GOLF

Otago Witness, Issue 3714, 19 May 1925, Page 9

GOLF

BY

JACK

The Port Chalmers Golf Club has been elected a member of the New Zealand Golf Association The following fixtures have been definitely allotted for the ladies’ golfing year:— Napier open tournament, September 15 to 18. Manawatu open tournament, October 6 to 8. Wanganui open tournament, October 10 to 13 New Zealand championships at Miramar, October 15 to 22. The Wellington open meeting at Heretaunga will probably closely follow the championship meeting at Miramar. * The contributor to the Evening Post considers that the possibility of a Wellington competitor winning tho ladies’ championship can hardly be said to be a strong one. Heretaunga, which has been tho strongest team for tho past couple of years, has seen a depletion of its ranks, Miss Bell, Miss Brandon, and Miss Ward having left for England, Mrs Hunt having removed to Dunedin, and it being doubtful whether Mrs Stout will be playing this season. There remain, however, Mrs Marchbanks, who is No. 1 by reason of having won the championship, Miss Gambrill. Mrs Sehlan<lers (last year’s champion), Mrs Weston, ami Mrs Lees. On her present form Mrs Dodgshun, the champion of Balmacewen, should have a more than fair chance of adding tho New Zealand championship to tho championships of Canterbury- and Otago, which she How holds, if she should he a competitor at Miramar in October, though I gather it is not her present intention, however much it may be her desire, to take part in the New Zealand tournament. Playing in a club match Recently, she did for and away the best round she has ever achieved Balmacewen. Tho record for the ladies’ course there already stood in her name at 81. On this occasion, playing so accurately With her wood and iron as to leave hersolf little to do on the greens, she went out in 87 and camo home in 40, thus accomplishing the round in 77. A temporary green waa in use at the eighteenth, and, while

this shorlened the course by 20 yards or so, it did not diminish the severity of the test, as putting on the temporary green was distinctly more difficult than it would have been on the permanent green, and 1 understand that, under the rules of the L.G.U., the accident that in the circumstances Mrs Dodgshun did not play what is technically the full course does not rob her of the credit of having? established, at 77, a new record for the links. The second round in the competition for the Otago Golf Club’s championship produced a keen contest between E. A. Reed and T. D. Adams. The former is a consistent performer whose play frequently promises better results than ho actually achieves, while Adams, who is at the disadvantage of not having taken up golf until tho period in his life whon the acquisition of proficiency in the game involves an effort that is not felt by those who learn it in their youth, has lately been credited with several rounds of considerable merit. There was so little between the two of them last Saturday that they were all square at the 18th. Going to the 19th Adams struck trouble -with his tee shot, and the hole should have been “a gift” to Reed, who got away with a good shot. The latter, however, striving to reach the green with his second, found the rough and was only at the edge of the green with his third, while Adams was on it in four, with the result that, the hole was halved. Reed was through tho green at the 19th with his second and, playing back, was again too strong, and Adams won the hole and the match comfortably. Tim competitors in the other two matches that have been played in the round were not so closely matched. H. Ramsay and R. B. Lambert, are frequently engaged in friendly matches and honours have been fairly evenly divided between them, but on this occasion Ramsay carried the heavier metal and there is every livelihood of his reaching the final, in which event he will probably make a better fight with Dr Ros 3 than Lambert would have done. This assumes that Ross will win his match in the semi-final in which his opponent will be either 11. A. Salmon or J. U. Dick. In the second round Ross was opposed by L. S Munro, to whom he offered few chances, for the match was finished at the 13th hole, at which point Ross had a score that was equal to one over fours, his only indifferent hole being “Tippe-ary” (bogey 5, where he took 6. The semi-finals of the Borthwick Vase competition were played at Shirley, when Ihe weather and the excellent condition of the course were both favourable to good scoring. M. Macbeth boat C. H. Smith, who was receiving 12 strokes, by 3 up and 2 to play; and A. R. Blank beat W. P. Anderson, from whom no was receiving three strokes, by 3 up and 2 to play. Lindsay Ross, one of the professionals recently imported from Homo by the New Zealand Golf Council, is completely booked up to August 31. F. M. Dean, the other professional who recently arrived from England, is booked up to July 31, so that there will be a few weeks in August available with him, and the first fortnight in September is available with both the professionals. It is desired by the New Zealand Golf Council to book these dates in the South Island, because both professionals wish to take part in the open championship at 1 Christchurch at the end of September. A match between the Wanganui and Manawatu clubs, 25 a-side, played at Palmerston North., in glorious weather, was rather unexpectedly won by the home team in a decisive manner. The first twelve played for the Wilson Cup, and it was generally anticipated, even amongst the Manawatu players, that Wanganui, whose representatives included F. S. Parkcs, J. Goss, Imlay Saunders, G. Saunders, J. Harold, and j. Hussey as the first six, would gain possession of this coveted trophy, but calculations were completely upset, and Manawatu, bv winning six, halving two, and losing four matches, proved victorious. The complete match resulted in Manawatu securing 17£ games to 7£. The sensation of the match was created by a Wanganui player, F. G. Beaven, who holed out in 1 at the 13th. On returning to the clubhouse this player immediately put up the penalty attached to such a performance and was enthusiastically cheered by all golfers present. This 13th hole is 136 yards, and Beaven played a perfect mashie pitch on to the green and the ball ran right down. His opponent, W. Seifert, was astounded, but kept the flag flying saying: “Well, d—n it, that’s hot, but‘here goes for a half.” His optimism was not rewarded as it was in the case of a lady player about whose achievement at Ramsgate we have heard this week by cable. An affiliated club submitted to the New Zealand Golf Council for decision the point arising out of the fact that two competitors in a medal competition, playing together, bad both recorded their own scores and those of their opponents in the wrong columns on the card. It appeared that mere was really no doubt as to which was the score of each player, seeing that the handicaps deducted from the score were different. In each case the marker noted tile score of each hole on the card, checked . a . nc J signed it. The Appeal Committee decided that upon the explanation being g.yen as tc the score being in the wrong column the other score on the card should have been deleted, leaving only the score or the player, and it did not seem important *n which column the figures appeared.