Off the tee: Good going in the Badlands

Stephen Gordon is one of those leading amateurs who turn professional and then rather disappear off the radar back home.

The 30-year-old from Te Atatu played at the Redwood Park Club in West Auckland and was a stalwart of the early North Harbour provincial sides.

He turned professional at the end of 1999, had a couple of moderate years on the Australasian tour, but lost his card for last year.

He re-emerged Down Under by winning his card back this month and he will be a starter in the Holden New Zealand Open next week.

Despite appearances, last year was his most successful as he won the order-of-merit on the third-level Dakota tour in the United States.

During a three-month period he had two wins and five top-three finishes. He set a course record and had only two rounds over par during the whole tour.

"A lot of people don't realise just how strong tournament golf is in the United States below the top level," says Gordon. "Everyone knows about the PGA tour and the Nationwide tour but the next level down is very competitive.

"The Dakota tour is in the Dakotas and three or four states either side. We play in the smaller towns and the stakes are around $US100,000 ($149,000) each week.

"Several of the players have been on the PGA tour and the standard is pretty high. The clubs and the community in the area really get behind the tournaments and I've made some good friends and have places to stay."

Gordon has played for three years in the US. He started with the Golden Bear tour in Florida, which was so strong scores of 21 under were winning tournaments.

He had a spell chasing pre-tournament qualifying for the Nationwide tour, which often meant 26-hour drives for the chance to win one of 14 spots in the main draw from fields of 200 hopefuls.

Like any professional, Gordon aspires to the big tours. He was 25th in a PGA qualifier where 23 advanced last year.

His improved form last year followed a change of coach to Bob McDonald, who retooled his swing. He also tuned up his mental attitude.

"He tells me to go to the end of the practice fairway and don't be influenced by the other players. The secret is to know your own game and to forget everyone else."

Gordon will have another weapon in his armoury when he returns to the US. His girlfriend, Rachel Moss, has graduated from Auckland University and will be travelling with him.

* * *

Seve Ha didn't get through the first qualifying tournament for the New Zealand Open at Whitford Park last week, but he gave a remarkable performance.

The 12-year-old from the Akarana Club shot 72, one over par, to join a playoff for the last two places in the next round. He was eliminated at the first hole of the playoff but won the admiration of players and onlookers alike.

The diminutive Ha, who was runnerup in his club's senior championship, looks younger than his age but sends his drives a long way with an incredibly athletic swing.

The 170 entries for the first qualifier stretched the system to its limits. Steven Han, who won one of the places from the playoff at 7.12 pm, had started his original round at 7.15 am and had to resume almost 12 hours later.

New Zealand Golf should schedule two venues in the north of the North Island, possibly incorporating the practice round for the under-23 championships at Taupo.