Park and Wivou Crowned 2011 Tower Links Champions

The 2011 Tower Links Club Championships played over the weekend of the 6th & 7th of May have seen victory in the Men’s Division going to J.I. Park with Zenia Wivou hoisting the crystal in the Ladies Division.

Play on the first day was tricky, to say the least as a northerly wind decided to descend on the links making scoring extremely difficult with as few as 3 players only managing to better par.

Leading the charge on Day 1 for the Men was Mr. B.H. Yoo shooting a gross 84 who was closely followed by eventual runner-up Paul McCullough who fired an 86 with Park lurking 1 shot back on 87. It was never going to be a one-horse race however as there were six players within 6 shots of the lead after the close of play with the weather forecast on day 2 not looking to offer the players any reprieve.

Day 2 came around and the forecast windy conditions were nowhere to be seen, players were greeted with still conditions and slightly cooler temperatures which pleased all participants. At the turn, Yoo and McCullough posted totals of 45 and 41 respectively but danger man Park who was a couple of groups in front was round in 39 and leading at that stage by 1 over McCullough.?

The leading pairing continued to trade blows and after 12 holes only 1 shot separated all three players with Park holding not only the advantage of a score but having the opportunity to post the first score in the clubhouse. The tension continued to mount for McCullough and Yoo with McCullough holding a slight advantage over Yoo after 16 holes courtesy of a Yoo double bogey on hole 13.
Down to the final two holes and it read, Park 157, McCullough 158, Yoo 159 what a finish it was going to be, nail-biting to the very end. Park struggled on the 17th; making a double-bogey 6 before finishing with a rock-solid par 5, on the 18th to post a 168 in the clubhouse and a nervous 20-minute wait. Yoo mirrored Parks score on the final two holes to finish on 171 but McCullough finished bogey, par to finish on the same score as Park to force a playoff.

With the playoff heading down the Par 5, 18th it was Park who struck the first blow, finding the sandy waste area to the right of the fairway and was going to be forced to lay up his approach to the green. McCullough also found the sand but was some 40 yards ahead of Park and with wind at his back decided to tempt fate and go for the glory.

Unfortunately for Paul the shot did not go to plan and he was again forced to play his third shot from the sandy waste area which consequently found the water in front of the green. McCullough now playing his 5th shot overhit the green and with that blow went any real chance of claiming the title, only a blunder from Park would allow the Northern Irishman back into the game.

Park, even though only some 70 yards away had to overcome not only nerves but the large mass of water and configuration of deep bunkers that surround the hole. With the style that reflects a worthy Champion, his approached sailed high and straight and finished some 25 ft beyond the hole leaving McCullough with the unenviable task of trying to chip in to force Park into a three-putt. McCullough’s chip was left short and when Park rolled his putt up to 3ft the title was his, his putt hit the back of the hole and he has crowned the Champion for 2011.

Not to be outdone, the Ladies Division was to also offer some fireworks as Zenia Wivou threw down the challenge early with a fantastic 1st round of 80 to lead by 5 shots over Mira Yoo with defending Champion 3 times running Liezel Parry 10 shots behind. The battle on day 2 was not going to be an easy one for Zenia as Mira Yoo is a very talented and determined athlete who knows how to win and how to manage her game under pressure.

It was evident was early on Day 2 that Zenia was on a mission to become the youngest winner of the Ladies Club Championship in Tower Links history. Zenia ripped through the front nine in 37 strokes, some 9 shots ahead of her nearest challenger and playing partner Mira Yoo. Unfortunately for Parry her race was run as she could only match Mira’s score of 46 leaving the girls having front row viewing to Zenia’s dominant display.

Heading into the back nine Zenia had amassed a lead of 14 strokes, a total that even the great Sir Nick Duldo would have found hard to overcome. Zenia opened her back nine account with a superb birdie at hole 10 and with Mira’s subsequent bogey her lead was to increase to 16 shots over 8 holes. The girls pretty much matched each other’s score from then on in, Mira returning in 40 for a total of 86 with Zenia returning a 38 for a superb score of 75.

Zenia Wivou was the 2011 Ladies Champion and finished with a 2 round total of 155 which was one of the most dominant displays of golf witnessed in the Ladies Championship to date. Mira finished a distant second on 171 with Yuki Pellerine making somewhat of a spirited charge on day 2, shooting an 86 to complete the top three.

The nett divisions were also hotly contested, Simon Turner and Ajay Kotwal tied 1st on 141 with Simon’s second-day score of 63 net elevating him above Ajay in the count back. Dave Clark also featured in the prizes, claiming third place with a net of 147. In the ladies division Young Nam Chang romped to victory by 8 strokes over Yuki Pellerine after firing consecutive subpar scores of 69 and a cut to her handicap for her efforts.