Professional’s Daughter Wins Title

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32303, 22 May 1970, Page 15

Professional’s Daughter Wins Title

(By

R. T. BRITTENDEN)

Assisted by the first hole-in-one of her career, Miss M. Smith won a thrilling semi-final against the 15-year-old Miss F. Pere, and then went on to take her second national junior girls’ golf title at Russley yesterday.

She beat the inexperienced Mrs J. Knight in a rather one-sided final.

Mis Smith, who is 18 and the daughter of a golf professional, was fully stretched by the long-hitting, little- Miss Pere, but she deserved her title, because over the two matches she hit more really god shots than her opponents. She had many bad moments, too, for there was an understandable decline in standards as the stresses of semifinal and final told. The semi-final between I Miss Pere and Miss Smith was a wonderful match. There were troubles and extracations, some magnificent shots by both players, and Miss Pere. 8 handicap and all, was one up at the turn. Then Miss Smith produced

her ace in the hole. The tenth measured 175 yards and Miss Smith took a 3-iron “down the shaft a bit.”

It was not the most perfect of shots, the ball fading from left to right, but once it hit the front edge of the green, it rolled smoothly up the hill about 60ft and looked homeward bound all the way. Giving no sign of concern, Miss Pere applied herself again, and she should have been one up again at the thirteenth, where she missed a little putt for a win. She was one down playing the last hole.

There they both hit great drives, well clear of 200 yards, and Miss Pere’ holed a 10footer for a birdie 3. But at the nineteenth Miss Smith played a glorious iron to a couple of feet out, and Miss Pere’s brave uphill putt for the half in birdie 3’s missed. Mrs Knight, although a golfer for only 15 months and on a handicap of 12, beat the 4-handicap Miss S. Ritchie and Miss J. Harper (11) in the early rounds. Yesterday morning her giant-killing continued, when she beat the titleholder, Miss S. Beadle, who is on 1

Mrs Knight showed fine concentration and some valuable length from the tees, as

well as an ability to play magnificent recovery shots, but Miss Beadle could do very little right, for a long time. But when Miss Beadle, having reduced her deficit to one, hit a magnificent drive at the seventeenth, and Mrs Knight was still short for it seemed the game would go on. Miss Beadle, however, played a very loose iron into a pot, came out across and over the green, and finally lost with a 6 to a careful 5. It was a great victory for Mrs Knight, who has-been North Otago’s top tennis player for two years. The final was disappointing, although for a while it seemed Mrs Knight’s tenacity might overcome her inevitable attack of nerves. Miss Smith, no doubt rejoicing that she was not opposed by a low-handicap player, was all confidence, and although she made many errors—especially on the greens—she was usually in command. They were square after three, but the fourth became a disaster area for Mrs Knight and she was always behind after- that. Miss Smith, with a smooth stroke production. overcame an early tendency to stray with her irons to got out in 40, three over the card, and lead by three. ,

Mrs Knight used a 3-wood off the tees, and closes the face to get extra length. But sometimes her draw became quite a violent hook. Although it seemed her clubs were a little too small for her, she hit some fine shots, and won much admiration for a determined approach which took her to the final. She still had a faint chance when she won the short tenth with a splendid tee shot, but then lost four holes in succession.

Miss Smith hit some grand shots over the last few holes, playing the last five in par figures. Her previous success in this event was in 1968 when she beat Miss Beadle in the final at Dannevirke.

Some of the day’s most spectacular golf came from Miss P. Dudding. Playing Miss C. West in the semi-finals of the plate event, she had two eagles—at the sixth, when she holed a short wedge shot, and at the 420-yard fourteenth, with a 10-foot putt. She had a grand final against Miss Ritchie, winning at the last hole when her second shot, a perfectly-played approach, stopped two feet from the hole. Results;—

Championship Semi-finals.—Mrs H. Knight

beat Miss S. Beadle, 2 and 1; Miss M. Smith beat Miss F. Pere, ait the nineteenth. Final. —Miss Smith beat Mrs Knight, 6 and 4. Plate Semi-finals.—Miss S. Ritchie beat Miss J. Rutherford. 2 and 1; Miss P. Dudding beat Miss C. West, 5 and 4. Final.—Miss Dudding beat Miss Ritchie, 1 up. Second Sixteen Semi-finals. —Miss D. Bryant beat Miss G. Ward, 1 up: M-ss

A. Robertson beat Miss A. Wilkin son, 4 and 3. Final.—Miss Bryant beat Miss Robertson, 2 up. Flight Semi-finals.—-Miss C. White beat Miss A. Maskelyne, 2 and 1: Miss S. Clephane beat Miss B. Mitchell, 1 up. Final.—-Miss White beat Miss Clephane, at the twentith. Teams' Match Canterbury 446, South Canter-, bury 456. South Canterbury 465, Bay of Plenty 467.