S.I. golfers’ dismal record

Press, 13 March 1987, Page 34

S.I. golfers’ dismal record

By 808 SCHUMACHER South Island golfers, and more especially those from Canterbury, have fallen on hard times at the New Zealand amateur men’s golf championship for longer than most would care to recall. The last success for the South Island in the match-play championship was in 1972 when Ross Murray, of Timaru, prevailed. To find the last Canterbury winner one has to go back 36 years to Tim Woon (Waitikiri). Murray had Canterbury ties for many years but had shifted south at the time of his triumph.

It is a very undistinguished record and no doubt the 68 South Island golfers (50 from Canterbury clubs) will be anxious to redress the balance to some extent when they compete in the Nationwide-spon-sored New Zealand championships at Waitikiri from March 22 to 29. Apart from the two-to-one numerical advantage, the South Island contingent can take heart from the fact that the last time the national event was played at Waitikiri it resulted in Murray’s win over Rod Barltrop, from Wellington. On the black side is

the presence of the Australian team of four which will have familiarised itself with Waitikiri after four rounds in the Pacific Rim international teams’ tournament which will precede the national championship. Australians have won the last three match-play titles. As well, one of the Canadians, Jack Kay jun., a semi-finalist in the United States amateur championship in 1985 and runner-up for the Canadian title last year, will stay for the week-long national championship, as will the three Aucklanders in the New Zealand side,

Michael Barltrop, Phillip Aickin and Glen Goldfinch. Among the 99 entrants for the national strokeplay and match-play titles are T. P. Duffy, an unknown quantity from London; the 1983 national stroke-play champion and former international, Terry Cochrane (North Shore); a member of New Zealand’s Sloan Morpeth side last year, Owen Kendall (Mount Maunganui); and a former national representative and 1985 South Island stroke-play champion, Geoff Stephens (Titirangi). Brent Paterson, James Angus, John Crawford-

Smith, Kerry Lake, J»h n Williamson, Fred Poskitt and Murray Brown, are among the best hopes at a Canterbury victory, but the South Island has wide representation and the chances of Robbie Bell (Ashburton), Elliot Boult (Marlborough), Steve Morshuis (Taieri), Gary Radka (Green Acres) and Stuart Thompson (Hokitika) must rate highly. The first national title decided will be the foursomes on March 22, the New Zealand stroke-play champion will be found on March 24 and the New Zealand match-play final will be played oh March 29. /