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Speaker 1: It's one of the more memorable days of my life.

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Speaker 1: Was spent at Michael Hill's house at Lake Hayes and

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Speaker 1: Central Otago. He showed me his art. There was a

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Speaker 1: lot of it and it was eclectic. He had his

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Speaker 1: own nine whole golf course. It was all par threes.

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Speaker 1: This was in the days before the Hills, which in

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Speaker 1: many respects was what Michael was all about vision. He

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Speaker 1: took his path threes and then turned it into one

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Speaker 1: of the best golf courses in the country and watching

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Speaker 1: the New Zealand open these days is worth it just

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Speaker 1: for the views of his course. While I was there,

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Speaker 1: the charity event he ran started at Millbrook just across

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Speaker 1: the way. Millbrook was new then and you wondered whether

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Speaker 1: it was one of those investments that would grow into

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Speaker 1: the success it has or turn out like Formosa or

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Speaker 1: Gold Harbor. I'd won the pro am that day. He

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Speaker 1: presented me with a ticket to Australia, a few thousand

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Speaker 1: dollars and various bits and pieces from his jewelry business

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Speaker 1: that ironically I couldn't accept them, given I wasn't a

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Speaker 1: professional and amateurs were banned from winning stuff. But I

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Speaker 1: had beaten on that day shown Fitzpatrick, Andrew Mertens, Peter

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Speaker 1: o'melly and Greg Turner. So what did I need prizes for?

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Speaker 1: Michael never forgot that day, and he reminded me each

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Speaker 1: time we talked that I should give golfer go again

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Speaker 1: and come and play at his place any time iliked.

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Speaker 1: I first interviewed him in the eighties. He was Newish

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Speaker 1: then and the story of the Fungerray shop, the fire

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Speaker 1: setting up his own business it became New Zealand business folklore.

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Speaker 1: I did one of those motivational events that were a

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Speaker 1: thing for a while with him. I was hosting he

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Speaker 1: and other success stories told paying guests how they did

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Speaker 1: at what the tips were, how to never give up.

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Speaker 1: He was big into music classical. He was a philanthropist

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Speaker 1: in that particular area. His company a household name of course,

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Speaker 1: expanding into Australia and Canada. In the States, the advertising

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Speaker 1: was genius. He reveled in the personality thing. He was

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Speaker 1: a health nut, lot of juicing, probably before his time

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Speaker 1: in that sense, and like most success stories, he had

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Speaker 1: a magnetism about him, very likable, good stories and funny

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Speaker 1: with it. He was, in many respects the quintessential New

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Speaker 1: Zealand success story, hard working, self made, deprecating a memorable,

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Speaker 1: inspiring Kiwi Michael Hill, he will be missed. For more

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Speaker 1: from the mic Asking Breakfast, Listen live to Newstalks be

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Speaker 1: from six am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio