Athboy man set to take on the Aussies

Provided his certificate of nationality comes through in time Athboy native Gary Smith is set to line up against the best amatuer golfers in Australia next month.

Smith is aiming for a place as part of the Northern Territory team that will compete in the Interstate Golf Series.

Formerly a member of Killeen Castle Golf Club and Luttrellstown Golf Club Smith will take on the best golfers in Australia as part of the Team NT, but he is still sweating over his certificate of nationality.

The Australian Interstate Teams Matches will be played from 8th to 11th May in Adelaide with the men’s on the East course of The Grange Golf Club, while the women’s matches for the Gladys Hay Memorial Cup will be played at nearby Glenelg Golf Club.

The Grange Golf Club is no stranger to hosting Golf Australia national championships, however has not hosted the Men’s Interstate Teams Matches since 1981. Glenelg Golf Club has hosted the women’s event on three previous occasions in 1992, 1979 and 1962.

The East Course at The Grange was redesigned by Greg Norman in 2012, while Glenelg Golf Club is continually ranked as one of Australia’s best courses.

The Australian Men’s and Women’s Interstate Teams Matches are played as a round robin match play competition between the six states, with the Northern Territory entering the men’s event in 2015. Following the round robin matches, the teams finishing number one and two contest a final to determine the champions.

Victoria is the defending champions in both the men’s and women championships

The first Australian Men’s Team Championship was played in 1894 between NSW and Victoria. The second Championship was played between Victoria and South Australia, while the 1906 Championship was played between Victoria, NSW and Tasmania. It was not until 1946 that all states contested the event.

From 2007, the Women’s and Men’s Interstate Teams Matches were played concurrently in the same city.