Good morning everyone, and welcome to Thursday, 23 November – a date on the calendar that strikes fear into the hearts of golf enthusiasts everywhere, as it was on this day in 1929 that Maurice Flitcroft emerged, pink and screaming, into the world.

Flitcroft’s place in the annals of golfing history was earned in 1976, when – despite having precisely zero experience playing the sport – the former high-dive stuntman and shoe polish salesman blagged his way into an entry for the ‘76 British Open.

At the time, any amateurs entering the British Open were required to have, and provide evidence of, an official handicap (as in, the golfing kind… not the “I’m missing a limb” or “I need adult supervision at all times” kind).

Lacking the required paperwork, Flitcroft simply told organisers that he was actually a professional player, which organisers accepted at face value.

His place on the roster confirmed, Flitcroft then retreated to his local library to study a ragged copy of renowned expert Peter Alliss’ book, Easier Golf.

Armed with a set of mail order clubs in an imitation red leather bag, Flitcroft presented himself at the qualifying round of the Open at the Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, a solid par 70 18-hole course covering some 6.5km of immaculate, rolling seaside terrain.

There, he rubbed shoulders with the giants of the game, including Seve Balasteros and Australia’s own Jack Newtown, several years before the latter walked into a running plane propeller and sliced himself into some very rough pieces indeed.

Flitcroft fired off a round of gold that one witness described as a “blizzard of triple and quadruple bogeys ruined by a solitary par”.

His final score was a record-shattering round of 121 – 49 over par – earning himself the title of the Worst Golfer in the World, and a lifetime ban from all professional golf events, anywhere, ever.

He made several attempts to get around the ban – using things like false moustaches and fake names including Arnold Palmtree and Gene Paycheki – and managed to play a few holes here and there over the following years, usually being rudely interrupted by officials when they realised he had no idea what he was doing on the course.

Flitcroft died in March 2007 of a lung infection, after decades of chain-smoking cigarettes left him with a hole in one.

A-thank you.

The lesson here is fairly straightforward, because to my mind, Flitcroft embodied a very Stockhead way of life – never mind what the boring old “establishment” types say, if you’ve got the chutzpah to rock up and have a crack at something, then do it and give it 100% of everything you’ve got.

And f..k ‘em if they can’t take a joke.

But, to do that when you’ve got investments on the line is a big ask, and means you need to be prepared – which is why the Delightful Christian Edwards is bringing us Part 1 of his deep dive into who’s making a killing among the ASX-listed defence stocks, and Rob Badman’s dialled up to 11 to deliver a snapshot of what’s happening in the battery metals market right now.

Plus, as always, here’s all the fiddly data and digits to get you up to speed this morning as well.

 

COMMODITY/FOREX/CRYPTO MARKET PRICES

Gold: US$1,989.74 (-0.43%)

Silver: US$23.63 (-0.41%)

Nickel (3mth): US$16,992/t (+0.24%)

Copper (3mth): US$8,449/t (+0.22%)

Oil (WTI): US$76.56 (-1.55%)

Oil (Brent): US$77.42 (-6.09%)

Iron 62pc Fe: US$129.84/t (+0.22%)

AUD/USD: 0.6545 (-0.20%)

Bitcoin: US$37,422 (+2.31%)

 

WHAT GOT YOU TALKING

With red hot Resources flying out the door at the moment, it’s little wonder that the Resources Round-up from Rob ‘Resources’ Badman piqued some interest on the socials overnight.

 

 

YESTERDAY’S ASX SMALL CAP LEADERS

Here are the best performing ASX small cap stocks:

Swipe or scroll to reveal full table. Click headings to sort:

Code Company Price % Volume Market Cap
WSR Westar Resources 0.0265 39% 5,832,420 $3,521,793
MOH Moho Resources 0.011 38% 34,135,907 $2,931,153
EPN Epsilon Healthcare 0.027 35% 367,657 $6,007,080
BP8 Bph Global Ltd 0.002 33% 1,500,000 $2,423,345
DXN DXN Limited 0.002 33% 23,589,813 $2,585,010
NME Nex Metals Explorat 0.022 29% 413,561 $5,993,053
BMR Ballymore Resources 0.125 25% 50,000 $14,619,726
ALM Alma Metals Ltd 0.01 25% 6,014,623 $8,912,006
ASP Aspermont Limited 0.01 25% 46,236 $19,510,110
LSR Lodestar Minerals 0.005 25% 1,000 $8,093,589
RNX Renegade Exploration 0.01 25% 2,873,855 $7,624,990
IRX Inhalerx Limited 0.037 23% 254,682 $5,693,009
GGE Grand Gulf Energy 0.008 23% 18,890,215 $13,619,106
IPB IPB Petroleum Ltd 0.011 22% 1,161,820 $5,086,102
CXU Cauldron Energy Ltd 0.017 21% 5,301,458 $15,850,288
CC9 Chariot Corporation 0.63 21% 987,347 $38,132,415
M2M Mtmalcolmminesnl 0.03 20% 200,366 $2,558,588
ESR Estrella Res Ltd 0.006 20% 134,174 $8,795,359
FME Future Metals NL 0.048 20% 1,553,391 $16,528,161
SFG Seafarms Group Ltd 0.006 20% 1,237,333 $24,182,996
VSR Voltaic Strategic 0.024 20% 6,419,291 $9,662,078
BCB Bowen Coal Limited 0.13 18% 8,743,704 $284,716,594
TTM Titan Minerals 0.035 17% 14,107 $45,748,598
STK Strickland Metals 0.1925 17% 11,780,474 $268,743,770
4DX 4Dmedical Limited 0.78 16% 4,429,974 $232,132,682
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Yesterday’s Small Caps highlights were:

Top of the pops on hump day is Westar Resources (ASX:WSR)  which says that drilling is on at its Olga Rocks Projectout in Western Australia somewhere isolated and desperate, to ‘test the reinterpretation for potential pegmatite-hosted lithium and also target a prospective horizon for high grade gold mineralisation that is largely underexplored.’

Takes breath.

This is what an excited Westar executive director Lindsay Franker said:

“We are excited to test the reinterpretation for the discovery of lithium-bearing pegmatites in such close proximity to Zenith Mineral’s recently announced Rio lithium Mineral Resource, and at the same time drill for potential high grade gold over a similar prospective horizon in which Zenith recently announced their maiden Mineral Resource for the Dulcie Far North gold project, just 1.5km along strike from our Project.”

It certainly is true that Olga Rocks is located just 2km from Zenith Minerals’ (ASX:ZNC) recently announced ‘Rio’ Inferred Mineral Resource (11.9Mt @ 0.72% Li2O) and 40km from Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) -SQM JV’s operating Earl Grey lithium Mine (Mt Holland Project: 189Mt @ 1.5% Li2O) 2a2b which has a 50-year mine life.

Handy.

Coming in a close second on nothing fresh Rob Badman could locate – Ballymore Resources (ASX:BMR) – despite the gold/copper/silver explorer clocking an easy 30% gain.

Earlier this month, the junior Queensland explorer noted that it had conducted soil sampling at the Ruddygore copper project/system, targeting a ‘significant magnetic anomaly’ and extending the system by another 2km, to create a 5km long target zone.

The project is an extension of the historic Ruddygore high-grade mine that was operated until 1909, yielding 1,450 tons of copper at a grade of 3.9% Cu & 56g/t Ag.

Ballymore also had good news in late October, announcing “extremely high-grade gold results” with individual assays up to 2206ppb Au (2.2g/t) returned from soil sampling program over its Dittmer prospect, some 30-odd km southwest of Prosperine in central Qld.

That prospect includes the historic Dittmer mine and numerous unexplored, historic workings in the local area and the company believes the find confirms Dittmer as a major mineralised system defined by broad anomalies.

 

YESTERDAY’S ASX SMALL CAP LAGGARDS

Here are the worst performing ASX small cap stocks:

Swipe or scroll to reveal full table. Click headings to sort:

Code Company Price % Volume Market Cap
ATH Alterity Therap Ltd 0.0045 -36% 26,548,741 $17,079,283
ME1 Melodiol Glb Health 0.002 -33% 10,204,363 $12,575,830
PPS Praemium Limited 0.39 -33% 19,706,256 $289,479,501
HLS Healius 1.2275 -28% 15,169,364 $967,993,686
KNM Kneomedia Limited 0.003 -25% 450,000 $6,019,141
MCT Metalicity Limited 0.0015 -25% 262,400 $8,502,172
RVT Richmond Vanadium 0.285 -21% 58,423 $31,034,810
XGL Xamble Group Limited 0.056 -20% 15,000 $20,690,937
IEC Intra Energy Corp 0.004 -20% 3,587,457 $8,303,908
KP2 Kore Potash PLC 0.008 -20% 19,836 $6,690,575
RGS Regeneus Ltd 0.004 -20% 2,298,110 $1,532,185
SP8 Streamplay Studio 0.008 -20% 460,930 $11,506,238
TMG Trigg Minerals Ltd 0.008 -20% 8,000 $3,747,562
UCM Uscom Limited 0.04 -18% 75,000 $9,336,144
SLM Solismineralsltd 0.165 -18% 775,577 $15,569,741
OAK Oakridge 0.062 -17% 8,037 $1,319,956
TEE Topendenergylimited 0.125 -17% 6,400 $6,680,625
ADV Ardiden Ltd 0.005 -17% 33,000 $16,130,012
FGH Foresta Group 0.01 -17% 99,671 $26,874,033
LVT Livetiles Limited 0.005 -17% 80,000 $7,062,664
ADX ADX Energy Ltd 0.096 -17% 2,755,557 $41,761,021
DCL Domacom Limited 0.026 -16% 66,528 $13,500,555
BML Boab Metals Ltd 0.14 -15% 180,019 $28,786,357
1TT Thrive Tribe Tech 0.017 -15% 59,303 $5,932,430
NXS Next Science Limited 0.26 -15% 240,499 $88,967,006
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TRADING HALTS

Roots Sustainable Agricultural Technologies (ASX:ROO) – Pending “it releasing an announcement”

Clean Seas Seafood (ASX:CSS) – In connection with a proposed non-underwritten placement

Equinox Resources (ASX:EQN) – Pending a strategic announcement in connection with the company’s proposed capital raising and project staking initiatives

Sunshine Metals (ASX:SHN) – Pending the release of an announcement to the market regarding material exploration results

Metal Hawk (ASX:MHK) – Pending the company making an announcement regarding the outcome of a proposed capital raising

Bubs Australia (ASX:BUB) – Pending an announcement by the company in relation to a potential capital raising for the purposes of providing funds for its US expansion

 

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