We eventually spotted it in the distance, steaming in:
We discovered later that one of the engines had failed and it was only running on one. No consolation to us - we had to make it back after golf to catch the 5:30 ferry home - otherwise we would be stranded on the island. Fortunately we had a skilled taxi driver at the other end and he guided us safely up and over the mountains to Tecina, just in time for our planned 11:30 tee time.
We were joined today by Paul Panchaud, owner of Atholl Countrywear, and member at Aboyne, who had just arrived in Tenerife on a holiday with his wife. Dick, Paul and John got a lift up to the first tee and walked down from there, whilst the rest of us took our buggies on the 10 minute trek up from the clubhouse.
Tecina is a beautiful course - like walking in somebody's garden - with great views across at Tenerife and Mount Teide, the highest point in Spain at 3,718 metres - a volcano which last erupted in 1909.
Bill was suffering a bit after the protein excesses last night and only played the first nine holes before walking back down to the clubhouse to wait there for the rest of us. Otherwise, scoring was very respectable:
John - 35
Ian & Jas - 31
Dick & Malcolm - 30
Paul - 26
Yes - he did it again:
That's four in a row for John - we decided to start calling him Nigel. Could he repeat Mr. Meany's feat a few years ago in the Desert Classic of winning all 6 days? Read on and all will be revealed.
Dick got one NP and the LD and Malcolm got the other NP.
The drive back to the ferry port afforded some nice views:
In the evening, Dick took us out for dinner at Miishi Sushi Club's teppanyaki table. Another excellent evening, which ended with Jas doing a detailed inventory check on their wine cellar:
Day 5 - Thursday - was the short trip to Golf del Sur, where we learnt we were to play their Norte nine first, followed by the Links. Bill had decided to have a day off, so we were just 6, with Paul joining us again. It was another hot day, but hugely windy down near the airport with planes constantly thundering in overhead. At times, I reckoned the wind was unplayable - the pros would probably have cancelled - and most of us struggled to cope.
We played as two three-balls with the second group of John, Paul and I joined by a Finnish gent called Bertie, who was attired in all red, including long socks. It was a slow round again - especially the second nine and we had a few photo opportunities:
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| John, Paul and I - perhaps I should have been called Ringo? |
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| Paul rests while John and Bertie check out the fairway |
Jas had 26 points and Malcolm 24, whilst Paul and I each scored 20 points, with John coming in as DoD with 17 points - from hero to zero.
Malcolm got one NP and Jas the LD, with the other NP unclaimed despite two attempts.
The week-long match between the Freewheelers and the Rest (aka Scotland v RoW) was won again today by the Freewheelers, so the overall score in this match was now just 3-2 in favour of the Rest/RoW, with an exciting finish in store today (Friday) at Las Americas. Can the FW's/Scotland came back from an early 0-3 deficit? Hope the England - Scotland match at Wembley tonight is as exciting.
The effort of winning at Golf del Sur was clearly all too much for Dick:
For dinner in the evening, Bill arranged for us to go back to our favourite hotel, Jardin Tropical, and have dinner down by the shore in Las Rocas - and it was excellent.
The main competition is all over bar the shouting. John's DoD at Golf del Sur doesn't matter as that just becomes one of his two dropping scores, so the current position is:
| To | Top 4 | |
| Drop | Totals | |
| Davies, John | 17 | 126 |
| Taylor, Dick | 21 | 111 |
| Bhagrath, Jas | 22 | 110 |
| Grigor, Malcolm | 23 | 104 |
| Stewart, Ian | 19 | 96 |
| Miller, Bill | 73 |
Obviously, John also leads the Eclectic:
| Davies, John | 53 |
| Bhagrath, Jas | 47 |
| Taylor, Dick | 46 |
| Grigor, Malcolm | 41 |
| Stewart, Ian | 38 |
| Miller, Bill | 36 |
That's all for now, folks!
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