LAST Saturday’s Blue Lake Golf Club Monthly Medal Stroke round had some golfers wishing they only teed off 17 holes instead of the regular 18.
Trevor Little won the day with a nett 67, which could have been improved if not for a mishap on the seventh hole.
Little made steady progress through the first six holes, with a birdie on the second and a set of three bogeys following close behind.
He then followed up with an unfortunate botch on the seventh hole, which he quickly recovered from with a birdie and a par respectively to the last two holes.
Little’s last-minute performance let him finish over his handicap of four with an impressive 38 strokes.
On the back nine, Little made short work of the course as he claimed birdies on the 13th, 15th and 17th holes to total 33 strokes.
Holding his head high as he claimed victory, Little finished the day with an incredible 71-4-67.
Meanwhile in the A Grade, winner Steve Jelly proved how one hole was enough to spoil a near perfect run on the course.
Although Jelly’s wobbly approach on the 11th hole’s slippery green left a mark on his score, he still managed to find himself playing a game good enough for the record books.
He kicked off with a birdie on the third hole, which was followed by three bogeys in a row suggesting it could be a rough day for Jelly.
Digging deep for the last three holes of the outward nine, Jelly managed to use his smooth and classical swing to grasp three pars to leave him two under his handicap on 38.
The back nine’s double bogey refused to shake Jelly, as he pushed through to score a birdie on the 12th hole to make a comeback.
From there, it was par after par for Jelly as he finished the back nine off with a 37, which matched the previous performance of Little but was beaten due to a count back for the overall win.
Tim Smith’s par putts eluded him on the back nine, but had the skill on his side to score six pars on the front nine for two under his handicap on 38.
Smith was playing catch-up with Little and Jelly after starting with three bogeys but almost managed to get there with a birdie on the 17th before falling one short.
Michale Dedonatis was another player who wished golf was a 17 hole sport as he fumbled the third hole.
Dedonatis’ first nine earned him a total of 40 before improving with 36 on the inward nine.
His performance earnt him the third place spot with a round of 76-7-69.
David Lamont and Daniel Loupos scored 69 each in the B Grade, which was a pity considering both players could not share the prize money.
Lamont got off to a rocky start with a triple bogey on the first hole which was followed by a couple more double bogeys.
In between those scores, Lamont managed to impress with four pars and another bogey before unleashing his potential on the back nine.
Three pars kicked Lamont off as he then jumped from a double bogey on the 14th hole to a stunning eagle on the 15th for an inward 38.
Loupos stumbled with a triple bogey on the fourth hole before turning it around with a birdie on the 15th.
Matt Jennings was caught in the middle of a four-way count back after scoring nett 70 which was the result of a double bogey on the last hole.
Brenton Speck managed to be the only player to break 70 in the C Grade, proving his performance could sometimes match that of A Grade players.
A disastrous third hole almost cost Speck the win but he managed to bounce back with a par on the hardest hole of the course.
Speck proceeded to play an unpredictable game with some highs and lows, with a particular highlight going to the birdie he snagged on the 15th.
Another four-way count back was decided in C Grade between Frank Pinneri, Jim Ferrazzola, Richard Neale and Steven Fennell who all scored nett 70.
Pinneri managed to claim a 47 on the back nine which made two under his handicap, while Ferrazzola made 44.
Ferrazzola’s score slipped one under his handicap, but was beaten by the count back between himself and the other three competitors.
Millicent Golf Club visitor Keith McKellar heads the list of ball prize winners, followed by the unlucky Neale, Fennell, May Fenwick, Russell Lingham, Adam Dunn, Derek Sargeant, David Marshall, Fred Knight, Nick Wilson, Ken Milsop and Zach Westwick on 71.
Lamont cleared out the Eagles Nest as Knight and Westwick won pro shots on the fifth and 16th respectively.
Mark Carrison won the A Grade NTP while Craig Donaldson took B Grade and Scott Montgomery in C Grade.
