CONLON HAS ONLY SUB-PAR ROUND 20-Year-Old Pace Setter In Amateur Golf Title

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32119, 15 October 1969, Page 17

CONLON HAS ONLY SUB-PAR ROUND 20-Year-Old Pace Setter In Amateur Golf Title

(New Zealand Press Association?

NELSON.

A 20-year-old Dunedin player won the honours from seven New Zealand representatives in the first qualifying round of the national amateur golf championship yesterday. P. Conlon (St Clair), who failed to qualify in his two previous attempts in the event, was the only player in a field of 77 to better par.

A reserve for Otago in the Freyberg Rose Bowl competition for the last three years and the South Island under 21 champion in 1967, Conlon shot a one-under 70 on the tough Tahunanui links.

Two of the New Zealand players, E. J. McDougall (Tokoroa) and the title-holder, B. A. Stevens (Titirangi), and a former Southland representative, L. J. Stephens, now living in Nelson, shared second place on 71. McDougall and Stevens were runners-up in the foursomes championship on Monday. The experienced S. G. Jones (Hastings) had an immaculate round until he dropped a stroke on the final green to finish with 72. Durry Recovers Two other New Zealand! players, J. D. Durry (Para-! naraumu Beach) and B. C. Rafferty (Hutt), who made! a poor showing when teamed I in the foursomes, each had to fight back after a weak start; to return 73.

The big disappointment of the day was the North Island champion, R. C. Murray (Timaru), the highly experienced international and runnerup for the Australian amateur title last month. Murray carded a 78. He lacked his usual tight control off the tee and his putting consistently let him down. It was a rare round for Murray without a single birdie.

Another player so unhappy with his putter that he has decided to change it for the second qualifying round today is A. P. Snape (New South Wales). He stroked the ball better than he had on Monday when winning the foursomes in combination with his fellow Australian, R. A. White (Remuera), but he was out of touch on the greens and scored a 77. Practising Hard Long after most of the other players had left the course, Snape and Murray were still working hard on the practice green. Snape with his new putter. White also lacked the sharpness of his play in the fourisomes but finished on a handy 74, the same mark as the 11961 New Zealand representative, F. T. Gordon (Napier). 1 The South Island champ-i .ion, the 18-year-old G. L. Tit-! irnus (Templeton), was an-' i other who lacked command ion the testing course. Like Murray, he will need to im- : prove on his 78 in the seclond round to be among the 32 qualifiers to begin the match play on Thursday. 17 Par Holes Conlon, who attended the national junior coaching school played in company with Jones and found the internationars precision play an inspiration. Conlon was out

in 35, one under the card, and altogether collected three birdies. Several times he strayed with his woods or irons but invariably he extricated himself from trouble on the greens. Five times he one-putted. Jones had par figures for each of the first 17 holes, but dropped his only stroke when short of the eighteenth green and in a position where several spectators thought he would have been justified in dropping out On this form he will be a strong contender for his seventh amateur title. Sharing 72 with Jones were 1. D. Dobson (Christchurch), S J. Wilson (Waipukurau), B. E. NewaU (Otago) and W. L. Poka (Burnham). Dobson, who finished third in the foursomes, was the only player to have four birdies in his round. Newail, an | Otago representative, and I Wilson each covered the second nine holes in a par 35. Awaiting Transfer Poka, an Army staff sergeant instructor in unarmed combat, who is to transfer to Singapore soon, reached the final day of the New Zealand Open last year. He went out yesterday in a regulation 36 and included three birdies in ins round.

McDougall played very powerfully but always with fine control in chasing his first title since he won it in 1957. He looked like producing a par round until he booked his drive and was bunkered on the last hole. The 30-year-old Stevens, who won the title on his home course last year, returned a typically steady round of 71, with two birdies.

Durry began poorly with a two-over-par 7 at the long first hole. He lost another two strokes at the ninth to turn with a far from impressive 41. Testing Course However, he looked a different player on tbe homeward run, with no more strokes conceded and with birdies at the eleventh, fourteenth and sixteenth for a 32 that no-one else matched for the final nine holes. • Rafferty also played indif-

ferently over the first nine but came home in a par 35, with birdies at the eleventh and eighteenth, to finish with 73, on the same mark as Durry. Murray dropped two strokes at the second hole and continued to waste putting opportunities in returning a 78. The course, playing very long at 6841 yards, is clearly proving more testing than many of the players expected. The greens, although well groomed, have a coarse grass that does not allow the ball to run as freely as most, of the visiting players have judged. There has not been an eagle scored on the first two days of play. The disputes committee met briefly to consider an incident in which the ball being played by B. T. Gough (Christchurch) lodged in a tree but dropped to the ground as all three players in the group disturbed the branches searching for it The committee ruled that no penalty should be incurred.