2nd Annual Van Isle Cup
Feb. 22nd & 23rd, 2011
Gorge Vale Golf Club
Highland Pacific Golf Club
Team VGT vs. Team VIPT
The 2nd Annual VGT vs. Van Isle Pro Tour Ryder Cup style event took a series of twists and turns this year to say the least. Originally scheduled to be played at the Jack Nicklaus designed Bear Mountain Resort, the event was forced to shift venues due to frosty conditions up at Bear Mountain that closed the course. Thanks to the efforts of the VIPT Committee and some great support from fellow VIPT tour members and their respective golf clubs, the matches went as planned on Day one at Gorge Vale Golf Club with Day two scheduled to play at Highland Pacific Golf Club. Special thanks to the membership and ownership of both golf courses for stepping up to the plate at such short notice to provide us great venues for our matches this year! And our thanks in particular to Jim Cook for providing all the players with power carts for the day at Gorge Vale. Much appreciated with the weather we faced on the day!!
With the promise of snow in the forecast for Day two, captains Boudreau (VIPT) and Mulholland (VGT) chose to play out both singles matches and a team best ball on Day One. If Day two was cancelled due to weather, then each match would count for one point, leaving a total of 18 points up for grabs. If Day two went as scheduled, there would be another 6 points up for grabs in pair’s matches to decide who took home the Van Isle Cup.
At the end of the Day One, VGT’s depth of play was just too much for the VIPT team, as VGT took 13 of a total of 18 points on the day. And when snow fell on day two and the match then turned into an 18 hole event, VGT retained the Van Isle Cup for the 2nd straight year!
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Here is a summary of the 6 Team Matches and 12 individual Matches from the event:
Match One: Fraser Mulholland/ Stu Anderson (VGT)
vs. John Randle/ Mac McLeod (VIPT)
In match one of the day, VGT’s Captain Fraser Mulholland relied on a Tour-Like performance from his partner Stuart Anderson, who fired off 7 birdies on the day en-route to a 1-up team victory over the VIPT team of John Randle of Bear Mountain and Mac McLeod of Royal Colwood Golf Club. After falling back in the match 2-down after 11 holes, the VGT squad battled back with wins on holes 12 (par by Anderson) and 13 (birdie by Mulholland) for a 1 up lead. After 14 was halved with birdies by McLeod, Mulholland and Anderson and 15 with pars, McLeod threw down his 6th birdie of the day to bring the match back to All Square thru 16. But the resolve came on the last two holes from Captain Mulholland’s partner after Randle poured in his birdie from 15 feet on #17, and Anderson needing to hole his 6 footer to keep the match at square. And he not only did that, but he hit two perfect shots into the 18th hole and capped off the day with a 5 footer for birdie and a 1-up win for Team VGT. In the singles matches there was clearly a battle between Anderson and McLeod, as they battled back and forth all day, trading birdies until the end where Anderson’s last two on the day proved the difference as he prevailed 2 up. The Mulholland/Randle Match was a bit less dramatic and spectacular, with Mulholland falling 2-down after 7 holes and allowed Randle to build up a 4-up lead thru 12. And although a valiant effort to battle back with birdies on 13 and 14, Randle’s birdie on 17 finished the match at 3 and 1.
End of Match One: Team VGT = 2 | Team VIPT = 1
Match Two: Bryn Parry/Dave Zibrik
vs. Rob Cruise/ Gord Scutt
Match Two featured VGT’s Order of Merit Champion (2008-2010) Bryn Parry of the Players’ Academy and partner Dave Zibrik of Westwood Plateau Golf Academy versus Rob Cruise of Highland Pacific and Gordy Scutt of Golf Town Victoria. Parry and Zibrik drew blood first with a birdie on hole 1 by Zibrik, but Team VIPT fought back right away with birdies on holes 2 and a hole-out eagle on #4 by Cruise to take a 1-up lead. VGT battled back with a win on the challenging #7 and the match was back to all square. After see-sawing back and forth over the next four holes, the momentum shifted back to Team Vancouver Island as they made birdies on 13 (Gordie) and 14 (Gordie and Rob) to go 2-up. VGT fought right back with a birdie on 15 by Zibrik to get to 1-down, and after pars all the way in thru 17, this match was going down to 18 to decide the winner. And after Zibrik’s birdie putt hung on the hole, but didn’t drop, team VIPT earned the victory 1-up.
In the singles portion of these matches, Cruise’s eagle 2 on the 4th proved to give him enough momentum at the start and although this match bounced back and forth until the 12th, the match turned in Cruise’s favour with a bogey on 13 by Zibrik and a birdie 2 on 14 by Cruise to go 3-up. Although Zibrik birdied 15 to claw back to 2-down, Cruise took 16 with a par to win this match 3 and 2. In the Parry/Scutt match, Parry played a sure and steady round in the difficult conditions of the day (sleet, snow, hail, sun, sleet…you get what I mean) to earn himself a 4-up lead through 9 holes. Scutt however took a bit longer to warm up on his round, but after birdies on 11, 13 and 14, he clawed back to within one. Halves on holes 15-17 meant this match went to 18, and Parry would make par for a win on the hole for a 2-up win.
End of Match Two: Team VGT = 3 | Team VIPT = 3
Match Three – Darren Griff/Oliver Tubb
vs. Edd Boudreau/Germain Francouer
Match three started with a quick birdie on the first by the host Professional, taking an early lead on this match, until Griff shot back with a birdie of his own on #4 to bring the match back to all square. But VIPT got it back with a birdie on #5 by Boudreau and a par on #6 for a 2-up lead. Team VGT would battle back with birdies on #8 (Tubb and Griff) and pars on #10, but VIPT re-gained the lead that they would hold onto until Griff threw another birdie down to square the match. But in the end, birdies on #15 by both Boudreau and Francouer were good enough to keep a grip on this match, which ended in their favour 1-up.
In the singles matches, Griff was just too strong for the ‘Island Champ’ Boudreau, carding 5 birdies on the day and winning the match 3&2. Local Pro ‘Frenchy’ Francouer proved too strong on his home track, defeating Players’ Academy Professional Oliver Tubb 4 & 3 with four birdies of his own.
End of Match Three: Team VGT = 4 | Team VIPT = 5
Match Four: Phil Jonas/ Mewail Kidane (VGT)
vs. Lance McCullough/Aaron Grice (VIPT)
This veteran/rookie VGT pairing turned out to be a good one from the start with the veteran Jonas rattling off an eagle on 2 and birdie on 3 to jump out to a 2-up lead. Jonas kept up his steady play with another birdie on 11 to keep their match in control until Grice birdied 12 to get back to 1-down on the day. Jonas’ birdie on 15 brought VGT back to 2-up for the day, which they would not relinquish. VGT wins 2-up.
In the singles matches, Jonas’ play was just too steady for McCullough as he held a lead from hole #2 right thru until he won the match 3 & 2. The Kidane/Grice match was a different story as this match went back and forth with Kidane leading the match 3 up thru 8, but then it was Grices’ turn to play some golf, bringing the match to AS thru 12 and then 1 up through 16, before Kidane battled back once again on 17 and 18 to eventually claim this match 1 up.
End of Match Four: Team VGT = 7 | Team VIPT = 5
Match Five: Matt Makinson/Matt Daniel (VGT)
vs. Axel Riley/ Matt Matheson (VIPT)
After pars were good enough on hole 1 for team VGT, they continued add to their lead with a birdie on #4 by Makinson. But a quick birdie by Riley on 5 got the match back within reach and another birdie by Riley on 8 got team VIPT back to square. But it was the back and forth birdies from Makinson and Daniel on the back nine that put this match away on the 15th hole at 4 & 3.
In the singles matches, Makinson was just too strong for VIPT’s Matt Matheson as he rattled off 4 birdies and a 7 and 6 win. Daniel/Riley’s match was far closer on the day, but after Riley’s bogey on 17, Daniel closed out his match 2 & 1 for a 3 point sweep for Team VGT.
End of Match Five: Team VGT = 10 | Team VIPT = 5
Match Six: Dan Swanson/ James Allenby (VGT)
vs. Dave Kuss/ Rich Ingle (VIPT)
In this sixth and final match of the day, Team VIPT seemed to have their strategy dialled in with their alternating birdies on the day, leading this match from hole 4 right up until the 16th. But after Allenby’s birdie on 17 and pars on 18 from Swanson and Allenby, VGT turned this match into a 1 up victory on the day.
In their singles matches, it was Allenby taking on Ingle and Swanson vs. Kuss. In the first singles match, Allenby took the early lead on hole one, and kept the hammer down, getting to 3 up through 9. But Ingle battled back to 1 down through 13 before being hit with another birdie by Allenby on 16 and a 3 & 2 loss to the Langley Canadian Tour player. Swanson also took the early lead in his match with his par on 2 and added to his lead on 8 to go 2 up. But Kuss battled back and was 1 down thru 11 until Swanson’s steady play continued to be too much for the lefty from Morningstar. This match ended on the 15 as Swanson won 4 & 3.
End of Event: Team VGT = 13 | Team VIPT = 5
Thanks again to all the VIPT Professionals for hosting our VGT Team members to a great couple of days on the island. We look forward to your return to the mainland in 2012!! Other than the weather, I couldn’t have thought of a better way to start off the 2011 season. Shall we try for Phoenix in ’12??
Fraser Mulholland
Commissioner, VGT
