Date: August 22, 2018
Author: Mark Hayes

Aussie 59ers carry special honour

It’s a high point in most amateur careers to represent your country at the World Amateur Team Championships.

But when the Australian contingents take to the course at Carton House in Ireland in the next two weeks, it will be with even more significance.

Both women’s and men’s teams have adopted the tradition of carrying the number that denotes their spot in the lineage of Australian amateur golf’s rich history.

For example, Kirsty Hodgkins will be the 53rd woman to play in Australian colours for the Espirito Santo Trophy alongside Becky Kay (54) and Grace Kim (55). All three will carry their respective numbers.

On the men’s side, Min Woo Lee will sport No.80, with David Micheluzzi to wear No.81 and Shae Wools-Cobb No.82 a week later in the quest to defend the Eisenhower Trophy Australia won in 2016.

But all six will carry one more extremely special number.

Jarrod Lyle, who died this month after a third fight with leukemia, was the 59th Australian men’s representative alongside James Nitties and Michael Sim in Puerto Rico in 2004.

Lyle was extremely proud of his Australian selection and always watched the team’s progress, even when he’d reached the US PGA Tour as a professional in following years.

Each member of this year’s team will also carry that No.59 prominently on their cap, an “honour” team manager Stacey Peters said had incredible significance given the outpouring of emotion around Lyle’s death.

“These guys have grown up with Jarrod’s story and he has been an inspiration to them the way he has tackled it and tried to help others on the way through,” Peters said on the eve of the women’s team’s departure.

“Wearing his number as a mark of respect is the least we can do.

“The thing that really hits home to me is that Jarrod was so young when he started his first fight with leukemia in 1999 – he was pretty much the same age as these guys on the team.

“This is a huge mark of respect to wear his Australian representative number for this event, one that meant so much to him.”

The honour comes on the heels of the eight Australian men who played in the recent US Amateur Championship carrying Leuk the Duck head covers to honour Lyle at Pebble Beach, a move sparked by Lee and fully supported by his peers.

 

Australian players at the World Amateur Team Championships

       
           
  MEN Rep.   WOMEN Rep.
1958 Doug Bachli 1   No event  
  Bruce Devlin 2      
  Robert Stevens 3      
  Peter Toogood 4      
           
1960 Edward Ball 5   No event  
  Jack Coogan 6      
  Bruce Devlin 2      
  Eric Routley 7      
           
1962 Doug Bachli 1   No event  
  Phil Billings 8      
  Tom Crow 9      
  Kevin Donohoe 10      
           
1964 Barrie Baker 11   Gail Corry 1
  Phil Billings 8   Betty Dalgliesh 2
  Tom Crow 9   Dianna Thomas 3
  Kevin Hartley 12      
           
1966 Harry Berwick 13   Gail Corry 1
  Phil Billings 8   Marea Hickey 4
  Kevin Donohoe 10   Dianna Thomas 3
  Kevin Hartley 12      
           
1968 Harry Berwick 13   Elizabeth Blackmore 5
  Kevin Donohoe 10   Marea Hickey 4
  Tony Gresham 14   Dianna Thomas 3
  Kevin Hartley 12      
           
1970 Kevin Donohoe 10   Robyn Dummett 6
  Terry Gale 15   Lindy Jennings 7
  Tony Gresham 14   Rhys Wright 8
  Kevin Hartley 12      
           
1972 Michael Cahill 16   Heather Bleeck 9
  Terry Gale 15   Sandra McCaw 10
  Tony Gresham 14   Gayle Gannon 11
  Noel Ratcliffe 17      
           
1974 Terry Gale 15   Jane Lock 12
  Tony Gresham 14   Marea Parsons (nee Hickey) 4
  Colin Kaye 18   Elizabeth Cavill (nee Blackmore) 5
  Phil Wood 19      
           
1976 Chris Bonython 20   Jane Lock 12
  Tony Gresham 14   Sandra McCaw 10
  Colin Kaye 18   Karen Permezel 13
  Phil Wood 19      
           
1978 Chris Bonython 20   Lindy Goggin (nee Jennings) 7
  Tony Gresham 14   Edwina Kennedy 14
  Peter Sweeney 21   Jane Lock 12
  Phil Wood 19      
           
1980 Tony Gresham 14   Lindy Goggin 7
  John Kelly 22   Edwina Kennedy 14
  Jeff Senior 23   Jane Lock 12
  Peter Sweeney 21      
           
1982 Did not compete     Did not compete  
           
1984 Neil Crafter 24   Louise Briers 15
  Tony Dight 25   Edwina Kennedy 14
  Gerard Power 26   Sandra McCaw 16
  David Smith 27      
           
1986 Brad King 28   Louise Briers 15
  Peter O'Malley 29   Edwina Kennedy 14
  Ray Picker 30   Sandra McCaw 16
  Stephen Taylor 31      
           
1988 David Ecob 32   Louise Briers 15
  Brad Hughes 33   Elizabeth Cavill 5
  Lester Peterson 34   Nicole Lowien 17
  Shane Robinson 35      
           
1990 Robert Allenby 36   Louise Briers 15
  Chris Gray 37   Wendy Doolan 18
  Lester Peterson 34   Sarah Gautrey 19
  John Wade 38      
           
1992 David Armstrong 39   Ericka Jayatilaka 20
  Stephen Collins 40   Lorraine Lambert 21
  Stephen Leaney 41   Joanne Mills 22
  Lucas Parsons 42      
           
1994 Greg Chalmers 43   Anne-Marie Knight 23
  Jason Dawes 44   Karrie Webb 24
  Brett Partridge 45   Simone Williams 25
  Lester Peterson 34      
           
1996 Brett Partridge 45   Kate McIntosh 26
  Jarrod Moseley 46   Simone Williams 25
  David Gleeson 47   Tamie Durdin 27
  Jamie Crow 48      
           
1998 Kim Felton 49   Michelle Ellis 28
  Brett Rumford 50   Kate McIntosh 26
  Aaron Baddeley 51   Rebecca Stevenson 29
  Brendan Jones 52      
           
2000 Aaron Baddeley 51   Helen Beatty 30
  Scott Gardiner 53   Rebecca Stevenson 29
  Brad Lamb 54   Lindsay Wright 31
  Andrew Webster 55      
           
2002 Andrew Buckle 56   Katherine Hull 32
  Marcus Fraser 57   Vicky Uwland 33
  Adam Groom 58   Lindsay Wright 31
           
2004 Jarrod Lyle 59   Katy Jarochowicz 34
  James Nitties 60   Sarah Kemp 35
  Michael Sim 61   Sarh-Jane Kenyon 36
           
2006 Stephen Dartnall 62   Emma Bennett 37
  Won Joon Lee 63   Frances Bondad 38
  Andrew Tampion 64   Kate Combes 39
           
2008 Rohan Blizard 65   Julia Boland 40
  Matthew Griffin 66   Clare Choi 41
  Tim Stewart 67   Stephanie Na 42
           
2010 Matt Jager 68   Julia Boland 40
  Bryden Macpherson 69   Stacey Keating 43
  Kieran Pratt 70   Alison Whitaker 44
           
2012 Daniel Nisbet 71   Breanna Elliott 45
  Cameron Smith 72   Whitney Hillier 46
  Matthew Stieger 73   Minjee Lee 47
           
2014 Geoff Drakeford 74   Minjee Lee 47
  Lucas Herbert 75   Su-Hyun Oh 48
  Ryan Ruffels 76   Shelly Shin 49
           
2016 Cameron Davis 77   Robyn Choi 50
  Harrison Endycott 78   Karis Davidson 51
  Curtis Luck 79   Hannah Green 52
           
2018 Min Woo Lee 80   Kirsty Hodgkins 53
  David Micheluzzi 81   Rebecca Kay 54
  Shae Wools-Cobb 82   Grace Kim 55