GOLF

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 31, 6 February 1932, Page 18

GOLF

... Ny "chipshot"

THE CHAMPIONSHIP

HERETAUNGA'S TURN

MISS KAY IN FORM

The decision of the New Zealand: Golf Association to hold this year's New Zealand championship meeting at Heretaunga, largely influenced by thej saving of expense that a central venue will afford, is one, that will please themajority of competitors. There are only; a dozen, to be generous, who are likely to affect tho chances in the Amatemy and fewer still in the Open,.and the remainder will welcome a course where the surroundings are so beautiful, and' where the game can be a pleasure, especially in November. Then there will' be no complaints as to the lies. Few courses in New Zealand have bo thick a turf, on which the ball stands up invitingly. With the attention which the club'will devote to Heretaunga, by; November the greens, always good, will be in as excellent a condition as were those-at Shirley, which is paying the ultimate compliment. • Christchurch, players always look forward to their annual visit to Heretaunga, but some Tuson Cup players will be apt to find their scores higher in November. They, will not be able to slice with impunity,' nor will, the holes be so conveniently lengthened. It will be tho straight hitter wno will score. • Hitherto.Heretaunga has been almost devoid of rough on quite a number of the holes, simply; because it was riot allowed to: grow. With narrow, closely cut fairways, and long thick grass elsewhere, things will be different. It will be interesting to see the scores that are put up on this stiffened course, ■which will then beby no means the paradise for the elderly golfer on the courtesy handicap of scratch which it.was styled by an Australian visitor. It will, however, be a course which will reward the best players, and, with Shaw in the offing, there is every chance of a course record. Needless to say, • the club will spare no effort to bring Heretaunga into the pink of condition, not a difficult task. The fact that its season is & Bummer one will give opportunities for the bulk of the alterations being done in the winter.

The length of the holes ana th* altered tees, as measured since the dcv cision to hold the championship at Heretaunga, are as follows:—;.

Out. , In. 359 ■, 320 410 ,' 420 .159 440 376 507 195 195 415/ 120 440 265 536 350 9 227 420 3117 '.3033

The eleventh, will have a new an« closely guarded green. ' The present length of the thirteenth is 460 yards^ but if necessary the tee.may be moved back to the big tree, making it. 507] yards. The new thirteenth green now) being made will be a great improvement. The tee at the seventeenth is t»: be moved across the creek, giving an extia fifty, yards, and inserting a big mental hazard. The eighteenth tee will also be moved back. When it is remembered that the shorter third, ninth, four, teentfr, and fifteenth are already tricky holes, and that the new arrangement will give eight holes 'of 400 yards and over, it will be recognised that with,' fairways of not more than two chains, thick rongh off them, and, trees for those who hook at many of .thVhole'sV. the course will be by no means too easy. Four 71's arc-not likely to be score! in* the Open. Miss Kay at Corstorphine. . Playing in a four-ball game Miss Oliver. Kay,: who is now officially on. the" plus" two mark, reeled off birdies and par figures from the men's tees at . Corstorphine with machine-like accuracy. She was driving' a long,' straight ball, and her game was wellnigh perfect, except for a 6, for which" Bhe took three putts. Her card was 435344433—33, out. (three under par, men's), and 535633534—37 in (par)* Miss Kay six weeks ago broke her own ladies' record of 72 by returning' an. official 70. SEe is the only lady golf er on the plus mark, either in Australia or New Zealand, and to gain this a player must do better than pat on three different links. ' ': ■ Hole in One. _ "The. Crater, "No. 2 at Paekakariki, was done in one last week by W. Pulley. It. is a 165 yard hole. The.occasion was duly honoured.' This is the third hole in one to Pulley's credit. H. A. Black's Form. •. . - . If it were possible to take the best half of. a card and double it, thera would be many more scratch golfers than there are. A second 68 on Miramar was done by H. A. Black last week, this time with the phenomenal run out of 32, as f0110w5:—434333534, 32; 4434----24555, 36. On the former occasion Black finished up the. round 434,: Another Good Youngster. " B. Hodson, the 26-year-old Chigwell professional, who played for Britain against Amerca in the Eyder Cup match this year, won the Essex Union's tournament at Thorndon Park, Brentwood." In the morning: he, accomplished a round of 73, which equalled :the competition record for the course, mada many years ago by Claude Gray. Th« afternoon play consisted of nine holes, for which Hodson had a score of 36, making his scratch aggregate 109—ona stroke over an average of 4's. This was remarkably good winter-time golf on a course of well over 6000 yards which is ranked among the best in Essex. In a field of 58 competitors, Hodson played from plus 2, so that his net'total was 112. The man who pressed him most closely was an amateur, F. Durham, junr., of the Warren Club (Chelmsford), who, with a handicap of 4, recorded 114 net. A. James, champion of Essex, competing from scratch, tied for third place with. 115, Hodson, a fair-haired, well-knit man, with a swing that looks good enough to win any championship, made only on« mistake. That was when he took tares putts at the seventeenth.

It is suggested by an Auckland write? that on form the following twelve players have good claims for ■ inclusion ia the New Zealand cricket team:-^— I/owry, Kerr, Page, Blunt,' Dempster, McGirr, Weir, James, Vivian, Mills, Boberts,--"; and Badcock. Auckland's fast young bowler, Cleverley, may come in for consideration at least for one Test, the writer adds. . •. '._-. r

' "George Golding showed that his defeat in the 440 yards was not a trns exhibition of his form," Btates the "Herald" in its report of the final day of the Australian championships. "Ha started from No. 2 track in the quartermile hurdles, with the champion, A. J. Watson, of Victoria, on the inside. At the 220 yards mark the title-holder, was with Golding, and although Watson led [him over the last obstacle, Gplding's strong finish prevailed' and he secured a 5 yards victory in 53 9-10 sec. The merit of this run may be realised by the fact that it is -but 1 JS-lOsec outside the world's best, and surpasses F. W^ O'Brien's 55 l-ssec, which awaits Aui-i traliau:«6cognition. -•_■-_-.;_