WILLS TOURNAMENT AT RUSSLEY Recovery Gives Charles Lead By One Stroke

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31542, 2 December 1967, Page 15

WILLS TOURNAMENT AT RUSSLEY Recovery Gives Charles Lead By One Stroke

(By

R. T. BRITTENDEN)

After staging a wonderful recovery over the last nine holes, R. J. Charles stands at the head of the field, but only by one stroke from the smiling Samoan, F. Malloy; Charles is nine under for the 36 holes, on 137.

A further stroke back is the ebullient Australian, E. A.. Ball, who .is capable of almost anything, and with him is another Australian, S. Peach, who was the first-day leader.

On 140, three shots only behind Charles, is the long-hitting R. J. Shaw, of Australia, and he has an advantage of two over a talented group—K. D. G. Nagle, G. Wolstenholme, B. J. Coxon, and the young Timaru professional, J. M. Lister.

It was glorious golfing weather yesterday, the course again played particularly well, with the pins, as a tribute to Charles’s influence, rather more cunningly hidden than on the first day. The response to the magic in the air was spectacular. There were 27 rounds of par or better, compared with 19 on the first day. The day’s best rounds were three 68’s—by the Dutchman, M. Roesink, of the vast woods and irons, by Ball, and by a 19-year-old New Zealander, D. Clark, of Rotorua. Charles, overcoming an indifferent start with typical resolution, had a 69, and so did Lister, whose performances in the New Zealand circuit have excited much admiration. Peach, well placed a few holes from home, finished poorly for a 72, and Nagle, whose game appeared to lack much punch, coasted round in 72. One of the top players on the first day, T. J. Woolbank, again had a great chance, but wayward tee shots after the first few holes led to a disappointing collapse at the sixteenth, and with his 75, Woolbank is now six shots behind.

The Avondale player, R. B. Townsend, shares with J. M. Lacy the distinction of leading the amateurs, with 147, and yesterday E. H. M. Richards had the best amateur round, a 71, which included an out-of-bounds at the long sixteenth.

11 Amateurs Of the 40 players for today’s two rounds, 11 are amateurs. There was a six-way tie at 152 for the fortieth place, and in a ballot J. P. Devine won a place. Among the six in the ballot there was a professional, and it seemed rather a pity that the rules governing the tournment —which certainly had to be observed—did not permit a player whose livelihood depends on golf to be included automatically in such a situation. Charles—in the context of New Zealand golf, King Charles—had by far the largest gallery to pay tribute to his sovereignty. He did not let his loyal subjects down. To be sure, there were

signs of frailty on the way out. An early birdie was followed by a succession of par holes, not all achieved with the dignity he had shown in his first round. And at the eighth there was a loose iron which missed the green, a weak chip, and he dropped a stroke. Still level with the card after 10 holes, Charles started a fine run with a birdie at the rather difficult eleventh, had another as of right at the thirteenth, bowled in another birdie putt at the course’s hardest four, the fourteenth, and at the sixteenth played a truly memorable shot. His drive caught trees guarding the entrance to the fairway, he had to play a 4iron out for position, and then, after much deliberation, he sent a truly magnificent 4-iron straight to the pin and sank a putt of three feet for the birdie.

At the last hole, his 20footer went in, and out.

Exciting Golfer

There are few more exciting golfers than Malloy, whose prodigious hitting made mockery of carded distances and thoughts about the placement of drives. When he had his 68 in the first round, he had five birdies, and inexplicably none were at the long holes. Yesterday he was six under par for the five long holes and his eagle at the thirteenth (466 yards) was an outstanding effort. He nominated a straight line across the dog-leg, over tall and distant trees, played the shot magnificently and chipped up with a half-8 iron. But he three-putted the tenth—a green which deceived and worried many of the players —and his chance of sharing the lead with Charles went with another three-putt at the last hole.

Ball, hitting the ball particularly well, could not get a putt in for some time, but he still managed three birdies in his 35 out, and three more coming back. He is a cheerful, aggressive, fastmoving golfer whose chances today must be highly regarded. Peach started quietly, but picked up birdies late in the round and was three under with two to play. Pars at the last two holes would have kept him level with Charles. But he three-putted the seventeenth, and dropped another after being bunkered at the last hole. Shaw, a model of consistency, and a player with extraordinary length from the tees, played another fine round, and so did Lister, who had six birdies. He finished

his excellent round in the grand manner—a lovely drive, an 8-iron a foot from the pin, a birdie. Wolstenholme, as accurate as any player in the field, again suffered from putting of moderate quality, having three on at least three greens. But he had the satisfaction of holing one at the fifth which was very nearly 90 feet. Clark, who spent two months before the circuit began in very solid practice, was a prize-winner at three of the first four tournaments, and he seems certain to pick up another eheque today. He had four birdies, the longest putt for them being five feet, a testimony to the accuracy of his shots to the green. He dropped only one shot, at the sixteenth, and had an eagle at the thirteenth after a fine 5-wood to the green. The good-natured, smiling Roesink was one of the few who appreciated the shift of pin position at the first hole. The flag was on the slim, top terrace and he played a fine pitch and run shot to win a birdie from a foot. Most of the other top players pitched in high and stopped below the slope on the green. Thereafter, however, his spectacular tee shots demanded equally spectacular recoveries, most of which he achieved and he was out in 33, four under. He too, threejutted the tenth but recovered immediately with a tremendous drive and a good putt at the 344-yard eleventh.

At the sixteenth he played an astonishing shot He took a 3-wood from the tee, elected to use the seventeenth fairway, and from little more than 50 yards off the seventeenth green, hit an immense 3-wood dewn the seventeenth, over the tall pines, and finished pin high on the green —five under.

Brilliant Start Woolbank started brilliantly, and was two under after three. A long drive and a 6-iron yielded another birdie at the 502-yard sixth. But from that point, he began to cut his tee shots. A remarkable recovery saved the eighth for him, but it took him five to reach the ninth green, where he dropped a shot, and he became another to three-putt the tenth. He struggled on determinedly, although often in trouble, and was still three under three holes from home. At the sixteenth, he was four before he emerged from the trees his drive found, and he was down in a tragic eight. A former national boys’ champion, T. Kendall, now a professional, had an excellent round of 70 and so did A J. Kidd, of Otago. The brilliant Englishman, P. Townsend, can hardly win now, but he looks likely to gain some places, if his putter starts to work. He hit some wonderful shots, and had a 71—with 34 putts. Another whose skill has not yet been fully reflected in his scoring is R. J. Stanton, of Australia.

In his 74 yesterday he had a four-putt at the second hole. His second putt was an inch from the hole but an attempt to back-hand it into the hole resulted in an air shot. He started the homeward half with three threes, he looked a magnificent golfer, and there was never a hint of concern when he was in trouble.