AMERICAN KITAYAMA COMES FROM BEHIND TO WIN

 

OMAN OPEN BY ONE STROKE

 

Muscat, Oman: Kurt Kitayama secured his second European Tour win in just 11 starts after a gripping final round at the 2019 Oman Open saw the American seal a sensational comeback to win by one-stroke over a quartet of players at the stunning Al Mouj Golf.

 

The 26 year old, who earned his playing privileges through Qualifying School at the end of 2018, looked like he had blown his chances of a second title of the season after carding six over par in his first three holes of the third round before play was called off on Saturday due to low light.

 

 But the AirAfr Asia Bank Mauritius Open champion bounced back in emphatic fashion when play resumed along the coast on Sunday by adding six birdies and an eagle to his third-round tally to head into the final round three shots behind Fabrizio Zanotti.

 

Having navigated the first 15 holes at level par, Kitayama posted back-to-back birdies to take the outright lead after the leading pack all dropped shots on the homeward stretch with Zanotti carding his third double bogey of the round on the 17^th.

 

 A superb approach into 18 gave Kitayama two shots for the title after Maximillian Kieffer failed to force a play-off with a missed birdie putt, and he duly obliged to seal the fourth tournament on part two of the Desert Swing on seven under par after a marathon Sunday of 33 holes.

 

“It feels pretty good to get the win,” said Kitayama against the backdrop of the Indian Ocean. “The comeback in the third round definitely helped me going into the final round and to get back in contention. With it being a continuous round kind of helped me cruise into the next one.

“I was watching the leaderboard to know where I was, especially coming down the stretch and when you take the lead you want to know where everyone else is and where in the course they are and see what holes you have coming up and you set up yourself for that.

 

“This win feels really good because when I won my first title I was playing really well so I felt it was coming, this week, however, I came here after three missed cuts and I did not have good weekends in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. So I had to grind through this, especially after the bunker shot, so it feels great to just grind through all that.”

 

Zanotti, Kieffer, Clement Sordet and Jorge Campillo all shared second place in Muscat, just one shot behind Kitayama. Frenchman Sordet, who won the European Challenge Tour’s Grand Final at this venue in 2017, will be ruing a missed opportunity at a first European Tour title after narrowly missing a short par putt on the 18^th  which saw him surrender his place at the top of the leaderboard.

 

Thomas Pieters, Joachim B.Hansen and Peter Hanson finished one further back for tied sixth while Scott Jamieson and English duo Chris Paisley and Ashley Chesters completed the top ten on four over par.

 

Meanwhile, last year’s champion, Joost Luiten, took a slice of 12^th place after a third round 68 and final round 72 saw him overcome the disappointment of a five over par 77 in round two. He was joined by Frenchman Victor Dubuisson, Ireland’s Gavin Moniyhan, Denmark’s Jeff Winther and English duo David Horsey and Jordan Smith, who carded an impressive final round three under par 69.

 

ENDS

 

SPANISH WOMEN'S INTERNATIONAL AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL
Venue: Zaudin GC, Seville
18-hole final

Alessia Nobilio (Italy) one up after 16 holes

Mahe Candice (France), who trailed throughout until squaring the match at the 18th,  won at the 21st 

Candice had beaten Shannon McWilliam (Aboyne) in semi-finals.

CLICK HERE

 HSBC Women’s World Championship

LEADERBOARD
	Player	To Par	Score
1	Sung Hyun Park	-15	69 - 71 - 69 - 64 (273)
2	Minjee Lee	-13	68 - 71 - 67 - 69 (275)
T3	Jin Young Ko	-11	69 - 73 - 66 - 69 (277)
T3	Azahara Munoz	-11	71 - 68 - 69 - 69 (277)

 

SUNG HYUN PARK SECURES SIXTH LPGA TOUR

WIN AT HSBC WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

 

Sung Hyun Park of Republic of South Korea won her sixth LPGA Tour victory at the 2019 HSBC Women’s World Championship after shooting a final-round 8-under-par 64 on the New Tanjong Course at Sentosa Golf Club, sealing the win by two shots with a 15-under total. Park birdied her first three holes and made two additional birdies on the front with a bogey on No. 8, then returned with four more birdies on the back, outplaying runner-up Minjee Lee (-13) and third-place finishers Jin Young Ko and Azahara Munoz (-11).

“I didn't think I would win this fast and I'm really happy. I am used to having a tough start to the season these past few years, and this first win came so fast, I think I will play really comfortably the rest of my season,” said Park just after the final putt dropped and she was declared the winner.

TIGER OF THE LPGA TOUR CREDITS TIGER WOODS FOR HER WIN

Sung Hyun Park is known by many nicknames including Namdalla (“I’m different”), Dak Gong (“Shut up and attack”), one of them being “Tiger” for her prowess on the golf course and named after her golf hero, Tiger Woods. The 25-year-old South Korean golf sensation was surprised in early February on set at a TaylorMade brand shoot when she had the chance to meet Woods.

During her winner’s press conference at Sentosa Golf Club, Park had a message to share with Woods— “if Tiger is watching this interview, then I would want to say that because we met, you gave me such a good energy, that made me win this tournament.”  

After running out of steam on the back half of her second and third rounds, Park’s mother Keumja Lee kept checking in with her daughter, “What’s going on with your energy levels, are you tired?” Only for Park to respond back confidently, “I still have one more day and just wait.” She told the media, “Even though I hit over par on the back nine in the second and third round, I still had the confidence that I could play better on the last day.”
Park started the final round four strokes behind leader Ariya Jutanugarn and made a charge for the top, shooting the week’s low round of 8-under-par on Sunday while Jutanugarn finished T8 after a disappointing 3-over-par final round.

“The secret, I would say, is that I just tried to focus shot-by-shot today, and because of the hot weather, I was holding my umbrella really close,” said Park of the high temperatures and humidity at Sentosa. “I was holding it really low so I could only look at the ground and the sweat dripping off my face—that narrowed by focus.”

MINJEE LEE'S TITLE BID TURNS AT THE DRIVEABLE PAR-FOUR 14TH

One errant drive effectively ended Minjee Lee's title bid at the HSBC Women’s World Championship on Sunday after she had been tied for the lead with Sung Hyun Park at 14-under with just five holes to play. The par-four 14th had been set up as a driveable 282-yard hole for the final round and Lee, after initially thinking she had hit it well, watched as her ball ended up in the tongue of a fairway bunker from where she hit two poor chip shots en route to a bogey five.

"I thought I hit a good drive on 14, I just over-drew it a little bit and the wind was left-to-right," Lee said after finishing runner-up for a second consecutive week on the LPGA Tour. "It just ended up catching the bunker and went into the tongue in the rough. I thought I hit a pretty good chip shot but probably just a little bit short because if you go over, it's going to be down the swale. I was just thinking about that, but I feel like I didn't hit such a bad chip shot. Just came out a little bit short and then I decided to chip it again, which I didn't really hit a good chip shot. So that hole was pretty much the killer."

Overall, though, Rolex Rankings No.3 Lee has every reason to be in good spirits after playing excellent golf over the past fortnight, initially at the Honda LPGA Thailand and then this week in Singapore.

"I've been playing well and today I turned at 3-under, probably missed a couple opportunities at the beginning of the front nine," she said after closing with a three-under 69.

 "I just didn't give myself too many opportunities for birdie, and made a bad mistake on that one drive. But I feel like I've had a really good two weeks, and hopefully it just sets me up for the year."

GRANDSTAND SEAT FOR EUN-HEE JI

Eun-Hee Ji had the best seat in the house on Sunday to watch Sung Hyun Park's stunning run to her sixth LPGA Tour victory since she was grouped with her fellow South Korean in the final round of the HSBC Women’s World Championship. While Ji carded a two-under 70 to finish alone in seventh place, Park played brilliant golf to sign off with an eight-under 64, the best score of the week by two shots.

"This is the best round she has ever played with me in competition," said Ji, a five-time winner on the LPGA Tour. "She hit it really well today. She hit her shots pretty close to the pin, and she made everything pretty much on the greens. I feel badly for Minjee (who placed second). But Sung Hyun was playing really good, so that happens all the time."

Ji, who won the season-opening Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions in Orlando, was happy enough with her own week in Singapore. "The course is really nice out here, and I just keep trying to make fairway and greens as possible," she said. "The greens firm here, so it was really hard to hold them and I always have to think about how much roll I have. That's all, I'm just trying hard."

Scott Jamieson only one shot off the pace in

Oman Open with 18 holes to go

Round Three Report

Fabrizio Zanotti will go in search of his third European Tour title as he takes a one stroke lead into Sunday's final round of the Oman Open.

The Paraguayan, who last won at the 2017 Maybank Championship, returned to Al Mouj Golf on Sunday morning to complete his third round. All but 11 players were forced to complete their second rounds on Saturday due to delays brought on by a sandstorm and high winds on the Gulf of Oman on Friday, beginning their third rounds immediately afterwards.

Zanotti made four gains on the back nine of the Greg Norman-designed lay-out, including a birdie on the 18th hole, taking a one stroke lead over Scott Jamieson after a four under par round of 68.

Jamieson, whose last title came in 2013, had a run of eight birdies in 13 holes during his third round, eventually recording a six under par 66 to take solo second place, one stroke ahead of Joachim B. Hanson and Maximilian Kieffer in third.

2012 Ryder Cup player Peter Hanson recorded his best round since last year’s D+D REAL Czech Masters, a six under par 66, as he moved up to a share of fifth place alongside Jorge Campillo and Kurt Kitayama on five under.

Kitayama was six over par after three holes before Saturday’s suspension, but played the remaining 15 holes of his third round this morning seven under par, signing for a one under par 71.

Competitors started their final rounds no sooner than 30 minutes after recording their third round scores - there has been no redraw.

Player Quotes

Fabrizio Zanotti: “I’m feeling good and sticking to my plan, going shot by shot. The golf course will play very tough this afternoon so I need to be patient.

“I need to try and do my best, and there’s nothing else I can do. The wind wasn’t too difficult this morning when we started, but as we went through the round it started getting tougher.”

Scott Jamieson: “I didn’t particularly enjoy yesterday, it wasn’t much fun. So it was nice to get back out with 12 holes to play this morning, and it was nice to capitalize when conditions were a little easier.

“The leaderboard was really bunched, so it was key to make a fast start and move into a nice position.”

Peter Hanson: “I can’t really remember the last time I shot in the 60s. My game is coming together well and a lot of things I’m working on are coming together. I need to build on this and not try and focus too much on the result, just keep working on the stuff I’ve been doing over the last few weeks and see what happens.

“I’ve been a little bit slow getting out of the blocks but finishing better. Yesterday I wasn’t swinging it great with a couple of loose shots on the first few holes. But I finished with two great birdies on 17 and 18. It would have been nice to have a more solid start, but when you’re working on technical stuff it’s difficult to build that trust and take that through a round.”

Kurt Kitayama: “After that start I wanted to get off that golf course and regroup for today. I was glad of the fresh start this morning, I birdied my first hole and then had a great comeback today, so it feels pretty good.

“I need to try and keep this momentum going.”

Scores after round three:
208 F Zanotti (Par) 71 69 68,
209 S Jamieson (Sco) 67 76 66,
210 P Hanson (Swe) 71 73 66, M Kieffer (Ger) 69 70 71, J Hansen (Den) 70 69 71,
211 K Kitayama (USA) 66 74 71,
212 G Bhullar (Ind) 71 69 72, H Tanihara (Jpn) 70 72 70, C Paisley (Eng) 71 72 69, C Sordet (Fra) 71 71 70, S Soderberg (Swe) 72 72 68, T Pieters (Bel) 68 75 69,
213 J Campillo (Esp) 69 78 66, E Kofstad (Nor) 72 70 71, G Moynihan (Irl) 69 73 71, B Hebert (Fra) 70 72 71,
214 D Horsey (Eng) 68 76 70, J Luiten (Ned) 69 77 68, V Dubuisson (Fra) 72 70 72, S Crocker (USA) 72 72 70, H Leon (Chi) 71 71 72,
215 R Macintyre (Sco) 71 74 70, J Winther (Den) 73 73 69, A Chesters (Eng) 73 74 68,
216 A Saddier (Fra) 68 76 72, D Drysdale (Sco) 70 76 70, M Schmitt (Ger) 71 73 72, M Baldwin (Eng) 70 75 71,
217 J Smith (Eng) 71 76 70, D Lawson (Aus) 72 72 73, N Bertasio (Ita) 72 73 72, T Aiken (RSA) 75 73 69,
218 M Kawamura (Jpn) 73 71 74, R McEvoy (Eng) 72 74 72, J Walters (RSA) 73 73 72, A Arnaus (Esp) 70 78 70, Z Lombard (RSA) 72 75 71, F Bergamaschi (Ita) 72 74 72, S Hend (Aus) 73 74 71, L De Jager (RSA) 71 77 70, D Fichardt (RSA) 75 73 70, R Langasque (Fra) 72 75 71, T Jaidee (Tha) 71 72 75, N Cullen (Aus) 72 76 70,
219 T Detry (Bel) 70 73 76, R Jacquelin (Fra) 68 79 72, M Korhonen (Fin) 70 78 71, G Migliozzi (Ita) 73 73 73, N Colsaerts (Bel) 72 76 71, S Vincent (Zim) 68 80 71, O Wilson (Eng) 72 74 73,
220 M Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 70 75 75, D Borda (Esp) 72 74 74, J Wang (Kor) 77 71 72, B Dredge (Wal) 74 72 74, B Stone (RSA) 70 70 80, J Choi (Kor) 73 73 74,
221 J Catlin (USA) 76 72 73, Y Miyazato (Jpn) 67 79 75, V Perez (Fra) 73 75 73, M Manassero (Ita) 72 76 73, S Sharma (IndIA) 72 74 75,
222 A Sullivan (Eng) 72 75 75, P Dunne (Ire) 74 74 74, J Van Zyl (RSA) 75 73 74, A Pavan (Ita) 71 75 76,
223 J Morrison (Eng) 72 76 75, C Bezuidenhout (RSA) 70 78 75, M Southgate (Eng) 75 70 78,
224 P Figueiredo (Por) 71 77 76,
226 A Wu (Chn) 76 71 79,

DUTCH DELIGHT AS ANNE VAN DAM WINS
CANBERRA CLASSIC

Canberra, Australia – March 3, 2019: Anne Van Dam from The Netherlands has surged home on the final nine to win the Canberra Women’s Classic at Royal Canberra Golf Club by three strokes: her third Ladies European Tour title inside six months and her fourth overall.

Van Dam began the day as joint leader on 11 under and duelled with defending champion Jiyai Shin (Korea Republic) through the back nine before picking up four shots in the final four holes with a final round of six under 65.

Katja Pogacar (Slovenia) – the other overnight leader – also came home strongly with two birdies in the final four holes to finish 14-under par, one ahead of Shin.

Van Dam said after shooting eight under in the second round to put her in contention, she knew she had to go to another level to win the championship.

“It gave me so much confidence that I knew I could birdie every hole here. I just had to stay patient, trust my long game and I was really happy with the way I putted.”

The day began with a group of five players separated by just two shots at the top of the leaderboard and while Van Dam led at the halfway mark by one shot, Shin and Carly Booth (Scotland) and Madelene Sagstrom (Sweden) were all within striking distance.

Shin looked the most threatening having moved to 12 under and she then drew level with Van Dam at the 12^th, only to lose the lead the next hole with a bogey five.

But the defending champion refused to surrender her title and again drew level with a birdie on 15.

Just when it looked like the championship was shifting, the long-hitting Van Dam reached the 15^th in two and then holed the eagle putt to move to 15 under.

Shin continued to stake a claim for the title when she birdied 16 to be one shot behind Van Dam.

The South Korean bogeyed 17 and Van Dam seized the advantage with birdie on the 16^th and then crowned her victory with another birdie on 18 to finish on 17 under (196).

The ActewAGL Canberra Classic is Van Dam’s fourth title on the European Tour.

“I’ve hit a lot of golf balls over the past couple of months and, with my coach Dave, we’ve been working on my swing, so I’m really happy with it right now.”

Katja Pogacar surged home with a final round of 68 to claim second place, her best finish on the Ladies European Tour.

“It was my first time playing in the last group in front of a large gallery, which was different and a great experience…and I loved it.

“I’m so happy to have performed under the pressure. It was a little shaky in the beginning but I finished strongly…which will give me a lot of confidence for the whole season.”

Anne Van Dam won with a 17 under par, 54-hole total of 196. Her cash prize was 14,080 euros.
Carly Booth from Comrie finished fourth at 11 under par 202 (67-65-70) and pocketed 4,224 euros.
Fellow Scot Gemma Dryburh finishede T24 on two-under 211 (72-69-70) and earned 1,147 euros.
A third Scot, Kyle Henry, finished T38 on 214 (69-72-73) and earned 661 euros.

The next event on the Ladies European Tour is the Women’s New South Wales Open at Queanbeyan, which is just 20 minutes from the venue of this week’s tournament at Royal Canberra Golf Club.

Further information:
Bethan.Cutler@ladieseuropeantour.com

MURRAY WINS NZ MEN'S OPEN

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                              March 3, 2019 MURRAY COMES OF AGE BY WINNING THE 100TH NEW ZEALAND OPEN Zach Murray of Australia Photo credit: Photosport NZ Final results and earnings Queenstown, New Zealand, March 3: Australian rookie Zach Murray signaled his arrival on the biggest stage when he became the third fastest Qualifying School graduate to win on the Asian Tour after closing with a four-under-par 68 to become the newest champion of the New Zealand Open on Sunday. It was a wire-to-wire victory for the 21-year-old and his breakthrough was made even sweeter as it was his first professional win, achieved in what was only his third start on the Asian Tour at the NZ$1,250,000 (Approx. US$850,000) event. Murray saw his five-shot lead after the second round reduced to just one after the third round. But the Australian responded on the day that mattered most with a sublime performance that saw him lift the New Zealand Open trophy by two shots over closest challengers Josh Geary of New Zealand and compatriot Ashley Hall at The Hills. Murray birdied the second before reeling off seven successive pars to turn in 35. He added another birdie on the 10 but would give it back on the next following a bogey. The young talent however soared with an eagle-birdie-birdie run from 13 to pull clear of Geary and Hall. Murray, who held a three-shot lead coming down the 72nd hole, had to hit his third shot from behind the television tower but a two-putt bogey for a 21-under-par 266 total was good enough to ensure his triumph at the storied event, that is co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia. Merit leader Jazz Janewattananond enjoyed another solid result on the Asian Tour by signing off with a bogey-free 66 to finish three shots back in fourth place. The Thai has never finished outside the top-10 since he lifted his third Asian Tour title at the season-opening event in Singapore in January. A total of 152 professionals and 152 amateurs took part in the event where the first two rounds were alternated between the par-71 course at Millbrook Resort and the par-72 course at The Hills. The 62 players, who made the halfway cut on Friday, competed in the final two rounds at The Hills. Did you know? Zach Murray of Australia is the third fastest rookie to win on the Asian Tour after Kane Webber (2006 Macao Open) and Todd Sinnott (2017 Leopalace Myanmar Open), who both won on their second starts on Tour. Murray will take home a winner’s cheque of AUD$211,724 (approx. US$149,964) and receive a total of 15 Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points courtesy of his victory. Murray secured his 2019 Asian Tour card at the Qualifying School last December after finishing fourth in the 90-hole event. Murray led from start to finish when he won the Nexus Risk TSA Group WA Open (an event on the PGA Tour of Australasia) as an amateur golfer in October 2018. One month later, he made his professional debut at the Australian Open. Murray was ranked as high as 19th on the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Murray marked his lowest round yet as a professional with his opening 63 at Millbrook Resort. He was in a three-way tie for lead after 18 holes but a second round 65 at The Hills saw him move five shots clear of the field in what is his debut appearance in the long-running event. He would follow up with a third-round 70 to retain a one-shot lead heading into the final round. Murray is playing in only his third start on the Asian Tour this season. Murray hails from Victoria, Australia. He is in Queenstown this week for the first time. Ashley Hall is a three-time winner on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia in 2007, 2009 and 2016. The 35-year-old Hall played on the Asian Tour in 2007 and 2008. He also played on the Web.com Tour from 2013 to 2015, where he came in runner-up twice. In 2018, he regained his Asian Tour card at the Qualifying School but played only two events that season. After firing five straight birdies in his closing six holes in the third round, Hall continued his hot bogey-free streak before dropping a shot on his 72nd hole. Josh Geary, 34, is a one-time winner on the Canadian Tour. He won the Saskatchewan Open at Dakota Dunes Resort and Casino in Saskatoon in 2008. Prior to turning professional in 2007, Geary enjoyed an illustrious amateur career where he represented New Zealand in the bi-annual World Amateur team event - Eisenhower Trophy in 2004 and 2006. Geary has recorded five professional victories, including three in 2015. Jazz Janewattananond closed with a stunning bogey-free 64, highlighted by four birdies and two eagles on 13 and 17. He had dropped only one shot in his last 36 holes at The Hills. He made a total of three eagles this week, including an eagle-three on the first hole at The Hills in the opening round. Jazz leads the latest Asian Tour Habitat for Humanity Standings and is playing in his first New Zealand Open this week. Jazz broke into the world’s top-100 for the first time in his career after claiming his third Asian Tour title at the season-opening SMBC Singapore Open last month. That victory also earned him a coveted spot in The Open, where he made his Major debut last year. Players’ quotes: Zach Murray (Aus) – Final round 68 (-4), Total 266 (-21) Starting my career like this is so huge and to win the 100th New Zealand Open - I don’t really think words can describe that. I’ve etched my name in history a little bit, which is really good and I’ll come back and support this tournament as long as I’m a professional. Growing up in the country, being loyal to the people when you first started, I’m looking forward to playing this tournament for the rest of my life. I was speaking to (Sir Bob) just before and I’d never met him before, he’s an amazing man and I reckon if I could have a 10th of the career that he had I’ll die a happy man, I reckon. I just holed some nice putts and that has been the key for me all week. This win will get me into the upcoming Maybank Championship in Malaysia. I can’t wait for that. It’s going to be fantastic. I was trying to get an invite there but now I don’t have to. I am super happy to be able to head out there and I look forward to playing full time in Asia. This victory means a lot to me. Any professionals who just started out would want to play. I am loving the game at the moment and I just want to keep playing well and capitalize on this win. I really like Asia. It’s pretty close to home, just one flight away. Not jet-lags, it’s nice. My family and friends can come out and support if I do well. I have friends who played in Asia before telling me that the people are nice and supportive in Asia so I am looking forward to it. Ashley Hall (Aus)– Final round 65 (-7), Total 268 (-19) I wanted to get off to a quick start and I did, I found some magic with the putter. I almost felt like I couldn’t miss for a little while. I’m a bit disappointed with the finish, just a bit jittery. I haven’t played much lately and haven’t been in the hunt for a while. Josh Geary (Nzl) – Final round 68 (-3), Total 268 (-19) When I hit it close on 13 and got the eagle I thought ‘maybe’, but he responded really well. We lost the tee shot left on 15 but got a drop and made birdie and started to feel it could happen. It was not really gone because 16, 17 and 18 are holes that can trip you up. It is my first event for three months and it came with a lot of changes to the swing over the last six months. Overall, I am really happy with the week. It was a shame I lost a bit of momentum today. I hit a good shot into 5 which hit the flag and missed the green and that started a five hole stretch of some weird stuff. I bounced back from that but it was too little too late. Jazz Janewattananond (Tha) – Final round 64 (-8), Total 269 (-18) My caddy Jacob was just telling me that the two eagles on the back nine reminded him of my back nine at the Indonesian Masters last year. I had two eagles to finish second there. I am pleased with the way I played. I started off really good today but kind of struggled during the middle of the round. But got it back after that. I got it back earlier than I did yesterday though so that helps. I wasn’t thinking much out there to be honest. I saw the leaderboard and thought I am too far away from the lead. I just try my best to play well, hoping to boost my world rankings with a good result. I have been playing well since I started working with my new coach Pete Cowen. This week’s a good build-up for Maybank Championship as well so I am looking forward to that. I think I will need another good result there to have a chance to qualify for the Majors and World Golf Championships. The week’s been lovely. I am going to do some sight seeing before going home tomorrow. Maybe do some activities but no bungee jump for sure! I’m taking the next week off. I haven’t been home for a few weeks so I hope to get some good rest and spend time with my family back home. It’s still early in the season. I wasn’t thinking about it earlier but now, I think I might have a chance. It all depends on how I do at the Maybank Championship later this month. If I finish well there, I should be in a better position to chase for the Order of Merit title. Scores after round 4 of the 100th New Zealand Open being played at the par 72, 6524 Metres The Hills course (am - denotes amateur): 266 - Zach Murray (AUS) 63-65-70-68. 268 - Ashley Hall (AUS) 67-69-67-65, Josh Geary (NZL) 67-69-63-69. 269 - Jazz Janewattananond (THA) 69-70-66-64. 270 - Brad Kennedy (AUS) 71-63-69-67, Rikuya Hoshino (JPN) 71-68-63-68, Ryuko Tokimatsu (JPN) 64-69-68-69. 271 - Steven Alker (NZL) 68-69-69-65, Kodai Ichihara (JPN) 66-68-67-70, Harry Bateman (NZL) 64-70-67-70. 272 - Won Joon Lee (AUS) 70-70-66-66, Ryan Fox (NZL) 68-66-71-67. 274 - Andrew Dodt (AUS) 72-67-68-67, Paul Peterson (USA) 69-68-68-69, Travis Smyth (AUS) 67-71-67-69, Matthew Griffin (AUS) 71-69-64-70. 275 - Geoff Ogilvy (AUS) 73-65-71-66, Harrison Endycott (AUS) 69-70-68-68, Adilson da Silva (BRA) 68-69-69-69, K.J. Choi (KOR) 69-70-67-69, Adam Bland (AUS) 68-72-66-69, Aaron Pike (AUS) 71-66-65-73