The final round of the Club Championships was played in perfect weather, with the sun shining, a gentle breeze and the Course in great condition.

Entering the final round, all Grades were up for grabs, with a number of players in each vying for glory.

In the Open Championship, Darren Kershaw, Cris Kotopoulos and Ron Dingle were separated by just 4 strokes entering the final round, and right from the start the pressure was on.  Cris parred the first 6, while Darren and Ron both dropped 2 shots through 5. Darren steadied while Cris dropped shots over 7, 8 & 9, seeing the two leaders turn square on the day though 9. Ron had steadied and was still within range while Darren retained the 2 stroke lead over Cris with which he entered the round. From there Darren played solid golf, going 1 under from 10 through 15, not allowing Cris into the contest, while Ron found trouble on 12 and 13 and fell out of touch. Darren stretched the winning margin, running out a 7 stroke win as Cris pushed to find a way back.

Congratulations Darren Kershaw – Yarrambat Golf Club Champion – for the third year in a row!

The A Grade was also an open affair, with Stuart Thompson holding a 6 stroke lead over Jack Leonello and Scott Weston, with Justin Crowe (in scintillating form) lurking just outside the top 3 and Paul Biancotto and Sam Saykan waiting to jump on any mistakes. Scott posted an early clubhouse lead after a great final round (nett) 70 to turn the screws and ramp up the pressure, however Stuart managed to hold his nerve and match that final round 70 to record the win by 7 strokes as Rod Heideman leap-frogged everyone into 3rd place.

Congratulations Stuart Thompson – Yarrambat Golf Club A Grade Champion

B Grade was a true battle as Victor Cheche, in the middle of a purple patch of sustained form, entered the final round holding an 8 stroke lead over Club Vice-Captain Joe Caruana, with Shayne Cairns a further 8 strokes back in third. As the day unfolded Joe played some solid golf, closing the gap to 4 strokes after 9 holes, and brought it home strongly as Victor found trouble on the 16th. Joe’s consistency over the closing holes saw him come home with a remarkable one stroke win as Victor was left to rue the missed opportunities. Shayne turned in a great final round 76, shaving 9 strokes off the leaders but that lead proved too big to overcome.

Congratulations Joe Caruana – Yarrambat Golf Club B Grade Champion

C Grade turned in an enthralling battle between, overnight leader, Alan Blaquiere (who entered the final round with a 3 shot lead over Leu Tan with Sammy Pandarakanu a further shot back. Bill Maher was in the mix leading into the day, but unfortunately left after 9 holes and failed to complete his round. Leu put in a cracker of a final round,  shooting a (nett) 66 to take out the December Medal and  secure the win by 4 strokes over Sammy Pandarakanu, with Alan B in third after shooting an outstanding 75 on the day.

Congratulations Leu Tan – Yarrambat Golf Club C Grade Champion

In the Junior category, Don Tran – who finished 6th overall in the A Grade field – had the junior field to himself, as young Aaron  Saykan was unavailable due to basketball commitments…(Sam has suggested this will not be the case next year)

Congratulations Don Tran -Yarrambat Junior Champion 

 

Final standings can be found on the Leaderboard, but the top finishers in each grade were:

Open:

315 Darren Kershaw

322 Cris Kotopoulos

326 Ron Dingle

 

A Grade (Nett):

288 Stuart Thompson

295 Scott Weston

301 Rodney Heideman (CB)

301 Jack Leonello

 

B Grade (Nett):

296 Joe Caruana

297 Victor Cheche

303  Shayne Cairns

 

C Grade (Nett):

289 Leu Tan

293 Sammy Pandarakanu

295 Alan Blaquiere

 

On behalf of the whole Committee and wider membership – congratulations to all the winners, and to those who pushed them all the way.

 

 

Stuart Thompson

President YGC

 

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