They say the early bird catches the worm, but it was a flight that the KIS Vipers Golf Team were catching in the early hours of Monday morning. The team were traveling to Hua Hin for the seond year in a row to test their skills against some of the best junior golfers in Asia at the 2019 FOBISIA Golf Championships hosted by Shrewsbury International School.<\/p>\n
Flying into Hua Hin from KL saved the team a long bus ride through Bangkok traffic and meant they were able to hit the course for their practice round in the afternoon, following an energising sampling of the Thai buffet at lunch.\u00a0The facilities available at Black Mountain Golf Resort are of a world class standard and the players are truly privileged to have the opportunity to test their golfing skills on such a high-quality course.<\/p>\n
It was quickly apparent on the practice round that the Black Mountain course was very different to the courses in KK that the KIS Team were used to. The most notable challenge were the fast greens requiring a soft touch if you didn\u2019t want to be pushing your ball past the hole and see it continue rolling down the slope.<\/p>\n
The team made their way around the 18 holes together; taking advise from the local caddies and trying to familiarise themselves as much as they could of points to watch out for and identifying some holes where maybe some calculated risks could be taken.<\/p>\n
The sun was dropping behind the surrounding hills when the team finally stepped off the course after a very beneficial practice round and went straight to the welcome dinner in the clubhouse. It was certainly a long first day for the team as they finally got into their rooms in the villas at 8:30pm after having been up since before 3:00am!<\/p>\n
Tuesday saw the first day of competition open with brilliant sunshine and temperatures climbing quickly as the first groups teed off just after 8:00am. Tim and Ben led the way at the front with Ben putting in a very solid performance on the first day, finishing the 1st round in 3rd place with a +2 gross score and 1st place on the Stableford Nett scoring system. Angelina started the tournament hotter than the scorching temperatures in Hua Hin, finishing the front 9 at +4. Despite dropping a few extra shots coming home on the back 9, she still succeeded in finishing the round in 6th place on gross score and 2nd place Stableford Nett.<\/p>\n
Nicholas came back strong in his last 9 holes to finish with a score of 107 while Liam shot a 109, both very impressive scores on a difficult course in their first FOBISIA (and international) golf tournament.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, the second round started off even hotter as players set off in groups based on their scores and positions from Round 1. Recent tournament practice in the MSSD and MSSS Golf championships proved very valuable as players had had recent experience at playing back to back rounds in competitive circumstances. Ben was playing in the top group and after dropping a few shots on the opening holes, removed his sleeves resulting in a change of \u2018luck\u2019 as he birdied the next hole and a few others throughout the round.\u00a0Chanel was last out on the course for the day and after a very focussed warm-up and preparation she performed very well on the front 9 and improved her first round score by a few shots.<\/p>\n
The \u2018most improved\u2019 awards in the group went to Liam and Caleb who both made impressive improvements in Round 2. Caleb shooting 15 shots less with a 91!<\/p>\n
Tim, having taken out a few prizes at the last 2 FOBISIA events, was unfortunately not having his best tournament but was still an excellent role model for the younger students throughout the competition.<\/p>\n
Overall, it was a wonderful few days of sport to witness and I am confident that all players leant a lot, not only about the sport, but also themselves and how to handle competition both in good and difficult times.<\/p>\n
From the players:<\/p>\n
\u201cGetting to play on a high quality golf course with other top players was really good. We found the green speed very fast and challenging but it boosted our confidence when we learnt from our mistakes.\u201d – Caleb and Angelina<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was interesting and fun at the same time. I enjoyed meeting new people and seeing how they play and maybe trying new things.\u201d – Liam<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was my first year going to FOBISIA Golf and hopefully it won\u2019t be my last because it was a beautiful course and I enjoyed playing to the best of my ability.\u201d – Nicholas<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile I didn\u2019t play my greatest golf, I had a wonderful time. I had a great team that played along side of me and I hope next year there will be even more people going. I was very happy with 8 Birdies on a tough course.\u201d – Ben<\/p>\n
A special mention needs to go to Fraser Pook for the many hours of professional training and guidance he has provided to all the team members in preparing them for the event. Fraser has worked with KIS students in delivering lessons from beginners in SNAG golf to our competitive FOBISIA teams for a number of years now. This was the third year KIS has sent students to the FOBISIA Golf Championship and it was encouraging to see new players attend with numbers increased from previous years. We certainly hope to see these numbers continue to grow in coming years.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, due to holidays, Fraser will be suspending both SNAG and FOBISIA Golf sessions during Term 3 ECAs. However, if you have any interest in having your child get started in golf or would like additional coaching to help them develop further, then please contact Fraser on 0102639898.<\/p>\n
A big thank you to all the parents who accompanied the team to Hua Hin for all your support throughout the tournament.<\/p>\n
Finally, a huge CONGRATULATIONS to the KIS Vipers Golf Team who did themselves, their parents and KIS so proud with their wonderful efforts and achievements.: Caleb (5S), Liam (7S), Nicholas (7S), Ben (8K), Angelina (9K), Chanel (9S) and Tim (9S)<\/p>\n
Results:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\t \nName<\/th> Category<\/th> Round 1 (Gross)<\/th> Round 2 (Gross)<\/th> Gross<\/th> Nett<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n \n\t Tim<\/td> U15 Boys<\/td> 75<\/td> 81<\/td> 7th<\/td> <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n\t Ben <\/td> U13 Boys<\/td> 74<\/td> 79 <\/td> 6th<\/td> 2nd<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n\t Liam<\/td> U13 Boys<\/td> 108<\/td> 98<\/td> <\/td> <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n\t Nicholas<\/td> U13 Boys<\/td> 107<\/td> 128<\/td> <\/td> <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n\t Caleb<\/td> U11 Boys<\/td> 106<\/td> 91<\/td> <\/td> <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n\t Angelina<\/td> U15 Girls<\/td> 87<\/td> 97<\/td> <\/td> 1st<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n\t Chanel<\/td> U15 Girls<\/td> 109<\/td> 106<\/td> <\/td> <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\t\t