Golf: Johnson gets golfing call

Thirty-something North Harbour golfer Scott Johnson will make his international debut in the New Zealand team to contest the men's Four Nations Cup in Canada in August.

The North Harbour policeman is joined by Auckland's Ben Wallace as the newcomers in the team to compete against Australia, Canada and Japan in Quebec from August 5-7.

They will join Wellington twins, Peter and Thomas Spearman-Burn, Auckland's Ryan Fox and Hawkes Bay's Daniel Pearce in contesting the biennial contest at Le Club Laval-sur-le-lac.

Johnson, 32, goes against the trend of teenage golfing talent, making his breakthrough after strong domestic form over the last two years.

"New Zealand Golf has a clear and transparent selection system based on performance at key events," high performance manager Simon Poll said.

"Scott is currently in the top three on our order of merit after consistently excellent form.

"If players put the numbers on the board and are dedicated to excellence then it is difficult not to select them."

Johnson was delighted with selection after years of hard work.

"I'm really pleased in a lot of different ways to make the team," he said.

"With a lot of guys turning pro last year there's a bit of a gap and I guess I have managed to perform well in the last couple of years. To be given a chance to play is quite an honour."

Wallace, 20, is a former junior international who has played well in major events this year

Each team consists of six players and competes against each other by playing alternate shot foursome matches in the morning and singles matches in the afternoon.

TEAM FOR CANADA
New Zealand: Ryan Fox (Auckland), Scott Johnson (North Harbour), Daniel Pearce (Hawkes Bay), Peter Spearman-Burn (Wellington), Thomas Spearman-Burn (Wellington), Ben Wallace (Auckland).

- NZPA