Odd shifts lead to golfing gifts for Classic favourite

Amateur golfer Scott Johnson is proof you should never give up trying to reach the top in your chosen sport.
The North Harbour No1 is  a favourite to win this weekend's Bream Bay Classic and his recent good form has seen him selected  for the New Zealand  amateur team - at the ripe old age of 32.
"I played some junior golf for New Zealand when I was 16-18 years old, but various things happened in my life and I drifted away from golf," he said.
Johnson has also been included in the New Zealand team to play at the Four Nations' Cup in Canada  in August.
New Zealand Golf's Dave Mangan said Johnson was selected due to his consistent performances at recent tournaments.
"He's now No2 on the men's order of merit, so it would have been pretty hard not to pick him," Mangan said.
Johnson credits changing his job to sorting out his golfing  game.
"Since I became a policeman, I've had quite a bit of spare time with the different shifts we work and I make the most of the hours I've got to practise, whereas before that wasn't the case," he said.
Johnson is also a member of the Muriwai Golf Course, and the lack of  congestion on the greens allows him to practise better.
The North Harbour resident returns this year after winning the Bream Bay Classic four over par in 2006 and  said he was looking forward to the tough competition the Classic offered.
"They've got another solid field ... it's really the start of a string of tournaments for the best young guys around Auckland and North Harbour."
 Johnson rates another "old-timer", Phil Mosley, as a threat this weekend and said any number of young scratch golfers could come through to win.
"Gary-John Hill is another big threat because I played against him last week in a North Harbour-Northland game and he's playing well," he said. "Kevin Budden, our No2, is also playing solidly this year."
Johnson is hopeful his good start to the year will continue this weekend.
"I've been solid but unspectacular over the last couple of years with just the odd good result to keep me interested," he said. "But this year I've played well in a few of the bigger national events."
While the weather forecast is grim, Johnson's fingers were crossed for decent conditions to showcase the high-quality Classic field.
"It will be really nice to come up and have the guys put some decent scores on the board, because the last few years have been a battle for whoever can hang in there, which isn't the best,"  he said.