Southland golfer Vaughan McCall cruised to an emphatic victory in the North Island under-19 golf championship in Hamilton today.
McCall (Gore) took a nine-shot lead into today's final round of the 54-hole contest at the Hamilton Golf Club, and his one-over par 74 in blustery conditions was enough for a
commanding win.
He finished seven shots clear of Steven Heyes (New Plymouth) and Trent Munn (Manawatu), with a further two shots back to Owen Burgess (Russley).
North Shore's Cameron Jones fired a three-under 69, today's low round, to jump to a share of fifth place with Mark O'Malley (Ashburton) and Sam An (Titirangi).
McCall's win, matching his South Island under-19 win last year, was set up with two rounds of four-under 68 on the first two days, completed in vastly different conditions with blazing heat on Wednesday and rain yesterday.
"This is my best win for sure," McCall said. "The key was that I made a lot of putts.
"I hit a lot of irons close on the first day and made some birdies from three or four feet. Yesterday in the rain I holed some big putts from 15 feet or more. It makes a big difference if you make three or four from that distance like I did."
McCall said he found today's winds tougher than the rain on day two but tried to concentrate on the processes despite his big lead.
It follows a good run of form for the Southland teenager who enjoyed success for Southland in last month's Interprovincials and was paired with Sir Bob Charles on the final day of the Shirley Open.
McCall competes in Monday's final pre-qualifying tournament for the New Zealand Open at Russley Golf Club in Christchurch before preparing for the Southland Strokeplay, the South Island Amateur and then a trip to Mt Maunganui for the Grant Clements Memorial.
- NZPA
