HISTORY IN THE MAKING!

Twelve-year-old Lydia Ko has the opportunity to create history when she contests the final of the New Zealand amateur golf championships in Auckland tomorrow.

Ko would become the youngest winner of the amateur championship and takes on 14-year-old Cecilia Cho (Pakuranga) in the youngest ever final pairing in the event's 115-year history.

Cho, the South Island Amateur champion, beat Australia's Rebecca Flood 5 and 4 in one seminal while Ko, the North Island champion, held off the challenge from Titirangi's Tania Tare to win 2 and 1.

South Africa's Nicol van Wyk will take on Australia's Matt Jager in the men's final after a dramatic afternoon. Van Wyk, who went to the 19th to beat off compatriot Dean O'Riley in the quarterfinal, then edged the world No 1 Scott Arnold (Australia) at the 21st hole in the semifinal.

Earlier Jager's par on the final hole was enough to beat the sole New Zealander in the final four, Tauranga's James Hamilton 1up after the pair were all square going down the 18th.

Ko, who had her 12th birthday last Friday, produced some outstanding play to be one-under par in beating off the challenge from Napier's Lauree Southerden in the morning quarterfinal. The Pupuke player was five-up after seven holes and never relinquished her grip on the match. To continue reading click here