Southland Golf -Matarua Golf Club winners.

The Mataura Golf Club is celebrating two days of success at the local pennant finals held at Gore Golf Club recently.
Saturday saw the conclusion of the Men's Vice President and Women's Weekend Pennant finals held at Gore Golf Club. Heavy midweek rain across the district made going tough for the morning semi-final matches.
With five teams represented across the finals, Mataura had high expectations of success, looking to secure at least one flag for 2023. 
 
MLT Vice President Mens Finals
Mataura had reason to be confident coming up against Greenacres in the first semi-final after heading into the weekend as the top seed after the round-robin. Greenacre's top pairing of Matt Tautari and Ollie Piggott had other plans posting big wins for their team early, putting the pressure back on the Mataura tail to fire. Adam Newton (Mataura) was the next match finished, getting the top seeds on the scorecard, which left the tie evenly poised, with the remaining games all looking like going the distance. 
Wins on the final holes for Wayne Hunt and Nathan Piggott and a half for Stu Coburn resulted in a comfortable win for Greenacres and a place in the afternoon final against the winner of the matches unfolding on the other side of the course. 
Invercargill GC always held the upper hand against Queens Park in the second semi-final. Chris McMillian, Murray Paterson, Dan O'Conner, and Tony Clay all posted early wins before Liam Balneaves finished the tie-off with a 3/2 win over Liam Hewitt. Park's Daniel Kelliher picked up his side's only win in what ended up being a one-sided encounter. 
The afternoon final, a rematch of the final round-robin match that ended in a hard-fought draw between Invercargill and Greenacres, was set to be a battle of attrition as the drizzle continued to soften the course. 
Invercargill came out from lunch with more than just food in their bellies, firing up to put their noses in front early. Liam Balneaves continued his top form, accounting for Matt Tautari 6/5 to complete his series with only one defeat against Tautari in the earlier rounds. Tony Clay and Murray Paterson then put one hand on the trophy for Invercargill with wins over Nathan Piggott and Stu Coburn, meaning the remaining three games all had to fall in Greenacre's favour to force a playoff. Chris McMillian (Invercargill) did enough to win 2/1 over Wayne Hunt to effectively end the tie and give Invercargill its first Vice President title in five years. Garry Tucker and teenager Ollie Piggott finished with wins for a gallant Greenacres side.  
Mataura made amends for their semi-final defeat by beating Queens Park 5-1 in the playoff match to secure the third position. 

MLT Womens Weekend Finals
It was a case of which, if any, Mataura team would make the final of the inaugural Women's Weekend pennant semi-finals. 
Mataura had two teams qualify for the semi-finals, a fantastic effort for the small eastern Southland club. Mataura 1 qualified top in their division and took on the Gilmour Rosebowl holders Waikaka in the first semi-final. 
It was the Waikaka team that gained the early momentum with wins to Fayeanne Lamb and Deborah Aynsley-Hunt, putting all the pressure onto Mataura's leading pair of Teena McColl and Raha Borlase to register victories to secure the finals spot on countback. Borlase obliged with a 4/3 win over Sharon Irwin, leaving it to the final match to decide the first finalist. The drama intensified as Janis Steel (Waikaka) and Teena McColl (Mataura) were all square playing the last hole, with McColl needing a win to secure her team's progression to the final. Steel's double bogey six allowed McColl to secure the victory with a bogey or better, which she duly accepted, advancing Mataura to the final.
The second semi-final between Invercargill and Mataura Mates was also a close-fought contest. Invercargill had led the way throughout the round-robin matches amassing the best record of all fifteen teams. 
Mataura Mates earned their semi-final spot courtesy of the highest-finishing runner-up in pool play. 
Invercargill number one Olivia Frost continued her fine form beating Mataura's Andrea Russell 5/3, getting the town team off to a great start. Sam Walker (Mataura) soon had the scores level with an equally impressive win over Janet Anderson. Val Ross (Mataura) was the next one to secure a 3/2 win leaving the tie on the line for Raewyn Hartley (Invercargill) and Annette Thompson (Mataura) to decide. Thompson secured the victory heading into their final hole 1UP, only requiring a half to advance her team to the final. 
So it was down to Mataura Mates v Mataura 1 to decide the winners of the inaugural Womens Weekend Pennantsfor 2023 
Mataura Mates got off to a hot start, Christine Tamou and Nikki Clark avenging their morning defeats to post comfortable wins. Fading light then became an issue for the remaining matches, with Mataura Mates requiring an outright win to secure the banner, requiring at least one victory still out on the course. Raha Borlase was ahead early against Sam Walker, but a spirited fightback from Walker pushed the match to the wire, with Borlase eventually holding on for the win and her team's prized victory.
Invercargill finished in third spot defeating Waikaka 2.5-1.5 in the playoff match. 

MLT Mens Handicap Pennants Final.
Sunday presented much better conditions for the fifteen teams battling it out for the MLT Handicap pennant finals, with cool temperatures and sunshine greeting the players at Gore Golf Club. 
Heading to the finals, several teams staked claims for this year's trophy. Defending Champions Dipton came to the finals after leading their division all Summer and were hoping to repeat their 2022 efforts in familiar surroundings. Riversdale, Mataura, and hosts Gore all had two teams in the final action increasing the odds of a local club lifting the flag for 2023. 
As play got underway, it was soon apparent that this year's final would come down to one or two individual performances. The soft fairways on the undulating course emphasized clean ball striking and accuracy off the tee, while the receptive green surfaces allowed all players to score low if they could find the smooth putting surfaces in regulation. 
Doug Clark (Mataura) led the scoring with a nett 65, followed by teammate Adam Newton with a 66. These scores gave the Mataura Club a healthy lead in the best three of four aggregate scores. Host club Gore led by Kory Davis and Graham Waddall, both posting nett 70s, had them sitting in the clubhouse on a total of 215 after Paul Hurley added a counting score of 75.
Mataura, however, were not to be denied their second flag of the weekend when team captain John Dickie came in with a nett 76 to add to the team aggregate of 207, giving the small eastern club double the reason to celebrate a successful weekend at Gore Golf Club