Won Joon Lee maintains NZ Amateur lead
IN: News | New Zealand Mens Amateur | New Zealand Amateur Championship (2006) | Round Three | 05 Apr 2006
Hamilton's James Gill shot a course record six-under 67 in the third round of the New Zealand 72-hole stroke-play golf championship at Coringa today, but failed to make any leeway on Australian leader Won Joon Lee.
The record belonged solely to Gill for less than 30 minutes. Lee, whose lead had been whittled back to two by Gill with four holes to play, produced some of the spectacular long-hitting which he has shown all week.
After a 5m birdie putt at the par-4 15th, he drove the green on the par-4 358m 16th and holed a 10m putt for eagle. He saved par from a tricky lie above a bunker at the par-3 17th and just missed a birdie from 3m at the last.
He, too, signed for 67 and his superb back nine of 30, six-under par, enabled him to become joint holder of the course record and to establish a five-shot lead over the field with the final 18 holes tomorrow to decide the New Zealand stroke-play champion and winner of the St Andrews Salver.
Lee, a 20-year-old from the Concord club, finished at 12-under par after 54 holes. Gill was at seven-under and two shots ahead of accomplished Western Australian, Steve Dartnall (Royal Perth), who has been par or better in each round.
Two other Australians, defending New Zealand match-play champion, Mitchell Brown (Bankstown), and Victorian Andrew Martin were equal fourth on four-under and two shots ahead of Canterbury's Tyrone Nelson (Kaiapoi), whose cause was not helped by a lost ball at the 11th hole.
The only other players under par, on one-under, were New Zealand representative Mark Purser (Hamilton), Otago's Thomas Campbell, who carded 70 today, and Travis O'Connell, from The Grange in Auckland.
Canterbury match-play champion John Bae (Waitikiri) had six birdies in his 68 which moved him inside the top 32 and highly rated international Josh Geary (Mount Maunganui) continued his sharp improvement with a three-under 70. After being 87th after the first round, he was 41st after 36 holes and now lies tied for 12th.
As well as his eagle, Lee had seven birdies but there were some lapses, a bogey at the fourth and a double-bogey at the par-3 fifth leaving him par for the front nine. But his spectacular charge on the back nine began when he drove through the green at the par-4 352m 10th hole, his drive finishing down the back slope some 370m from the tee.
Gill felt comfortable with most aspects of his game. He birdied the first, chipped in for an eagle at the sixth and birdied the eighth to be out in four-under 33. He birdied 12 and 13 among seven pars on the back nine and made an excellent sand save from the front bunker at the par-3 17th.
Dartnall was very steady with four birdies and a bogey at the 11th in his three-under 70.
The O'Rorke Challenge Vase awarded to the team with the lowest score in the 36 holes of qualifying was won for the second time in the last three years by Waikato. Jason Gill and Mark Purser, who were in the successful 2004 side, were joined on this occasion by Richard Wright.
Source - NZGA
Photo - Anthony Powter
