Golf: Chief urged to deliver coup de grace

Tournament director Frank Burgess has been urged to sound the death knell on the $650,000 New Zealand Women's Golf Classic.

Gail Allport, who helped to recruit some of the biggest names in the women's game for the Hutt Valley tournament scheduled for late February, said it was the right thing to do.

Late last week, the tournament looked doomed with revelations that prizemoney was not secure. Ladies European Tour chief Tim Howland then withdrew official approval for the event and many of the world's top women golfers withdrew.

Even host Hutt Golf Club has pulled the plug on preparations, despite no word that the event has been canned.

Protocol meant Burgess was the only person who could officially cancel the event. "He has to make that final move so people know where they are," Allport said yesterday.

"There are a number of girls who are coming down here who have non-refundable air tickets. We have to get about organising some pro-ams or something so they might have the chance to compete and cover their costs. They weren't and aren't coming here for a holiday."

find out how many players were stuck with non-refundable tickets.

nteFor the sake of those players and the scores of volunteers who had committed themselves to the tournament, Burgess had to come out of hiding and call it off, Allport said.

The only comment from Burgess in more than a week had come in an e-mail to Allport. She said it was personal and apologetic in tone.

She had not replied to it "not out of malice, but I don't know really what I would say to him."NZPA

The Hutt Golf Club announced on the weekend it had suspended preparations for the classic.

"A small dedicated committee has worked extremely hard to recruit more than 400 volunteers to act as course marshals, scorers and caddies," club president Brian Gillespie said.

- NZPA