Roger Bremner (middle) flew the home course flag high at the Fiordland Lobster Company Mahia men's open. Bremner won the overall net competition. He is pictured with men's club captain Grant Hornblow (left) and the Fiordland Lobster Company administrator for the tournament, Denny Hornblow.
Wade Wesche delivered the shortest but most memorable speech at his home Mahia club on Sunday.
Wesche only needed three words to get the clubhouse charging their glasses after he was presented the Charlie Austin Trophy for the best performance by a local at the annual Fiordland Lobster Company Māhia men’s open.
“For my dad,” Wesche said with a one-handed raise of the trophy.
Wayne “Cowboy” Wesche died on July 23. He was a massive supporter and popular member of the club.
Acknowledgements were made to Wayne and another former member, Tom Hema, who died in Australia in May.
Both would have smiled at another successful Mahia Open on a course one local hailed as being in the best condition he had ever seen it.
No one was arguing with that. Mahia has been slammed by the weather gods in the last couple of years and greenkeeper Bernie Crowley and his team deserved applause for the work they have put in.
Those weather gods were once again in fickle mood. Saturday was glorious, Sunday hideous as players battled morning rain and powerful winds on top of Mahia’s infamous ball-gobbling hazards.
Another long-time Mahitian, Roger Bremner, handled the conditions best to win the overall net with a 139 total – anchored by his Saturday round of 85-19-66.
Wade Wesche posted the low gross total of 152 (76 76), with Poverty Bay’s Waka Donnelly a stroke back in his first experience of the course.
The 36-hole net winners were Bruce Yates (senior division, Tolaga Bay), Mason Birrell (intermediate, Wairoa) and Clint Taumata (junior, Wairoa).
Mahia life member Kelvin Ellison, who put a lot of time into the organisation of the tournament and is a major sponsor alongside Fiordland Lobster Company, confirmed the company, which has been backing the tournament for 38 years, would continue its support in 2025.
SUNDAY – Fiordland Lobster Mahia Men’s Open, overall net: R. Bremner.
Charlie Austin Trophy for best local: W. Wesche.
36-hole net, senior division B. Yates from N. Amoamo.
Intermediate: M. Birrell from K. Solomon.
Junior: C. Taumata from P. Mildon.
36-hole gross, senior division: W. Donnelly from B. Eaglesome.
36-hole Stableford, senior division: P. Stewart from H. Lee.
Junior: W. Albert from B. McEachen.
36-hole stableford, senior division: P. Stewart from H. Lee.
Intermediate: R Smith from J. Aitchison.
Junior: J. Phillips from J. Whitehead.
Saturday net: P. Milner (snr), P. Tuapawa (int), L. Taurima (jnr).
Sunday Stableford: M. Manuel (snr), S. Hartley (int), W. Thompson (jnr).
Saturday team Stableford winners: W. Wesche, K. Solomon, R. Smith, D. Waihaki.
Sunday two-man team Stableford winners: B. McEachen, R. Smith.
Long drives, Saturday: M. Manuel (senior), S. Hartley (intermediate), G. Shepherd (junior).
Long drives, Sunday: W. Wesche (snr), L. Tate (int), C. Taumata (jnr).
Approaches, Saturday: P Milner (snr), L. Tate (int), D. Foster (jnr).
Approaches, Sunday: T. Sweeney (snr), M. Birrell (int), R. Castle (jnr).
Twos: W. Wesche, J. Devery, P. Stewart 2, B. Eaglesome 2, E. Brown jnr, P. Milner, K. Solomon, L. Tate, W. Thompson, T, Goldsmith 2, R. Castle, R. Pomana, T. Sweeney.
The Sunday School trip and the Māhia men’s open may well have proved a battle-hardening rehearsal for several players competing in the 2024 final of the Sean Shivnan Pharmacy men’s shootout final this weekend.
Then again, it may have just crushed spirits and destroyed souls.
Carnage summed up the annual Paul Rickard-led Sunday School trip which involved rounds of golf at the Rotorua, Lake View, Springfield and Ōhope courses.
Dirk Bullivant was the overall Stableford winner with a total of 129 – at an average of just over 32 points. Nigel Jones (124) was second and 2023 shootout champion Harvey Johanson (121) third.
Rickard said they couldn’t blame the weather. It was “beautiful”, although Ōhope proved sadistically challenging.
“The greens were the fastest I have played on in my life and the pins were on slopes ... balls were rolling off the green all over the show,” Rickard said.
Māhia also dented the confidence of a few Bay boys – particularly on Sunday when the wind got up to gale-force intensity – and shootout hopefuls Tene Goldsmith and Bruce Talbot were among its victims.
They will be happy to be back in more familiar surroundings for Sunday’s final, which will see 19 players tee off the first and a player eliminated each hole until one man is left standing on the 18th green.
Top qualifier for the final is Gray Clapham, who will be hoping he cleaned out the golfing sewer pipes in his Sunday School trip Halloween week nightmare, which included five consecutive pick-ups at Springfield.
Several players in the shootout final will also be playing in the Primo Cup final on Saturday. A solid weekend of golf could prove lucrative.
TUESDAY – Veterans’ Stableford: R. Fletcher 41, R. Wells 39, B. Read 38, J. Aitchson 38, P. Goodwin 37, P. Reid 37.
Twos: C. Dean.
SUNDAY – Men’s Stableford, division 1: W. Mortleman 38, S. Jeune 37.
Division 2: K. Summersby 37, D. Robertson 36.
Twos: W. Mortleman, B. Anderson.
Approach: W. Mortleman.
SATURDAY – Men’s Stableford, division 1: V. Richardson 38, S. Francks 37, P. Butler 36.
Division 2: K. Gunness 43, J. Kerekere 43, B. Marshall 38.
Twos: M. Henwood, S. Francks, B. Simpson.
Approach: S. Jeune.
THURSDAY (Oct 31) – Men’s Stableford, division 1: D. Wilson 41, S. Harbottle 39, A. Abrahams 37, J. Rowe 37, G. Udall 37.
Division 2: M. Dodgshun 40, K. Goldsmith 39, M. Reynolds 37.
Twos: S. Jeune, M. Dodgshun, B. Colbert, J. Aitchison.
Approach: B. Colbert.
WEDNESDAY (Oct 30) – Nine-hole women’s shootout final: R. Pettigrew from J. French.
Freyberg Salver women’s combined Stableford: L. Holmberg/S. Spence 75, J. Steele/O. Thompson 72, F. Pell/S. Eriksen 71.
Women’s Stableford: R. Willock 42.
The Sean Shivnan Pharmacy men’s shootout final is on SUNDAY. Assemble at 8.30am for 9am tee-off. The finalists (as of Tuesday) are (net qualifying scores in brackets): Gray Clapham 194 (67, 62, 65); Andy Putnam 198 (71, 63, 64); Mark Jefferson 201 (66, 66, 69); Dave Pirimona 201 (66, 66, 69); Bruce Talbot 202 (70, 64, 68); Neil Mackie 203 (68, 67, 68); Keith Marshall 203 (66, 67, 70); Pat Butler 204 (69, 66, 69); Carl Carmody 204 (68, 67, 69); Brent Colbert 204 (68, 66, 70); Murray Smith 204 (70, 65, 69); Willie Mortleman 205 (70, 66, 69); John Van Helden 205 (69, 68, 68); Dom Wilson 205 (68, 68, 69); Jarome Finch 206 (69, 68, 69); Stephen Francks 206 (68, 68, 70); Tene Goldsmith 206 (69, 68, 69); Bill Simpson 206 (70 67 69); Mark Stewart 206 (6,7 69, 70).
Standby for chip-off in case of withdrawals: Bill Allen, Ross Chalmers, Simon Jeune, Glenn Morley, Kurt Summersby.
COMING UP: SATURDAY, Primo Cup final and Country Foods Hidden Partners Stableford, tee-off from 11.15am, followed by barbecue and men’s annual prizegiving; those not in Primo Cup field but wanting to play in Hidden Partners Stableford should book at the pro shop or online.
THURSDAY, November 21, Willy Brown Farewell men’s open tournament, in conjunction with Liquorland Thursday Throne, par, gross and net competition, 11.18am to 1pm start times, $25 entry to be paid prior to event, enter at pro shop.
WEDNESDAY, November 13, Bronwyn Kay PB Women’s Open Christmas Tournament, Stableford, 18-hole players report at 8.30am for 9am shotgun start, nine-holers report at 10.10am for 10.30am start, entry to Anne Gemmell (0272824971 or mandagemmell@xtra.co.nz) by Monday, November 11.
Phoenix Nickerson marked his first season at Patutahi on Sunday with his best round.
Nickerson won the junior men’s net on Sunday with 92-30-62.
Poverty Bay/Tolaga Bay member Toby Williams was in fine form in Friday’s meat pack nine-hole Stableford, winning the senior division with an even-par 35-5-30, for 24 points.
Ian Tietjen won the junior division, also with 24.
SUNDAY – Men’s net, senior division: J. Neilson 70, P. Hokianga 70, J. Priestley 71, R. Moleta 71.
Junior division: P. Nickerson 62, C. Kaa 65, B. McKenzie 67, L. Nickerson 67.
Twos: T. Adamson.
FRIDAY – Meat pack nine-hole Stableford, junior division: I. Tietjen 24, M. White 21, D. Humphrey 21, C. Brown 20, B. Tietjen 20.
Senior division: T. Williams 24, P. Molloy 21, K. Sarich 21, A. Nimmo 21, P. Summersby 21.
Andrea Reeves went one better than her Coates trophy runner-up effort two weekends ago with victory on Sunday.
This time, though, Reeves had a helping hand as she and club stalwart Marg Tuapawa won the women’s drawn pairs net.
They didn’t just win, they waltzed in. Their combined total of 147 (Reeves 72, Tuapawa 75) was 26 shots better than runners-up Cheryl Te Rito and Penny Rutene.
SUNDAY – Men’s Stableford: R. Reeves 36, S. Ritchie 33, T. Brown 32, K. Tamanui 31.
Women’s drawn pairs net: Andrea Reeves/M. Tuapawa 147; C Te Rito/P. Rutene 173; E. Wynyard/A. Tamanui-Nunn 186.
COMING UP: SUNDAY, club meeting at 10am, club competition at 11am, women’s four-ball best-ball pairs; SATURDAY, Nov 23, Waikohu Christmas tournament, cup of tea at 10am, tee-off at 11am.
James Junior Forrester’s handicap reduction continues after his latest success.
Forrester won the men’s Stableford with 106-45-61, for 41 points, which has dropped him from an index of 49.1 to 47.7.
Hiria McClutchie won the women’s Stableford on a cold and windy Coast day. She carded 90-21-69, for 35.
SUNDAY – Women’s Stableford: H. McClutchie 90-21-69, 35; R. Ngatai 98-27-71, 33; I. Ngarimu 100-27-73, 31.
Men’s Stableford: 1. J. Forrester 106-45- 61, 41; P. Ngarimu 84-20-64, 38; J. Forrester 80-15-65, 37.
COMING UP: SUNDAY, committee meeting at 10.30am, followed by AGM and Musgrave Cup men’s Stableford.
COMING UP: WEDNESDAY, November 20, Coates Associates Ladies Xmas Tournament, report at 9am for 9.30am shotgun start, gross, net and Stableford prizes, nine-hole (report at 10.15am) and 18-hole sections, maximum handicap 36, entries close Monday, November 18, phone Kino White 0224956677, Jean Foot 8687744 or golf club 8679849, players encouraged to “wear a Christmas cheer”.
How a resilient Kiwi village hopes to bounce back from a big drop in visitors.