Tairāwhiti players produced a highlights-package performance on one of the great days for the country's smallest golf region as the national interprovincials teed off in the Bay of Plenty yesterday.
The Hawke's Bay-Poverty Bay women's team, spearheaded by Gisborne's Tessa McDonald and Ellen Ball, ended the day top of the 13-province points standings courtesy of two convincing team wins — McDonald and Ball completing perfect records of two matchplay victories apiece at the top of the order.
Poverty Bay-East Coast were the story of Day 1 of the men's championship after they stunned North Harbour 4-1 yesterday afternoon and went agonisingly close to toppling Manawatu-Wanganui in the morning before being pipped 3-2.
It placed them second in the eight-team Section 1 led by hosts Bay of Plenty.
“Pretty stoked,” was 17-year-old Ball's reaction after a long day on the Tauranga course.
Ball was perhaps a surprise choice at No.2 in the five-woman HBPB side, but justified selectors' faith.
She blew away Lynda Brown 6 and 5 as HBPB hit the fairways running with a 4-1 defeat of Aorangi, then rode a rollercoaster to a 1-up win against Dakota-Jolee Asi in a 5-0 Round 2 whitewash of defending champions Wellington.
“I got to 3-up, went to 1-down, got back to 3-up, then 1-up,” Ball said.
She admitted she “wasn't sure” about being named at No.2 “but they (selectors) obviously know me, and did what was right for me”.
They also gave Ball licence “to go full throttle” and she duly obliged.
McDonald was in a class of her own against her two opponents.
The HBPB No.1, who has fashioned an impressive national interprovincial record over the years, added two more wins to that . . . and in style.
McDonald played just 26 holes over the day. She beat Aorangi's Angela Gerken 6 and 5 and Wellington's Yewoo Hyun also on the 13th.
Her only challenge was blisters from new shoes and probably the only stress she felt was when she went to caddy for Ball in her up-and-down afternoon battle.
Exciting prospect Kayla Van De Ven, at No.4 in the HBPB team, also had two emphatic wins (8 and 7; 6 and 5) as did No.5 Clare Choi (3 and 2; 2-up).
The team wins put HBPB top of the table on two team points and nine individual wins. Manawatu-Wanganui and Otago also had two team wins.
The women shifted courses to Omanu in Mount Maunganui today. HBPB were to face 2021 runners-up Canterbury in Round 3 and Taranaki in Round 4.
While the HBPB women were enjoying their most successful start to the one of the country's premier amateur tournaments, the PBEC men went close to emulating that success on the Omanu course.
“We should have won them both,” PBEC team manager Dave Keown said afterwards, but he wasn't complaining.
“It was a great effort. They played some great golf.”
The Manawatu-Wanganui tussle went to the last hole of the last match and was decided by one errant shot.
With the teams locked at 2-2, it came down to the battle of the No.1s — PBEC's William Brown versus Man-Wang's Ryan Rooney, who top-qualified at the 2022 Poverty Bay Open in Gisborne in March.
Brown made birdie on the 17th hole to level the match, only to hit his tee shot out of bounds on the 18th and lose 1-down.
Earlier, No.3 Dwayne Russell and No.4 Hukanui Brown started the tournament in winning style. Russell beat Anthony Ilton-Maher 1-up while Brown defeated Regan McConaghty 3 and 1.
No.2 Andrew Higham lost 2 and 1 to Liam Finlayson and No.5 Shayde Skudder, making his national interprovincials debut, lost 2 and 1 to Tomas Shaw.
William Brown shrugged off his morning disappointment to lead PBEC to a momentous 4-1 triumph over North Harbour.
It was a resounding echo from the past.
Ten years ago at the national interprovincials on Dunedin's Balmacewen course, PBEC defeated Harbour for the first time.
William Brown and Higham were in the team and won their matches that day. Yesterday they did it again.
Brown, who is playing in his 14th consecutive national interprovincial tournament, beat Shinju Aoki 2 and 1.
Higham replied to opponent Alexander Yap's opening-hole birdie with an eagle and went on to win 4 and 3.
Keown said it was an “absolutely magic” performance.
“Andy did a bit of damage to his shoulder, hitting out of the rough (the day before),” Keown said.
“I think he caught a root and it's taken him a little while to free up (the shoulder).”
Hukanui Brown, who beat Harbour's Ross Allott 1-up, was Keown's “player of the day”.
“Huks was 3-down early but came back to square it at the turn (after nine holes). He just kept fighting and fighting.”
His Patutahi clubmate Russell showed how much his game and mental strength have developed over the past few years.
Having played for PBEC at the Freyberg Masters interprovincial last month, Russell carried that experience into yesterday and followed up his morning win with a calm-under-pressure 1-up win against Brian Lee.
Skudder lost 2 and 1 to Jesper Bengtsson.
Keown said it was “a learning curve” for Poverty Bay Heartland rugby squad member Skudder.
“But he believes he could have won both matches.”
The men headed to the Tauranga course today, with PBEC up against Otago, whom they beat last year, this morning and Wellington in the afternoon.