Institute of Golf

Institute of Golf Represents in Australian Women’s Open

igolfinstruction — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:51:53 +0000

Institute of Golf representative Zoe Brake has won her way into the field for this week’s Handa Australian Women’s Open in Victoria.

Zoe Brake

Zoe will join Institute of Golf rep Lydia Ko in the 3 player New Zealand team in the Queen Sirikit Cup on home soil next month.

She fired a three-under par 71 to be one of four players to make it through final pre-qualifying at the Peninsula GC in Melbourne. Zoe managed to play the last 5 holes -4 to take one of the few spots available on the day for the Open.

She will take her place in the field for the A$600,000 event that begins tomorrow at the Commonwealth Golf Club.

Brake, the only New Zealand amateur in the field, will join kiwi professionals Stacy Tate, Cathryn Bristow and Sarah Nicholson.

She has been paired with professionals Rachel Bailey (AUS) and Linda Wessberg (SWE) in tomorrow’s first round.

Brake shared equal top spot in the final pre-qualifying with England’s Kym Larratt and Finland’s Hanna-Leena Salonen.

Updates on Zoe’s progress to follow.

Tournament starts Thursday 11th.

Filed under: Media, News Tagged: igolf, igolf elite, igolf NZ, institute, Institute of Golf, NZGA

Harbour Finish 3rd

igolfinstruction — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 20:47:55 +0000

Auckland have won the 2010 SBS Invitational tournament at Invercargill Golf Club.

Bay of Plenty finished 3 shots adrift in second place with North Harbour placing third a shot further back.

North Harbour player Simon Brownlee was crowned individual player of the tournament after returning scores of 67, 73, 69, and a closing round of 70.

Click Here to view the Final Team scores and Individual Leaderboard.

Filed under: Golf Instruction, Media, News, Physiotherapy Specialist, Professional Instruction

igolf Players Solid after 2 Rounds of SBS

igolfinstruction — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 23:11:06 +0000

Auckland will take a slender one shot lead into tomorrow’s final day of the SBS Invitational provincial golf tournament in Invercargill.

Click Here to view the Team scores and updated Individual Leaderboard after 36 holes of play.

The 2008 champions ran hot in the second round in the afternoon to finish on 14-under par for 36 holes for their four best counting scores in the provincial strokeplay competition.

They are just one shot ahead of defending champions North Harbour on 563 with a further four shots back to hosts Southland at Invercargill Golf Club.

Bay of Plenty are in fifth place on five-under par with Wellington three shots back in sixth.

After a two-under par morning round, Auckland made their move in the afternoon with a 12-under 276, led by five under 67 from Hayden McCallum and 68 by Jason Mann.

Harbour were held together with three five-under par 67 scores from Simon Brownlee, Cameron Jones (igolf), Tom Cardno (igolf) and their No 1 Scott Johnson.

Southland were steady with five scores under-par led by two 69s from Jeremy Hall and Liam Balneaves, while a five-under 67 by Bradley Kendall was the spark for Bay of Plenty.

Leading individual honours are shared by Johnson on seven-under 137 along with Richard Pegg (Wellington), one shot ahead of Mann with three players sharing fourth place on 139 – Duncan Croudis (Otago), Hall and Nick Gillespie (Hawkes Bay).

Click Here to view the Team scores and updated Individual Leaderboard after 36 holes of play.

Click Here to view the Tournament Draw for Rounds 3 & 4.

Filed under: Golf Instruction, Mental Performance, News, Physical Performance, Physiotherapy Specialist, Professional Instruction Tagged: Cam Jones, harbour golf, igolf, Institute of Golf, nz golf, SBS invitational, Tom Cardno

igolf to battle for Queen Sirikit International

igolfinstruction — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 21:46:07 +0000

Exciting Korean-born teenagers will make their senior international golfing debut for New Zealand in next month’s Queen Sirikit Cup in Hamilton.

Cecilia Cho, 15, and Lydia Ko, 12, will join 18-year-old Zoe Brake in a new-look New Zealand team to contest the annual Asia Pacific women’s team championship which has attracted 12 teams so far to the Hamilton Golf Club on 7-9 April.

It is the youngest team in memory to compete in the 34th Queen Sirikit Cup which has already attracted teams from Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

Cho (Pakuranga club, Auckland) and Ko (Institute of Golf) gained their citizenship recently to be eligible for national selection.

The three players have dominated the New Zealand amateur game.

Cho is the current New Zealand amateur champion, one of 15 individual titles who won last year as well as guiding Auckland to the Toro Interprovincial crown.

Ko was runner-up to Cho in the national amateur, and recently won the North Island amateur title by seven shots. She turned heads last week in finishing in a share of seventh place at the Pegasus New Zealand Open, winning the Bessie Fullerton-Smith Trophy as leading amateur.

Ko and Cho were joined by professional Sarah Nicholson as the only kiwis to make the cut at the New Zealand Open.

Brake (igolf) is the current New Zealand strokeplay champion and also recently won the South Island amateur in spectacular fashion, and the most experienced of the New Zealand internationals.

“New Zealand Golf is very excited by the prospects of this team,” said Simon Poll, New Zealand Golf High Performance Manager. “Of course they are a very young team, so it augers well for the future.

“We are thrilled that Lydia and Cecilia have now chosen to become New Zealand citizens and I am sure they will add significantly to our game both on and off the golf course.

“This tournament is second in stature to the world championships so we are under no illusions that it will be tough but at the same time we are hopeful that with this talented young team and some home advantage, that we will acquit ourselves well.”

The Queen Sirikit Cup was first held in 1979. New Zealand has won the team’s event three times – in 1984, 1990 and 1999, when it was last held in this country, at Paraparaumu Beach. Lynnette Brooky was the last New Zealander to claim the individual title in 1993.

The team is:

Lydia Ko (Institute of Golf), Zoe Brake (Institute of Golf), Cecilia Cho (Pakuranga GC, Auckland) .

Filed under: Golf Instruction, Media, Mental Performance, News, Physical Performance, Physiotherapy Specialist, Professional Instruction Tagged: Craig Dixon, elite golf, Guy Wilson Golf Coach, igolf, Institute of Golf, Junior Golf, Lydia ko, nz golf, Queen Sirikit, Womens Golf, Zoe Brake

Ko and Brake to Represent New Zealand

igolfinstruction — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:17:20 +0000

Exciting young Korean-born golfers Cecilia Cho and igolf’s Lydia Ko will make their debuts for New Zealand in next month’s Trans Tasman Cup against Australia in Wellington.

New Zealand Golf hopes their inclusion will help boost the kiwi line-up which will chase overall honours for the first time in the fourth Trans Tasman Cup to be played at Royal Wellington Golf Club on 28-29 March.The pair, who dominated much of the women’s amateur scene last year, have both gained their citizenship in recent weeks. Ko (igolf), the North Island Amateur champion, turns 13 in April while Cho (Pakuranga), 15, won the New Zealand Amateur title over Ko, one of 15 individual titles she won in 2009.

They will compete in the junior women’s team, which has been the Achilles heel in the New Zealand campaign for Trans Tasman rivalry.

The senior men’s side is led by Masterton’s Ben Campbell, and also features the return of Nick Gillespie who forced a recall after a welcome return to form in recent months including victory in the South Island Amateur. They are joined by Auckland’s Ryan Fox and Tauranga’s in-form Andrew Stewart.

The senior women’s team is headed by Institute of Golf’s Zoe Brake, who won the recent South Island Amateur in impressive fashion. She is joined by Northland’s Caroline Bon, the runner-up at the South islands, Emily Perry (Lochiel), last year’s top amateur in the Charles Tour, and Nelson’s Lisa Wright, who has impressed with bold showings at both the North Island and South Island amateurs.

Cho and Ko head the junior women’s team with Manukau’s Liv Cheng and Waikato’s Erin Hawe, while the junior boy’s team consist of an all-South Island group of Keelan Kilpatrick, North Island Under-19 champion Vaughan McCall and the Timaru pair of Tim Leonard and Mark O’Malley.

The two day event incorporates singles and foursomes on the each day. The players compete for individual trophies – Sloan Morpeth Trophy (senior men), Tasman Cup (senior women), Clare Higson Trophy (junior men) and Junior Tasman Trophy (junior women) as well as combining all scores for the overall Trans Tasman Cup.

New Zealand won three of the four individual trophies in the inaugural year but were pipped overall 24 ½ to 23 ½ in 2007 in Canberra, with Australia dominated 25-15 in the weather shortened event at Royal Wellington in 2008 and 33-15 at Royal Canberra last year.

The teams are:

Men, Senior; Ben Campbell (Masterton), Ryan Fox (Auckland), Nick Gillespie (Royal Wellington), Andrew Stewart (Omokoroa).
Junior: Keelan Kilpatrick (Russley), Tim Leonard (Timaru), Vaughan McCall (Gore), Mark O’Malley (Timaru). Manager: John Gatley (Hamilton)

Women, Senior: Caroline Bon (Northland), Zoe Brake (igolf), Emily Perry (Lochiel), Lisa Wright (Nelson).
Junior; Liv Cheng (Manukau), Cecilia Cho (Pakuranga), Erin Hawe (Walton), Lydia Ko (igolf). Manager; Libby Steele (Taupo).

Filed under: Golf Instruction, Media, Mental Performance, News, Physical Performance, Physiotherapy Specialist, Professional Instruction Tagged: Golf Instruction, Golf Professional, golf specific, igolf, Institute of Golf, Lydia ko, national golf team, NZ Junior Golf, NZGA, Zoe Brake