Waikato Golf hosted on the 7th of May, the Waikato Golf Association Secondary Schools Teams Golf Day. This event is a chance for all the schools in the Waikato to take part. The format of the event is Ambrose giving schools a chance to introduce new golfers to the game, with most teams consisting of one or two handicapped golfers and the others being made up of beginners. 

2018 marked a change in the Waikato secondary school golfing landscape. An unprecedented 33 teams registered for this year’s event. This was nearly double the previous year’s entries. This provided our team in the office the very enviable problem of having too many golfers for the event. Thus the decision was made to move the Division Two players to the Morrinsville Golf Club.

The Matamata Golf Club was in splendid condition given the rain that they received over the last fortnight. The torrent of water that was running down the 18th hole and across the golf course putting an end to the women’s pennants finals on Sunday 29th April was nowhere to be seen. 19 Teams teed it up at the Matamata Golf Club for the chance to be crowned division 1 Champions.

There were some spectacular golf shots played and some not so. The scoring was sensational with the gross scores ranging from 78 - 60 (Par 71). Hamilton Boys High School had a fantastic day with their 9 team entries picking up four of the top five prizes.

HBHS #4 team of Luke Kidd, Cory Gabolinsky, William Muldowney, Hamish Mellow carded a 62 for a nett score of 57.5 and 5th position.

HBHS #6 team of Dominic Letford, Navjot Rai, Kristan Clarke, Sam Sinclair carded a 66 for a net score of 56.125 and 4th position.

St Peters of Cambridge School #7 team of Focus Jonglikit, Porche, Umi Leeungkul, Min Thongyindee carded a 69 for a net score of 55.5 and 3rd position.

HBHS #2 team of Logan Madden, Grayson Abraham, Luke Meiklejohn, Mitchell Stuthridge carded a 60 for a nett score of 54.25 and 2nd position.

The Winning team for Division One was the HBHS #9 team of Sam McArthur, Campbell Crouch, Elliot Jenkins, Mitchell Kay they managed a score of 61 giving them a net score of 53.875. 

 The event was a resounding success in Matamata with feedback extremely positive. The huge positive was the astounding numbers we had attend. 

Division two was moved to the Morrinsville Golf Club. 56 players assembled from 7 schools to do battle for division 2 bragging rights. The Morrinsville Golf Club was also in excellent condition showing no signs of recent coring or adverse weather effects. 

The teams set off with the idea of competing over 18 holes. Unfortunately as the day progressed it became apparent that 18 holes would  - for players of this experience and ability - be a bridge too far. After 4 and a 1/2 hours and between 14 and 17 holes played the hooter was sounded for the teams to return to the clubhouse. This meant a reduced competition of 9 holes was used to decide the division two winners. 

Te Awamutu College #1 team of Sam Towers, Ben Ranby, Al Motu Emery, Charles Makiteiaa carded a 35 for a net 29 and 4th place.

HBHS #13 team of Harry Russ, Boston Wilde, Bradley Gibson carded a 34 for a net score of 28 gaining them 3rd place. 

HBHS #14 team of Caleb Barton, Jake Winchcombe, Luka Den Hertog carded a 33 for a net score of 27 and 2nd place. 

The Division Two winning team was the HBHS #12 Team of Declan O'Brien, Jack Devane, Andrew Carney, Harry Petre. They carded a 31 for a net score of 25. 

Waikato Golf would like to congratulate all the players that registered for and attended this event. As stated earlier the turnout was nothing short of remarkable and is a great reflection on the work being done in our local schools. A sincere thank you must also go to the two host clubs, Matamata Golf Club and Morrinsville Golf Club. These clubs provide their venues free of charge and both Waikato Golf and our Schools are very appreciative of this.