Nerves shown at Toro Interprovincials as Canterbury pounce

All was going to script at the Toro Interprovincials as the favourites werent faltering until a tired Auckland and Wellington side let their matches slip to give Canterbury the early advantage at the New Plymouth Golf Club.

Auckland comfortably won over Poverty Bay in the morning round were then pushed right to the limit by a courageous Hawkes Bay side. The match was a roller-coaster ride and was sadly decided by multiple three-putts to finish proving the toughness of the Toro Interprovincials. This gives Hawkes Bay one of their best starts in recent history with an early win, followed by the big halve this afternoon.

Wellington were looking to have a casual day at the office before Southland showed up to play and stole a half from one of the tournament favourites. A crucial win by number one Daniel Hillier proved vital in the final deciding match defeating Scott Hellier 3/2.

Canterbury have started their campaign in fine style as the only team to have two from two with wins against Southland and Taranaki. After a dominant performance against Southland (4-1), they backed it up against the host side Taranaki (3-2) to complete the perfect day.

Things could get interesting late in the week with one side of the draw stacked with big names. Division one includes Waikato, Bay of Plenty, North Harbour and Auckland which will cause drama with only two of the four able to progress.

Even with a small slip up, Wellington still hold the favourites tag in division two with an impressive win over Northland this morning remaining unbeaten in their 2016 campaign.

Waikato got their campaign off to a solid start this afternoon defeating Aorangi as they aim for three titles on the trot. Leading amateurs Nick Coxon and Luke Toomey had comfortable victories 6/5 and 5/4 respectively and will be tough to beat as the week continues.

Bay of Plenty stamped their authority with a dominant 5-0 win over Poverty Bay East Coast in their only match of the day. This young side is one to watch with the in-form players of Henry Spring, Shaun Campbell and William Howard leading the charge.

Otago who have made the final in the past two Interprovincials have gone under the radar with their new-look side but will be tested with two Southern derbys tomorrow against Southland and Canterbury. They will be looking to go one better and finally get their name on the trophy for the first time since 1982.

An intriguing match-up tomorrow afternoon will be Auckland facing off against Waikato which will be pivotal on their jam packed side of the draw.

Play will once again commence at 7:30am at the New Plymouth Golf Course.

- This story has been automatically published using a media release from Golf NZ