After winning the Bin Laden and Gaddafi trophies, Mike wound up the year with his third despot memorial. However, it was a close run thing as he ran out of steam after a sensational start and had to withstand a remarkable finish from Dave. The boys were hyped to the limit for the last round of the year. Not just for the Kim Jong-il memorial, but for the remaining majors and recognition in the Man of the Year trophy.

Mike needed a couple of improvements in the Eclectic, in order to overtake Dave for third. He also needed a good round with a couple of more points than Geoff, in order to go second in the Stableford. He set out like a man possessed and earned himself chance after chance. He missed a put for par on the opening hole and one for birdie on the fifth. He then birdied seven to overtake Dave for Eclectic honours. Another birdie went begging, when a twenty footer ended 2 inches short. A par on 13 brought him close to Geoff now. However, Dave and Geoff were also on the birdie trail, Dave’s coming on his un-parred sixteenth. This resulted in no change in that particular trophy.

Standing five under net par, with five holes to go, it just needed bogie golf for Mike to score a 41 pointer and cause a last-minute upset for Con. Unfortunately, his driving went completely haywire and he could only manage a further four points for a winning 35 pointer , which overtook Geoff.

Geoff must count himself unlucky. With 23 shots on the first three holes, he looked to be in for a miserable day. However, he started to find form and on the seventh, he had a very good birdie chance. This came up short, but he then birdied the next and finished the round on 32 points with four pars and a birdie.

Tony and Russ also scored well on the opening holes. Tony turning level with Mike on two under, with Russ one behind. Looking like a certain double shot penalty, Tony’s opening drive was miraculously found and he was able to fashion a much-valued point out of it. On the sixth, he drove to the left of the fifth green, taking two more shots to get back on line. He then got down in two from 130 yards for a three-pointer. He was having a dream round until the unlucky thirteenth, which ended up costing him eleven strokes. Finishing on a respectable 33 points, he could only reflect upon how close he came to winning the Kim Jong-il.

Russ’s demise was less spectacular, he was merely shaken by the dramatic finish of Dave, who goes into the new year with a most amazing scoring streak. With Mike leap-frogging him in the Eclectic, he needed two improvements to get back in into third. A par on 14 did not do it, neither did a par on the next. A par on sixteen would give him one nearer. Sensationally, Dave birdied the hole reducing his Eclectic score by two. He then parred the next and a bogie on the last meant that he had covered the last five holes in level par. The greatest finish in Baxter’s history. On next year’s rules, he would have won the trophy, but the last count-back of 2011 went to Mike.

     ***** FORT BAXTER RULES FOR 2012 HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED*******