Junior pair out to make it sweet 16 in Memorial Trophy

THE qualifying and first matchplay rounds of the RHL Roberts Memorial Trophy are being held at the Huon Valley Golf Club on September 13.

Tasmania Golf Club is the defending champion and will be looking to claim the club’s 16th RHL Roberts title.

Juniors Dylan Backhouse and Lachlan White will represent the defending champion, which tees off at 8.08am in the event’s new look 18-hole qualifying round.

Southern Country officials have introduced a stroke qualifying round to this prestigious event to avoid any byes.

Therefore, at the conclusion of Sunday morning’s 18 holes, only the top eight clubs will move through to the matchplay rounds.

Tasmania Golf Club holds the most RHL Roberts victories in the event’s rich 57year history. Kingston Beach Golf Club follows closely behind with 12.

Matthew Glover and David Pretyman won for Kingston

Beach in 2015 and will be hoping to extend the club’s winning margin when they tee off beside North West Bay’s Trent Riseley and Oscar Burrell.

Other clubs to keep an eye on include Claremont, which will be represented by Tim Lennox and Tim Doyle, while Paul Read and Joey Bower will tee up for Royal Hobart.

Llanherne’s Roger Styles and Garry Quarrell, and Elderslie’s Jack and Tom North, are also expected to perform well.

The event concludes with the semi and final rounds at

Claremont Golf Club on September 20.

TASMANIANS will be among the first to have a crack at Get Into Golf, a brand-new Golf Australia program for anyone who has ever wanted to play the sport but never got around to it.

GA’s Tasmanian development manager Simon Weston said the program would run across the state with a simple focus: exposing people to golf.

“The program was launched nationally recently and we’re excited that our clubs will be among the first to bring it to a whole new range of prospective golfers,” Weston said.

CONGRATULATIONS to Kingston Beach Golf Club’s Sam Purdon, who recently shot his age during a local Wednesday competition.

The 90-year-old, who at the time was playing with a handicap of 15, shot 79 off the stick in pleasant conditions.