ATHLETIC SPORTS

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXXI, Issue VII, 15 August 1903, Page 451

ATHLETIC SPORTS

GOLF NOTES. (By "Stoney Dead.”) On Saturday the second round of the Auckland championship was played. The most important match was between Mr C. E. S. Gillies and Mr Colbeck. In tho end Mr Colbeck beat the late champion by 2 and 1. Mr Gillies won the first hole in a well-played 4. Mr Colbeck’s drive landed him in difficulties. Both played good drives at the second, but Mr Colbeck placed his second well on the green and went out in 4. At the third Mr Gillies foozled his second, and lost the hole. The fourth hole was played perfectly by Mr Gillies, while Mr Colbeck played a poor second. Off weakish teeshots, Mr Colbeck got a fine recovery, at the fifth, and won the hole. At the sixth Mr Gillies pulled his tee-shot amongst the trees. Mr Colbeck won in 5. At the seventh both were short with their third, but Mr Colbeck made a brilliant recovery, and got down in 5. This made him three up. The eighth also went to Mr Colbeck, and so he stood 4 up and 10 to play. A perfect 4 by Mr Gillies reduced the lead to 3 up at the turn. Both misjudged their shots at Jacob’s, but Mr Colbeck had the luck of the lie, and w'on the hole. The next two holes went to Mr Gillies in 4 apie.ee. He ought to have won the amphitheatre, but putted weakly. At the fourteenth Mr Gillies played a brilliant mashie shot, and holed out from off the green. A perfect 4 at the lodge placed Mr Colbeck 2 up and 3 to play. A half in 6 made him dormy. At the seventeenth Mr Gillies made a brilliant attempt at a 3, but just failed, and Mr Colbeek won by 2 and 1. Another important match was between Mr Hooper' and Mr H. T. Gillies. Mr Hooper won by 2 up. The match was an extraordinary one. There could be no question that Mr Gillies played better golf from start to finish. He was pound the course, allowing him putts given by his opponent, and a stymie of a yard counted as in 84 strokes. Mr Hooper’s score was some few strokes more, and yet he won. Mr Hooper deserves every credit for his win, as he was playing against the collar from start to finish, and he has to thank his marvellous recoveries for his win. At no less than 7 holes in the 18 he succeeded in getting down in two strokes from outside the green, in some eases from distances of up to 60 yards, and he holed 5 putts of over 4 yards. On the other hand, Mr Gillies only once got down in 2 from outside the green, and only holed one long putt. At the first hole he lay in a heel-mark, when only a foot from the hole, and on the ninth, tenth, and eleventh greens he took three putts from close to the hole. On the tenth and twelfth he had stymies, and negotiated the first one, which turned out to be of no advantage, and failed at the second, which would have won him the hole. By holing a very long putt at the sixteenth Mr Hooper made the match all square. At the seventeenth Mr Hooper pulled his second off the green, and Mr Gillies ■was short. Mr Hooper got down in 2, and so stood dormy one. At the eighteenth Mr Gillies slightly sliced his second, and had to play his third from almost an impossible place. He still had a 4 yard putt to save the match, but felled. Mr W. Heather beat Mr Carr by 4 and 3. Next Saturday he has to try to beat Mr Colbeck, and Mr Peel plays Mr Hooper. J The ladies last week played the third round in the eclectic competition against bogey, for a prize presented by Mrs Lewis. This time they had a day in striking contrast to the preceding Thursday. Mrs W. R. Bloomfield turned out to be the winner with the very good return of 13 up. Mias Gillies and Miss W. Cotter followed closely with 11 up. The

full returns are: Mrs W. R. Bloomfield, ser., 13 up; Miss Gillies, ser., 11 up; Miss W. Cotter, 18, 11 up; Miss G. Gorrie, 8, 10 up; Miss E. Pierce, 12, 9 up; Miss Pierce, 18, 3 up; Miss J. Draper, 7, 3 up; Miss M. Cotter, 17, 3 up; and Miss B. Gorrie, 7,2 up. These were all who beat bogey, but 20 more players competed, of whom only 6 played out the 3 rounds. The next foursomes placed on the club’s programme for August 26 has, in consequence of the N.Z. Championship Meeting, been postponed to Saturday, September 26. An addition to the programme has been made by the presentation of a prize by the captain of the club (Mr J. K. Sykes). The prize will be played for on Saturday, September 19. The committee of the club have made a distinctly retrograde move in forbidding all 3 ball and 4 ball games on Saturday afternoon, and the quaint part of it is that the. reason given is paradoxical. They say that trouble has arisen when the course is crowded. If there is one time more than another that 3 or 4 ball matches should be encouraged it is when the course is crowded. If there are 100 players on the links, and they all want to play their 'own ball, and are only allowed to play 2 ball games, there will be 50 matches on the links, but if they play 4 ball games there will only be 25 matches on the links, or, to pvt the matter in another way, the course can hold double the number of players when playing 4 ball games. In the crowded courses in the Old Country these 3 and 4 ball matches are encouraged in every way, but our committee in their wisdom and wide experience know much better. There is a good deal to be said for them in forbidding these games, but they have not tackled the matter in the right way. What they ought to have done was to impress on members the etiquette of the game. There can be no friction where players always act up to the etiquette of the game. If a 4 ball game is lagging at all the duty of everyone in the game is to let a match coining on behind pass. Even if members do signal to others to pass there is only about 5 per cent, of them who understand the correct way to let others pass. Once having made the signal to pass it is their duty to stand absolutely aside, and never attempt to play another shot till the passing couple are quite clear. There must be none of the thing one sees every day at One Tree Hill, viz., a signal to pass, and then the people who are being passed playing their seconds or approaching or putting while the passers are walking up to play their seconds. It is a strange thing, but it is a fact, that the worse a player is the more he resents being passed. Perhaps it is want of experience, for good players never mind being passed by a faster couple. They know there is no disgrace in it. Then, again, few players know how to play 4 ball games. Once any player is ready to play his shot he should play. There should be no waiting at all. Once he comes up to his ball he should play his stroke. Particularly should this be so on the putting green. Tliere must be no standing by to see if it is A’s putt, or if B will get in. Then again, putts of under a foot should always be given. If four players will only play their 4 ball games in this way they will hold their place on the green, and never get passed, and if they are four scratch players they will go faster than a two-ball match of two players of douhie figure handicaps. It is expected that some ten men will represent Auckland at the N.X. Championship at Napier. Messrs. C. E. 8. Gillies, H. Gillies, Hooper, Peel, and Dr. Coates are probable starters. Our team for the o*Rorke inter-dub vase will take * lot of beating, and the team will pro-

bably be the two Mr Gillies, Mr Hooper and Mr Peel. On Monday, the 17th, the Inflowing ladies intend going to Wellington tor the Ladies’ NuL Championship Meeting: Misses Lewis, Gillies, G. Gorrie, J. and M. Richmond, D. and A. Stevenson, W. and M. Cotter, T. Torrance; Mesdames W. R. Bloomfield, Lewis, A. Clark, J. K. Reed, and C. Buddle. I wish them all the luck in the world. When this team of youth and beauty descend on the Royal Oak I predict there will be no small sensation. For those who are not going Mrs Binns has kindly presented a prize. The general meeting of the Ladies' Club takes place on Friday, September 18, at the club-house. Several important matters will come up for discussion. I am glad to see the ladies nave again altered their course. They have decided to play the men’s IS, but from shorter tees. They will thus minimise the amount of crossing and passing as between the men and the lady players. If they don’t want to go down into what, are known as the tramway paddocks they can always turn round at. the 3rd holo and play the Bth as the 4th, and so play a 14 hole round. The Saturday meeting of the Napier Golf Club (wrote our Napier correspondent on August 7) was a great success. The prizes for the mixed foursomes were won by Mrs James MeLean and J. T. Cato and Miss D. Kennedy and J. Peacock, who tied; the former were 97 —17 -—BO and the latter 100—20—80. Mrs Arthur Kennedy ami H. Peaeoek were second at 101—17 —84. Twenty-six couples started, and the handicap was a very close one. The next best scores were: Miss Lorna McLean and K. Tareha, 95—10 —85; Miss M. Davis and L. Jardine, 99—13—86; Mrs H. Smith and H. Smith, 90—4—86; Mrs Perry and F. Gordon. 87—ser—87; Mrs C. Cato and C. Cato, 100—12—88; Miss Kirk and P. S. MeLean, 118—30—88; Miss MeLean and D. Murray, 101—11-—9 O; Mrs An-till and G. Morris, 110—20—90; Miss Fannin and Jardine, 111 —20—91; Miss Linda Davis and C. D. Kennedy, 103—11—92; Miss Page and J. MeLean, 117 —22—95; Miss Eva Bennett and T. Brabant; Miss Shaw and A. Brightwell, 108—10—98; Miss Locking and Tyser, 115—14—101; Mrs Moeller and T. Baker, 135—32 —103. The mixed foursome competition for members of the Whakatu Club was won by Miss Beatson and N. Beatson, 77— ser—77, Miss Seale and Cox, 79—ser — 79, being second; Miss Rainbow and Tipping, 88—8—80; Mrs Lean and J. Beatson, 91—8—83; Mrs Braithwaite and R. Braithwaite, 107 —18—89; Miss Braithwaite and M. Fenwicke, 94—8—86; Miss N. Williams and J. Cireuitt, 99—12—87; Miss L. Fitz Roy and C. Fitz Roy, 89— scr—B9; Miss Williams and J. H. Williams, 99 —scr —99; Miss Busby and D. Canning, 118—18—100.