GOLF

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 82, 3 October 1931, Page 20

GOLF

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BUSY DAYS

; LEADERS IN FORM

THE; NATIONAL MEETING

These are busy days iii : the golfing world, with ladies meeting at Palmerston preparatory to their.national tournament at Rotorua, and with-the Hutt winter tourney and. provincial championship preceding, the men's national .meeting at Shirley, and a host, of minor inter-club fixtures. .. All the leading golfers have shown good form recently, even H. A. Black, who turned in a 74 tho other day. after having '■ discarded his steel shafts temporarily. J. L; Black made a course record' of 69 at; Te Aroha. A. D. S. Duncan, driving as long a ball as ever, is right on his game. ■ 8.-.V. Wright is playing, again after his operation, and .should be fit it .Shirley, whiif others of the younger, school have proved themselves in good shape' recently^ The local provincial; championship';; which will be well; attended ~ by all Nprth Island players likely,, to affect the result at Shirley, will give "a atill. better indication of form, and: an ;unusual opportunity of comparing . tfie leading professionals prior to the national championships' will' be * afforded bjr• the professional provincial-champ-ionship to bo played during the jHtttt winter; tourney. . Horton has- expressed doubts of visiting Shirley, butwith th« possible exception the field '-, should. in« cludo every.leading golfer, and the interest in the open and amateur should be keen. -.. '•'.'..'•■ ' '-■'.-; .'•':'■•/ A; Fascinating FourbalL ; ii : A fourball can be the most-interest* ing match in golf, and this was this tsas« on, Saturday at Heretaunga; when A. D. S. Duncan and D> O. Whyte (Wellington) played D.C. Collins and D. Warren (Wairarapa) in the inter/dub Wellington-Wairarapa match.. -'Collins was in fine form,' driving a particularly long sweet ball, With a free and perfectly-timed swing, and a full f6llowthrongh. ; Teeing up was'.necessaryowing to the sodden nature of the turf, with, patches of casual .water after a ; heavy, nightf s' rain; but the greens were: on: the whole gdod-;-;Col-lins's work round the greens wasJ deadly, especially his approach i'putts 'arid putting generally. Duncan was in good form nearly, all the way, but finished badly.'': Whyte and • Warren caxne .to light/ at crucial moments well.r :They were all square going to the thirds Th« wind, though not very strong; was variable, and Collins took the hole in three, the -others.being either• through or short of the. green from the tee. Th* fourth was halved in nice fours. Whyt« pushed out his tee shot at; thes fifth, while Warren miss-hit his, Collins lall but. sank thei first of a string of;great approach putts, and the hole wag halved in: three. Collins missed a putt at.the sixth; and'so did Warren^ after playing a fine second from !the rough,- and a fine third, Duncan taking the hole\in four, and'squaring the match.':. Duncan's driye jat the seventh lande;!. in a patch of water, and he. took : three to reach the green, but sank a ttrenty- ; footer for a foiir. Whyte and Collins played magnificent brassies,: and were also down in fouiv Warren'a,":second found the rough green-high. 1 Hei re- : covered: well, but missed the The eighth was halved in five; Collins all but 'holing his- approach putt from,the edge1 of the green-fora four.- Duncan1 pushed out his drive at the-'ninth,"but was down 'in three with 'a. obt putt, -and; Warren halved, from a- nice approach off the green. With the game all; square. going to the tenth, it-wag evident that; & keen struggle t ;was .taking place. "All lay within; easy"re*acli of the green from ■ their tee shots, bti* Duncan, playing first, hit. a niblick shot that landed .well and ran straight; for the pin, kept undeviatihgly on its way, and fell in for tw:o. .Wellington was 1, up. - Beautiful ?ecduds; dead on ■ the pin, : were : playell at the eleventh, by Duncan -and 'Warren. WKyte found the bunker to tlis left, and Collins was through1 the^ green on.;the left 6dg'e.-: Approaching so-well that his; forty-footer .stopped oh." the lip1, he^as^down in four,,but' W^treii sank his- putt 'fof;" a- thf e'ej-v,and that hole • was ■ convincingly; Wairrirapa'*, Duncan missing': his nine-footer for" a three, and the game was squared again. Collins was pin-high to the left at the twelfth,, 'and- down in four.:. Warren missed-a.chance on the green;:;Whyte. found' tlie.bunker with his sewudfrom the rough, approached: well out "of.Tit, but missed a nine-foot putt^; and:'Duncan' was short of the green, with hit second, and short with his ■; approach, leaving himself a putt he missed, Wairarapa standing 1 up. Whyte :caine to light at. the. thirteenth," with1 '*"-fine drive and iron, missing a iline-footer for, three. The others were all to the left; of, the green with their . ; seeond«. Duncan approached well, but;'missed-the putt;; vand Collins. missed his;; six-footer, ■ for a half, the game being again *quared: The fourteenth .was halved ;iii three; Duncan .sank a; thirty-foot putt' for •' twi> at the fifteenth,' and ; WeHington was.again ,l, : up.- Duncan : found ~th» bunker at the sixteenth with a .mild slice, eauglit by the wind, andtook .five, Cpllins's third hit the hole anid, turned away, and it was again Whyte. who took the hole, in a-nice three, making' Wellington dormy .2. Both .. Whyte and Duncan hooked their seconds; at: .theseventeenth, Whyte into .the, bunker bank and Duncan with"- the bunker between:, him and the hole.. Duiican recovered with a fine out niblick shot, biit missed .a long putt, Collins and: Warren-, approached, jwellj arid were !do*it in.:four.- With 1 up and,.one to' g»anything, might' have happftnigd; : Col--Hus's second lay right at the back: ; of; the green, but his putt hit the back of the • hole ard stopped a few •■•ineWW■past, it. Warren found the.Jbunkef; with, his second/ and was. short getting out. Dnncan was short with1 his third*, andjtook five, and it was left .to Whyt% whose second'lay on the' edge 'of. tbf green, to halve in four. ColHns's enA was 70, as follows: 443435464, -361 444433444, 34. Duncan aid a-'71,., 33 out, spoiled by three' s's. at ■ the finishv Whyte's card was 75, and Warren's 77. Warren is a -left-handed; player. It-4« only his fourth year at the game, but hejias a free,-lirnber; stylo,1 andit.couW be si?en that he has,quite a number,;of useful-shots in his bag, with a good length', from tjho tee. ,' ' ' . , Crawford Orescent and Squadron Oup. , Miramar will hold the j Crawford Orescent and Squadron Cup for the ensuing year. Wellington has., Vo»- ¥>£ games, Hutt 10 games, and Mirama* 19}'".'games, and^even though,; Wellington wins all1 the : games ih'-'-the>-'n«brt match, it will still be a point short ofW!iramar. :. . ... ■ :■'. ■ ■■■ E. Macf arlane In Form. Ewen Macfarlane, six strokes-ahead of A. E. Blank, won the North Can r terbury ehampionship'with-153..' On his own course, Macfarlane is a hard mau to beatV>nd;will be worth; follbwing-in the national Johampionship meeting. • ItauchUn Oup; '.. •; .'..,■':-',-:'":-'■ Bringing together ,not only! members of gislf clubs butvmembers.of-the social ejubs of the pity and suburbs, the Lauculan Cup makes one of the inpst enjoyable golfing, fixtures'pf, the- ye»r. The "ideal team is one of loni handic*p men who can. be relied on' 16 play: on their mark, as the ..compßtitioh is/d*cided on the net. aggfegatts, T.'H Lawsori's net 73, on the 12 mark, 'ww» a particularly goocl card on the. flsjy, as a high wind added strokes tar-kolei £or.most:players. ; .. '"