ENGLAND v SPAIN TITLE DECIDER AT COSTA 

BALLENA AFTER BOTH WIN DAY 2 MATCHES
England's final day match against hosts Spain will be the title decider in this men's quadrangular amateur tournament at Costa Ballena, Cadiz.
After both matches were drawn on the opening day, England and Spain moved clear at the top of the table by winning their matches.
England beat Germany 5-4 after sharing the foursomes and taking the singles 3.5 to 2.5. Three of the singles were halved.
Ashton Turner and Rob Burlison gained the all=important afternoon victories
Spain did likewise to beat Finland 5-4.

DAY 2 RESULTS
 GERMANY 4, ENGLAND 5
  Foursomes: 1.5-1.5
Michael Hirmer and Matthias Schmid lost to Ashton Turner and Sean Towndrow 2 holes.
Yannick Schutz and Niklas Mattner bt Scott Gregory and Jamie Bower 2 and 1.
Raphael Geissler and Timo Vahlenkamp halved with Rob Burlison and Bobby Keeble

  Singles (2.5-3.5)
Schmid lost to Turner 4 and 2.
Mattner halved with Towndrow
Schutz halved with Gregory
Vahlenkamp lost to Burlison 4 and 3
Hirmer halved with Bower
Geissler bt Keeble 4 and 3.

SPAIN 5, FINLAND 4
    Foursomes: 1.5-1.5 
Ivan Cantero and Zavier Gorospe bt Tuomas Nukari and Sami Valimaki 3 and 2.
Mario Galiano and Pablo Rodriguez lost to Oliver Lindell and Lauri Ruuska 7 and 6.
Victor Garcia and Victor Pastor halved with Ilari Saulo and Vaino Viityaharju. 

   Singles (3.5-2.5)
Gorospe bt Lindell 1 hole.
Cantero lost to Ruuska 3 and 1.
Rodriguez bt Saulo 3 and 2.
Galiano bt Viitaharju 4 and 3.
Pastyor lost to Valimaki 2 and 1.
Garcia halved with Nukari. 

HOW THEY STAND
3pt England and Spain.
1pt Germany and Finland.

FINAL MATCHES
England v Spain
Germany v Finland

Link to Gecko Pro Tour final totals this week

Venue: La Quinta Golf Club.

CLICK HERE

ST ANDREWS ACCOMMODATION IN DEMAND FOR

OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP IN JULY

NEWS RELEASE
Around a third of properties marketed for let during the 2015 Open Championship over the Old Course, St Andrews in July  have already been snapped up by eager golf fans and companies looking to entertain clients.
Local property company Pagan Osborne has listed more than 200 homes on its site www.opengolf2015.co.uk and is urging companies, organisations and golf fans hoping to rent a property for the July 16th to 20th major tournament to act quickly to secure suitable accommodation.
Linda Black, property manager Fife at the legal, financial and property company, said:
“With the event just six months away, we are dealing with a high level of inquiries from golf fans and corporate bookers and have already let a significant number of homes.
"We have a mixture of properties from small flats in the towns surrounding St Andrews to large town centre guest houses. The most popular are certainly those that are within walking distance of the Open Championship and there will not be many of these available for much longer.”
Letting experts have visited more than 370 properties and are currently accepting the final batch to market on its portal.
The average rent for the week of July event is £5,900 with the least expensive rental, a one-bedroom flat in nearby Kingsbarns, let for £1,500, and the most expensive, a guesthouse on The Scores which sleeps up to 20 people, being marketed at £55,000.

England Golf announce Order of Merit schedules for 2015

NEWS RELEASE
England Golf has announced a revised schedule of tournaments and championships to form the basis of the Orders of Merit for 2015. 
There are six tables: the Orders of Merit for girls, women and senior women are sponsored by Ascot Golf, while the boys, men and senior men contest their respective England Golf Orders of Merit. 
In addition to the new-look schedules, a consistent system of awarding points across all six tables will be introduced.
Also for the first time, the senior men’s Order of Merit will be used for automatic selections for teams for the European Team Championships and the Home Internationals. This system was successfully adopted two years ago for the senior women who, in 2014, won both their European Team Championship and Home Internationals.
England Golf Performance Director Nigel Edwards commented: “2015 promises to be another competitive year across the board in amateur golf.
 “In addition to the European Team Championships and Home Internationals for our England teams at all levels, the men also have the incentive to strive to make the GB and I team for the Walker Cup at Royal Lytham and St Anne’s in September.”
Ashley Chesters, the 2014 winner of the England Golf Men’s Order of Merit.  has the opportunity to defend his title as he enters another year of amateur golf. He is already 20,000pts ahead of all his rivals, courtesy of qualifying for the 2015 Open Championship at St Andrews. 
Sarah-Jane Boyd, who won the 2014 Ascot Golf Women’s Order of Merit will be looking to build on her successes in the paid ranks, having turned professional at the close of last season.
Previous Order of Merit winners include a host of successful tournament professionals including Charley Hull and Holly Clyburn in the women’s game and Tom Lewis, Chris Wood and Gary Wolstenholme MBE in the men’s. All have won professional titles since graduating from the amateur ranks over the last few years.

Lyndsey Hewison
Press Officer

McLEARY'S 65 EARNS HIM THIRD-PLACE £750 PRIZE

Australian Daniel Gaunt won for the second time in a couple of weeks on the Algarve Pro Tour with an eight-under-par total of 136 at this week's 36-hole event at Salgados Golf Club.
Gaunt had rounds of 69 and 67 to head a field of 61 players and win first prize of £1,650  by a shot from Englishman Marcus Armitage (67-70) (£1,100) with Scot Jamie McLeary, pictured below, earning £750 for third place  on 138 after a best-of-the-day (by two shots) second round of seven-under 65.
Duncan Stewart tied for 13th place on 143 with scores of 72 and 71, a shot ahead of Conor O'Neil (7-73). Stewart earned £100. O'Neil was just outside the prizelist.
Craig Lawrie tied for 24th place on 146 with a pair of 73s alongside Jay Taylor who crashed from an opening 69 to a 77, which included double bogeys at the par-4 fourth and par-3 17th.


LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 144 (2x72)
136 Daniel Gaunt (Australia) 69 67
137 Marcus Armitage (England) 67 70
138 Jamie McLeary (Scotland) 73 65


OTHER SCOTS' SCORES
143 Duncan Stewart 72 71 (T13)
144 Conor O'Neil 71 73 (T15)
146 Craig Lawrie 73 73, Jay Taylor 69 77 (T24)

To view all the scores

CLICK HERE

THREE SHARE LEAD IN QATAR MASTERS 

FROM EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS
At the end of the second round at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters, the trio of George Coetzee, Branden Grace and Bernd Wiesberger are  tied on nine-under 135 at the top of a congested leaderboard at Doha Golf Club, thanks to another day of calm conditions in the Middle East.
Out in the afternoon, and with a target to chase, Alfred Dunhill Champion Grace continued a fine run of form which culminated in him claiming a fifth European Tour title on home soil last December, carding five birdies in a round of 68 to finish on nine under par.
That is the same mark as his South Africa compatriot, Coetzee, who earlier in the day had set the target with a five under 67 for nine-under 135 that came as the result of six birdies and a single bogey en route to the top spot.
Alongside the South African pair is Wiesberger, who played with Coetzee over the opening two rounds, and the Austrian shot the best score of the leading threesome thanks to birdies at the first, ninth and tenth before four gains on the bounce from the 13th.
Tucked in close behind at eight under par are a whole host of in-form players, including Byeong-hun An, who shot three under on cut day, one week removed from the first professional hole in one of his career in Abu Dhabi.
The South Korean, who graduated from the European Challenge Tour last year, has Emiliano Grillo for company after the 22 year old Argentine required just 69 strokes.

 They are in a tie for fourth with Marc Warren after the Scot hurtled 51 places through the field, thanks in part to an eagle at the par five first, to card a 65 and match the lowest score of the day.
Sweden’s Johan Carlsson fired the same to jump into a tie for 21st at five under par, while England’s Tommy Fleetwood is one better, after he also matched the day’s best.
Defending champion Sergio Garcia is handily placed inside the top ten at six under par, thanks to consecutive rounds of 69 in Qatar.

KEY QUOTES

George Coetzee (-9)
“I’m playing well, my swing is coming along slightly and I’m also putting pretty nicely. I’ve just got to wait for my birdies, and not force it. It definitely feels like there’s a low number to be had out there, especially in the calm conditions. 
“I had my fair share of rust in the system, after the break – I didn’t touch the clubs over Christmas.  But I’ve played a few events now, so it feels like the rust has worn off and we can just play golf again.”

Branden Grace (-9)
“I don't know why South Africans have such a good record in this event, but it helps that we have good weather back home over the Christmas period, so we’re able to get some good practice in. So by the time we head into The Desert Swing, we are pretty much prepared and ready to go. I think that’s shown over the last couple years, and it’s showing again this week. The South African guys are really performing well, so let’s see if we can get another winner this week.”

Bernd Wiesberger (-9)
“I feel comfortable. I hadn’t really expected to play so well going into these two weeks, especially because I didn’t have my best season last year. So this gives me great confidence, and shows that I’ve been working on the right things.
“I hit a lot of fairways today, and I also felt like I kept the mistakes to a minimum which is a big bonus for me. Having a putter which is working well obviously helps your scoring, as well.”

Sergio Garcia (-6)
“The weather is absolutely perfect, very nice temperature and very little breeze. But there were some very challenging positions out there, so obviously that made it a little bit tougher to get the ball close and make a few more birdies.
“Overall, I’m pretty happy with the way I’m playing, hopefully I can have a good weekend and push up the leaderboard.”

 HALFWAY SCOREBOARD
Par 144 (2x72)
135 B Wiesberger  (Aut) 69 66, G Coetzee (RSA) 68 67, B Grace  (RSA) 67 68, 
136 B An (SKor) 67 69, M Warren (Sco) 71 65, E Grillo (Arg) 67 69
137 A Cañizares  (Esp) 67 70, D Fichardt (RSA) 67 70, R Green (Aus) 70 67
138 O Fisher  (Eng) 65 73, S Garcia  (Esp) 69 69, J Morrison  (Eng) 68 70, T Fleetwood  (Eng) 73 65, A Noren  (Swe) 67 71, G Bourdy (Fra) 70 68, P Lawrie (Irl) 70 68, S Kapur (Ind) 70 68, K Broberg (Swe) 67 71, R Paratore (Ita) 69 69, M Baldwin (Eng) 70 68
139 M Kieffer (Ger) 71 68, E Els (RSA) 67 72, R Cabrera-Bello (Esp) 66 73, J Carlsson (Swe) 74 65, G Havret  (Fra) 70 69, A Sullivan (Eng) 71 68, E De La Riva  (Esp) 70 69, R Gonzalez (Arg) 69 70, M Fitzpatrick  (Eng) 68 71, F Aguilar (Chi) 71 68, K Aphibarnrat (Tha) 68 71
140 P Lawrie (Sco) 67 73, M Foster (Eng) 67 73, M Lorenzo-Vera  (Fra) 70 70, A Quiros  (Esp) 70 70, J Singh (Ind) 70 70, M Hoey  (Nir) 71 69, A Hansen (Den) 71 69, D McGrane (Irl) 68 72, E Pepperell (Eng) 69 71, R Fisher (Eng) 70 70, M Carlsson  (Swe) 71 69, B Hebert  (Fra) 72 68
141 J Rose (Eng) 68 73, S Benson (Eng) 70 71, E Molinari  (Ita) 71 70, B Rumford (Aus) 69 72, M Lampert (Ger) 67 74, H Stenson (Swe) 70 71, S Jamieson  (Sco) 68 73, D Van Der Walt (RSA) 72 69, T Pieters  (Bel) 73 68
142 A Johnston (Eng) 69 73, T Aiken (RSA) 69 73, P Larrazábal (Esp) 71 71, J Barnes (Eng) 72 70, P Waring  (Eng) 70 72, J Quesne  (Fra) 70 72, J Campillo (Esp) 72 70, T Jaidee (Tha) 69 73, P Uihlein  (USA) 69 73
143 R Karlsson (Swe) 70 73, J Roos (RSA) 75 68, R Finch  (Eng) 71 72, W Ormsby (Aus) 74 69, E Espana (Fra) 70 73, M Korhonen (Fin) 73 70, S Gallacher (Sco) 68 75, T Lewis (Eng) 72 71, A Otaegui  (Esp) 73 70, M Tullo (Chi) 69 74, M Nixon (Eng) 72 71, N Colsaerts  (Bel) 70 73, S Kjeldsen (Den) 73 70
144 J Garcia Pinto (Esp) 73 71, M Crespi  (Ita) 76 68, S Khan (Eng) 71 73, O Wilson (Eng) 71 73, Y Yang (SKor) 73 71, D Foos (Ger) 71 73, J Olazábal (Esp) 73 71 
145 A Levy (Fra) 71 74, M Ford (Eng) 70 75, R Ramsay  (Sco) 73 72, M Fraser (Aus) 76 69
146 B Dredge (Wal) 74 72, D Lipsky (USA) 75 71, S Dyson  (Eng) 74 72, J Kruger (RSA) 71 75, S Webster (Eng) 76 70, A Wall (Eng) 75 71, T Olesen (Den) 69 77
147 J Palmer (Eng) 76 71, C Doak (Sco) 71 76, S Hend (Aus) 74 73, T Tree (Eng) 76 71, M Ilonen  (Fin) 72 75, C Schwartzel  (RSA) 69 78, F Zanotti (Par) 71 76, D Howell (Eng) 73 74, R Rock (Eng) 72 75
148 C Lee (Sco) 75 73, G Stal  (Fra) 72 76, R Bland (Eng) 74 74, J Parry (Eng) 74 74, D Drysdale (Sco) 70 78, L Bjerregaard  (Den) 75 73, M Siem  (Ger) 74 74, A Murdaca (am) (Aus) 76 72,
149 S Hutsby  (Eng) 73 76, O Farr (Wal) 76 73, M Madsen  (Den) 76 73, J Lando Casanova  (Fra) 72 77, 
150 T Hatton (Eng) 75 75, G Mulroy (RSA) 72 78, N Fasth (Swe) 74 76, R Jacquelin (Fra) 73 77
151 M Manassero (Ita) 76 75, J Hrinda (am) (Svk) 77 74 
152 R Wattel  (Fra) 75 77
153 G Storm  (Eng) 76 77
155 D Brooks (Eng) 74 81
160 J Jeong (SKor) 78 82
162 A Al Kaabi (am) (Qat) 79 83
168 A Al-Shahrani (am) (Qat) 85 83
** S Hansen (Den) 75 WD,

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS

GREAT 65 BY MARC WARREN
Four  Scots - Marc Warren (T4), Paul Lawrie (T32), Scott Jamieson (T44) and Stephen Gallacher (T62) - qualified for the final two rounds of the Qatar Masters.
Warren had superb second-round 65 for 136 (eight under par) to be only a shot off the pace.
Lawrie has had rounds of 67 and 73 for four-under-par 140. He birdied the first and 10th today but had a double bogey 6 at the 11th and also dropped a shot at the 14th.
Jamieson is on 141 (68-73) and Gallacher 143 (68-75).
Scots who missed the cut (143 and better qualified)
145 Richie Ramsay 73 72 (T82)
147 Chris Doak 71 76 (T93)
148 Craig Lee 75 73 (T102).

Three players - two of them South Africans - share the halfway lead on nine-under-par 135.
Branden Grace has scored 67-68 and compatriot George Coetzee 68-67. 
Austrian Bernd Wiesberger is also in the front rank with rounds of 69 and 66. They lead b y one 

NE Alliance switch from Newmachar to Fraserburgh next Wednesday

Next Wednesday's North-east Golfers' Alliance fixture has been switched already from Newmachar Golf Club's Swailend course to Fraserburgh Golf Club.

"There are two inches of frozen snow on Swailend with little prospect of it disappearing by the middle of next week," said Alliance jt secretary David Wilson.

"Fraserburgh, a seaside links, has no snow on it and is perfectly playable."

The tee times reserved for Newmachar will be transferred.

ALAN REID'S 72 BEST AT GOSWICK ALLIANCE
REPORT FROM ALAN GREENSHIELDS 
Edinburgh and East of Scotland Alliance members made their trip south of the border on Wednesday despite the sub zero temperatures at start of play to contest the Tom Galloway Trophy and thanks go to Goswick Golf Club for hosting the event.  
Indeed they kindly set things up on the summer tees which was much appreciated and hopefully helped to warm some up a bit! Lots of events have been cancelled nationwide and courses closed in recent days so members appreciated being able to keep the 'East Coast Swing' going.
On the scratch front level par ended up the best score of the day and Alan Reid (West Lothian) took the honours with a 72 (40, 32). 
Alan was 5 over par after 10 holes but blasted back in 5 under over the last 8 holes to level things up. Closely followed one shot behind on 73 were Jamie Fraser (Renaissance Club), Louis Gaughan (Bathgate) and Daniel Wood (The Hirsel).
The Tom Galloway Trophy winner and handicap results were a much closer contested situation with two brothers in the end having to be split on the best last 6 holes.
Early in the field Stuart Brown (Dunbar) looked like his net 71 (76 less 5) would test the field but late in the day Walter Forsyth (Peebles) carded a net 71 (78 less 7) with a better inward 9 to place one hand on the trophy.
 However, brother Norman, in the match behind also provided a net 71 card (74 less 3) but with a better inward 6 holes by only one third of a shot to place both hands on The Tom Galloway Trophy and secure his name on it.
On the Trainee front Cameron Marr (Musselburgh) secured top prize with a 75 and The Seniors ranks saw Ewan Robertson (Longniddry) gain the top prize with a net 74 (79 less 5).
Well done to all the winners on a very testing day with the rather 'firm' conditions to be played from. Not the easiest but in the end comments indicate the opportunity to play Goswick was truly enjoyed by those returning and those playing for the first time.
With Neil Henderson away in Florida, the Scratch Order of Merit sees a new leader via Chris Morris taking over the No.1 slot. Top 3 are now -
1. Chris Morris (Kingsknowe) - 419.5
2. Neil Henderson (Renaissance Club) - 392.0
3. Craig Gordon (Edinburgh Golf Centre) - 371.0

The Handicap Order sees no change at the top with Walter Forsyth consolidating his lead but changes are made below. Top 3 are now -
1. Walter Forsyth (Peebles) - 111.5
2. Stuart Brown (Dunbar) - 93.5
3. Philip Leggate (Musselburgh) - 91.0

Overall Winner		Norman Forsyth (Peebles)			71net
Scratch	Prize	Surname	Forename	Club	Score
1st	£100	Reid	Alan	West Lothian	72
2nd=	£60	Fraser	Jamie	Renaissance Club	73
2nd=	£60	Gaughan	Louis	Bathgate	73
2nd=	£60	Wood	Daniel	The Hirsel	73
5th=	£10	Callan	Stuart	Bathgate	74
5th=	£10	Pennycott	Malcolm	Royal Burgess	74
Handicap	Prize	Surname	Forename	Club	Net
1st	£100	Forsyth	Norman	Peebles	71
2nd	£80	Brown	Stuart	Dunbar	71
3rd	£60	Forsyth	Walter	Peebles	71
4th	£40	Brown	Gordon	Baberton	73
5th	£20	Leggate	Philip	Musselburgh	73
Trainee	Prize	Surname	Forename	Club	Score
Professional	£20	Marr	Cameron	Musselburgh	75
	£10	Munro	Ross	Duddingston	77
Senior	Prize	Surname	Forename	Club	Net
	£30	Robertson	Ewan	Longniddry	74
	£20	Louden	Michael	Glencorse	76
	£10	Wardlaw	Stuart	Harburn	78

SCROLL DOWN FOR TOP 52 SCRATCH SCORES

Next week we move round the coast to The Glen at North Berwick hopefully to some warmer weather and certainly a bit more daylight.
Alan Greenshields
Secretary/Treasurer
Edinburgh and East of Scotland Golfers' Alliance
70 Sydney Crescent
Auchterarder
PH3 1BB

 TOP 52 SCRATCH SCORES AT GOSWICK

No	Surname	Forename	Club	Category	Gross
1	Reid	Alan	West Lothian	Pro	72
2	Fraser	Jamie	Renaissance Club	Trainee	73
3	Gaughan	Louis	Bathgate	Trainee	73
4	Wood	Daniel	The Hirsel	Pro	73
5	Callan	Stuart	Bathgate	Pro	74
6	Forsyth	Norman	Peebles	Amateur	74
7	Pennycott	Malcolm	Royal Burgess	Amateur	74
8	Marr	Cameron	Musselburgh	Trainee	75
9	Morris	Chris	Kingsknowe	Pro	75
10	Brown	Stuart	Dunbar	Amateur	76
11	Buckley	Ryan	Royal Musselburgh	Pro	77
12	Munro	Ross	Duddingston	Trainee	77
13	Bradbury	Paul	Kingsknowe	Amateur	78
14	Forsyth	Walter	Peebles	Amateur	78
15	Free	Nathan	Longniddry	Trainee	78
16	Grieve	Scott	Turnhouse	Pro	78
17	McNicoll	Keir	Gullane	Trainee	78
18	Strachan	Sandy	Deer Park	Pro
19	Boyle	Tony	Glenbervie	Amateur	79
20	Huguet	Norman	Musselburgh	Pro	79
21	Johnston	Richard	Glenbervie	Amateur	79
22	Louden	Michael	Glencorse	Senior	79
23	MacKenzie Smith	Richard	Skibo Castle	Trainee	79
24	Robertson	Ewan	Longniddry	Senior	79
25	Rothney	Andrew	Deer Park	Amateur	79
26	Gordon	Craig	Edinburgh Golf Centre	Pro	80
27	Lees	Steven	Dalmahoy	Amateur	80
28	Blaney	Anthony	Liberton	Amateur	81
29	Fraser	Colin	Peebles	Amateur	81
30	Leggate	Philip	Musselburgh	Amateur	81
31	Neill	Ross	Drumpellier	Pro	81
32	Bain	Neil	Duddingston	Amateur	82
33	Cockburn	Robin	Harburn	Amateur	82
34	Fyfe	Ian	Musselburgh	Senior	82
35	Lamb	Joshua	Cardrona	Amateur	82
36	MacKay	Graham	Melville Golf Centre	Pro	82
37	Nicolson	David	Craigielaw	Amateur	82
38	Porteous	Paul	Uphall	Amateur	82
39	Rennie	Martin	Uphall	Amateur	82
40	Taylor	Ian	Eyemouth	Senior	82
41	Boyle	Ross	Ratho Park	Amateur	83
42	Brown	Gordon	Baberton	Amateur	83
43	Brydon	David	Torwoodlee	Amateur	83
44	Cordery	Thomas	Musselburgh	Amateur	83
45	Marr	Michael	Musselburgh	Amateur	83
46	McCallum	Iain	Murrayfield	Amateur	83
47	Airens	Daniel	Falkirk Tryst	Amateur	84
48	Allison	Liam	Bathgate	Amateur	84
49	Jeavons	Ian	Dunbar	Amateur	84
50	Johnston	Graeme D	Glenbervie	Amateur	85
51	Munro	Donny	Kingsknowe	Amateur	85
52	Wilson	Iain	Longniddry	Amateur	85

MARSH, STOW LOSE AUSSIE FIRST-ROUND TIES

Two of the three Englishmen who were among the 64 qualifiers for the match-play stages lost their first-round ties in the Australian international men's amateur championship at The Australian Golf Club, Sydney.
On a day of major form upsets, 10 of the top 15 seeds fell at the first hurdler.
English champion Nick Marsh, who also holds the Scottish youths open title and was the No 1 seed, surprisingly crashed out by 4 and 3 to Lucas Herbert who came through a nine-man play-off for the last of the 64 places in the match-play.
Marsh, a Huddersfield Golf Club but a resident of Leeds, was three up after only four holes.
Ben Stow from Rushmore, Wilts lost by 3 and 2 to Cameron Jones.
That leave English stroke-play champion Paul Howard (Southport and Ainsdale) as England's only representative in the last 32. He got through on the last green, by one hole, against Corey Crawford.

 SUMMARY FROM AUSTRALIA GOLF WEBSITE
For the second time in as many days, Lucas Herbert has bounced back from the brink as his rollercoaster Australian Amateur Championship ride continues.
Herbert, a Golf Australia national squad member, was effectively the last man into the matchplay phase with only a freakish rescue shot during a playoff on Wednesday evening giving him the 64^th and final seed.
Today, after being three down through four holes to medallist and top seed Nick Marsh, the Bendigo 18-year-old rallied again to turn 2-up and win 4 and 3 at The Australian in southern Sydney.
Remarkably, the Neangar Park and Commonwealth pennant player came within 1cm of holing out for an ace with what became his final shot as the Englishman conceded before putting on the 15^th green.
“It’s been quite a wild ride,” Herbert admitted afterwards.
“I’ve been looking down the barrel a couple of times and I’m still around … but that’s matchplay.”
Herbert was joined in the final 32 of men’s competition by fellow Victorian Ryan Ruffels, who also had a tough passage, pushed all the way by New South Welshman Joshua Reid before winning 2 and 1.
“I made the stupid mistake of taking my hat off (preparing to shake hands) when he had a 35-footer for par on the 15^th and he made that then birdied the 16^th and 17th so I had to match that on 17 to finish it when I did,” Ruffels said.
“It was a tough match.”
Their fellow GA national squadmates didn’t fare as well with Brett Coletta going down on the 19^th hole to an inspired Jack Sullivan; Cory Crawford losing one down on the last to Southport and Ainsdale's Paul Howard; and the big shock with Wodonga’s Zach Murray being dispatched 4 and 3 by Japan’s Daisuke Matsbara who was approximately six under when he won on the 15^th green.
“He was just too good. He opened eagle-birdie-par-birdie and I was three down before I knew it,” Murray said.
“I fought to get back into it on the back nine (reaching 1-down through 12), but he just made a couple of birdies to close me out – it’s a good lesson, but I didn’t feel like I played badly.”
Sydney’s Cam Davis survived a tough match against comparative veteran Paul Bucan, the West Australian who has quit his job to assess whether he can make a mature-age run at being a pro golfer.
Bucan pushed the rising national squad star to the 19^th, but conceded when he missed his par putt on the extra hole.
“I don’t think either of us played our best, there were only flashes of brilliance,” Davis joked.
“Full credit to Paul, it was a tough match and I’m glad to pull through.”
Remarkably, 10 of the top 15 seeds were bundled out, leaving the draw wide open with two rounds to be played on Friday.
Of the other big names to leave early, Perth’s Jarryd Felton lost to Kiwi Tyler Hodge 1-down, fellow WA star Cameron Jones dumped Wiltshire's  Ben Stow (3 and 2) and Singaporean fourth seed Johnson Poh was stunned by Victorian Blake Collyer.
The men will play their round of 32 tomorrow morning, then the round of 16 in the afternoon on a marathon day.
Live scores: http://www.golf.org.au/australian-amateur