Golf: Northland trio crash badly in Manawatu

Kadin Neho opened the event. Photo/Thinkstock

Northland's trio of golfers taking part in the opening Charles Tour event at the Manawatu Golf Club failed to fire a shot at the leaders, with the best finisher sitting in a share of 49th.

Whangarei's Kadin Neho was the best finisher of the bunch, and the only one to make the cut, but had a shocker of a second round which meant it was to be an uphill battle.

Neho opened the event, which ran from Thursday until Sunday, with a respectable even par 72 in difficult conditions.

However, the New Zealand Amateur Champion slipped from 10th equal to 49th thanks to rounds of 80, 73, and 77. Neho eventually finished 25 shots back, on 14 over, from eventual winner Douglas Holloway.

Missing the cut were fellow Northlanders Alex Tait and Braden McKeown, with McKeown being listed as having finished as disqualified.

Meanwhile, Tait struggled right from the get-go in the gusting conditions. The former New Zealand cricketer fired a forgettable 81 in the opening round, and then followed it up with a 75 to finish 12 over par.

Eventual winner Holloway became the most successful player in the history of The Charles Tour when he won the LawnMaster Classic by two strokes, with the 30-year-old securing his fifth title to jump one win clear of New Zealand No1 Michael Hendry.