Scott
Mackenzie arrived in Auckland, New Zealand at 9.25am on January 4th 1927 on the 'Marama' from Sydney. He departed on February 1st 1927 from Auckland on the 'SS Maunganui" bound for San Francisco, via Rarotonga and Papeete. That much is certain. As for his precise movements in the nearly 4 weeks between arriving and departing we can be less than certain. But Matthew, I don't think 4 weeks could be described as 'fleeting' though.
According to Mackenzie's articles in Golf Illustrated (UK) later in 1927 he took a fortnights holiday to go trout fishing - Lake Taupo perhaps, as we know he visited Rotorua GC as he mentions the visit in Golf Illustrated. He makes no mention of whether he gave any advice at Rotorua. Perhaps the club has some record of his visit, but I've never come across any.
He writes that he was rather tired from his Australian exertions, so I think it fits that he had his 2 weeks holiday in early January, and got back to work later in January - this seems to tie in with the dates he was at Titirangi GC in Auckland, or Maungakiekie GC as it was called then. Mackenzie writes that he inspected "one or two other courses" while in Auckland. What ones they might have been I do not know.
Mackenzie was at Titirangi around January 20, according to information from the Club's archivist, to inspect the course and make his remodelling plans and report. On the 25th the club received his plans and they resolved to have Mackenzie bunker one hole before he left, and arranged for this to occur on January 27, and this took place, which hole was not recorded apparently.
John Lovell, a golf historian here in Australia, suggests that somewhere in his 4 weeks Mackenzie travelled by train to Wellington, he suggests it as January 27, but this was the same day he was rebunkering a hole at Titirangi so perhaps he left on the evening train. If he was indeed in Wellington for a few days it is possible he visited a club or two while he was there.
So, was Heretaunga one of these? I don't know and I've never seen any evidence to suggest he was. I understand, like you Scott, that the club has no evidence either. Searching the Wellington newspapers for January 1927 may be the best bet to see if there was any mention of him. I know that Doak Scott and Haddock's book lists Heretaunga as a course incorrectly attributed to Mackenzie, and that Cornish and Whitten do not include it at all. Hawtree does list it.
That is the outline of Mackenzie's time in NZ that we currently know about and is listed in the latest version of the Mackenzie timeline. There is a fair bit of conjecture in there. What is needed is a Kiwi with the time and passion to keep digging, wade through microfiche of old newspapers at the public libraries, search old golf magazines and contact the Auckland and Wellington golf clubs that were around in 1927 to see if there are any tidbits of information hidden in their archives that might enable the picture of his 4 weeks in NZ to be fleshed out a little further. By comparison, his Australian visit is much better known. Any thoughts on a candidate for this research Scott?
And its a shame that the Merionites can't keep their refuse from spilling across other decent minded threads like yours! Have they no shame?!
cheers Neil