Golf: Turley realistic making Bay debut

Should Vicky Turley achieve her goals at the New Zealand Masters Women's inter-provincial golf tournament in Invercargill this week her Hawke's Bay teammates can expect her to toast another code.

The Napier five handicapper, who will make her debut for the Bay as their No3 at the 14-team event in Invercargill, has just completed her first season as a squash player. It has improved her golf fitness.

"I go hard at squash to get rid of my frustrations and then I go back to golf to build them up again," Turley said before the team travelled south yesterday to prepare for Friday's start for the three-day tournament which caters for players over 40.

Turley, 43, has played golf off and on for more than 20 years. Family commitments prevented her from being available for the Bay masters last year and she was a non-travelling reserve who didn't get to play in 2010.

"Having children means your priorities can change regularly.

'However when Linda died last year it made me assess a lot of different things ... we'll be thinking about her as we play this week," Turley said, referring to her former Hawke's Bay-Poverty Bay senior women's teammate Linda Akers, who died after a battle with cancer.

The best three of four stableford scores in each of the six rounds will count towards the final score in Invercargill.

"If I can get my score to count at least twice I'll be happy. I'm the newbie so I'm going to be a bit nervous," Turley said.

"If I can score 30 points in each round I'll be happy. If I can get more it will be a bonus but you don't want to be unrealistic."

It will be her first time playing on the Invercargill course.

"Darryn has played it 15 times but he has never been home long enough to give me any tips on how to play it," Turley joked.

She is well aware of how keen Hawke's Bay are to improve on the second placing recorded at the last three nationals.

"It's going to be tough because Southland, who have won the tournament for the past three years, will have the home course advantage.

"Our No1 Janie Field is such a good captain, so we're not going down there to come second.

"But at the same time we've got to produce the goods," Turley said.

Regardless of how well she does in Invercargill, Turley will continue to play squash as well as golf in the winter. She is aiming to become a D grader next year.

Her hubby was a member of the Hastings club's 2011 national title-winning E grade men's team. Turley hopes to win a national teams title in squash within the next year or two.

"Because we're such a small club it's hard to get enough players to make up a team," Turley said.

Is she keen to beat her hubby on the squash court?

"It's a bit like his golf ... he is far too clever. But I will keep plodding away," she said.

In addition to wanting to captain her Hawke's Bay team to title honours, Field is eyeing the top individual prize after finishing second for the last three years.

"The team title is the priority and we've got the depth to do it," Field said.

The tournament ends on Sunday.

The full Hawke's Bay team (in playing order) is:

Janie Field (Napier), Kathy Olsen (Maraenui), Vicky Turley (Napier), Lynne Roberts (Hastings). Manager: Ros Evans.