The 2022 Hazlett Insurance Canterbury Match Play Championship is being held at Bottle Lake Golf Club this weekend. The field has been slightly affected by COVID restrictions, but some out-of-town players have made the trip to play this prestigious tournament.
The men's field is led by Otago No.1 Tom Lee who will be seeded first on a count-back after placing 2nd equal in the Canterbury Stroke Play. Defending champion Zach May will be second seed, and Dominic Brettkelly who placed fourth in the stroke play, the third seed. Of interest, Joshua Bai has travelled down from Auckland and will be amongst the top seedings, along with Canterbury Rep Reid Hilton. There is only one division of men this year with entries lighter than last year.
The women's championship has eight entries to start on Saturday afternoon. Nelson's Lizzie Neale will be top seed followed by Canterbury Rep Olive Tapu. Of interest will be Waikato's Naomi Yacyshen and Tasman Rep Aroha Minhinnick, both of whom played in the recent Canterbury Stroke Play.
The Men's Masters field is strong with 18 entries playing qualifying on Saturday morning for a championship bracket of 8 players, and a Div 2 bracket of another 8 players. Two will miss out on the match play. The field is led by Nelson's Ben Crawford who recently won the Canterbury Stroke Play. His victory may sting a few of the top locals into action with Aaron Forsyth and Jason Sincock contesting this event after missing the stroke play, and fellow Canterbury reps Andrew Dufton, Jonathan Stieller, and Brett Turner also in the field. The qualifying will be hot as others are also wanting to put their hand up - Kieran Sharvin and Alisdair Reid among them.
The Boys U19 Championship also has strong entries with 13 contesting the qualifying Saturday morning, into two brackets. With Joshua Bai and Yuki Miya choosing to play in the men's championship, this leaves the way for Cooper Moore, Phong Nguyen, Sam Harris, and the Lam boys to stake their claim. Again it will be interesting to see the match-ups come Saturday afternoon.
The men's 55+ seniors field will see seven players play qualifying for the afternoon match play. Defending champ Marty Holman will be favourite but will face stern competition from the likes of former Masters Canterbury rep Paul Bailey, Lin Wang, and Gary Gillard. Canterbury Masters Team Manager Simon Murphy will also rate his chances.
Unfortunately the Women's Masters field only has three entries - Rachel Eder, Kim Moggach, and Naomi Wallace. The field has been affected by the upcoming NZ Women's Masters in early April, with qualifying all but done for the team selection.
Play begins 8am both days. Updates will be provided through the weekend on our Facebook page and results posted on our website.
Cick here for the Draw.
