The Sanctuary Lakes Club welcomed 148 ladies (74 pairs) to the second state final of the 2015 Doris Chambers today, as ladies from country and regional clubs throughout Victoria looked to engrave their names alongside Kirsty Marshall & Trish Austin (Orbost) who were victorious at last week’s first state final at Patterson River.
The par 72 Greg Norman designed layout was presented in immaculate condition, with the trademark strong winds which often sweep across the links style course remaining relatively benign for the majority of the day, providing the field with ideal scoring conditions.
The annual foursomes stableford event provides competitors with the rare opportunity to play this unique & enjoyable format under tournament conditions, with every pair competing at both state finals qualifying to play after winning their respective club level versions of the event.
Careful consideration is often given to the strategy around foursomes play, with each pair required to divide the eighteen tee shots within a full round in half, with one player responsible for teeing off from the odd numbered holes whilst the second player is required to hit the tee shots on the even holes, followed by alternate shot until the hole is completed.
At the conclusion of play, it was the pair of Pamela Griffiths & Kathleen Burl representing Peterborough who managed to stick predominantly to the Santa Anna Couch fairways during their afternoon round, combining for 39 points from a combined handicap of 33 to emerge victorious in the second state final.
Griffiths & Burl enjoyed a strong outward nine of 22 points, before a late stumble at the 15th & 16th holes where the pair failed to score a point on either hole threatened to derail their round. They steadied with four points over the remaining two holes to finish with the best score of either field. Runners up within the afternoon field were the ladies representing Colac GC, Dot Frith & Jayne McGlade who finished the afternoon round with 35 stableford points.
The morning field saw the pair of Marion Foster & Virginia Bailey (Mansfield) prevail by two points with a score of 36 points from a combined handicap of 28. The Northern duo of Vanessa & Joyce Agius finished runners-up in the morning field with a score of 34 points from a combined handicap of 15.
Both The Sanctuary Lakes Club & Patterson River GC are to be commended as fantastic hosts of the two state finals this year. With the ground staff presenting both courses in wonderful condition & the club house staff ensuring the 276 ladies who participated across both finals had an enjoyable experience both on and off the course.
Gardiners Run GC will join The Sanctuary Lakes Club as hosts of the 2016 Doris Chambers State Finals, with Gardiner’s Run hosting the first final on Thursday 13 October & Sanctuary Lakes again hosting the second final on Thursday 20 October.