Gordon Giles wins CAQ GC Open Singles at Wynnum

CAQ GC Open Singles – Saturday 11 & Sunday 12 July

There were 30 players from 11 clubs entered for this event, with players allocated into 4 blocks of 8. Blocks A and B were played at Wynnum and blocks C and D at Toombul on the Saturday. On the Sunday, the top 4 in each block competed in the Championship finals at Wynnum for the Pam Shepherd Trophy, with the remainder competing for the Pam Shepherd Plate at Toombul. Although heavy rain had been forecast for Sunday afternoon, play was completed in the dry, much to everyone's relief.

There were many close-fought games in the finals, with several being decided at the final hoop or being timed out. A good example was the semi-final between Gordon Giles and Graham McLean, a very tense battle with Gordon coming out on top 6-5. In the other semi-final, Geoff Jamieson proved too strong for Richard Pickvance, winning 10-6.

In the Championship final between Gordon Giles and Geoff Jamieson, Gordon got off to a good start with an early lead. Although Geoff fought back to almost draw level, Gordon held on to win 10-7 and take out the Pam Shepherd Trophy.

Meanwhile at Toombul, 14 players competed in 2 blocks of 7. The winner from each block, Meagan Stuart (Eildon) and Hisham Elkomy (Southport), played in the final for the Plate. This was another close-fought game, with Meagan winning 7-6 to secure the Pam Shepherd Plate.

CAQ Events Coordinator Geraldine Trivett thanked Wynnum CC for hosting the finals and venue manager Bruce Fleming for keeping everything on track. She also thanked referees Liz Fleming, Cloreen van der Sluis, Sue Green and Deirdre Giles for their great work; hoop setter Bruce Fleming; and of course our wonderful kitchen helpers who provided refreshments for players (and spectators) throughout the day. Geraldine then introduced Pam Shepherd to present the trophies, Pam being one of the leading figures responsible for the development and promotion of Golf Croquet in Queensland.

The winners of each of the finals were:

- Championship W – Geraldine Trivett (r/u Kevin Melksham) - Championship Y – Robert Martin (r/u George Oliver) - Championship Z – Peter Nicholson (r/u Geoff Hull) - Championship X & Pam Shepherd Trophy – Gordon Giles (r/u Geoff Jamieson)

Article written by Publicity Officer Mike Fordyce