Golf: Last-green triumph for Newbrook

Celebrations for Natasha Krishna (left), Penny Newbrook (centre) and Jenny Park. Picture / Fotopress

Penny Newbrook out-Aussied the Aussies as New Zealand won the Tasman Cup for the first time since 1995 at Titirangi yesterday.

Just when the Tasman raiders seemed likely to fight back from a 9-3 overnight deficit, the tall 21-year-old from Rotorua came from two down after six holes of her singles with Emma Bennett to clinch the game and the cup on the 18th green.

Earlier, remarkable North Shore 14-year-old Sharon Ahn smiled her way to a 3 and 2 win over West Australian Bree Turnbull for a final margin of 14-10 to the home side. It was New Zealand's seventh win in 37 contests since 1933.

The Newbrook-Bennett match provided a fitting end to the cup, which drew a good gallery, in perfect conditions, to the West Auckland course.

Bennett, who is on an Australian Institute of Sport scholarship, was never behind until the final hole. The pair turned level after nine holes and twice the Australian went ahead with birdies on the 12th and 15th holes.

Newbrook drew level on the par-four 16th with a 3m birdie putt and they halved the next in birdie.

On the par-four closing hole both made the green for two, Bennett 10m and Newbrook 4m away. The Australian was too strong with her first putt and ended up four-putting and conceding the hole and the match.

"We knew we had to have two wins this afternoon and so I'm very pleased to have been able to do it," Newbrook said. "I'm proud of the whole team.

"I knew I could do it and over the last few holes I was really focused. I hadn't been in my best form, but I worked with Geoff Smart, our coach, and I got my confidence back.

"This is Geoff's last tournament, so I'm glad we've been able to give him such a good send-off."

Smart repaid the compliment: "Thank goodness we had Penny playing the vital match. She just gritted it out and I reckon she has a good show of retaining her strokeplay title later this week."

Ahn had tasted defeat for the first time in the contest when she and Natasha Krishna were beaten 3 and 1 by Bennett and Jody Fleming in the morning foursomes. The other foursome ended all square.

But Ahn made no race of her single. Her opponent, Bree Turnbull, is a long hitter who found the tight Titirangi layout punished any errant drives, while Ahn's tidy all-round game proved relentless.

Ahn was four up with four to play, sprayed her drive and then squandered a couple of shots in a bunker on the 15th before regaining her composure and draining a 3m putt to halve the 16th and win 5 and 3.

"It wasn't me who played good, it was Bree who had trouble," said the Northcote College fourth-former.

In the other singles, Nikki Garrett (Australia) beat a rather wild Jenny Park 5 and 3, while Sarah Kemp (Australia) was one over the card beating Sarah Nicholson 4 and 3.

The Tasman Cup players will join 70 other players in the 72-hole national strokeplay championship, which starts tomorrow and finishes on Sunday. Newbrook is the defending champion.