Clements And Murray In Form At Kaiapoi

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29324, 1 October 1960, Page 5

Clements And Murray In Form At Kaiapoi

y~)URING the winter golfing season most of the Christchurch clubs hold open. tournaments. Among the most popular is the Kaiapoi Club’s two-day event, always held towards the end of September. The pleasant Kaiapoi links—far enough from the city for players to be able to enjoy a day in country air and atmosphere —is among the best nine-hole courses in New Zealand and it is at its best in the early spring.

Last week-end the club enjoyed the usual perfect weather for its opening and leading players made many complimentary remarks about the course with the greens

being compared more than favourably with many of the leading courses in the city. Perhaps Kaiapoi cannot be regarded as very long and testing but power players such as E. H. Richards soon find they have to keep toe ball straight if they are to score well for most of the fairways are quite narrow and numerous trees are well positioned to catch the slice or hook. On the Sunday, when the senior day was held, the leading players produced some of the best golf at the Canterbury season. R. C. Murray won toe championship by a stroke from R. E. Clements, who for some years has been one of the leading and most spectacular golfers in Canterbury, with the wonderfully consistent K. D. Foxton in third place. It was an absorbing contest almost from first tee shot, and although Murray and Clements achieve considerable length from the tees, neither was ever in serious trouble, as their totals of 139 and 140 show. Unlucky Murray continued his splendid form of recent months and it emphasised how unlucky he is not to be with toe New Zealand team at present in America. Once or twice he pulled his woods a little, but he hit the ball firmly and decisively, in the manner of a top golfer. Murray is now playing his iron shots beautifully. He gave a lovely exhibition of shots to the greens, being consistently close to the flag and his four under par 68 in the afternoon included several very reasonable birdie putts massed. When he can maintain the consistency and touch on and around the greens of a Charles at his beet, there will be few in tins

country to match him. Certainly New Zealand teams of the near future will be strong 11 indeed if they can afford to exclude a player of Murray’s ability, One of the most pleasing features of the tournament was the return to form of Clements, who has had his least successful. season for some time. He won only twice in six Woodward Cup matches, had comparatively little success in the tournaments he played in, and was dropped from the Canterbury Freyberg Rosebowl team. But last Sunday Clements was striking the ball better than he has done since he won at Kaiapoi last year, and it was •particularly noticeable that while he maintained much of his length from the tees, he was seldom called upon to display his remarkable ability at recovery.

In the morning round Clements failed to find the green five or six times, but his chipping and putting ability saved him. In the afternoon his iron play improved steadily and although not often as close to the flag as Murray, he putted for birdies on all but two holes. Clements will have regained much confidence from his play at Kaiapoi and in the North Canterbury Championships at Waitikiri this week-end both he and Murray ,in their present form, should provide spectators with golf of a high quality.