final putt when in for a birdie. 12 birdies in one round!!!

In my opinion, Rory has one of the best swing on the planet right now. His swing is such a joy to watch. My bet is on him to become the World No 1 pretty soon. Within 2 years.

So paiseh ah....

In the just concluded SGA Inter-club League, Sembawang CC came in 3rd in the A Division. This is a record achievement for the A-Team.

Guess what? Your truly is a member of the A-team, but I did not contribute a single game unlike last year when I played in all.

So paiseh ah!!! A free loader!!

There are 6 players in the team, 4 will play in each game, with 2 reserves. I was the reserve for all games.

My regret is I cannot fight into the top 4 due to my poor form lately. Due to many business travel and lack of practice. At the same time, I am glad that the best players get to represent the team and the club.

The first game was at Sembawang CC, our home ground, the Commando Course. We came in 2nd to NSRCC.

Warren was the site for the 2nd game. However the game was scapped due to inclement weather.

The 3rd game was at SICC's Championship Bukit Course, the team dropped to 5th position.

The 4th game was held at Keppel, the team managed to maintain our 5th position and qualified for the finals at OCC

At the Finals at OCC on 26th April, the team fought back strongly and nearly won the game at OCC. We lost to NSRCC by 1 stroke. This strong performance allowed us to climb 2 places to finish 3rd overall. The best ever showing in the SGA Interclub league.

Well done guys, I am really proud of you! I hope I can play a more active role next year!! (caveat : If I am still invited for the selection trial).

Haikou trip

It was my first trip to Haikou. I was contemplating to go the Kunming or Haikou, obviously, the latter won. I heard that Spring City is not so good now due to the prolong drought.

After touching down at the Airport, we headed straight to Mei Lan Golf. It is a very new golf course which was just opened 6 months ago. The course was only a short drive from the airport. As a new course, it is very open with only tree saplings. The clubhouse is really nice but the food there is really expensive.

Unfortunately, after 9 holes it started to rain. We continued as there was no siren but as soon as the lightning strike over our head, we stopped playing. There is no point risking our lives over a game of golf.

After the game we headed to a restaurant for dinner which I cannot remember the name. We tried all the famous food of Hainan like Wen Chang Chicken, Dong Shan Mutton etc. Nothing to shout about, I am not recommending that you guys try this restaurant.

We checked into the Gold Coast Lawton Hotel after the game. This hotel is very convenient, although it is about 10 mins from the city. I recommend that you guys stay there if you are in Haikou for golf.

We looking for some place for drinks in the evening but unfortunately for us, all entertainment outlets were closed that night due to the nationwide mourning for the victims of the Qinghai earthquake.

Day 2 golf was at Meishi, and to my horror, I had my second day of "batang" caddy. Meishi is more mature course with pine trees lined fairways. Lunch was at a restarant serving "Old Duck Soup", steamboat style. Soup was nice but I am really not a fan of steamboat.

Afer the late lunch, we headed for massage at Jin Qiao Qiao. 2 hours of solid body massage at RMB 120. This is definitely value for money.

Day 3 golf was played at West Coast Golf. On the bus, I told the tour guide that I already had 2 days of batang caddy and I will not accept another day of batang. And guess what? I had another one!!!!!

Credits to the guide, she changed the caddy for me before I came out of the changing room. Talk about pro-activeness. It surely made the game a little more fun!! This is the best course of the 3 days.

The lunch was more memorable, we had claypot porridge with crab and prawns. It was really yummy!!. For someone who don't eat brinjal, I was hooked onto the hotplate brinjal. We definitely have to go back there again.

Again, we headed back to the massage place for 1+1. One hour of foot reflexology and one hour of body massage. Do note that using the foot therapist for body massage is more expensive, cos they are so called more "highly skilled". I felt that the 1+1 was more rushed.

Day 4 was orginally intended to be a rest day and we were suppose to leave for the eastern city of Boao. However, we decided to change the plan and stayed at Haikou instead. We were concerned that the journey of 2 hours might not be worth it and that the eastern city might be too boring.

We decided to play another game at Meishi, as our group has JCC reciprocal members who can sign us in as guests. This time round, the weather dropped to about 20-22 deg. It was indeed ideal for golf. I even wore my rain jacket to keep warm. The game was really nice and we did not even feel tired at all. I was having some fun joking with the caddies. At hole 9 my caddie said a bogey would be a good score, I said I will par the hole. So we had a little wager. Par will be a win for me, bogey a draw and double, she wins. After my drive and a 3-wood, I was short of the green. Chipping with my 60 deg wedge, the ball did not roll much. My par putt fell short, so it was a half.

At the tough 18th hole, I decided to change the game around, I proposed that if I parred the hole, I will give her my beautiful pitch fork/ball marker which she had been eying for a while. My approach with my 3 wood was short of the green. Deciding a 60 deg or 56 deg wedge for the chip, I opted for the latter. My chip came out beautifully and rolled to 2 feet. I gave my pitch fork to her, which must have made her day. I shot 81 which as my best game of the 4 days. It made my day too!!

After the game, we headed to the JQQ massage again, this time for a 2-hours fullbody massage.

Day 5 was a lazy day where we spend our time at the city malls at Hai Xiu Dong Lu.I think the weather probaby dropped another 1-2 deg. We managed to catch a version of the "China Idols" at the pedestrian mall area, it was quite hillarious.

Still in our mind was the claypot porride and we headed there for lunch ourselves. This time we ordered frog and prawn instead. And of course, how can we forget the sumptious claypot brinjal.

Soon, it was to the airport for the trip home.

I wrote this blog as I know some of you guys will be headed there in May. Do note that it is likely to be very hot, maybe hitting 35-40 degrees.

I do have some contacts here that you can use:

1. The local tour operator 大蔡
2. Hotel booking at at Gold Coast Lawton 金海岸罗顿 at RMB330 per day. Five star facilities, a little tired looking but convenient;
3. Jin Qiao Qiao金巧巧 massage. Cheap and good;
4. A local driver (if your are not using a operator);
5. The claypot porridge 金顺德; and
6. Other miscellaneous contacts.

Overall, Haikou is a nice place for golf. All golf courses are less than one hour away. The city scape is beautiful.

I will be back.

Comeback? - Gong Xi Fa Cai to all

After being away for so long, I finally had a game at NSRCC yesterday. This is only my 2nd game at NSRCC this year, out of a total of 3 games for 2010. Not my idea of regular golf.

And also, been away from blogging too. I forgot my blogger password!!

I have been travelling quite a fair bit since Oct 2009 and also falling sick quick frequently. Looks like there is really a flu epidemic in the northern hemisphere.

My game yesterday was with the pro, Jonas, the God of Putting, Jimmy and "Jiak Free".

One thing I noticed was Jonas has really improved on his driving distance, I think he must have added about 20m to his drive. On Airforce 9, he put the ball on the green on his 2nd shot using an iron. Wow!

Jimmy, I think the God has gone back to the heaven to submit report. He will be back only after the 9th day of CNY. So in the mean time, can bet with him :). Uncharacteristically missed 2 short putts, AF1 and NV6.

Jiak Free, playing with a injured finger, he still displayed some deft touches with his putter. I think he took over the God of Putting, at least for the day.

But my name was Jeffrey yesterday!!! My 3 kakis were kind to me. I think they were trying to lure me back to playing regularly.

I guess there are a lot of areas to improve. The swing is not there, ball striking is poor. I had quite a few fat shots. Driving only came back during the last 3 holes of the game. Only my putting was decent.

Its back to the drawing board.

Goofy with the wierdest hat ever..

Need I say more?

A Review - Black Mountain Golf, Hua Hin

I was in Hua Hin from 2nd to 4th of December and had the opportunity to play some golf with my daughter. I was contemplating the various courses there, as I have heard so much about Black Mountain, and the price was not very much higher, it was where we golfed.

And I was not disappointed. It is easily the best course in Hua Hin, and possibly in Thailand as well.

The first impression of the course was its openess, perhaps due to the course being new. But it does have a nice view of the surrounding natural terrain, and some dark hills where it derived the name from.

The fairways were in pristine condition. Other then some divots here and there, they were a joy to hit the balls from.

The greens were at a lightning fast 11.6 when I played. I can imagine the speed when they played the European Tour there, maybe a Augusta 15? As it is, we had some horrid time putting on the greens initially.

The par 3s were a joy to play. They were very well designed and not too difficult from the blue tee. It can be a very different experience from gold or black tee.

The clubhouse is simple yet classy, unlike the Singapore clubs which have huge grand clubhouse, Thai golf course usually have simple clubhouse.

Overall, I rate the course very highly and would definitely want to play there again. It is definitely a must-play course if you are in Hua Hin.

不怕你好 怕你Heng!!!

Played with Dick and the 2 Koh Brothers yesterday morning, I thought it was going to be my lucky day. I mean, playing with 2 HIN1 achievers, I am certainly going to shoot an ace man. Well, as luck would have it, I shot one of my worst score at NSRCC in recent time, even had a snowman to show.

In a classic case of 不怕你好 怕你Heng (sorry Lee Heng, borrowed your name), Robert continued his lucky streak.

On the Par 3 Airforce 6, Robert pulled his tee shot left. The ball flew to the rocky area within the hazard and he turned away with disappointment. I was tracking the ball all the time, I saw hit the rock and bounced onto the green towards the pin. Nobody saw it, only me. When told, Robert did not quite believe me.

As we approached the green, true enough, the ball was there. He had about 25 to 30 feet for a birdie putt. And with the touch of a magician, he rolled the ball into the hole for an unlikely birdie.

All our jaws dropped, completely amazed.

If this is not "Heng", what is it???

Mission Hills Golf Videos

Here are some video shots by CYM on the the Mission Hills Golf Trip. Arrival of delegates at Mission Hills Clubhouse. We looked like suakus don't we?


At the 1st teebox of the notorious Greg Norman Course. Anybody has shots of my Shu-qi??

Mission Hills Golf Trip

Seven of us, Richard, Billy, Lee Heng, Cheong YM, Jimmy, Peter and myself made the trip to Mission Hills. Unfortunately, due to unforseen circumstances, one of the pioneer members Chi Keen had to pull out. Everyday, while we were having fun, we had to observe a minute silence to remember him!!!,

We left on Friday with high expectation, nice weather of about 27deg and great golf courses. However, we were in for a big surprise. The temperature dropped on the very first day of our golf at Citic Golf Course. It was a chilly 11-12 deg with a wind chill of about 3-4 deg. We were told it was a sudden drop in temperature.

Day 1 was at Citic Golf 中信. The course was beautiful with nice fairways and great course layout. The green was surprising fast although it was quite grainy. Most of us were caught by the fast and tricky green. Peter of course was more engrossed with Billy's caddy. Billy, perhaps being the youngest in the group keep getting the cute caddies. The big winner for Day 1 - Jimmy Ang.

Day 2 was played at Guangzhou International Golf Course 仙村, a reciprocal club of NSRCC. It was a walking course and quite a few of us were walking like duck with the kar-kui-kui at the end. The only day when rain drops felled on us, while we played. At certain point, the umbrella had to come out. I had the best game of the trip with 84. First 9 at even par, 2nd 9 at +12, pui!pui!pui! Richard was the biggest winner on Day 2.

Day 3 was the terror day. At Mission Hills Greg Norman 诺曼course. We struggled on this links-like course. Terrible grass "chang cao长草"!!. Any balls that went into the rough will cause you to lose at least 1 stroke, if you can find it. Lee Heng hit into the chang-cao in just about every holes. He gained the title of "rough master" after getting the hang of hacking the balls out of the rough. You can see the rough in front of Lee Heng in this picture.
One of the toughest course around, no joke. All of us were cursing Mr Norman at the end of the game. I had a good first nine of 42, but collapse with fatigue on the back nine with a 53. Even Richard, the cool cucumber also curse Norman @#$%!!!My only motivation was I had Shu-qi lookalike as my caddy. Eat your heart out, Billy!! With some dispute over the rules on ball lost in long grass/jungles, we did not bet cross flight. Biggest winner on Day 3 was Peter Koh.

Day 4 was at Hillview Course 峰景. This is a beautiful course with the best greens in this four days. It was really fast and true. This game was known for the slaying of the kong-long. Jimmy Ang was slaughtered and rightly so, cos he shot 103. He was down by more than 400 RMB. His winning for the past few days were returned to their rightful owners. Peter was again the big winner on Day 4

The champion of the whole trip is Peter Koh, who won the Fedex Cup equivalent with more than 800 RMB.

Peter played better and better as the days go by. More impressively, he played only with a polo shirt while the rest of us were wearing 2-3 layers of clothes. So Peter, what is your secret?? I think only I know...hehehe!!!

The one who missed the cut??? He was easily the noisiest one in the whole group. Make a guess? Actually, his ass-luck already started on the plane having lost the chua-tai-ti with Jimmy and Billy.

On the whole, this trip was really fun. Golf was at some great courses (notice I did not say we all had great games?) and all the like-minded kakis were truly wonderful companies. The day has come and gone but we are certainly looking forward to more golfing adventures!!!