Lister Takes First Place After Play-Off

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32177, 22 December 1969, Page 30

Lister Takes First Place After Play-Off

(New Zealand Press • Association) AUCKLAND. The 22-year-old Timaru professional, J. M. Lister, won the Vonnel $5OOO international golf tournament at the North Shore course yesterday after a “sudden-death” play-off which ended at the second hole.

Lister, another New Zealander, T. C. Kendall, and two Australians, E. W. Dunk and R. C. Vines, had finished the 36 holes in a four-way tie with four-under-par 140 s. For Lister, his $lOOO prize was a long-awaited reward for his consistency on the professional circuit this season. He has finished runner-up to K. D. G. Nagle three times and in the Watties tournament last week he was fourth. Lister’s three opponents in the play-off will share $l5OO, the total prize-money for the second, third and fourth positions, while W. J. Godfrey, of New Zealand, took the fifth prize of $3OO. As the four stood on the

first tee for the play-off, Dunk, who had been waiting an hour and a half after being one of the first home, said "jokingly: “C’mon Vinesy, let’s go and beat these Kiwis.” It was he who came closest to doing it. Lister looked to have the tournament won on the first extra hole, however. He was the only one straight down the middle with his tee shot, the others hooking to the left and into some trees. Dunk recovered from his blunder, but both Vines and Kendall were knocked out of the running for the major money with one-over fives. The stocky Dunk, in brilliant fashion, chipped high over a pine tree to be just on the green. Lister’s approach was a fine one and left him seven feet from the pin. However, he missed narrowly and holed in four. Dunk also putted in two. It was a case of who could get closest to the pin on the 125-yard second bole and it was Lister who did it, to I within three feet. He putted for a birdie two and victory over Dunk, who putted, and | missed from 12 feet. The man who had looked set for an impressive win earlier on had been Kendall. He started the day with a oneover five on the first hole but then had birdies at the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and thirteenth to be six

under par and in sight of breaking R. J. Charles’s record 66 of last year. However, he dropped a stroke at the par-four fifteenth after a weak approach and then missed a 4ft put at the par-three sixteenth to be again one-over. Leading scores (New Zealand players unless otherwise stated):

140: J. M. Lister, 70, 70; E W. Dunk (Australia), 71, 69: T. C. Kendall, 71, 69; R. C. Vines (Au«tralia), 69, 71. 141: W. J. Godfrey, 71, 70. 142: J. R. Stolhand (Hawaii), 69, 73. 143: L. Sharp (Australia). 70, 73; K. D. G. Nagle (Australia), 70, 73; F. Phillips (Australia). 70, 73; A. A. Murray (Australia), 75 , 68; E. A. Barf (Australia), 73, 70. 144 B. J. Coxon (Australia). 73, 71: D. Graham (Australia), 73, 71; T. J. Woolbank (Aus. trails), 74 , 70; *E. .1. McDougall. 71, 73. 145: -B. Day, 73, 72: G. Wolstenholme (Australia). 73, 72; C. Pettitt (Australia), 74, 71: F. X. Buckler, 72, 73: B. T. Boys, 72, 73; D. Clark, 73, 72; G. McCully (Australia), 74. 71; T. Mangan (Australia). 74. 71. 146; P. A. Harvey (Australia), 74, 72; G. Marsh (Australia), 72, 74; R. Methercll (Australia), 72, 74; P. Oosterhuis (Britain), 77, 69; N. D. Hayden, 71. 75: *P. Shadlock, 73. 73. 147: *R. White, 71. 76; «G. Hughes (Titirangi); 71, 76: L. Brown, 71, 76; C. Nagle (Australia); 74. 73; »P. Burney, 75. 72. 148: B. G. Bent (Australia), 74, 74; R. McDonald, 72. 76; J. Vaughan (United States), 76. 72. 149: V. Bennetts (Australia), 76 . 73: C. Clark (Britain), 77, 72; P. Hart (Australia), 74, 75: •J. Davies, 74, 75. 150: G. Donald (Australia), 73, 77; F. Malloy, 75. 75.