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The Stroke Kings capture 2023 SGA Championships
The Stroke Kings capture 2023 SGA Championships
The 2023 SGA Championships saw the largest-ever field compete in SGA's flagship event, with 129 golfers making the trek to the gorgeous Gold Coast for a week of fun, sun and friendships.
The Four-Round Event, which included both Graded/Individual competitions as well as a Teams Competition, was contested over the week of August 27-Sept 1, 2023. It was played at some of Queensland's best golf courses: RACV Royal Pines, Sanctuary Cove (The Palms course), The Glades and Palmer Gold Coast courses. PLUS, there were optional bonus rounds at Lakelands and Brookwater GC
After a week of great golf, camaraderie and all-around fun, the competition began to heat up as the podium came into sight. There were some tight races in both the Grades and Teams events, with the results coming down to the last day (and in some cases, the very last hole.)
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FOLLOWING 2023 CHAMPIONS:
A Grade: Jason Beeston (Red Bears) took top spot on 139 points, pipping Nick Sutherland (Birdie Fever) on 138 (who will rue a missed putt on 18). Third went to Kurt White (Par, Bogey, Beer, Birdie!) on 135.
B Grade had a THREE-WAY-TIE for first, all on 127 points. On Countback, the B-Grade Champion is Michael Houghton (VIC Invincibles), pipping Lindsay Scott (Redbacks SA) and Ronald Naidu (The Stroke Kings)
C Grade Champion was crowd favourite (and everybody's "Brah"), Frank Elisaia (Grumpy Old Men) on 131 points. 2nd went to Matt Carver (The Living Legends) on 127, followed by Ian Steer (The Harriets) on 122.
Ladies Grade also saw a Two-way tie for first, with Laurel Meyers (The One Putts) pipping Susan Okeby (Hole in Fun) on countback on 122 points. Third went to Lisa Garioch (Sunraysia) on 110 points - who notably went back-to-back-to-back-to-BACK on the Ladies Long Drive, nabbing the prizes in all 4 rounds!
The Teams Result was also a tight race, with plenty of rollercoaster-style action on the leaderboard all week. In the end, team Stroke Kings (Justin Gao, Ronald Naidu, Arvin Kumar and Thiruchenthuran Thiruloganathan (aka T-Rex) grabbed the hardware, with a 4-day total of 382 Stableford points. In second, two shots back, were "Par, Bogey, Beer, Birdie!" (Neill Smith, Kurt White, Paul White and Alex Robertson) on 380, with Birdie Fever (Anthony Jacobs, Nick Sutherland, Ryan Hassan and Richard Chatfield) rounding out the top 3 on 378.
The presentation award dinner was a fully-attended affair, with many stories exchanged between old and new mates. The night capped our week of $30,000+ in prizes, and also featured our annual Raffle Draw, which featured over $5000 in prizes, including vouchers for players and Non-Golfing Partners to join us at a variety of SGA Events, including our brand-new Mission Hills Masters - Hainan Island in June 2024.
There was also an emotional moment during the presentation dinner, when the Sally Pitt Award recipient was named. Long-time SGA player and supporter Ivan Jones was nearly brought to tears when his name was called. A worthy recipient of this prestigious award (which is awarded to the player for being honest, brave and kind, all the qualities that SGA Co-Founder Sally embodied, and by which she lived her life).
FINAL SCORES - TOP-5 TEAMS
(Detailed scoring available via our Golf Genius Leaderboard)
| Pos. | Team | Total Points | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 |
| 1 | The Stroke Kings | 382 | 86 | 96 | 108 | 92 |
| 2 | Par, Bogey, Beer, Birdie! | 380 | 100 | 94 | 93 | 93 |
| 3 | Birdie Fever | 378 | 102 | 94 | 101 | 81 |
| 4 | The Southern Flogs | 370 | 97 | 97 | 92 | 84 |
| 5 | Redbacks SA | 365 | 88 | 91 | 93 | 93 |
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SPECIAL THANKS
SGA would like to send a hearty "THANKS" to all the players who made the trek to the Gold Coast. Without you, we would not have an event.
We would like to give a special thanks to all of our sponsors and partners for the week. Notably Srixon Australia & New Zealand, Garmin Australia, Heathcote Winery, The Card Network, and Mantra Hotels. And our partner courses Lakelands Golf Club, RACV Royal Pines, Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club, The Glades, Brookwater Golf & Country Club, and Palmer Gold Coast for all their help. Thanks, too, to our Minor Sponsors Blacksheep Advisory and Barmah Park Wines.
Finally, we would like to give a shout out to the amazing Julie Ridler from Gold Coast Direct Charters, who managed all of the transfers (and many other things!) in a very challenging week. THANKS JULIE! (We recommend to all our SGA Fans -- if you are ever on the Gold Coast, and need a lift/tour/transfer, give Julie a call. You won't be disappointed).
And that's a wrap! We hope to see you all at next year's event
2023 SGA Championships Sponsors
ABOUT THE SGA CHAMPIONSHIPS
Regarded as a must-play event on most clubs' Social Golf calendars, the SGA Championships is our flagship event on teh Gold Coast. It sees golfers and social clubs from across Australia converge upon the Gold Coast for a week of spectacular golf, energetic competition and, most importantly, a ton of fun.