Golf: Three junior reps set to fight out title

The South Island under-19 golf championship in Timaru this week looks set to be a three-way battle between New Zealand junior representatives Perry Hayman and Aaron Leech, both Wellington, and Manawatu's Kris Smith.

The 54-hole strokeplay event will be played at St Andrew's Golf Club from tomorrow until Thursday with the field of 141 being cut to the top 72 plus ties after 36 holes.

Hayman, Leech and Smith were in the New Zealand team of six which lost the Clare Higson international against Australia in Melbourne earlier this month before contesting the Australian junior championship.

Smith fared best in the Clare Higson, the 17-year-old being the only Kiwi to win both singles, but Hayman and Leech combined to win a foursomes match.

Leech was the best of the team in the Australian junior event, finishing in a tie for 21st.

Another member of the side, Nick Gillespie (Wanganui), is also competing at Timaru, but talented Jae An and Samuel Shin, winner of the North Island under-19 title, are not.

The big-hitting Hayman, 16, finished seventh in the New Zealand strokeplay championship at Hokowhitu last week and made it to the last 16 of the matchplay before losing to Australian Tom Davis.

Leech, 17, has had international success, winning twice (13 years and 14 years) at the Jack Newton Classic age-group tournament in 2001 and 2002.

He has proved he can match it with the seniors by winning the Wellington strokeplay title last year and finishing eighth in the New Zealand strokeplay championship.

- NZPA