GOLF NOTES

Evening Star, Issue 23745, 28 November 1940, Page 7

GOLF NOTES

[‘By Slice.]

Otago Club. On Saturday tbe lirst rounds of match play in the club championship, the intermediate cup, and the Balmacewen Cup were contested, when there there were a number of close results. In the club championship two old rivals in W. G. Wight and T. B. Ferguson had a keen tussle. Ferguson started off by winning .the first hole, and from there on every hole ' was halved to the turn, including

“ birdies,” by both at the third and fourth. Wight won rhe tenth to square the match. “ Tipperary ” was halved, and F’erguson won the twelfth, “ M'Glashau’s,” in a “ birdie ” 3, to be 1 up. The thirteenth wag halved, and Wight won “ Roy’s ” with a “ birdie ” 3 to make them “ all square ” again. The fifteenth was halved, and Wight got another win at the sixteenth with a 3 to be 1 up. The seventeenth was also halved. Both got good drives away at tho eighteenth, and Ferguson played a masterly second which landed on the green, Wight being just short, the hole being halved in “ birdie ” 4’s, for the latter to dispose of a strong contender by the minimum margin. J. W. Trewern was also fully extended in hit match with W. A. Mitson, although neither played at his best. “ All square ” at the sixteenth, Trewern won the seventeenth, and managed to hang on to his lead tg get out at the eighteenth for a medal round of 79 to his opponent’s 81. J. H. M'Dougall had a grim struggle with R. P, Barr, and it was necessary to go to the twentieth before the former gained the ascendancy. J. G. Dick also experienced a hard game with W. C. Romeril to emerge victorious on the last green. K. Ross, A Lucas, and P. J. Gill were in devastating form, and won their games with plenty in hand.

In the Intermediate and Balmacewcn Cups the majority of the matches were won with comfortable margins, only two, ' hat between A. M. Cameron and H. W. Bundle in the former and F. J. Morrison >ud S. F. Lambert in the latter, having to -o beyond the stipulated number of holes, .'ameron and Morrison finally triumphing ■! the nineteenth. On Saturday the second rounds will be played. It. Clair, Over the week-end St. Clair made a valiant attempt to wrest from Balmacewen ihe cup which is competed for every year between the two clubs. Four matches are played in the course of the year, two on rach links. Faced with the necessity of winning by 9 matches to 3, the St. Clair players confronted their task in workmanlike manner. Unfortunately they were without their leading player, C. B. Wight, and this made their task much more difficult.

The foursomes resulted two matches each. A strong combination in Sime and Ferguson beat Bennie and Clayton 2 and 1, registering the first win for Balmacewen, which was squared by the fine win of Lawrence and Dixon over Lemon and Gill, 6 and 4. The former pair needed only 74 strokes to complete the course, a really good effort, particularly in a foursome. Wight and M'Dougall beat Boss and Jefferson, the latter playing as a substitute, hut Sams and M'Kechnie evened matters again with a win from Lucas and Boyd. The singles resulted four wins to St, Clair and two to Balmacewen, while two were halved. P. J. Gill staged a good recovery to beat Dixon. Three down at the turn, he won six out of the next seven holes to win 3 and 2. Sams and M'Kechnie, vho, playing together in the morning, had von their foursome, had convincing wins, (loth are playing particularly well and their names figure prominently in the weekly match results. Ross disposed of a strong opponent in W. G. Wight 2 and 1, while Sime had to accept defeat from D. 0. Bennie. Altogether it was a most enjoyable fixture. In the Stableford bogey competition held last Saturday D. C. Bennie and H. L. Boock shared the honours in the A grade. Both played dead to their handicaps. Bennie’s round of 74 shows a return to his best form. Closely following were Dixon, Sams, and M'Kechnie. The results in the juniors were not so good, B. A. Bolwcll and A. M. Jones tying for first place with 34 points. The course has benefited considerably from the recent rains, and all fears that it might not have been at its best for the New Year tournament have vanished. On Saturday afternoon a match will be played between left and right-handed mem-

I,hers of the club, in conjunction with a four-ball bogey handicap. Belleknowes. The Canadian foursomes stroke competition played last Saturday afternoon was a pleasant change from the rather monotonous succession of single and four-ball games. Many fine cards wore returned, which reflected the good playing conditions. This resulted in 'two pairs, N. K. Driver and A. C. Rowe and 3. C. Paul .and L. R. Sceats sharing the net scores' with 56’s, from handicaps of 14 and 21 respectively, and on the count back, tho latter got the verdict. Other scores worthy of mention were those of D. Gilroy and D. Mackay, L, F. Benneb and 0. Lucas, and H. A. Goxon and L. Griffiths with 57’s, and F. B. Clarke and E. J. Olsen and F. G. Haigh and R. H. Henderson with 58’s. The honour of returning tho best gross score was earned by Norman Driver and Alf. Rowe, who dovetailed nicely for their 70. Ernie Olsen and Fred Clarke were also in good form for their 71. In. the semi-final of tho club championship, J. F. Byers kept up his winning sequence by defeating N. R. Driver. On the day he proved too sound, and was on top throughout. The first hole went to Byers with a bogey 3, after Driver had' missed a short putt for the half, and also the second with a “ birdie ” to be 2 up. In covering the first nine holes for a 30 (one under bogey) Byers became 5 up. At the tenth. Driver fell short of the green with his tee shot, but brilliantly holed his approach for a “ birdie ”2. He also won the eleventh to be 3 down. Byers won the twelfth, and Driver got one back at the next. Byers increased his lead with a win at the fourteenth, and another at the fifteenth enabled him to clinch the match, 5 and 3. He will now meet Alec Murray in the final over 36 holes, and the issue is very open. In tire quarter-final of the juniors, E. Berwick had a surprise win over A. C. Rowe by 5 and 3. After the defeat of two fancied “horses” in the first round, on paper Rowe looked a sitting shot for the final, bub on Saturday he was not in his best form, nob having quite recovered from a recent attack of “ flu.” One does not, however, wish to detract from Berwick’s win, as on the day he played very well, and it would have called for steady golf to head him off. Ho will now meet L. R Sceats in'the semi-final, and the winner will contest the final with M. F. O’Sullivan.

On Saturday mixed Canadian foursomes will be played, and competitors are asked to arrange their own partners and fours.