Stewart heads top amateur field at NSW
IN: News | Australian Mens Amateur | Australian Amateur Championship (2007) | by Anthony Powter | 19 Mar 2007
NSW is a course that's attracted considerable attention from around the world. Bill Clinton ensured he gave it a shot, Greg Norman considers it a privilege to be a member and play it and a fortunate few fork out a small fortune simply for the benefit of claiming to play a course ranked inside the world's top 50. That's NSW Golf Club, home this week to the Australian Amateur Championships.
Who then is likely to be claiming the titles? One thing is to be certain there's bound to be a struggle both on and with the course itself. The layout at La Perouse or to be more specific Henry Head, Botany Bay, some 25 minutes south of the centre of Sydney, is simply one of a kind, well almost.
You can go as far to say the layout at NSW Golf Club resembles Sydney's aging rail system. Agreed, it is more beautiful than a Sydney train, it also has more appeal; but it's just as predictable as Sydney's trains running on time. Anything can happen with the conditions at NSW and it usually does.
As the 2007 Australian Amateur unfolds it will be those who have the game to adapt to the variances associated with mother nature that will prosper. Perhaps there was some sense associated with playing the friendly warm up Moonah Links fondly titled "The Ashes series", but with many of the top Australian names like Tim Stewart, Rick Kulacz, Aaron Pike and Michael Foster, who currently make up our top order in the R&A world ranking resting, there's no real indication who takes an advantage into this week's championship.
The ladies will battle for the 32 qualifying match play positions this week at Terry Hills before joining the men's field the week after at NSW. The men's competition gets underway this Thursday and the field is bursting with talent, both local and international.
R&A world number one amateur Jamie Moul from England will certainly be making his presence known in his last remaining days as an amateur. Moul intends to turn professional later in the year after hopefully making the 2007 Walker Cup team.
The 2006 Lytham Trophy winner has just returned from Georgia, USA where he played in the Jones Cup, previously he'd been preparing in what the English Golf Union titled "warm weather training" in Spain. A week at Moonah playing in the rain would have certainly prepared Moul for NSW and made the training in Spain perhaps meaninglessly.
Steve Lewton, who is ranked 23rd in the world is another Englishman to watch at the Australian Amateur. Lewton, who has been based in the US Collegiate system, recently finished his degree in Business Management and his results in 2006 include runner up in the European Amateur, 3rd in the Czech Amateur and top 6 finishes in the British and English Amateur.
In his first outing in Australia earlier in the year Lewton claimed the Avondale Medal and the NSW Amateur Medal. It seems unusual that Lewton then has been slotted with qualifiers back in the field in the stroke play format for the Australian Amateur, yet he's not particularly fussed about it.
"I'm playing really well at the moment. It doesn't worry me in the slightest where I've been placed in the draw. Riversdale, I had my chances, Moonah this week was tough especially later in the day, but I feel like I've got a chance in the Aussie amateur, provided my putter behaves."
On the local front, Tim Stewart will take the momentum of winning last week's Riversdale Cup into defending his 2006 Australian amateur title. Stewart's game has been consistent with narrow misses in the NSW Amateur and the NSW Cup (played at NSW Golf Club) and the win at Riversdale was important for Stewart, his first major stroke play amateur title. Stewart knows the dangers at La Perouse having played there numerous times before, so back to back titles are a real possibility for the Sydney local.
"Riversdale got the monkey off my back playing stroke play titles. The way I finished there after a bad start is a real confidence booster going into the Australian amateur. I'm pleased with my results so far this year and obviously I want to play well in defending my title. NSW is such a tough layout and it's not going to be easy, but this year I've been able to play into contention and be there to give it a shot. I hope I can do the same this week."
2006 was a year Rick Kulacz will remember for a while. Break through victories at the Federal Amateur capped off with the NSW Open on the Von Nida Tour reinforced Kulacz's standing as one of the most talented amateurs in Australia. Kulacz game in 2007 has shown no signs of abating either.
Putting aside the Lake Macquarie Amateur, which was Kulacz first event after a six week break, he was the leading amateur in the Victorian Open, and 17th in the Tasmanian Open. A mysterious addition of a 15th club in Kulacz's bag during the second round of the Riversdale Cup potentially cost him that tournament. You can be sure he'll be checking the number in his bag each round this week adds up to 14. He'll also be looking to better the second round of the match play format, Kulacz's best performance at a national amateur.
Andrew Dodt, Rohan Blizard and Michael Foster are others who should play into contention this week. All have featured strongly in major amateur events this summer with Blizard claiming the Tasmanian Open whilst Dodt and Foster have simply been consistent.
The combination of both a strong and unpredictable layout that is NSW golf course and the sheer depth of one of the strongest fields for some time gives this Australian Amateur some appeal; if conditions get tough it will be great to see some of the best amateurs in the world struggle.
Photos - Anthony Powter
