It is getting closer to the finish. Yup. Season almost over. Disappointing season for some, self-righteousness to others or gratification and fulfillment to a few. SGC’s drive is very simple and true – get members to revel in the company of others. Point taken folks?

Two games to account for. Contending players are jockeying for positions with a good game plan on their minds. Others display admiration just watching other members compete and how they handle pressure and revere the fact how they conduct themselves even in a losing cause. These people are the real winners if you ask me. We all learn something every day, do we not? The flagship of all these competitions is our POY. An honor to win it and we salute all past winners. It is also gratifying to note that members supporting our club for enjoyment of every one is much better.

Who did what last Sunday at Maples of Ballantrae?

ROUND: I got a story to tell about my own foursome of Bong M., Rey P. and Jojo D. First of all, my expression of regret to other groups who may want to relate a better story than I have but what I do not have I cannot post. I try to post funny and interesting stories happening after every round of golf. That is why I keep my ears open wide and listen to players around me. You are welcome to feed me legit funny stories to make it more interesting. Back to my foursome though. Bong M. & Rey P. got their mojo going in the early part of the game but unfortunately both players lost the wind in their sails in the last three holes. Regardless they both posted good scoring. I guess this is why we play eighteen holes, don’t we?  One player, Jojo D. showed us a little different beat. He excelled in almost anything he did – driving, chipping, & putting as all three of us marvelled watching him. Jojo as we finished the round jumped in joy like a little child who just got a new toy when he learned he just broke 80 by carding a gross of 79. But there was a catch. Remember the saying never count the chicks before the eggs hatch? Two foursomes later, Levi M. with an equal handicap to Jojo carded a better gross score of 78. Levi M. to his credit won more Nassau contests last year than anybody else. With the lowest gross (78) & lowest net (60) became perfectly clear Sunday that he is one of the good scoring players to reckon with. Other players who carded hard-earned net scores in the 60s were Jojo D. 62, Mar DV & Sennix B. 64, Sam K. & Bong M. 68, and PJ P. with 69.

NASSAU: A heartbreaker to Jojo D. who was left winning just the front nine with net 30. Levi M. outshone him by winning overall and the back nine with net score of 60 & 29 respectively.

RACE to MONTH 5: So far with three rounds accounted for, Jojo D. leads the pack owning huge six points margin to second place finishers (tied) Levi M. & PJ P. One round to go to finalize the top three which is next week.

CLOSEST to the PIN: Manny C. who rarely enters optional contests, took the front sixth hole. Oscar J. who seldom plays, got it the closest on the tenth hole. Can you imagine how many contests Oscar can win if he plays regularly?

POY: Levi M. with a good performance Sunday that catapulted him from fourth position to first place dislodged last week’s leader, Eddie I. to second place. Levi now leads Ed by a meager two points. Far back in third place is Manny C. behind by seven startling points. Promising PJ P. followed in fourth place relegating Jimmy M. to fifth place as he leads Jimmy by a point. Wow what a race this is going to be two weeks from now.

SENIOR POY: Jun Paculaba not surprisingly with a net of 70 Sunday took the lead and is projected to win this maiden title. He leads the “never giving up” Mar DV by four points and the third placer by a huge seven points. Bingoy P. is in fourth place eleven points behind Jun with Seho O. a point behind Bingoy. Top five get to the prize money with the coming finals this Sunday.

MIP: Not much change here. Manny C. still leads followed closely by Eddie I in second place and Julio R in third. The only change here is Paolo B. taking solo fourth with Levi M. down to fifth. They were both tied in fourth a week prior to last week. Top five will be rewarded in two-week time.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Players confirmed to play next week at Ballantrae are told to bring cash to pay for the SGC tickets. No cash, you are facing possibility of paying the golf course with your credit card with a much higher green fee. Don and Susan Dizon once again open their hearts & home again to host SGC after the round. They offer salad and soft drinks while an extra $5 for the members to shell out to take care of the food. Pizza is in the offing and any alcohol beverages is to be shouldered by the members as well.

A delightful round of drinks and fries mostly provided by our winner Levi M. & and a little help from Jojo D. after the round at MoB. Seho O. brought some nourishing cookies as well. Special mention by the players to thank Joey C. who treated players at a Vietnamese restaurant after winning two Nassau corners at Century Pines two weeks ago.

Unless you have a good reason not to compete with the Grand Finals contest, we would like to see every one for our last two games before we go on separate ways.

Congratulations to the winners.