Handicap Day Results August 9 2008

BRG Handicap Day - August 9 2008 - Results

The seventh Bushranger Golf Handicap Day for 2008 was held at Waterford Valley Golf Course in overcast conditions on Saturday August 9. Although showers threatened, it stayed dry but the chilly weather tested the resolve of the 11 hearty Bushrangers who finally made it to the starting line to fight out a cunning battle for stableford points.

In a thrilling finish, Ian Crocko Crotty came storming home on the back nine to tie Matthew Thomas on 37 stableford points. With his super finish, Ian won the bikkies on countback - the second handicap day in a row decided by a countback. (Note that the countback is used to separate the prize pool on the day, but the tied players receive equal points in the BRG POY standings.) Scott Wilson again proved that Waterford is one of his favourite tracks with another strong showing for third place on 35 points. These three vaulted their way up the BRG Player of the Year standings to set up a fascinating run to the finish with four Handicap Days and the William Buckley Classic the last five events of the year to carry BRG POY points. Below we see Crocko with scorecard, looking a little morose after fumbling the ball on the 18th to drag his score over 80 at Waterford for the 2nd year in a row - he looked a little happier soon after when he was declared the winner.

However, the big story of the day was the bloke who finished in fourth place. After an unbelievable start where he shredded the front 9 at Waterford Valley to amass a staggering 26 stableford points, Dave The Ham Regenspurger turned in one of the greatest choking performances in golf history to card an equally astonishing 8 points on the back nine to finish with 34 points. Remarkably, he managed to play the first half in 8 under his handicap and the back in 10 over, meaning he scored, on average, two shots worse per hole on his second nine. It seems he has somehow posted a career best front side and a career worst backside on the same day.

What's more, this gargantuan throat-tightener may have done irreperable damage to his chances in the BRG POY, even though he is still leading the race. Another 10 points would almost certainly have shut the door on his rivals, but, as things stand, there is now a huge probability he will be caught. He was the first player to attain scores in six events, whereas many of his rivals have not yet done so. This means he needs to beat his sixth best score (5 points) to add to his total (besides entry points), whereas his rivals with less than six scoring events will add any points they win and reel him in. This format of imposing a glass ceiling on the point scoring by only counting the top six events means the longer the year goes, the tighter the top of the leaderboard will get. It appears destined to create a close race and, if The Ham loses by a point or two, it will certainly be the Monster Choke at Waterford that cost him the title.

By clamming up so severely, The Ham has sent his rivals a very clear message: he is brittle and they should never give up as he may fold at any moment. The big question now is whether the self-doubt of this collapse will haunt him every time he tees up for the remainder of 2008. It reamins to be seen whether he can recover, both mentally and emotionally, from this gruesome, almost unconcionable, setback. It is certainly questionable whether such a performance is befitting for a BRG Player of the Year winner, and if The Ham is wondering this himself, it may become a self-fulfilling prophecy of Nostradamic proportions.

The next Handicap Day will be most telling, not only as it is at his home track at Sandringham, but also because we return to strokeplay, the format where there is no place to hide and where, unlike stabelford, many holes of good work can be completely undone with a shabby patch of play. As Craig Hutchison used to say, it is no place for the faint-hearted. The final results for the seventh handicap day are below and the standings for the BRG Player of the Year have been updated.

The next BRG event is the 2nd 2008 Qualifier for the Victorian Social Golf Club Championships on Saturday August 16. It is on at the same venue, Waterford Valley, and tees off from 10:30am. As mentioned, the next BRG Handicap Day (# 8 for 2008) is at Sandringham Public Golf Course on Sunday September 21. For more info, watch out for news items and keep an eye on the Event Schedule and the Handicap Day  page.