Shirley Has Long Association With N.Z. Open

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30586, 31 October 1964, Page 11

Shirley Has Long Association With N.Z. Open

GOLF began in Christchurch in April, 1873 at Hagley Park, in the modest circumstances which might have been expected: a Mr A. Jameson received in the English mail “a complete set of materials” and a meeting formed the Christchurch Golf Club on April 19, 1873.

Next month, the New Zealand open championship will be held at Shirley, the home of the Christchurch Club There will be a beautifullygroomed course, instead of rough fields and greens which, when the military paraded (and it seemed to be the regular thing in the early days) were cut about by horses’ hooves and gun carriage wheels. There will be a fine, extensive club-

house, Instead of the hut on wheels, a gift of Mr H. J. Hall of Motunau, which was the club’s first home. And the golfers will be a knowledgeable and sophisticated lot, whereas in the early days they were certainly not But the modern breed will be no more colourful than Mr E. Wilder, a Christchurch club representative at the first New Zealand championship ever held—at Dunedin—who used to play wearing an M.C.C. blazer, riding breeches and puttees. And the present day golfers would be no more enthusiastic than their forebears. Mr Wilder had his own course at Fernside, and to it people would ride on

t their bicycles from Christ- . church—a full day of golf, i and 60 miles on rough roads . for the privilege. * Christchurch golf began > at Hagley, but the game > languished after a promising » start. The club was revived ' at a meeting in the Canterbury Club in 1891 and this j move was followed imt mediately by the formation , of a woman’s club as one historian suggested, a hint , that they anticipated the J threat of golf widowhood. | Mr G. Lambie was the first 5 man to hole in one at a short hole, near the Armagh ‘ street gates. The first club house was * built at a cost of £27 10s 1 and in 1893 three of the i club’s players took part in

the first national championship at Dunedin. The second championship was held at Hagley in 1894, but within four years it was decided to open a new course at Russley. This course proved and so a committee was formed to inspect a site in Shirley. By 1900 the course had been laid out and it was reported that nine greens had been prepared for a cost of £6.

The first national championship on the new course, in 1910, saw J. A. Clements (now the Avondale professional) a firm favourite, on the strength of his wins in the previous two years. The scratch score then was 77, and on the first day Clements was one of two players to beat the course record of 74. But one of New Zealand’s most famous amateurs, A. D. S. Duncan, had a 73 on the last day and his total of 295 was not beaten until 1930.

A new lay-out for Shirley had been completed by the time the next Open was held there in 1921. The championship was easily won by E. S. Douglas, the Miramar professional. He started with a round of 70 which included 10 birdies. The scratch score then was 78. It was still 78 in 1925, when the championship was won by a Christchurch club amateur, E. M. Macfarlane. At that time he held the Shirley amateur record of 68. His third round of 73 was the best of the tournament, and put him in front of A. J. Shaw and J. D. Mclntosh, two noted pro-

fessionals. Although he had a 7 at the last hole, Macfarlane won by two strokes. Winner of the Open in 1929 and 1930, Shaw came to Shirley in 1931 to defend his title and defend it he did—a course record of 67, seven under scratch, in the first round. But Shaw slumped in the third round with a 76 and Macfarlane scored a brilliant 71, this putting him two strokes in front. And he finished with a 73 and at one stage of the final round Shaw was four strokes in arrears. But he played magnificent golf—birdies at the seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, fourteenth, and he

safely played the last three holes in the 4’s he needed. Shaw led again after the first round of the 1935 Open at Shirley with an almost faultless 68. But on the last day a young Auckland professional, A. J. Murray, played superbly in the morning rain squalls and the afternoon southerly for rounds of 72 and 71 and a total of 286. Shaw needed a homeward half of 36 for the title, but he could not meet the demands of the situation this time. It was not until 1950 that Shirley was again host to an Open championship and this tournament served to introduce to New Zealand the brilliant young Victorian, P. W. Thomson. He never looked like being beaten. His brilliant golf put him on 139, seven under scratch, at the half-way mark. With rounds of 71 and 70 on the last day, he had a record total of 280. And Shirley’s most recent Open, in 1956, was also won by an Australian, H. W. Berwick, an amateur who showed particularly fine control in the high wind. Shirley is ready now, a superb setting for what promises, with the strong overseas entry and the advance of New Zealand’s own golf, to be one of the most interesting of all national championships. It has a tradition to uphold.