Hurt golfer has 7-hour surgery on his spine

Wife and daughters keep bedside vigil in Auckland Hospital after golfer's 30m fall.

As a golfer who fell 30m while trying to retrieve his golf ball underwent a seven-hour operation on his spine, two of his daughters were arriving from Taipei to be with him.

Cheng Chuang, 66, also known as Joel, is recovering in Auckland City Hospital after the Tuesday accident at the Howick Golf Course at Musick Pt and is in a stable condition.

The retired schoolteacher was on the 17th hole on the eastern side of the course when his ball disappeared over the cliff.

It is not known how long he had been lying there before he was discovered by a club greenkeeper. The man called out his name several times before looking over the edge and seeing Mr Chuang's arm.

A neighbour and close friend to Mr Chuang and his wife Yolanda in Bucklands Beach said Mrs Chuang asked him to drive her and an adult daughter who lives with them to the course.

Shane Su said they looked over the side of the cliff but could see only paramedics and the Westpac rescue helicopter, which had been able to land on rocks because it was low tide.

When the helicopter left, they went to the hospital.

Two other daughters left Taipei as soon as they heard the news and arrived in the country on Thursday, Mr Su said.

He had not been able to talk to Mr Chuang when he visited him on Wednesday because he was hooked up to an oxygen machine and had a mask covering his face.

He was in surgery from 10.30am to 5pm, Mr Su said.

Mrs Chuang and the couple's three daughters had not left his side since he was admitted to hospital.

Mr Su said the family had lived in New Zealand since 1995 and he had been friends with him for several years.

A Howick Golf Course spokeswoman said Mr Chuang had been a member of the club for 12 years.

Two men arrived at the 17th hole and noticed Mr Chuang's golf bag.

When, after a few minutes, no one appeared to claim the bag, the men told a greenkeeper, who found Mr Chuang.