Tunnicliff wins Shootout
- 4 November 2024
- Peter Watson
Paul Tunnicliff is our Shootout champ for 2024.
Our club president overcame a poor Maitai Masters the day before and rough warm-up to find form at the right time and deny Jim McMullan a three-peat in the 9-hole knockout challenge played on handicap off the white tees.
Just nine of the top 10 qualifiers over the season teed off in sunny conditions on Sunday (Nov 10) after the late withdrawal of Jonathan Tuheke.
It meant the first hole was effectively a practice one which Paul botched and he only just survived a four-man chip-off at No 2 which saw club captain Peter Watson depart.
Next to go was Aaron Kotua after both he and Graham Galt carded net sixes on the long par four third, but Aaron's weak chip in sudden death proved his undoing.
Keri Kotua birdied the uphill No 4 to prolong his stay but Lewis Wilson wasn't so lucky with some duffed chips leading to a net six and a long putt-off with top seed Pete Green which he lost.
Pete's challenge ended with a messy double bogey on the par-three No 5, while all but Graham played the downhill No 6 well with his net five seeing him eliminated.
With the wind picking up and only Paul and Jim getting shots on No 7, the pressure was on Andy Isle and Keri to hit the green in two. However, Keri's second found the right-had rough and it took two shots to get on the green and he was gone.
Both Paul and Jim found the fairway on No 8, but Andy flared his drive into the trees and could only chip out. Paul hit a good second to just off the green and got up and down for a superb net birdie. Jim made the green in four and two-putted for a net bogey but Andy's par put lipped out, meaning he and Jim went to a chip-off which referee James Campion put in a difficult spot. Andy's attempt never reached the green, which left Jim an easy task to beat and kept alive his hopes of repeating his wins in 2022 and 2023.
The final par-five ninth saw both short of the green in three, but Jim - the highest handicapper in the field - topped his fourth from a difficult lie while Paul hit a pinpoint approach which settled just two meters from the hole. Jim's long put for a six missed and he conceded to a worthy champion who played net par golf off his 13-handicap.