Thomas Facer (Otago) showed his class in beating Anthony McCullough (Chisholm Park) 6 and 5 in the final to win the Otago schoolboys' championship at Chisholm Park yesterday.
Despite playing at home, McCullough was no match for the Otago No 6.
The win should give Facer some confidence as he played at No 3 for Otago in March but has not shown his best form in the recent Otago trials.
He edged ahead by one after six holes but won the seventh and eighth with pars and the ninth with an impressive birdie 3 to lead by four at the turn.
The pair halved the 10th but Facer went 5-up when McCullough was forced to make two chips from thick rough near the 11th green.
Another birdie at the par-four 12th put Facer dormie 6-up and the match finished when both players parred the 13th.
Chase Thomas (Ardleigh) won the senior plate, Morgan Will (Riversdale) took the division one title and Damien Rodgers (Highfield) won the division one plate.
The division two matches were played off handicap with Mason Calder (Waikaka) winning the main title and Connor Jamison (Chisholm Park) winning the plate.
Wellington professional Gareth Paddison is looking to make it two from two when the Charles Tour's Taranaki Open starts today, NZPA reports.
The 30-year-old left-hander has plied his trade mostly in Europe since turning professional nearly a decade ago, but now that he is concentrating on the OneAsia tour, he took advantage of the break there to win the Wairakei Open last week.
In his first Charles Tour appearance, Paddison won by five shots from Tauranga's Jared Pender.
"I've heard a lot about it, that it is part linksy and part parklands. I love those sorts of courses. They suit my game," Paddison said.
He will not have things his own way, with the field including the winner of the last two Taranaki Open titles, Michael Hendry, the 2005 winner Doug Holloway and 2008 champion Troy Ropiha.
