WATT CUP MATCH

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 84, 6 October 1938, Page 25

WATT CUP MATCH

SHANDON AND WAIWETU

FORM OF THE PLAYERS

Golfers in Wellington received their first real taste of summer conditions, last Saturday, and in the Watt Cup match at the Shandon links, between Shandon and Waiwetu, approach shots j were badly misjudged on many occa- j sions owing to the* surprisingly pacy condition of fairways and greens. Whereas a fortnight or so ago good, firm second shots were needed in most cases to reach the greens, on Saturday very good judgment was called for: Shandon won by eight games to four. W. B. Reilly, Shandon's No. 1 man, who incidentally was put out of the club championship running by M. McL. Elliott, has from all accounts been experiencing a rather patchy spell of late, but from the manner in which he played his first nine holes against R. G. Holland, of Waiwetu, his bad patch was a thing of the past. After a splendid 37 on the outward journey and a 3-up lead he faded a trifle and allowed Holland, who fought back splendidly, to stand all square with only two holes to go. Reilly came back on to it, however, and winning the last two holes, took the match 2 up. Holland was definitely outclassed on the outward journey, but Reilly's steadiness and, on occasions, brilliance would have caused many good players concern. He rarely wasted a shot, but when he did he usually came to light with a fine recovery. Holland paid the penalty of not keeping on the line in the early stages of the game, and when Reilly kept winning holes he began to force for greater length, and this did not assist matters. However, after Reilly had won the seventh to stand 4 up, Holland pulled himself together and, playing with greater care and accuracy, set out to wear his opponent down. His effort, as has been stated previously, was almost crowned with success. But Reilly's win was deserved on the day. On the strength of his first nine holes, alone, he should have won. FINE DRIVING. Both drove splendidly, although Reilly was a trifle more accurate than Holland at most holes. At the 305----yard fifth hole, Reilly was only a few feet short of pin high to the right— a magnificent drive even taking into consideration the fact that there was a favourable wind. Reilly's approaching throughout was excellent, as was his putting on the outward journey. His putting on the return was in and out, whereas Holland's was usually firm and sound. It might be safe to say. that the difference in the scores was due to the difference in approaching, on the day. Holland's approaching at the last two holes lost him the match. At the seventeenth, 520 yards, he played his second with an iron, but his optimistic effort went unrewarded. He failed to get the ball away properly and consequently he was left with a fairly lengthy third to the green. Reilly, very wisely, used a brassie for his second' and was well up as; a? result. But for,really bad judgment Holland's approach at the last hole must be awarded full honours. He gave the ball a solid clout, but instead of trickling neatly on to the green, as he apparently hoped, it flew yards to the left, over the fence, and landed to the left and back of the clubhouse, almost killing an unsuspecting? dog en route. His ball was hopelessly. buried in some long grass and after a couple qf attempts to reach the green he picked up and gave Reillythe hole and match. Reilly frequently needed only one putt going out, testimony to his accurate approaching. The short twelfth, "The Crater," was badly played by Reilly. Afraid, apparently, of going right through the green into rough territory, he played a very poor shot which just managed to reach the foot of the short hill in front of the green. His effort to get up With a putter failed to send a thrill through the gallery, and he was lucky to get a 4. Holland, who had gone right through, played the almost perfect approach from a nasty position and holed for bogey figures. Taking it all-round the match was a good one but the' impression gained was that Holland will have to be more accurate if he wishes to retain the Hutt Winter Cup, which he won last year. SHADED THE REST. H. H. C. Ribbands (Waiwetu) and E. C. Hollis (Shandon), the respective No. 2's, went round with Holland and Reilly, and Ribbands's play, particularly on the outward holes, overshadowed • even that of Reilly. He turned in a brilliant 34 for the first nine, two under the scratch score of 36, and 3 up on Hollis. , He played a very carefree. style of golf in the second nine holes and finally won 4 and 2. In a number of ways, in the early stages at least, their game was more entertaining than that of Holland and Reilly. Hollis gave Ribbands a shock at the first hole where he holed out for an eagle 3. Ribbands, who did a birdie 4, thereafter was irresistible, ilollis pulled his ball into the rough at the left of the second fairway and, after searching for some time, gave the hole to Ribbands, who nonchalantly, scored a 3, his second birdie in two holes. The third was halved in bogey 3, but Hollis won back the fourth i irt bogey 3 to 4. Ribbands won the fifth and sixth in bogey figures, halved the seventh in bogey 3, ahd won the ninth and tenth in a birdie and a bogey. He could not go wrong and his 34 was too good for Hollis, who, however, took only 33 for eight holes (he picked up at the second). Hollis might have run Ribbands" dangerously close had he not found the bunkers so frequently. They seemed to attract his ball like a magnet and Hollis must have spent more time churning up sand than his three partners together. He took a putter In one bunker but the experiment could be described as anything but successful. The ball shot out all right, but it scuttled gaily past the pin and off the green. Hollis, considering that his health has not been up to the mark in recent months, did well under the circumstances. It is doubtful whether many players could have beaten Ribbands on the day. . Ribbands, incidentally, has been : brought up in a real golfing atmos-! phere. When he was still at primary school he practically lived on the Park- j vale links in Hastings, a club with! which his father was closely associated. ?M. Mcl_. Elliott (Shandon) has been! in excellent form recently and he scored a convincing win over a useful Waiwetu exponent, D. J. Oliver.