LUCK AND SUPERB GOLF AS... Newton takes lead with unforgettable round

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33095, 9 December 1972, Page 46

LUCK AND SUPERB GOLF AS... Newton takes lead with unforgettable round

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON. Whatever the result of the 1972 Caltex $lO,OOO golf tournament, the 22-year-old Australian, J. Newton, will remember the second round at Paraparaumu yesterday. He not only carded a six-under-par 65 to take a two-stroke lead, but he profited three times from the sort of fate which helps golfers win first prizes.

After holing a 20ft putt for a birdie on the ninth, Newton hit three poor shots on the next, an easy par-four. His drive was pushed to the right, his pitch stopped just short of the creek, and he struck his chip much too hard.

But the ball hit the flag, stopped five feet away, and his putt lipped the hole and dropped in for a par.

Two holes later, his iron to the green was 15 yards to the left of the pin, but bounded down off a mound to within 20ft of the hole. He two-putted for a birdie. Then, on the 13th, his iron shot again flew to the left of the green, but his fortune held. The ball bounded, climbed a bank — and rolled back to the green. Birdie putts From there, Newton played superb golf. He had putts of three feet and 18 inches for birdies on 16 and 17, and then needed a four on the eighteenth for a 64, which would have equalled the best round of the day, by his countryman, F. Connahn. But Newton missed his birdie here.

“Apart from that hole, I don’t think I could have scored much better,” he said afterwards. “I like the layout of this course, it is similar to Zandvoort” — where he carded his best tournament round, a 64. But for all the splendour of Newton’s round, nothing could completely overshadow

the play of the veteran Australian, K. D. G. Nagle, who is two strokes behind on 135.

He birdied the 6,9, 10 and 12 to be four under par, missed a four-foot putt on the sixteenth for a birdie, dropped his only shot on the seventeenth, and then holed a huge putt on the last for an eagle, and a round of 66. Owen shares 3rd The Auckland-based Australian, A. Snape, the joint overnight leader, with Newton, is in third place, six strokes behind. Snape had 17 pars and a birdie two on the fourteenth, for a round of 71. It was not a happy day for New Zealand’s top professionals, with the exception of J. M. Lister and S. Owen. Owen had an eagle at the last hole, scored a 71, and stayed in contention, sharing third place, on 140, with E. W. Dunk (Australia).

Lister scrambled his pars on the first nine, but had six threes on. the inward half to offset dropping one stroke for a 68. But R. J. Charles was so disenchanted after his round of 72 that he set off for a run, presumably to forget all about it. He must have been well content with the way he played the last three holes, however. He was fovr-over-par after 15, but birdied 16, 17 and 18.

Great recovery After a fairly scrappy front nine — he topped a chip on the ninth — Dunk unleashed some brilliant golf. He had birdies at 12, 13 and 14, and an eagle at the eighteenth. However, he also dropped strokes, at 16 and 17. Dunk said that to catch I

Newton now would require possibly two rounds of 665, “the way Jack is playing.” The 26-year-old Connalin played what he described as “the best competitive round of my life.” His seven-under 64 followed a 78 in the-first round. He went through the turn in a two-under 33 and blazed over the back nine in 31. Conallin was only two strokes off the course record, held jointly by Charles (1968) and M. Bembridge (1971). He had birdies at 4,7, 12, 14 and 16, and capped them all with an eagle at 18, with a nine-foot putt The top amateur after two rounds is the Otaki player, J. Aldridge, who has had two 725, including 10 birdies. Behind him, on 147, is P. Mahoney (Hutt). The Dunedin amateur, C. Alldred, who has been top amateur at all the previous tournaments of the circuit, this time failed by one stroke to qualify for the third round. >