The Shirley Open..............

The Shirley Open figures large in our calendar as a major event where the Club is able to gain significant public profile particularly since it has formed part of The Charles Tour as a four day pro-am event. This year's Open was enhanced by the commitment of Sir Bob Charles to play in the tournament. In addition we were able to attract a full field of Pro's and Amateurs including former Asian Tour player and New Zealand Open winner Mahal Pearce and the well performed Grant Moorhead.

Following on from last year's successful Tour programme the Women's section was expanded and reshaped to be a 54 hole event. In all 10 Women took part and the eventual winner was Emily Perry from Lochiel with Caroline Bon (Northland) in second and Zoe Brake (Whakatane) in third. The Christchurch Golf Club was represented by Jessica Guenzerodt, who has recently joined the Club, and finished fourth. Jessica had an outstanding 74, a par round, on the final day to shoot up the leaderboard and almost make it into the prize winners. Given her performance over the three days we are confident she will continue to be successful in other events.

In 2008 Christchurch member Sam Ma contended for the overall title and this year we were once again looking for a strong Christchurch presence. The field contained a number of our leading players - Tom Turner, Brad Clark, Peter McDougall, Drew Butcher and Mitchell Vincent as well as some with Christchurch connections such as Fraser Callaway, Ben McMillan and Jordan Bakermans. Unfortunately only Tom Turner and Jordan Bakermans made the cut. In the professional ranks our eyes were focused on Anthony Doyle and Carl Brooking whom we both regard as "home town boys".

I think it fair to say the weather conditions over the four days of the tournament were indeed varied and difficult especially with the strong North-easterly on the Saturday. Perhaps relishing a home course advantage Ant Doyle started strongly to be the first round leader with a 67 and it was a position he did not relinquish at any time during the Open following it with a 68 on Saturday and a 69 on Sunday to have a substantial 8 shot lead going into the final round.

Sir Bob Charles had played consistent golf with rounds of 74 & 75 to make the cut and then to move into closer contention with a 70 (shooting under his age again) on Sunday. One of the highlights of the weekend and the tournament was Sir Bob holing out his second shot on 18 during the Saturday round. Unfortunately he was unable to reproduce that form on the Monday but his participation was an inspiration to the other players, tournament officials and spectators alike especially as he carried his Clubs for five straight days.

Finishing as the leading Amateur after four rounds was Sean Riordan from Takaka at one over par on 289 and tied 5th overall. In a strong performance Jordan Bakermans finished as the 5th amateur and 17th overall with 295 - seven over par. The other top Amateurs were Simon Brownlee (Gulf Harbour), Matthew Perry (Hamilton), & Vaughan McCall (Gore).

However on the Monday most attention was focused on Anthony Doyle and his effort to win the Shirley Open for the first time. Playing the alternate course Ant carded a one over 37 on the front nine which is usually regarded as being the most difficult and as yet no one seemed to be making any significant inroads into his lead. Unfortunately Ant suffered a few speed bumps on the back nine including a double and a lost ball to see his lead dramatically reduce. It was to his credit that he put those matters behind him to par 17 and ultimately birdie 18 to finish a winner by four shots. A result that was warmly welcomed by all the Christchurch members in attendance and well celebrated!

Finishing tied in second both returning the best rounds of the day with 69's were Matthew Holten and Scott Hill at 285 a total of 3 under par. Troy Ropiha finished fourth with Riki Borell, Mahal Pearce, and Andrew Searle in fifth along with Sean Riordan. It was a great wire to wire victory by Ant and given the amount of time and effort he had spent preparing one that was well deserved.

The Shirley Open was a great success and a superb advertisement for the Christchurch Golf Club and the course we now need to ensure we maximise the benefits we have achieved.