Russley Groomed To Give Golfers Ideal Conditions

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31539, 29 November 1967, Page 19

Russley Groomed To Give Golfers Ideal Conditions

(By

R. T. BRITTENDEN)

The stage is set, superbly; the actors are in the wings; and everything points to the Wills Masters at Russley being one of the great New Zealand golfing occasions.

Only a handful of the competitors were on the course yesterday, but there will be a full rehearsal this morning. It should be a good one, for Russley, in all its long history, has never looked in better order. Anything on the fairway sits prettily; the greens hold the ball safely, and the putting surfaces are fast and true. The condition of the course is a tribute to the Russley committee, and in particular to the greenkeeping staff. BEST TEST OF GOLF During the year, all the greens have been cored and sanded at least twice. With the rain yesterday—and providing the weather on Thursday, when the tournament begins, is favourable*—Russley should be the setting of a memorable display. The scoring should be good, although Russley, in the opinion of one of the competing professionals, offers the best test of golf to be found on the entire New Zealand circuit.

Paraparaumu Beach is generally regarded as the tightest of New Zealand’s major courses, but there are many who hold the view that, there, the well-struck drive can offer a downhill or an uphill lie, quite unfairly. At Russley, there are some very difficult holes, and only the par-5 second, the long ninth, and perhaps the 322yard par-4 eleventh can really be regarded as birdie holes. The rough at Russley, however, is mild, and there is every reason to believe that the 276 of G. F. Donald in 1965, and the 275 of T. J. Woolbank and P. W. Thomson, who tied last year, will be challenged. VITAL ENGAGEMENT The field has been depleted by the withdrawal yesterday of R. C. Vines—who has returned to Australia, very reasonably, for his wedding—T. Linskey, R. Mesnil and P. J. Connell; but there was more than ample compensation in the news that R. Stanton, whose entry had been in doubt, was at the course yesterday and practising. Stanton, this year’s winner of the Dunlop tournament at Canberra, made a memorable start to the 1965 Wills. He had not been on the course to practise, preferring the allure of Canterbury’s fishing rivers. When he was called to the first tee, he was a vast distance off, but galloped across the practice area. His hands were raw and sore from fishing; but he started the tournament with a par 4, a birdie 4—and then a hole in one at the short third. Stanton has not played in any of the earlier New Zealand tournaments this year. IHe has had a rest after suf-

fering from exhaustion during the Australian circuit. The withdrawal of the four professionals yesterday will do little to diminish the standard of the field—Stantop has seen to that—and the Russley committee, wisely, has not sought to replenish the entry by including amateurs of somewhat doubtful quality. It has adopted a policy of reducing the field rather than including longer handicap players. RUSH OF BIRDIES Of the many players practising yesterday, the most spectacular performer was the Invercargill amateur, P. R. Adams. When the amateur cham-

pionship was played at Russley last year, Adams, a lefthander, was beaten at the twentieth in the quarterfinals. Yesterday, he seemed to have a charmed control of the ball. He had seven birdies in his morning round, and in the afternoon, there were seven more birdies. The winner of the Landrover tournament at Wanganui on Monday, B. J. Coxon, was on the course, and so was the Australian, S. Peach, one of the most popular professionals on the circuit. The long-hitting Australian, F. Phillips, was also practising and there was particular interest in C. Nagle, a son of the K. D. G. Nagle.

Withdrawals from the field will not mean much alteration to the playing order. The draw, published yesterday, will show little variation from 10 a.m., the time at which R. J. Charles and the national amateur representative, G. E. Clarke, begin. This may be the time for Charles, the outstanding performer on the circuit so far, to allay fears that he is not as happy at Russley as at most New Zealand courses. He has certainly not been among the top players in the last two Wills Classic tournaments, but on each occasion his score was 288, four under the card —not exactly failure.