GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS

Greymouth Evening Star, 12 November 1932, Page 5

GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS

SHAW WINS PROFESSIONAL. [per press association.] HERETAUNGA, November 11. The weather conditions at Heretaunga to-day were the best o£ the tournament, a fine cloudless day with a light southerly wind. The semifinals of the Amateur Championship were decided to-day, the winners being Rana Wagg (Hutt Club), holder of the title, and Horton (Wairarapa). Shaw defeated Douglas in the Professional Championship. Shaw beat Douglas, four and three. Wagg beat Duncan, five and four. Horton beat J. L. Black at the thirty-ninth hole. In the professional final, Shaw stood one up on Douglas at the end of the first eighteen holes. The play provided splendid golf. Douglas put on a spurt at the start, and he would have been five up at the seventh but for being stymied. Shaw steadied dowh to play his best later, and Douglas seemed to lose confidence, dropping several holes in a string. At the ninth he was three up, having gone out in 33. The tenth and eleventh were halved. Shaw hooked hi* second and' ran through a bunker at the twelfth, Shaw taking the hole in four. Douglas lifted his head when chipping to the thirteenth, and went wide. Shaw took the hole in four. Douglas hooked his tee shot to a rough at the fourteenth, Shaw taking this hole in three. The fifteenth was halved, after Shaw had failed to get up the bank with his tee shot, recovering with a chip to within five feet of the pin. Douglas took the sixteenth in three with a beautiful chip to within a couple of feet of the pin, but put his drive in rough at the seventeenth, booked into rough again, and overran the hole with his third, Shaw taking the hole in four, and thus squaring the match. Shaw’s fine iron to the eighteenth was ten feet from the pin. Douglas hooked his second into a bunker at the green, and failed to get out, Shaw taking the hole to be one up.

In the afternoon play Douglas and Shaw continued.' on even terms. Shaw won the third hole in three to become two up, but he lost the next, Douglas sinking in four. The next two were halved in threes and fours Shaw got the seventh in four, and the next two were halved, Shdw turning two up. Shaw sank a putt of fifteen feet to win the tenth in three. They halved the eleventh in four, and the twelfth was halved in fives. Douglas was spectacular at the 453 yard thirteenth hole, slicing through trees on to the eighth fairway, and making a magnificent recovery with a ninetyyard niblick shot over the rough, stopping only five feet from the pin. He missed the putt, however, losing the hole to Shaw’s four. A missed three-footer saw him fail to win the next in four. Shaw had the advantage of the position after his tee shot to the fifteenth, and played a safe three for a half and the Championship. AMATEUR SEMI-FINAL. In the amateur semi-finals, at the end of the morning play, Wagg stood six up on Duncan, and Black three up on Horton. In the first-mentioned game, Wagg got a great break on Duncan by covering the first five holes in 3,3, 3,3, 2. At the first hole Duncan was stymied, and he knocked Wagg’s ball in attempting to get past. Duncan had pitched a lovely mashie to the green, but Wagg got inside of him. Duncan missed with a long putt. Wagg putted to a couple of inches away in a dead line with Duncan’s ball. The gallery, which was a pretty large one, now had a continuous thrill, Wagg giving an exhibition of phenomenal putting. Both were on the second green in two. Wagg ran down a 36-footer for a wip. Wagg was on and Duncan was bunkered at the third hole. Duncan missed an eighteen-foot putt for a half. Wagg’s second at the fourth hole was at the back of the green. Dufican was short. He ran up a nice one, but Wagg sent his ball across the green ihto the hole from the time that it left the gutter. He completed the thrill at the next hole by repeating the performance for a two. Five holes had gone and Wagg was five up. Duncan pulled ihto the rough, and he recovered only indifferently at the .sixth, but Wagg’s second was short, and the hole was halved in five. Wagg looked like getting a good hole at the next, but he let Duncan in by missing a three-fpot putt., Duncan taking his first win in four to five. Wagg took the eighth in five to six, Duncan missing a five-footer; and the ninth was halved in fours, both failing to get dead after they had slightly hooked their tee shots. Wagg had made the. outward trip in 33. After looking as though he were going to do even better he suffered a slight lapse at the tenth, hooking to the rough, and then he was short with his second. He lost the hole by his failure to sink a fourfooter. Duncan was almost in a bunker at the next hole, and he did not clear well. Wagg went back to five up by taking the hole four to five. Wagg - visited the rough at the twelfth, and his next was short, bui Duncan pushed his second slightly out, and then failed’ to get dead. The hole was halved in fives. Duncan was down with his drive to the thirteenth, and was bunkered half way with his second. Wagg’s drive was pushed out, and his second was far short. Duncan here played a great shot off the sand with his long iron to the green, enabling him to halve in five. A nice approach, piitt saw Wagg halve the fourteenth in four, and the fifteenth was another half, nice pitches from the tee giving threes. Wagg had a ten-footer putt for a two, then a too-strong second by Wagg enabled Duncan to halve the sixteenth. Duncan pitched a high one too far from a bdnker to the right, but Wagg, who was just round' the bunker to the left, over-ran the pin. Duncan pitched up a beauty third dead for a four. Wagg then went to six up at the seventeenth. The drives were a yard from each other in the edge of the rough. Both played fine shots on to the green, but Wagg had the better one, only eight feet away. Duncan missed a long one, but Wagg made no error. The eighteenth hole saw the boldest shot of the match. Wagg’s drive was hooked into the rough, but, sitting up, he took the brassie and carried the bunker dead on the pin, to run just over the far side of the green, this shot earning a round of applause. Duncan was on in two, and the hole was halved in fours.

Duncan, nothing daunted, when he went oiit in the afternoon, made a brave showing over the first, nine holes, covering them in 34 to Wagg’s 37, and reducing Wagg’s lead from six to three up. He won the second in four, and the third in three. The

following four holes were played in I the best of golf for halves in four, I three, four, four. The quality was retained at the long eighth for another half in the bogey figure, and Duncan taking the ninth in three. The half at the sixth was a credit to Wagg, who holed a long putt after Duncan had set the example. Wagg holed an eight-footer for a half at the eleventh. Duncan played two great woods going to the long eighth. It was a fine effort that Duncan put forth over the first nine holes. Going tc the tenth, Duncan hooked into the rough, and a weak second saw his slip to be four down again. He won the eleventh in bogey four, but lost the following one by hooking his drive into trees. The thirteenth was a half in fives, and Wagg ended the match when he sank a putt for three at the fourteenth. Wagg really won the game with his magnificent putting in the early stage of the morning play.

BLACK V. HORTON. Black and Horton in the morning gave a good exhibition. Black made but few mistakes. He went out in 33, and came in in 35. Horton took 35 out and 36 in. Both pnutted well. Horton, at times, was too strong on to the greens. Black was stymied by Horton’s third at the first hole, and he placed foi- a half in four. Horton won the third in three, where Black hooked his tee shot into a bunker. Black squared by winning the next. Horton’s tee shot was out of bounds. Black became one up at the sixth, where Horton’s second was hooked into a bunker, and his recovery was poor. Horton squared the match at the next hole by sinking across the green for a three. Black took the eighth in a fin e four to five, and he became two up at the turn by sinking across the green for a two. The next two were halved, and Black lost the twelfth and the thirteenth by missing four feet putts. They were all square at the fourteenth. The fifteenth and sixteenth went to Black in a string of threes to fours. Horton duffed a short approach at the seventeenth, Black taking the hole in four. A lucky second gave Horton the eighteenth. The ball ran round all the bunkers, and he sank an eighteen-foot putt for a three.

Horton staged in the afternoon a great recovery against Black, and an exciting match went to the thirtyeighth hole. Horton squared the game at the thirty-sixth hole, coming back over the last nine in 35. Going out after lunch, he won the first in four, halved the second in four, won the third in three, and had a gift of the fifth, Black missing a foot putt. They were then all square. The fifth was a half in threes. Horton slipped p, bit at the sixth, which Black took in five, making him one up again. Horton took a five at the next, and was two down, and he lost the eighth with a six. Black, holed a fourteen-footer for a two at the ninth to be four up. Horton’s outlook now was very bad, but he fought back. He won the tenth, halved the eleventh, won the twelfth, in four,, and the thirteenth in a similar figure to stand one down. Black took the next in three to four. The fifteenth was a half in three. Black missed, a three-foot putt which would have won th e sixteenth. Horton almost caught the next in three. Black sank a twelve-footer for a half in four. Horton squared with a four at the eighteenth. Horton was through the green at the thirty-seventh hole, but chipped up four feet past the pin. Black was nicely on in two. He missed a sixteen-footer for a three. Black hooked his second from the rough at the thirty-eighth into a rough near the third tee, but made a marvellous recovery to within four feet of the pin. Then he missed the putt. Horton placed his second about fifteen feet from the pin, and won th© match and the hole in four.