Four Ball, Better Ball

Always been puzzled by this game. Surely it should be called "Two ball, best ball"?



The bad news is that Wembley are putting up the green fees. "Surprise, surprise" I hear you all calling. 

The committee will determine the implications for SOS in due course.

Golf is a game of rules, we all know that. But talk about catering for every eventuality. Look at this one:

Q: My driver head flew off in the middle of my swing. Although the head never touched the ball, I did complete the swing. Does it still count as a stroke if equipment failure caused my whiff?

A: The Rules are nothing if not thorough, and Decision 14/2 covers precisely this situation. If the head came off during your backswing, you're in the clear because a stroke only starts with the forward movement of the club (the downswing), and a shaft alone is not considered a club. If you lost your head in the downswing, though, the stroke counts, says Decision 14/3. But look on the bright side: At least you don't have to re-tee.

So, if you're going to lose your club head, just make sure to do it on the backswing!

A pleasant day at Wembley, with perfect weather. Golf can bring out the worst in one, though:

An argumentative drunk had been looking for a fight all afternoon in the club bar after losing his match, finally aiming a punch at the man next to him. The man ducked and the drunk, losing balance, fell off his stool on to the floor. By the time he’d dusted himself down and picked himself up, his opponent had departed.

“Not much of a fighter, was he?” he complained to the barman.

“Not much of a driver either, sir,” said the barman, gazing out of the window. “He’s just driven over your clubs.”

After the game we all decamped to Shelley and Malcolm's for Christmas cheer.

There was the usual controversy when prizes in the Secret Santa got swapped.

Gim in possession of the birds for a few moments

For those whose day ended in disappointment, follow the link to find the location of your nearest Bunnings:

https://www.bunnings.com.au/

Fortunately I managed to slip my regifted present into the mix, and received a calendar in return. So watch out for that 2018 calendar in next years Secret Santa.

Two very different reactions to my description of how I parred the seventeenth

And the golf? To win the novelties, it obviously helps if your name begins with a letter somewhere near the middle of the alphabet.

	Novelty	Hole	Contenders	Winner
	NTP	2	Rob, Steph	John
	NTP in 3	12	Earle	John
	NTP in 2	15	Earle	Keith
	LD	17	Vickie	Jan

Individual Stableford scores don't make the paper this week, and there are no prizes, but the scores will contribute to handicap calculations

	Player	Score	Birdies
	Bernie	23
	Phil	24	9, 16
	Colin	27
	Kerry	28
	Gim	29
	Charmaine	31
	Rob	31
	Glen	32
	Peter	32
	Rob	33
	Derek	33
	Jan	33
	Brett	33
	David	34
	Earle	34
	John	35
	Richard O	36
	Ian	36
	Keith	37
	Lynne	38
	Stephanie	38
	Eric	39

So, how did the pairs go?

4 Ball Better Ball
	Bernie & Rowland	36
	Kerry & Colin	36
	Charmaine & Peter	38
	Thomas & Dave	39
	Glen & Phil	40
	Derek & Ian	41
	Jan & Rob	42
	Vickie & Earle	42
	Richard & Brett	45
	Gim & Eric	45
	John & Lynne	46
	Keith & Stephanie	46

Many thanks to our sponsor, and here are the happy winners.

Thought for the day: Curly, downhill, left-to-right putts are usually followed by curly, uphill, right-to-left putts. 





Frances received her Anniversary Cup, and will be busy polishing it over Christmas. 

Many thanks to Shelley and Malcolm for hosting the event, and to all those who helped. 

And a special mention to Tui's quiche, which was amazing.

And finally, don't forget - -if a golfer wishes to give you a blow-by-blow account of his round, ask him to start with his final putt on the 18th green.