The 2025 Pennant Season is underway, and we’ll be bringing you all the latest results from our Royal Adelaide Golf Club teams right here. Each week, we’ll recap the matches, highlight standout performances, and celebrate the efforts of our players as they compete across all divisions. Stay tuned for updates as our teams strive for success on the course!
Simpson Cup Round 3
Royal Adelaide 4.5 defeated The Vines 2.5 at Thaxted Park
Report to follow.
Sanderson Cup Round 1
Royal Adelaide 4 defeated Glenelg 1 at Kooyonga
Report courtesy of Vicki Jordan.
Perfect golfing conditions welcomed us for the opening round of the season against Glenelg.
Naturally, there were some nerves as we stepped onto the course, unsure of how we would measure up this year. A slow but steady start quickly turned into a strong performance.
Raegan was in control from the outset, playing beautiful golf despite battling a cold. She secured a 2/1 victory over Jill Hodge.
Alice Cho had a challenging start, finding herself 3 down, but in true Alice fashion, she fought back to claim a 2/1 win over Zoe Manton. Last season, Alice played at number 5 – this year, she has stepped up to number 2.
Captain Sophie Hilditch was square through the front nine before stepping on the gas to defeat Sarah Crocker 5/3.
Laura Birchmore harnessed her recognised nerves and battled to the final hole, edging out Maya Kakupec on the 18th. Her incredible short game was a highlight – credit to Tony Christie’s Wednesday pennant clinic!
Eliza Bartlett played a steady game but ultimately fell to Bec Hardy 4/2.
A convincing 4–1 victory over Glenelg gives us a great confidence boost for the season ahead!
Next week, we take on Blackwood at home (11:10 AM tee time). We’d love to see some supporters out there cheering us on!
Pike Cup Round 1
Royal Adelaide 3 defeated Mid North 2 at Kooyonga
Report courtesy of Jill McEwin.
It was a perfect morning at Kooyonga to launch the 2025 pennant season. Kooyonga had prepared a fast course . The fairways were perfect and the greens hard and fast just as they should be to find the best players.
My team of five were keen and ready to tackle the Mid North team.
Our team had two new young players Lily Harris and Kate Cao. We are delighted to have them on board.
Our first win at number 4 was Lily Harris who had a sound win defeating her opponent 7/5.
Rachel Sweeney playing at number 3 hit her straps on the turn and won 6/4.
It was then tooth and nail for Kat and Fiona who both fought hard to secure our next win. Kat won on the 17th (8th) to give us our victory.
Fiona played superb golf but was defeated 2 down.
Kate Cao had her first match in the big league and played some superb golf but was defeated 4/3.
It was a thrilling morning of golf and a pleasure to watch the girls win on a hard testing parkland course.
Bonnar Cup Round 3
Royal Adelaide 7 defeated Tea Tree Gully 0 at Thaxted Park
Report to follow.
Women’s A3 Round 4
Royal Adelaide 5 defeated Highercombe 0 at Glenelg
Report courtesy of Janice Fletcher.
With renewed bunker-playing confidence after last week’s focussed training with Patric and Tony, the RAGC team started strong at the remodelled 17 hole Glenelg course.
Local knowledge, combined with good form saw Jill McEwin have a very early finish, winning 8/7 and denying her caddy Stephen Copley a visit to the newly created back 9.
Anne Arnfield’s putter ran hot and, combined with very tidy play, resulted in a resounding 6/5 victory.
Pauline Morrison and Anne Sykes both weathered a few early challenges to pull back to square and finish strongly on the 15th (or was it the 16th?) hole, winning 3/2 and 4/2 respectively.
Juliet Hugo had a number of chances to miss the finishing holes, but a couple of lipped out putts saw her going down 18, where she hit 3 great shots, drawing a concession from her opponent, who found the sandy waste off the tee, to finish 2 up. The score of 5:0 puts us in third place, but we have played 4 matches and some teams have only played 3. Thanks again to caddies Di Faull, Didy McLaurin, Stephen Copley and Louisa Zerella.
Women’s Cleek Round 5
Royal Adelaide 3 defeated Westward Ho 2 at Kooyonga
Report courtesy of Louise Walters.
Beautiful conditions were to be had at Kooyonga this morning for our match against the recently promoted Westward Ho.
Di Moore was first off playing at number 5 and had a very even results over the first nine holes to be 2 down at the turn, with unfortunately finishing losing 5/4 on the 14th hole.
Jenny Menz playing at number 4 was up, from the 4th hole onwards, going down the 16th hole, it was dormie, with Jenny winning that hole for a 4/2 finish.
Toffee Perkins had the most satisfying win on the 13th hole with a 7/5 result, whilst Lou Jacka was negative dormie going down the 16th to unfortunately lose 4/2.
The 16th hole was also the site of our Number one player Ali Coventry winning the match 4/2 for an overall result of 3 wins to 2.
Junior Sharp Cup Round 3
Image caption: Alpha males on the left. The Three Amigos on the right.
Royal Adelaide 5 defeated Blackwood 0 at Kooyonga
Report to courtesy of Peter Maddern.
Your Sharp Cup team has divided into two camps; at its bookends, the alpha males, the Big Dawg, Lewis Antell and Jordan the Giant Cranwell with the Three Amigos – Billy White, Seth Tymko and Angus Norcock – scheming and bitching – between them.
At Kooyonga, against the debutant Blackwood boys, things began more slowly than the handicap differential may have suggested. Seth Tymco’s touch is a treat and well worth the price of admission. Examples; out of the bunker on 3 to 3 feet and a 20 metre chip to a foot on the 6th but these were doing little more than keeping him square. Lagging in his contest, Jordan the Giant took til the 7th to hit his stride. There, he plonked an eight iron to a couple of metres and he was back.
Angus Norcock was more assured. He hit a little right off the tee on the 4th, the one that parallels Kooyonga’s back fence, turning his wood into a short iron to the green. In contrast, his opponent’s drive left turned his ball into an insurance claim.
Lewis and Billy were doing their things in third gear, accumulating leads as they went. But, by the time we reached the turn, all were in front.
The end of the ninth is a busy place at the best of times with three tee blocks spread around that juncture and the crowd exacerbated Sunday with groups banked up for as much as half an hour as we were. Strange indeed then that it proved so hard to get food and drink from the kiosk there; one can only assume the KGC committee has outsourced its operations to the Burke and Wills Catering Company.
Fortunately, the only things we looked like losing at that juncture were the Freddies – younger brothers White and Norcock. As starter, friendly John Frogley, sent the players south, the Freddies, with mischievous intent, had disappeared west. During the long interregnum after nine the search began. One report had them frolicking in the mud of a water hazard. Another was certain they were seen stranded up a tree. As we resumed, commencing the 10th from under the canopy of the dig tree, their whereabouts still remained a mystery.
Well, matches pretty much advanced as one may have expected from there as the teams headed up and back, up and back towards the air traffic control tower. Thus, those within it were given the thrill of witnessing right beneath the concluding stages of all of the Three Amigos’ contests. As for the Chinese war ships, also visible to them as they wandered up the gulf, well, the best live action not to be missed was to the north and, once again, Albo would have to wait.
Antell’s up and down from beyond the 11th green and Norcock’s birdie on the notorious 10th just two of the highlights for the boys directing the table tennis bats on the tarmac. At the end it was a 5-0 win, the Giant by four, the Big Dawg and Billy by five, Seth by six and Angus by eight. As for the Freddies, they were finally located having a wow of a time in a big bin of practice balls behind the clubhouse. Once retrieved, separated and then manacled, the RA entourage drove away pleased and already contemplating next week’s big clash against TTG at the Vines.
Junior Division 2 Round 3
Royal Adelaide 4 defeated Westward Ho 1 at Kooyonga
Report courtesy of Michael Jay.
Kooyonga played hosts the Junior pennant tournaments on a mild but blustery day with both Sharp and Div. 2 hitting off around midday.
After losses in the first 2 matches and coming up against the top side Westward Ho we were hoping for a change of fortune with an influx of new team members.
The task was daunting with only Finn Higgins, a single shot and reserve Poppy Warren 3 in the positive, the others having to confront handicap differentials of 3, 17, 28 and 42.
Leading us off on the 10th Poppy was 2 up after 3 holes, square after 9 and despite a slam dunk birdie on the 11th played hole, ended up losing 3 and 2.
Lucas had to give his opponent 42 shots but was steady all day and never lost his composure finishing his match on the 17th 2 up.
George Longbottom conceded 28 shots to his playing partner but was never headed being 5 up after 7. Losses on 8 and 9 fired him into action again proceeding to a birdie, birdie, par, par finish with the doffing of caps and handshakes on the 13th green for a 7 and 5 win.
Sam Tinson at number one had a great battle against his very capable and steady opponent Eli. He was never able to get some rhythm going and was 3 down at the turn but was able to briefly reduce the deficit to one but eventually lost on the 16th.
Alston gave a shot to his opponent on every hole bar one, was not headed but never more than 2 up so a very close contest. He lost the 17th and with the result of the overall contest still in the balance needed to square or win the 18th which he did.
Finn had a wonderfully close game being 2 down at the 11th but then won 4 on the trot before losing the next 2 to be square on the 18th tee. He was on in regulation and despite some putting woes throughout the round managed to sink a monster for a birdie to win 1 up for an overall 4 to 1 win for Royal Adelaide.
Westward Ho have recently commenced putting some impetus into their junior program and have only just been promoted to Division 2 so it’s good to see them making progress. Once again, many thanks to the parents pulling the buggies and having to live through the highs and lows of their offspring`s competitive golf experiences.
Simpson Cup Round 2
Royal Adelaide 4.5 defeated Tea Tree Gully 2.5 at The Vines
Report courtesy of Rod Phillips and Paul Reader.
On Sunday, RAGC’s Simpson Cup headed to The Vines eager to avenge last year’s defeat at the hands of Tea tree Gully last season.
Nathan Kent #7 never really got going in his match and fell behind early. Although battling hard, Nathan could not recover and eventually lost 6 and 5.
Michael Richardson #6 fought hard to shake his opponent and although not having his best ball striking day, Michael’s elite putting was displayed in a tight 2 up win.
Alex Pacifico (with caddie Dan Madigan) #5 played a complete game. Alex’s ball striking was far too good for his opponent as he only lost one hole in a dominant 5 and 4 win.
Matt Lawson (with caddie Robert Lawson) #4 continued his great form with long straight drives and crisp iron play. Matt was never headed as he worked his way to a dormie 3 up position before bringing some excitement to the crowd before winning 2 up on the last.
Billy Cawthorne (with caddie Tyron Davies) #3 played exemplary golf on the front 9, establishing up a 4 up lead after 6 holes. Billy displayed his course knowledge as he powered into the back 9. He seemed keen to play a full round as he eased the pressure on his ex-professional opponent before running out a 1 up winner.
Will Arnold (with caddie Steve Misopapas) #2 had a very tight match with another former pro. Although never in front, Will battled extremely hard getting back to square on several occasions. However, on the 16th tee, Will was 2 down and staring a loss “in the face”. Showing great resolve, Will won both 16 and 17 to again draw square which is how the match finished.
Josh Grundel (with caddie Terry Thornton) #1 got off to a slow start, being 3 down after 4 holes. Although Josh clawed his way back he could never get to the lead. Although winning 17, Josh could only halve the 18th and fell 1 hole short.
We are currently one of two unbeaten teams after 2 rounds.
Our next contest is against The Vines at Thaxted Park at 7 AM Sunday 2 March. Spectators welcome.
Bonnar Cup Round 2
Royal Adelaide 5.5 defeated Thaxted Park 1.5 at Royal Adelaide
Report courtesy of Ian Rice and Randall.
Round 2 of the season saw us pitted against Thaxted Park and playing at home gave us a good chance to build on our good start to the season and notch a second win. With 3 forced changes, we welcomed Ed Bell in for his first pennant match for RA and Josh Barrett and Jack Sullivan back to Bonnar Cup golf.
After 4 holes, we were up in 5 matches, square in one and down in the other.
Ed Bell led us out at number 7 and playing speed golf, he quickly moved out to 3 up after 6 holes, leaving his opponent and the rest of the field in his wake. He maintained this lead through 11 and then won 12 to move to 4 up before finally closing it out to win 5/3. A great start to his RAGC pennant career.
As good as Ed was playing, Josh Barrett at 6, was matching this and jumped out to be 4 up after 4. By the time Josh reached 11 he was 5 up, which quickly became 6 up after draining a long birdie putt on 12 from the edge of the green before halving 13 to win his match 6/5. A welcome return to the Bonnar team by Josh.
So as not to be outdone by Josh or Ed, Cam Cordon at 4, followed on from his good round 1 form and was 4 up after 6 holes and once again playing solid golf. As he strolled onto the 12th tee, I asked him how he was going, to which he replied “7up”. After a double take by me, Cam then proceeded to halve the 12th (holing a putt from the back edge of the green) to wrap up his match 7/6.
James Norcock at 3, was up against it from the outset with his opponent birdieing the 1st, 3rd and 5th thus Norcks finding himself 3 down after 5. Every time Norcks looked like getting a hole back, his opponent would roll in a long putt and by the 11th Norcks was 5 down. Norcks won the 13th but a half on 14 saw him go down 5/4.
Meanwhile Jack Sullivan, playing his first game in a couple of years, was locked in a seesaw match. Jack was 3 up after 7 but by the 12th his opponent had eroded that lead and the match was square. His opponent won 13 and Jack held on by holing a good putt on 14 to halve the hole. Unfortunately a missed birdie putt on 15, saw Jack remain one down but this was soon corrected when Jack birdied the 16th to tie the match up once again. A solid 4 on 17 saw Jack head down 18, 1up and then a great bunker shot to a foot on the last, saw his opponent concede the hole and Jack win 2up and us lead 4/1 overall.
Jono Cherry, at one, was also caught up in a tight battle with nothing much separating him and his opponent. Jono’s 1 up lead after 7 was extended to 2up standing on the 12th tee. A couple of halves and then a win saw Jono go down 15, 3up before winning the 15th to win his match 4/3.
Henry Perks, at 2, found himself square after 4 holes and wondering what he needed to do to win a hole after his opponent hit the 4th green with his 2nd shot after playing from the clubhouse side of the 3rd tee block! Although Henry got to 2up after 6, his opponent fought back and after the 11 the match was all square again. After trading holes Henry won 16 to go one up and after halving 17, he headed down 18 1up. A good second shot from Henry’s opponent from out right and a missed 6 footer by Henry saw the match halved. So a good second up 5½ – 1½ win was a pleasing result and sees us sit equal top on the table after two rounds. Next week we head to Thaxted Park to play Tea Tree Gully.
Women’s A3 Round 3
Royal Adelaide 3.5 defeated West Lakes 1.5 at Royal Adelaide
Report courtesy of Janice Fletcher.
Week 3 of the 2025 A3 Pennant season saw us back down on the plains and, even better, at our favourite course (home). The floodlights were on and the greenkeepers were busy mowing when we arrived.
Much to our relief, the weather was kind, with cloudy skies, modest temperatures and only a breath of wind for the first 9 holes.
We got off to a cracking start, with Juliet, Pauline and Mirrie all up early in their matches. Mirrie started with a birdie and was untroubled for most of the day despite a revenge birdie from her opponent on 7, winning her match 6/5.
Pauline was 3 up after the 4th hole and was never troubled by her opponent, playing with typical determination and skill, she finished on the 14th hole 5/4.
Juliet’s opponent eventually figured out she was in trouble, sank some monster putts and pegged Juliet back to eventually go 1 up after 13. However Ju was having none of that and birdied 15 to square the match. A ding dong battle with some great JH bunker play saw the match finished square.
Sharon started slowly but there was little between her and her opponent with the score level after 11 holes. Sharon then put her foot on the accelerator to rattle off 4 winning holes in a row and take out the match 4/3.
Ros putted really well to match West Lakes’ powerful young new recruit until the 6th hole but was 2 down after 14. However, she fought back to win 16 and 17 to come down the 18th all square, where her opponent set up victory with second shot that landed pin high. It was a great match. Thanks to the caddies: Anne Sykes, Didy Mclaurin, Malcolm Brebner and Stephen Copley, assistant manager Di Faull and the players and spectators who came out in support. Thanks also to Patric and Tony for their course-targeted coaching.
Women’s Cleek Round 4
Royal Adelaide 3 defeated West Lakes 2 at Thaxted Park
Report courtesy of Carolyn Astley
So proud of the Cleek 1 team this week with special mention to Alex Maddern who was even going up the 18th and won the day with a 3ft clutch putt.
Scores were:
Jenny Menz won 4/3
Sophie Gosse won 2/1
Alex Maddern won 1 up
Pam Hamilton lost 2/1
Di Tallis lost 6/5
A special thankyou to caddies; Di Moore, Ali Coventry and Jenny Clark.
Next week’s fixture is against Westward Ho at Kooyonga.
Junior Sharp Cup Round 2
Our Sharp soldiers and their tanks cross no man’s land on the way to the starter’s hut.
Royal Adelaide 4.5 defeated Kooyonga .5 at Royal Adelaide
Report courtesy of Peter Maddern.
Against the old foe and after last year’s shenanigans, all walked on egg shells around the starter’s hut. President and Junior Supremo, Michael Jay handed out the peace offering; RA show bags consisting of a Mars Bar, a club ball marker, course guide and signed portrait of the club captain. Thus, hostilities today were limited to the contests.
On a glorious day, the first thing to note was that the Big Dawg, Lewis Antell, was back! Birdies on the first two holes and another likely on the fourth but for his opponent conceding, lost in the rubbish off the tee, and he was four up after just that many. Birdies on 11 and 13 meant the Dawg could retire to his kennel right there and then. All helped, it must be said, by an opponent’s caddie, her father, who offered his charge advice that was as useful and as well received as that by JD Vance to the Europeans.
The Kamikaze Kid, Billy White, had an equally irrepressible start and then kept going. His routine on the greens should be legislated at the PGA level. Mark your ball, stride up patting down as you go to 10 ft beyond the pin, cross arms, look and assess, stride back, hit the ball, go collect; 20 seconds the lot.
Not that his opponent was doing much wrong but Billy was doing everything White. Even a call to the Child Protection Agency’s Help line wasn’t going to prevent this kid getting beaten up. Birdies on the trot at eight through 10 will win you most matches but not necessarily right there; at 9/8, Billy now owns the biggest win in our Sharp Cup history.
Seth Tymko and Jordan Cranwell both ended their matches on the 14th. Seth had got off to an even start in his match before getting into his stride from the 5th and finishing it off with a brilliant birdie; his last two drives of the day were monsters. Jordan’s scorecard at the turn looked like a graveyard, it being littered with crosses, but he slowed up a little from there; he lost a couple more holes than he did round 1 in winning by a slightly bigger margin.
So, four done but when attention turned to the remaining fixture, we found Angas Norcock four down. Not having this, the Kamikaze Kid took up duties on his bag and all that striding around seemed to inspire Angas. Clutch putts all holed from four to 14 feet on each of the last four holes and Norcock memorably secured a squared match; all watching on Kayo agreed this was great television. While Billy left the 18th claiming all the credit, Angas retreated back to the clubhouse sporting another of those smiles, this as big as that on a Kitchener bun from the old Naracoorte bakery. Despite the peace offering, beating up the old foe (collectively 25 up!) won’t have ingratiated ourselves to them as we head to just north of the airport for our next round. How frosty can it get teeing off at midday in the last week of summer? We are about to find out.
Junior Division 2 Round 2
Royal Adelaide 1 defeated by Kooyonga 4 at Royal Adelaide
Report courtesy of Jane Flentje.
The second round of Division 2 Junior Pennant was played on a beautiful sunny afternoon at Royal Adelaide Sunday 23rd February against Kooyonga. Our team was Jisung Park, Mason Holden, Sam Tinson, Josh Antell, Adele Wang and reserve Finn Higgins.
First pair off was Finn and Adele. Finn had a very strong front 9 and was 3 up at the turn but then lost the next 5. He rallied to take the game to the 18th, but finished 1 down.
Adele was playing some terrific golf and was even after 2 but then had a string of losses on holes where she had to give shots and her opponent was playing accurate golf. She regained some confidence with wins on 9,10 and 12 and halved 13 but a loss on 14 sealed the win for her opponent 5/4.
The next pair of Sam and Josh had strong games. Josh and his opponent played steady golf and had a very tight match to the finish, giving up 14 shots Josh was down 2 after 8 holes but fought back to be square after 12 with a terrific par. Josh had a good par and win on 15 and squared 17 but went down 2/1.
Sam was never down, he was playing very steady golf with a terrific short game. Sam’s opponent fought back with wins on 7 and 8, but Sam was still 1 up after 9 and had a very strong finish to win 12,13 and 14 to win overall 4/3.
The final pair was Mason and Jisung. Mason struggled at times with direction off the tee. Credit to his opponent who was playing very steady golf. They had the same score on many holes but Mason had to give 12 shots. He finished 7/5 down.
Jisung had a strong start and was even after 4. It was quite windy and Jisung struggled to judge direction and distance into the wind, he was through the 6th green for 2 but finished with a 7. He was 2 down after 9. He began the back 9 steadily with a bogie, par, bogie but his opponent was also playing very well, he finished down 6/4.
We were hoping for a home ground advantage but Kooyonga had other ideas, a disappointing finish of 4/1 down.
Thanks to parents and caddies, it was a very enjoyable afternoon.
Women’s A3 Round 2
Royal Adelaide 1 defeated by Mt Osmond 4 at Mt Osmond
Report courtesy of Di Faull.
The second round of A3 pennant saw Royal Adelaide play Mt Osmond at Mt Osmond. This was always going to be difficult against the top players from Mt Osmond and so it turned out to be with our team going down 1/4.
Sharon hit off first and sped to an early lead, going to 5 up then coming back to 3 up before winning 4/3.
Anne Arnfield did not have a good day and was never in front in her match going down 6/5, closely followed by Anne Ellis losing 7/6 to a player who didn’t miss a putt! This meant our 2 final players needed wins but both matches were tight with both Pauline and Juliet pitted against the very experienced top players from Mt Osmond.
Pauline played some brilliant golf and took the match to the 17th but a half on that hole saw the match finish with a 2/1 loss. Juliet couldn’t get in front with wins on holes just out of reach. This was especially cruel when dormy 3 her winning put just lipped out and the match was over 3/2.
Although disappointing the team played in the best spirit and a home game next Monday should see us back on the victory dais.
Women’s Cleek Round 3
Royal Adelaide 1 defeated by Kooyonga 4 at Mt Osmond
Report courtesy of Carolyn Astley.
Well, the team turned out at Mt Osmond in lovely sunshine this morning on the back of an inspirational LIV event over the weekend.
The aim was to try and make amends for last week but to no avail.
While congratulations go to the highlight win by Toffee Perkins 5/4, the rest of the team went down including;
Ali Coventry 4/3
Lu Jacka 6/5
Di Moore 4/2
Pam Hamilton 2 down
Thank you to the team for your valiant efforts and a special thankyou to caddies; Sophie Gosse, Carolyn Pigot, Di Tallis, Jenny Clark and Alex Maddern.
Next week’s fixture is against West lakes at Thaxted Park.
Simpson Cup Round 1
Royal Adelaide 6 defeated Thaxted Park 1 at Tea Tree Gully
Report courtesy of Rod Phillips and Paul Reader.
RAGC’s Simpson Cup team started its 2025 campaign with a match against Thaxted Park at Tea Tree Gully. The switch to summer brought some different challenges for Pennant golf and we were confronted with very strong winds and bright sunshine for our 7 am tee time.
These conditions caused some grief for our number 7 player who was unable to find his drive into the glare on 5, despite it being just left of the fairway. Nathan recovered to establish a 2 up lead after 9 holes and after giving his opponent a quick lesson on the correct procedure for marking his ball went on to record a comfortable 4/3 win.
Michael Richardson #6 used his unique putting style with great aplomb to set up an early lead. Although his opponent fought back, Michael was never headed before winning 3 and 2.
Alex Pacifico (with caddie Dan Madigan) #5 was consistently 20-30 metres ahead of his opponent off the tee and eventually overpowered him with a 3 and 2 win.
Matt Lawson (with caddie Robert Lawson) #4 was glistening in the new uniform. His golf was similarly shiny as he ran out a 3 and 2 winner.
Billy Cawthorne (with caddie Tyron Davies) #3 had a few stumbles early and after falling behind after 4 holes, Billy called on his exemplary short game to not lose another hole before winning 4 and 3.
Will Arnold (with caddie Steve Misopapas) played at #2. Thaxted opted to sacrifice the number 1 match and put their best player at #2. Will was up early but his opponent holed several monster putts en route to a 4 and 2 victory.
Josh Grundel (with caddie Terry Thornton) #1 had a softer matchup and after jumping to a 3 up lead after 5, went missing for a period to find himself 1 down at the turn. Josh’s superior driving and solid iron play was too much for his opponent on the back 9 as ran out a comfortable 3 and 2 winner.
It was a good start to the season and we look forward to stepping up against some stronger teams in the weeks ahead. We have a week off for LIV and our next match is against Tea Tree Gully at The Vines at 8:40 AM Sunday 23 February.
Bonnar Cup Round 1
Royal Adelaide 5 1/2 defeated Glenelg 1 1/2 at Glenelg GC
Report courtesy of Ian Rice and Randall Faull
Our Bonnar Cup title defence started with a tough first up match – Glenelg at Glenelg. We all agreed that being in shorts at 6.35am in early February was much more preferable than last year’s June encounter at the same time.
After four holes, not much separated the two teams with us up in three matches, down in two and square in the other two.
Cam Cordon in the No. 7 match, started to gain the ascendancy from there and by the turn (after 8 holes given the 17 hole course) held a two hole lead. Cam pressed on from there and with his short game running hot he powered away to record a 5/4 win, giving us our first point for the year.
Hudson Haynes, at 6, in his Bonnar Cup debut found himself 3 down after 7 but rallied after that and found himself only 1 down after 11. A see saw match continued from there with Huddo never quite being able to get back on level playing terms and he ultimately lost the 17th and the match 2/1.
Alexis Junin, at 5, was weaving his usual short game mastery and never found himself down in the match. An incredible up and down on the par 3 11th, saw him retain his 1 up lead which he held until the 16th. He rallied again to win 17 and then holding a 1 up lead, played smart golf down the last to half the hole in pars and thus win his match 1up.
Meanwhile Anthony Olsen, playing at 1 at his old stomping ground, found himself down early but a magnificent birdie out of a divot off the fairway on the 8th hole kickstarted a run of 6 straight winning holes that saw him wrap his match up 6/4. A dominant performance at No. 1.
So with 3 points already in the bag, things were looking good. James Norcock, at 4, didn’t have a great start and although he steadied he was still two down at the turn. He slowly started to claw his way back and an amazing up and down out of a bunker from 195m on the 13th, saw his opponent flounder and by the 14th, Norcks was 1up. He held the lead until 17 when his opponent won that sending the match down 18 all square. A pair of pars saw the match halved.
Henry Perks, at 3, was locked in a battle early on, halving holes with birdies but by turn he held a two hole lead. His opponent got that back to square by the 14th, but solid golf by Henry down the stretch saw him regain his one hole lead and maintain that down the 18th, and he won 1up giving us the win overall.
Jono Cherry was back to his old tricks and showing that SIM golf is just as effective as the real thing he found himself 3 up after 4 and 4 up at the turn. HIs opponent then reeled off a couple of birdies and Jono found himself only 1 up after 13. He had a chance to close out the match on 17 but probably the less said about that the better, so down 18 he headed holding a one shot advantage. Halving the hole in par saw him win his match 1 up and give us a first up 5½ – 1½ win. Such a good result to start with was just what the doctor ordered and hopefully showed that last year’s triumph was the beginning of a good run by RAGC in Bonnar Cup. A week off for LIV and then we play Thaxted Park at home.
Women’s A3 Round 1
Royal Adelaide 1 defeated by The Grange 4 at Highercombe
Report courtesy of Janice Fletcher
A downgraded weather forecast saw the Women’s A3 team and their support crews somewhat surprisingly make their way up to Highercombe for the first match of the season. Unfortunately, the fairways have not been watered over summer as their course has run out of water. This led to particularly challenging conditions where bounces were unpredictable and good play was generally not rewarded. Despite being in the foothills the weather was still warm, reaching 34 degrees.
Although the final score was 1 match to 4, the individual matches were closely contested.
Sharon Honnor playing at 5, with the very experienced Stephen Copley on her bag got off to a flying start, weathered a strong comeback from her opponent to close out the match 2/1. Our top player Pauline Morrison with caddy Didy McLaurin fought back after being 6 down after 8 holes to lose 4/3. Anne Ellis, ably caddied by Malcolm Morrison, played well but lost 2/1 after a particularly unrewarding day on the course. The tenacious Ros Brebner had the assistance of novice caddy Malcolm Brebner but lost a very close tussle with her opponent, losing 1 down. The same fate befell Anne Anfield with her caddy Louisa Zerella (who was very glad that she was not called on as reserve ). I was really proud of the way our girls faced the conditions and a large contingent of the Grange Pike team with spirit and determination.
Women’s Cleek Round 2
(Round 1 cancelled due to heat)
Royal Adelaide 1 defeated by Thaxted Park 4 at Blackwood
After the cancellation of the first round of Cleek hopes were high heading into round 2 with the match against Thaxted Park at Blackwood.
Unfortunately the match didn’t go Royal Adelaide’s with the team suffering a 4-1 loss.
Congratulations to Di Moore who won her match 1up. The team looks forward to the round 3 match against Kooyonga at Mt Osmond.
Junior Sharp Cup Round 1
Royal Adelaide 3 defeated Glenelg 2 at Glenelg GC
Report courtesy of Peter Maddern
A lot new about the 2025 Sharp Cup pennant season that kicked off this weekend. For starters, the comp has been brought forward to a month where heat (rather than flood) warnings must be observed and (with Blackwood and The Vines contesting for the first time) it has been extended by two rounds. Not so new was playing at the novelty Glenelg circuit; this time a 17-hole layout and having players banked up around the course.
Also not new was seeing some of our best players back at the top of the order. The Big Dawg, Lewis Antell, now acquiring an almost imperious gait, returned from last winter’s wrist injury to toss the coin. After recovering from self-inflicted and separate breaks of his arm and toe, the Kamikaze Kid, Billy White, also had his name once more gracing the team sheet.
They were joined by three new talents, Jordan Cranwell (ex. Thaxted Park) who would get us away, Seth Tymko (ex. Grange) and Angus Norcock, the son of a club champion.
Things got off to a bright start with Lewis placing his wedge to four feet on the 1st, Angus to three feet off the tee on 4 and Jordan similarly to four feet on 3. Momentum was on our side only to find, when we got to the kiosk, groups were banked up. Fortunately, some came prepared for just such an eventuality with two of our juniors breaking open their homework, the others took to completing jigsaws. Given the wait, they also then had time to swap.
There were two holes where the afternoon turned. On the par 3, 11th, Cranwell watched and waited on the green while his opponent ground his way in for a four before he holed out for a birdie from eight metres. Jordan was probably least perturbed by the intermission, leading by four then and, with inflicting this body blow, heading off to win by four an hour later.
Seth Tymko may have been beaten badly a few times across the afternoon but kept fighting back. Wickedly out of position, 20 metres shy right of this green and on a dusty lie, after clearing away leaves and sticks but leaving a pine cone to keep up the degree of difficulty on his back lift, Tymko flicked a wedge to two feet. Miraculous! Until Angus Norcock turned up eight minutes later.
In the right trap where many players camped off the tee, Norcock mucked up his first exit attempt and barely survived his second before draining a 12 metre putt from just off the carpet. His opponent, hitherto expecting to have two putts from 12 feet for the win, three putted and Angas walked off with a smile as wide as a Naracoorte cave.
Then the real fun came on the 17th. Seth had clattered his putt from the swale into the flag forcing his opponent to two putt to win from 15 metres. Having failed that same contract just the hole before, hope for a halved match continued to spring eternal, but it was not to be.
With father and former club captain, James, now on the bag – and the tie still in the balance – Angus Norcock clapped his second, an all or nothing 3 wood, to five feet on this most taxing hole. He had been up most of the day but now confronted the 17th square. This monstrous blow was enough to break his opponent, indeed into nearly as many pieces as one of the aforementioned jigsaws, and Angus went to the clubhouse soon after a 2 up winner.
Club members will know the perils of straying off into the wrong part of a golf course. Just ask Terry ‘Quick’ Zander about his encounter with the black hole now formed on the 9th. Accordingly, with the Kamikaze Kid paired against a guy named Danger, watching this contest from a big distance appeared like the only safe thing to do. Early on, drone vision suggested Billy’s approach was to deal with Danger by quickly leaving him behind; he zeroed in and was 5 up when he was forced to turn to his homework.
But come the 17th and things had tightened considerably. I didn’t record White’s opponent’s first name but, at this juncture, Clear and Present would have been appropriate. It wasn’t pretty but Billy’s clutch chip and putt for a bogey now on the second last was sufficient to see off Danger; the Kamikaze Kid had won 2-1 and, best of all, nobody had got hurt. As the RA team drove out of the gates facing the airport, a Qantas flight took off to the left no doubt with baggage missing but we turned right and with equal lack of doubt about the two points secured. After the LIV nonsense, the real contest resumes at home in a fortnight.
Junior Division 2 Round 1
Royal Adelaide 2 defeated by Glenelg 3 at Glenelg GC
Report courtesy of Di Faull
The Royal Adelaide Golf Club Div 2 team of Jisung Park, Mason Holden, Josh Antell, Sam Timson, Kate Cao, and reserve Adele Wang played the first round of the 2025 Pennant season on a modified 17-hole course at Glenelg Golf Club on Sunday 9 February. Playing the home team on a 17-hole course and starting on the 10th, was never going to be easy and so it came to be.
As we played in 4s Adele and the Glenelg reserve also got to play a match although it did not contribute to the team scores. Adele played as if this match was critical and despite being down early took it to the final hole, showing great determination in her first match for RAGC.
Kate played in this first group of 4, giving 6 shots to her opponent who took every advantage of strokes given and local knowledge to have Kate 4 down after 9 holes. Unable to recover and with her opponent finishing birdie, scrub, par, par she went down 5/4.
Sam and Josh were next out. Sam had never played Glenelg before and unfortunately this did result in some shots ending in poor positions. He was 2 down after 9 holes then, under great pressure, he squared the 1st and won the 2nd to be 1 downplaying the par 3 third. He squared this but lost the tricky 19th hole and then holes 4 and 5 to go down 4/2.
Josh started well with a par on the 10th but his lead was soon cut short and the match went between the two players with no real advantage to either. Josh was 1 up after 9 holes and 2 up after the 1st but came back to square after the 19th. He squared the 4th and 5th but lost the 6th so was 1 down going up the last hole, the 7th, a beautiful par here finished the match square.
Mason and Jisung were the last players off. Mason didn’t start well losing the first hole and was 1 down after the 13th. He then got into his rhythm and won 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 so was 4 up after 9 holes. He briefly went to 5 up and it looked like the match was all but over, however his opponent had other ideas and pushed him to the 15th before he won 3/2.
Jisung came out all guns blazing as did his opponent. The match swung between them for the first 9 holes with neither managing a decisive lead. Jisung was 1 down after 9 holes and brought the match back to square on the 3rd. They both parred the 19th but Jisung lost the 4th (despite driving through the green) as he had to give his opponent a shot on that hole. He got back to square after the 5th and that is how the match continued, all squared.
Final result RAGC lost 3/2, although we lost overall the squared matches could have gone either way and it was probably local knowledge that was a deciding factor. Thank you as always to the caddies and the parents and a big thank you to the other team members who came to support Div 2 and Sharp Cup teams.
