Leading Western District golfer Robert Payne of the Duntryleague Golf Club in Orange created history last Sunday when he won a three hole play-off against Forbes golfer John Betland to claim his 12th SCT Logistics Parkes Open Golf tournament.
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Payne and Betland are undoubtably the two most dominant golfers in the area as they have their names on many club’s major trophies.
They emphasised this last Sunday as they went head to head in one of the Western area’s premier golfing events.
After the scheduled 27 holes, they could not be separated as they finished level par on 106.
Payne fired rounds of 71 and 35 while Betland returned scores of 69 and 37 to finish tied at the top.
Cobar’s Matt Egan was a further two shots back on 108 in third position.
In the subsequent three hole play-off, the ascendancy fluctuated as both players parred the initial two holes.
On the third hole, Payne hit a magnificent tee shot to within 80 metres of the 345 metre par four 9th hole.
Betland was a little less fortunate as he pulled his tee shot which clipped trees and left him with a 115 metre punch shot which went over the green.
It left the talented Forbes player with a precarious downhill chip shot. Meanwhile, Payne played a solid wedge which finished some three metres from the pin.
Betland’s chip shot was a delight as it finished level with the pin and approximately 3.5 metres from the flag.
His putt for par finished on the edge with his subsequent tap in giving him a bogey five.
Payne only needed to two-putt for victory which he ultimately did in claiming his 12th title.
In the handicap section, Parkes golfer Robert Hey triumphed with a two shot victory over Cobar’s Matt Egan after finishing on 106 nett.
Defending titleholder Paul Bright of Bathurst was an unfortunate late scratching due to ill health and all golfers wish him a speedy recovery.
The tournament was played in glorious weather conditions and players were unanimous in their praise of the courses condition and the manner in which the Parkes Golf Club looks after visiting golfers.
In the minor grades, local golfer Joe van Opynen took out the Harvey Norman sponsored B Grade title for players on handicaps of 10 to 15 after finishing on 124, two shots ahead of St. Michaels’ Andrew Boss.
In the handicap section, Michael Smith of Parkes reigned after finishing on 107.5 nett, just half a shot ahead of the The Coast’s Andrew Duncan.
In the less demanding C Grade over 18 holes, for players on handicaps of 16 and above, victory went to Dominic Romeo from The Coast club in Sydney after he fired a solid 88 off the stick to finish one shot ahead of Bondi’s Peter Myers.
Local Andrew Pigram was a further shot back in the Video Ezy major event.
Another local in Tony “Scrubber” Evans secured his first major title as a golfer when he took out the handicap section with a superb 69 nett, some four shots ahead of Clover Leigh golfer Graham Bell with Geoff Evans of Bathurst in the minor placing on 74 nett.
In other awards, the Asquith Golf club’s Veterans scratch award saw Robert Payne claim the Keith Clarke Memorial Shield trophy after his 71 off the stick.
In the Ken Keith OAM sponsored handicap section, Robert Hey with a solid 72 was successful.
Local business Reflection Jewellers sponsored the days nearest the pin awards.
These were won by Robert Lam in A grade, Jeff Hogan in B grade and Stuart Robinson in C grade.
No player achieved a hole-in-one at the highly successful tournament.
At the presentation of awards, Payne congratulated his fellow golfers as well as thanking the sponsors, especially the naming rights sponsor SCT Logistics.
He also congratulated the Parkes Golf Club for the presentation of the course which was magnificent.
The greens were superb as they were often hard and difficult to read due to the subtle undulations.
He also congratulated the club’s tournament committee for the conduct of yet another highly successful Parkes Open.
Saturday’s prelude event, the Atlas Copco Australia Open Fourball Best Ball Stableford in both scratch and handicap sections attracted the largest field ever for the event with over 200 players.
Forbes brothers John and Steve Betland made it three titles in successive years in returning the best Fourball scratch score with a brilliant six under par round of 42 points.
They won by four shots from Springwood’s Wally Brown and Nigel Bles.
In the handicap event, local golfer Steve Riley teamed with Bathurst’s Phil Pittaway in firing an impressive 47 points to claim a narrow one shot winning margin over the Parkes pairing of John Green and Wayne Powter.
Green and Powter edged out another local pairing of brothers Myles and Blake Smith on a countback.
In the Parkes Mensland Long Drive competition, Duntryleague’s Dean Turner was longest after his tee shot travelled some 276 metres into a slight southerly breeze from the 8th tee.