Golfer Pacific NZ
Iwas dumbfounded, like the rest of the golfing world, when it was announced that LIV Golf was merging with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour.
It came as a shock to everyone as there had not been one hint of it happening.
I was also disappointed. Very disappointed.
I felt deeply sorry for the PGA Tour and DP World Tour players who remained loyal despite truckloads of money being offered to them. I respected that loyalty. Highly respected that loyalty.
But it became one of those unfortunate cases where money overrules simply because how big the number that follows the dollar sign is.
I suppose one day we’ll get over it. I suppose one day we might say how good LIV was for the game. I suppose.
The biggest argument against the
involvement of Saudi Arabia is that all this money is simply sportswashing -- trying to look like good guys despite many alleged atrocities, including the murder of a United States-based journalist and the lack of rights for Saudi Arabian women. It was only five years ago that women were allowed to drive cars.
Human rights organisation Grant Liberty said in 2021 that Saudi Arabia had spent at least $US1.5 billion on alleged sportswashing activities.
The partnership between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf is such a big deal that even American politicians want to know the details.
It was announced last month the executives of the PGA Tour, LIV Golf and Saudi Arabia golf interests had been asked to testify to an American political committee about the deal.
Senator Richard Blumenthal said in a statement: “Our goal is to uncover the facts about what went into the PGA Tour’s deal with the Saudi public investment fund and
what the Saudi takeover means for the future of this cherished American institution and our national interest.
“Americans deserve to know what the structure and governance of this new entity will be. Major actors in the deal are best positioned to provide this information, and they owe congress — and the American people — answers in a public setting.”
I have no idea if this will amount to anything more than grandstanding but the comments were very pointed.
Details of what the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour will look like, when the merger kicks in next year, might ease my disappointment. I presume there will be mountains of cash.
But more important than cash is harmony. Hopefully harmony prevails.
All the money is coming from the Saudi Arabia’s public investment fund, which is the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund.
Limited, it resembles editorial matter.
The fund is headed by Yasir Al-Rymayyan and the golf world is about to become very familiar with him. He is obsessed with golf and could well head the merger.
Al-Rumayyan now oversees an amazing portfolio of businesses. He’s chairman of Saudi Arabian petroleum and gas company Aramco and English soccer club Newcastle United, of which the investment fund acquired a controlling stake in 2021 for more than $US400 million.
The fund also invested $US40 billion in the SoftBank Vision Fund which is the world’s largest technology-focused investment fund and $US3.5 billion was put into taxi service Uber.
Oddly enough, Rory McIlroy, who has become the public face of the PGA Tour’s anti-LIV efforts over the past year, knows Al-Rumayyan. They played golf in Dubai a few years ago and McIlroy described him as an “avid” golfer.
Interesting times are ahead.
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Wyndham Clark won for the first time as a professional golfer when taking out a PGA Tour event in May.
A month later he won one of golf’s most prestigious events, the United States Open.
In the process he held off four-time major championship winner Rory McIlroy to win by one shot and take home the winner’s purse of $US3.6 million. That’s about $NZ5.8 million.
The total purse of $US20 million was a record for a major championship.
Most golf fans would hardly have known of Clark beforehand but his rise to fame was not a surprise in his own mind.
“I’ve worked so hard and I’ve dreamed about this moment for so long,’’ Clark said after the win in Los Angeles.
“There’s been so many times I’ve visualised being here in front of you guys and winning this championship. I just feel like it was my time.”
Clark, 29, dedicated the win
to his mother, Lise Clark, who died of breast cancer in 2013.
He had spoken at
length about her inspiration earlier in the tournament, explaining how she had left him
with the instruction to “play big’’ and there were tears as he recalled her afterwards.
Wyndham Clark, ranked 35th in the world, surprised many with his United States Open win, especially with Rory McIlroy breathing down his neck starting the final round at the Los Angeles Country Club.
With McIlroy dialled in hitting fairways and greens, Clark would surely not be able to withstand the heat.
If ever a course was set up for McIlroy this was it. With wide fairways, McIlroy was always going to be in the mix with reasonable accuracy from the tee. He was better than that hitting almost every fairway and green in regulation. Putting for birdie on many holes he was unable to sink enough putts from the 10 foot range.
Conversely, Clark, without quite the same pinpoint accuracy as McIlroy, prevailed because he was able for the most part to have crucial putts closer to the hole than McIlroy, thanks to his superior penultimate shots. His ability to get up and down from some difficult positions was almost faultless.
In the final round there were two key moments for Clark. His up and down for par on the 11th hole from long rough off the green was remarkable leaving
a shortish putt. Then on the par five 14th his three wood second shot from 280 yards was one of the tournament’s best to a few feet. While he missed the eagle putt, the birdie gave him a three shot lead thanks to McIlroy’s only bogey on the same hole.
McIlroy’s bogey was a shock as he was only 124 yards from the green playing his third shot which ended up in the very long grass in the front of the greenside bunker. However he was able to escape as the ball was ruled embedded, so he received a drop without penalty which many people disagreed with.
What made matters more surprising, he was allowed to drop the ball in front of the bunker in a good lie but had a rules’ official giving guidance. After all that good fortune Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee called the miss “absolutely criminal.”
As it would happen Clark’s only hiccups came on the long par three 15th and the ridiculously long 558-yard par four 16th. His lead now one, the tension was palpable. Despite this and the bounce not always going Clark’s way he dug in and played No 17 perfectly for par and then on No 18 he two putted for par from 60 feet and a thoroughly deserved and popular win. No doubt
his late mother’s two word rule “play big” for him to carry into competition since his younger days was ringing in his ears during that final round.
For McIlroy he could have no complaints despite some pundits focussing on why he lost rather than why Clark won. McIlroy’s shotmaking throughout was so consistent and on more than one occasion the bounce was favourable allowing him to escape the dreaded rough, not to mention his huge break on the 14th. To confirm his excellent shotmaking he hit six more greens in regulation than anyone else and nine more than Clark. Certainly a good lead in to The Open in England this month.
For Rickie Fowler it was a disappointing final round after beginning the day tied with Clark on 10 under par. He slipped back into a tie for fifth but he was still upbeat.
“I definitely think we are heading in the right direction and it is nice to be in contention with some solid finishes,” Fowler said.
Fowler showed some class with his warm embrace and comments to Clark on the 18th, offering his congratulations and saying how proud he was of him winning.
He also said: “We had a good time the
“I just felt like my mum was watching over me today and you know she can’t be here. Miss you mum,” he said.
Clark, whose father was a professional tennis player, said he did not feel uncomfortable as he held the lead for much of the final round.
“I feel like I belong on this stage. Even two, three years ago when people didn’t know who I was, I felt like I could still play and compete against the best players in the world.
“It’s gone faster than I thought as far as just starting to do some stuff mentally that I’ve never done before, but I feel like I’m one of the best players in the world.
“Obviously this just shows what I believe can happen.”
Clark played some great recovery shots in the final round as he maintained his lead and his confidence was underlined on the 18th green where he was left with two putts from 60 feet to secure victory. He putted the ball to tap in distance.
last two days. I feel we both enjoy chatting throughout the round and keeping things fairly light.”
Scottie Scheffler looked frustrated at times with his putting but despite that was a close third and Cameron Smith had a sizzling final round to finish fourth. Dustin Johnson also showed his game is close to his best. A crazy quadruple bogey in the early rounds and seeing many putts lip out or miss by millimetres saw him finish tied 10th. The form of these players and others augurs well for The Open.
As a final note was Wyndham Clark’s win really a big surprise? No.
Why? He has had a superb season with his first win on the PGA Tour coming in May at the Wells Fargo Championship where he dominated with a four shot margin over Xander Schauffele. The course was set up like a major championship with Clark saying “it felt like a major course”. After five years and 133 starts on the PGA Tour without a win he now has two wins in the last six weeks and a world ranking of 13. What price Clark at The Open Championship?
The 123rd United States Open came with much hoopla and has gone with mixed thoughts and polarising views on the course itself.
The end result with Wyndam Clark winning was a thoroughly deserved one, but opinions on the Los Angeles Country Club course were quite diverse.
The club is one of the United State’s most exclusive and this year’s open was a chance for fans to get a rare look behind the doors at what is said to be a stunning layout with many memorable holes.
The first round record 62s by Rickie Fowler and Scottie Schauffele amidst a birdie fest had many wondering what had happened to the test a US Open
always is. As it turned out the nine under par first round score would end up the winning score so the course certainly gave a firm reply.
Some of the players views were contrasting.
Scheffler said it was an interesting layout and he liked it a lot.
Padraig Harrington said the greens were the best he had ever seen in a major championship.
Harris English, who finished eighth said: “I like it. It is kind of old school golf. I like blind shots.”
Phil Mickelson, who just missed the cut, said: “It is a great setup.”
Victor Hovland, 19th, said: “I’m not a big fan. There are some good holes, a few bad holes, but no great holes. The ninth is probably the best.”
Matthew Fitzpatrick who finished 17th, didn’t like the long rough immediately by the fairways and said it was “a little bit unfair, a poor setup.”
Bryson De Chambeau said: “It’s a completely different test of golf than a normal US Open. It is more like a links course.” Brooks Koepka also said he wasn’t a big fan.
The back nine was significantly more difficult than the front nine. The back nine measured 3731 yards against 3505 yards for the first nine — an average of 25 yards per hole.
The final six holes, which include the short 133-yard (sometimes shorter) par three, measured 2647 yards, an average 441 yards. The remaining 12 holes only measured 4589 yards, average 382 yards.
The first round at the US Open was a record breaker. In 2017 Branden Grace shot 62. This year Ricky Fowler and Xander Schauffele shot 62, the first time two players have done that. These three players are the only ones to have shot 62.
A total of 47,000 US Open rounds were played until Fowler’s 62. The six rounds of 65 or lower on the first day were the most in US Open history. It was also the first ever opening or second round where every player broke 80. Was the course too easy?
The consensus was yes but only for that first round with the wide fairways and greens just soft enough to be very good for scoring. However that would change in the following rounds as the scores would show.
Wyndham Clark was unimpressed with having to play the last two holes in the third round due to darkness. The final group did not tee off until 3.40pm. Clark said they were playing twilight golf and he couldn’t see. He put his bogey on 17 and Fowler’s unfortunate short putt bogey on 18 down to poor visibility.
Clark said: “I would like to see us tee off an hour and a half earlier because if there is a playoff tomorrow we wouldn’t be able to play.”
Clark’s caddy said: “It is crazy to think that we are doing this on the last two holes of a major. Common sense prevailed and tee times were moved forward 70 minutes.
It was disappointing to watch Jon Rahm lose his cool during the second round on
the 17th hole. He played not his best bunker shot, yelling out loud that four letter word before smashing the club into the bunker face then throwing it over his shoulder without looking.
He was fortunate it didn’t hit someone. His frustration at his disappointing play in the first two rounds had clearly got to him. However he was able to produce an excellent final round to charge up the leaderboard for an encouraging tied 10th finish.
There were times when a viewer couldn’t help wondering why there was not more coverage of much higher placed players. I took particular note during the concluding stages of the second round when there were several players fighting to make the cut including Ryan Fox.
One particular player A Yang, who was 13 over par, was shown playing many shots,
The other criticism of the course, which will host the US Open again in 2039, was the atmosphere, or lack of it.
Compared to last year’s jam packed event at the Boston Country Club, this year was something of a damp squib. Crowd numbers were fairly low at a reported maximum of 30,000 per day with many of them corporate or members’ guests.
For some reason the 13th and 14th holes in the corner of the course seemed sparse with spectators. Maybe they were a step too far from the rest of the action. Certainly watching TV, on several holes you could wonder where are the big numbers of fans we are used to at The Masters, The Players, or majors played on the east coast of the USA.
then there was a sequence of players shown whose scores were +8, +6, +5, +7, +13, +15 — in other words, no hope of making the cut.
In fact, apart from Jon Rahm who only just made it, there was no coverage of Fox or any others players fighting to play the weekend. The only concession was to show Fox’s final putt.
BY? NO
Some Rory McIlroy fans reckon he was hard done by accusing Wyndham Clark of cheating. They say his ball moved when hitting from the rough on the back nine in the final round. A two shot penalty would have given McIlroy the win. However the situation was closely examined by rules officials and given clearance.
Conversely many fans believed McIlroy was lucky to still be in the hunt after his free drop on the 14th hole. Again a rules official gave him the free drop. Various opinions were
voiced.
“Improper drop.” “His drop was clearly more than a metre from where his ball was embedded.” “No way his ball plugged on that angle.”
Former DP World Tour player Nick Dougherty said on Sky Sports “This is not luck, it is beyond luck.” The upshot of all of that is in each case rules officials made the decisions and we still ended with the deserving winner.
Despite the on-course spectator numbers looking thinner than usual for a major, viewership was up 27 percent on last year’s US Open. Primetime coverage across all four rounds averaged 4.8 million viewers, the highest in five years.
The final round averaged 6.2 million viewers with a peak of 10.2 million. American television broadcaster NBC was pleased as it bodes well for The Open broadcast starting on July 16.
body’s whole nervous system and caused him to stutter. Even today 24 years later he still speaks with a stutter, although he is proud of his efforts to overcome it.
He said: “Golf was my safe place. I could be myself and do my own thing.”
He first played golf when aged four, played in tournaments when eight and developed a love of golf then, all the while dreaming of being a professional golfer living and competing in America.
He did play some rugby but golf was number one because he could be on his own and not have to put up with other youngsters making fun of his stuttering. It was very upsetting for him and he sought help from speech therapists and counselling.
At 15 years of age beta blockers were helping his confidence and enjoyment of life. He was now making his name known as a promising golfer by winning various junior tournaments in South Africa. But what followed a win was harder than the golf as he didn’t want to give a victory speech. Where they knew him they just gave him the trophy and he left.
He has great appreciation for South African golf legend Ernie Els and his foundation for helping golfers to progress. Bezuidenhout was in the programme for six years and he and Els have become good friends.
“I was fortunate to be in that programme,” Bezuidenhout told Harig.
“Ernie has done a lot for my career and we have spent a lot of time together talking about many things. His advice on travel, my game and all sorts has been great.
“We reminisce about his major wins, how he played different shots to different holes and how his mind was working.”
As Bezuidenhout’s game improved he would record better finishes culminating in his first European Tour title at the Andalucia Masters in 2019. Paired with Jon Rahm, he would win by six shots.
By Neville IdourSouth African golfer Christiaan Bezuidenhout may not remember what happened when he was just two years old but he certainly knows now — he was a mere whisker away from death.
His story by Bob Harig from American sports channel ESPN caught my eye and there is nothing better than sharing a feel good story.
Bezuidenhout, 26, now finds golf the
easy part of life considering how he got where he is today or even that he did.
As a two-year-old toddler he was with his parents at a park, when he saw a bottle of soda which he quickly opened and took a sip. But it was not soft drink. Instead it was rat poison. Rushed to hospital his life was saved.
However he had suffered severe nervous system and speech issues. The hospital had to pump his stomach to clear the poison but the poison had affected his
More drama at the 2014 British Amateur, when just as his life could have ended as a toddler, there his career could have ended before it had flourished. He tested positive for the prescribed beta blockers he was taking, completely unaware they were banned. Even though he had listed them on a form prior to his drug test he was suspended from competition for two years. That was so devastating for an 18-year-old.
A lot of people thought he took the beta blockers to help his game. The negativity made him want to show such people that he could play well without them so he stopped taking them and hasn’t taken one since. The two-year ban was reduced to nine months during which he worked on his game and turned professional.
A third at the BMW PGA would follow. Before the covid-19 pandemic hit and shut down golf for three months his good start to 2020, with a second and a win, lifted his world ranking to 50. This allowed his dream to be on the PGA Tour to take flight. Places in major championships last year followed plus some sponsor exemptions to PGA Tour events.
This year he has a limited exemption to play 12 events. His aim is to finish in the top 125 for the Fedex Cup.
“I just try to play and if I play well it will take care of myself.”
So far his career has yielded 10 professional wins. Five were international wins including three DP World tour events. Other highlights were a fourth and 13th at The Players’ Championships plus playing in the 2022 Presidents’ Cup where in two starts he recorded a win and a half.
After his near life ending event and road to accomplished professional golfer, Bezuidenhout has surely earned his right to set the highest of goals.
study journalism at the University of Queensland.
“When I finished I moved back to Korea about three years ago and got a job as a news reporter with a big media company. So I was doing newspapers, magazines, television and internet. All sorts really but all on golf. I would travel each week to a different tournament.”
Where did this take her?
“Korea, Japan, Taiwan to mostly LPGA Tour events.
“The work was full time and full on, including most weekends, so I wasn’t getting enough time off. I moved on to a different media company in Korea where I was doing more admin (administration).
“Then I met my husband who grew up in New Zealand, mostly in Auckland, although he is Korean. We got married in Korea and he said let’s go to New Zealand for our honeymoon.”
Meanwhile her husband Max, who is a chef, works at a Fernhill (Queenstown) restaurant.
“For me it was waiting and waiting until February this year when a job became available.
“Funny thing was it was a front of house position, not golf. I still applied for it and thought I could ask to do some golf related work. But when Sian (Chilton) saw my resume she knew I can play golf so thought she can be on the golf operations’ team.’’
Going back to Kim’s decision to not pursue a golf playing career, we asked if she continued to play. Her reply was a surprise.
“I was so busy with news reporting that I stopped playing golf. At that time the thought of playing golf reminded me of failure.”
Why was that?
to finish the round. She said she wanted me to learn not to give up easily. So we continued and finally made it to the end. “
The end result?
“I won the best nett score on that day and the prize was … a beautiful silver necklace from Michael Hill Jewellery. The tournament was held a few days before Mother’s Day so I gave the necklace to mum as a Mother’s Day gift. She absolutely loved that necklace and used to wear it every single day …. and I think she still has it.”
“Every time I saw mum wearing that necklace it reminded me of her cheering me up and encouraging me in that pouring rain. We still talk about that day from time to time and it’s one of the best memories I have from golf days.
By Neville IdourIn February this year Jeanett Kim joined The Hills golf course in Arrowtown as golf operations co-ordinator.
She is revelling in her role assisting golf manager Sian Chilton, after falling in love with The Hills at first sight. Her story has a touch of serendipity. More on that later.
Kim was born in Sydney when her father was studying for his doctor of philosophy (PhD) degree. When Kim was six the family moved to Korea where they were for six years, until they moved to Brisbane where her father had a fellowship in tourism economy at a university there.
While living there, Kim started playing golf when she was 13 years old.
As she explains: “It was meant to be casual fun but I started playing school and interstate tournaments.
“At this stage I wanted to become a professional but in year 11, my second last in high school, I thought maybe I’m not good enough and I should do something else.
“Then I thought why not become a news reporter for golf. So I decided to
Not surprisingly they went to Queenstown.
Kim continued: “We were on a winery tour and the tour guide who I had told I played golf, told me there was a very nice golf course in Arrowtown called The Hills and it had cool sculptures and was beautiful. I thought it would be nice to go there, but didn’t think I could because it was private.
“After a few days in Queenstown I said to my husband I really wanted to move here. When we got back to Korea I started applying for my visa. Then covid happened so we had to wait for a long time till we could come to New Zealand.”
They were finally able to move here in April 2022 but her next revelation is quite remarkable.
Kim revealed: “I wanted to work at The Hills from the beginning. This was the place for me.”
But she had never seen it?
“No, but I really wanted to work there as I had heard so many good stories about it. When I arrived I emailed them but they didn’t have any vacancies. So I found work in a retail store but would keep checking the website for any vacancies.”
“It is a very competitive culture in Korea because it is such a small place with so many people. So I didn’t play at all for about eight years from age 16 or 17.
“Now I’m working at The Hills, I played 18 holes for the first time since then, recently with Michael (Hill). I had told him I used to play a lot and he just asked me out of the blue to come and play a round with him. I was really nervous on the first hole but it was good after that.
“My husband Max also plays golf but I’m better than him (much laughter).”
In fact she said his parents used to have a driving range in Auckland so you could say golf runs in the family. As for her work at The Hills she said she was loving it and a beautiful and remarkable experience as a youngster emphasises the serendipity of her path to The Hills. It also perhaps indicates why she knows how to achieve.
Jeanett relates it.
“When I was in high school I played in a golf tournament in Queensland and the weather was horrible. It was pouring with rain and I could barely see my golf ball due to the heavy wind.
“I really wanted to stop playing and go home and I am sure the other girls felt the same. My mum was caddying for me and told me she would like me
“So when I first started working at The Hills, mum was very surprised and said it almost feels like you were meant to work at The Hills.
“I thought it was interesting how that necklace from Michael’s brand meant so much to mum and I, and now I am working at Michael’s golf course. This is where I want to be. I am here to stay.”
The thriving growth of golf in regional New Zealand has seen the sport’s administrative body, Golf New Zealand, appoint three new personnel to club support and player development roles around the country.
Ben James is the newly appointed development officer for golf in the Manawatu/Whanganui region, Simon Winter is the newly appointed club support manager for golf in the Tasman district and Phil Robinson is the newly appointed golf co-ordinator across the Southland province.
As the sport’s central administrative body, Golf New Zealand has partnership agreements with multiple golfing districts throughout the country -- including Bay of Plenty, Manawatu/ Wanganui, Tasman, Aorangi, Otago, and Southland – which allow for a streamlining of operations and access to a range of support services and programmes.
The partnership model allows Golf New Zealand staff living and working locally in their respective provinces to deliver national initiatives at a regional level.
Golf New Zealand’s general manager of partnerships and legal, Hana-Rae Seifert, said the organisation was excited about continuing to grow its service delivery capability to produce more participation initiatives and performance pathway-based programmes around the country.
“Golf participation player numbers in New Zealand continue to grow yearon-year across many demographics – including children, women, Maori, those with disabilities, and existing players taking to the fairways more often when they can,” said Ms Seifert.
“Ben, Simon, and Phil will be instrumental in underpinning this growth in
their respective regions, and we look forward to welcoming more new players to the sport this year as a result of their endeavours.
“It is critical for golf that the sport embraces the future and plans effectively to meet the changing needs of participants. This means not only sustaining what we currently have in terms of grassroots participation, but also delivering a sport which attracts a new generation of players who will develop a lifelong love of the game.”
Simon Winter joins Golf New Zealand from a sporting background as a long-standing professional tennis coach, where he developed and managed participation programmes at a provincial level at both a school and club level. Simon’s extensive coaching
career spans three decades both in the United States and New Zealand.
In his role as Golf New Zealand’s club support manager at the top of the South Island, Simon will take responsibility for co-ordinating interclub competitions, supporting Tasman’s age group and school championships, and overseeing the district’s stroke play tournaments.
Based in Nelson at the heart of the Tasman region, Simon will take on responsibility for supporting local match committees by arranging the district’s pennant programme, and annual tournament calendar for both men and women.
Meanwhile, sport-loving Phil Robinson comes to golf from a career in business administration and management,
most recently as the owner/director of his own digital marketing and advertising design agency in Invercargill. He is also involved with Southland charities such as Southland Charity Hospital and Sunrise Rotary.
Within the Golf New Zealand remit, Robinson will now be focussing on growing the game in the Southland region – working closely in partnership with golf clubs, golf facilities, and coaching professionals, to provide introduction and development programmes at schools, in communities, and in golf clubs — all aimed at increasing player participation and club membership.
Said Robinson: “This will include the development and delivery of regional participation initiatives with a focus on young people, women and girls, and casual players through the implementation of Golf New Zealand’s range of participation programmes.
“I’ll also be assisting in the development and management of annual business plans and budgets of golfclubs in the district.”
Rounding out the trio of new appointments, former New Zealand Army senior non-commissioned officer and provincial rugby coach Ben James joins Golf New Zealand to undertake similar club liaison activities for the sport’s administrative body in the Manawatu/ Whanganui region.
Born and raised in Palmerston North, James has a strong affiliation to developing the potential and opportunities for golfers of all demographic backgrounds in the Manawatu/Whanganui province – either those striving just to get out for a weekend round with friends, or those in a competitive space aiming for higher national honours.
New Zealand’s golfing sector is enjoying a golden period – emerging strongly from the post-covid environment to deliver a sporting activity which can be enjoyed by all niches within our community at almost 400 locations around the country.
Both player numbers, and the number of rounds being played, are up year-onyear.
Meanwhile, New Zealand golfers continue to perform globally. Kiwis are playing all over the world – from the United States, Europe, Asia, Latin America and Australasia — we are seeing the New Zealand flag flying at the top of leaderboards.
Sustaining all of this growth, diversity and success within New Zealand’s golfing scene are the hard-working people behind our fantastic golf clubs and golfing infrastructure. From dedicated and loyal volunteers who commit endless unpaid hours for the betterment of their clubs and fellow players through to the thousands of passionate and professional administrators and managers.
It’s important to recognise the efforts and achievements of our enormous golfing community. Golf New Zealand is once again proud to facilitate the National Golf Awards -- our chance to celebrate the dedication, commitment, and excellence delivered day-in and day-out across the whole golfing community.
The National Golf Awards celebrate and recognise the clubs and people who achieved and inspired us in 2022. A multitude of categories covers all aspects of golf and its operations throughout the country.
Nominations for the awards are now open, with the process closing on July 31, when entries will be reviewed and assessed by a judging panel compiled by Golf New Zealand.
Click on the following link to submit an entry.
www.surveymonkey.com/r/V8YBN2D
2022 NATIONAL GOLF AWARDS
CATEGORIES:
* Club of the year: A club that is demonstrating operational excellence and has
an outstanding record of achievement across all aspects of its operations –encompassing membership, customer service, marketing, and community relevance.
* Golf administrator of the year: An administrator serving the sport at club, regional, or national level who has made an outstanding contribution to the growth, success, enjoyment, or profile of the game in their administrative role.
* Volunteer of the year: A volunteer who is not only inspirational in their commitment to their organisation, club, or local golfing community, but also contributes tirelessly to the game.
* Community coach of the year: A volunteer or community coach who successfully contributes to the growth of participation in an enjoyable, engaging, or innovative manner.
* Professional coach of the year: A professional coach who is demonstrating excellence or innovation through their coaching activities.
* Leadership in golf award: A leader who is not only inspiring others but is also driving meaningful improvement or change for the betterment of golf.
* All abilities golfer of the year: A player who has inspired others to play golf. They have overcome an obstacle to play golf. They have shown dedication and passion for the game.
* Golf event of the year: The golfing event of the year at a local, national, or international level that far exceeded the expectations of both organisers and participants in delivering a memorable event or activity within the golfing arena and spilling into the wider community.
* Golf performance of the year: Spotlighting an exceptional golf performance that inspires New Zealanders.
* Environmental club of the year: The Environment Club of the Year Award recognises the golf club and its superintendent, who demonstrates excellence and leadership in environmental stewardship.
The German national team player, ranked 273rd on the women’s world amateur golf rankings, will also, by tradition, receive an invitation to compete in next year’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship in the United States.
Horder, who knocked out the world’s leading women’s amateur golfer Ingrid Lindblad in the semi-finals, joins a championship roll of honour which includes Babe Zaharias, Catriona Matthew, Carlota Ciganda, Anna Nordqvist, Georgia Hall, Celine Boutier and Leona Maguire.
Pancake, 21, was bidding to be the first winner from the United States since Kelli Kuehne in 1996.
The Clemson University student was cheered on by her dad, Tony who arrived on Father’s Day to support his daughter after an overnight flight from Indiana helped by funds from members at Crooked Stick Golf Club.
On the victory Horder said: “I feel amazing. I’m so happy. I am so fortunate to win. I mean it’s one of the biggest amateur championships.
“I can’t believe it, just super happy. It’s incredible. We’ve played so many rounds the last couple days. It’s been like 11 rounds, and then playing close to 36 today, it was exhausting. But I stayed in it and I enjoyed it. It’s so special for me.
“After the morning break, I just tried to get back in again, collect my energy and just stay in there. I hit my fairways and greens and gave myself opportunities so that was good.”
On major championship exemptions she added: “That gives me goosebumps. That’s insane. The opportunities are incredible and I am so fortunate.
Chiara Horder of Germany won the 120th Women’s Amateur Championship after a convincing 7 and 6 win over Annabelle Pancake of the United States in the 36-hole final at Prince’s Golf Club in England last month.
The 20-year-old became the third player from Germany to lift The Women’s Amateur trophy in the last six years after Aline Krauter in 2020 and Leonie Harm in 2018.
Having led by three holes at the halfway stage, Horder surged to victory in the afternoon session thanks to consistent driving, precise iron play and an excellent short game which included four birdies on par threes.
By virtue of the win Horder has now secured places in the field for the Evian Championship in France and The Women’s Open later this year and the Chevron Championship and US Women’s Open in 2024.
However, there was to be no win for Pancake on her first visit to the United Kingdom as Horder become the third player to win The Women’s Amateur at the Prince’s course. Joyce Wethered earned the first of her four victories in 1922 and American Carol Sorenson triumphed in 1964.
From a record 232 entries, Prince’s welcomed a world class field of 144 players representing 36 countries, including 12 players ranked inside the top-50 on the world amateur rankings, with Horder coming out on top after a wonderful week of golf on the Kent coast.
Horder’s triumph adds to German amateur and professional success after Antonia Steiner won the girls’ under-16 Amateur Championship at Enville in April, while Sophia Popov won the Women’s Open in 2020.
Portmarnock will host The 121st Women’s Amateur Championship from June 24-29 next year.
“I cannot believe that I will be teeing it up then. It’s definitely a goal just to compete in these majors. I mean competing in the Women’s Open is just amazing. It’s definitely a dream.”
ings, settled down and achieved three birdies in a row from the sixth to go one up. With his precision iron play, the Swiss national team member also birdied the ninth to move two ahead after nine holes.
In a see-saw contest, Kleu bogeyed the 10th and 11th – with Lamprecht also eagling the 11th – as the match returned to all square.
Christo Lamprecht of South Africa defeated Ronan Kleu from Switzerland in a thrilling contest to win the 128th Amateur Championship at Hillside in England last month.
In front of large crowds on a glorious day, the 22-year-old claimed a 3 and 2 victory in an exciting 36-hole final to lift one of the most prestigious trophies in the amateur game.
From an international field of 288 players, representing 38 countries, Lamprecht became the third South African winner in the last six years after Jovan Rebula in 2018 and Aldrich Potgieter last year.
Lamprecht -- the highest-ranked player in the field at sixth on the world amateur golf rankings and a prodigious ball striker from his 6ft 8in frame –squeezed into the top 64 and ties for the matchplay stages before excelling in the knock-out format.
By virtue of his victory, Lam-
precht secured exemptions into The 151st Open at Royal Liverpool this month, the US Open next year, and, by tradition, an invitation to play in the Masters Tournament in 2024. He also joins a championship roll of honour which includes Bobby Jones, Sir Michael Bonallack, Jose Maria Olazabal and Sergio Garcia.
It was also a notable day for his caddie and international Arnold Palmer Cup teammate Christiaan Maas, who was on the bag for Potgieter when he won at Royal Lytham & St Annes 12 months ago.
Kleu was aiming to become the first Swiss player to win The Amateur and the 23-year-old – who tied second in strokeplay qualifying – made three late birdies to push Lamprecht to the 34th hole.
In the morning action, Lamprecht’s opening birdie gave him the advantage. But Kleu, placed 376th in the world rank-
Lamprecht, a first team All-American for Georgia Tech with eight top-ten finishes in the 2022-2023 season, then seized control. Aided by his long driving, he birdied five of the last seven holes – including four in a row from the 15th. However, Kleu closed with two birdies of his own to stay in touch at only two down at the halfway stage.
Lamprecht, who was six-under-par for the morning’s 18 holes, had played 21 more matchplay holes this week than Kleu but he showed no signs of tiredness to take the 19th after Kleu’s bogey to go three up.
It stayed that way until the 24th when the Swiss struck it close to reduce the deficit. A brilliant pitch from the dunes from Lamprecht restored his advantage at the 27th. The 2017 South African Amateur winner made another decisive move at the short 28th, holing from 15 feet for back-to-back birdies to go four up.
Kleu missed an opportunity at the par five 29th, but did capitalise at both the 30th and 31st to suddenly reduce the gap to two holes once more.
There was then incredible drama at the 32nd as the Swiss made a third straight birdie from 25 feet after slicing his drive into rough – but it was a
birdie matched by a cool Lamprecht from six feet. His fifth birdie in the afternoon at the 33rd took him to three up and a short par putt at the 34th sealed his triumph.
Lamprecht also became the third player to win The Amateur at Hillside after Jay Sigel in 1979 and Bryden Macpherson in 2011. The north-west England venue continued its pedigree of hosting championships. One of many fine links courses on England’s golf coast, it frequently stages final qualifying for The Open and in 2022 held the Cazoo Classic, a DP World Tour event.
Next year’s Amateur Championship will be played at Ballyliffin from June 17-22.
Lamprecht said afterwards: “I’m over the moon. I haven’t won something big in a long time and it’s one to definitely win for sure. I’m ecstatic. I cannot kind of comprehend my feelings right now.
“I tried to stay in my zone the
last couple of holes so much. Ronan was playing good and fighting back hard. I’m guessing South Africans like playing links golf. We kind of like being creative so I guess that flowed over into this championship. It’s always nice to be part of history with South Africa and enrich it.”
On major championship exemptions he added: “It’s amazing to get into The Open. It’s probably the biggest kind of milestone I put on myself this year before I turn pro is just to get myself in a major and get that experience. To get into three is pretty amazing. But right now I’m going to go and celebrate as much as I can.”
Kleu was humble in defeat.
“On the back nine I gave it a run with those three straight birdies and gave it my all,’’ Kleu said.
“I feel like I unfortunately left a lot out there. Christo played very solidly. He drives the ball unbelievably as we all know. So fair play to him, honestly, and congratulations.’’
Leeds United, one of Britain’s biggest football clubs, could well have three of golf’s biggest stars as part-owners. They would be part of the American investment group, 49ers Enterprises, in the imminent takeover of Leeds United.
Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas are the players involved.
Fowler said: “We are looking forward to it and it will be fun to be a part of it. Leeds were relegated from the premier league to the championship on the last day of the season.’’
So they are keen to be part of a Leeds revival. The club is renowned for the atmosphere the fans produce at Elland Road and Fowler is looking forward to experiencing it.
Not surprisingly PGA Tour chief executive Jay Monahan has been under fire from all quarters in his about face in joining the LIV backers the Saudi public investment fund (PIF) and the DP World Tour in a new merged entity.
He has come under withering fire from many PGA Tour players who say he has betrayed them. He has even got offside with the US senate which has opened an investigation into the deal and several US politicians have also hit out.
He wrote to the US lawmakers and met with several members of congress. He claims the PGA Tour was left to go it alone in its battle to fend off attacks. Sounds like a war.
He gave reasons for his about face saying that “with the prospect of another decade of expensive litigation and the PGA Tour’s long term existence under threat we couldn’t afford to keep battling the PIF financially.”
What he didn’t admit was that if, at the very beginning, he hadn’t totally ignored Greg Norman’s repeated requests to sit down and discuss how the LIV concept could be part of the golfing calendar none of the acrimony and expense of the last 12 months or so could have been avoided.
Sadly for Monahan he has an undisclosed medical condition and has stepped away from running the PGA
Tour albeit until he recovers. It has obviously been a stressful time for him when at a recent meeting with players there was anger and several players calling for him to resign.
Jon Rahm summed it up nicely. “It gets to a point where you want to have faith in management. I think the general feeling is that a lot of people feel a bit of betrayal from management.”
Irish golfer Padraig Harrington is unequivocal in saying Europe needs to field it’s strongest possible team for the Ryder Cup. This means LIV players should be allowed to play, in the wake of the recent deal.
“Luke (Donald) has got to pick his best team,” Harrington said of the Ryder Cup captain.
He said despite certain rules needing to be changed for those who have resigned he does not see that as an obstacle.
“Rules have been changed before. Let’s give everyone a clean slate.”
Harrington insists several LIV players would be worthy of selection.
“To suggest there aren’t any would be silly.”
One other possible issue could be the rifts between certain players, particularly the fallout between former close friends Rory McIlroy and Sergio Garcia. Again Harrington takes a positive view.
“For a week playing in a team you get over it.”
The simple answer on most professional tours, including the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, is no.
There are some variables such as reduced field no cut events which the PGA Tour is increasing considerably and the LIV Golf.
The major championships do pay those who miss the cut possibly rewarding them for qualifying.
At the 2023 PGA Championship all those who missed the cut received $US4000. At the 2023 US Masters it was $US10,000. At the 2022 Open it was staggered in three stages of 10,476 pounds down to 6984 pounds.
At the 2022 US Open it was $US10,000.
For 2023, The PGA Tour has intro-
duced guaranteed season payments up to $US500,000. The Korn Ferry tour will also have benefits and so too will the DP World Tour. So the answer is no but at the same time, in some cases now, is it yes?
Adam Scott has always spoken frankly and openly when questioned. Whenever the LIV Tour came up for question you could rely on Scott to speak with empathy and commonsense about his fellow professionals.
When asked his feelings regarding the recent merger and the about face by the PGA Tour, he did not hide his feelings saying: “Actually I am caught up emotionally because I stayed on the PGA Tour and what we were told if we left. It was put to us that if we left we were never coming back. But it now seems there are going to be pathways back.”
It was crystal clear he and many other players would have joined LIV if they knew what they know now.
The LIV Golf team Majestic’s GC has secured a global sponsor OKX , the world’s second largest crypto exchange, according to a Golf Monthly report.
The team, which is co captained by Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and Henrik Stenson, are excited with the many benefits OKX will bring for the team and fans.
OKX is involved in several sports including Manchester City Football Club, McLaren Formula One, an Olympian and Formula one driver.
Poulter has also been sponsored by them and says OKX brings passion, technical expertise and creativity in everything it does.
This deal suggests growing LIV remains on course. As Greg Norman told staff: “LIV will continue to be a stand alone enterprise. Our business model will not change. We are not going anywhere.”
Dustin Johnson told Sky Sports they are doing the schedule for 2024 now.
The Asian Tour’s International Series event in August returns to England and
will headline 10 LIV players.
Close House, near Newcastle, is the venue. Lee Westwood who opened the course in 2011 is very much looking forward to it. The tournament will be played from August 17-20.
The other LIV players are Patrick Reed, Graeme McDowell, Abraham Ancer, Anirban Lahiri, Eugenio Chacarra, Jason Kokrak, Richard Bland, Brendan Steele and Dean Burmester.
Twelve professional golfers feature in the latest list of the world’s highest paid athletes.
Seven of them are LIV players whose earnings in all cases are almost entirely on course. Conversely, in the other cases, off course earnings are significant and in the case of Tiger Woods mostly off course.
Topping them in sixth is Dustin Johnson with $US107 million. Phil Mickelson is seventh with $US106 million. Rory McIlroy is 15th ($US80.8 million), Woods 16th ($US75.1 million), Cameron Smith 17th ($US73 million), Brooks Koepka 18th (US$72 million), Bryson DeChambeau 20th ($US69 million), Jon Rahm 28th ($US68 million), Patrick Reed 32nd ($US52 million), Jordan Spieth 43rd ($US47.5 million), Scottie Scheffler 45th ($US47.1 million) and Sergio Garcia 46th (US$46 million).
In almost god like fashion Rory McIlroy recently opined that Brooks Koepka deserves to be in the Ryder Cup but European LIV players don’t.
“Brooks deserves to be on the US team how he’s played but I don’t know if anyone else from LIV would on merit.” McIlroy said he had different feelings about the European team because of the way things have transpired.
“I don’t think any of them should have a part in the team.”
With the recent merger in mind anything is now possible and McIlroy’s opinions may come back to bite him.
Jon Rahm does not agree with McIlroy saying simply “It’s the best Americans against the best Europeans, period.”
Canterbury professional golfer Amelia Garvey made a huge step towards gaining her card for the LPGA Tour with her best finish on the Epson Tour in the United States at a tournament in Michigan last month.
Garvey’s three-round score of 207 was good enough for a second finish and $US18,695 in
welcome prizemoney.
With her most consistent performance to date, she began the final round tied with eventual winner Siyun Lu who led by two shots after nine holes.
But Garvey fought hard and drew level after a birdie on the 15th hole. However, Lu birdied 17 to seal a one shot victory.
Garvey will take great heart as her form has been on a steady upward spiral in the last three tournaments plus winning a US Open qualifier. In the race for a LPGA Tour card she is now 19th after 10 events, needing to finish in the top 25 at the end of the season to join Lydia Ko at the highest level.
Daniel Hillier may not have won the BMW International in Germany last month, but the Wellingtonian certainly won the hearts of many with his at times thrilling shotmaking and exemplary attitude and control of his emotions at all times.
After looking every inch a winner halfway through the third round, ultimately his tie for third was still a potentially career defining moment, his best finish on the DP World Tour to date. He certainly appeared to have as much ability as anyone in the field.
After a four under par first round he had a bogey free second round with five birdies to take a one shot lead into the third round.
It was exciting watching his near perfect first 10 holes in the third round. Booming drives of 350 and 360 yards were leaving the commentators waxing lyrical. Three birdies and he was two ahead on 12 under par.
Come the 11th and his first mistake. The 545-yard par five had proven very much a birdie hole and Hillier had set himself up for at least a birdie with a long, perfectly placed 370-yard drive.
With water to the far right of the green the very appealing 175-yard approach demanded a shot left of the flag, well clear of the water, Unfortunately he leaked the shot enough right to, despite encroaching on the green a little, catch the slope and the ball gently rolled into the water.
The resulting bogey seemed to unsettle him a little. A good tee shot to the 12th, a par three, left a gettable putt which was missed. Then on 14 he got into tree trouble and the double bogey really hurt. However he rebounded with an excellent birdie, but by day’s end he was trailing leader Joost Luiten by four shots.
Starting the final round on 10 under par he was a little wayward off the first tee and ended up with a
bogey. His worst unnecessary mistake came on the third when he somehow managed to miss an 18 inch putt having not set himself as he would normally do. The look on his face said it all. As if to say “What have I done?”
At eight under par he was now well behind the eight ball. He dug deep and showed his maturity and self control by scoring five more birdies, offset by bogeys on 10 and 12. In the end his 11 under score was so near yet so far from the 13 under par winner Thriston Lawrence of South Africa.
Hillier said: “What a week. A bit of a grind over the weekend but all the pieces are coming together.”
As a mark of his class was him taking time to offer encouragement to the New Zealand Junior Golf team at the World Cup in Japan, personally talking to team member Cooper Moore and recording a video message for the team.
Christchurch junior golfer Cooper Moore was a decisive winner of the Canterbury senior champion of champions event at Pegasus Golf Club. The then 14-year-old, who turned 15
just before leaving for the Junior Under 19 World Championships in Japan, really made no race of it against the 24 Canterbury senior club winners.
Playing with eventual second placed gross scorer Sam Purdon from Templeton, he was always a step ahead.
Following a birdie on seven he used driver on the 9th fairway from 225 metres and the sensational shot left him a two foot putt for an eagle to be four under par at the turn. It is rare to see even the world’s very best professionals use a driver from the fairway.
Another fine birdie from four feet after a wonderful approach shot on 10 stretched his lead. However his putter went cold for a period and a couple or bogeys on 11 and 12 halted progress. Then a couple of solid saves from several feet on 13 and 14 got him back on track.
A wonderful drive on the par four awkward 15th left him just five metres from the green and a birdie resulted. Nice pars on 16 and 17 then two cracking shots on the long par five finishing hole to just a few feet from the green led to a closing birdie.
Moore’s 67 was four shots clear of Purdon’s 71. Sam McGill, Aaron Neill and Kerry Branson were tied third with 73.
Other individual winners were Desmond Gong (Templeton) in the intermediate grade and Cameron Bartlett (Russley) in the junior grade.
Moore, who left for Japan after that win, performed admirably amongst much older boys. It is believed he and another 15-year-old were the only boys under 17 or 18 years old.
Moore scored 76, 75, 71 and 70 to finish tied 34th. He gives some credit for his excellent third and fourth rounds to Daniel Hillier who took the time while at the BMW International in Germany to phone Cooper and offer a few tips to help him. A fine thing to do for the youngster.
As with the other team members this was a new experience against the best in the world and Moore is already talking about what he would do better in two years’ time.
His motto is a good one for one so young, “never losing, always learning.”
Back home in Christchurch he has some major events to target. The New Zealand Under 16 Championships in Timaru, Charles Tour events in Tauranga and at Clearwater in Christchurch, the Waikato Champs, plus the New Zealand Boys’ Interprovincials and the New Zealand Men’s Amateur Champs in Hamilton are on his calendar.
New Zealand has finished strongly at the Junior Golf World Championships, which saw the hosts dominate at Chukyo Country Club in Aichi, Japan.
The New Zealand junior girls’ team of Fiona Xu, Vivian Lu, and Eunseo Choi finished fourth, 16 shots behind Japan, while the New Zealand junior boys’ team of Zack Swanwick, Robby Turnbull, Stephen Liu, and Cooper Moore finished ninth, well behind the hosts.
The format of the tournament saw the best three of the four boys’ scores and two of three girls’ scores go toward each team’s totals per round.
Although neither side is bringing home silverware, they both finished in style in the final round played
in difficult conditions – Xu, Lu, and Choi combined for six-under, leaving them 18 under par after four rounds.
World number 17, Xu, played impressively all tournament, firing rounds of 70, 71, 69, and 65 to finish 13 under par, placing her fourth individually, just two shots back of Japan’s Yuna Araki.
Xu’s Auckland teammate Lu finished three under following rounds of 74, 68, 70, and 73 in 13th, while Choi finished in a share of 17th at five over following scores of 72, 72, 76, and 73.
The New Zealand junior boys also finished well, combining for four under, leaving them ninth.
All four players shot under par finishing rounds. However, it was Turnbull who finished as the low junior boy for the Kiwi side. Turnbull carded rounds of 69, 71, 79, and 69 to finish four over in equal 25th. Swanwick shot 71, 72, 78, and 71 to finish seven over in a share of 31st, while Lie and Moore both finished in a tie of 34th a further shot back.
Liu finished with rounds of 71, 70, 81, and 70, while Moore shot 76, 75, 71, and 70.
The Junior Golf World Cup, which was prreviously last contested in 2018, enjoyed a successful return, with the hosts proving dominant.
The Presidents’ Cup will be held in Melbourne for the fourth time in 2028.
The venue will be the Kingston Heath Golf Club, one of the iconic venues on the famed Melbourne sandbelt.
Consistently ranked as one of the top courses in Australia and around the world, Kingston Heath was designed by Australia’s Dan Soutar and features a natural bunkering layout spearheaded by legendary architect Alister Mackenzie in 1926.
Among the noteworthy championships held at Kingston Heath include the Australian Open, which has been hosted seven times and most recently in 2022 when it shared duties with Victoria Golf Club.
Kingston Heath also hosted the 2009 and 2012 Australian Masters, the 2008 Women’s Australian Open, and the 2016 World Cup of Golf.
PGA Tour senior vice president of championship management Matt Rapp said: “On behalf of the PGA Tour, we are excited to bring the 2028 Presidents’ Cup to Kingston Heath Golf Club as we further cement the history and future of this event in the great city of Melbourne.
“The sandbelt region is home to some of the game’s most iconic venues and Kingston Heath has proven to be a world class host for a number of golf’s biggest tournaments.
“We are looking forward to contesting an incredible Presidents’ Cup that Australians can take tremendous pride in, showcasing Kingston Heath to golf fans around the world.”
Notable champions at Kingston Heath include Gary Player (1970 Australian Open) Adam Scott (2012 Australian Masters), Karrie Webb (2008 Women’s Australian Open) and Tiger Woods (2009 Australian Masters), who won on his sixth continent with the victory in Australia.
Kingston Heath captain Stephen Montfort said: “Kingston Heath has a long and proud history of hosting major events and celebrating the best golfers in the world on our championship course.
“The opportunity to host a world-renowned iconic event celebrating the best players in the game is incredibly exciting.”
Kingston Heath is subtle, but demanding, and the format of the Presidents Cup promises to deliver many memorable moments to celebrate at one of the great golf courses in world golf.
Kingston Heath will represent the fifth international venue to host the Presidents’ Cup, joining The Royal Melbourne Golf Club (1998, 2011, 2019); The Links at Fancourt Hotel and Country Club Estate (2003) in South Africa; The Royal Montreal Golf Club (2007, 2024) in Canada; and Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea (2015) in South Korea.
Melbourne’s fourth hosting of the Presidents’ Cup will also see the Victorian capital equal Gainesville in Virginia, the United States, as the one city to host most cups.
Its most recent trip to Melbourne was in 2019, when World Golf hall of fame captains Ernie Els and Tiger Woods squared off at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club in one of the most dramatic Presidents’ Cups in history, with Woods’ United States team mounting a final-day comeback to win.
Next year’s Presidents’ Cup makes its return to The Royal Montreal Golf Club in Montreal, Quebec, Canada for the first time since 2007.
With last month’s announcement, the Presidents’ Cup has its venues secured through 2030. They are-
2026 Medinah Country Club (Course No 3) Medinah, Illinois, USA.
2028 Kingston Heath Golf Club Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
2030 Bellerive Country Club St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
The inaugural Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) Mid-Amateur Championships have been rescheduled for November.
Originally due to be held last month, organisers decided to postpone the championships in the wake of weather warnings.
A spokesperson for the tournament’s organising committee said: “It’s been extremely hot in Malaysia in recent weeks and the government has issued a warning that if the high temperatures continue then outside activities should be avoided. If this hot spell carries on then the tournament may not be allowed.”
Taimur Hassan Amin, chairman of the APGC, said: “Given the situation we felt it was in the best interests of all those involved to make the call now, rather
than wait until closer to the date.
“We’re excited to be launching the Mid-Amateur Championships this year and look forward to welcoming players from most of our member counties to enjoy the competition, make new friends from within our region and enjoy the championship atmosphere.
“Our thanks go to the Malaysian Golf Association (MGA) for their assistance and support in staging the Mid-Amateur Championships which will be held in the Malaysian capital in November. The final date is being discussed with the host club and the MGA.”
The Mid-Amateur Championships are open to ladies and men who have amateur status in accordance with the current amateur status rules of R&A
The Whangaroa Golf Club in the far north is one of those golf clubs that never sleeps when it comes to giving members much to look forward to.
Along with other clubs in that part of the country there is always an event on the golf calendar.
We will start with the big news for the course. Their new Kubota Baroness fairway mower arrived amidst some fanfare thanks to all the various fundraising, donations and grants.
Colin Smith, the course superintendent, said: “It drives like a Rolls Royce and members will notice the change in fairway condition over the next few years. The old new machine will now mow the tees and the greens surrounds.”
Tournament activity at the club gives members many opportunities to enjoy competition and association. Recent events have included the Vic and Marty Johanson Memorial mixed pairs four ball
best ball with 22 pairs playing.
The Mangonui Hotel teams’ event drew 20 teams of four. The format was novel with the best stableford on the par threes, the two best on par fours and three best on par fives. Then the Top Dog final, a pairs event for the men was decided on the June 18.
Another event played was the Kaitaia Pot Plant Challenge for the ladies on June 14. This is a team event open to all clubs in the region competing for the Pot Plant Trophy.
The Hills/Grace Tournament was held on the June 17 with 40 couples playing 27 holes. Nine holes of ambrose, nine holes of foursomes and nine holes of Canadian foursomes. After over five hours of golf the splendid roast beef dinner was more than welcome.
On a recent Sunday, club members day, the men played off the forward green tees. Bob Shirley on a plus eight handicap shot the lights out with a clubhouse low 62 on the 3394-metre layout.
US WOMEN’S OPEN BRITISH MASTERS
“OUR OPINION DOESN’T COUNT” — PGA TOUR PLAYERS THE MERGER — WHAT’S COOKING?
KAIAPOI GC — HICKORY STICKS AND SANDY LINKS
Rules Limited.
Open to players aged between 35 and 54, the inauguration of the Mid-Amateur Championship means the region will boast a full complement of top level tournaments that cater to all age groups.
In addition to the APGC Junior Championships and APGC Senior Championships, the APGC partners with The R&A and Masters Tournament to stage the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, and with The R&A to stage the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific.
Under the auspices of the APGC there are also Asia-Pacific team events for men (Nomura Cup, biennial) and women (Queen Sirikit Cup, annual).
If you are the sort of golfer who likes to change things in your bag frequently, either because a certain club has ‘gone cold’ or if you just feel re-energised when you have something new in your hands, the game of golf that you love so dearly can be very expensive. The expression ‘a change is as good as a new one’ can be a handy phrase to keep in mind to keep the cost of
this equipment fettish within the bounds of your budget. Changes in technology are becoming more and more slight as each year passes; each manufacturer struggling to keep squeezing out gains with every model, and so the argument is made stronger for the change to your bag to be made without splashing out for the current model.
A lot of kiwis are on board
with this way of thinking and so the question becomes where to shop for this ‘new’ club. Deciding on an item of secondhand gear without actually getting your hands on it, I.e - buying online, can lead to disappointment and a greater chance of ending up with a club that just doesn’t suit your swing speed or handicap, or even worse, something that isn’t genuine. This is where Recreation Station is in a league of their own. With the largest selection of used golf clubs in the country, usually over 3,000 clubs in stock at any one time, they are sure to have what you need at any price point. As Clint, the owner, says “If someone comes in and says ‘I only have a hundred bucks to spend but I just need a driver so I don’t need to borrow anymore’ or someone comes in and says ‘I want something really modern but I don’t want to pay over a thousand just to have this years model’, in both cases we can show you a whole lot of options. It really is a place you can come in and YOU TELL
US what you want to spend! We really want to maximise people’s enjoyment in the game; not necessarily maximise their spending, and we often talk people out of buying something they don’t need and focusing on what are the most important clubs in their bag to replace first”.
The team at Recreation Station have just moved into a huge new store in the heart of Riccarton’s sports and outdoor hub, in Clarence St (right opposite Torpedo 7’s new megastore). New in store is a full golf simulator, where you can try out the new club and get a multitude of data, and a large practice green for putting. Expert advice is available in store from Ashley, the in-store pro, and you can even trade-in the old gear that is no longer hitting the mark for you.
For so long the choice has been that you either go to the stores that sell all new gear (where you can get fitted for the right club on a simulator and get great advice) or you buy used gear and settle for pot-luck. We
combine the two where you get all the benefits of buying from the flash stores but with racks full of clubs from well under a hundred dollars right up to the second newest model on the market. They even have new clubs that may be a few years old but have never been hit before.
The store also sells new and used gear for tennis and other racket sports, surfing, hiking, soccer and snow sports but it was golf that started the business back in 2019. The company is keen to give back to the community and has begun an initiative via their sponsorship of New Zealand Long Drive and Futures Canterbury whereby people can bring in old sports gear of any kind that they no longer use and, if that gear is sellable, they will do all the work to get this gear sold and pass on the majority of the profits to Futures Canterbury to help foster the sport of golf in young people throughout Canterbury (see below).
The sport of Xtreme Drivers is about to go beyond the tee with all business developments and a 3 year growth plan for the sport. The 2023 season was slowed up with the loss of a major sponsor for the NEWLY recognised high-performance sport. XDL Drive Zones are planned to be sold throughout NZ and the pacific. The training facilities will be housed from a modern kitset studio, sized up and already sourced with Outpost Buildings, a local company that have exactly the size and look that is required for the zones to go ahead in speedy time. Local builder and partner to XDL has been appointed to erect the buildings to be transported to their chosen destination. The XDL Drive Zones will provide the training environment needed to grow the sports participation. The software (XDL Grid) is ready to launch worldwide and July 2023 represents the presale of the all XDL business products in New Zealand, August for Australia and Pacific. Special thanks to the Smith Family for seeing our vision!
Outpost Buildings is New Zealand’s leading supplier of tough, portable and easy-to-assemble kitset buildings – for the lifestyle and rural sectors. From
chicken coops and garden sheds to horse stables, livestock shelters, playhouses and cabins - all made from sustainable New Zealand-grown timber. Whether it is for the farm, lifestyle block or business – Outpost Buildings have flexible structures that could suit a variety of uses. The first Outpost building was created in 2005 in a rural woodwork shop by father and son –this was to be a first of thousands of Outpost kitsets delivered across the country. The name Outpost was chosen for the business because of the strong, rustic design of the buildings. They were buildings that would be put in remote locations, farms & lifestyle blocks out in the country. For the past five years, Outpost Buildings has been proudly owned and operated by the Smith family; Alex and Lisa Smith manage the business with the help of Lisa's Stepfather Greg Cox and the rest of the Outpost Buildings team, Corey and Andrea. All of the 60+ designs are made from local materials where available, including sustainable New Zealand grown timber. They have strong clear span framing without any need for support beams that take up space inside. Lisa says one of the key
points of difference with Outpost’s kitsets is that they are super strong and builtto last. “Our slogan is Built Tough because Outpost buildings are designed for the toughest of NZ conditions. Come rain, hail, snow or extreme heat; an Outpost building can handle it all!” Another unique feature of Outpost Buildings is that they have a skid mounted building base design made with H4 ground treated timber, making them relocatable. “Where you want your structure today might not be the case one, five, ten years down the track so being relocatable offers people the flexibility to reposition the building if the need arises or even move it to a completely new property,” says Lisa. The extra heavy duty designs ensure that they maintain integrity of structure when moving from site to site. Because they are relocatable and under 30sqm, they don’t typically require a council consent. Lisa says their team also understand that versatility is key when investing in a new structure, so the buildings have multiple uses.
Firewood sheds have been used as solar energy stations, garden sheds used to house pumps at a council swimming pool, and even a shed has been used as a long drop. “Some of our front opening structures are particularly multi-use and we’ve worked with local organisations including a horse-riding club to provide one of our firewood shelters as a judges’ box. The height allows plenty of room to walk in without bumping their heads and provides shelter from the elements. The fact that it’s also relocatable means they can drag it to where they need it at any given. time,” she says. “Our team work closely with the customers from choosing the best design for their needs through to supporting them with the build so seeing the finished product is always a highlight,” she says. Outpost buildings has two factories; one in Timaru and one in Silverdale and they offer free delivery to Toll transport depots nationwide.
Visit
With stunning vistas and memorable golf and hospitality, it’s a day you won’t forget.
The Links Course is not long, but rarely conquered. It comprises one par 5, eight par 4 and nine par 3 holes, including two double greens and a triple green via major elevation changes, with ocean, ponds, cliffs, penal bunkering or roughs encircling the greens. The Mountain Course is a significantly more difficult challenge and not for the faint hearted.
Visit www.onekakalinks.com for a course guide also incorporating drone
footage of the course and testimonials of visiting players. We also have a Facebook page which is regularly updated. The green fee of $60 per head for 18 holes for a minimum of four players covers:
* Exclusive use – no other players on the course that day
* Golf cart and electric trundlers, laser distance finder
* A course guide – the course designer and club champion
* Hosted free drinks and snacks after the round
Although a private course, it’s open to visitors 364 days a year. However, to enable hosting arrangements bookings must be made at least two weeks in advance to chris@widespread.co.nz
“Golden Bay is full of amazing things to see and I just discovered another. If you play golf, Onekaka Links is a must visit. I have played golf all around the world and Onekaka gave me more fun and challenging shots than most courses that have hosted major championships. Your host Chris Castle with great imagination has created a wonderful course on a spectacular property. Thank you Chris, for a day to remember.”
- Kindest Regards, Bill Mackenzie (PGA Professional, St. Andrews East Golf Club, Canada)
“Onekaka Links is one of the most special New Zealand golf experiences one could have - it really is a must play for anyone who loves dramatic golf and out
of the box thinking. You have three or four green-sites that would rival the very best in New Zealand. I will be sending more people your way for sure.
You really chose all the best green sites to maximize your property. Your green in the far coastal corner of the property does this so well. The triple green with the bunker and lower green level and water hazard. It is the interest you created that is so much fun. Onekaka can’t fit inside a box and it should not be contained by the world’s idea of a routing and par. It is just an awesome place to play golf.
You and Richard Barham have done such an amazing job with your property - really impressive stuff. If you ever end up doing that new green we discussed
drop a me line and I may try to volunteer some shovel time for you if the timing works!
Thank you again and it was so kind of you to host me there. “
- CJ Kreuscher, Director of Agronomy for Te Arai Links and the original Superintendent of Tara iti, who recently played both courses.
“Great day out at the Onekaka Links in Golden Bay. Stunning scenery. Some exciting holes and wonderful hospitality. It’s a very unique offering but lots of fun and risk and reward. Wonderful hospitality from President Chris Castle and Club Captain Linda Sanders. Highly recommended. “
- Barry Johnston, Wanaka
The Cambridge Golf Club has a range of facilities for the use of members and their guests.
GOLF PRACTICE AREAS
Cambridge Golf Club has two dedicated practice areas. We have a driving range with target greens - buckets of balls may be purchased from the Pro Shop. The separate practice fairway includes a green with chipping and bunker practice areas.
BAR AND LOUNGE
The Club has a large lounge, suitable for functions and corporate entertainment and a fully stocked bar. Weather permitting, you can sit out on the balcony overlooking the 18th green. Resident caterers, Paynters Catering, provide a wide range of hot and cold food. The bar and catering facilities are open each day except Monday and Friday.
GOLF CARTS
The Club has seven carts that can be rented through the Pro Shop. Visitors are welcome to bring their own carts onto the course but in wet conditions please check with the office prior to playing.
NORTHLAND GOLF
Hikurangi/Paparoa 36 Hole South Zone Team were the winners of the division recently at Northern Wairoa Golf Club against now; this year’s runner ups Sherwood Park Golf Club.
Bay of Islands Golf Club - Kerikeri #2 were winners of the South Zone 18 Hole Pennants played recently against Sherwood Park Golf Club Multi Sport team. at Waipu Golf Club with fantastic conditions to play a final in.
The sunshine came out and warmed the day up Hamilton Golf Club was our host venue for our 80 participants representing 20 of our Waikato District clubs .The ladies provided plenty of good golf with 30 teams entering scores between 60-69 Nett.
A combination from Tahuna and Morrinsville Golf Club, Anita Wilson & Sheryll Gordon! Their NETT score of 60 was enough to win the Helen Wilson Jug trophy and have first pick of the prize table.
South Head Golf Club were the winners of the 2023 Senior Interclub. Successfully winning the title over Helensville Golf Club which was played recently and hosted with beautiful weather Muriwai Golf Links .- Scores 40.5 vs 31.5
Te Awamutu 1 were the winners of the 2023 Men’s Handicap Matchplay Pennants for the second year in a row.
Te Awamutu 1 started the morning matches strongly and taking a 3-0 lead, Hukanui had it all to play for in the afternoon to make up the deficit.
Hukanui came out in the afternoon singles and threw everything into their matches, but Te Awamutu proved just to strong and held on for a comfortable victory.
2023 Winners (above) - Te Awamutu back row, left to right: John Mortland, Stu Towers, Merv Sands, front row, left to right: Robert Wetere, Allan Duncan & Richard Sieling.
Winter golf for Aucklanders can be pretty hit and miss at times, as their volcanic soil based courses can quickly become very wet and even muddy. But in 2023 the seasonal winter wet has followed on from an unseasonal very wet summer. With the water table already high, this has meant that winter rains have quickly drenched the fairways and a few dry spells of a week here or there, have seen little relief being provided, or in any way lowered the water table. “You have to feel for the Greenskeepers who job it is to keep our golf courses in good playable nick. This year has been tough!”
Other than sand based links courses like Muriwai, Omaha and Waipu Cove, there are few other naturally well drained courses in or near Auckland that still allow carts to be hired. South Head in the north west and Huntly in the south are two of them. Huntly did not loose a cart day in 2022, lost one cart day in early January during a huge cyclone and after a week of on and off rain had made fairways sodden wet, the use put a weekend hold on carts to start July.
With a clay layer base at around six-ten feet, below a pumice and fertile soil mix, fairway gathered water quickly drops and drains into the adjacent Waikato river that runs the length of the course alongside holes 13,14,15 and 16. Huntly Manager Russ Ford, himself an ex Auck-
lander of 35 years, just can’t believe why thousands of city golfers are not heading down State Highway one to play winter golf at huntly, especially when their own courses are closed to carts if not play. Mr Ford recalls that, “Since 1993 when I first teamed up with some mates keen to play in the Waikato, I have regularly played south of the Bombay Hills. Repeatedly we would leave rainy Auckland skies to play under sunny skies, before returning into the rain as we drove home. The bonus of travelling with golf mates is that it gives you extra time to chat and catch up on life issues, before focussing onto playing golf; then relaxing over a post match refreshment before once again sharing the journey home. An hours shared drive to play golf on uncluttered fairways, is far more beneficial than waiting an hour or more, for a tee time to become available so you can have the pleasure of a slow 5 hour round of golf, especially in winter on a wet if not muddy course! Sharing travel costs and incurring cheaper golf and petrol costs in the Waikato, are also a bonus.”
Waipawa Ladies Open Tournament on the 2nd June for both 18 and 9 hole golfers. It was a successful day, the sun came out, we had a wonderful raffle table and the kitchen girls provided us with a great lunch.
Results were L to R
Margaret Stephenson ( Dannevirke )
Silver Nett winner
Wendy Fryer (Waipawa) Bronze Nett
Janice SciaScia (Porangahau) Bronze Gross
Aseri Meikle (Maraenui) Silver Gross
Wendy Fryer won the best Nett for a Waipawa Player
Lyn Horspool (Waipawa) 9 hole Nett winner
MANAWATU-WHANGANUI
MANAWATU WANGANUI MEN’S GRADE PENNANTS PLUS THE WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP AND WEEKEND PENNANTS
The finals for Manawatu Wanganui
Men’s Grade Pennants plus the Women’s Championship and Weekend Pennants
were played were played recently with fine but damp conditions.
Weekend Women played their 7th and final Round Robin round at Palmerston North and although the Feilding team couldn’t be beaten they were out to prove a point and that they did.
The team on the day of Zarah Lynch and Samantha Johnson achieved their win over Rangitikei Gold getting them to 6.5 contest points ahead of the three teams sitting on 4 points.
On the three on 4 points Pahiatua came in 2nd on match points countback followed by Manawatu then Wanganui.
Those that qualified for their pennant final played at Marton with some very tight matches.
The Women’s Championship final was played between Wanganui and Manawatu Red. The Trophy winners for 2023 were Wanganui and the Raj sisters and although Lisa and Leander, Manawatu Red, gave them a good run for
Th e C ou rse for Eve ry one
their money in the afternoon singles Tara and Sera won 3 -0.
Pay $690 to play golf through to 29 February 2024
A very tight final was had in the A Pennant final. After the morning foursomes sitting 1.5 each the afternoon was going to be similarly tight.
Coming in 3 all in the afternoon a playoff was required between the number ones (Ryan Rooney, Feilding and Sam Nicholls, P. Nth) Feilding picked up the
trophy after a win on the 1st play-off hole.
The B Pennant final between Manawatu and Marton had Marton winning 2 –1 in the morning round and picking up the afternoon singles 4.5 – 1.5. Marton therefore have won the B Pennant for 2023.
Another tight final was had and this time between Feilding and Levin in the C Pennant. The morning round had Levin up 3 – 0 but the afternoon was a different story with Feilding coming back with 4.5 –1.5 in the singles.
Again, a Play-off was required between the number ones ( Adrian Burns Levin and Scott Donald Feilding). It wasn’t until the 3rd play-off hole that Feilding prevailed winning the C Pennant for 2023.
Castlecliff and Manawatu were playing off for the D Pennant 18-hole final. In 2022 the D Grade was played as a Round Robin but for 2023 there were two divisions with the winner of each division playing off for the Pennant.
This was won by Manawatu 5-1.
RESULTS FROM RANGITIKEI GOLF CLUB Wednesday 14th June - Comp Stableford: Stella Berendt 37pts, Dan Scotson
36pts, Pat McCarthy 35pts, Neil Atkins & Simon Mitchell 34pts, Bruce Kinloch, Bob Pittaway, Geoff Ingram & Cynthia Luckham 33pts. Lynne McDonald & Pat Pearce 32pts, Garry Edwards 31pts.
Twos: Garry Edwards 3rd, Stella Berendt & Karen Yorke 12th.
Best Stable ford on 17, 18 & 1 = Dan Scotson 7pts.
Saturday 17th June - Comp Medal;
Seniors: Ron Harris net 71, Mike Hill net 74,
Richard Norton & Ken Boyle net 78.
Juniors:
Joe Yorke net 70, Stella Berendt net 73, Joseph Tapper net 75, Simon Mitchell net 76, Varina Mitchell, Liz Kinloch & Stew de Burgh net 77.
Twos: Cynthia Luckham 12th.
Closest to Pin on 12th: Cynthia Luckham
Lucky Draw: Richard Holden.
Saturday 3rd June - Competition Par:
Seniors:
Kelvin Burt - 2, Ron Harris -3, Jason Harris -4
Pete Masters - 5 [by lot]
Juniors: Greg Baker & Varina Mitchell sq, Dan Scotson -1, Cynthia Luckham - 2, Simon Mitchell & Chris Duffy -3, Richard Holden -4.
Twos: Richard Norton & Alan Wix - 3rd.
Ken Bayne 41 pts, Bob Pittaway 40pts, Tim Wales, Kelvin Burt & Cynthia Luckham 37pts, Dan Scotson & Garry Edwards
35pts, Lynne McDonald, Ron Harris, Geoff Ingram & Chris Duffy 34pts, Scott Ewens, Jason Bowles & Simon Mitchell 33pts.
Twos; Kelvin Burt & Garry Edwards16th
Hole in One - 12th: Ken Bayne
Lucky Draw: Edith Leary
Results from Rangitikei Golf Club:
Saturday 10th June - Competition Stableford:
Seniors:
Scott Ewens 40pts, Geoff Ingram 36pts, Sean Khov & Ron Harris 34pts.
Juniors:
Greg Baker 37pts, Bill Ward 35pts, Wendal Masters, Richard Holden, Marcus Anderson & Bronwyn Ewens 32pts, Stew de Burgh & Chris Duffy 30pts. [Both on countback]
Twos: Geoff Ingram - 12th.
Closest to Pin on 5th - Jason Harris
Lucky Draw: Kevin Taylor.
On a superb mid winters day, the course at Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club in wonderful condition, the final event for 2023 midweek Women’s Interclub was played out.
The winning team at the Field Day, PBGC, the winning pair from Miramar Golf Club Margaret Jones and Christeen Mckenzie, and the player of the year from Masterton GC Jill Lockett.
It was the neighbouring Scargill club team of, from left Jo Sampson, Caroline Murray, Jan Moir, Ingrid Cadenhead and Nic Gibb who took out the match 4-1. Cheviot’s first Boyle Cup defence didn’t go to plan on 24 May at their home course with the current holders being defeated by challengers Scargill.
The annual Men’s Champions of Champions event was played recently at Pegasus Golf Club with representatives from
24 different Canterbury Clubs on display. The event offers the opportunity for clubs’ Senior, Intermediate, and Junior champions to match up against the other club’s respective winners as well partake in teams events.
In the Teams Gross Stableford, Waitikiri Golf Club claimed victory with a score of 94 with Templeton coming in second with 85 on countback from Clearwater. The Waitikiri team consisted of Cooper Moore (Senior), Mark Roberts (Intermediate), and Dan McCormick (Junior.)
In the Teams Net Stableford event, Hororata was crowned victors with a score of 99 for the men from Glentunnel overcoming Russley by a single point. The Hororata team consisted of Max Edwards
(Senior), Steve Stewart (Intermediate), and Allan Wall (Junior.)
In the individual competitions, the Senior Gross Stableford competition was claimed by rising star Cooper Moore who shot a 5under 67 to record 41 stablefords and claim victory. This marks Cooper’s last event before he departs for Japan this week to represent New Zealand as part of 4-person U19 Men’s team playing in the Toyota Junior Golf World Cup. In the intermediate grade, Desmond Gong of Templeton claimed the Gross prize with 29 stablefords on countback while Cameron Bartlett of Russley picked up the Junior Gross stabelford award with a score of 25.
Finally, in the individual net stableford categories, the senior prize was claimed by Ashley Watts of Waimairi Beach with a 35, Albert Yee of Coringa won the Intermediate section with a 36 and Bruce
Hutchinson of Rangiora took out the Junior prize with a 34.
The Tai Tapu team of, from left Jeff Cairns, Derek Watson, Patrick Fitzgibbons, Jason Blair, Frank Tabley and Sean Spencer defeated Hororata’s Spencer Deverell, Gavin Thomas, Martin Wills, Andrew Kenworthy, Darryl McCaughan and Tony Edwards 7-2.
Tai Tapu did the three-peat, winning the Canterbury Central Patterson Cup Final at Greendale played recently for the third consecutive year. It was a stunning Autumn Day in the sun and the friendly rivalry between Hororata and Tai Tapu was obvious on the day.
The annual Selwyn vs Peninsular match was on by Selwyn 5.5-2.5.
THE WINTON WOMEN’S TEAM
2023 WOMEN’S MID-WEEK PENNANTS
The Winton women’s team of Nikki Hume, Lindsay Stephenson, Vickie Clark and Kerrie Gow have won the 2023 Women’s Midweek Pennants.
Fourteen clubs across the district came together at Queens Park Golf Club to battle for the Inter-club Challenge Bowl.
Nikki Hume and Vickie Clarke posted the equal-best Stableford scores of the day, finishing with 40 points each to give their team a healthy lead in the best three of four aggregate competition and were duly supported by Lindsay Stephenson (33) and Kerrie Gow (29) producing a total of 113.
Defending champions, Riversdale finished a distant second to Winton on 101 points, Vicki Dillon (35), Pam Snell (34) and Lesley Clarke (32) the counting
scores.
It was a scramble for the final place on the podium between Gore, Invercargill, Riverton and Mataura GC. Margaret Davidson’s (Gore) 38 points helped her team to 98 points, just one ahead of the chasing trio.
The finals of the Aorangi Open and Veterans pennants competitions were played at Timaru on Monday 12 June. After a cold start the sun came out making excellent playing conditions for the teams. Matches were very close with most going to the last couple of holes with three games halved.
Results
Open Pennants:
Open: Fairlie/Maungati (from left)
Glennys Bradley, Marie Anderson, Jo Lane, Averil Keys
Other team players who competed in preliminary rounds:
Georgie Wright and Denise Biggs
Fairlie/Maungati beat Tinwald 2 7-3
Singles: (Maungati/Tinwald names first)
Glennys Bradley halved with Di Lowe
Jo Lane beat Sue Newman 6/5
Marie Anderson halved with Di Bell
Averil Keys halved with Val Prendergast
Fourball:
Bradley and Lane beat Lowe and Newman 6/5
Anderson and Keys beat Bell and Prendergast 3/2
Veteran Pennants
Veterans: Rakaia (from left below)
Bev Sutherland, Wendy Watson, Sally Smith, Val Sisson
Rakaia beat Waimate 6-4
Singles: (Rakaia names first)
Wendy Watson lost to Margie Radburnd 3/2
Sally Smith beat Faye Martin 3/2
Bev Sutherland lost to Carolyn Thomas 2/1
Val Sisson beat Jan Alexander 6/5
Fourball: Watson and Smith beat Radburnd and Martin 1 up
Sutherland and Sisson beat Thomas and Alexander 2/1
After the postponed fifth and final qualifying round was eventually held at Clarks Beach Golf Club, under beautiful clear blue sky and little wind, the finalists were announced for the COVIC SHIELD and Plate events.
Qualifying first equal for the 2024 Shield finals were the Hauraki and Clarks Beach Golf Clubs Teams with Waiuku third and Wattle Downs fourth. Fifth and final team is Onewhero who knocked Awhitu out of
the top five with a very good fourth place in the final qualifier.
The round day was won by home team Clarks Beach with 142 points (best 4 of 6 team player scores) with Hauraki second (129), Wattle Downs third (128), Onewhero fourth (126), Waiuku fifth (125), Huntly/Waiterimu sixth (122), Pukekohe seventh (120), Covic Extras eight (110), Awhjtu ninth (109) and Maramarua tenth.
Teams dropping into the Plate finals are therefore Awhitu, Maramarua, Hunt-
ly/Waiterimu, Covic Extras and Pukekohe. Franklin Golf Shop’s Player of the Day and Claret Jacket winner was Onewhero’s Neville Jamieson who shot a smart 41 points. So too did home club player Eric Bennet while Clarks Beach match player Barry Matthews gained mention for his dominating 11.5 to 6.5 point win over his Wattle Downs opponent.
It was not enough however, as Wattle Downs proved too strong in a close battle, to retain the COVIC CHALLENGE CUP by 36 to 34 aggregated team points.
They will now defend the Cup for a third time on the trot against Maramarua, in the first round of the finals to be played at Maramarua on Thursday 31st August 2023.
If you are over 50 years of age, and a men’s or women’s member of a COVIC golf club in the South Auckland and North Waikato region, search out you Club Convenor and ask to be included.
Alternatively, phone COVIC Golfing Community Convenor Tim Howard 021 155 4119.
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