AussieBob

Cant agree with all of that - some of it but not all. The sponsors of clothing etc is aside from PGA sponsors support - they are separate - controlled and allowed by PGA (to wear gear while playing) but separate. The first LIV round was good - will be watching round 2 today (they have it on free replay - all 5 hours). The format seems a little confusing but after a while I started to get it. Not so sure the team aspect is a winner though - the players are playing more like a singles event - with the team points not so clearly understood at any given moment. But I think it will develop and improve as the games move forward. Overall I enjoyed it - and there was no bad luck of the draw crap - everyone played at the same time - the whole day was finished in under 5 hours. I liked it a lot. If the PGA responds and sets up an elite competition whereby the top 50 players in the world are paid to play, and play is under a format where there are no cuts, and they play twice a month, and they must play every event, and the events are held all over the world, then LIV will have changed the game for the better. I also hope if/when LIV is forced to break away from PGA, R&A etc etc that they also change the rules - a lot. I hope they also change stupid rules like - bad luck about that divot ion the middle of the fairway, or out of bounds or a lost ball is an extra shot penalty, etc etc etc - that would be grerat for the game - both Pro and more so for the Amatuers. .

Golf has a lot more money than the top players are getting - compared to all other broadcasted sports worldwide. Remember than golf is on most of the year - other sports have much shorter seasons. The PGA spreads it out amongst all the PGA players, and that has attracted players from many other countries - at the expense of the players, spectators and businesses in those other countries. Rory gets 4-5 times as much as the 100th PGA player? If he wins a few events. Multiple top 10 finishes and all the media attraction means nothing?? That would be like paying Tom Brady or Rossi or Jordan $4-5 million a year, so that 100 others can all earn $1 million. The big names should be paid big salaries - winning should be a bonus. That is was LIV is all about - no cuts - just the top players all earning big bucks and bonuses for wins. The PGA has refused for a long time to consider this approach - they will lose more players when they see what others are earning. Which is why we have the problem with the PGA - the money dwarfs what is available in other countries - because the PGA designed their game that way - and they refuse to change because they want to maintain that control - they dont care about the game or players worldwide.

I heard the same about Tiger - but given he has just withdrawn from US Open I dont think we will see him for a while. Good questions - we will have to wait and see how it all pans out. Norman reckons the Saudis have committed to providing the funding for 4 years and it is all locked in - they certainly have the money. But who knows how it will all go - business deals can suddenly fall apart for the smallest of reasons. As you know I am all in favour of it succeeding and the PGA being crushed and taken apart. That crushed/destroyed wish of mine will not happen, but hopefully the PGA will have to compromise. I did a check of this year's earning on PGA tour - there are already 95 players who have earned over $1million so far this season. But when I look past the first 20 or so on that list, I start asking -- who?? And then I ask how much does any of those players actually bring the crowds and the audiences to the game - the answer is SFA when compared with Tiger, Rory, etc, Rory has earned $5 million this year - he is worth 100 times more to the game/industry than most of the players on that list. That is bad IMO, but this is far far worse - there was a guy they were talking about on the PGA tour who had never won a tournament - but he had made almost $15 million. The top players in the game are being ripped off so that average and mediocre players can make a lot of money, and so that the PGA can keep control over the game/industry. It needs to be changed - big time. Imagine Tom Brady only getting paid a $5-10million, so that lots of other players can make $1 million a year in the NFL. IMO the elite of any sport deserve to get most of the rewards - it should not be possible for a 'journeymen' to make $15 million on the PGA tour. The elite golf players are being ripped off - it is so obvious, but the PGA has refused to change for decades. But the added benefit of the change that the LIV will hopefully bring about, is the elite players competing against each other a lot more, and in a lot more locations around the world. It is a world game, but the PGA controls who plays where and when - and they demand 'their' players play mostly in the USA. If the LIV 'wins out' then I can see an elite competition happening whereby we see the top 50+ players in the world competing against each other 10-12 times a year. At the moment we only see all of the best players in the 4 Majors and the Players, and in events like the Ryder Cup (but even that excludes the non-US/Europe players). The rest of the time we only see a few of the best in each tournament because many are 'resting' - or it does not 'fit in with their schedule'. Back in the 'old' days of golf, Jack et al used to compete against each other all the time - it was not just in the majors. Nowadays we have to look at each event's player list to see who has decided to play this weekend's tournament. Just look at this weeks RBC Canadian Open - Rory, Justin, Cam are playing - but there are only 10 of the top 50 in the world playing. They should all be playing each other a lot more - a lot more - that is what we deserve (and pay for). I dont give a rat's rear about the bloke who is at number 100 on the tour earnings every year - and it pi**es me off that he is making over $1 million a year.

Probably we will move down south - not sure where yet - Chiang Mai is getting worse for smoke each year. Bangkok is too crowded - great place to visit or work, but not to live in retirement we reckon. Philippines sounds good - and I sure do eat a lot better too when we are in Thailand. Western food is very fattening and not healthy - but it is hard to avoid.

We lived there for 4 years (Bangkok and Chiang Mai) and everything changed after about 3-6 months. Prior to that my visits were for fun with mates, but once I decided to move there things became different. Not just deciding to stick with one GF etc. but it was a complete change of outlook to life - so much better. One thing I learned was that the need to 'escape' from something to have a great time, meant a lot more about where I was escaping from, that where I was escaping to. Hoping to move back in a year or so, and then intend to stay for as long as possible - maybe forever. Not happy with the Junta and all the khrapp they give long term Expats - but it is such a great place to live anyway despite all that.

Webjet from Australia is the best option - almost as good as skyscanner to use - but better prices for the same Qantas flights. Usually book Qantas direct as FF can use points to discount a little. Either Qantas or Singapore Airlines are always the best options. AirAsia cheapest but once was enough in that tiny seat my wife found too hard and small.

Glad to hear that in UK - most pokies in Aust are in unregulated clubs/pubs. But there is also the online gambling that is heavily advertised - betting on football horses and all sorts of things - they make it far too easy. I would ban all advertisements for gambling on TV and all mass media sites. It would not stop it, but that is not why they do it - it spurs some people watching a show to have a 'flutter' - same as smoking did - and alcohol still does.

Probably Sept/Oct - as long as the Mask mandates, Covid insurance scam, and Thailand Pass, and all the other rubbish at the airport is gone. Hopefully by then all the hotels will be running again and things will have settled down - we have a lot of ground to cover to catch up with everyone. We wont be anywhere near Pattaya though.

Knew a bloke just like that. He was always going on about his winnings and all that - but he was massively into debt - in the end he lost his house. I remember one night when we were out and he talked me into playing the pokies. I stated that I would put $20 in a pockie but once that was gone I was not going any further. Anyway after i got down to about $10, he had already put into his another $20 - and then I hit the jackpot - $200. I immediately hit 'collect' and took the money. He was really upset that I didnt keep going and play to win more - it was surreal trying to 'talk him down'. Anyway, I took the $200 and put it in my pocket and put the other $10 back into the machine. By the time I had lost that he had put another $20 into his machine, and while I sat there and watched him and talked and bought a few rounds (because I had won) he kept putting more money in. After a few hours I decided it was time to call it a night, but he refused to leave and wanted to 'find' a jackpot like I got. He even switched over to my machine hoping for the same luck. I left him there and never went out again with him to a club - lunches only. I reckon it is a mental illness and the whole gambling industry should be much tighter regulated. Some people are just too self-destructive to be allowed to do it - and the industry is bleeding them dry. Same reason why drugs and drink driving was banned - some people just cannot be trusted.

I remember that struggle well - your picture brings it all back. Slowly slowly getting it out - then gently untangling it all - and then laying it out flat (removing any creases) - and then using a pen to slowly rewind - not too tight or too loose though, or the effin thing jams up again.

No - 'one whole month?'

Out of respect I am saying nothing more about the TT racing - the 3 deaths (so far) deserve to RIP.

Came across an interesting article about Govt strategies to Covid - particularly of the Sweden approach. It seems to me that Sweden did it far more rationally and have achieved a far better outcome - both socially and economically. While countries like Thailand and Australia imposed ridiculously harsh lock-downs that partially destroyed their economies - Sweden took a far more pragmatic view. I have a mate in Sweden and he was astounded that a feminist socialist Government took the sensible approach, while so many others went 'bat crazy' - and China still is. As Australia and Thailand and so many others found out, and Sweden knew, you cannot stop a virus. What you can do it try to protect the weak and elderly, while getting everyone else to act in socially responsible manner, and while encouraging people to take the vaccines. My Swedish mate caught Covid and tried to deal with it himself (like a flu), but he ended up in ICU for 3 days and stayed in hospital for nearly 3 weeks. It took him over 3 months to fully get over it - and he is fit and not opverweight and does not smoke or have diabetes etc. The photos he sent of himself in ICU spoke volumes about how bad it could be for some people. But he still agreed with the Sweden strategy - mitigate the risks, but get on with life. Overall, I would have to say that I agree - the Omicron variant showed that trying to keep it out was impossible. Quoting the article: "To understand Sweden, you need to understand a word that’s hard to explain, let alone translate: lagom. It means, in effect, “perfect-simple”: not too much, not too little. People who are lagom don’t stand out or make a fuss: they blend right in – and this is seen as a virtue. Essays are written about why lagom sums up a certain Swedish mindset – that it’s bad to stand out, to consider yourself better or be an outlier. That’s why it’s so strange that, during the lockdowns, Sweden became the world’s defiant outlier. Swedes saw it the other way around. They were keeping calm and carrying on: lockdown was an extreme, draconian, untested experiment. Lock up everyone, keep children out of school, suspend civil liberties, send police after people walking their dogs – and call this “caution”? Anders Tegnell, Sweden’s state epidemiologist, never spoke about a Swedish “experiment”. He said all along he could not recommend a public health intervention that had never been proven. Tegnell also made another point: that he didn’t claim to be right. It would take years, he’d argue, to see who had jumped the right way. His calculation was that, on a whole-society basis, the collateral damage of lockdowns would outweigh what good they do. But you’d only know if this was so after a few years. You’d have to look at cancer diagnosis, hospital waiting lists, educational damage and, yes, count the Covid dead. Almost two years on, we can look at the early indications. The problem with lockdowns is that no one looks at whole-society pictures. Professor Neil Ferguson’s team from Imperial College London admitted this, once, as a breezy aside. “We do not consider the wider social and economic costs of suppression,” they wrote in a supposed assessment of lockdown, “which will be high.” But just how high? And were they a price worth paying? As Sweden abolishes all domestic Covid restrictions, it emerges with one of Europe’s lower Covid death tolls: the rate is 1,614 per million people, just over half the amount of Britain (2,335). Given that our death tolls were comparable at first (both among the worst anywhere), it’s hard to argue that there’s some demographic force which meant Covid was never going to spread in Sweden." https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/02/13/sweden-right-covid-along/

Minjee Lee wins US Open and $2.5m (AUD) in the biggest single payday in women’s golf. Aussie Aussie Aussie - Oi Oi Oi !!! https://www.news.com.au/sport/golf/minjee-lee-wins-the-us-open-and-25-million-in-the-biggest-single-payday-in-womens-golf/news-story/1261a610dde716c8ffdd342a29596f1e Watched all of the last round today and it was great to see Minjee bring it home. She started well and then stumbled, but then got it back together to close it out. The course was a lot tougher for day 4 (extremely hard) and only 2 players scored under Par for the round, with every player getting at least 2 bogies. Minjee scored Par in the end - 4 birdies and 4 bogies. It was the biggest ever winning purse is women's golf, and it shows how popular the women's game has become over the last 5 years.

You are dead right - and it is very disturbing. Something must be done soon or the Torus will all be dominated by huge men like Schaffle and Keopka and DeChambau (linebackers). That is why I watch the LPGA more than the PGA - they have to play with skill and no amount of weightlifting or drugs is gonna give them a huge advantage. Sure they aint as good as the guys - but I bet if you took the top 50 in both tours and made them play 18 very difficult Par3 holes up to 180 yards then the LPGA players would hold their own. Inbee Park is the best putter of all time - over her whole career she makes about 60% of her putts from 10 to 15 feet. To put that in context, the LPGA and PGA Tours overall averages are about 30%.

Yep - ditto. As they say - no matter how good it is - in Thailand you must have a Plan B with a quick exit. For everything from the wife gambling, to the wife allowing Uncle Somchai to use property for loans, to having most of your money invested in a property is a very dangerous strategy. Everything should be in Plan B - from moving to a rental in Pattaya, to moving to The Philippines, to going back home.

That is great to hear - and the age difference can make a difference. Too many 60+ blokes find out years later that their 30 year old girlfriend/wife aint what she started out to be. Some can make it work - but many struggle. I am in 60s and Thai wife is in 50s (menopause almost done) - we will both grow very old together (I hope).

Great advice mate - too many (especially blokes) take it to heart far too much, and become self destructive. As the old saying goes something like this: "When you are in Hell, do not stop - keep going and eventually you will find the exit".

Loved that show - Dad's Army

Definitely a good warning about buying a property in Thailand - there are so many downsides and risks that IMO it just aint worth it. This situation and many others should serve as a warning of the risks of buying/building in Thailand where you cannot own land and you have very few legal rights. Personally I intend to rent upon our return, and we will put a sum of money into wife's super account in Australia, which becomes her long term financial security. I have heard about a guy years ago that had it happen to him (in Udon Thani) but he didn't take it well as Derek, and he took to the drink - last my mate heard he was renting a flat somewhere in Pattaya - sad. That was what convinced me. And of course that guy in Yasothon that had someone put chickens in a vacant lot nearby. Plus the guy I heard about that bought a place and a karaoke bar opened up next door where there was once a shop. Actually there are others too when I think about it - especially the ones about noisy dogs and neighbours holding street parties. I have rented before and dogs (barking all night) are a big problem in a lot of places. Renting is the plan - if we have problems - we will move.

I use the free Hoxx VPN app that you can add to Chrome - usually works. Seems those that work good all the time all want a yearly contract. Dont know of one that will do month-month. But you gotta completely clear out all your internet cache and stored information first and restart the PC. I use CCleaner and then run Malwarebytes Adwarecleaner and run the 'basic repair' (as per below).

I was writing to the Sun and Daily Mail - will add them too 😄

No doubt about it - they are extremely brave and talented. Agree about boxing.

Yes they are - the roads they use are public roads - it is not a private or closed 'race track' - with approval of local authorities the roads are closed - but they are still public roads. Your analogies are false - they are racing motor bikes in extremely dangerous conditions. The issue becomes liability and responsibility - one day things will come to a head. If they built a private racetrack on the island, than is a separate matter and your analogies are valid. However, you are right about them deciding to do it themselves and that they are highly skilled riders and it is extremely well organised. I have several DVDs on the racing and 'closer to the edge' is unbelievable. I am a big fan of racing - especially MotoGp. But IMO it is far too dangerous on the Isle of Man and it should be banned. Look up the Nurgergring and the changes made due to the deaths, and the legal cases where families have sued the track owners, local authorities, etc. The days are gone where anyone can do anything dangerous willingly and there are no legal and bureaucratic repercussions when people get killed. People racing motor bikes should not be hitting brick walls or telegraph poles IMO - that should be banned - whether they are willing or not.