THOMSON WINS THE OPEN BY A STROKE

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29367, 21 November 1960, Page 3

THOMSON WINS THE OPEN BY A STROKE

Nagle Returns Brilliant 68 In Last Round (From Our Own Reporter) INVERCARGILL, November 20. P. W. Thomson, of Australia, won his sixth New Zealand Open at Otatara on Saturday, but it was his countryman, K. D. G. Nagle, whose refusal to acknowledge defeat gave the championship a quality and savour which will keep for it a prominent place in New Zealand’s golfing story. Eleven holes from the finish, Nagle was seven strokes behind Thomson—an apparently impossible situation—and it seemed the Open would end very tamely. But Nagle then unwound a succession of five birdies in six holes and in the final count he went down by a single stroke. , •

The intensity of a struggle, watched by a gallery of 2000, had its effect on C. W. Caldwell, of Christchurch, who, partnering Nagle, seemed certain to be the top amateur. But Caldwell faltered over the last three holes, and a magnificent round of 68 by S. G. Jones won him first place by two strokes.

It was another day of brilliant sunshine and little wind, but the scoring again reflected the challenge Otatara presents. Nagel and Jones equalled the course record of 68 set on Thursday by Thomson, but the only other player to beat the scratch score during the day was W. W. Smith of Auckland. who had a 70 in the morning When the players set off in the morning, Thomson appeared to have the open firmly in his grasp, for he was then seven strokes clear of Nagel. But throughout the day he was distinctly below his brilliant best. In the morning he played a loose shot or two off the fairways, he occasionaly failed to get his chip up, and, from time to time, putts of very reasonable length were missed.

Thomson did not have a single birdie throughout the round, and his 73, two over scratch, gave Nagel a golden opportunity. But Nagel could do no better than a 71, although he was two under at the turn, and although both he and Thomson had generally scored better going home than going out. Nagel too began to miss a few putts and so. at lunch. Thomson was five ahead. Bad Start

Nagel, playing just ahead of Thomson, started wretchedly in

the afternoon. He hit his second on the head at the first hole, ran through the green, chipped back without his usual accuracy, and missed the putt. A few minutes later Thomson’s magnificent drive, which left him only about 35 yards from the green at this 313yd hole, provided , him with a birdie, and he increased his lead by sinking a 40-ft putt at the second for another birdie. But from that point Thomson’s touch had gone. He three-putted the third, missed a five-footer for a birdie at the fourth, and the only other time at which he looked likely to score really well was at the ninth. As he addressed himself to a 15-ft putt, a vast cheer came from Nagel’s gallery a hole ahead, to proclaim another birdie. Thomson sent an echo back by

holing his putt for a birdie, which made him 34 for the outward half. He slipped three strokes coming home while Nagel was making his superb effort. After his 5 at the first, Nagel was in desperate need of a birdie or two, but he had to wait until the eighth before he had one. Indeed. at the seventh it was only an anxious 8-ft putt which gave him his bogey, and that was no hint of the heights he was to reach. At the eighth his glorious long drive paved the way for a birdie. At the tenth his suberbly accurate iron made a birdie almost easy, and then at the short twelfth he put his tee shot 4ft from the hole. It was a putt of 10 feet at the thirteenth which gave Nagel his fifth birdie in six holes and when Thomson, at the same hole, smothered his drive badly and had a desperate struggle to get bis

' bogey 5, the difference between them had been whittled down to s two. Difficult Hole It was the fourteenth, a 444-yd bogey 4 hole which has wrecked f the prospects of R. J. Charles and 1 many others during this tournament, and it virtually cost Nagel his chance. He hit a good drive to the comer of the dog-leg, but he pushed his iron wide of the bunkers and he failed to hole a putt of about Bft. At the short fifteenth, a putt from the edge of the green barely missed, and he had another chance of a birdie at the last hole, where he was pin-high and lift from the pin. The putt was only three or four inches short, but it looked so unlikely to go in that Nagel was very soon urging it on by waving his foot at it. Meanwhile Thomson almost let the title slip from his hands. He three-putted the fifteenth, chipped and two-putted the next, thus requiring two bogeys to win. He I had them both quite comfortably. At the last hole his iron put him 20ft from the hole and he concentrated closely on the approach outt. It was eminently safe. He I had to hole out from only 18 inches before walking smiling from the green. I Caldwell Superb ! Caldwell, who has been able : to play in open championships I all too rarely, was fourth ama--5 teur in his last appearance, at the 1956 open at Shirley. He was desperately unlucky not to do even better than second this time, ' for he played beautiful golf. A superbly relaxed and stylish ' swinger, Caldwell startled spec- : tators and opponents with the length of his driving. He seems ’ to do no more than wave the club l with gentle grace, but he hits late, and the power he gets into ’ his shots was easily measured by I the times he outdrove Nagle by 20 t or 30 yards. His putting throughout the • tournament has been wonderfully j good, but in the afternoon he had . a frustrating succession of putts r which failed to drop by the barest margins. In the morning, too, he was rather unfortunate with his tee shot at the fourteenth, which was close to the fence, and required him to play backward to get clear again. The hole cost him a six, two over scratch, but he finished the round with two finely-judged 15-foot putts for birdies. In the afternoon Caldwell’s grace and skill enchanted the large gallery. He began the final round leading in the amateurs by a stroke from Smith and with the others quite well back. And at the first hole a magnificent drive, perfectly paced, and a little pitch which bit and stopped by the pin gave him a wonderful start. After that, things did not go so well. He dropped a stroke at the second and another at the seventh. The rhythm of his game was undisturbed. but the putts just would not drop. When he did play a bad shot, from the twelfth tee, his pitch from thick rough 30 or 40 yards was a beauty. Coming home, a succession of easy bogeys seemed ( to assure him of success, and even when he had a 5 at the long bogey j 4 fourteenth, he was still on top. ; Disastrous Hole It was at the sixteenth that I disaster overtook Caldwell. Yet . it seemed at first that luck was i with him. It was here that the stresses and strains of playing . before a vast gallery caught up , on him. He pulled his drive into i trees on the left and was lucky the ball fell out clear. His second was cut and looked likely to reach r a drain, but the ball hit a spec- • tator and fell into a bunker. From ■ there he went just through the ’ green, chipped up a little short, ■ and his putt ran round the hole 1 and stayed out. t By this time word of Jones’s 68 had spread swiftly through : the crowd. But Caldwell still > needed only two bogeys to tie i with Jones. At the seventeenth . he was just through the back of 1 the green, putted down four feet ; past the hole, and his return putt

sat on the edge. It was a tiredlooking second shot at last which put him in the rough, and the chip he had to hole was several feet short. For a player who has had so few opens, however, Caldwell’s was a grand effort. Jones, rather erratic in the earlier rounds, played magnificently for his 68. He had everything in his favour—no crowds, no delays, no partner of Nagle’s demolishing brilliance. But it was a first-class performance.

Jones became the first amateur to break 70 on the course. It was flawless par golf for seven holes, then his chipping and putting reached a peak of perfection. He had two birdies before the turn, another at the tenth with a 10ft putt, and he went to four under at the long thirteenth with two fine woods, a very acurate chip and a putt. His only loose shot, which caught a bunker at the fifteenth, cost him a stroke. Jones sensed victory a long way from home, for he was more aware than anyone of the strain of playing to a large gallery. His chipping and putting were so good that he had only 26 putts on the round.

Flawless Putting M. J. Busk, one of the most consistent players in the field, finished third, but he was nine strokes behind Nagle. Yesterday his irons were not as meticulously accurate as they had been earlier, but his putting was almost flawless.

I. D. Woodbury, a young Wellington player who was ninth amateur last year, was only a stroke behind Caldwell and he too showed remarkable consistency.

After his mediocre first round —the first 18 holes of an open is a hazard he has yet to overcome—l. S. Harvey was one of the most impressive players in the field. Smith’s 70 shot him high in the last in the morning. He dropped a stroke at the second, had a birdie at the third, and at the fourth he holed a full eight-iron from 140 yards out for the only eagle of the tournament. Two holes later his tee shot at a short hole finished no more than six inches from the pin. Charles had all his troubles in the same places throughout the tournament. The fourteenth caught him again—out of bounds off the tee. and out of bounds again off the fairway. An eight for the hole ruined the round, but he was in command again in the afternoon.

R. C. Murray was not as sound as he had been earlier, nor did he putt with his full efficiency. A. R. Timms, with 72 in the afternoon, had one of the day’s best rounds, and G. P. Vesty finished well up. J. R. Broadhurst needed three bogeys for a 75 in the afternoon, but dropped strokes at each of these holes. His performance, however, was highly creditable for a youngster in his first open. By and large, it could be said that, notwithstanding the brilliance of Thomson and Nagle and the good efforts of others, the Otatara course was the winner. Scores:— 281— P. W. Thomson (Victoria). 63. 63. 73. 72. 282 K. D. G. Nagle (New South Wales), 71, 72. 71, 68. 291 M. J. Busk (Manawatu), 71. 74. 72, 74. 292 — S. G. Jones (Hastings), 74, 77, 73, 68. 294 C. W. Caldwell (Christchurch). 72. 73. 72. 77. 295 D. Woodbury (Hutt). 74, 76. 73. 72. 296 S. Harvey (Timaru), 77, 73. 73. 73. 298—F. X. Buckler (Lochlel), 78. 73. 72. 75; P. K. Creighton (Paraparaumu Beach), 73. 76. 73, 76; E. A. Southerden (Napier), 72, 74, 74, 78; W. W. Smith (Titirangi), 74, 74, 70. 80. 300 — R. J. Charles (Christchurch), 72, 78. 78. 72; J. D. Durry (Shandon). 75. 71, 77, 77. 301— R. R. Newdick (North Shore), 70, 73, 77. 81: R. C. Murray (Russley), 76, 71. 79, 75. 303 T. J. Jeffrey (New Plymouth). 75. 75, 77, 76. 304 — H. R. Carver (Wanganui), 74, 77, 75, 78; G. P. Vesty (Timaru), 77. 74. 74 79. 305 J. Stem (Manawatu), 76, 73, 79, 77; W. J. Godfrey (Titirangi). 79. 71, 77, 78. 306 — A. R. Timms (St. Clair), 78, 74 72 82. 307 J. P. Means (Hawera), 78, 80, 73, 76. 308— B. M. Silk (Wanganui), 77, 77, 76, 78; A. T. Skelt (Invercargill), 80, 76, 73, 79; J. Kelly (Remuera), 79. 73, 76, 80.

309 W. Maley (Queen’s Park), 79, 77, 77, 76. 310 — R. D. Kearns (Otago), 74, 78, 82, 76; D. L. Woon (Hamilton), 78, 78, 77, 77; J. R. Broadhurst (Russley). 79, 78, 75, 78; H. W. Hattersley (New South Wales), 80, 73, 79, 78. 311— J. Watt (Wellington). 75, 76. 81, 79.

313 W. McWilliam (New South Wales). 80, 78, 80, 75. 314 — W. Cochrane (Ohai), 79, 77, 79, 79. 316 K. D. Foxton (Russley), 77, 76, 80, 83; G. J. Williamson (Queen’s Park), 77, 78, 84, 77; D. Scaife (Paraparaumu Beach), 80, 77, 79, 80. 317 A. T. Maley (Queen’s Park), 83, 75, 83, 76; T. M. Stout (Miramar), 79, 79, 75, 84; B. T. Boys (Hamilton), 75, 80, 76, 86. •

319- ’K. Heginbotham (Paraparaumu Beach), 79, 75, 82. 83; O. Ford (St. Clair), 84, 74, 77, 84; L. J. Stephens (Invercargill), 79, 76, 80. 84; I. Arundel (Masterton), 79, 74, 82, 84; G. C. Halligan (Invercargill), 77. 78, 77, 87. 320 — J. E. Nicolaus (Paraparumu Beach). 83. 74, 78, 85.

322 H. A. Walker (Gore), 78, 80, 80. 84. 323 — E. H. Richards (Russley), 81, 76. 80, 86327—J. R. Howorth (Otago), 79, 79, 83, 86.