Members and Guests

The Club

Dear Member,

What a great weekend!

Congratulations and well done to all the winners in their respective divisions. The support, comradery, and atmosphere amongst members made this a truly world-class event. I would like to extend a huge thank you to my team for going the extra mile and making this one for the record books. It was not a perfect event, but certainly set a new standard, which we will continue to improve on and learn from. Thank you for the amazing support from our members and their families.

Kind regards
Francois Swart

Quirk and Ford come out tops in Club Champs
(Written by club member, Grant Winter)

Accountant-in-the-making, Darren Quirk got his numbers spot on, and it was pocket rocket Cara Ford’s turn to beat her arch-rival and friend Kim Turgut and pick up the women’s A-Division win in the Randpark Club Championships held at the weekend.

“I was so nervous I couldn’t breathe coming down the 18th,” said 23-year-old Quirk, who closed with a fine two-under-par 70 on Firethorn in Sunday’s second and final round, to seal victory after half-a-dozen players were in contention with nine holes to go.

But the UNISA student used a hot putter to break out of the pack. He made crucial up-and-downs to save par at 16 and 17, and then hit the green in two off the backmarkers at the demanding 464m par-4 18th and two-putted to post a one-under-par 143 aggregate.

Day one saw Quirk shoot 73 on Bushwillow when his putter wasn’t as hot, yet he ultimately won the A-Division by three from up-and-coming Carl Mwale (72-74), with Jared Botha, Thomas Ryan, and Christian MacGregor next best on 148, with the overnight leader on 70, Gary Baynham, slipping to a 79 to finish on 149.

“Conditions weren’t easy in round two because we played in a tricky wind and there were some tough pin placements. I putted well though and picked up shots at the third and sixth holes, and then went on a birdie run at 9, 10, 11, and 12,” said Quirk. “I did bogey 13 and 14 but managed to hold on after that. In the end, my putting was the key.”

The trainee numbers man, who works part-time at a vet to keep himself in golf, has entered four GolfRSA events this year, making three cuts out of four, and is clearly going places with his handicap index plus 2.1. He paid tribute to the course staff: “Condition-wise, the fairways, and greens were amazing,” he said.

The women played round one on Firethorn and 19-year-old Ford, who plays off a 2.5 handicap index, carded a 76 to put her alongside Turgut on that same score. On Bushwillow in round two Cara dropped at the first hole and then made double-bogey six at No 2. “So that was a bad start but I bounced back by hitting drive, six-iron to within a meter and a half from the cup at the par-5 third,” she explained. “I just missed the eagle putt but made a tap-in birdie and also picked up a shot at the sixth with a two there. I dropped at eight to be out in 38 then played ‘boring golf’ – lots of fairways and greens – to be home in level-par 36 for a round of 74. Her 150 total saw her edge out runner-up Turgut by two.

“Last year Kim beat me by one for the title and in 2019 I beat her by one to win the Club Champs. So, it’s always close between us. This year was my turn though. We’re good friends but fierce rivals on the golf course,” added Ford who represents Ladies Golf Gauteng at an inter-provincial level and is ranked 13th in the country. She wants to one day turn professional but plans to keep playing amateur golf for a good while still and in this year’s second semester will start studying for a degree in criminology.

There was a buzz at Randpark all weekend what with the players and their supporters out in force, the courses in fine shape and a festive atmosphere in the clubhouse surrounds. Club CEO Francois Swart was “delighted” to reveal that no less than 448 players took part in the golf, which raises the question as to whether this could be a South African record for a club championship. The men’s C-Division attracted a mammoth 225 entrants. Golf booming at Randpark? You bet.

2021 Club Championships Results

B-Division Results (Index 4,0 - 9,0)

Nett

6th - JC Scoltz	144
5th - Paul de Chaud	144
4th - Neil Venter	144
3rd - Selwyn Freese	142
2nd - William Rudling	142
1st - Luke van Vuuren	142
B-Division Nett Trophy

Gross

6th - Sabelo Ngabasandile	162
5th - Rusel van Vuren	162
4th - Clive van der Mescht	162
3rd - Keegan Daws	158
2nd - Randal Chetty	157
1st - Dion Hassell	153
B-Division Gross Trophy

A-Division Results (Index +6 - 3,9)
Nett

6th - Arthur Heinrich	147
5th - Gary Baynham	145
4th - Phillip van Sittert	145
3rd - Christian Bester	144 Net c/o
2nd - Thomas Ryan	144 Net c/o
1st - Rian du Bryan	142 nett
A-Division Nett Trophy

Gross

6th - Johan Aucamp	150
5th - Christian MacGregor	148
4th - Jared Botha	148
3rd - Carl Mwale	146
2nd - David Ryan	144
1st - Darren Quirk	143
A-Division Gross Trophy

Join us on Friday, 28th May from 09h30 – 19h30 for our Member Inrange+™ Courses Demo Day!

We will have a variety of winter soups and rolls available to purchase on the day plus beverages to warm the cockles of your heart and keep you cosy!

Our Special Menu for this coming Tuesday:
· Creamed Pasta Alfredo with mushrooms and gammon served with grated parmesan and crushed garlic R65
· Seafood Basket served with Randpark’s famous homemade chips and a lemon mayo dipping sauce R140
All main courses served with a complimentary garden salad
· Red Velvet Cheesecake R60

Four delicious flavourful Curries to choose from on Thursday evening:
• Chili Beef & Tomato Curry served with basmati rice R110
• Thai Chicken Curry with coconut milk, red bell peppers, and beans, served with basmati rice R90
• Mild and Spicy Cauliflower, Pea and Potato Curry served with basmati rice R65
• Tamarind Sauce Fish Curry – tangy and sweet curried fish served with basmati rice R90
All curries served with sambals, chutney, desiccated coconut, sliced bananas, cucumber raita, mango achar, and spiced tomato chutney.

Please click here to view the menu. Visit this link to make a booking.

Have a great week
Stay Safe, Healthy & Happy!
The Randpark Team