Wolstenholme Sets Course Record

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31843, 22 November 1968, Page 13

Wolstenholme Sets Course Record

(New Zealand Press Association) HAMILTON. The Englishman, G. B. Wolstenholme, left no doubt about who would be overnight leader when he stormed round the Lochiel course in a five-under-par 67 yesterday to lead the Sax Altman $5OOO golf tournament by three strokes.

Wolstenholme s round was a record for the championship course and followed his record 10-under-par 64 in Brisbane last Sunday.

Second equal on 70 are E. A, Ball and T. Mangan, both New South Wales professionals, the Lochiel professional, F. X. B u c k 1 er, and T. Kendall (Palmerston North). On 71 are J. R. Stolhand (Hawaii), B. G. Bent and P. Canham (Australia), and the young Te Awamutu professional J. Valois. P. W. Thomson and R. Flood (Australia), D. Clark (Springfield) and R Dams are the oro-

fessionals on 72, with the top amateur, K. B. Haggle (Te Aroha) and they are followed by K. D G. Nagle (Australia), and the New Zealand professionals W. J. Godfrey, B. T. Boys and F. A. Malloy. Wolstenholme was quickly into his stride with birdies at the second and third, and on the other seven holes of the first nine he kept with the card, to turn in a twounder 34. Further birdies at the twelfth, thirteenth and fifteenth put him five under. Such was the excellence of his game that he was going for birdies at nearly every hole. Close Many Times Several times putts just finished inches away and had his luck been better than average he would have been further under the card. Ball, who was runner-up to Nagle in last year’s New Zealand Open at Hamilton, was two under at the turn. He failed to get another birdie, but the quick-swinging Australian gave warning he may be a real danger to Wolstenholme in the later rounds Mangan was not happy with his outward 38. but he went “hot" on the way home with five birdies, and came back in 32. Thomson’s round was a real mixture. At times he looked like the champion he is, but some blemishes crept into his game at Several holes and the precious strokes were frittered away. Dropped Two He had a birdie at the third but then took a twoover six at the seventh. He gained some compensation with a birdie at the 500 yard eighth, but went one over when he missed the ninth green. A birdie two at the twelfth’ brought him back even and, he stayed that way through | the solid rain to the finish. Nagle looked set to tear; the course apart when he was out in 34 after birdies at the> seventh and eighth. However, as the rain fell more heavily

much of the gloss went from his game. He dropped shots at the eleventh, twelfth, and seventeenth to finish with a 1 disappointing homeward 39. Faded At Finish Godfrey was going along very sweetly until the seventeenth. Here he was nearly out of bounds, but his off-line shot still cost him two shots. Otherwise his 73 was very sound. Stolhand made up for a one-over five at the second when he birdied the third. He had another birdie at the eighth to turn in 35. Further birdies at the tenth and thirteenth saw him three under and challenging Wolstenholme. However, the chase was short-lived as the colourful Stolhand lost shots at both the fifteenth and sixteenth. Bent played steadily except for the two par-three holes on the homeward nine; he had fours at both. Buckler was particularly consistent. notching two halves of 35. He birdied the fifth and fourteenth and went close on several other occasions.