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Mangawhai Golf Club’s men’s pennants team won the Nobilo Trophy last month in their first year of competing in the premier division of the North Golf Association championship.
The team capped a strong season by beating Muriwai 4 1/2 to 3 1/2 in a closely fought final on the Waitemata course in Devonport.
It was only a year ago that Mangawhai qualified for the premier division, after topping the West Coast section of North Harbour pennants in 2018 and then winning their promotion-relegation match.
“They’re a closely-bonded group and have shown a consistent ability to come through on all kinds of courses and conditions,” team manager Ross Hattaway says.
Mangawhai and Muriwai were tied at 3 1/2 each before an intense showdown in front of a large crowd, Mangawhai golf operations manager Nick Launder said.
“Mangawhai’s number 1, Tyler Wood, was one up on the 18th tee and played a superb 270 metre 2-iron to leave himself a comfortable 40-metre pitch to the par-4 green.”
“His opponent, Kevin Koong, realised he needed a birdie to square the match and his choice of driver looked a great option as the ball flew long and straight – only to carry across the green and go out of bounds across the road and into a neighbouring property.”
“He played his third shot with a 3-wood from the tee, and this time his pure strike found the green and finished some eight metres from the flag.
“Tyler then chipped on to a similar distance from the pin, leaving Kevin with the need to sink his putt to put pressure on his opponent and perhaps force a playoff. However, Kevin’s putt failed to find the hole.
He tapped in for a five, meaning the match was Tyler’s – and Mangawhai’s.
“It is a phenomenal achievement for what many may have considered a fringe club and clearly positions Mangawhai right at the forefront of the new North Golf Association,” Launder says.
In pennants golf, a team of eight players are ranked and will play a match against their equivalent on the competitor team. Each match is worth one point to the victor’s team or half a point if it’s a draw, known as being ‘all square’.
It also differs from traditional golf in that instead of counting strokes for the entire game, a player wins a hole by having the fewest strokes on that hole. The player that wins the most holes at the end wins the match.
