2011 NSW OzGolf Matchplay - EOI

[Grunt]

Hello NSW OzGolfers

Lets get our Matchplay organised for next year. I am will to run it again but with a few changes. We might try and have organised Matchplay rounds to enable a few games to be held at the same time and also possibly get decent NSW OzGolf turn outs once again.

Who's In?

1. Grunt (weekdays/weekends)
2. Terrys (weekdays/weekends)
3. kristianJ
4. Virge666 (weekday)
5. Dotty (weekday)
6. Sydney Hacker (weekday)
7. ParMaster (Weekends/ Wednesday's)
8. Rod Morri (weekdays/weekends)
9. Andrew (Weekdays/ Weekends)

I will update this thread as people commit. I will also try and get the 2010 matchplay wrapped up too.

[terrys]

terrys

[KristianJ]

1. Grunt
2. terrys
3. KristianJ

[virge666]

I am in !

As long as we can only play weekdays....

[Grunt]

Virge it will be a compromise situation, some of us are free weekdays and some are not, if you progress I think weekend play will have to be had

[Dotty]

Lock in Dotty.

You can put me in the weekday side of the draw.

[Sydney Hacker]

Whack me onto the weekday side of things as well.

[ParMaster]

Lock me in.

I can do late Wednesdays, otherwise it would have to be W'ends.

[terrys]

i can do weekends or weekdays

[Rod Morri]

I'm in too. Weekdays or weekends.

[Andrew]

I might get back into this for 2011.

Weekend or weekday is fine by me.

[KristianJ]

Weekdays or Sundays for me, Grant.

[Grunt]

Due to problem we seem to have to get games played for next years Matchplay I am thinking of having set dates and venues for matches to be played. It will be set up depending on numbers but I was thinking at least the 1st round and maybe the 2nd will be scheduled so that they actually get played and may even go right through to the final.

What does everyone think? I hate seeing a thread of forfeits.

[Sydney Hacker]

Set dates would rule me out. 2 kids plus a job makes it hard to commit to certain dates.

[Grunt]

Another option is to have strictly enforced cut off dates for each round.

28th Feb for round 1
30th June round 2
30th August 1/4 Finals
30th October Semis
30th November Final

We could organise rounds that people could play there matchplay before hand but if not played by cutoff both players forfeit. That way we will put some incentive to try and get the game played.

[PerryGroves]

Grunt,

Would like to play, I am Wednesdays (have every 2nd one off work) and Sundays only if that works.

[Coffs_Hacker]

Have the draw done so that people who can play weekdays on one half and weekend players in the other half of the draw so that organising game can be a little easier.

I can play weekends.

[terrys]

Maybe 31 March, then 30 June for rounds 1 and 2, Grant. I'm thinking give round 1 which has more players at least 3 months.

[Scottt]

I'm interested Grunt, but this:

We could organise rounds that people could play there matchplay before hand but if not played by cutoff both players forfeit.

seems a bit shit to me. If I try hard to arrange the match, my oppo loses interest as people always do with this, and we don't play, I am out too?!

The organisers of this have been threatening people with "firm cutoff dates for matches to be played" for years and it never happens. Setting dates and venues for matches might cost you a few entrants, but I think it will make for a better experience for those who take part (as long as the selected venues aren't shitholes! :lol)

[Grunt]

Scott, I know what you are saying but this year there have been way way too many forfeits and how can we ascertain who is and is not trying when it all happens behind closed doors of PM.

I would prefer set weekends and that is that if we only get 4 in it that is that. Same for all the other golf days, people only seem to want to comment on how it does not suit them.

[Grunt]

Double post somehow

[Scottt]

I completely understand, Grunt. In the end, I think "firm dates for each round" has been tried and failed many times.

If I were you (and I'm not!) I'd just name 5-6 Sundays and 5-6 Wednesdays (that seems the best day midweek for open days) and go from there. At least it could be tried for a year to see how it goes. Could it be less successful than what has been tried in previous years?

To be clear - I lay no blame at the feet of the organiser. They get let down time and time again. I joined a forum in the UK almost identical to Ozgolf and they had identical issues with the matchplay knockout...

[Dotty]

Looking at the above list, it should be better next year, as they/we are regular posters and players that are prepared to travel for an OzGolf game.

A number of recent past, the draw has been filled with new (or occasional, often entered by a third party) posters in a push to get a high number of participants, then it became hard to chase them up for the game.

There will always be one or two 'genuine' forfeits, due to injury or work/family changes.

We'll also need to consider that the Sundays in Feb/March are taken up by pennant golf for the club golfers (and may be a little harder to get a leave pass for the extra game).

[terrys]

If you decide not to go with the set days, maybe you could have a rule that games are organised on the public forum so that gets around the issue that Scott raised where one person tries really hard to organise it and the other doesn't give a stuff. I really don't know what the best way to go about it is.

[Scottt]

Good points dotty (Feb/Mar pennant + past entrants who'd never really posted) and Terrys (organising matches in the public forum).

I guess my position in a nutshell is that it's lunacy to keep organising the event the same way and expecting a different outcome.

Another thought I'd had - and I realise this might not be popular, nor am I even sure I support it! - was for each entrant to throw in $10 or $20 as an entry fee, with 80% to the winner and 20% to the runner-up. With the need to outlay something up front, entrants might be more likely to prioritise the event and not forfeit.