So last Thursday was the 6th Qualifying leg of the BMW Golf Cup International 2015 at the Samarahan Country Club.
Registration started at 6.15a.m and I got there "dark" and early.
Call it kiasu but I wanted to make sure there was enough time to settle down for breakfast and get in some warm up time before the tee-off.
After leaving my bag at the drop-off, I made my way to the reception area where I was pleasantly greeted and directed to the registration counter. The clubhouse was nicely decorated and there were BMW posters, banners and buntings all around.
What was usually an open reception area was fitted out with a "professional" registration counter (make-shift, might I add) manned, or should I say wo-manned, by the attentive ladies from BMW.
These ladies were very efficient and familiar with their roles so player registration was quick and fuss free. Each player was given an envelope containing their respective locker keys and score card. But first, breakfast!
Players were treated to a very nice breakfast spread, catered by the team from the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching, complete with an omelette station no less. Very good start to the day.
Would have stayed longer and had more food but there was plenty of golf to be played. So I headed down to the locker room.
Where I was greeted with a personalised locker. Probably the closest I will ever get to feeling like a PGA golfer.
What was inside the locker you ask? Plenty of goodies.
For those curious, every player was given:-
1. An Adidas BMW Cup shirt
2. Taylormade BMW cap
3. Adidas rubber sports belt
4. BMW valuables pouch
5. Personalised luggage tag
6. BMW ball marker set
7. Arm sleeves
8. A tube of Taylormade Tour Preferred X balls
9. Mont Blanc parfum sample
10. A BMW cart bag travel case (not in locker)
Not too shabby.
After settling in, it was time to head to the driving range where players were given 25 complimentary balls. Just the ideal amount to warm up and work out any last minute kinks (yeah right!).
A couple of minutes on the practice green and it was time to head to our respective tee boxes for the 8.00am shot gun tee off.
Did I also say that BMW provided players with caddies? A caddy to a buggy. Fancy!~
The weather was fantastic and my flight mates were terrific fellas so we were having a good time. We started on hole 12 (Jungle 9) and all through out, we were properly taken care of.
At the tee-box and designated holes, drinks and snacks were readily available. In between, the BMW ladies made their rounds in their snack mobile.
Then there were the Hole In One Prizes. Up for grabs was a luxury Corum watch and a BMW 320D and on holes #3 and #15, respectively.
Sorry for the horrible picture. Just as I was about to take a proper picture, the cheerful BMW girl handed us a 'lucky' ball each and we were asked by the photographer for photos with the Hole in One prize, so there will be better pictures in due course.
Did you know the odds of an amateur playing making a hole in one is 12,500 : 1?
Thanks to the tournament director, the pins for the day were placed in very tricky locations.
The pin on hole 15 was tucked on the front left side of the green (which is never there!) close to the water hazard. Deciding to take an aggressive line, I took dead aim at the pin but over did it and found the water. Good-bye lucky ball and good-bye BMW!
Back to the tournament, I was soldiering on and spotted a couple of white canopies and white picket fence next to the drink hut on the Garden 9. What was going on?
You read the signage right. On-Course hospitality yo!
Fuiyo!~
What did we have in store? More food! Chicken and beef satays with the usual accompaniments. Diced onions, ketupat and a very delicious satay sauce. There was also assorted pastries, icey cold longan and laici with syrup and drinks. Tell me, how will I adjust back to having just regular mee sedap with a fried egg now? BMW.. why you spoil me!!
Soon we found ourselves back at the club house and on a day where my game was rather topsy turvy (featuring 5 pars, a ghastly double par, 8, a triple bogey, 7 and a birdie amongst others), I managed a 94 (-2 for the round) but was it good enough for anything?
After a nice deserving shower, it was time to tuck into the hearty buffet lunch. Good grub and plenty of drinks.
After lunch, the MC announced that the scores were tallied and the results were in.
So I didn't win the hole in one prizes or the novelty prizes, but ...I did manage 1st runner up! Whoopee! Lost out to 1st place OCB too, but I am not complaining. The last time I won anything in a tournament was a tube of balls for the Wooden Spoon, so this was a nice change.
I had no idea there were trophies for winners from the guest category so this was really really cool. Also received a nice Ogio BMW sports bag and golf umbrella.
If there's one thing I will say, the good folks at BMW sure know how to organize an event. The BMW Cup was a fantastic tournament and the hospitality was top-notch. 5 Stars!
If you have never joined the BMW Golf Cup (The remaining 2 legs in Kota Permai are fully booked). I strongly suggest you try next year!
Only worry I have now is how will I go back to 'normal-hospitality-less' golf now? *sigh.
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