Queenstown teenager Noah Novacek made his senior interprovincial debut just a couple of weeks ago and he can now call himself the Otago matchplay champion.
Novacek, 17, was on the verge of defeat, 3-down with four holes to play in the final against Cromwell golfer Troy Scott, when he came roaring home to win the title on the 18th at Balmacewen yesterday.
It was a remarkable display under sudden-death pressure, but it will not surprise those who have tracked the youngster’s recent progress.
"It’s pretty surreal, to be honest," Novacek said.
"Looking at some of the names on that trophy ... there are some top golfers on there.
"I’m really stoked. It’s unreal."
Novacek, a year 12 student at Wakatipu High School, was part of the Otago team that finished second twice in a row at the New Zealand junior interprovincial, and he made his senior debut at the South Island interprovincial recently.
He plays off a 2.5 handicap, has been part of the Futures Wakatipu club — playing mainly out of Arrowtown — and has played various junior events in the United States.
The Otago matchplay victory will present a compelling case to the Otago selectors to select Novacek in the five-man team for the New Zealand interprovincial in December.
"I was really stoked to make the eight-man team.
"I was telling one of my mates that if I was going to make the five-man squad, I’d need to win the Otago matchplay. So I did my job this week.
"For a long time, I was struggling with my golf. But I took a little bit of a break and came back and put a bit more work in, and it’s starting to pay off."
The finalists could not be separated after 10 holes yesterday.
Scott won the 11th, 12th and 13th to seemingly get one hand on the trophy, before the young gun made his move.
"I was just trying to stay focused on one hole at a time and see how far I could get," Novacek said.
"If I lost any of those holes, it was game over automatically, so I was just trying to stay in it and give myself a chance."
Novacek went up and down from a bunker to make par on 15, birdied 16 after getting out of the rough, and birdied 17 after getting up and down from the hazard.
That left the pair all square heading to the 18th, where Novacek hit the right-hand rough and Scott found the bunker.
Scott found himself just short of the green, and Novacek went over a tree to within eight feet of the hole, sinking it for birdie and victory.
Earlier, Novacek beat Ben Munro 2 & 1 in one semifinal, while Scott beat Matt Crawford 4 & 2 in the other.
The women’s tournament attracted just five golfers in an abbreviated format.
Anahera Koni won the battle of the rising stars, beating Otago team-mate Sophia Park 7 & 5 in the final.
Koni had beaten Abbey Crawford 1-up in one semifinal, while Park beat Helen Henshall 4 & 3 in the other.
Andrew Hobbs beat Peter Lamb 3 & 2 in the masters final, and Ben Patston beat Connor Howes 1-up in the division 2 final.
