KEY POINTS:
Much like the golf on display yesterday, there were mixed feelings about the much-maligned Gulf Harbour course.
Michael Campbell gave the course a severe verbal lashing in the months before last year's tournament but, even though there are a few things he would change, now thinks Gulf Harbour
isn't so bad.
Australian Peter O'Malley, though, loves the New Zealand Open but is not so keen on Gulf Harbour, despite posting a tidy 66 yesterday.
Campbell battled to a third-round 73 but said he was starting to reassess the layout of the course.
"Back then, I think I'd only played the course once. Now I've played it nine or 10 times and it definitely grows on you," the 2005 US Open champion said. "I think it has great potential. Maybe I was too critical when I made those comments."
But Campbell, who has intentions of moving into course design, says there are some holes he would re-design. "For a start, on the 16th, I'd move the tee 50m to the left."
The hole is Gulf Harbour's most famous. It's a sharp dog-leg to the right with a tee shot over some spectacular cliffs but it's a comfortable play for professionals because they can feed the ball into a slope and have it roll back to the middle of the fairway.
Campbell says he would straighten the hole to bring the dangerous right side with its large water hazard, namely the Hauraki Gulf, into play.
He suggested other alterations, like shifting some greens closer to cliffs or lakes and is in no doubt a tree plonked in the middle of the 17th fairway must be removed. But it's a native, so resource consent could be a problem.
Campbell's comments come at a pivotal time in Gulf Harbour's existence. The course has just been purchased by Mark Bryers, deputy chairman of New Zealand Open sponsor Blue Chip.
After winning last Wednesday's pro-am in Campbell's team, he said he had plans to improve the course.
Campbell's comments and belated endorsement will have been noted by Bryers as he tries to convince New Zealand Golf that the country's premier tournament should be played at Gulf Harbour again next year.
The comments of the 41-year-old O'Malley, who won this tournament in 1995, will also be noted. He went out early yesterday and shot 66 to finish four under, one shot off surprise leader Graeme Storm.
But while his golf was hot, he remains cool on the course. "I don't know how to answer that," when he was asked whether he liked the course. "It's got some really nice views. I wouldn't say it's my favourite course in the world. There are some design issues with it."
Those issues weren't enough to stop him nailing five birdies between the seventh and 13th holes.
"The greens were receptive so I could be a bit aggressive. I knew I had to make my move today and I thought if I could get to -10 or -11 by the end of the weekend, I'd have a chance."
O'Malley also sensed by the 15th that the wind was starting to freshen and would frustrate the leaders.
The early starters had the best of the weather and Storm, playing one group behind O'Malley, had the same premonition.
Having started the day at one over, Storm was five under by the 15th and aware he had an opportunity to post a score that would leave him in contention today. He sunk a monster putt for eagle on the second, the catalyst to a blemish-free round.
The 28-year-old has been threatening a major breakthrough on the European Tour since finishing 31st in the 2005 Order of Merit. The elusive first tournament win just won't come, though, and Storm didn't think there was much chance of it this weekend after opening rounds of 74 and 69.
A shoulder injury picked up last week was affecting his swing, while his putting had been wayward.
"That putt at the second gave me a lot of confidence and I had no pain in my shoulder. I am really starting to enjoy my golf a lot more."
He'll enjoy it even more if he can shoot another 65 today.
