The SA/WA Pharmacy Golf Challenge inaugural event was held in SA in March 2001. It was initiated by Colin Richardson and developed from a close relationship between SA and WA pharmacists and their mutual passion for golf.
The challenge is held over 4 days of golf with the best 8 players from previous rounds for each state to compete on the final day.
The winning team is decided by the combined points from each player’s individual Stableford score.
The event has been staged every two years since its inception in 2001.
The brief history of the inaugural SA/WA Pharmacy Golf Challenge:
My visits to SA for business continued & during those I would see Gary Johns & another FH Faulding employee in Gary Weston, & we discussed the Australian Chemists Golf Club yearly interstate events, to which neither of our states received invitations. I suggested that we set up our event where we would play each other. They were very interested so I included it on our next meeting agenda. All were in favour of exploring the opportunity & it was agreed that I would lead a delegation of WA Pharmacy representatives to SA for a meeting with the SA Pharmacy Golf Club committee. Along with myself, came Don Bodlovich, Tony Garbin, Syl Lane, Roger Mullen & Mitch Davies. My company was representing a company called Herron & they were interested in sponsoring the event, so their National Sales Manager also came along. The WA Pharmacy Golf Club passed a motion to subsidise each attendee at $400. We stayed at some salubrious apartments in Glenelg & hired a Tarago. I asked my Manager (who also attended with his partner {my office manager}) to hire a small secure trailer to hold the golf clubs & luggage, turned up with a furniture removal enclosed trailer that had the Tarago in 2″d gear for most of the journey to Clare). We were meeting the SA committee in the little country town of Clare in the Clare Valley. We played a game at the Clare Valley Country Club (described by Syl Lane as a goat track), had a meeting & then attended a great dinner full of humour. It was at this dinner, that I awarded the inaugural “silver Dummy” for the best dummy spit of the round. It was awarded to none other than their captain (with whom I played). We agreed that an inaugural Challenge event would take place in 2001 in Adelaide. We also resolved to hold an event every 2 years in alternative states. Upon our return, we put the tour findings to the WA committee & all in principle was agreed. The first challenge went ahead in Adelaide as planned.
Colin Richardson