Victorian Close Championship

The Victorian Close Championship was an annual golf tournament held in Victoria, Australia. It was founded in 1948. It was superseded by the Victorian Open which was first held in 1957, but was reintroduced the following year and continued until about 1978.

Victorian Close Championship
Tournament information
Established1948
FormatStroke play
Final yearc. 1978

History

A 36-hole close championship was planned for 1939 but was cancelled because of the war.[1][2][3] The Victorian Golf Association revived the idea in 1947 as a 36-hole "open scratch event", open to amateurs and professionals resident in Victoria, played on a single day at Victoria Golf Club.[4] Professional George Naismith and amateur Bill Higgins tied with scores of 149.[5]

The first Close Championship was played at Huntingdale in 1948 and was won by Ossie Pickworth who finished 12 strokes ahead of the field.[6] Pickworth won again in 1950, 1954 and 1955, each time by large margins.[7][8][9] 19-year-old Peter Thomson won in 1949 and he won again in 1951, each time by 8 strokes.[7][10] Jack Harris won in 1952 while Tom Crow was the first amateur winner in 1953.[11][12]

The Victorian Open started in 1957, replacing the Close championship.[13] However the Close Championship was reintroduced in 1958, with the event to be played outside Melbourne.[14] The 1958 event was played over 72 holes but from 1959 it became a 54-hole event.[15][16] Bruce Devlin, still an amateur, won in 1959.[16] The tournament existed through the 1970s. In 1976, Mike Cahill, who recently turned professional, won the event.[17] The championship was finally dropped in 1978.[18]

Winners
YearWinnerScoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-upVenueRef.
1948Australia Ossie Pickworth29312 strokesAustralia Doug Bachli (a)Huntingdale[6]
1949Australia Peter Thomson2938 strokesAustralia Jack HarrisYarra Yarra[7]
1950Australia Ossie Pickworth (2)2916 strokesAustralia Laurie Duffy (a)Metropolitan[19]
1951Australia Peter Thomson (2)2888 strokesAustralia Ossie PickworthCommonwealth[10]
1952Australia Jack Harris2946 strokesAustralia Bert ClayWoodlands[11]
1953Australia Tom Crow (a)2961 strokesAustralia Doug Bachli (a)
Australia Bill Higgins (a)		Kew[12]
1954Australia Ossie Pickworth (3)28914 strokesAustralia Jack Harris
Australia Eric Routley (a)		Huntingdale[8]
1955Australia Ossie Pickworth (4)28714 strokesAustralia Denis DeneheyKingswood[9]
1956–1957: No tournament
1958Australia Bob Brown294Playoff[lower-alpha 1]Australia Barry WestGeelong[15]
1959Australia Bruce Devlin (a)213−32 strokesAustralia Doug Bachli (a)Geelong[16]
1960Australia Neil Tetheridge (a)200−73 strokesAustralia Jack HarrisMidlands[20]
1961Australia Jack Harris (2)1996 strokesAustralia Dick O'Shea (a)Midlands[21]
1962Australia Jack Harris (3)2123 strokesAustralia Alan HeilTraralgon[22]
1963Australia Alan Heil2221 strokeAustralia Bob Brown
Australia Peter Mills
Australia Don Moir (a)		Shepparton[23]
1964Australia Brian Simpson2172 strokesAustralia Bryan SmithShepparton[24]
1965Australia Alan Heil (2)218Playoff[lower-alpha 2]Australia Bob BrownSale[25]
1966Australia Peter Mills2132 strokesAustralia John DavisHorsham[26]
  1. Brown won the 18-hole playoff with a round of 70 to West's 71
  2. Heil won a three hole playoff

This list in incomplete

References
  1. "Conners holds title". The Age. No. 26076. Victoria, Australia. 14 November 1938. p. 7. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. "The golfers' note book". The Herald (Melbourne). No. 19224. Victoria, Australia. 28 December 1938. p. 16. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. "72-hole test urged". The Age. No. 26359. Victoria, Australia. 10 October 1939. p. 5. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. "Golfers' note book". The Herald (Melbourne). No. 21756. Victoria, Australia. 11 February 1947. p. 17. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. "Higgins – G. Naismith Tie in Open Event". The Age. No. 28778. Victoria, Australia. 21 July 1947. p. 14. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. "Pickworth's Brilliance". The Age. No. 29094. Victoria, Australia. 26 July 1948. p. 8. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. "Title Winner Has Plans for Oversea Trip". The Age. No. 29410. Victoria, Australia. 1 August 1949. p. 10. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. Lawrence, Don (31 May 1954). "Pickworth wins – by 14 strokes". The Age. No. 30912. Victoria, Australia. p. 15. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. "Golfers hit at hat draw". The Argus (Melbourne). Victoria, Australia. 15 August 1955. p. 15. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. Lawrence, Don (17 September 1951). "Thomson's Record in Close Title". The Age. No. 30073. Victoria, Australia. p. 12. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  11. Lawrence, Don (20 October 1952). "Jack Harris wins title golf". The Age. No. 30413. Victoria, Australia. p. 12. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. Lawrence, Don (22 June 1953). "Tom Crow's Big Upset in Golf". The Age. No. 30621. Victoria, Australia. p. 13. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. "Jack Harris out of State Open". The Age. 2 October 1957. p. 17.
  14. "Close title at Geelong". The Age. 17 October 1957. p. 20. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  15. Lawrence, Don (6 October 1958). "Brown beats West in Close title playoff". The Age. p. 17. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  16. Lawrence, Don (5 October 1959). "Amateur golfers head field in Close title". The Age. p. 19. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  17. "The Age 22 Nov 1976, page Page 29". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  18. Stone, Peter (25 April 1978). "Golf". The Age. p. 22. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  19. "Amateurs do well in title golf". The Age. No. 29787. Victoria, Australia. 16 October 1950. p. 12. Retrieved 5 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  20. "Tetheridge surprises stars in big golf". The Age. 28 November 1960. p. 22. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  21. "Record 62 for Harris in Close golf victory". The Age. 4 December 1961. p. 17. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  22. "Harris takes Close title". The Age. 10 December 1962. p. 24. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  23. "Close golf title to Heil". The Age. 9 December 1963. p. 19. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  24. "Simpson wins Close title". The Age. 23 November 1964. p. 26. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  25. "Alan Heil wins Close golf in play-off". The Age. 22 November 1965. p. 22. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
  26. "State Close win to Mills". The Age. 21 November 1966. p. 20. Retrieved 4 January 2021 – via Google News Archive.
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