2017 KAIMAI CLASSIC GOLF TOURNAMENT.

Held jointly at Mount Maunganui and Omanu Golf Clubs.

Saturday/Sunday        3rd & 4th June 2017.

The 34th Kaimai Classic “Stableford” Tournament involved 175 players from around the North Island and supported by sponsors Mount Pro Shop as lead sponsor assisted with by The Farmers and McDonalds.

Perfect fine weather set the scene for play on two very well prepared courses, providing the opportunity to play winning golf over the 36 holes – 18 holes on each course.   Did not quite work out for many !.

There were 36 out-of-district clubs represented in the Kaimai Classic which included an 11 player contingent from Pirongia, 9 from Taranaki (Fitzroy & Ngamutu), 6 from Waikato, 25 from Auckland clubs.  

Players certainly enjoyed the chance to play these two top courses and with players from other courses although scoring was a mixture of very good and a surprisingly number of so-so scores on both days and courses.

Enjoyable evening entertainment with “Batsman” Tony Wellington was well supported and lively.

Mount Maunganui Golf Club players almost scooped the pool for the top stableford division prizes.

Winners:     Women:    Silver   Sue Aitken            Bronze         Joann Neylon

       Men:         SeniorMichael Williams   Intermediate. Wayne Ashworth

However the player of the tournament was Pete Morris from Pirongia whose 46 and 43 to win the Junior Division and eclipsed the total field stablefords.

Impressive stableford scores over the two rounds were:

      Women field     Omanu Course:    Joann Neylon (Mount) and Pauline Tolley (Omanu) - 41’s

                              Mount Maunganui Course:           Sarah Andrews(Remuera)  38.

      Men’s field      Mount Maunganui Course.    Jon Scott (Waitakere) 44,

Wayne Ashworth (Mount Maunganui) 41, Graeme Bayly 40 (Te Awamutu)

Omanu Course.

 Pete Morris (Pirongia) 46,  Norm Thompson (Omanu) 43,   Pete Morris (Pirongia)  43, David George (Omanu) 43. Murray Russell42, Kevin Neylon (Mount Maunganui) 41.

Leading gross scores were posted by Karl Knedler (Tauranga) (70/73)  143 and BrittneyDryland 75/74).

Day One:                                Saturday

Women Divisions 1 & 2.                     Mount Maunganui Golf Course

Gross.              Brittney Dryland (Titirangi) and Julie Gee (Riverside) were locked at 75 gross.

Stableford Division 1. Julie Gee (Riverside) 37, led from Sue Aitken (Mount Maunganui) 35 and Karen Iles (Omanu(34).

Stableford Division 2   Sarah Andrews (Remuera) 38 led Judith Redgrave (South Head) 36.

Men Divisions                                     Omanu Golf Course

Division 1        Gross

   Karl Knedler (Tauranga) 70 set a solid pace with Jack Trower (Matamata) 73 following.

Division 1        Stableford                    Omanu Golf Course

Early pace was set by Peter Tipler (Omanu) & Justin Park (Tauranga) 39’s,  with James Golding (Omanu) and Thomas Neylon (Remuera) 37’s just behind.

Division 2        Stableford                    Omanu  Golf Course   

A strong 43 by Norm Thompson (Omanu) led from Robert Cargill (Buckley) , Darren Young (Omanu) with 39’s and Mac Robertson 38.

 Division 3       Stableford        Mount Maunganui

Blistering from Pete Morris (Pirongia) with a hot 46, only 6 ahead of Graeme Bayly’s (Te Awamutu) 40, the next best Murray Russell (Omanu) 38 and David George (Omanu)37.     

Day 2.             Sunday           Final day

Weather was even better for day 2 setting the scene for what could be some great golf, close contests with all out attacks to be launched on the leading round one players.

Women.

Gross:             Omanu

Brittney Dryland (Titirangi) 74 with her Saturday 75, set the target of 149 which Julie Gee (Riverside) could not match, finishing with a 78 and a total of153.

Runner-up in the gross was Aprile Everitt (Omaha Beach) 83/83 a total of 166 as Julie Gee and Sue Aitken had claimed the top stableford prizes.

Division1       Stableford.                   Omanu

A close contest with 2 players tied after 36 holes.

Winner, Sue Aitken (Mount Maunganui) with another 35 a total of 70 was matched by Julie Gee (Riverside)  (37/33) also with a total of 70 with Sue Aitken winning on count back.

Division   2.     Stableford                    Omanu

Another close contest that in the end was decided by one point.

41’s by both Joann Neylon (Mount Maunganui) and Pauline Tolley (Omanu) was enough for Joanne Neylon (69) to win the stableford (28/41), one point ahead ofPauline Tolley’s total of 68 (27/41).

Combined Women Division

Scoring better stablefords, the silver group filled 5th to 9th place with the Bronze players only managing to fill the last 3 positions.      Close contests for all positions.

38 by Mary Chantry (Tauranga) 31/38 = 69, finished 5th ,  6th position to Jan Davies 33/36 =69 and  7th place to Jullie Hawkes (Remuera)  29/38 = 67.

Men                 Gross               Mount Maunganui

Jack Trower’s late run of 71 to add to his round 1 73 - a total 144, almost saw him overhaul the winner Karl Knedler whose 73 and 70 from round 1 - a total of 143, one shot clear. 

James Golding (Omanu) finishing 3rd with a total of 149.

Division 1        Stableford.                   MountMaunganui

A hot 39 by Michael Williams, (Mount Maunganui Club Manager and a left-hand golfer), saw his late move overtake a number to move into the lead with 35/39 = 74.

James Golding scored 2 rounds of 37 to finish on a total of 74.   Only lost on countback.

Thomas Neylon (Remuera) also with consistent rounds of 37/36 finished on 73 and 1 adrift but 2 back was Tony Cliff (Whitford Park) on (34/37) total 71.

Division   2                  Stableford        Mount Maunganui

Change was on the cards and it did happen.

Wayne Ashworth (Mount Maunganui) solid score 37 in round 1set him up well and with his final round score of 41 for a total of 78 placed him 1 ahead of the next best.

Fast finishing Jon Scott (Waitakere) with 44 points  tried valiantly to overtake but the 33 from his round 1 and a total of 77 could not quite close the gap, a similar result for Robert Cargill’s (Buckley) 39/38 = 77, finishing 3rd on countback.

Division 3                    Stableford                    Omanu

This is where the action was, but it all came from one player.    

Pete Morris (Pirongia) showed his 10 other Pirongia club players and the field how to score.

Not content with his 46 in round 1 and showing no mercy to other players, Pete Morris made every post a winning post to score 43 for round 2 – giving a total of 89 points.    Awesome.

6 other players trying their best and scoring 40+ points, but could not threaten Pete’s lead.

David George (Omanu)  43 points and Russell Murray (Omanu) 42 points finished 9 points behind.

 

Ray Horsfall

Tournament Convenor.

Results:

Women.

Gross   Brittney   Dryland        Titirangi                       75/74   149

            Julie        Gee               Riverside                     75/78   153

            Sue         Aitken           Mount Maunganui       82/81   163

            Aprile   Everitt           Omaha Beach              83/83   166     

Stableford:

            Silver Division

                        Sue      Aitken   Mount Maunganui    35/35   70

Julie     Gee         Riverside                  37/33   70

Bronze Division

Joann   Neylon    Mount Maunganui    28/41   69

Pauline Tolley   Omanu                      27/41   68

            All Women:

                        Mary    Chantry               Tauranga                   31/38   69

                        Jan       Davies     Omanu                     33/36   69

                        Julie     Hawkes                Remuera                  29/38   67

                        Trudy   MorrisonHuapai                     31/36   67

                        Karen   Iles           Omanu                     34/33   67

                        Shirley Pye          Omanu                     31/35   66

                        Rae      Holmes                Mount Maunganui   22/32   65

Men

Gross:             Karl   Knedler                        Tauranga          70/73   143

                        Jack     Trower             Matamata         73/71   144

                        James   Golding            Omanu             74/75   149

                        SimonJoyce               Royal Auckland 74/76 150

Stableford

Division 1        Michael     Williams     Mount Maunganui       35/39   74

                        James        Golding       Omanu                         37/37   74

                        Thomas                 Neylon        Remuera                      37/36   73

                        Tony         Cliff                        Whitford Park              34/37   71

                        Dave        Singer          Waitakere                    36/34   70

                        Clint         Southam      Mount Maunganui       36/34   70

                        Jack        Trower          Matamata                     33/36   69

                        Jordan   Samuels        Omanu                         34/35   69

                        Horrocks Rainsford     Royal Auckland                       34/35   69

                        Karl        Knedler         Tauranga                      35/34   69

                        Steven   Fair               Akarana                       32/36   68

                        Glen        Ellia              Omanu                         35/33   68       

Division2       Wayne Ashworth         Mount Maunganui       37/41   78

Jon       Scott                Waitakere                    33/44   77

RobertCargill              Buckley                       39/38   77

Neil      Weber              Omanu                         36/36   72

Mac     Roberston        Mount Maunganui       38/34   72

Jim       Kirkham          Te Awamutu                33/38   71

Norm   Thompson       Omanu                         43/28   71

Raymond Everitt          Warkworth                   35/34   69

TrevorMcKenzie        Omanu                         36/33   69

Barry   Mathews          Titirangi                       30/37   67       

Division3       Pete      Morris            Pirongia                       46/43   89

David   George             Omanu                         37/43   80

Murray Russell             Omanu                         38/42   80

Kevin   Neylon             Mount Maunganui       35/41   76

StevenCrosby             Aviation                       36/39   75

Graeme            Bayly               Te Awamutu                40/35   75

Paul     Alexandre        Mount Maunganui       35/38   73

BarryPollett              Omanu                         37/36   73

Graeme            Prestige                        Omanu                         35/37   72

Peter    McKinnon       Omanu                         31/40   71