John Lister holds on for City of Auck. victory

Press, 13 December 1976, Page 36

John Lister holds on for City of Auck. victory

PA Aucklam The New Zealand professional, John Lister, had to sweat it out in the high temperatures that engulfed the Grange course before winning the $25,000 City of Auckland Golf Classic yesterday.

s,for the hole, that was evenlitually to save Lister facing nup to a sudden death playil off. -I But perhaps the saddest. »(last round belonged to an- > I other Australian, Roger Davis. Starting the round (three strokes behind Lister, i Davis, with an eagle 3 on r the par 5 si sixth, was still i in with a chance. However, two unfortunate • sixes — one of them a double bogey — put paid to . his chances and he had to i be content with fifth prize money, four strokes off the , pace. ‘ Third place on 276 was : shared by the in-form New t Zealander, Bob Charles, and 1 an Australian, David Good. 1 Starting the round four I strokes behind Lister, ■ Charles showed signs of the hold brilliance with a four -junder par 67. Good also rez I turned a round of 67.

Starting the final rouni two strokes ahead of thi Australians George Serhai •nd Peter Headland, Liste looked set for a comfortabl win when he birdied thi first, sixth and ninth hole: to turn for home 11 unde for the tournament. However, Lister had fi face up to a late charge a the $5OOO major prize monej by the Australian, Vaughai Somers. Lister made his win mucl harder by bogeying the seventeenth hoie yesterday am thus requiring a last-hob par to beat the score o Somers, who had already finished. Starting the round fou strokes behind Lister Somers, with consecutive birdies on the fourth, fiftl and seventh holes, hit him self right back into the pic ture. At the turn he wai still four strokes behind Lis

id, ter, but whereas Lister was, ie struggling to improve, al ml shot gained on the five pareri thirteenth and a shot lost on lei the long par four sev-i lejenteenth keeping him square esjfor the back nine Somers! eri went from strength tol strength. to A birdie on the tenth, a atj brilliant eagle on the par iyjfive 490 metre twelfth and a m: birdie on the thirteenth actually gave him the tourna:hjment lead. v- Eleven under the card, id Somers was at least in for a lei play-off for first money of Then came his indiscretion, iy- with a bogey five on the i seventeenth and that just ir made the difference to let sr. Lister in for a one stroke tel lead with a four round total th:of 273. 0- Somers wil] long rememc- ber the tree that deflected is, his fairway shot on the sev-s-;enteenth, causing the bogey!

A nice, sunny day wit little breeze was all tha was required for go< scores. Twenty three playei responded with scores unde the par 71 for the Grange course. The best score of the da? was the 65 returned by th< 24-year-old Queensland goi fer, Somers. It was only om stroke over the best scon recorded for the tournament a 64 by Lister in the firs, round. Charles, Good and th Englishman, Maurice Ben bridge, with 67’s came ini. their own, but it was to late. Bembridge has bee plagued with fears on th putting green and must haw had satisfaction yesterdax with most, dropping. Other notable scores on 1 day just right for golf wen the 68’s scored by Lister the Wellington professional Richard Coombes, Bob Clark (United States), Kyle Franck (United States) Peter Crokei (Australia), Mark Tappet (Australia) and John Benda (United States). Scores were:— 273— J. Lister (N.Z.), 64, 73. 68. 68. 274— V. Somers (Aust.), 72, 70, 67 65, 276— D. Good (Aust.), 71, 72, 66, 67; R. J. Charles (N.Z.), 72, 70. 67. 67. 277— R. Davis (Aust.). 68, 75, 65, 69. 278— B. Jones (Aust.), 69, 69, 70. 70. 279— S. Ginn (Aust.), 72, 69. 67, 71; V,’ Brask (U.S.), 68, 72, 69 70; P. Hamblett (N.Z.), 74, 70. 66. 69. 280— P. Headland (Aust.), 70, 70, 67, 73; B. Clark (U.S.), 71, 70, 71. 63; K. D. G. Nagle (Aust.) 69, 73, 68, 70: E. Ball (Aust.), 69, 68, 74, 69. 282— R. Coombes (N.Z.), 74, 69, 71. 68; G. Wolstenholme (Aust.), 70, 74. 67, 71; M. Bembridge (U.K.). 72, 70, 73. 67. 283— P. Firmstone (Aust.), 71, 71 67, 74; S. Reese (N.Z.), 70, 72. 68. 73; T. Kendall (N.Z.), 74, 69, 70, 70: K. Francis (Aust.), 77, 72, 66 68 285— H. Kennedy (N.Z.), 67, 72, 76. 70; N. Ratcliffe (Aust.), 66, 76. 69 74; G. Serhan (Aust), 71, 68, 168, 78; J. Cleland (N.Z.), 71, 73, 72, 69. 286— R*. Newdick (N.Z.). 72, 74, 70, 70; A. Snape (N.Z.) 70, 70, 70, 76. 287— JT. Tapper (Aust.l, 72. 73, 74, 68; R. Hawkins (N.Z.). 72, 70, 72 73; P. Croker (Aust.), 75, 71, 73, 68. 283—H. Berwick-(Aust.), 70, 74, 73. 71; W. J. Godfrey (N.Z.), 72, 69, 71 76; J. Clifford (Aust.), 75, 71, 63; 74: R. Metherell (Aust.), 70, 73, 75. 70: J. Benda (U.S.), 73, 72, 75 68. 289— G. Moody (U.S.), 71, 71, 71, 76; P. Reid (A., jluriwai), 74, 72, 69, 74; W. Mclntosh (N.Z.). 73, 70. 74, 72; M. Bohen (U.S.) 71, 76. 73, 69. 290— F. Malloy (N.Z.), 71, 74, 74, 71; F. Conallin (Aust.). 75, 71. 71, 73; T. Woolbank (Aust.), 75, 73, 70. 72; D. Galloway (Aust.), 71 75. 74 70. 291— G. Parkinson (N.Z.), 72, 73, 174, 72; B. T. Boys (N.Z.), 77, 71, 68 . 75; G. Smart (N.Z.), 73, 70. 76. 72. 292— T. Pulman (A., Grange), 74, 72, 77, 69; T, Murray (Aust.), 71, 70 77. 74; D. McClelland (U.K.), 75. 73, 69. 75. 293— P. Shadlock (N.Z.). 73, 72. 69 79: G. Bullock (U.S.), 73, 70. 72 73 294— G. Hohnen (Aust.). 73. 70,. 74. 77. 296—P. Burney (A., Manukau), 75. 75 72. 74. 300—T. Ireland (Aust.), 69, 74, 77, 80; K. Martin (A., Wanganui), 75, 75. 67. 83.