Brent McEwan (St Clair) hit his second shot on to the par 5 first hole green at Taieri yesterday to win a sudden death playoff and the Taieri Classic title.
McEwan finished tied with Matt Tautari (Queens Park) at one over par on 145 but the Southland representative made it easy for McEwan by driving into the infamous lake in the playoff.
Tautari had looked set to take the title but McEwan made a birdie 4 from nowhere on the final hole to force the playoff.
McEwan made it two from two this year, adding the Taieri title to his Otago strokeplay title he won at Balmacewen last month.
He is in good form which augurs well for his chances in the South Island strokeplay on his home course next weekend.
McEwan held the lead at lunch with a par 72 in the morning by a single stroke from Tautari.
Brandon Hodgson (Otago), Stephen Hitchcox (St Clair) and Jeremy Hall (Riverton) were two shots off the pace at the halfway stage.
But, in the afternoon, Jamie Anstiss and Tyrone Ratahi (both Otago) fired the only sub-par rounds of the day, with 71 each, to finish third and fourth equal with Mark Brooks (Queenstown) respectively.
The event attracted a good entry after the Taieri Club reverted to the 36-hole format after last year's tournament had to be canned.
There were positive vibes yesterday which could see the event return to its former stature, which it lost when New Zealand golf scheduling left it in limbo.
