Auckland breaks Bay of Plenty’s run of success

Press, 4 May 1984, Page 26

Auckland breaks Bay of Plenty’s run of success

PA Timaru Auckland won the Stylemaster women’s inter-provincial golf tournament yesterday at the Levels course in a nail-biting finish.

It took a chip in on the last hole for a birdie three by Polly King to seal the match and the tournament. Had she not slotted the fivemetre chip, Auckland would have halved its match yesterday with lowly-rated Nelson-West Coast-Marl-borough, leaving Auckland with 10 points and 21% games, while Bay of Plenty would have won with 10 points and 22 games. However, King, the Maori champion, ended all debate with the chip in, which gave her a 1-up win over Rosemary Hannah-Parr, and Auckland 11 points and 22 individual matches. Nelson’s two top players beat their Auckland counterparts yesterday to rattle Auckland. Debbie Randell completed a mediocre tournament with a fine 5 and 4 win against Karrin Young, and Amy Rewita had her second win of the tournament, beating Alison Hasey. Auckland’s lower three players gave it a 3 and 2 win. Kaye Maxwell beat

Marylyn Watt 5 and 3, Julie Leech beat Ele Lankow 4 and 3, and King won her game. Auckland was lucky to win. Last night Otago could have won had its No. 1, Jan Scandrett, sunk a one metre putt. That match was squared, and Auckland was thankful to take one point. After the win, the Auckland team captain, Mrs T. G. Sandes, attributed the success to team spirit. “It was tremendous, especially during the tight matches in the last two days. The return of Alison Hasey, No. 2, and Kaye Maxwell, No. 3, also helped the team,” she said. They were unavailable for representative play in the past two years, but were members of the Auckland team which won the title between 1976-80. Auckland could manage only a ninth placing last year. Mrs Sandes said the team put in a lot of hard practice and fitness training in preparation for this year’s tournament and she

felt all along the girls had the ability to win. The winner for the last three years, Bay of PlentyThames Valley, finished second. Bay of Plenty was not favoured to secure four consecutive wins due to defections, and it did well to stay near the top. Its demise came in round five on Wednesday when it was beaten 2-3 by South Canterbury. A large part of Bay of Plenty’s success could be attributed to young Jan Cooke, one of only two players to go through the tournament at the Levels course unbeaten. The other was Waikato’s No. 1, Jan Arnold who won the Nutt trophy because of her greater winning margins. Otago finished third, losing to Bay of Plenty in the third round and had halves with Auckland and Wellington. Fourth was home team, South Canterbury. Final placings: Auckland (22 games), 11 points; Bay of Plenty (22), 10; Otago (19%),

South Canterbury (18), Waikato-King Country (17%), Wellington (17), 8; Canterbury (15%), Northland (12%), 5; Hawke’s Bay-Poverty Bay (12), Nelson-West Coast-Marl-borough (10%), 4; ManawatuWanganui (11), Southland (8%), 3; Taranaki (9), 1. FINAL ROUND Auckland 3, Nelson-West Coast-Marl-borough 2 K. Young lost to D. Randell, 5 and 4; A. Hasey lost to A. Rewita, 2 down; K. Maxwell beat M. Watts, 5 and 3; P. King beat R. Hannah-Parr, 1 up; J. Leech beat E. Lankow, 4 and 3. Canterbury 2%, Waikato-King Country 2% M. Sparrow lost to J. Arnold, 3 and 1; A. Bond lost to B. Ormsby, 4 and 3; J. Ross beat J. Storey, 3 and 2; S. Boag beat J. Coffey, 3 and 2; J. Davidson and G. Snelling, all square. South Canterbury 4, Manawatu-Wanganui 1 J. Kellahan beat I. Van Steenbergen, 3 and 2; S. Hutchins beat D. Bristol, 3 and 1; A. Seed lost to C. Isaacs, 4 and 2; H. Hames beat V. Goldfinch, 4 and 3; J. Knight beat A. Brabyn, 2 and 1. Bay of Plenty-Thames Valley 4, Taranaki 1; Northland 3, Hawke’s Bay-Poverty Bay 2; Otago 2%, Wellington 2%.