reporter2
20-09-21, 11:17
BMW Golf Cup National Final makes return at Tanah Merah
Sep 20, 2021
Singapore
IT was a golf game where both health and safety were the main priorities.
After dropping off my golf bag at the buggy area last Friday, I was making my way towards the changing room when I was directed to a far corner of Tanah Merah Country Club's Tampines clubhouse. Greeting me that afternoon were frontline workers from a Ministry of Health-approved Covid-19 test provider who welcomed me into a room where golfers were undergoing pre-event testing. It took about 30 minutes for the results of the Antigen Rapid Test to come in, and the word "negative" flashed on my phone to give me the all-clear to play in the BMW Golf Cup National Final - which was back on the annual golf calendar after an enforced break last year.
The popular event, which was used to select Singapore representatives for the International Finals at an exotic golf location, attracted about 250 participants - mainly BMW car owners - over two days.
There were about a dozen media representatives too, and although they were playing social rounds, they were involved in the novelty events, which included two hole-in-one prizes - a BMW 840i Gran Coupe (worth S$412,888) for Hole 14, and the BMW 730Li (worth S$351,888) for Hole 4.
However, none of the participants at the challenging Tampines course drove away with either of those two cars. In fact, no one came even close to an ace at the 230m Hole 4, made more difficult by a strong headwind.
Hole 14 offered an easier challenge for the 8 series, and there were a few near-misses at the 135m hole with the pin just beyond a bunker.
I teed-off on the par-five 10th hole, which offered a big challenge with water running all the way to the green along the left fairway.
A bogey was not a bad score for this 19-handicapper and I had hoped to continue the good work at the next few holes.
Another two bogeys and a double bogey brought me to Hole 14 where the grand prize for an ace was still waiting to be won.
Facing a strong wind on the 135m hole, I hit a five-iron which looked promising, until my ball fell just short and into the bunker. A perfect sand shot lifted me to an easy 1m putt, and the par was encouraging.
Then we reached Hole 4, a killer of a hole that has often seen golfers four-putting on a massive, undulating green. Like the others, I conceded on striking an ace when standing on the tee-box. The 225m hole against a strong headwind is an impossible distance for a golfer who averages 190m off the tee.
Only about 10 per cent of the golfers eventually found the green. Tan Lee Hong, a long-hitting seven-handicapper who plays four times a week at Tanah Merah, said: "It is a ridiculous distance and difficult pin placement. I hit a three-wood and was still short of the green by about 20m."
If the odds for achieving a hole-in-one are 12,500-to-one these days, it could be 25,000-to-one on this particular setting. But I suppose you have to earn it the hard way if the grand prize is a BMW car.
No doubt, this pin-setting became a popular talking point during the post-game reception. The longest drive (261m) was recorded by Lim Bee Khoon on the par-five hole 8; it scored him a TaylorMade Driver SIM2 Max.
On a day where the three top winners were Jeffrey Goh (36 points in the men's I category), Roy Chang (36 points in the men's II category) and Felicia Tan (35 points in the ladies' category), the plethora of lucky-draw prizes ensured that four in 10 participants went home with something.
As for this golfer, what I took back were plenty of good memories of an excellent day out enjoying my favourite sport on a beautiful course.
Sep 20, 2021
Singapore
IT was a golf game where both health and safety were the main priorities.
After dropping off my golf bag at the buggy area last Friday, I was making my way towards the changing room when I was directed to a far corner of Tanah Merah Country Club's Tampines clubhouse. Greeting me that afternoon were frontline workers from a Ministry of Health-approved Covid-19 test provider who welcomed me into a room where golfers were undergoing pre-event testing. It took about 30 minutes for the results of the Antigen Rapid Test to come in, and the word "negative" flashed on my phone to give me the all-clear to play in the BMW Golf Cup National Final - which was back on the annual golf calendar after an enforced break last year.
The popular event, which was used to select Singapore representatives for the International Finals at an exotic golf location, attracted about 250 participants - mainly BMW car owners - over two days.
There were about a dozen media representatives too, and although they were playing social rounds, they were involved in the novelty events, which included two hole-in-one prizes - a BMW 840i Gran Coupe (worth S$412,888) for Hole 14, and the BMW 730Li (worth S$351,888) for Hole 4.
However, none of the participants at the challenging Tampines course drove away with either of those two cars. In fact, no one came even close to an ace at the 230m Hole 4, made more difficult by a strong headwind.
Hole 14 offered an easier challenge for the 8 series, and there were a few near-misses at the 135m hole with the pin just beyond a bunker.
I teed-off on the par-five 10th hole, which offered a big challenge with water running all the way to the green along the left fairway.
A bogey was not a bad score for this 19-handicapper and I had hoped to continue the good work at the next few holes.
Another two bogeys and a double bogey brought me to Hole 14 where the grand prize for an ace was still waiting to be won.
Facing a strong wind on the 135m hole, I hit a five-iron which looked promising, until my ball fell just short and into the bunker. A perfect sand shot lifted me to an easy 1m putt, and the par was encouraging.
Then we reached Hole 4, a killer of a hole that has often seen golfers four-putting on a massive, undulating green. Like the others, I conceded on striking an ace when standing on the tee-box. The 225m hole against a strong headwind is an impossible distance for a golfer who averages 190m off the tee.
Only about 10 per cent of the golfers eventually found the green. Tan Lee Hong, a long-hitting seven-handicapper who plays four times a week at Tanah Merah, said: "It is a ridiculous distance and difficult pin placement. I hit a three-wood and was still short of the green by about 20m."
If the odds for achieving a hole-in-one are 12,500-to-one these days, it could be 25,000-to-one on this particular setting. But I suppose you have to earn it the hard way if the grand prize is a BMW car.
No doubt, this pin-setting became a popular talking point during the post-game reception. The longest drive (261m) was recorded by Lim Bee Khoon on the par-five hole 8; it scored him a TaylorMade Driver SIM2 Max.
On a day where the three top winners were Jeffrey Goh (36 points in the men's I category), Roy Chang (36 points in the men's II category) and Felicia Tan (35 points in the ladies' category), the plethora of lucky-draw prizes ensured that four in 10 participants went home with something.
As for this golfer, what I took back were plenty of good memories of an excellent day out enjoying my favourite sport on a beautiful course.