Amy Linton, Jamie Reid win NZ Speedgolf Open
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Amy Linton defended her New Zealand Speedgolf Open women’s title and Jamie Reid claimed his seventh men’s championship in testing conditions at Taupo Golf Club.
With rain and wind providing as stern of a challenge as fitness levels and stroke-making, the pair rose above a talented field to take the national titles after both topping the leaderboard heading into the final round.
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With defending men’s champion Harry Bateman off early in order to make a tee time at Wairakei for a Cisco Series Pro-Am, Reid had a target to beat and he worked his way around the Centennial Course at a blistering pace.
Reid’s scores of 114.51 (78 + 36.51) and 116.05 (78 + 38.05) saw him fend off the competition with a total of 230.56 and return to the winner’s circle after missing last year’s Open due to an ACL injury. His final round running time reflected his knowledge that keeping the ball in play would be his key to victory.
Reid said to win his seventh title after such a long time away from national competition meant a lot and to add to his record at the event was special.
“It's been a long time coming. The last TORO I played, I think, when I was injury free was 2024.
“I think I came third in my first event of New Zealand champs and then now I’ve won the last seven. So yeah, something's in the water about New Zealand champs and it means a lot to me."
It was a unique experience begin a final round with a target in mind, as usually competitors are out on the course concurrently and unable to gauge how the rest of the field is going — Reid said it made his decision-making easier to handle.
“If I can break 80, that sort of did give me a little bit of leeway along the way. Coming down the last few holes I could sort of chill out, enjoy it, which was nice.
“You don't have any scores in your mind because everyone's out there at the same time. Once you finish, you just go, ‘Well, what did you have?’ There's no leaderboards along the way."
With the depth of talent in the field, Reid said he knew he had to make sure the tournament was decided on his terms.
“Robin [Smith] shot 8-under in the last event to overtake me and Brad, he could shoot under par easy. I still had to make sure I took care of those two as well."
Harry Bateman finished second in the men’s field with a 36-hole total of 232.21, just edging Brad Hayward in third at 236.13. Robin Smith was fourth with 236.41 — separated from Hayward by less than half a point — while Ben Taylor rounded out the top five with a total of 248.00.
Linton’s path to the title was cleared somewhat by the absence of reigning individual World Champion and her pairs World Champion partner Liz McKinnon, who pulled out of the tournament due to illness, but she showed no sign of letting any sense of complacency into her game as she blew the field away to win a second-successive national title.
Scores of 132.57 (80 + 52.57) and 122.57 (71 + 51.57) left a 255.07 total and her second round of 2-under while a full minute off her run was an impressive feat for those following in carts to witness firsthand.
Lintons said to win back-to-back national titles was pleasing, but her final round of 2-under 71 to seal the championship was satisfying personally.
“Feels pretty good actually. Pretty relieved. Very pleased that I played some better golf today, so I feel like I've earned it.
“Today all I thought was; take a breath, one good swing, take a breath, one good swing. And it just seemed to work throughout the whole round, so just kept with that thought process.
“Yesterday was a fight. It was just getting the ball in the hole.”
Unlike the men’s field, Linton had to push all the way without a target to beat but could afford to take more time over her shots.
"I didn't actually know how far under I was until I finished. But I knew I was playing well... I had a few shots at my sleeve coming into round two, so I could just take a little bit more time over my shots."
Lucinda Searle claimed the runner-up spot with a 36-hole Speedgolf total of 281.26, finishing ahead of Colette Blacklock, who posted 295.12 in third. Rebecca Mehew rounded out the top five in fourth with a total of 322.12, while Felicity Paterson finished fifth at 339.09.
New Zealand Speedgolf now turns to the World Championships at Whitford Park in November.