The 13-year-old was a run-away winner by nine shots over compatriot and world number three Cecilia Cho.

It gives the precocious teenager a remarkable double. She is the first player to win both the Australian and New Zealand stroke play championships in the same year.

Germany’s Sophia Popov continues her remarkable climb up the WAGR table with victory in the PAC-10 Championship. Popov, in her first year at the University of Southern California, prevailed in a playoff over Tiffany Lua of UCLA after the pair had tied on six under par. Popov was the only player in the field to score three rounds under par to earn her third win of the season. The native of Weingarten, Germany, moves up three places this week to world number six.

Madison Pressel of the University of Texas proves she is quite capable of following in the footsteps of big sister Morgan with victory in the Big 12 Championship. A second round 66, six under par, sandwiched by rounds of 71, gave Pressel an eight-under-par total of 208 and a five-shot victory. Madison carries many of the same mannerisms as Morgan Pressel, the youngest winner of a women’s Major when she won the 2007 Kraft Nabisco Championship at the age of 18. Madison seems to be on the fast track to similar LPGA success, improving her world ranking 61 spots to world number 105.

The biggest movers into the world top 50 this week include Thailand’s Numa Gulyanamitta, who moves 32 places to 43^rd; England’s Holly Clyburn, who improves 20 spots to number 45; and Germany’s Pia Halbig, who leaps 21 positions to world number 50.

Lydia Ko has become the first New Zealand golfer to win the trophy as leading amateur in the Handa Australian Women’s Open.

Lydia @ ISPS Handa Australian Open

The remarkable 13 year old from North Harbour shot a final round two-over 75 to finish on three-under in a share of 12^th place in Australia’s flagship professional women’s tournament, co-sanctioned with the Ladies European Tour.

Ko battled the long Commonwealth Golf Club course in Melbourne with a maturity far beyond her years, coping well with the windy conditions.

She finished five shots ahead of her Srixon Academy team-mate Cecilia Cho in the battle for leading amateur, with the two New Zealand Golf representatives and Korean Annie Choi the only amateurs to make the cut.

“That was great to win the top amateur,” said Lydia Ko.

“The course played really long which was the hardest part and sometimes it got really windy today. My putting was not that good today and overall but it worked really well for me yesterday.

“The pin placements were okay and overall it looked much harder to me today.”

Ko said she has learned much after being paired with some of the world’s best players this week.

“All the players I played with this week, like Karen Stupples who has won the British Open, makes me more anxious to become a pro. I learned so much from them especially how to do well with your course management.

Lydia with the Silver Salver for Lowest Amateur and Yani Tseng with the Winners Trophy

“And with great players like Yani and Jiyai here that I have only seen their scorecards on the internet in the past and now I can really see them play and see the difference between me and them and what I need to work on.”

She is going to bypass next week’s ANZ Ladies Masters in Queensland to prepare for the Pegasus New Zealand Open on February 17-20 and also have play at the Coringa and Russley courses, which will be used for April’s New Zealand Amateur Championships.

Cho, 16, from Auckland, started brilliantly today with three birdies in her first eight holes on a day when only eight players fired in red figures.

The winds picked up which saw Cho drop five shots coming home, forced to settle for a competitive two-over 75, the same as Ko, to finish in a share of 35^th place – ahead of a number of top ranked professionals including 2009 New Zealand Open winner Gwladys Nocera and recent New South Wales Open winner Caroline Hedwall.

Defending champion Yani Tseng (TAI) made it two in a row in a one-way battle today, firing a two-under par 71 today to finish on 16-under. She was a stunning seven shots clear of Koreans Eun-Hee Ji and Jiyai Shin, the current world number one, and England’s Melissa Reid, who fired a brilliant five-under 68 today.

Leading scores, after round 4, par 73:

276 Yani Tseng (TAI) 70 67 68 71

283 Jayai Shin (KOR) 67 73 69 75, Eun Hee Ji (KOR) 69 70 70 74, Melissa Reid (ENG) 70 73 72 68

285 Jennifer Song (USA) 67 73 74 71

286 Sandra Gal (GER) 72 71 70 73

287 Katherine Hull (AUS) 73 71 67 76, Cindy LaCrosse (USA) 72 68 73 74, Carrie Web (AUS) 72 71 74 70

288 Nikki Campbell (AUS) 69 72 72 75, Karen Stupples (ENG) 70 76 74 68

289 Lydia Ko (NZL) 73 73 68 75, Nikki Campbell (AUS) 69 72 72 75, Karen Stupples (ENG) 70 76 74 68, So-Yeon Ryu (KOR) 72 69 75 73, Mariajo Uribe (COL) 72 70 70 77

290 Laura Davies 71 76 69 74, Cristel Boeljon (FRA) 75 72 71 72, Rebecca Brewerton (ENG) 71 74 72 72, Tiffany Joh (USA) 70 72 71 77, Hannah Jun (USA_ 72 74 69 75, Christina Kim (USA) 76 68 71 75, Jeehae Lee (KOR) 75 70 71 74

Also

294 Cecilia Cho 73 73 73 75

Her New Zealand Golf team-mate Cecilia Cho shot a third successive even par round of 73 to be in tied for 42^nd place.

Ko, the talk of the Australian golf scene after finishing runner-up in the recent New South Wales Open, surpassed that with her effort today.

She was among 58 players to complete their second rounds this morning after a storm brought a premature close to the opening day.

The delayed third round saw the North Harbour teenager off the 10th hole, mixing a bogey with a birdie in her opening seven holes. Then she turned up the heat in the challenging conditions, making five birdies in her last 11 holes with a superb display.

She has now the leading amateur, with a two shot buffer over Korea’s Annie Choi.

Auckland’s Cho, 16, was again solid with a birdie and a bogey in her round to impress in Australia’s leading event, co-sanctioned by the Australian Ladies Professional Golf and the Ladies European Tour.

World number one Yani Tseng (TAI) continued her brilliant form, firing a five-under 68 to move to 14- under par. She takes a three shot lead into the final round over defending champion Jayai Shin who shot a four-under 69, with fellow Korean Eun-Hee Ji third on 10-under under.

The big move came from Australia’s LPGA player Katherine Hull, who fired the low round of six-under par 67 to jump to fourth place on eight-under.

Leading scores, after round 3, par 73:

205 Yani Tseng (TAI) 70 67 68

208 Jayai Shin (KOR) 67 73 69

209 Eun Hee Ji (KOR) 69 70 70

211 Katherine Hull (AUS) 73 71 67

212 Mariajo Uribe (COL) 72 70 70

213 Nikki Campbell (AUS) 69 72 72, Sandra Gal (GER) 72 71 70, Tiffany Joh (USA) 70 72 71, Cindy LaCrosse (USA) 72 68 73

214 Lydia Ko (NZL) 73 73 68, Nicky Garrett (AUS) 71 72 71, Lee-Anne Pace (SAF) 73 72 69, Jennifer Song (USA) 67 73 74

Also

219 Cecilia Cho 73 73 73

They finished in a share of 33^rd place and qualified for the cut for the final two rounds, with the third round starting off two tees from 2pm local time today.

Ko had just one hole left to complete her second round while Cho birdied her final hole – the par 3 ninth – to get back to even par for the round and the tournament.

World number one Yani Tseng (TAI) has a two shot lead after firing a six-under 67 in her second round. Koreans Eun Hee Ji and defending champion Jayai Shin share second place two shots back on seven-under with Americans Jennifer Song and Cindy LaCrosse sharing fourth place on six-under.

The best of the kiwi professionals was Lynnette Brooky who finished on four-over par after an even 73 today, two shots outside the cut.

The young kiwi amateurs have a fight on their hands to prize the title as leading amateur with Korean Annie Choi leading the way on two-under. Choi won the 15 years division at the Aaron Baddeley International in China last December, on the same score as Auckland’s Cho , who won the 16 years class. The New Zealand champion took the overall honours in a playoff.

Leading scores, round 72:

137 Yani Tseng (TAI) 70 67

139 Eun Hee Ji (KOZR) 69 70, Jayai Shin (KOR) 67 73

140 Jennifer Song (USA) 67 73, Cindy LaCrosse (USA) 72 68

New Zealanders

147 Lydia Ko 73 73, Cecilia Cho 73 73

150 Lynnette Brooky 77 73

153 Sarah Nicholson 73 80

155 Caroline Bon 75 80, Cathryn Bristow 78 77

156 Stacy Tate 80 76

164 Phillis Meti 87 77

Ko is currently in a share of 35^th place and Cho tied for 43^rd with 58 players to complete their second rounds tomorrow (Saturday) before the cut to the top 65 professionals plus ties and any amateurs inside that cut score.

The only other kiwi inside the cut mark at present is experienced European-based professional Lynnette Brooky, who is one-under for her round after 17 holes and three-over for the tournament in a share for 61^st place.

Defending champion Yani Tseng (CHN) holds the clubhouse lead at nine-under par.

Ko made a slow start to be two-over after three holes but was one-under after 12 before dropping two shots on the 15^th and 16^th holes. The 13 year old bounced back to birdie the 17^th before play was halted for the day.

Cho, starting from the 10^th, was all square after the 18^th before a bogey at the 5^th hole – her 14^th – ahead of the stoppage at 6.15pm local time.

Of the other New Zealanders Sarah Nicholson is five-over for the tournament with four holes to play, currently two shots off the cut. Caroline Bon and Cathryn Bristow have missed the cut, in a tie for 120^th on nine over with Stacy Tate one shot back and Phillis Meti on 10-over.

There will be a two-tee start for the third round in the early afternoon after the completion of the second round.

They share that place with Wellington professional Sarah Nicholson with the tournament led by world number one Jiyai Shin and American Jennifer Song who fired six-under par 67s.

Cho, the national amateur champion and runner-up in the Australian Amateur, mixed three birdies with three bogeys in her round. She was two-over after 11 holes but made back-to-back birdies to get back to even par.

Ko, 13, runner-up in the New South Wales Open, was faultless, reeling off 18 straight pars in her round, while Nicholson had two birdies and two dropped shots in her round.

Northland’s Caroline Bon, team-mates of Ko and Cho at the Espirito Santo tournament last year, was the next kiwi with a two-over 75 in her first summer din the professional ranks, mixing three birdies with five bogeys.

First Round New Zealand scores:

73 Cecilia Cho, Lydia Ko, Sarah Nicholson

75 Caroline Bon

77 Lynnette Brooky

78 Cathryn Bristow

80 Stacy Tate

87 Phillis Meti

Left-hander Cathryn Bristow leads the kiwi charge at 7.40am, in the second group off one, with former North Harbour pro Stacey Tate playing with new professional Caroline Bon from Northland at the same time off the 10^th.

Highly experience European-based Lynnette Brooky is in the third group off the 1^st while many eyes will be on 13 year old amateur Lydia Ko, third group off the 10^th with talented Australian Nikki Cambpell and Karine Icher (France).

New Zealand Amateur champion, and Australian runner-up, Cecilia Cho is off at 8.10am with Scotland’s Krystle Caithness and Australian Kate Combes, while Wellington professional Sarah Nicholson is off at 8.30am.

Auckland professional Phillis Meti is the only New Zealander off in the afternoon field with 150 players chasing prizemoney of A$600,000.

Lydia Ko and her NSW Open Trophy

The brilliant young North Harbour student just missed her one metre par putt on the final green that would have forced a playoff with Sweden’s Caroline Hedwall, who won her first tournament as a professional at Oatlands Golf Club.

Ko was 1-up playing the last in the Australian Ladies Professional Tour (ALPG) event before Hedwall made a slick downhill birdie on the final green and the young kiwi three-putted.

Had the New Zealand golf representative prevailed, she would have become the youngest player to ever win a professional event on the ALPG, with Amy Yang the youngest when she won the 2006 ANZ Ladies Masters at age 16.

Ko and Hedwall both shot two-under par 70 today with the Swede winning on 11-under par and the New Zealander one shot back.

Lydia hitting into 16 in final round – photo The Daily Telegraph

Despite the obvious disappointment, it was another remarkable achievement from Ko, who finished seventh in the Pegasus New Zealand Open last year.

“I guess I am a little disappointed but overall I am still proud of myself for how far I got,” Ko said.

“I think I played good but putting sometimes didn’t help me. I think it is getting more consistent on the greens and going in the right direction for the Australian open in Melbourne.

“I had a chip-in today and did some good recovery shots which helped get me in the mood and the rhythm.”

She tried not to let the occasion get the better of her today.

“I was nervous at the start and the end. There were people here to support me which helped.

“Before the tournament I did not even think of going to the final round although inside me I always want to win. You have to have everything together going good to win and on the first nine today some of my putting did not help me.”

She tried to blot out the situation when she stood on the par-3 final hole one shot ahead of Hedwall.

“We both played well today. I knew I had a shot at winning. But Caroline had a really nice downhill putt that went in which did not surprise me. I hit my downhill putt too big and just missed the par putt.

“Overall I am pretty proud of myself and where I got to was pretty good for someone my age. I think I have learned a lot from this. I will get a lot of confidence about it and next time I have that putt I will be dead straight with it.”

Hedwall, 21, enjoyed her professional debut after a stellar amateur career. She won the NCAA individual title in the US last year and also took out the Ladies European Tour final qualifying by a massive nine shots last month.

Australian professional Stephanie Na shot a three-under 69 to finish third on eight-under, a shot clear of a quartet including American Ryann O’Toole and leading Australians Sarah Kemp, Katherine Hull and top prospect Kristie Smith, who fired a tournament-low six-under 66 today.

European-based professional Lynnette Brooky was the next best of the kiwis on one-under par in a share of 13^th place with the great Laura Davies, while Northland’s Caroline Bon was tied for 26^th on three-over in her first full tournament as a professional.

The players have a tournament in Canberra next week followed by the Handa Australian Open in Melbourne and the ANZ Ladies Masters on the Gold Coast ahead of the Pegasus New Zealand Open in Christchurch on 17-20 February.

Final leading scores, NSW Open, par 72, all professional unless stated:

205 Caroline Hedwall (SWE) 67 68 70

206 Lydia Ko (NZL, am) 68 68 70

208 Stephanie Na (AUS) 70 69 69

209 Kristie Smith (AUS) 72 71 66, Ryan O’Toole (USA) 73 69 67, Sarah Kemp (AUS) 71 67 71, Katherine Hull (AUS) 71 69 69

210 Breanna Elliott (AUS, am) 72 68 70

211 Sarah-Jane Smith (AUS) 68 70 73

212 Rachel Bailey (AUS) 76 67 69

Other New Zealanders:

215 Lynnette Brooky 73 70 72

219 Caroline Bon 68 76 75

222 Sarah Nicholson 75 75 72

226 Wendy Hawkes 72 79 75

At 13 years old, she was attempting to become the youngest player to ever win an Australian Ladies Professional Golf Tour major tournament.

She shot a final round two-under 70 to finish on 10-under par at Oatlands Golf Club.

At 13 years old, she was attempting to become the youngest player to ever win an Australian Ladies Professional Golf Tour major tournament.

She was one shot behind going into the final round, but took the lead for the first time at the 17^th when Sweden professional Caroline Hedwall, attempting to win her first pro tournament, dropped a shot. However Hedwall, the NCAA champion who won the Ladies European Tour qualifying by nine shots last month, made a birdie at the last while Ko could made a bogey to see the Swede win.

The North Harbour player, looking to become the youngest ever winner of an Australian Ladies Professional Golf Tour event, made two birdies in her first nine holes.

However the 21-year-old Hedwall, top qualifier in the Ladies European Tour qualifying school last month, has fired three birdies to extend her lead to two shots over the young kiwi.

Australian Sarah Kemp is third on eight under while fellow Australian Kristie Smith is the big mover, six-under after 15 holes today to move to seven-under with compatriot Stephanie Na.

Ko fired five birdies with one dropped shot in her round in a superb display as she chases a place in history in tomorrow’s final round of the 54-hole tournament. The North Harbour player would become the youngest player in history to win a major tournament on the Australasian Ladies Professional Golf Tour. She would surpass Any Yang who won the ANZ Masters five years ago as an amateur.

“I’d actually be honoured to win,” Ko said. “I just want to play the best I can, rather than caring about the score. It is a pros tournament and I feel proud of myself to play in this tournament. Not many people can get in here, so I am honoured and proud of myself.”

Australians Sarah Jane Smith and Sarah Kemp share third place on six-under par, a shot ahead of compatriot Stephanie Na.

Five New Zealanders made the cut with Lynnette Brooky in a share of 11th place on one-under. Northland’s Caroline Bon, playing in her first full professional event, is in a share of 17th place on even par after a four-over 76 today.

Also making the cut was Sarah Nicholson on six-over and Wendy Hawkes on seven-over.

Leading scores:

135 Caroline Hedwall (SWE) 67 68

136 Lydia Ko (NZL, am) 68 68

138 Sarah Jane Smith (AUS) 68 70, Sarah Kemp (AUS) 71 67

139 Stephanie Na (AUS) 70 69

140 Katherine Hull (AUS) 71 74, Breanna Elliott (AUS, am) 72 68.

Other New Zealanders:

143 Lynnette Brooky 73 70

144 Caroline Bon 68 76

150 Sarah Nicholson 75 75

Joining her is her Espirito Santo World team-mate Lydia Ko, the remarkable 13 year old from North harbour.

In fact the teenager had the outright lead at one stage at seven-under before a bogey and double She is not new to the scene, having impressed seasoned professionals when she finished seventh in the Pegasus New Zealand Open last year.

The kiwi pair share second place with Denmark’s Mianne Bagger and former world number one, Laura Davies.

Of the other New Zealanders Wendy Hawkes is in a share of 19^th on even par 72, Lynnette Brooky is 27^th after a one-over 73, Sarah Nicholson in 37^th on three-over, Cathryn Bristow shot an 82, Phillis Meti 83 and Angela Hawkes 89.

Posts from NZ Golf



The New Zealand golf team fired a four-under 140 to move up the leaderboard after the second round of the World Women’s Team Championship for the Espirito Santo Trophy in Argentina this morning (NZ time).
The youngest player in the field, 13-year-old Lydia Ko (igolf) led the way with a three-under par 69 today with Cecilia Cho shooting a one-under 71, while yesterday’s leader, Caroline Bon had the non-counting 78.
New Zealand had a chance to make a significant inroad on the leaderboard when Cho worked her way to five-under par with four holes to play. However she faded to drop four shots in her closing holes.
The kiwis are currently up to a share of 16th place early in the second round with Korea the huge movers on the second day, firing a remarkable combined total of 16-under par for their two best scores. The Queen Sirikit Cup champions were led by a nine-under 63 by Ji-Hee Kim and 65 by Jung-Eun Han to jump to 15-under par overall and the clubhouse lead from the early finishers.

Click here to visit the tournament site.

Click here official tournament leader board

The Junior Interprovincial is hosted by the Waikato Golf Association and comprises of the 8 major associations in the North Island (Waikato, Auckland, North Harbour, Northland, Manawatu/Wanganui, Hawkes Bay, Bay of Plenty and Eastlands). It comprises of 7 rounds of straight head to head match play over 4 days and each team comprises of a districts top 5 Under 19 players and top 3 Under 16 players.

North Harbour went through the 4 days unbeaten to claim the title. They defeated Waikato (4½ to 3½), Northland (5½ to 2½), Eastland (7-1), Hawkes Bay (5-3) and Manawatu/Wanganui (6-2). Waikato, a point behind and playing catch up after their first round loss to North Harbour, were also winning all their games (bar the 1^st round loss) and by great margins meaning they were heading the individual match point rankings. However if North Harbour could gain 2 wins or a win and a halve for their final two matches on the last day they would claim the title due to having the greater team points. It was nervous last day as in the morning North Harbour took on the always difficult Bay of Plenty. In an extremely tight match the result concluded with both sides on 4 points each. Therefore in their afternoon match against old rivals Auckland, they would have to win 4½ points to claim the Interprovincial. In the end North Harbour would comfortably beat an out of sorts Auckland team 5½ to 2½ to take top honours.

The team consisted of Cameron Jones (Institute of Golf), James Beale (Institute of Golf), Jonathan Park (North Shore), Aaron Garnett (Warkworth), Jason Gulasekharam (North Shore), Jerry Ren (Gulf Harbour), Harry Yang (Pupuke) and Vinnie Isherwood (Waitemata). The team was managed by North Harbour Junior Director Rangi Lemon with assistance from North Harbour past president and current senior manager George Newlove. Congratulations to the side on an emphatic victory, the district is very proud of their achievement.

For each days scoring CLICK HERE

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MoQNCRLLOw]

The women’s team will be led by 15-year-old Cecilia Cho (Auckland) with 13-year-old Lydia Ko from the Institute of Golf and 22-year-old Caroline Bon (Whangarei).
The men’s team will be led by Masterton’s Ben Campbell along with Ryan Fox (Auckland) and Peter Spearman-Burn (Wellington).

“It has been a very competitive process to select the team and we believe we have two very strong teams to represent New Zealand Golf at both the Eisenhower and Espirito Santo events,” New Zealand Golf High Performance Manager, Simon Poll said.

“Our selection process has been rigorous and we have challenged our Srixon Academy players thoroughly both with results on the course and in terms of their fitness regimes, strength and conditioning off the course.

“These six players have stood out with their on-course and off-course results.”

Campbell, 18, has been the outstanding amateur male this year, earning runner-up in the Australian Amateur Championship. The highlight for the former Aaron Baddeley International champion was his victory against professionals at the Tauranga Open on the Charles Tour this year. He is New Zealand’s top ranked amateur player at No 19 in the world.

Fox, 23, is a big hitting player who was a semifinalist at the Australian Amateur, third at the Tauranga Open and recently won the Grant Clements at Mt Maunganui by 10 shots. He is currently competing in the United States in some of amateur golf’s toughest events.

Spearman-Burn dominated amateur golf last year winning the North and South Island titles as well as finishing third in the prestigious Asian Amateur Championships in China on his way to the NZ Amateur of the Year Award. While his form early in the year did not match his 2009 success, he was in outstanding form to be fourth in the Waikato Winter Strokeplay and won the Bay of Plenty Open last week by 10 shots.

The women’s team is headed by newcomers Cho and Ko (igolf), who have dominated the game in this country for the last two years.

Cho is the current national amateur champion as well as the Australian strokeplay winner and runner-up in the Australian Amateur. Last year she won 15 individual titles in a remarkable period of performance.

Ko (igolf) won the North Island Amateur title convincingly before finishing fourth individual in the Queen Sirikit Cup, and she stunned many in finishing seventh in the Pegasus New Zealand Women’s Open, a co-sanctioned event with the ALPG and Ladies European Tour.

Bon won the New Zealand Strokeplay title this year and was leading amateur at the Tauranga Open. She also competed in the Korean Open professional event. Their youth is no concern for New Zealand Golf.

“As well as Cecilia and Lydia being our two leading players on rankings, their youth is a benefit to the team in terms of bringing in a real spark and enthusiasm. They showed that at the Queen Sirikit Cup,” Mr Poll said.

New Zealand Golf has a goal of top-10 for both the men and women from over 50 countries competing in the women’s event and 60 in the men’s.

Competition takes place on two courses. The host is the demanding Buenos Aires GC, host of the Argentine Open and renowned for its severe mounding, thick round and fast greens. The nearby Olivos GC is a parkland course, tree-lined with tight dog-legged fairways and fast greens.

The best performances for the New Zealand women in the contest that began in 1964 were runners-up at Switzerland in 1982 and Christchurch in 1990. They were 21st in Adelaide in 2008.

The men had their success in the Eisenhower Trophy that began in 1958 with the famous win at Canada in 1992. They have also finished runner-up on two occasions – in Spain in 1970 and also in Christchurch in 1990. They were 11th in Adelaide in 2008.

The teams are:
Eisenhower Trophy: Ben Campbell (Masterton GC), Ryan Fox (Royal Auckland GC), Peter Spearman-Burn (Miramar GC). Reserve: Nick Gillespie (Royal Wellington GC).
Espirito Santo Trophy: Cecilia Cho (Pakuranga CC), Lydia Ko (Institute of Golf), Caroline Bon (Whangarei GC). Reserve: Emily Perry (Lochiel GC).

Lydia @ igolf with Director of Physiotherapy Brad Takai

strokes. The 54 hole event was played at the North Shore Golf Course over the weekend in pretty average weather.

The players played 27 holes each day to battle out for the title. First round leader Hanee Song (72) had a 2 shot lead going into the last 9 of the first day over Ye Song Park (igolf). Lydia was sitting 4th with a +4 76 after a rough first round then was even after the first 9 of the 2nd round.

Lydia came out firing on Sunday shooting -4 for the last 9 of the 2nd round to finish even after 2 rounds and held a 1 shot lead going into the last 18.

Cecilia Cho was sitting 3rd at +2. Lydia then shot another -4 round of 68 to win by 5 shots over fellow NZ representitive Cho and 7 shots ahead of 1st round leader Song.

Institute of Golf member Courtney Manning finished 4th with a pair of 73′s to finish.

Great win by igolf’s talented Ko, who when the putter runs hot, will be unstopable.

More details when they come to hand.

54 Hole Classic – Championship – 13/06/10 – Round 3

Mike after holing his 6 footer for birdie on the 18th

Hendry claimed his third Charles Tour title, holding off a brilliant charge from Auckland professional Richard Lee, who equalled the course record with a six-under 66 to finish a shot behind Hendry.

Both players fly out for Asia with Hendry headed to the One Asia Tour event in Seoul and Lee for two tournaments in Japan.

And both produced golf of the highest quality in an enthralling day.

Hendry, starting the day with a three shot lead, had the field under seemingly control until a bogey at the 16^th and a Lee birdie reduced the margin to just one shot. Both players parred the 17^th hole before Lee nailed a 7m birdie putt on the 18^th to draw level with Hendry on 16-under par for the tournament.

Hendry was up to the challenge, bagging a solid 2.5m birdie to secure the win.

He finished on 17-under, a shot back to Lee with fellow Auckland professional Marcus Wheelhouse firing a four-under 68 today to finish third on 12-under, his best finish as a professional in this country.

Another Institute of Golf professional Brad Shilton enjoyed two rounds of five-under 67 at the weekend to jump up to fourth place on 11-under, one shot ahead of a bevy of players including professionals Dale Clarke (igolf), Mahal Pearce (Dunedin) and Grant Moorhead (New Plymouth) and leading amateurs Daniel Pearce (Hastings) and Scott Wightman (Mangawhai).

Hendry, who finished runner-up at the Tauranga Open after two Charles Tour wins last year, said he was confident over his winning putt.

“I was fairly comfortable with that putt on the last. As soon as Richard stood over his putt I knew he would hole it. He had been putting pressure on all day,” Hendry said.

“I kept saying to myself that I would need to get this to win and luckily I had that attitude or it might have been a different story.”

The 30 year old reckons his game has continued to improve to a stage where he can be competitive in top company.

”I am really happy with the way my game is developing. I am getting consistency which bodes well for the future especially if you want to make money in this game.

“Putting myself in positions to win quite a lot has taught me a lot and will hopefully stand me in good stead.

“I’d like to think it is just a matter of time now before I win a big one. I think I have matured a lot over the last few years and have a consistent game that can do well at the top level.”

Lee too has made big gains in both the Tauranga Open, where he scored that remarkable 59, and this week at Muriwai, a course he rates hugely.

“I would have liked to have won here because it’s such a good course,” Lee said. “I played really well today but just missed a few short putts that made the difference.

“It could have been one of those rounds where I went really deep but still I played well so I am more than happy. Mike is a really good player so good on him. This has given me some confidence now and I am playing well.”

Wheelhouse, a tour player for more than a decade, was thrilled with his effort considering he spends little time on his game as a teaching professional and a new father.

“Attitude is everything when you are playing golf. I’ve got the picket fence and family and someone to care for now so I have some real balance in my life which is great.

“I think as a pro I was always very hard on myself. Now through teaching others I have learned that it was not the way to go and I am calmer. This is fun and I enjoyed it.”

Pearce said he had a point to prove after being dropped from the Srixon Academy last week.

“That was disappointing. But I have been playing well in these last two events and was really happy with my play here. I just have to keep making the scores and hopefully I can get back into the academy,” Pearce said.

The Charles Tour resumes in the spring with the Youthtown Wairakei Open in September.

Leading scores, round 4, Muriwai GC, par 72:

271 Michael Hendry (igolf)67 68 68 68

272 Richard Lee (North Harbour) 68 67 71 66

276 Marcus Wheelhouse (Auckland) 68 70 70

277 Brad Shilton (igolf) 70 73 67 67

278 Dale Clarke (igolf) 68 68 70 72

The first day of the competition saw us in fine weather with the temperature at 24 degrees and a moderate breeze pick up in the afternoon which was coming from the opposite direction from yesterday.

Institute of Golf’s Lydia Ko was the best of our players today with a 1 under 71 which places her in second place in the girls event which is 4 shots behind the leader. The good news is that she wasn’t happy with her round and said she left a few shots out there, especially with her putts.

I caddied for Faye and can attest to the fact that there are many bunkers on this course as it felt like I was forever raking bunkers. Faye managed to shoot 79 despite struggling a little off the tee and also finding the going a little tough on the greens.

Tim, par 72, played well and is playing with confidence but he also left a number of shots on the greens missing a few reasonably short putts.

Ryan, 76, was very frustrated as he managed to hit all 14 fairways and 15 greens in regulation, parring the first 13 holes, but slipped with 4 bogies in last 5 holes. He had 35 putts so also struggled on the greens.

So all in all a fair day although all the team are looking forward to having a fewer number of putts tomorrow.

We ended the day with some practice and then had the feet up recharging for tomorrow.

From NZ Golf’s acting team managers blog.