Golf: Big toe reduces big lead

Ashley Hall held a seven-shot lead after 10 holes yesterday. Photo / Getty Images

Australian golfer Ashley Hall at one stage threatened to boot his rivals into touch at the New Zealand PGA Championship in Christchurch yesterday.

Seven shots clear after 10 holes of his third round at Clearwater Resort, the reigning Victorian Open champion instead stubbed his big toe to keep his competitors in the hunt.

Despite shelling three shots in his closing eight holes, the 28-year-old ended the day as he had started it, by holding a three-shot advantage, this time over Wellington left-hander Gareth Paddison and New Plymouth's Grant Moorhead, who posted matching 70s to Hall's 71.

Hall seemed to thrive in the unpleasant, cold, windy conditions until a double bogey five on the 11th stalled his progress, but he hung on grimly despite a three-putt bogey on the 13th which gave his rivals more hope than they had earlier appeared likely to receive.

He eventually signed for a round of one-under par, giving him a tournament card of eight-under 208, four ahead of compatriot Stephen Allan, who shot 71, and five clear of American Joe Affrunti, 69, and another Australian Mitchell Brown, 72.

Christchurch's Anthony Doyle and Dunedin's Mahal Pearce were among those tied for seventh on 214 after shooting 74 and 69 respectively.

Doyle, in the same grouping as Hall and Paddison, had a horror finish with a triple bogey seven at the 18th after his tee shot found a fairway bunker and his next went in the water before these errors were exacerbated by his three-putting the green.

Having squandered the chance to put the tournament outcome beyond doubt with one round to play today, Hall at least had the satisfaction of maintaining his overnight lead.

"I was cruising along unbelievably well until the 11th tee," he said.

"It was possibly a bad club but it was a terrible shot," he said of his tee shot on the 174m par-three 11th which came up short in a water hazard fronting the green.

"It didn't deserve to get over the water and I thoroughly deserved to make a double there."

A three-putt from 27 feet at the 13th dragged him further back to the field, but Hall was happy with his day's work in trying conditions locals likened to a mild winter's day in this southern city.

"The course is not playing easy and I'm hoping for a bit more wind tomorrow so it will be harder for people to chase from behind," said Hall, who began his round immaculately with three successive birdies from the third hole.

Hall finished tied for ninth in this tournament in 2008 when an unseasonal deluge forced the abandonment of two complete rounds. Conditions have not been as severe this week but the strong winds and rain of the opening two days persuaded organisers to push the tees well forward yesterday, in the case of the tough par-fourth 413m 13th by a matter of close to 50m.

Scoring remained on the high side, nonetheless, with both Moorhead and Paddison more than satisfied to better par by two strokes.

Moorhead, 39, mixed three birdies with a lone bogey, and said Clearwater in such conditions demanded the utmost respect.

"It's the type of golf course where you are on guard on every hole. There are very few gift holes."

Mental errors equated to shelled shots, he said, using the example of the downwind par-five 10th where his posted a bogey six after negotiating his way to just short of the green in two.

"I hit a good pitch but it kept on rolling down to the edge of the fringe 12 to 15 feet feet from the hole. I then knocked it three-four feet past. It was a careless mistake."

Moorhead was probably unlucky not to be closer to Hall after watching birdie putts shave the hole on the 16th and 18th holes as well as lipping out at the 17th.

"If two or three of those go in it can make all the difference," he said.

Paddison, based on Europe's second tier Challenge Tour for most of his career, took pride in the fact his card contained no bogeys.

He scrambled particularly well when he had to on the back nine, saving par on the 13th with an 11-foot putt before a rank poor tee shot on the next again forced him to call on his powers of recovery.

Paddison blocked his six iron tee shot on the par-five 14th into a hazard on the left, took a drop then advanced the ball to 115m before nailing a sand wedge to one feet of the hole.

"To get par out of that was very important just to keep the momentum going.

"It's something I didn't manage to do, particularly last year, when my bad shots were costing me.

"I have hit five bad shots this week but they have not cost me. To walk away with pars after them is a luxury I'm not used to."

- NZPA