yesterday hit out at the organisers' decision no to offer a senior purse.

While some $6,000 was allocated to the senior division last year from the $20,000 total prizemoney, it was decided this year that as there were only 10 seniors and 33 pros in total, the purse would be divided among the top 20 finishers regardless of age. The senior division is for players aged 50 or over.

New England senior pros Joe Carr, Paul Barkhouse and Ed Whalley were among several who claimed the tournament would suffer as a result of the decision.

"We weren't told before we came down that there would be no prize-money for seniors, and I think it's a backward move,'' said Whalley, pro at the Meadow Brook Golf Club in Reading, Massachusetts.

"I wouldn't have played if I'd known. The seniors can't compete with the likes of (Tim) Conley or (Fran) Marello. It's ridiculous to put us all in the same category.'' Carr, from the Bedrock Golf Club in Rutland, Massachusetts, and senior pro winner for the last several years, said he too found the decision difficult to comprehend.

"Over the years we've tried to bring down more and more seniors from the New England area and build up the senior division. But they're not going to come if there's no money to play for.'' Barkhouse, who picked up a cheque for $1,750 yesterday after finishing fourth overall, said he probably wouldn't have played if he'd have known about the decision to axe the senior purse.

"I'm in the money anyway, but that's not the point. I think there's got to be an incentive for the senior pros,'' he said.

Tournament director Keith Cassidy admitted it had been "a tough call to make.

"But we simply felt there wasn't sufficient quality or quantity in the seniors this year to justify a senior purse. With the prize-money going 20-deep, all of the pros had a good chance of making a cheque regardless what division they were in.''