GOLF

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIII, Issue 105, 15 April 1933, Page 2

GOLF

FROM TEE TO GREEN CLUB COMPETITIONS. PEEPS AT THE PLAYERS. (By “Putter.”) The Napier Club’s Easter tourney commenced to-day, and will be continued on Monday and Tuesday. The entries are good, and the tourney promises to be most successful. Post entries will be received for two-ball and four-ball bogey handicaps to be played on Monday and Tuesday. * * * Parkvale Club. The official opening of tho Parkvale Golf Club took place on Saturday last under ideal conditions, when a large number of players were present and took part in a mixed foursome. Before commencement of play, His Worship the Mayor, Mr. G. F. Roach, expressed great pleasure at seeing such a large number of players present. He also spoke in eulogistic terms of the improvements made to the links, and stressed the point that owing to the rapid growth of the club during the last few years, the time was not far distant when the club would find it necessary to increase the length of the course to eighteen holes. Mr. Roach then declared the links open for play, and Mrs. Roach started the ball roll-

ing. The honour of winning the first competition of the season goes to J. A. McPherson and Miss J. Robson with a nett score of 66—a very good performance. Of the 60 competitors that took the field, the winning pair were tho only ones to return a nett score equalling the course par. Tho best score off the stick was that of J. M. Campbell and Mrs. Moore with a gross 83 —good shooting for a foursome under existing conditions. The links are in exceptionally good order, the greens arc well grassed and particularly good and although the course is a bit on the fast side owing to the long spell of dry weather, it is a vast improvement on previous years. « • « Havelock North’s Opening. The Havelock North Chib’s official opening also took place on Saturday last. The course was in very good order, and a large number of players took the field in a mixed foursome which ended in a tie, Mr. and Mrs. J. Redward and Gregory and Mrs. Hill each returning a nett score of 73J. * * * Napier Club. Some good shooting was done on the Waiohiki links during last weekend in tho bogey handicap.. No less than six of the competitors returned cards up on bogey. No doubt this tall scoring is chiefly due to the extra amount of run experienced on the course at the present time. Nevertheless, R. J. Patterson off a fourteen handicap played some pretty hot golf to clean up bogey to the extent of five up. It was rather hard luck for P. F- Higgins and G. L. Home-Douglas, both of whom beat old man bogey by three up to strike Patterson in such a merry mood. Others who returned good cards were D. R. Murray, d. up, R. I. Harrison, 1 up, and E. Williams, 1 up. A World Beater.

It is most refreshing to hear of a golfer (and not an American) who is classed in the world’s best. J. M. Dillon, writing in the “Sporting Globe,” has the following to say:— According to Victoria’s method of handicapping, Harry L. Williams is rated at plus 3. Australian open champion M. J. Ryan and Ivo Whitton share the same mark, and none has a lower. Usually, particularly in clubs with strong mid-markers, plus men are handicapped out of the weekly competitions. Williams in that respect is an exception, for ho wins more than any other player at Victoria G.C. Of course, he has to do something extraordinary to finish in handicaps ahead of the mid and long markers and ho does it. Recently, he made a new record at Cheltenham, when he went out in an ordinary (for him) 36 and came home in an extraordinary (even for him) 32. He missed winning the club handicap trophy by a stroke. A solid 14 marker had a net 70. In a recent round at Victoria, he was out in 31. For three years this youth, who is not yet 18, has been an amazing golfer. At tho moment he is tho star player of the land. Twice in practice he has gone round Victoria links, one of the hardest in Australia, in 65. He has broken 70 so often that it has come to be matter for comment if ho ever is more than square on fours—the tally that other first flighters strive for on the tightly trapped championship links of Victoria. At the age of 16 he won the national amateur and Victorian State titles. It was a miracle that stopped him from winning the 1932 national amateur, although at the time of playing ho was physically much, run down. At the moment he is a stroke better golfer than he was in 1931 or 1932. Never in the history of golf anywhere has there been a greater prodigy at the age of 16 than was this left-handed lad. He has gone on improving. The question now is, just how good is he! Experienced judges who have seen most of the world’s stars, and saw most of Joo Kirkwood’s sensational doings back in 1920, rank Williams as one of the greatest amateurs in tho world at the moment. They go so far as to say that at the moment he is as good as Joe Kirkwood was when, in 1921, he went to the British open championship, and was universally hailed, despite his somewhat unorthodox methods, as one of tho greatest

players of tho day. In 19.20 the courses in Victoria over which Kirkwood was monotonously leaving records, and those in other States where he played exceptional rounds, were not tho difficult propositions they are to-day. Joe Kirkwood never in Australia did anything that could bo rated as more meritorious than the two practice 65’s that Williams has done over tho difficult Victorian links. It is a great pity that this lad cannot be given an early chance of getting into the thick of world golf. If he had the opportunity of getting among the world’s stars, ho undoubtedly would soon bo at least holding his. own among them. , a...