The Swindlers on Tour

2021
The Coronavirus pandemic continued to cause grief in the organisation of this year's tour - once again our preferred reciprocal clubs were unable to provide us with suitable tee times so back to Wrag Barn for three days of enjoyable golf (for most!). Originally twenty Swindlers and ex-Swindlers committed to the tour but with illness, injuries and other good reasons we were eventually whittled down to eighteen. New boys Nick Hayward, Simon Hill and Tim Horan joined the tour for the first time.

Unlike in previous years where we've encountered stifling heat and monsoon rains, this year the weather was benign and conducive to some good golf.

Simon Cook didn't learn from his 2020 experience and went out and won the first day again with 39 points from Trevor Vincent on 38 (on a count-back from Colin Price). The longest drive was won by Colin Price with Chris Daniel picking up the Nearest-the-Pin prize.

Course:	Wrag Barn			Date:	25-Aug-21
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3 Points	Scratch Score
Simon Cook	88	71	39	0	9	23
Trevor Vincent	88	70	38	0	10	21
Colin Price	85	72	38	0	9	26
Iain Maxwell	92	71	37	0	8	18
Tim Horan	82	72	36	0	5	27
Bryn Owen	87	73	35	0	7	21
Paul Sims	99	74	34	0	8	12
Nick Hayward	90	74	34	0	6	18
Nigel Guillaume	98	79	34	0	7	18
Paul Reardon	85	75	33	0	6	24
Simon Hill	101	76	33	0	8	12
Martin Thomas	108	76	32	0	8	7
Paul Knowles	104	79	30	0	6	8
Paul Budge	94	79	29	0	7	17
Chris Daniel	104	84	29	1	9	12
John Machin	114	88	27	1	8	9
Scott Browning	109	86	27	0	8	9
Colin Reardon	108	88	27	0	8	13

As usual, the first night at Stanton House saw copious amounts of alcohol consumed with Bryn Owen certainly looking the worse for wear on Thursday morning! Perhaps a lesson to learn as Bryn won Day 2 with 39 points from Tim Horan on 38 (on a count-back from Mr. Consistent, Trevor Vincent). Paul Reardon won the Longest Drive and Colin Price, Nearest-the-Pin.

Course:	Wrag Barn			Date:	26-Aug-21
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3 Points	Scratch Score
Bryn Owen	83	69	39	0	8	25
Tim Horan	80	70	38	1	8	28
Trevor Vincent	89	72	38	0	10	22
Nick Hayward	88	72	36	0	7	21
Colin Price	91	78	36	1	9	25
Paul Sims	100	75	35	0	9	12
Scott Browning	98	74	34	0	10	13
Martin Thomas	107	75	34	0	8	7
Paul Reardon	85	75	33	0	9	24
Simon Cook	91	76	32	0	7	18
Nigel Guillaume	98	79	32	1	9	15
Iain Maxwell	107	86	28	0	3	12
Chris Daniel	107	87	28	0	7	11
John Machin	109	83	27	0	7	6
Simon Hill	107	82	26	0	8	6
Colin Reardon	113	91	25	0	6	9
Paul Knowles	111	86	25	0	1	8
Paul Budge	102	87	21	0	4	10

An early return to Stanton House gave us a chance to enjoy the evening weather and sit outside for a refreshing drink or two before dinner:-

The final day saw us lose Bryn Owen - off to Majorca, Paul Budge - bidding on some property in Wareham, and Iain Maxwell - called from Tokyo to sort out a crisis!

As usual, the groups were formed with those with the most Swindle points after two days going out last. Trevor Vincent was one of the favourites to take first place until a back injury forced him to retire after 10 holes. This left Colin Price, Tim Horan and Simon Cook to battle it out for the Tour Trophy.

Martin Thomas managed to win the day with 38 points from Paul Sims on 37 (on a count-back from Simon Hill). Nigel Guillaume-Smith won the Longest Drive and Tim Horan the nearest-the-Pin.

Tim's final day 32 points earned him the Tour Trophy, accumulating a total of 45 Swindle points with Paul Sims in second place on 43. Third overall was Simon Cook. The early departure of Bryn Owen and Trevor's back injury prevented them from being in the frame. Congratulations Tim - winner on his first Swindle Tour!

The Eclectic competition was won by Martin Thomas with a net 64.08. The most points on par 3s was won by Simon Hill with 29 points and five shared the twos money - Colin Price, Chris Daniel, John Machin!, Tim Horan and Nigel Guillaume-Smith.

Course:	Wrag Barn			Date:	27-Aug-21
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3 Points	Scratch Score
Martin Thomas	104	72	38	0	6	13
Paul Sims	96	71	37	0	9	13
Simon Hill	96	71	37	0	13	15
Nigel Guillaume	91	72	36	0	8	17
Chris Daniel	92	72	36	0	10	17
Tim Horan	84	76	32	0	5	24
Scott Browning	105	81	30	0	9	13
Simon Cook	93	78	30	0	6	17
Colin Price	94	81	29	0	8	17
Paul Reardon	93	83	29	0	9	19
Nick Hayward	97	81	29	0	4	15
Paul Knowles	105	79	29	0	11	10
John Machin	114	88	26	0	7	9
Colin Reardon	107	85	23	0	7	6
Trevor Vincent	N/A	N/A	14	0	3	N/A

 

FINAL POSITIONS

		Total	Ave	Swindle
	Rounds	S'ford	S'ford	Pts
Tim Horan	3	106	35.3	45
Paul Sims	3	106	35.3	43
Simon Cook	3	101	33.7	41
Colin Price	3	103	34.3	40
Martin Thomas	3	104	34.7	39
Trevor Vincent	3	90	30.0	38
Bryn Owen	2	75	37.5	37
Nick Hayward	3	99	33.0	34
Nigel Guillaume-Smith	3	102	34.0	33
Simon Hill	3	96	32.0	28
Paul Reardon	3	95	31.7	28
Scott Browning	3	91	30.3	26
Chris Daniel	3	93	31.0	24
Iain Maxwell	2	65	32.5	22
Paul Knowles	3	84	28.0	15
John Machin	3	80	26.7	14
Colin Reardon	3	74	24.7	9
Paul Budge	2	50	25.0	6

2020
The Coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc on the organisation for this year’s tour! It was even at risk of being cancelled altogether as hotels and golf courses were closed to reduce the spread of the virus. Of the sixteen original members signed up for the tour there were seven who withdrew (not just for coronavirus reasons) and one of the replacements pulled out a day before the tour started! So just fifteen Swindlers, ex-Swindlers and a guest joined the tour. Due to the impact of the coronavirus we couldn’t get on to our tour favourite course, Tidworth Garrison, and decided to play Wrag Barn on all three days.

The weather forecast indicated that the debilitating 35˚ heat would be broken by a severe storm but we may – just – get a rain-free round. However, the sky started to darken and the first raindrops were felt as the third group were heading to the 17th green. The last group caught the full brunt of some of the heaviest monsoon-like rain experienced in the UK as they played the 18th and got absolutely soaked! Due to the extreme heat Michael Schurch only played 9 holes and Dave Vaughan took a buggy for the back 9.

Watch a Youtube video of the storm that broke the heatwave: Click here

Day 1: On their first Swindle tour both Simon Cook and Dave Vaughan posted 39 points with Simon taking the money on a count-back. Six players scored to their handicap or better. The Longest Drive was won by Paul Budge with Nigel Guillaume-Smith taking the Nearest-the-Pin prize.

Course:	Wrag Barn			Date:	12-Aug-20
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3 Points	Scratch Score
Simon Cook	85	69	39	0	7	23
Dave Vaughan	94	70	39	0	8	17
Paul Sims	92	70	38	0	8	16
Nigel Guillaume-Smith	90	71	37	0	9	18
Phil Hames	81	71	37	0	8	27
Trevor Vincent	95	74	36	0	10	16
Scott Browning	99	80	33	0	7	17
John Machin	112	85	30	0	3	9
Colin Reardon	103	84	28	0	8	12
Paul Reardon	97	88	28	0	7	19
Colin Price	97	85	25	0	7	14
Paul Knowles	105	83	25	0	5	11
Bryn Owen	96	85	23	0	8	15
Paul Budge	115	101	19	0	4	9
Michael Schurch	143	111	9	0	3	0

Off to the Stanton House Hotel for a few drinks and socially distant dinner!

It was noted over dinner that Bryn looked like the character Carl from the animated film, "Up" ... and so to prove it:

Day 2 was a much cooler day with the occasional spot of drizzle. Phil Hames shot four under his handicap to post a stonking 40 points to win the day from Nigel Guillaume-Smith on 38 points (on a count-back from Trevor Vincent and Paul Sims). Longest Drive again went to Paul Budge with Phil Hames taking the Nearest-the-Pin prize.

Course:	Wrag Barn			Date:	13-Aug-20
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3 Points	Scratch Score
Phil Hames	78	68	40	1	10	30
Nigel Guillaume-Smith	89	70	38	0	10	20
Trevor Vincent	91	70	38	0	10	17
Paul Sims	94	72	38	0	10	18
Paul Budge	86	71	37	0	4	22
Bryn Owen	83	72	36	0	8	25
Colin Price	87	75	35	0	8	24
Paul Reardon	84	75	33	0	7	24
Colin Reardon	97	78	32	0	10	15
Simon Cook	91	77	31	0	5	17
Paul Knowles	101	79	30	0	10	14
Dave Vaughan	102	79	29	0	10	9
John Machin	112	85	28	0	7	10
Scott Browning	109	90	23	0	9	8
Michael Schurch	129	95	20	0	7	3

No "All-you-can-eat" Japanese buffet at Stanton House this year due the coronavirus , but they did provide a Japanese menu which went down well.

As a little joke referencing last year’s tour everyone – except Bryn (who performed the feat last year) - turned up for breakfast on Friday morning with their Swindle day-glo shirt inside-out!

Back to Wrag Barn for the final day with each group going out in reverse order of Swindle points, so Phil Hames, Nigel Guillaume-Smith, Simon Cook and Paul Sims were in the final group chasing the tour trophy.

Nigel & Phil went head-to-head to end up coming first and third on the day with Nigel winning the Tour Trophy by just three Swindle points from Phil. Nigel’s 1st, 2nd and 4th positions edging Phil’s 1st, 3rd and 5th!

Congratulations Nigel – a very consistent few days golf! And commiserations to Phil who played some spectacular shots. Winner of the Longest Drive on the final day was Nigel and Nearest the Pin was Phil. Best score for points scored on the par 3’s went to Trevor with a total of 31. Phil Hames won the 3-round Eclectic with a net 61.9 from Nigel on net 63.6.   

Course:	Wrag Barn			Date:	14-Aug-20
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3 Points	Scratch Score
Nigel Guillaume-Smith	89	71	37	0	11	21
Colin Price	90	78	35	0	4	24
Phil Hames	81	73	35	0	8	27
Bryn Owen	85	74	34	0	7	24
Paul Reardon	85	76	34	0	7	26
Paul Budge	90	75	33	0	6	19
Simon Cook	89	75	33	0	7	19
Paul Knowles	99	77	32	0	6	12
Paul Sims	98	76	32	0	8	12
Trevor Vincent	100	79	31	0	11	13
Scott Browning	97	77	31	0	9	12
Colin Reardon	98	79	31	0	10	14
Michael Schurch	119	83	25	0	9	4
Dave Vaughan	116	93	23	0	3	5
John Machin	120	93	21	0	8	3

All the Longest Drive and NTP winnings went to just three players – Paul Budge, Nigel and Phil!

FINAL POSITIONS

		Total	Ave	Swindle
	Rounds	S'ford	S'ford	Pts
Nigel Guillaume-Smith	3	112	37.3	45
Phil Hames	3	112	37.3	42
Simon Cook	3	103	34.3	33
Paul Sims	3	108	36.0	32
Trevor Vincent	3	105	35.0	29
Colin Price	3	95	31.7	29
Paul Reardon	3	95	31.7	25
Bryn Owen	3	93	31.0	25
Paul Budge	3	89	29.7	23
Dave Vaughan	3	91	30.3	21
Colin Reardon	3	91	30.3	18
Paul Knowles	3	87	29.0	17
Scott Browning	3	87	29.0	16
John Machin	3	79	26.3	12
Michael Schurch	3	54	18.0	5

 

2019

Sixteen Swindlers and ex-Swindlers returned to Wiltshire for the fourth Swindle tour. We drove through driving rain to arrive at the first course on the tour, Wrag Barn. The rain had eased but the society due to tee off before us decided not to brave the conditions and left, allowing us to tee off about 20 minutes early.

Considering the amount of rain that had fallen during the morning the course dried out incredibly well! Some very interesting holes impressed the Swindlers, none more so than the 198-yard Par 3 5th over a pond. Many went for it but some laid up and chipped over the water for a sensible 4! After the round everyone commented on how much they enjoyed the course and it should definitely be on next year’s tour.

Some good scores were posted and new boy Iain Maxwell took the plaudits with an impressive 41 points from Dan Haw on 39. John FitzGerald took the prize for the longest drive and Paul Knowles won the Nearest the Pin. New boy Peter Brown had a nightmare day scoring just 16 points!

Wrag Barn 5th Hole - Par 3

With Stanton House Hotel just a few minutes down the road we were soon ensconced in the bar for drinks and, as usual, on the first night it got messy! Bryn Owen claiming he could get to the Wrag Barn par 5’s with 3 9-irons!

Course:	Wrag Barn			Date:	14-Aug-19
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Score
Iain Maxwell	92	69	41	0	11	19
Dan Haw	82	69	39	1	9	26
Trevor Vincent	97	73	38	0	10	16
Tony Malyon	94	77	35	1	9	20
Nigel Guillaume	94	77	33	0	8	17
Bryn Owen	88	77	31	0	4	20
Colin Reardon	98	78	30	0	7	12
Paul Sims	106	86	29	0	6	13
Scott Browning	103	83	29	0	5	12
Paul Knowles	107	84	28	0	9	10
Chris Daniel	97	81	28	0	8	13
John Machin	109	82	28	0	7	4
John FitzGerald	97	89	27	0	5	20
Martin Thomas	114	87	27	0	6	6
Graham Ottaway	113	90	23	0	8	7
Peter Brown	125	105	16	0	4	6

Day 2 was at Marlborough Golf Club with Michael Schurch taking John Machin’s place for the day as John headed off to Lords for the test match.

The weather improved but unfortunately the course was under maintenance with the greens in a really poor state with deep hollow tines and slitting. Putts from under 18” were being missed. On the back-9 a local rule was in place allowing players to move from bare patches onto fairway. Although we were given two reciprocals and a reduced County card rate everyone said they’d rather have paid more and avoided a course under maintenance.

With the greens in such a poor condition the scores were low with most in the 20’s. However, Peter Brown overcame his first-day nightmare by posting a winning score of 35 points whereas Iain Maxwell went the other way dropping from 41 points on day 1 to 23 at Marlborough – what a crazy sport golf is!? Trevor Vincent came second with 32 points (following his 38 at Wrag Barn). Iain Maxwell did however win the Longest Drive prize (with a 9 iron!) and Colin Reardon got the Nearest-the-Pin.

Course:	Marlborough			Date:	15-Aug-19
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Score
Peter Brown	95	73	35	0	11	17
Trevor Vincent	106	82	32	0	7	10
Dan Haw	89	77	32	0	7	21
Paul Knowles	102	79	30	0	8	14
Colin Reardon	98	78	30	0	10	14
Nigel Guillaume	95	78	30	0	9	13
Martin Thomas	107	80	29	0	7	7
Paul Sims	104	84	28	0	6	10
Scott Browning	104	84	28	0	8	10
John FitzGerald	95	87	27	0	7	20
Bryn Owen	93	82	27	0	6	17
Tony Malyon	108	91	25	0	10	12
Chris Daniel	108	92	24	0	8	11
Iain Maxwell	120	99	23	0	3	8
Graham Ottaway	117	93	22	0	9	5
Michael Schurch	125	97	17	0	4	5

Another "All-you-can-eat" Japanese buffet went down well at Stanton House, but – as usual – alcohol intake was down from the first night! However, this didn't stop Bryn from turning up for breakfast on Friday morning with his Swindle day-glo shirt inside out!

The final round was at Tidworth Garrison which was in its usual excellent condition. As in previous years the groups were selected with those most likely to win the tour going out in the final group which consisted of Iain Maxwell, Dan Haw, Trevor Vincent and Nigel Guillaume-Smith. However, the weather turned nasty again and everyone ended up absolutely drenched! Tony Malyon, Scott Browing , Paul Knowles and Colin Reardon decided to call it a day after 14 holes and retired to the bar (after a hot shower!) Iain Maxwell’s good form returned, winning the day with 37 points from Nigel Guillaume-Smith on 35.

Iain Maxwell again won the Longest Drive competition and Nigel got the Nearest-the-Pin prize.

 

Course:	Tidworth Garrison			Date:	16-Aug-19
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Score
Iain Maxwell	90	73	37	0	8	16
Nigel Guillaume	92	82	35	0	9	20
Bryn Owen	85	77	32	0	7	11
Trevor Vincent	98	79	32	0	5	21
Paul Sims	95	78	31	0	9	12
Scott Browning	104	78	30	0	9	14
Graham Ottaway	107	80	28	0	9	9
Dan Haw	92	84	28	0	5	18
Martin Thomas	118	84	27	0	2	8
Peter Brown	107	87	25	0	9	13
Tony Malyon	108	82	25	0	3	8
Chris Daniel	111	91	23	0	6	12
John Machin	122	92	22	0	2	4
Paul Knowles	120	99	20	0	9	6
Colin Reardon	124	93	19	0	1	7
John FitzGerald	115	97	18	0	1	11

Iain’s second round mishap at Marlborough cost him the overall tour prize with “Mr Consistent” over the three days Trevor Vincent edging it with a total of 43 Swindle points – 2 ahead of second place Iain Maxwell with Dan Haw coming in third! Congratulations Trevor - who probably would have won the first Wiltshire Tour but didn't play the final day.

FINAL POSITIONS

		Total	Ave	Swindle
	Rounds	S'ford	S'ford	Pts
Trevor Vincent	3	102	34.0	43
Iain Maxwell	3	101	33.7	41
Dan Haw	3	99	33.0	39
Nigel Guillaume-Smith	3	98	32.7	39
Bryn Owen	3	90	30.0	31
Paul Sims	3	88	29.3	30
Scott Browning	3	87	29.0	27
Peter Brown	3	76	25.3	27
Tony Malyon	3	85	28.3	24
Colin Reardon	3	79	26.3	24
Paul Knowles	3	78	26.0	23
Martin Thomas	3	83	27.7	21
Chris Daniel	3	75	25.0	15
Graham Ottaway	3	73	24.3	14
John FitzGerald	3	72	24.0	12
John Machin	3	67	22.3	10

2018

Fifteen Swindlers and ex-Swindler (Richard Riddell) ventured to Wiltshire for the third Swindle tour, this year starting at the hilly Ogbourne St. George. The course had not handled the Summer drought well with bumpy greens like a shag-pile carpet and tatty tee areas. However, the weather was very pleasant, albeit a little breezy.

The cards were drawn and off we went in four fourballs. The choice of Nearest-the-Pin and Longest Drive were mistakenly selected for the 5th and 15th (instead of the previously used 7th and 17th (another cock-up by Admin!) but the outcome was fine with Michael Schurch sending a spectacular drive over the valley, down the bank to 8ft from the pin - to ultimately get his birdie - for 5 Stableford points! John FitzGerald's drive on the 5th flew past Dan Haw's to win the longest drive comfortably.

With most Stableford scores in the 30's it was impressive start to the tour but Martin (Metronome) Thomas romped home with a stonking 42 points to win the day from Tony Malyon on 40 and Colin Price on 37.

Course:	Ogbourne Downs			Date:	15-Aug-18
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Score
Martin Thomas	95	68	42	0	9	17
Tony Malyon	86	69	40	0	10	24
Colin Price	83	70	37	0	8	24
Paul Sims	94	74	35	0	5	16
Colin Reardon	98	79	34	0	6	18
Scott Browning	94	74	33	0	5	13
John FitzGerald	86	78	33	1	5	27
Dan Haw	94	77	33	0	5	18
Graham Ottaway	103	81	32	0	6	16
Paul Knowles	102	79	31	0	7	10
Michael Schurch	116	84	31	1	10	12
John Machin	105	79	30	0	6	8
Richard Riddell	97	86	29	0	8	18
Nigel Guillaume	107	91	25	0	8	13
Bryn Owen	98	86	25	0	4	15
Trevor Vincent	115	93	17	0	6	5

And off to Stanton House for dinner, copious amounts of alcohol and a session of Michael Schurch jokes!

Day 2 saw us heading westward through driving rain towards Bath to play Lansdown Golf Club - also founded in the same year as Puttenham - 1894. The weather forecast said the band of heavy rain would be heading eastwards leaving it clear and dry thereafter - and so it proved. By the time we arrived at Lansdown the rain had stopped, but the strong wind continued. The fourballs were selected to ensure that no one played with someone they'd played with the previous day. We were greeted by a very friendly pro and members - including the current men's captain - and a group celebrating a member's 80th birthday who invited us to share the sandwiches they hadn't finished!

On a very quirky course next to Bath Racecourse the scores were not as good as at Ogbourne. The soaked fairways were still bare of grass from the previous weeks' drought which made for some very poor lies - in retrospect we should have agreed on preferred lies. As the course has been built on the edge of the Cotswold Escarpment some of the views - particularly on the par 3 10th (below) - were magnificent. According to Scott you could see the Forth Road Bridge (rapidly corrected to the Severn Bridge) in Bristol!

Amazingly, Colin Reardon won both the Longest Drive AND nearest the Pin! With the condition of the course the scores were much lower than at Ogbourne with most in the 20's. However, Paul Sims comfortably weathered the course and conditions to win with an impressive 38 points with the nearest contenders being Scott Browning, Dan Haw and John FitzGerald all on 31 points - with Scott taking second place from Dan on a count-back.

Richard Riddell bade us farewell as he headed back to Carlisle to dog-sit.

Course:	Lansdown			Date:	16-Aug-18
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Score
Paul Sims	92	72	38	0	12	17
Scott Browning	98	78	31	0	8	16
Dan Haw	94	77	31	0	11	15
John FitzGerald	93	85	31	0	9	19
Tony Malyon	98	82	30	0	7	12
Bryn Owen	93	80	29	0	7	15
Paul Knowles	107	84	29	0	5	24
Colin Price	92	79	28	0	6	14
Martin Thomas	104	79	28	0	7	10
Trevor Vincent	107	83	28	0	4	11
Colin Reardon	101	82	26	0	10	5
Nigel Guillaume	110	94	24	0	5	2
Graham Ottaway	114	92	23	0	8	12
Michael Schurch	124	92	21	0	6	12
John Machin	120	94	20	0	6	17
Richard Riddell	111	100	18	0	2	9

The "All-you-can-eat" Japanese buffet (and more booze) awaited at Stanton House so off we went.

The final day and off we travel to our favourite tour course, Tidworth Garrison. After the poor conditions of Ogbourne and Lansdown, Tidworth was a sight for sore eyes! Green fairways and excellent, fast running - but true - greens.The groups we sent out in reverse order with the lowest Stableford points going in the first three-ball and the potential winners - Martin Thomas, Paul Sims, Tony Malyon and Scott Browning - going in the final group. After the opening 9 holes Scott's 19 points put him in contention to win the tour, but Mr. Consistent, Tony Malyon, kept his nerve to win the day with 37 points. Dan Haw - on his first Swindle Tour - came in second with 35 points from Paul Sims in third with 34 points.

Bryn Owen took the prize for Nearest the Pin on the 5th and Paul Knowles drive on the 15th was surpassed by Colin Reardon and then a massive strike from John FitzGerald took the glory going further by another 20 yards or more.

Course:	Tidworth Garrison			Date:	17-Aug-18
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Score
Tony Malyon	86	70	37	0	8	8
Dan Haw	88	71	35	0	6	6
Paul Sims	92	72	34	0	7	7
Colin Price	86	73	33	0	6	5
Nigel Guillaume	97	81	30	0	5	15
Paul Knowles	100	77	29	0	3	3
Martin Thomas	105	80	29	0	7	8
Scott Browning	102	82	29	0	7	7
John Machin	115	88	26	0	5	5
Colin Reardon	108	89	26	0	5	11
Bryn Owen	97	84	26	0	5	5
John FitzGerald	92	84	26	0	5	5
Trevor Vincent	105	81	25	0	8	8
Graham Ottaway	109	87	24	0	6	6
Michael Schurch	142	110	9	0	1	1

FINAL STANDINGS

		Total	Ave	Swindle
	Rounds	S'ford	S'ford	Pts
Tony Malyon	3	107	35.7	46
Paul Sims	3	107	35.7	45
Dan Haw	3	99	33.0	38
Martin Thomas	3	99	33.0	36
Colin Price	3	98	32.7	35
Scott Browning	3	93	31.0	35
John FitzGerald	3	90	30.0	27
Paul Knowles	3	89	29.7	27
Colin Reardon	3	86	28.7	24
Nigel Guillaume	3	79	26.3	19
Bryn Owen	3	80	26.7	18
Graham Ottaway	3	79	26.3	14
John Machin	3	76	25.3	14
Trevor Vincent	3	70	23.3	11
Michael Schurch	3	61	20.3	10
Richard Riddell	2	47	23.5	5

Congratulations to Tony Malyon for winning the Tour for the second consecutive year. Paul Sims came a very creditable second with newby Dan Haw in third place. The prize for the most points scored on the par 3's was shared by Martin Thomas and Paul Sims with 25 points apiece.

2017

With ex-Swindler Chris Daniel replacing Tanzania-bound Colin Price, the rest of the previous year's Swindlers rejoined battle once again in Wiltshire from 16-18 August.

The excellent Tidworth Garrison was the opening course played

The cards were drawn for the fourballs and off we went. The weather was much kinder than 2016 with temperatures in the low 20's. As we played off the yellow tees this year the scores were a little better with Tony Malyon again showing his liking of Tidworth to post a winning score of 39 points from Paul Sims on 37 (on a count-back from Scott Browning).

John Machin's huge drive up the 15th won him the Longest Drive prize and Richard Taunton took the prize for nearest-the-pin.

TIDWORTH GARRISON SCORES

Course:	Tidworth Garrison			Date:	16-Aug-17
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Score
Tony Malyon	88	70	39	1	8	22
Paul Sims	92	71	37	0	10	17
Bryn Owen	81	69	37	0	8	25
Graham Ottaway	99	76	32	0	9	15
Scott Browning	97	76	32	0	8	13
John Machin	110	84	29	0	5	8
Trevor Vincent	100	81	28	0	8	12
Martin Thomas	112	86	27	0	8	10
Richard Taunton	103	85	26	0	9	11
Colin Reardon	104	83	26	0	5	10
Chris Daniel	104	89	24	0	3	12
Michael Schurch	123	95	20	0	5	3

After the golf we all headed off again to the wonderful Stanton House Hotel.

A far more mellow drinking evening than 2016 had everyone raring to go on Day 2.

Day 2 was at Marlborough Golf Club and on arrival Colin Reardon realised he'd left his golf holdall at Tidworth Garrison (Yes, I know, leaving a holdall in an ex-army facility is not a great idea!) However, it was still where it was left and a rush back to Marlborough behind a Combine Harvester doing 10 miles per hour left it a bit tight!

Scott Browning's 34 points won the day from Colin Reardon on 32.

Bryn won the nearest-the-pin prize (for the 2nd year running) and Tony won the longest drive!

MARLBOROUGH SCORES

Course:	Marlborough			Date:	17-Aug-17
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Points
Scott Browning	101	80	34	0	10	17
Colin Reardon	97	76	32	0	10	11
Tony Malyon	100	84	31	0	11	17
Trevor Vincent	100	81	30	0	11	13
Martin Thomas	112	86	27	0	6	9
Bryn Owen	104	92	27	0	5	15
Graham Ottaway	110	87	27	0	11	11
John Machin	116	90	26	0	7	6
Richard Taunton	103	85	26	0	10	12
Paul Sims	112	92	22	0	5	6
Chris Daniel	114	98	22	0	9	11
Michael Schurch	126	96	17	1	8	5

 

The all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet was thoroughly enjoyed by all again! The Karate Kid's Mr Mihaji look-alike took Richard Taunton's interest!

Day 3 at Ogbourne Downs and the weather started rather cold and drizzly, but nowhere near as bad as 2016's torrential dwnpours!. The four-balls were selected based upon Swindle points with the lowest scorers going out as the first group and the four with the highest points (and most likely to win the tour) went out in the final group.


The day was won by Trevor Vincent with 35 points on a count-back from John Machin. Richard Taunton won the nearest-the pin prize (on the 17th hole - above) and Tony Malyon the longest drive! Graham Ottaway picked up the prize for the most points scored on the par 3's over the three days with 31 and Tony Malyon in second place with 28.

OGBOURNE DOWNS SCORES

Course:	Ogbourne Downs			Date:	18-Aug-17
NAME	Gross Score	Nett Score	Stableford Points	2's Scored	Par 3's	Scratch Points
Trevor Vincent	93	74	35	0	7	17
John Machin	98	72	35	0	8	11
Martin Thomas	99	73	34	0	8	12
Colin Reardon	95	75	32	0	9	13
Paul Sims	97	76	32	0	8	15
Bryn Owen	96	84	28	0	7	17
Tony Malyon	102	86	27	0	9	13
Scott Browning	104	85	26	0	7	11
Richard Taunton	113	95	23	0	5	10
Graham Ottaway	119	96	22	0	11	8
Michael Schurch	136	104	18	0	3	3
Chris Daniel	121	104	16	0	4	6

FINAL STANDINGS

		Total	Ave	Swindle
	Rounds	S'ford	S'ford	Pts
Tony Malyon	3	97	32.3	31
Trevor Vincent	3	93	31.0	30
Scott Browning	3	92	30.7	28
Bryn Owen	3	92	30.7	24
Colin Reardon	3	90	30.0	24
John Machin	3	90	30.0	24
Paul Sims	3	91	30.3	23
Martin Thomas	3	88	29.3	23
Graham Ottaway	3	81	27.0	18
Richard Taunton	3	75	25.0	12
Chris Daniel	3	62	20.7	5
Michael Schurch	3	55	18.3	4

 

CONGRATULATIONS TO TONY MALYON - WINNER OF THE 2017 WILTSHIRE TOUR

2016

The first significant Swindle tour for a few years took place from 17-19 August in Wiltshire. Twelve Swindlers Bryn Owen, Tony Malyon, Colin Price, John Machin, Trevor Vincent, Scott Browning, Martin Thomas, Colin Reardon, Graham Ottaway, Paul Sims, Richard Taunton and ex-Swindler Michael Schurch started the tour at the impressive Tidworth Garrison course.

In normal Swindle fashion the cards were drawn for the fourballs and off we went. On a sweltering day with the ball rolling it was expected that the scores would be good, but Tidworth is a tough course off the white tees - especially for those who hadn't played it before. Ten Swindler's scores were spread between 26 and 33 Stableford points, however Tony Malyon posted a stunning 40 points to win the day with Michael Schurch coming up the rear. Tony's massive drive with his pitching wedge managed to creep past Bryn Owen's 9-iron to win the longest drive and Colin Reardon got the nearest-the-pin on the par-3 5th (and the birdie).

TIDWORTH GARRISON SCORES

After the golf we all headed off to the wonderful Stanton House Hotel.

An excellent dinner was followed by way too much wine and a late night as could be seen with the hang-dog looks at breakfast the following morning!

Day 2 saw a relatively early start at Marlborough Golf Club on what turned out to be another sweltering day! Trevor Vincent posted a very creditable score of 36 points to win the day from Bryn Owen on 33. Bryn won the nearest-the-pin prize and Michael Schurch won the longest drive!

MARLBOROUGH SCORES

A wonderful all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet was the dinner option and thoroughly enjoyed by all, including some who tried the hot sake. The evening's libation was toned down from the previous night but a round of Michael Schurch's ribald jokes were well received!

On day 3 at Ogbourne Downs the weather changed abruptly with driving rain and high winds for the opening nine holes. The downpours could be seen winding their way down the valley towards the course and on a very hilly track it made for some difficult scoring. With tour leader Trevor Vincent missing the final day due to work commitments the four leaders consisting of Tony Malyon, Scott Browning, Bryn Owen and John Machin went out in the final fourball.

The weather slowly improved to give a pleasant afternoon and at last we could admire the views over the Wiltshire Downs.

The day was won by Bryn Owen with 33 points from Tony Malyon on 32 which made Bryn the overall tour winner, edging Tony into second place. Colin Price won the nearest-the pin prize and the longest drive! Tony Malyon picked up the prize for the most points scored on the par 3's over the three days with 28 and Richard Taunton in second place with 26.

OGBOURNE DOWNS SCORES

FINAL STANDINGS

CONGRATULATIONS TO BRYN OWEN

A thoroughly enjoyable tour and all Swindlers suggested a repeat for 2017.

2006

Swindlers Ken Johnson, Trevor Bain, Richard Riddell, Tony Malyon, Bob Goodfellow, Duncan Jack, Colin Reardon were joined by ex-Swindler (and founder-member) Andy Symons - now of Guildford GC, on this year's trip to South-West France. Five rounds were played [by most], and the best three Stableford rounds counted towards the Tour Trophy winner. With Andy Symons leading Tony Malyon by two points, the final round at Moliets would prove to be exciting and close. Tony Malyon posted a fantastic score of 41 points - which included three birdies and Andy Symons scored 39 points - also with three birdies - to share the trophy with a total of 108 points! Well done to Andy and Tony!

Andy also won the prize for the most birdies in the week - with 5, and Richard Riddell won the prize for the most points on the par-3's with a total of 45 points.

After a flight delay and typical French laissez-faire at the car rental desks, the Sunday round started late at Moliets. Moliets is considered to be one of the top 25 courses in Europe! Ken Johnson had decided not to play [and not to enter the week's competition), so seven players went out to a mild afternoon on a quite empty course. All was going well until the groups reached the holes by the sea, when a sullen sky decided to erupt into quite a thunderstorm! Bain, Reardon & Riddell decided to shelter under a lookout point, but the lightning was getting close. The rain finally stopped, but as the squatters moved out from the shelter, another crack nearby forced the decision to start the long walk back. Looking back, it was clear that the decision was well received by the following fourball - including Bob Goodfellow who had been struck by lightning before on a golf course - who played one extra hole before joining the first group on the way in. After just 13 holes, Andy Symons had posted 25 points and Duncan Jack was on 24 points. It was decided to discard the round, apart from counting the par-3's and Bob Goodfellow's birdie.

Monday, and off to Chantaco where the weather was what we had become used to - 20c+ and no clouds! Andy continued his good form with 36 points, with Tony and Richard with 34. Off the group trudge to Col d'Ibardin to collect the cheap booze, and then into St. Jean de Luz for dinner at Chez Maya.

Tuesday, and off to Chiberta - voted the 7th best course in France. The weather was awful with driving rain and a cold wind! Like being back in Blighty! The rain eased for the back 9, but it didn't really warm up too much. Andy again won the day with 33 points, followed by Duncan with 30 points. Interestingly, the low handicappers - Andy & Tony - didn't like Chiberta!

On Wednesday, Andy decided to take a day off with Ken to look around Biarritz as the rest of the group headed north to Hossegor - site of some of the best surfing in Europe - but we went to play golf. This was the Swindler's first visit to Hossegor - also in Europe's top 100 - and all thoroughly enjoyed it, although many of the holes were very long par fours, and all wound their way through Les Landes pines. Tony won the day with 33 points, followed by Colin with 30.

A very early start on Thursday saw the tour head back to Moliets for an 8:34 tee time. Bob decided not to play as his foot was hurting. Duncan and Trevor went off as a 2-ball, while Andy, Tony, Colin & Richard took buggies and went as a fourball. The golf played by Andy & Tony was inspiring as they competed mano-a-mano to win the trophy!

With the two players exactly level after 53 holes, both players got their tee shots away well on the final hole of the tour, with Tony in the slight rough, but Andy in the middle of the fairway. Tony's approach came up about 30 yards short of the green, and Andy - uncharacteristically - put his approach in a greenside bunker. With the pin close to the front of the green, Tony needed to get his shot close. He took a good look at where he wanted to land his shot then went back to his ball. A couple of practice shots and then the ball was on its way, landing exactly where it was intended before starting to roll towards the hole. Just inches away from dropping, it deviated to the right and ended just two feet past for a cast-iron par.

With Andy in the shallow greenside bunker and the pin quite close, it needed a very soft touch to get close. The shot was executed well, but the ball ran about eight feet past. Knowing that he needed to get the putt to stay level with Tony, Andy set the ball on its way and it never deviated from the middle of the cup. Tony tapped his ball in the hole to handshakes and back-slaps all round.

Off to Merignac airport and the flight home after another enjoyable tour.

2005

The "Swindlers on Tour" returned from France on Thursday [17 March], red of face and eyes following the non-stop sun, temperatures in the 20's and long evenings with the local plonk flowing. Ken Johnson took the major awards .... best combined stableford points, and best points total on the par 3's. Well done Ken!

Sunday started at Moliets with some very fatigued Swindlers posting the worst scores of the week, with three 19's, a 20, a 24 and [yours truly] with 32 points and the first birdie of the tour. The 12th hole (a par 3) was out of use due to ground works and - typical of the French - it wasn't mentioned, and we didn't find out until we arrived at the tee!

Monday, and off to Chantaco, where yours truly continued the surge with 17pts on the first seven holes - and then the wheels came off, and stayed off, and couldn't be reset until the last few holes of the final day!

Ken had a stonking round at Chantaco with 38 points followed by Trevor with 32. Bob [The Freezer] and Trevor both got birdies. And then we found the little Basque bistro - Sidrerie Hernani... oh dear!

Tuesday, and off to Chiberta - best course of the week - where Trevor and Stuart both posted 34 points, and both also got birdies (Trevor's second).

On Wednesday, at Makila, The Freezer discovered cardiac hill and had to wait a while before teeing off - even though it was his honour! Best score of the day was Ken again, with 35 points. Bob posted a 30, but everyone else was in the 20's - although one hole was out of play due to drainage work.

An early start on Thursday saw the tour head back to Moliets for an 8:34 tee time .... only to discover the club house wasn't open until 9:00! Sacre bleu!! However, the locals were friendly and we got off on time. Ken and Trevor were battling for Tour Trophy, and both tried desperately to be charitable early in the round. However, Ken's 28 points was enough to secure the trophy for the second year, as Trevor came home with 27.