Starr shone among Canty veterans

Press, 24 April 1987, Page 32

Starr shone among Canty veterans

Lucky Starr was easily the most successful member of the Canterbury golf team which finished eleventh of the 14 teams which contested the second Freyberg Masters tournament at the Titirangi course in Auckland recently. Playing at No. 4 in his first appearance at the tournament, Starr recorded five wins and a half from his seven matches. His only loss, and it was a big one, was to Artie Raymond (Poverty Bay), who was representing his association in the country’s premier teams’ match-play competition, the Government Life tournament, only two years ago.

The Freyberg Masters is for golfers aged 40 years and over. The ageing process, though, has not diminished the ability of many outstanding amateurs who were playing for New Zealand or win-

ning national titles not too many years ago. Among the players who shared the experience of serious competition, but an enjoyable social time afterwards were the former New Zealand representatives, Ross Murray, lan Macdonald,

Bruce Stevens, Graeme Brown and John Durry. Canterbury’s: No. 5, Murray Palmer, struck Durry in the bottom position. In 1979, Durry was rated Wellington’s top golfer irrespective of age. The top three Canterbury players, John McCormick, Wayne Tucker and George Turner, all finished with the same record — three wins and four losses.

McCormick, at No. 1, slightly improved on his record of the previous year; Tucker had two fewer wins than in 1986; and Turner had an identical result.

Starr, formerly from Twizel and Avondale’s No. 1 in the Woodward Cup inter-club championships last year, did well enough to warrant promotion next year, while Palmer, in his debut, had to settle for just one win. 808 SCHUMACHER