After throwing down the gauntlet in the Members’ Bar a few weeks ago, the Los Bandidos Liga winning team took on the La Liga Seniors winning team in a winner takes all bragging rights match last Thursday March 29.
Despite a lot of posturing by both teams, the match was conducted in a very friendly spirit as a Matchplay game with 90% of the handicap difference. Conditions were very friendly as well with the sun shining and little wind, and with the course playing faster than in previous weeks as it dries out, and the greens were much firmer.
In the Captains’ match Mike and Steve continued on their winning run with a 6&5 win over Bo and Mike Foss but the Bandidos hit back in the second with Dean and Martin going down 5&4 to John Anderson and John Matthews.
The third game finished All Square between Fran and Alan against Thompson and Derek and so it all rested on the last two matches. In the fourth Craig and John Yiend triumphed 4&2 against Markus and Mike Moulds, and in the final match it went to the last hole with Roy and Jim gaining a hard fought win over Ron and Ian.
The final result was a deserved 3.5 – 1.5 win by Los Bandidos who were playing without their talisman Doug McDuff, although Brian Jones claimed that he would have made all the difference if he hadn’t been in Las Vegas!
The Los Bandidos team “talked the talk and walked the walk” and can now sit in the Gloating Corner in the Members’ Bar any time they like. Bo and I think that it was such an enjoyable and worthwhile event that we would like to make it an Annual Affair and there is likely to be a trophy to play for next year.
One footnote: It seems that our higher handicappers can more easily play to their handicaps than the lower ones. Mike tells me that in 2010 the Federation changed The Slope at LA because the La Liga team won their league for three years running and particularly altered the lower bands, so that from 8 handicap downwards the playing handicap, using The Slope, goes down (for example, 7 handicap plays off 6). Although we have Slope Rating of 140 (the second highest in Andalucia) it seems that the length of the course is the deciding factor. Playing at Guadalmina last week I played off 6 handicaps whereas at LA I have to play off 4. I certainly plan to raise this anomaly with the Federation but I fear that there is little chance of changing anything when we keep winning our respective leagues. We are just too good!
Steve Bailey
The Captain
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