A brilliant first round of six-under 68 set up victory for Australians Amy Yang and Haeji Kang in the New Zealand amateur women's championship foursomes at the Christchurch Golf Club yesterday.
Yang, 16, and Kang, 15, played accurately and putted well on good greens at Shirley to fire seven birdies, with just the one bogey at the par-four 313m 17th hole in the morning.
They held a five-shot lead after 18 holes from three combinations. And although Yang and Kang faltered with 79 in the second round, the Australians finished one clear of Christchurch's Eunice Jin and Sally Choi, of New Plymouth. Choi won the title last year with Mi Kyung Kim, of Pupuke.
Australian Heather Warren was third in partnership with Sarah Bradley, of Cambridge, on 149.
On 150 were North Harbour's Jenna Hirst and Robyn Scott, who were one better than the international pairing of Penny Newbrook, of Springfield, and Hutt's Sarah Nicholson.
Yang and Kang, while disappointed in their afternoon form, did well to complete the closing six holes in par.
Kang was a New Zealand matchplay semifinalist last year and had represented Northland for two years before leaving for Australia.
Jin and Choi birdied their final hole but it was not quite enough to force a sudden death playoff.
Hirst, a member of the winning North Harbour team at the national interprovincial championship this year, and Scott had the best afternoon round of one-under 73.
The two strokeplay qualifying rounds will be played today, with the first round of matchplay for the top 32 qualifiers tomorrow.
- NZPA
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